The planned club trips for the start of the year have been mostly washed out by the rains or high winds or both. The only trip that happened was a trip on Albert River chasing sharks, but this was also dampened by the muddy water and debris in the river hampering the fishing. A couple of other trips were cancelled as the weather closed in.
The Southern Brisbane Sportfishing Club (SBSFC) club members recently went on their annual pilgrimage to Lake Borumba near Imbil a week before “Tag-A-Toga”. For the past few years we have participated in the Queensland Sportfishers “Tag- A-Toga” event hosted by Kingaroy Sport Fishing Club (KSFC), but missed out on a place for 2020 because of its immense popularity. Like a rock concert, the tickets (20 teams) sold out within hours. The last of the events were held on the first weekend in March. This is the signature event the club participates in every year as the naturally breeding saratoga are a prized sport fish.
Lake Borumba dam is regarded as one of the best saratoga fisheries. For the past few years, KSFC have run fish-tagging monitoring programs at Lake Borumba, and now believes there is enough data on this sustainable fishery. Lake Borumba contains prized Australian bass as well as other freshwater fishes. This dam was suffering in the drought and was down as far as 64% recently, but the recent rains have topped it up.
Lake Borumba is a very pretty dam and hosts water skiers on the deeper parts, so an early start is called for to fish those areas before moving up into the submerged tree and snag areas. “I must admit I have not had a lot of success myself catching the elusive saratoga and with the recent inrush of water most dams take a time to settle down,” SBSFC President Ross said. “It was good to see club stalwart Jeff Maddalena and relative newcomer Mark Whalley have success with personal bests of 730mm saratoga and 430mm Australian bass, respectively. The fish in the dam were very active and it boded well for the “Tag-A-Toga” event.”
One of the best things about our club is the discussion at our meetings before trips where club members discuss techniques for the species targeted on the night – another great story of the benefits of being a club member and sharing a boat and the pleasure of a personal best fish. Both Jeff and Mark certainly had this at Lake Borumba.
The SBSFC was formed in 1995 by a band of dedicated anglers. Members of the club participate in a wide variety of fishing, including lure-casting and trolling, fly fishing and bait fishing.
SBSFC club members fish over a number of locations from Northern New South Wales for trout and murray cod, to our northern estuaries and impoundments for barramundi and mangrove jacks. The club members regularly fish the estuaries and impoundments around Southeast Queensland. Members enjoy the company and conversation that follows a great day on the water. Importantly members regularly share their tips on tackle and techniques to improve the catch of all.
SBSFC is involved in the fish-tagging program administered by the Department of Primary Industries and is also affiliated with Queensland Sportfishers (Australian National Sportfishing Association – Queensland Branch), which promotes sensible conservation while enjoying the sport.
The club meets on the first Tuesday night of every month (except January) at the Beenleigh Neighbourhood Centre, 10-12 James Street, Beenleigh. The meetings feature a speaker on fishing-related subjects. If SBSFC sounds like the club you are interested in joining, come along to one of the meetings and see for yourself.
Check out the club website on www.sbsfc.org or join the Facebook group Southern Brisbane Sportfishing Club. For further information, please contact Ross Williamson on 0407157870 or email secretary@sbsfc.org.
Published in the April – July 2020 print edition.
