Bruce at Dave’s Bait Shop in Ballina says there have been mud crabs in the creeks and the lower river (traps banned below the ferry, only dillies/witches hats) with a few bream on smelly baits like mullet gut and chicken gut.

Blackfish and a few whiting on yabbies.

The odd jewfish around the wall on the high tide.

No outside reports, naturally.

Evans River is chocolate after they let the Tucombil Canal go to ease Woodburn flood threat.

Beaches pretty featureless after four days of onshores but low-tide gutters could hold a big jew or a shark.

Bar has been messy, shallow and dangerous.

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Plenty of mud crabs through the creeks and the lower river. River fishable to about Pimlico.

The walls have turned up some jew to about 15kg on lures and soft plastics.

There were some nice tailor around before the blow came through, so there’s the hope of more once things settle.

There were decent Spanish mackerel off Lennox Point just before the blow early in the week but nobody has been out since.

At Evans Head, the bar is fine at high tide but once you get around Joggly Point you’d get hammered, so nobody has been out since Tuesday.

Mackerel were patchy at best on Monday and Tuesday when they did go, but there were also a few decent snapper at times.

The beaches have a few nice bream at the top of the tide; the gutters aren’t too flash at low tide.

Some school jew from the headlands but watch the southerly swell, it’s fluctuating a bit and some days it’s a bit dodgy.

Evans River is clear on the high tide with plenty of bait and well-fed bream and trevally. Murky on the bottom of the tide after the local rain.

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Out wider for some mahi mahi and small yellowfin tuna. Flathead in closer.

Off the beaches for flathead, dart, big tailor to about 5kg, plus the occasional jewfish.

The river has plenty of flathead, some whiting up to Keith Hall or Pimlico but they’ve had the hell netted out of them this week, with some nice bream and school jewfish up around the ferry.

Crabs still mainly in the creeks but some action in the main river upstream.

Water at Evans Head went a little cool on Wednesday but appears to be warming up now.

Glassy-calm, flat and stormy Friday afternoon with water clearer and cornflake weed not as thick.

Some small chopper tailor up the beach to Broadwater but the bait schools that were attracting small Spanish mackerel just behind the break for most of the past week seem to have scattered.

Some bream and whiting around the Broadwater rocks, and school jew and bream from the headland.

Mackerel have been pretty tame and patchy at best offshore but snapper and trag catches have improved somewhat up to the full moon but are likely to taper down now.

A few days of good southerly should bring on the macks.

The river has the odd flathead that survived the holiday onslaught, along with a few bream and not many whiting.

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Bruce at Dave’s Bait Shop in Ballina says there have been a fair few flathead to 6kg in the lower river, with just a smattering of whiting and some bream.

Most of the action has been below Pimlico, although the fish are starting to move to Wardell and beyond. Jewfish off the walls and at night, some tailor as well.

Beaches have the odd nice tailor, with whiting, dart and flathead with the occasional jewfish.

Outside there have been some nice snapper to 6kg and quite a few squire and pearl perch, trag and jewfish.

There are kings on the wider grounds, and even a nice red emperor was taken on one of the closer reefs.

There are mackerel off Black Rock, north of the Brunswick bar, but nothing really reported from closer to Ballina, and the big schools certainly haven’t rounded Cape Byron yet.

Small bonito are going great guns and mahi mahi out wider are good, too.

A similar offshore situation at Evans Head this week with bottom fishing OK but nothing in the way of mackerel to speak of until you get down around Woody Head, where they have been sporadic to say the least. Sharks are abundant down in the bay at Woody.

The beaches have a few patches of tailor every now and then, with some dart and whiting, with tiny school jewfish from the beaches and better ones to about 80cm from the rocks.

The Evans River has bream and flathead, with only a few whiting.

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Mahi mahi and a few little black marlin also out wide.
 
Whiting along the town reach early evenings on a rising tide. Flathead in North Creek and the main river. Most action is from Pimlico Island to Wardell for flathead and small school jew.

Mud crabs are roughly in a similar area with good numbers being taken but watch your traps – one per person in the boat and five hoop nets; no traps allowed below the ferry. Emigrant Creek is also good for muddies.

Beaches have a few tailor, especially afternoon/evenings, also whiting and plenty of dart.
 
I’ve been away most of the week so know little about Evans. The northerlies on Wednesday and Thursday cooled off the inshore water a little and brought in more cornflake weed.

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Quite a few school jew as well as those whiting and flathead.

Mud crabs good in Emigrant Creek and up around Broadwater.

Beaches have been OK for whiting and dart with some tailor at night.

Warm current has produced mahi mahi at the FAD and snapper and pearlies on the wider grounds.

The inshore grounds at Evans Head fired up earlier in the week when a finger of warm water came in, stirring the snapper and trag and agitating a few rat kings around Kahors and the South Reef.

Then the northerlies swept back in and most of the decent action went wider again.

A few bream and school jew up near the Broadwater rocks with whiting, dart and a few flathead from Airforce down to Main beaches.

The river has patches of good whiting all the way to the golf course with the odd reasonable flathead, patches of bream in the shady, deeper water and the usual plethora of crab traps around the golf course.

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Some flatties in North Creek and the main river up to Wardell.

Small school jew also around, mainly Pimlico to Wardell.

Muddies well up the river.

The beaches have had whiting, flathead and dart and finally there are some decent chopper tailor around, with a bit better quality at night.

It has been too windy for most offshore fishers, but if you can get wide there are snapper and pearlies, with a few mahi mahi.

I haven’t been at Evans Head all week but this morning the swell was low, the bar good and there seemed to be a little bait behind the shore break.

The river always fishes well up to Christmas and there are plenty of crabs upstream, but watch your traps – they’re only yours when you’re looking at them!

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Whiting are pretty good along the Town Reach behind the swimming pool at night.

Flatties in the lower river around the walls and on plastics all the way to Woodburn.

School jew at Pimlico and Wardell but they’re pretty small.

The big shakers and movers this week have been the mud crabs in the creeks and up-river around Broadwater, with plenty of bag limits.

Just remember, you’re limited to one crab trap (from Woodburn to the Burns Point ferry only) and five witch-hat nets per person.

Beaches have a few whiting, dart and a few flatties, with a smattering of chopper tailor around earlier in the week.

Not too many reports from outside but 36-48 fathoms are the way to go for snapper and pearlies, with some mahi mahi at the Fisheries FAD.

The beaches around Evans Head have been pretty quiet, with just the odd showing of whiting, a stray fair bream and plenty of shovelnose sharks and stingrays.

A bit better around the rocks, where small school jew have been pretty regular, along with just the odd decent tailor.

Not many boats outside during the week but those that did had varied success, with very few snapper and the odd patch of trag in close and a few snapper, pearlies and kings well out.

The river has whiting either side of the Iron Gates, a few bream from there upstream and plenty of spiky flathead all through along with crabs up around the golf club. Guard your traps.

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And a kayaker caught a 22kg fish at the mouth of North Creek.

Plenty of flathead from little spikers to big mummas.

Whiting in the lower reaches and nice bream all though the system.

Some jacks around the rock walls and the town pontoon.

Mud crabs up as far as Broadwater.

Beaches have flathead, whiting, dart and the odd jew, with some tailor around as well.

Offshore for trag, jewfish and the occasional king and snapper, the 42 fathom reef for pearlies.

At Evans Head there have been some whiting and just the odd school jew up towards the coffee rock at Broadwater, with a few more schoolies around the rocks.

Flathead and whiting in the river with a few trag outside with the occasional hit of jew and the odd gang of rat kingies.

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Flatties have been all through the system from above Woodburn to the mouth, while whiting have been best in the lower sections of North Creek, where they’re taking worms and poppers.

There are also catches of whiting in the river up to Pimlico, with worms producing the most fish there.

Bream have been caught on fresh prawns and lures, while the odd mangrove jack is starting to terrorise some of those fishing the more rugged rock walls of the lower reaches.

Mud crabs in the upper reaches with a few down a little lower.

School jew and a few better ones in the river.

Beaches have produced good whiting, flathead and tailor with the odd jewfish.

South Ballina Beach has been the focus of activity.

Outside has been producing some snapper, some jewfish and the occasional king out wider.

There were mahi mahi a while back but nothing recently.

An unexpectedly nice morning at Evans on Friday with little of the nasty northerly expected later, a flat ocean and water around 22° right to the beach, with bluebottles and Velella washed ashore.

Apparently the odd tailor turning up (I’ve been away all week) with some dart and whiting along the beach and the occasional school jew from the headlands and beaches.

Not too sure about the river but the usual flathead and whiting should be about, especially well upstream.

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