VIC
Lake Wendouree’s trout are biting BALLARAT
Shane Stevens
Anglers have been treated to some unbelievable fishing over the past month, especially on Lake Wendouree. It has certainly produced some unheard-of numbers of fish catches, and has put Wendouree right up there as one of the best fisheries in the state. The exceptional fishing on Wendouree has taken the limelight and anglers away from of many of our
were eaten. There are lots of predators in Wendouree, including bigger trout and redfin, which would eat the small stocked fish. Larger stocked fish would theoretically have a better chance of survival. This approach appears to have worked well, especially our stockings at Wendouree last year. The lake is alive and well with trout everywhere – you can walk, ride or drive around and see trout jumping. I have heard many comments of non-anglers saying they saw fish jumping on
brief, reminding anglers of the tournament rules and Marine Safety Victoria regulations, which include a speed limit of 5 knots on Wendouree. The fishing kicked off at 9am, and it wasn’t long after that that my phone started to run hot. Plenty of rainbow and brown trout were being caught, ranging in size from 35-40cm at the end of the morning session. Ross Goyne was on top of the leader board with a 46cm rainbow trout, which he caught on an orange Magoo fly pattern.
Josh Fry landed this ripper 43cm redfin whilst trolling a hardbodied lure during the Against the Odds competition. Image courtesy of Josh Fry. other waters, which can be a positive thing. These other waters haven’t been getting fished as heavily as they would normally, hence reports filtering through have been a little light on the ground. STOCKING STRATEGY The exceptional fishing on Wendouree isn’t just a fluke – it has come about thanks to a collaborative partnership between our local angling body, the Ballarat & District Anglers Association, and the Victorian Fisheries Authority. They have put a stocking plan in place for the next three years, and this includes the stocking of larger 50g rainbow and brown trout, which are larger than would be normally stocked. You might wonder what the reason is for stocking these larger fish. Well, many of the smaller rainbows that had previously been stocked didn’t seem to reach their 2-year-old birthday. They just disappeared. There could be several reasons for this, but the most obvious reason is that they 90 MAY 2023
Wendouree, which is good news for everyone. ‘TWO FLY’ COMP The Ballarat Fly Fishers Club has hosted a couple of fishing competitions on Lake Wendouree in March. The first one was the Lake Wendouree ‘Two Fly’ comp, sponsored by Hurley’s Fly Fishing. The competition was run over two days, with fishing sessions on Saturday and Sunday mornings and Saturday afternoon. All registered competitors submit two flies each which are placed into envelopes and randomly picked out by competitors. The flies in the envelopes are what they use throughout the competition. If competitors lose the flies they can purchase more, with a maximum of two flies able to be purchased to remain in contention to win the comp. All fish caught are measured and photographed on a brag mat, then released. The photos are sent to a nominated mobile number via SMS. The competition started off with a safety
The afternoon session kicked off at 1pm, just in time for the mayfly hatch to start, and they didn’t
disappoint. This had a lot to do with the weather conditions – overcast skies and a stiff northerly breeze. Once again, my phone was running hot, with photos and names of competitors coming through. By the end of the first day’s fishing, we saw a record number of 90 trout, both rainbows and browns, caught and released. Ray Taillard was on top of the leader board with a magnificent 50cm brown trout. Saturday night saw competitors attend the Ballarat Fly Fishers Clubrooms for a social gathering, which included some raffles and a general catch up and talk about the ones that were caught and the ones that got away throughout the day. On Sunday morning, competitors hit the water for a 7am start. Once again, it didn’t take long before my phone started buzzing again with trout being caught. Tony Crimmins from the Bendigo Fly Fishers caught a 53.5cm brown trout, and became the new competition leader. Photos continued to come through until the competition finished at noon, and no one was able to beat Tony during that time. At the conclusion of the competition, a total of 137 trout were caught, photographed, and released. It was unbelievable the amount of fish caught, and it definitely made Wendouree the talk of the angling fraternity. All competitors gathered back at the
Trevor Holmes and Ben Young with 49cm and 50cm Wendouree brown trout caught during the Against the Odds tournament. Image courtesy of Ben Young. clubrooms for the presentation and awarding of the Lake Wendouree ‘Jim Thomas’ Two Fly Competition. Ballarat Fly Fishers Club President Nick Roche and Hurley Fly Fishing representative David Johnstone presented Tony Crimmins with the Two Fly Trophy, and also a Stalker Legend Combo valued at over $1000.
Against The Odds Trophy winner Mark Cuthbert landed the longest trout during the competition – a 52cm brown. Image courtesy of Vern Barby.
There was one last prize to be awarded, and that was for the competitor who donated the fly that the winning fish was caught on. This year’s recipient was Ross Goyne, who supplied the orange Magoo fly pattern that Tony Crimmins used. Ross won a handcrafted pen made by Jeff Willey from the Bendigo Fly Fishers Club. ‘AGAINST THE ODDS’ COMP The second tournament run by the club was the ‘Against The Odds’ Amyloidosis Awareness Day fishing competition. The comp was run to raise awareness about amyloidosis, which is a debilitating disease which belongs to the cancer family, and also raise funds to assist with research to find a cure. BFFC club member Alan Grieg unfortunately suffers from amyloidosis, and spends 15 hours a week on dialysis to stay alive. However, this hasn’t stopped Alan’s enthusiasm and passion for fishing. This year’s Against The Odds entrants were able register online prior to the event or on the day, and the competition hours were between 7am-1pm. All competitors were supplied with a token which needed to photographed next to their catch (trout or redfin) on a brag mat. These
