La Balsa Park (Mooloolah River)

La Balsa Park runs along the eastern bank of the Mooloolah River just inside the entrance, opposite the Mooloolaba marina. The tide runs fast and clean past a bank you can walk straight onto, with sand flats and a drop-off into the channel. Bream, flathead and whiting work the edges, and the channel brings in trevally and the odd mulloway from the bar. The park is named after the 1970 La Balsa raft expedition, which drifted across the Pacific from Ecuador and finished at Mooloolaba. Its namesake crossed the Pacific; a kayak crossing the channel here is the more common sight.

Fish the edge of the drop-off with a light running sinker and yabbies, worms or prawns for bream and whiting. Hopping soft plastics down the slope into the channel on the run-out tide catches flathead. A pilchard or strip bait cast into the current on the change of tide may bring trevally. At night, a live bait or a large strip bait fished deep in the channel is the mulloway option.

Yellowfin bream (25 cm) and tarwhine share a combined possession limit of 30, and sand whiting are 23 cm (30). Dusky flathead must be 40–75 cm (possession 5). Trevally have no size limit and a combined possession limit of 20, and mulloway are 75 cm (2).

In Queensland tidal waters you may use up to 3 lines with no more than 6 hooks in total, and you must stay with every line. The run-out tide pulls bait off the flats and into the channel, which is when flathead feed hardest. Pump yabbies on the sand at low tide. Keep your casts out of the boat lane — this is the harbour's only exit.

Park along Pacific Boulevard and in the reserve at Buddina, close to toilets and picnic areas. The river bank is a short flat walk from the parking, with sand and grass to fish from. It is a good spot for families, though children should be kept back from the channel edge.

The river is sheltered from most swell and wind, so it is a fallback when the beaches are too rough. A strong southerly can push chop up the river. The cleanest water arrives on the run-in tide; after heavy rain the river runs dirty, which can help flathead and mulloway.

The channel drops away steeply and the current runs hard, so don't wade beyond your knees and keep children back from the edge. Bull sharks use the river — don't swim or wade at dawn or dusk. Watch out for boats and jet skis in the channel.

La Balsa Park in Buddina gives easy bank access just inside the river mouth, and the Spit wall on the opposite side is the main rock wall. Both have normal Queensland fisheries rules, with no marine park.

Dusky flathead must be between 40 and 75 cm, with a possession limit of 5. Fish over 75 cm, mostly breeding females, must be released.

No. Spearfishing is banned in the lower Mooloolah River and within 100 m of public jetties in and south of the Noosa River. Line fishing is the way to go here.