Episode 559: Clarence River Bass With Andy Moore

Andy’s Top Bass Fishing Tips For The Clarence River

• Keep in mind the ever changing diet of bass. As bass move between estuarine and fresh waters they fundamentally change their diet. Be aware of these changes and modify your techniques according to where you are in the system.
• Andy has found that bass in brackish waters tend to feed on prawns, small fish, and other crustaceans. In the fresher waters, they tend to feed on insects that have fallen out of the trees!

Where To Find Clarence River Bass

• From around end of October through to about January, Andy usually finds good numbers of bass in the downstream reaches around Copmanhurst, Clarence Gorge, down to Grafton and beyond and many of them are phenomenally big!
• In terms of habitat in the freshwater areas, Eastern Cod are the “alphas” and tend to take up the prime location, pushing the bass out and back away from the flow near the tussock grass. If you’re after the bass in the Clarence system, get out towards the shallow spots and away from the primary rocky ledge areas, where you’re likely to find more cod than bass.
• Copmanhurst is very tidal compared to the Clarence Gorge and there are basically three different types of habitat between the two. In the bottom end of the system you can use surface lures, but a lot of the fish will be hanging out around the rock ledges and drop offs in this area feeding on small prawns and fish. Chatterbaits and spinnerbaits can give a great vertical presentation that works very well here.
• Heading up to freshwater areas around the Gorge the river is shallower and faster flowing. Its great water to throw fizzers and surface lures! Andy absolutely loves a good surface hit with a fizzer!
• The section past Clarence Gorge is deep and high energy. The best presentations there tend to be spinnerbaits and chatterbaits. The fish here will usually be very aggressive and active. You can use a lot bigger lures and don’t have to be as subtle with your lure presentation.

 Ideal Conditions for Bass Fishing

• A change in barometric pressure from low to high is something to look out for- be looking out for – it’s the perfect time to get out and get some bass fishing action.
• Water temperature is also important to keep in mind when looking for bass! Warmer water usually stimulates a bite, until it gets too hot. But the barometric pressure is the most important thing to look out for.

 Recommended Clarence River Bass Fishing Gear

• Bigger is better when fishing in the Clarence for bass! Certainly, start out with a 20-pound braid and a minimum of a 20-pound leader too.
• Small cod tackle is perfect for this area and these days spin gear is a really good option. However, there are some very large bass and plenty of cod through these areas, so a stout baitcast outfit is ideal.

Andy’s Top 3 Lures for Catching Bass in the Clarence System

• A Heddon Torpedo is one of Andy’s long-time favourites! You can pull a lot of good bass with this lure.
• Another great lure to use in this system for bass is Paul Kneller’s Deception Shrimp! You can fish these on the surface and catch bass or you can drop it down a couple of meters too.
• A good spinnerbait or chatterbait is great to have in the Clarence! These are great to use for those fishos who’s accuracy is not up to speed yet, you’ll get away with a lot using these lures! Great in the deep banks but also in the shallower areas. Andy loves a Colorado blade spinnerbait with slower presentations. He’ll usually use a gold but has caught many fish on silver too!