Wangaratta

Consistent fishing during the transition

WANGARATTA Robbie Alexander

Each year I look forward to October for a number of reasons. We start to see more consistently warm days and more consistent fishing for all species.

October is the main transition month where the weather is warm but can still be cold. Where cold water species are still biting and so too are the warm water species. The regions trout fishing is still great in most places, and the yellowbelly, silver perch and redfin are staring to fire as well.

MURRAY COD

October is smack bang in the middle of the closed Murray cod season. There October is a great time to catch trout in North East Victorian streams before the heat arrives. a direct result of the VFA yellowbelly stocking over the last few years.

A number of waterways are well worth fishing in North East Victoria such as Lake Sambell in Beechworth, and Allans Flat Waterhole at Yackandandah.

A little bit further each way we have great yellowbelly fishing at Lakes They are found in both the Ovens and King Rivers, as well as just about every lagoon along the banks.

In fact there are very few areas where carp are not found in this area.

My favourite carp fishing spot is Lake Moodemere, I absolutely love fishing there. Despite being a well-known carp

The four most common venomous snakes found in North East Victoria. Clockwise from top left: tiger snake, highland copperhead, eastern brown snake, and (bottom left) red bellied black snake.

is only one waterway that is open to Murray cod fishing in spring and that is Lake Eildon. So if you want to get a Murray cod fishing fix, you will need to head to Lake Eildon. TROUT

The trout fishing is still usually really good throughout most of October. On some years with above average temperatures, the fishing can slow down in the smaller streams towards the end of the month if they are lower and warmer than usual, but for the most part the trout fishing is still great in most areas throughout October.

Pretty much anywhere that holds trout will be worth fishing this October. There’s currently a very healthy amount of water flowing out of the hills and I can’t see that changing by October.

If the streams are high, try using worms as bait, if they’re low and clear, try using small minnows or soft plastics.

Towards the end of water all year round are also worth trying for redfin in the spring months. It’s just finding the right stream that is the greatest challenge.

YELLOWBELLY

October is the start of the best time of the year for yellowbelly fishing in North East Victoria. I consider October, November and December to be the best months.

I am hoping to see more yellowbelly turn up in the Ovens River while bait fishing this October,

Macquarie perch are turning up more frequently in the Ovens and King rivers. These endangered fish are totally protected and must be released unharmed. It is each angler’s responsibility to be able to tell them apart from other fish species, such as yellowbelly.

Nillahcootie and Eildon to the south and Lake Hume to the north.

Lakes Eildon and Hume are loved for their trophy yellowbelly, which are often targeted by lure fisherman each spring, while Lake Nillahcootie is a popular

of the month some streams may start to see a few grasshoppers along the banks. If you see grasshoppers… use them! Once they start falling into the water the trout will go mad feeding up on them. REDFIN

Redfin are a very strange species of fish, varying their habits from waterway to waterway. The Two main redfin fishing waterways in the Ovens River catchment, Lakes Buffalo and William Hovell tend to fish poorly for redfin during spring time, whereas other waterways fish best in spring. Lakes Samball and Kerford in Beechworth can both fish well for redfin during October.

Some of the low-lying streams that maintain a flow A small Lake Nillahcootie yellowbelly trolled on a Tubby Native Minnow on 14 October last year.

place for anglers targeting yellowbelly for the plate. It doesn’t tend to house nearly as many trophy yellowbelly, but yellowbelly in that 35-45cm mark are quite common and much sought after.

In Nillahcootie, baits such as small yabbies and worms work well, but the best of the lot are live shrimp. If lure fishing, try using small lipless crankbaits, or small to medium-sized hardbody lures. CARP

As with all other species, October is a great month to target carp in the Ovens River catchment. fishery, Lake Moodemere is also stocked with yellowbelly each year and holds a small number of catfish and redfin as well. Most of the fish that I have caught there have been carp although I have managed to sneak in a couple of redfin and yellowbelly over the years.

Sweet corn kernels and worms are my favourite baits at Lake Moodemere. I find that I have the most success using corn as bait, however I do like to have a worm in on my second rod as well in case a yellowbelly or redfin swims past.

As you can see October is a great time of the year to fish for most species in North East Victoria. It is also a great time of year to drag out the yabby nets, but I will go more into that in a separate feature article on another page.

Lastly, just a warning, October is the time of year that I see the most snakes. The four most common species of venomous snakes in the area are very active in October as the males like to make themselves seen by the females. They will often be found laying out in the open, soaking up the sun.

If you see a snake, just walk around it and give it room to get away from you. As long as the snake isn’t cornered you have nothing to worry about. It’s the ones that you don’t see that pose the biggest threat so make sure you keep your eyes open and watch where you put your feet.