Lake Monduran Guide

Lake Monduran is widely regarded as one of Queensland's premier impoundment barramundi fisheries. Situated roughly 80 kilometres northwest of Bundaberg near the small township of Gin Gin, the lake is a purpose-built water storage impoundment on the Kolan River system. It covers approximately 4,000 hectares when full and offers a diverse mix of habitat: vast open basin, flooded timber, shallow weed flats, rocky points, and creek arms that give barra plenty of country to move through and anglers plenty of water to explore.

The lake is stocked regularly with barramundi and Australian bass by our amazing local community apart of Monduran Anglers and Stocking Association, making it a genuine year-round fishery. Alongside barra and bass, anglers can also expect to encounter numerous types of catfish, and while Australian bass provide great sport on light gear (particularly in the cooler months), it is the barramundi that draws anglers from across the state and beyond.

Lake Monduran holds a remarkable place in the record books, in December 2010, Mackay angler Denis Harrold made fishing history at Lake Monduran when he landed a world record barramundi weighing 44.6kg and measuring 135cm, with a girth of 107cm. The catch smashed the previous world record of 37.85kg, which had been held since 1999 by a fish taken from Lake Tinaroo in far north Queensland, by almost 7kg. What makes the catch even more remarkable is that Harrold was fishing from a kayak on light 4-6kg gear, and the fish fell to a slow-trolled soft plastic in black and gold colouration. It remains the largest barramundi ever landed on rod and reel anywhere in the world, and it came from right here in our backyard.

The best fishing broadly follows the seasons. Spring and summer (October through March) bring warmer water temperatures, aggressive feeding behaviour, and the famous topwater bite during low light periods. The wet season brings rain, rising water levels, and the spectacular full moon night bite in the main basin. The cooler months from April through September have historically been underrated. Live scope technology has since proven that winter fishing at Monduran can be exceptional for those prepared to adapt their approach. Seasons, moon phases, troll sessions in the basin, and the full moon night bite are all covered in detail throughout this guide.

Ash Austin with a monster 122cm barra caught with Sam from
Mondy Man Lake Monduran Fishing Charters

Fishing Techniques

How you fish Lake Monduran depends heavily on what electronics you are running, or whether you are running any at all. The approach for an angler with live scope is fundamentally different to someone on a standard 2D sounder or side scan, and both differ again from fishing with no electronics. This section breaks it down into two clear groups.

Fishing with Live Scope (Forward-Facing Sonar)

Live scope has changed barramundi fishing at Monduran more than any other development in recent memory. The ability to see individual fish on structure and watch them react to your lure in real time transforms the game entirely. You are no longer guessing. You are effectively sight fishing.

Finding Fish
Use live scope to scan timber, submerged trees, weed edges, shallow points and the main channels. At Monduran, barra will often sit in many different ways - scan the water methodically. Do not blast through an area, work the area slowly and let the sonar do the work.

Reading Fish on Screen
Not every fish you mark is going to eat. Active fish will often track a lure aggressively within seconds of it passing the fishes face, sometimes the fish will even actively turn around to find a lure in it’s territory. Dormant and skittish fish tend to either ignore presentations outright or instantly bolt in the opposite direction. Often times, trying to force a spooky or dormant fish to bite is a waste of time, focus your effort on finding an area where the majority of fish are at least interested in what you have to offer them.

Presentation
This is quite possibly the most crucial aspect of live scope fishing, if you don’t get this right, it’s game over – quickly. The presentation can be broken down into 3 main sections:

Depth
Having your lure pass the fish at a similar depth is often times the difference between a fish not seeing your lure, rejecting it, or eating it. When using perspective mode, there is a very handy trick you can use to ensure your lure is reaching the depth of the fish. As your lure is sinking, once it is similar in colour to the fish, you are roughly at the same depth as it. Once you master this, your conversion rate will sky rocket.

Distance
Probably the number 1 mistake we see people make when learning Live Scope is they cast too early. They see a fish on the screen and instantly bomb a cast at them. There are a lot of things wrong with this however the main issue being that it is very difficult to get an accurate cast and to ensure you are landing your lure past the fish. When you spot a fish, try and bring them into the centre of the screen, this will help you line up your cast as often times you only get 1 or 2 casts at a fish. On top of this it helps significantly with being able to land your lure past the fish to avoid spooking it, and give you time to adjust your retrieve to get your lure lined up perfectly.

Angle
The angle of your cast also makes a huge difference to whether a fish will bite or spook. Sometimes fish don’t give you any other option and you need to make the cast. However, if possible, the ideal cast is when the fish is facing perpendicular to the boat (facing left or right on the screen), and you make a cast so the lure comes directly past the fishes face. Sometimes if the fish is pointing at your or away from you, and your lure either comes directly towards it or from over its shoulders you can spook the fish a lot easier. Positioning your boat to get the right angle on your cast is often overlooked however this alone will improve your conversion rate significantly.

Night Fishing with Live Scope
Night fishing with live scope at Monduran is as good as barra fishing gets. As water temperatures drop after dark, barra rise up in the water column. Fish that were sitting tight to weed or deep in timber during the day will suspend mid-water or just below the surface as the cover of darkness provides them with a sense of safety and a comfortable temperature. This makes them significantly easier to pitch lures to. This style of fishing doesn’t have many ‘secret spots’, simply drive to an area you want to investigate, put your scope in and have a look. If the numbers aren’t there, rinse and repeat.

Lure Selection for Live Scope
Essentially any type of lure can be used with Live Scope, the below are the most common types we see most effective at the lake.

Strolling lures (jerk shad style soft plastics) are the go-to for live scope fishing. They are slow, deliberate, stay in the strike zone and are incredibly versatile.
Paddle tail soft plastics on a light jig head are also a great option, perfect for a simple, slow roll retrieve with constant tail action.
Suspending hard body lures work well on active fish, these lures are also great for sitting them right in front of a fishes face to trigger a bite.
Glide baits are a strong option for big fish in open water, they can help trigger insanely aggressive strikes, particularly effective when barra are up high in the water column at night.
Barra fly lures (a jig head wrapped with fly material) are increasingly popular at Monduran for their subtle action and the ability to get a bite when no other lure can.

Carla Sutton with a nice Lake Monduran barra

Fishing Without Live Scope (Side Scan / 2D Sounder / No Sounder)

The majority of anglers on Monduran are fishing without live scope and they are still catching barra. Without the ability to see individual fish, reading the environment becomes everything. Wind direction, barometric pressure, season, time of day, and water temperature all narrow down where the fish are likely to be. Get those right before you even launch the boat.

Using Side Scan
Side Scan is your best tool without live scope. Use it to identify schools of bait, fish, and to better understand the underwater landscape. You will save hours of fruitless casting if you know fish are actually there.

Fishing with No Electronics
If you are running no sounder at all, this is where reading the weather really comes into its own. Target wind-blown points and bays. Bait gets pushed there and barra follow. Focus on areas with visible structure: flooded timber, rocky points, weed edges, shallow flats adjacent to deeper water. These are the areas barra use to ambush prey. You may not be able to confirm fish are there, but if the habitat and conditions line up, keep working the area.

Retrieve Techniques - Keep it simple

Soft plastics & swimbaits – Slow roll
Hard Bodies – Twitch & pause

Persistence
Barra at Monduran can turn on and off in a matter of minutes. Short bite windows are common. The anglers who catch the most fish without live scope are simply the ones who put themselves in the right area using the environmental cues, and keep a lure in the water. When the bite turns on, you want to be ready.

Night Fishing Without Live Scope
Night fishing is a great way to improve your success rate on the dam, especially without live scope. Finding a nice point that has a mix of weed, lily pads, timber and maybe even some rock is a great place to start, providing it has had consistent wind blow over the previous days. If you have side scan, find an area with plenty of fishing moving through, and just keep on casting. Using spot lock or tying to a tree and fishing the point methodically is a really good way to eventually intercept a fish, if you can see a clear channel or drop off on your sounder, angle the boat and your casts to keep your lure in that area for as long as possible throughout the retrieve.

Steve Davidson with a nice barra caught on fly at Lake Monduran

Seasonal & Environmental Conditions

Spring / Summer (October to March)

Warmer water pushes barra out of the shallows during the heat of the day and into deeper, cooler water. They compensate by feeding aggressively during low light. Early mornings, late afternoons, and into the night are your prime windows.

Topwater Bite
Summer is the best time of year for topwater fishing at Monduran. Frog lures and unweighted paddle tail soft plastics worked on the surface during low light conditions can produce explosive strikes. Push right up into a wind-blown bay or up toward the top of the dam. You want to be away from boat traffic and disturbance. Thick weed and lily pads with light spindly timber is the ideal habitat. Stealth is everything in this style of fishing. Barra are super shallow and will spook at the sound of a trolling motor or a heavy footstep on the hull. Drift in, cut the motor, and work the area quietly.

Edge Bite
The edge bite is one of the most consistent and accessible styles of fishing at Monduran, producing throughout the year however most consistent during Spring. Early mornings, late afternoons and into the night are your prime windows. Target points that are receiving consistent wind, ideally sitting in 6 to 12 feet of water with deeper water dropping away around them. The best points will offer a mix of structure: timber, weed, lily pads and rocks, try finding a point with a few of these present. This variety of habitat concentrates baitfish and gives barra multiple ambush positions to work from. Suspending hard body lures worked with a twitch-and-pause are highly effective here, as are slow rolled paddle tail soft plastics and swimbaits worked along the edge and through the strike zone. When the conditions stack up and a good point is receiving consistent wind during low light, this style of fishing can be red hot.

Post-Rain Events
Most summers bring rain, and a big rain event early to mid-summer (typically October through December) will push large numbers of fish down into the main basin. When the dam reaches capacity and overflows, freshwater discharges into the Kolan River system which eventually reaches saltwater country. Barramundi are a euryhaline species (can tolerate both fresh and saltwater) however they do need access to saltwater to spawn. Big fish at Monduran are instinctively drawn toward the dam wall and the main basin as flows increase, because it represents their pathway toward salt.
These are large, pre-spawn barra at their most aggressive. Pair significant rainfall with strong northerly winds pushing into the basin and you have the conditions for some of the best barra fishing the lake produces. Trolling lures through the basin is one of the most effective ways to find and connect with these fish. You cover ground, locate feeding fish, and put multiple lures in the strike zone simultaneously.

Ryan 'Browndog' Brown with a monster barra caught at Lake Monduran
by trolling late into the night

Cooler Months (April to September)

For decades, winter at Monduran had a reputation as tough going. Fish supposedly pushed deep, went lethargic, and became near impossible to tempt. Live scope has blown that theory apart. What we now understand is that the fish were always there and always feeding. Anglers were just fishing the wrong way.

In cooler water, barra are far more comfortable sitting high in the water column throughout the entire day. They do not need to retreat to the depths to regulate temperature. Anglers running live scope over the past few winter seasons have found the dam significantly less crowded, fish more active across longer windows, and barra easier to pitch lures to when they are sitting up higher in the water column. The bite window extends well beyond the low-light periods that define summer fishing.

One critical adjustment for winter: barra are noticeably spookier in clear, cooler water. Go light. Natural presentations: small paddle tail soft plastics and strolling lures worked slowly will out-fish heavy gear and aggressive retrieves. Approach fish slowly, keep noise down, and cast a long way from the fish before bringing your lure to them.

Full Moon

There are few combinations more productive at Lake Monduran than a spring or summer full moon bite. The week leading into the full moon consistently produces some of the best night-time sessions on the lake, particularly when fish are stacked in the main basin.

Live scope and trolling are both highly effective in the basin during full moon periods. Barra feed later into the night, are more aggressive, and tend to sit higher in the water column. All of this plays into the hands of anglers prepared to fish after dark. If you are casting points during a full moon session, get the wind at your back and keep casting. Persistence during a full moon bite is rewarded.

Most experienced Monduran regulars plan their trips around the full moon. The track record is hard to argue with. That said, there is no substitute for time on the water. Learning fish behaviour and seasonal patterns comes from repetition. Do not overthink it. Go fishing.

Kimberley Allwood with a cracking barra caught at Lake Monduran

Wind & Barometric Pressure

Wind Direction

Unlike a saltwater estuary, Monduran has no tidal flow. Wind is the primary force that concentrates bait, warms surface layers, and pushes fish into predictable areas. Consistent wind direction over multiple days is what you are looking for. It stacks bait and warmer water into specific bays and points, which in turn concentrates barra. One-off wind shifts can trigger a bite but will not hold fish in an area the same way sustained wind does.

A great tool for pre-trip planning is the app Windy. Its interactive map shows you exactly which sections of the lake are copping the most wind, allowing you to identify specific wind-blown bays and points before you launch. If you can find a couple of points inside a wind-blown bay that are also getting hit directly (paired with weed, lily pads and spindly timber) you are in the right area, barra will be there.

Barometric Pressure

Barometric pressure has a significant influence on barra behaviour at Monduran. Everyone has their own opinions and experiences and that is fair enough. Stick with what works for you. Below is a general guide to what we commonly observe on the lake, though outliers always exist.

Barometric Trend	Bite Quality	Notes
Slow falling	Poor	Barra become lethargic and hard to tempt. Slow your retrieve right down.
Fast falling (approaching weather front like a storm)	Excellent	One of the most reliable bite triggers at Monduran. Get on the water and fish hard.
Fast rising (immediate post-front)	Poor	Fish have usually eaten already and are now shut down and pushed deep. Wait for pressure to stabilise before expecting results.
Slow rising	Great	A slow rise in pressure is a great thing at the lake, especially paired with consistent wind directions.

Brock Fallis with a quality Lake Monduran barra

Key Bite Times

Timing your sessions at Lake Monduran can be the difference between a red-hot bite and a slow session. Barra are highly responsive to environmental triggers. Understand these windows and plan around them.

Moon Rise, Moon Above, Moon Below and Moon Set
The moon's gravitational pull triggers feeding windows in barra. The 30 to 60 minutes either side of moon rise, moon above, moon below, and moon set are your best windows. Moon above and moon below are often the strongest of the four. There are plenty of reliable apps available to help track these bite windows.

Kolan River Tide Changes
Despite being an impoundment, Monduran feeds into the Kolan River system and barra respond to tidal movement in the lower Kolan. Any tide changes are known for producing a small bite window, often times only 30 minutes long, so ensure to be sitting on fish during this window.

Wind Changes
When the wind direction shifts, barra can either fire up or completely shut down, it is rarely in between. A strong northerly pushing in on a calm day is one of the more reliable bite triggers at Monduran, particularly during spring and summer afternoons. Fish it hard as soon as the change arrives.

Barometric Pressure
As mentioned previously, barometric pressure plays a massive role in fish behaviour at the lake. Refer to the table in the section above to better understand potential feeding windows.

Bronson Magin with a nice barra caught at Lake Monduran

Lure Selection by Location

Where you are fishing on the lake and how you are presenting your lure should dictate your choice, not habit. The type of structure you are targeting, how deep the fish are sitting, and whether you are covering water or working a specific spot all play into what belongs on the end of your line. A lure that is perfect for open water trolling is going to be the wrong tool when you are punching into tight timber. What works on a shallow flat at first light will not get results when fish are pushed deep at midday. Use the table below as your guide.

Location / Structure	Depth	Fishing Style	Recommended Lures	Notes
Ultra shallow flats & points	1ft to 6ft	Topwater casting	Frog lures, unweighted paddle tail soft plastics	Stealth is everything. Low light or overcast conditions only. Approach quietly and keep noise to a minimum.
Shallow flats & points	6ft to 15ft	Casting	Mid to deep diving jerk baits, paddle tail soft plastics, swimbaits	Target wind-blown areas. Best early morning and late afternoon. Look for a mix of weed, lily pads and timber.
Main basin	Variable	Trolling	Custom rigged big paddle tail soft plastics, swimbaits, shallow/mid/deep diving hard body lures (match to depth fish are sitting)	Best at night, particularly in the warmer months. Troll between 2.5km/h and 5km/h depending on lure action.
Main basin	Variable	Live scope casting	Strolling lures (jerk shad style soft plastics), hard body lures, glide baits	Best at night in the warmer months. Adjust lure choice to match the depth fish are sitting at. Strolling lures are the most versatile option.
Main channels (open water)	Variable	Live scope casting	Strolling lures (jerk shad style soft plastics), paddle tail soft plastics, big curl tail soft plastics, hard body lures, glide baits	Cover ground efficiently. Target singles or pairs. Fish in schools spook easier. Adjust depth to match what you are marking on screen.
Dense timber	Variable	Casting	Jerk shad hard bodies, paddle tail soft plastics	Fish heavy. Barra in tight timber are hard to stop and will wrap you instantly. Cover ground and focus on trees with a few branches and an opening in the middle. These pockets are known ambush points for barra.

Team member Josh Mortensen took out the 'Barra Buster' award at the 2024 Tackle World Bundaberg Lake Monduran Family Fishing Classic held by MASA - Monduran Anglers and Stocking Association. A cracking effort mate and well deserved!

Tackle World Pro Tips

Our top five tips for getting the most out of your time on Lake Monduran:

Pay close attention to the weather leading into your trip - Wind direction, barometric pressure, rainfall and moon phase all influence where fish will be and how they will behave.
Persistence is everything - Keep a lure in the water. Bite windows at Monduran can be short and fierce. The angler who has a lure in the water at the right time will out fish everyone else.
Use modern sonar technology to your advantage - Live scope is the way of the future. Anglers learning it now are years ahead of the rest.
Keep your retrieve simple - A slow roll or a twitch-and-pause will cover almost every lure you will throw and will out-fish complicated retrieves nine times out of ten.
Fish the low light periods and into the night - These are the most consistent times to be on the water, especially during the warmer months and around the full moon.

Gear Recommendations

Barra anglers are notoriously fussy with their choice of gear, and for good reason, choosing the right gear is paramount when fishing the lake, these barra are ruthless and will expose any weak link in a matter of seconds. Opening hooks, breaking lures in half, snapping rods and line, causing reels to fail completely, the list goes on. Landing one of these iconic sportfish comes with its fair share of challenges, and they constantly surprise us with what damage they do, but having quality gear is one thing you can have on your side to get the upper hand.

Now we aren’t going to go into very much detail here as what anglers use is extremely dependant on their fishing style and personal preferences. However we have compiled a basic list of recommended tackle, which we hope will help a few people out who may be new to barra fishing at Lake Monduran.

Rod & Reel Combos

Combo – Light spin (open water)

Reel – 4000 or 5000 spin reel
Rod – ranging between 10lb and 30lb spin rod (10-20lb, 12-25lb etc)
Line – 30lb or 40lb braid
Leader – 80lb leader

Combo – Heavy spin (all rounder, tight country, trolling)

Reel – 5000 spin reel
Rod – ranging between 15lb and 40lb (15-30lb, 20-40lb etc)
Line – 40lb to 60lb braid
Leader – 80lb to 100lb leader

Combo – Light baitcast (open water)

Reel – 150 to 200 size Baitcaster reel
Rod – ranging between 10lb and 30lb baitcast rod (10-20lb, 12-25lb etc)
Line – 30lb or 40lb braid
Leader – 80lb leader

Combo – Heavy baitcast (all rounder, tight country, trolling)

Reel – 200 to 300 size Baitcaster reel
Rod – ranging between 15lb and 40lb (15-30lb, 20-40lb etc)
Line – 40lb to 60lb braid
Leader – 80lb to 100lb leader

Casting Lures

Soft Plastics – Casting

Soft Plastics – Strolling

Hard Bodies

Swimbaits

Glide Baits

Topwater

Trolling Lures

Soft Plastics

Hard Bodies

Terry Allwood who runs Flick-It Fishing Charters with a mammoth 126cm barra
caught at Lake Monduran during a tournament

Summary

Lake Monduran is a world-class impoundment barramundi fishery sitting in Tackle World Bundaberg's backyard. It holds genuine trophy fish, produces records, and rewards anglers who invest the time to understand its rhythms. Whether you are running live scope chasing suspended fish in the middle of the night, working a wind-blown shallow flat with a topwater frog lure at first light, or jerk baiting barra sitting deep in trees, Monduran has a bite for every style of angler.

The key variables (season, wind, barometric pressure, moon phase, tide changes on the Kolan, and time of day) play a vital role in fish feeding habits. Understanding how each one influences barra behaviour means you will spend more time fishing the right water at the right time, and less time wondering why the bite went quiet.

Come into Tackle World Bundaberg for the best and most up to date local knowledge, lure recommendations and gear advice before your next trip to Monduran. Our team fishes the lake regularly and we are always happy to point you in the right direction.

Liked this guide? Check out our other Species Guides for more local fishing tips and techniques.