Anglers
beanies and jackets have been brought out of the cupboards this week thanks to
a cold blast that has changed up the fishing. Some species have really reacted
well to the colder conditions.
Freshwater:
the local trout population are certainly responding well to the little bit of
rain that we have had lately. The rivers around Warrnambool are still fairly
clean and this latest bit of rain should help get it a bit more coloured which
in turn will make the trout bite harder. Young gun Ollie Sharp has been getting
some absolute thumpers lately both in his kayak and on foot. The best fish
being a solid brown trout that was over 60cm and caught from his kayak in the
Merri River. In condition this fish would have been close to 8lb I reckon but
with the lack of flow in the rivers lately it was fair bit lighter than that
but still a big fish nevertheless. When the water is fairly clear you can get
away with more natural coloured lures that match the bait that they are feeding on. Usually, that is gudgeon, galaxias and other minnows that the local rivers are full
of, as well as shrimp. When the rivers like this and there isn’t much flow, soft plastics work
really well too and can be a great option. The Fish Arrow Flash J Shad, Daiwa Bait Junkie minnows, Z-Man Slim Swimz and the Powerbait T-Tail minnows are all
well-known trout catchers. One brand that certainly doesn’t get the recognition
it probably deserves is the Keitech range. Known mostly for their bass catching
capabilities in Queensland and New South Wales, the Keitech range certainly
catch a lot of trout also especially in our area. The Swing Impacts and the Easy Shiners are the two more popular shapes. The Easy Shiners are a paddle
tail minnow profile that have some great natural colours that suit our baitfish
colours. They come in 3 sizes with 2”, 3” and 4” making up the local line up. The Swing Impacts are a ribbed body plastic with a small paddle tails which pumps
back and forward with each wind of the reel. Also available in a couple of
sizes they are a fish catching weapon. Over at Lake Purrumbete and Bullen Merri
the fishing has heated up. The redfin have been fishing much better this week
after a quiet few. Anglers fishing soft plastics and live minnow worked
through the schools have been finding best results. The boat ramp is very
dangerous due to the low water levels according to Camperdown legend Russell
Pickett so care is needed when launching and retrieving your boats. Over at
Lake Bullen Merri there has been some quality tiger trout being caught on hard
bodies on the edges. Lewis Holland landed a cracking tiger while he waited for
his minnow nets to fill. It’s amazing how many big fish have been caught around
the boat ramp area over the years. You can walk all around the lake and come
back and strike a fish a few meters from your starting spot. Is it the fact
that there is so much feed there or is it something else? Either way it makes
for an interesting debate as to why there is always good fish here. Casting a
shallow running hard body along the immediate edges is always a very well worth
way to target them. Smith Panish’s, Zipbait Rigge’s and Daiwa Presso minnows
are all well known trout and salmon slayers. The Rockland’s Reservoir is fast
becoming a fish mecca with Murray cod, redfin, yellowbelly, trout and some huge
Australian bass being caught out it on a regular basis. I saw a picture on
Facebook this week of a bass that went 3.3kg and 60cm long which is enormous!
Not only do these fish grow to great sizes but they also pull like freight
trains. Best baits to target the bass seem to be yabbies and
shrimp. Lures are also a great option to target them especially if they are in
the snags and you can get something that is in their face all the time without
getting snagged up. Spinnerbaits, weedless rigged soft plastics and Jackall TN60s are all worth a fish in Rocklands.
Estuaries:
the local estuaries are again very tough fishing and the fact the majority of
fish are schooled in the middle of the rivers definitely doesn’t help the
cause. There has been a couple of bigger fish caught lately by anglers in the
Hopkins still persisting with live crabs. One of these fish was a 1.5kg beast
and would have been a surprise for sure. It’s this time of year that you will
often get some of the biggest fish in the systems and they are typically fat as
pigs! What happens is the fish feed up heavily in preparation for spawning and
often take whatever is put in front of them during this period. Once the fish
move to the deep and start their spawn then soft baits such as shrimp, cut
mullet and the like are all a great option for these fussy fish. If you’re
after a feed of fish then taking a couple during this time is no worries but I
would suggest not taking your bag as these are the breeding fish. In one single
bream there could be thousands of eggs and the flow on effect of these breeders
being taken out year on year out is not going to do any good for the system.
This goes for all the local rivers so if you land a fish and notice the obvious
signs of spawn please consider releasing them for the better of the rivers. The
local estuary perch are loving this weather but you’ll have to fish a bit
deeper for them lately. Metal blades are a staple for all anglers using lures
this time of year and there aren’t too many more dynamite ones than the old
faithful black with orange spots. Now there is a swag of brands out there that
have this same colour pattern and honestly they will all work when the fish are
schooled up but there are certainly a few standouts. The Hurricane Vibz 37 and
Ecogear VX/ZX range have all been around for a few years now and
have caught well and truly their fair share of bream and perch through winter.
A short hop off the bottom will give the lure a quick vibration and allow it to
rest back on the bottom. On your lift you will most likely feel the fish on it
as soon as you begin the lift.
Offshore:
the saltwater has been a bit slow of late but after that bit of wind we had
recently the big tuna have fired back up at Portland with a few solid fish
hitting the scales recently. There has been some pretty crazy bait balls
offshore and with this has seen lots of dolphins and seals also having a feed
on them. A few customers that have been chasing them lately are saying that the
work ups have been great but there aren’t many tuna on them. Trolling skirts
has been the pick of techniques like usual but it’s been how you set your
spread and what type of lures you have in your spread which has been making the
most difference. With more swell than recent times the heavier lures such as
the Bonze DLB and Weapons will definitely begin catching more fish due to the
sheer weight of them and the ability to track in big swell. The other lure that work extremely well when there is bigger swell around is a Nomad
DTX diver. These things dive to 30+ft and accounted for stacks of big fish
last year thanks to the fact they just hold in the water up to 12 knots. I know
we don’t troll for tuna at this speed but when you’re coming down the face of a
wave it can soon be close to that so having a lure that you don’t have to
constantly bring back in and reset is very important. They are available in a
wide range of brilliant colours and better yet they are all rigged with BKK
single hooks so you know that when the fish gets hooked it stays hooked.
The
Koroit and District Angling Club held its annual carp fishing classic over the
last weekend. 94 entrants headed out in search of these invasive species in
both the Hopkins River and Emu Creek. A total of 52 carp were taken out of
these systems with the biggest being caught by Rick Hilliam who caught a
7.116kg beast up in the Emu Creek. This fish earned him $1000 and bragging
rights amongst all his mates as the “carp slayer” for the next 12 months.
Please remember if you catch one of the many carp in our waterways then dispose
of it up on the bank or put it in a bin close by. These fish can breed insane
numbers each year and also are very destructive to the habitat
for other species including trout and native fish. Well done to Phil and the committee on
doing a great thing for the waterways.
This
weekend looks to have some nice calm weather that will be fishable so we should
see some great reports coming through. Until next week tight lines and best of
luck.