Impoundment barra breakdown

Over the last couple of months I have made two trips to Lake Awoonga to tangle with the lake’s big barramundi. After speaking to several groups of anglers, I realized just how tough they were finding the fishing. Some of these keen fishermen had travelled all the way from Victoria to experience Queensland’s impoundment barra fishing. If you are planning a trip, there are several items you should include in your gear if you want to find success on any barra impoundment. Let’s take a look at these and some handy pointers for using them.

Poking Around Weedy Pockets
Awoonga barra can be tough to tempt during daylight hours. Apart from finding schooling fish out in the deeper water, the only other option is to work lures around the weed beds. At the moment, most of the weed visible near the surface drops away to the bottom where there is little growth at all. Placing a cast close to the visible weed and allowing it to fall to the base of the weed before retrieving is the key to working these vertical edges.
Tip: The better fishing locations will have broken weed patches. These form pockets to cast into and are more likely to hold fish. Using a pair of polarized sunglasses will cut the surface glare from the water and make the weed easier to see.

Night Time Sessions
Daylight hours are the best time to choose a night time fishing spot. As night approaches, barra activity increases and the fish are more willing to move around. An ideal spot would have the boat quietly anchored within casting distance of a shallow weedy flat, bay or point. The more submerged weed and weed reefs that can be worked from the position the better. Choose water between two to four metres deep and pick a lure weight to suit the depth you are fishing. A steady retrieve should see the lure just bouncing the tops of the weed and getting fouled occasionally.

Tip: When anchored and in position move around the boat quietly to avoid scaring the fish. Turning off sounders also reduces noise in the water. Sessions when the moon is lighting the water make it easier for both the angler and fish to see.

Barra Lure selection
As with any fishing, it pays to carry a selection of lures to suit different scenarios. Berkley Powerbait 5” Mullets are one of my favourite lures for targeting barra that are holding deeper. The Mullet is a great choice when fishing the base of the weed during the day.
For shallower water and slower presentations, you can’t go past the Powerbait Hollowbelly range. Hollowbelly swimbaits come in 4, 5 and 6 inch sizes and a range of colours. Unlike many other barra plastics, these baits are unrigged. Hollowbellies can be fitted with a specially designed Nitro Skeleton Jighead. This system allows the angler to choose the hook size and weight to suit the lure size and area they are fishing.
Hollowbelly swimbaits are set apart from other plastics because of their ultra-soft bodies which come to life with the slightest hint of movement. The Hollowbelly can be rolled dead slow or burned back fast making it one of the most effective and versatile barra lures on the market.

Line Choices
Braided line is the best option when chasing barra on soft plastics. Braids low stretch nature transmits a better feel as to what’s going on at the business end. With braid you can not only feel the lure touching the weed but more effectively rip it back out. Braided lines of 20-30lb are ideal for both spin and baitcast outfits. In a snaggy situation, you might choose to use 50lb braid but usually this is not necessary. A visible line like Spiderwire Stealth Code Red is ideal especially when trying to see your line during a night time session.
Leader material is also a vitally important part of the equation. There are stacks of leaders out there but it’s hard to go past Vanish and Stren Fluorocarbon in 60lb breaking strain. These lines are perfect all-rounders and suited to different lure types and all the situations you are likely to encounter. The beauty of these lines is their superior abrasion resistance. Barra are well known for biting and cutting through leaders. It is usually the monster fish that do this so a quality leader is well worth it.

Once you’ve got a selection of the right gear, it’s just a matter of planning your attack. The barra have been quite willing to play the game over the past weeks and the action should only get better over the coming months. The full moon period is a productive time to be on the water but it is also the busiest. Finding a quiet spot to yourself or fishing when there are fewer boats around can really work in your favour. Until next time, buckled rods from the Colonel!