WA
Where are the trout? FRESHWATER
Peter Fragomeni
The unseasonably cool weather that has plagued the East Coast has also occurred over here in the West. This has provided ideal conditions for our
southern waters around Pemberton, with above average numbers showing up in some locations, which has led to speculation that this area is receiving more stocking than the heavier fished areas closer to Perth, where most of the freshwater licensed
showing up in the social media pages with mainly silver perch dominating the catches. This has stirred some anglers into questioning why our Fisheries Department are not offering this species of perch as an alternative along with the trout in our
Flynn King holding a superb example of a Wellington Dam redfin. He is an avid young angler that has a burning passion for fishing. available food if the right species were to establish. Meanwhile, a few intrepid dedicated anglers are finding a few Murray
caught recently. Redfin have been caught from the deeper sections, however, jet-ski activity has been high
getting caught by those out on the water. Local angler Jonah Chiera landed a nice brown from the shore but he reported that prior to
Ben Kelly from South-West Kayak Anglers competed in the recent Yak Hunters event at Harvey Dam. He was hoping for a nice rainbow like this one he caught previously, which would have given him a top place finish, but only 3 small yearlings were caught by the 8 anglers competing. trout in the northern dams, however, from all the reports coming through it seems redfin are the only species turning up in numbers.
anglers reside. Whatever the reason, I can confirm that apart from one dam I visited recently, I found the trout fishing very difficult with not many showing up
dams that are dominated by the highly destructive redfin perch. I can only say that I have spent a lot of time in the last five years trying to
A good quality lure retriever is a must if you are trolling the dams. It has saved the author hundreds of dollars over the last few years. cod, bass and silver perch in both private and public lakes throughout the state. DAMS Waroona Dam This dam has suffered, with not a lot of trout being
Some fantastic sunsets can be experienced on the Inland waters on occasions. I find this strange as a record number of trout have been produced by the Pemberton Hatchery over the last few years. This is not the case in our 116
DECEMBER 2022
on the sounder as well. AUSSIE NATIVES This is the time of the year that these species really fire. There seems to be an increase in numbers
convince them that silver perch would pose little threat to the ecology of these highly modified dams and, in fact, would possibly improve the biodiversity of
over the weekend period making fishing hazardous on occasions. Drakesbrook Weir With the recent stocking at the Troutfest weekend it seems a few trout are
PREDICTED DAM LEVELS FOR SW WA Overall storage in our dams that allow public access and recreational activities are currently 74% as of the end of October, which is well down from 82% as of the same time last year. Although they are down from last year there is enough water to cater for anglers and irrigation needs throughout our hot summer conditions. WAROONA DAM DRAKESBROOK WEIR LOGUE BROOK DAM HARVEY DAM WELLINGTON DAM GLEN MERVYN DAM BIG BROOK DAM
73% 87% 80% 90% 79% 88% 98%
this stocking things were very quiet, apart from some redfin turning up on most days. Logue Brook Dam A few trout are showing up on occasions, which seem to be a stocking from the advanced yearlings. This has made it difficult to get to the bigger resident trout that normally show up this time of the year. I managed a few on the fly in the dark but again the yearlings made it hard to get to the bigger fish. The boat traffic is horrendous on the weekend and the speed of the jet-skis is frightening at times. Harvey Dam One of the most disappointing waters this
