Making the most of Gippy during the cold months

WEST/SOUTH GIPPSLAND Billy

Auldist

Fishing across the region has been as good as it gets across the last month. The weather has somewhat held back, and the rivers and creeks are fishing well. There is not much forecast to change in the coming month, so fishers in South West Gippsland are in for another good month of fishing. It’s not long until the cooler months arrive, so it’s important to make the most of the next few weeks.

Like clockwork, Noojee and its surrounding rivers have been generous for local anglers this past month. The Loch, Toorongo and Latrobe rivers have all been worthy of attention over recent weeks, producing good numbers of both brown and rainbow trout. Lure fishers are finding success on spinners, hardbodies and soft plastics in almost any colour imaginable fished on a light leader. Drifting a bait is also a good tactic at this time of the year; a worm or grasshopper fished on a small split shot is sure to connect with a trout. With the humid afternoons recently, there have been an increasing number of insect hatches, so it is a great time of year for fly fishers in our area.

The Tarago and Bunyip rivers are in optimal condition and will stay that way for the coming months.

Anglers who fish the higher stretches are catching trout on soft plastics and hardbodies fished amongst the snags. The lowland stretches of these rivers are often overlooked, however they are more productive than some would think.

Trout, redfin, blackfish and carp can all be caught in the lower sections of either of these rivers. Heading towards the end of the trout season, these rivers will gain a lot of attention, so it’s important to make the most of the few months prior when there is not nearly as much pressure.

Bluerock Lake has been fishing exceptionally well lately and the bass are fired up. The top end of the lake seems to remain the most productive, so if you can get up there it is definitely worth a look, although it is preferable to fish from a boat. Chatterbaits, spinnerbaits and hardbodies have been the main undoing of bass, along with surface lures fished in the low light periods of the day. With cooler weather ahead we should start seeing trout caught more and more often, and soon enough the bass fishing will slowly taper off.

Local estate dams are still producing redfin in numbers, with a few larger models in the mix. On their day they will eat anything you throw at them, but soft plastics are a good starting point. A majority of estate dams will hold redfin so it’s just a matter of trying a few until you find the fish. The quality that can be found in small urban estate dams may surprise you.

Redfin can also be caught in all of the creeks around town such as the Hazel and Little Moe. When fishing either of these creeks it is just about finding depth and you will find redfin.

With the cooler weather not too far away now, it is important that anglers make the most of this next month or two. The fishing will be good and anglers in South West Gippsland should be keen.