At the time it was flattering but also a bit of a pain that several anglers and journalists worked out a handful of my pet kayak jewfish spots on the NSW south coast. 

The upside is that it has forced me to explore further afield and has made me a better angler.  So far I have confidently identified a dozen new places to catch these prized fish, but they are still hard enough to make it fun.

This big journey started in roundabout way when I decided to see if I could catch a jewfish from a kayak 5 years ago; something that got me lots of ‘your kidding me’ looks at the time. 

Interestingly it has turned out to be the very best way to catch jewfish and I’ve cottoned onto a stack of stuff that I would’ve missed in a bigger boat.

For a start experienced jewfish anglers typically agree that these fish have a lateral line that can ‘feel’ noise a mile away, especially in a quite estuary.

It is one thing to read this but quite another to see it turn into results.  I have found that the small footprint and stealth of a kayak means far more jewfish ‘if’ you peddle quietly and keep noise to a minimum.  

This is much in the same way modern day bass boats with carpeted floors and electric motors are better on wary fish than bare hull tinnys with clunky 2 stroke outboards.

There are exceptions around bridges, marinas and ocean bommies where noise is accepted by the local jewfish population, but when chasing them in quiet estuarine locations you want them to sense your lure first, rather than your boat or a clumsy mate.   When used properly Kayaks are without a doubt the quietest and least obtrusive craft of all.

Too make things even more interesting, I am seeing more jewfish fining with the tide from my kayak than I do in larger boats.

This is helping me appreciate how jewfish are masters of the current; they move with the flow when migrating or coming out to feed, and lay up in the prime real estate for the rest of the time, which is often.

Perhaps what has helped the most of all is that in my kayak I have leaned to understand flows properly because I spend energy feeling the current, rather than not paying attention because I have petrol or electric power at my fingertips.  The subtleties of tidal flows are proving to be a real key to success. 

You can not only work out holding stations of a jewfish, which are usually structure or hole orientated, you are in pole position to work our where they move first when the tide slackens off, or where they end up when the tide starts to pick up.

Fair dinkum we have their bite time down to the half hour in some of the new spots, and now catch them consistently even in what I thought were the harder months such as summer and winter.  It is an absolute eye opener, even to some older friends of mine who have been catching jewfish out of bigger boats successfully for over 30 years! 

One of the downsides to the amount of jewfish that kayakers are catching is that power boats sometimes pull up nearby.

This is rare but disappointing when it happens, especially considering there is loads of good jewie spots in most estuaries. 

That and one of the benefits of having an outboard is that you can easily catch up to the tide change if you turn up late or an opposing wind turns the tide earlier than the charts predicted.

Most anglers know that bream and flathead can be found in suitable habitat throughout a system, especially when there has been no recent floods to push them down to the sea.  After a while you will find jewfish, while in much smaller numbers, are really no different.   

Whatever craft you use, give your fellow anglers some room and look for your own patch, it’s worth it.  And if you are struggling to understand tides, borrow a kayak and give it red hot go; if it’s not your cup of tea at least you can use what you learn when you get back in a bigger boat. 

From there you can even lure jewfish from the bank, albeit for a short amount of time on the slack tide.  However snags and losing bigger fish is a pain, especially when your kayak is strapped to the roof of your nearby car!

The icing on the cake is that south coast jewfish are getting easier each season for everyone thanks to recreational fishing havens where the pros can’t move in and net the schools you’ve been enjoying.  

With more education on where, how and when these fish they will hopefully grow into a more popular target fish like bream and flathead. 

You can use the search function on my web site www.fishingaustralia.tv to find more information. 

See you on the water. 

Rob Paxevanos