VIC
Consistent results for fresh salmonid fishers CRATER LAKES
Rod Shepherd
The only summer-like weather we have seen this year came rather late in mid-February and through into March, and it was sporadic to say the least. On the bright side at least, the water levels in our many lakes haven’t dropped all that much, which means that right across the board the successful targeting of various salmonoid species has been pretty darn consistent. Lake Bullen Merri has been fishing extremely well. As an example, one angler who was chasing Chinook salmon trolled up a thumping rainbow trout well in excess of 2kg working the edges of the western side of the lake. one of the big guys. They have done well over the past month, catching plenty of little bows, some nice sized browns around the mid 40cm range, and Norm landed a ripper estimated to be around 6.5lb. The most successful fly patterns for them have been Shaving Brushs and an Adam’s sizes #14-16. Ralph also said there were redfin everywhere that were eager to eat their flies, with some being well over 1kg. It’s frustrating to see your fly being sucked down only to work out pretty quickly it’s another redfin. Geoff Cramer has been out chasing the redfin at Moorabool. He has been catching plenty on surface lures and soft plastics, and said it’s been a matter of finding the clean water
Plenty of sizeable redfin have been taken deep jigging at Lake Purrumbete. free of weed and working those areas. The redfin have been travelling in schools as they generally do, and if you can find them you can get a feed pretty quick. Geoff said the redfin will grab your lure as soon as it hits the water. You’ll start to wind them in and when they fall off, most times the lure gets whacked again – there are that many of them, and a lot of little ones too. He has found the bigger ones to generally be out as far as you can cast. Geoff also commented that he has seen a lot of trout jumping around feasting on the dragonflies. He has had a few trout grab the Bents but unfortunately they dropped off. Peter Voterakis has been fishing Newlyn Reservoir recently. He has bagged out on the redfin on a couple
Steve Angee nailed this 65cm male brown trout on a Fish Arrow soft plastics on Lake Wendouree. Image courtesy of Steve Angee.
Also, some excellent ‘chooks’ weighing well over 1kg have been caught on trolled lures close to shore, along with plenty of smaller specimens to 1kg. The big news is the sheer size of the tiger trout in the lake at present. Fat as a well-fed pig, and pulling the scales down to well over 2kg, the tigers are what anglers are really concentrating on, closely followed by the Chinooks. Trolling in around 8m depth or static bait fishing in 20m of water using pilchard baits has been successful for many. Lake Purrumbete has seen a few trophy browns averaging between 8-9lb caught on minnow lures cast towards the weed beds, with dusk being the prime time to cast a line. Schools of redfin have been found holding around 8-10m, but they have been finicky at best. Some
boaters have been getting a feed or two of mostly small fish, whilst other anglers have been struggling to catch anything. Suspending a live minnow just above the bottom weed growth has been the best approach, as jigging can result in many lures or jigs coming up with attached weed. The Mount Emu Creek has had some good browns to 900g taking surface and sub surface minnow lures, whilst some bait anglers have been scoring some excellent golden perch in excess of 2kg. Now these are, of course, introduced fish that have either escaped from farm dams during flood times, or escaped from an initial release from Lake Bolac back in the 1990s, down an overflow creek and into the upper Hopkins. Who knows? But they are there to stay.
of occasions, catching them on soft plastics, small hardbodied lures and Bent Minnows. Pete said he has been mainly fishing along the wall, finding clear pockets of water in amongst the weeds. He actually had to walk away from some areas, as the small redfin were smashing the lures or plastics every cast, and the bigger ones didn’t get a chance. One session, the little guys were smashing the lure every cast. Peter found that if he cast out further, that’s where the bigger ones were, and they ate the lures or plastics before the little guys were able to. Tullaroop Reservoir is still nearly full, and there have been plenty of anglers chasing both redfin and a feed of yabbies. The redfin appear to not be in the deeper water; 3-5m has
been the best depth. Guys have been sounding the redfin up, then targeting them with plastics, vibes and bobbers. If you are able to find the schools, it’s a matter of weeding the little guys out to allow for the bigger models to then eat your lure. Anglers who have been chasing a feed of yabbies have been having mixed results, a bit like the fishing. I’ve been told Fisheries officers have been checking that anglers’ pots have been marked with their names and addresses, and also that they are complying with the bag limits. If you don’t know all the rules and regulations, they can be found on the Victorian Fishing Authority website at www.vfa.vic.gov.au.
totalling more than $1000 for taking undersize fish and more than the catch limit. If you see or suspect illegal fishing, call 13FISH (133474). You can speak directly to a Fisheries Officer
and remain anonymous if you wish. For more information on bag limits and other regulations, visit vfa. vic.gov.au. – Victoria. Fisheries Authority
FISHING NEWS
Crackdown on fishing offenses When it comes to caring for our fisheries and ensuring they’re in great shape for future generations, we can all do
our bit. That’s exactly what one person did recently when they called the 13FISH offence reporting service about suspicious
activity in the intertidal zone at Walkerville North. Fisheries Officers were on patrol nearby and responded, watching the two people for a short time before they left the reef platform and headed for their car. The pair were intercepted by officers and allegedly found with 75 blacklip abalone. One of the people allegedly had more than 10 times the daily bag limit of five abalone in their possession. Officers were able to return all the abalone to the water alive following the apprehension, and the duo will be charged on summons with a variety of offences. Local Fisheries Officer Steph said the call to 13FISH made all the difference,
because they would not have otherwise spotted the two people given the reef’s unusual topography at low tide. UNDERSIZED COD SEIZURE We know the Ovens River is one of Victoria’s best for Murray cod, and that most anglers do the right thing so it stays that way for future generations. However, last month Fisheries Officers were disappointed to find a man with five undersize cod measuring between 40-48cm downstream of Wangaratta near Peechelba. The daily bag limit for cod in rivers is one, and the minimum size is 55cm (maximum size 75cm). Officers seized the fish and the man will receive fines
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