The Whitsundays are a far more accessible fishing destination than people make them out to be. An hour-and-a-half by plane from Brisbane puts you in Proserpine; next stop, Airlie Beach; and straight out with Whitsunday Fishing Charters to tick a couple of reef monsters off your list! It pays to go with a quality guide and quality team, and trust us, the team from Whitsunday Fishing Charters are some of the best going round.
Captain Chris knows the current lines around the region like the back of his hand, and can pretty much pinpoint what fish you are going to target and where. Just off a couple of the islands are “wonky holes,” which are effectively patches of freshwater that supply nutrients for big fish to feed on. A simple paternoster rig will do the job just fine to latch on to a couple of giant cod, nannygai, and even the occasional emperor. The pelagics also run prolifically out there. Mackerel are also constantly on the hit list, as well as wahoo and all the billfish species.
While our team was out there, we hooked up to a couple of good Spanish mackerel on pushers, with whole gar as bait. Unweighted bigger deadbait also works for mackerel, however you have to make sure they don’t end up spinning while they are on the troll (this will make the bait look unnatural).
Hook up with Chris and the team from Whitsunday Fishing Charters by checking out their website. All the gear you could ever need to tackle Airlie can be picked up from your local BCF!
