Squire were pretty much common to all of the visited reefs although at the Barwon Banks they were mostly Snapper size captures, as per the photo above left. Janet Allen from Tasmania celebrated her 60th birthday in style when she joined a full day Cougar Too charter to 'The Banks' on Saturday. A mad keen angler for many years, Janet couldn't think of a better way to celebrate the occasion and the 2.5 and 3.5kg Snapper she boated simply topped off a perfect day. Happy birthday Janet! The rest of the catch was Pearl Perch, Gold Band Snapper and Parrot Fish. A little closer in, North Reef proved pretty popular, producing Moses Perch, Shiny Mackerel, Mahi Mahi, Sweetlip. Maori Cod, Teraglin Jewfish, Parrot Fish, Snapper, Scarlet Sea Perch and Yellowfin Tuna. On the inner reefs, Arkwright Shoal was the spot for Shiny Mackerel, Spotted Mackerel, Spanish Mackerel, Small Mouth Nannygai and Tuskfish while at Sunshine Reef the catch was mostly Spanish Mackerel, Coral Trout and Northern Bluefin (Longtail) Tuna. Closer to shore, boaties trolling around Alexandria Bay found their lures and troll rigs hit hard by quality Spanish Mackerel and Northern Bluefin Tuna. Last but not least, Laguna Bay fired up on alternate days with Mackerel Tuna and Northern Bluefin Tuna (plus lots of small sharks) around Little Hall's Reef and at Big Hall's Reef where, as you can see by the photo above right, there was the added bonus of the odd Spanish Mackerel. Local Yak angler Bill 'Billybob' Watson was paddle trolling a whole Bonito on a Davo's Spaniard Special south east of Big Hall's around 6am on Friday when the 16kg Spaniard in the photo took a liking to it. After landing his prize he decided to head for home via Jew Shoal and twenty minutes later, about 1km east of the 'Pin', his trolled Slimy Mackerel bait was taken by the smaller (11kg) fish pictured. He was armed with a 6kg-8kg Wilson Live Fibre rod and a Shimano Baitrunner 4500 reel loaded with 20lb Fireline and 30lb Platinum mono trace. Apart from that, Jew Shoal also produced Northern Bluefin Tuna, Mackerel Tuna and some quality Snapper.

ONSHORE: The coastal surf beaches continued to produce the goods with the North Shore once again providing anglers with good returns. Whiting were on the bite from Teewah to the camp ground while Tailor were in good numbers down towards the river mouth (along with Flathead), at the 2nd and 3rd Cuttings and up around Freshwater. Up at the top end there were Spotted Mackerel and Trevally within casting distance of the rocks at Double Island Point. Over on the east side; Whiting were active from Sunrise Beach to Marcus Beach where Tailor (to 1.5kg), Bream (to 1kg) and Dart (to 730gm) were also on the go. In the river, Whiting and Bream were the high profile species down towards the mouth while in the Woods Bays Trevally, Tailor and, as you can see by the photo on the right, Queenfish were responding well to surface poppers. Local angler Mark Arnall used a gold Storm 'Chug-Bug' on Friday morning to attract the attention of the 1.8kg 'Skinny' he's posing with. He was armed with a G-Loomis Crankbait rod and a Shimano MG-Chronarch reel loaded with 10lb P.E. braid and 10lb leader. Other areas of interest were Munna Point (Trevally, Tailor and Bream), the entrance to Noosa Waters (Bream) and Lake Cooroibah where Flathead were going for drifted Whitebait. Those wishing to target Mangrove Jacks needed to look no further than the stretch between the lakes. On the freshwater scene, there were good size Bass around the Eagles Nest at Lake Borumba and Bass to 47cm in the Botanical Gardens reach at Lake MacDonald.

PRESENTS.....

TV Presenter and Champion Angler

STEVE STARLING, talking...

"SQUIDGY SECRETS"

WHEN:  This Wednesday, 12th April 2006... 7.00PM
WHERE: Noosa Heads Bowls Club, Noosa Junction
COST:   $5.00 Per Person, Children under 16 Free.

****** LUCKY DOOR PRIZES ******