VIC
Getting stuck into quality tuna PORTLAND
Nigel Fisher
What a couple of months we’ve had in Portland. The tuna have certainly turned it on here in our town, with plenty of fishos descending on Portland from far and wide. It certainly makes a huge difference to Portland, and brings in a good influx of families and money into a wide variety of businesses. It’s great to see the ramps full and a vast range of sizes so far this year. It started with our school tuna in around the ship anchorage and North Shore towards Julia Reef. Then, as the weather cooled off, we started to see more bait schools and animal life from Lawrences
Young Joe with a nice solid school tuna. as little as 10kg right up to 145kg. A lot of fish have been in that 60-90kg range, which has been making for some great fishing. However, by the time you read this issue, who knows
what might have happened? We’ll have to wait and see. We have seen a large variety of lures catching fish lately – everything from large hardbodies diving nice and deep, to the ever-popular skirted lures in various colours and sizes. Some of the stand-out colours in the hardbodies have been redbait, bleeding mullet, sardine and pink, just to name a few. When it comes to skirted lures, the more popular colours have been redbait, lumos, evil, plus your standard greens and blues. Still, never underestimate odd colours that might just get you a fish on those quieter days. Teaser bars have also been a big hit again this year, with many colours, sizes and brands doing the job. Remember, if all else fails, chum some pilchards and run a pilchard down, or use a good live bait. Portland will have a good range of charter operators running throughout the season. If you don’t have a boat and all the gear, but want
Charlie Mako and his mate Wayne with a nice 64kg tuna.
Luke, Oscar, Marty and David with a nice 76.7kg tuna. Rock to Bridgewater Bay, with big fish marked up on the sounders. Then, like a light switch, the bigger tuna turned it on. It pretty much happened all in one weekend, and the action
has been steady ever since. Most fishos have said that the range of sizes are incredible, and it’s been quite a few years since we have seen such a vast rage of fish sizes. So far the fish have ranged from
The boys from Born2Fish with a nice feed of school tuna.
to have a go, jump online or give us a call and we can pass on some contact numbers. And of course, if you are not into chasing tuna, there are other good options in Portland and surrounds. Whether you’re into boating, land-based fishing, estuary or fresh, there’s something here for you. Happy fishing! • If you’re visiting the area, call in and see the crew at Portland Compleat Angler for all your bait and fishing needs, or to find out where the fish are biting. You will find them at 61 Bentinck Street, next to the Gordon Hotel, or you can contact them on 03 5521 1844 for any information.
Favourable fishing results for keen lure casters WARRNAMBOOL
Mark Gercovich mgercovich@hotmail.com
Big bluefin fever kicked in pretty quickly here this season, with multiple fish from 70-120kg being taken in early March. Portland was the definite hotspot, but there were other fish taken closer to home. Dan Grixti and Dan Ierodiaconou set out from Port Fairy and managed to subdue a magnificent 120kg bluefin in around 70m of water. The fish took a lure that was being cleared from the spread after a school fish had been hooked on one of the other rods. Speaking of school 74 MAY 2023
Harry Chatfield with a nice Merri trout he caught whilst targeting eels.
fish, there have still been good schools of these in closer to shore. May is a month that can see schools of these smaller fish present fairly close to shore. These tuna are usually in the 8-14kg range, and they’re often less fussy than the similar sized fish in summer when encountered in this area. If the high seas and tuna aren’t your thing, trout fishing locally really starts to kick into gear with the cooler weather of May. One benefit of a cooler and unusually damp summer is that the local trout should have maintained condition/survived that warmer period, and be primed ready to fire this winter. Already some good fish have started moving,
including a nice 2kg fish I managed before work. The newly-released shallow running 75mm Daiwa Double Clutches should prove deadly on the local trout population this season. May is often a great month to target estuary perch in the freshwater as they begin feeding up and moving down to the estuary in the winter months. Keen lure casters have also been getting in on the EP action using surface lures that imitate a struggling insect. The estuary section of the Hopkins River has continued to fish well for bream on all manner of techniques. Lure anglers in particular have been doing well, with clear
