Ask any Sunshine Coast local where a top spot to fish is and they will list a string of locations, dependant on where they are from, but you can pretty much guarantee the Cod Hole is always in that list! No matter the tide, weather, time of day or night, this spot always rewards those who choose to fish there.

The famous Cod Hole produces everything from bream to big jew. The Cod Hole originally was the area where the boat ramp is today. Local legend has it that water skiers in the 1950’s who began a ski club in the area beside the boat ramp, seeing huge estuary cod in the water and deep holes of up to 6m which were once in the mud there.

Nowadays, the sand and mud has made it quite shallow there, and very few big cod can be found near the boat ramp, instead they have taken up residence in the deep holes and crevaces surround the twin Motorway bridges. You could say it runs from the boat ramp in front of Maroochy Palms Caravan Park to downstream of the bridge by about 75m.

Most people that say they caught their fish in the Cod Hole fish within 50m either side of the Motorway Bridge, or even over along the northern banks along Godfreys and Oyster Bank Road, which runs parallel to the river from the Motorway to opposite Eudlo Creek. There is a rocky wall and step bank that fishes very well for bream and flathead.

Trevally and jew are the two main species on offer year round in the Cod Hole and can be caught on live bait, hardbody lures or soft plastics worked around the bridge pylons. Trolled deep diving lures around the top of the tide will also produce trevally, flathead and occasional jew. Fish live bait at night for best jew results.

Jewfish move around a lot in winter months following the annual migration of tailor and sea mullet. They feed in the gutters off the beach and venture into the deeper holes and around structures like the Motorway Bridge to feed up on smaller tiger and bully mullet. Either side of the new and full moon phases will always be a good time to target trevally, jew and even the odd cod.

Tackle and Rigs: With big hard fighting jew you are going to need better than normal equipment to avoid break offs and lost fish. Use at least 10kg main line, 1m of 20-30kg high abrasion resistant leader, strong black crane style swivels, size 4 to 6 ball sinkers and size 6/0 to 8/0 chemically sharpened suicide style hooks. Strong chemically sharpened hooks are required to penetrate the jew’s hard bones and cartilage in their mouths. Abrasion resistant leader is required to with stand gill plates, rakers and numerous sharp teeth.

There’s often plenty of school jew in the river systems of the Sunshine Coast, it is well worth grabbing your rod and heading out on the water to chase them. School jew or soapies as they are commonly known as, are just juvenile jew ranging between 2 and 5kg. Just keep in mind jew do have a minimum size limit of 75cm and bag limit of 2 in Queensland.

Danny Brooks practically lives at the Cod Hole, but always coming back with a decent fish like this trevally caught on soft plastic on Tuesday.

Jew are another of Danny’s favourite species, again, the Cod Hole is their usual haunt.

Schools of trevally and tailor have been feeding readily in the cod hole over the past few weeks, providing plenty of fun for keen angler on lure and bait alike. The boys were lucky enough to pull a few GT’s to 3kg over the weekend.