Port Douglas GT Fishing

[Craig Moffat]

geez, not bad for a smallish fish. That would be over 20kg wouldnt it?

would have been maybe 15kg from memory (possibly up to 20kg but wouldn't have said it was any bigger)  - i think that photo makes it look a lot bigger than it was - didn't weigh it though.

Have hooked and seen plenty of much bigger ones at that wreck though - hence the smallish comment - have caught them this size throwing poppers and they are great fun. Mark's is the best we've landed at the wreck by a long way though. We usually anchor there - but drifting is far better for jigging it (if you want to land any).

Hey Steve - saw some pics of the new rig - very nice - expect you will get some good use soon - hopefully in the next month or so to start.

Craig

[Tom Kalic]

Any chance of GPS co-ords for the Green Island Wreck? DO you pop there also, or mainly jigging?

[Craig Moffat]

Hi Tom,

I don't have my GPS in the boat at the moment - but from memory it is about 30m to the north of the mark on the charts (inside Green island just off from Cairns) - its not hard to find and well known.

If you have a chartplotter with a map of this area  it'll be on there (if you don't - i'd highly recommend getting the chart card for your trip - the small extra cost (to overall trip cost) would be well worth it).

Have never thrown a popper there - we haven't really jigged it much either - more drop a livie down and hold on. But jigging will work there for sure. (plenty of spaniards around it as well that will take a smaller jig (metal slices)  and the GT's for the bigger jigs.)

Craig

[Tom Kalic]

Thanks Craig. I have a GPS with a Navionics map in it. Might have to check it out for that region.

[Brett Guy]

Good luck on the trip mate. One of the more useful tips I can give in my limited knowledge is to keep ann eye out for bait schools well before you get to the visible reefs. Some of the shoals in around 25-30m often have patches of fusies annd mack tune all over them and finding GT's under the fusies in this situation is as close to a sure thing as you will find in fishing. Just pull up to the rippling schools annd work your poppers through them. Most are in the 10-20kg range but ou occasionally find some larger models.

[Tom Kalic]

Thanks Brett. I have heard a similar thing to what you just said. Find the fusiliers, and you will find GT's. Thats why alot of the poppers and lures I have bought so far have been fusilier colours mainly.
My PB GT so far is 20KG but I want to beat that this trip.

[joshua sutcliffe]

Hey Tom im driving up to Cairns September 15th from Tasmania and am planning to stay until Dec 15th,
im towing my 4.8m Offshore Marine Master platey up with me mainly to chase GTs and would love to get onto a Doggie or 10.

Last year i spent a couple of months hitting the reefs north and to the south of Cairns around Hinchinbrook Island and caught Gts on poppers drifting along the reefs edge on the big tides, and also got a few while chasing Spanyards on liveys. Found GTs on quite a few reefs around the area but there was definitely a big difference in fish feeding activity during the bigger tides.

Give me a shout when you get up there as il hopefully have a good few weeks under my belt by the time you get up there and im also keen to head north of Cooktown for a look. 

[Tom Kalic]

Sounds like a plan Joshua. Im only hanging around Port Douglas and Cairns this time. If you are still there in Oct/Nov would definitely be good to head out with 2 boats, and you would already have sussed it out by then.
Would love to go to Cooktown but not sure ill be able to this time. If your trailer is up to it there is some crazy fishing out of Port Stewart in Princess Charlotte Bay. The reefs arent too far out either. The outer reef is a bit of a hike in a small boat though. I am definitely going back there eventually.

[Glen McDonald]

I'm off to hinchinbrook in 5 weeks, i go out 40 klms to the reef in a 4.5m plate, as u stated, not rough til past the reef, should be much the same that bit further up