New England Rivers

NEW ENGLAND RIVERS Adam Townsend

There’s plenty to be excited about this month, with trout season opening back up on the long weekend, as well as some warm weather perch fishing. With talks of another very wet spring (as a third La Niña weather event has been predicted), rivers have been flowing been hard to fish because of the heavy flows, the local impoundments such as Copeton and Pindari dams have been thriving from it. With water levels sitting well up, and even over full capacity, the native fish population seems to have bounced back after the massive fish kill the area suffered from only a few seasons back. There is now an abundant amount of fish in both dams being caught, and spawn, especially when the wattle is out in full bloom. I find casting small lipless crankbaits such as Mazzy Vibes tight up into the wattle bushes, or slowly working small soft plastics throughout the bushes and shrubs, can be very effective and a very fun type of fishing at this time of year. Trolling the Mazzy Vibes and other types of lipless crankbaits out a bit wider in the water column can

The rivers have had some solid flushes, which should create some awesome fishing opportunities in the months to come when water levels recede back to normal. This is how Pindari Dam looked three years ago (left) and a recent photo of Pindari Dam sitting high at full capacity – a massive difference from how it looked in 2018.

hard working out a pattern on feeding natives such as golden perch. Sometimes you just have to risk losing tackle in this waterway just to find a consistent bite pattern. Some of the best techniques for Pindari also include trolling Mazzy Vibes across the treetops, as well as slowly hopping vibes and blades across the bottom, working from the shallower sections along the edges, to further out in the deep.

The moon phases can also play a big role. Around this time last year, a couple of mates and I experienced some awesome fishing trips around the full moon as the golden perch were getting ready to spawn up. This is not the case for all fish species, of course, but some species certainly do rely on moon phases to spawn and even feed, and Australian

hard from the consistent heavy rainfalls in recent weeks. This has made the New England area look the best it has in many seasons now. It’s amazing to think that just a few years ago the whole area was in severe drought.

Although the rivers have very healthy fish at that. It’s very good to see. At the time of writing, Copeton Dam is at 99% and Pindari Dam is at 100%.

Copeton Dam always fishes well at this time of year as the water temperatures start warming and the golden perch also start schooling up for the

Time to go! Trout season opens back up this October long weekend. also be very productive, and can sometimes bring a big XL Copeton cod unstuck during the warmer months as well.

On that same note, targeting cod in Copeton Dam is accepted all year round. If you are actively targeting the cod in the next couple of months and intend to look after them, I would suggest some type of release weight, as Murray cod are known to suffer from barotrauma quite easily in the warmer months when they are hooked in deeper water.

Pindari Dam fishes much the same as Copeton as we head in to the warmer months. With so much bait life abundant at this time of year, it really gets the natives fired up and willing to feed. However, with so many trees and rocky outcrops hidden underwater at full capacity, it can be Perch species such as redfin are fun to target during the warmer months. Walking small creeks for big redfin is one of the author’s favourite types of spring fishing.

DPI Fisheries Officers in the state’s North West have been busy on the Barwon!

Two groups of fishermen were apprehended recently in the state’s North West using illegal set lines to catch golden perch. In the first incident, four men aged in their late 60s were found to be using 13 unattended set lines in the Barwon River upstream of Collarenebri, NSW.

Fisheries officers carried out an inspection at their campsite and discovered 17 golden perch that had been caught using the illegally set lines. Both the set lines and fish were seized and penalties issued.

In a separate incident, also on the Barwon, two men were apprehended using a total of 11 unattended set lines. They were also in possession of mutilated golden perch and were using an illegal opera house yabby trap. Opera house yabby traps are prohibited in all NSW waters.

In NSW inland waters, two handheld lines are permitted per person. Handheld lines must be attended at all times – you must be within 50m of the handheld line, and it must be in your line of sight. You must not mutilate (alter the length of the fish) of any restricted species of fish in, on or adjacent to NSW waters. Golden perch are a restricted species in NSW, and you must keep the fish intact while you’re in, on, or adjacent to the waters where you’re fishing, so that Fisheries offices can confirm the measurements of the fish. Refer to the DPI website (www.dpi.nsw.gov.au) or the Fishsmart App for detailed information.

Members of the public can report suspected illegal fishing activity to the Fishers Watch on 1800 043 536 or online at www.dpi.nsw.gov. au/fishing/compliance. – NSW DPI Fisheries natives such as perch and cod definitely seem to make the most of the bigger phases. The full moon will be above on the 9th of this month, with the new moon falling later in the month, on 25 October.

Just a reminder, Murray cod season remains closed for the spawning period up until 1 December. Anyone caught targeting cod during the months of September, October and November (except Copeton Dam) could get slapped with a hefty fine and have all their fishing gear confiscated. Please do the right thing and leave the cod alone as there are plenty of other fish species to target in the area in the meantime.

Good luck to all getting out on the water this month, enjoy the warmer weather and some awesome spring fishing.