Episode 157: Brisbane Waters Bream With Leon Gaston

Leon’s Top Tips For Bream Fishing

• Brisbane Waters bream move away from structure and feed more freely when there is plenty of water flow, giving the angler a better chance of extracting them from the racks.
• The water is crystal clear in Brisbane Waters, so sight fishing the bream is a real option.
• Don’t overlook the shallow structure. In addition to oyster racks, large bream will get into the weedbeds and water as shallow as 15cm. 
• Vertical poles often hold some good bream. It’s just a matter of figuring out where to cast and using the current to get your lures to them.
• Bream are a good option all yar round in Brisbane Waters, but fishing deeper seems to work best during the cool months and surface fishing is best in the warmer months.
• Early morning at the start of the runout tide is perfect for bream fishing with lures. A bit of wind helps bring fish into the open, especially once the sun is up.
• On a high tide it’s worth fishing the weedbeds you’ll find adjacent to the oyster racks as bream will move out of the racks and into the weed to feed. As the tide falls the racks will become dry and the fish move into the deeper water at the back of the racks.
• Pontoons, wharves and moorings are also bream holding areas.
• On tough days when the fish aren’t playing, downsize the lures (or even cut them down a little) and be prepared to fish deep in structure where your lures are in danger.

Leon’s Tackle Recommendations For Bream Fishing

• In the racks Leon uses a Daiwa TD Black 610 2-6 kg spin rod with 2000 size reel, 8lb braid with one and a half rod lengths of 10 or 12lb fluorocarbon leader.
• Around the edges of the racks he’ll switch down a 1-3 kg TD Black rod with 6lb line and 8lb leader because he has the luxury of letting the fish run a little more..
• Once over the weedbeds and open areas Leon uses the 1-3 kg TD Black rod and 2000 size reel with 4lb fluorocarbon straight through to the lure.

Leon’s Best Bream Lures

• Leon likes the Pro Lure SF62 Pencil over the entire rack area, starting around the poles near the weed, but even over the deeper parts of the rack. He likes to work the lure slowly, giving it a few flicks and then letting it sit for a few seconds. If he can see a fish behind he’ll keep the lure fairly still and just twitch it occasionally to stimulate a bite. This lure also works well over the shallow weedbeds.
• Soft plastics such as a 1 to 1.4g Damiki Nail Bomb Jig head with a 65mm Pro Lure paddle grub and grub tail soft plastic work really well over broken areas of weedbed,  oyster shell and rubbly bottom. Work the lure very slowly with a slow roll and near dead-stick in the deeper water. Don’t allow the belly in the line to become too great and be watching for the slightest tick on the line, which is an indicator to set the hook.
• The V35 blade from Pro Lure is a good choice for fishing the deeper poles where there is a bit of current. Cast a sufficient distance upcurrent of the pole that the lre will reach bottom before it gets to the pole. Then work it with short lifts of 50cm as it comes past the pole, allowing the lure to sink between lifts.