Freshwater

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

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.

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 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

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

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 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

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

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 available food if the right species were to establish.

Meanwhile, a few intrepid dedicated anglers are finding a few Murray

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 caught recently.

Redfin have been caught from the deeper sections, however, jet-ski activity has been high

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 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

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

Flynn King holding a superb example of a Wellington Dam redfin. He is an avid young angler that has a burning passion for fishing.

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.

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 73% DRAKESBROOK WEIR 87% LOGUE BROOK DAM 80% HARVEY DAM 90% WELLINGTON DAM 79% GLEN MERVYN DAM 88% BIG BROOK DAM 98%

year for trout (to the point that I haven’t even bothered fishing it this season) is Harvey Dam. Reports coming through suggest that things have been very quiet with lots of anglers blanking after putting in a long 2-hour trip from Perth. as a perfect day weather wise. No large trout were spotted, however, I can say the redfin numbers have increased which could be a combination of the lack of angling pressure, or the absence of large trout, particularly large those using minnow style lures whilst a few good browns are showing up around the big farm bay in the mid-section.

Redfin are increasing their presence up around Hamilton Junction and further up the Collie leg is

A well-conditioned brown trout that fell to a slim minnow style lure. Brenton Stitfolds is pleased with this new brown trout water that was only recently created.

A mate of mine fished the Yak Hunters competition in October and reported that out of the 8 experienced anglers that fished hard for the whole day, only three yearling trout were caught on what was classified brown trout.

Wellington Dam

This water has bucked the trend this year with some nice trout coming out of all parts of the dam. Some nice rainbows have been trolled up in the Yabberup Brook leg by another place worth trying for bigger models fishing in 10-20m using Berkley Grubs on a drop-shot rig slowly rolled up the timber

Glen Mervyn Dam

Some nice redfin are still being caught by the few anglers that fish this little water, however, trout have been slow recently. Bigbrook Dam

This little dam has fished well recently and I am not surprised as it receives a huge amount of stocks for its little size. The fishing should be hot after the recent stocking for the Pemberton Trout Festival held here in early November. I would encourage you to get down to this dam before the summer sets in and sends the trout to deeper water. RIVERS Murray River

Very slow in the main section for trout so give Nanga Brook a go as a few small rainbows are turning up. Redfin are always ready to take lures even in the summer period.

Collie River above

Wellington Dam

This section around the town of Collie has been fishing very well for redfin with some nice size models taking a variety of lures and soft plastics cast next to structure

Collie River below

Wellington Dam

December is the time to fish this section as they start to let water out for irrigation. It fishes best at The author with a colourful little brown trout caught trolling a Tassie Devil at Waroona Dam.

medium flow so keep an eye on this as if it’s flowing faster, then you must get your tackle down to where they lie. Both brown and rainbow trout are the target species with the occasional large redfin coming out of the deep pools. Warren River

Good reports of both rainbow and brown trout coming out of the whole length of this river but mainly from the fast water. This is one water that has seen an increase in the number of trout being heavier timber downstream from the highway bridge next to town.

Donnelly River

A few brown trout have turned up but the going can be tough in the upper reaches. The section just below Boat Landing is

Trout are fun on the fly rod. This rainbow fell to a brown nymph fished on a very long fine leader.

Capel River

Some nice redfin have come out around the area known as The Brewery by those in kayaks and small boats. Some cast and others slowly troll lures out the back using a variety of different types of lures.

Blackwood River

By far our least fished water for some reason. November and December is the best time to fish the section from the mouth of Hester Brook all the way to Nannup. The trout only seem to be in certain sections but can be large at times. caught over the last few years however, size is well down to what they were many years ago. There are plenty of redfin being caught with some nice size fish above 40cm lurking in the big dark pools that are taking a variety of soft plastics flicked hard up against any structure. Lefroy Brook

This little stream has had a lot of angler pressure recently so the trout will be easily spooked in the shallower water that normally occurs in December. Try finding a section through the worth a look if you have a boat or kayak with trolling the edges and flicking lures into a number of streams that flow in along this river.

As we run into summer the trout fishing can be tough but redfin are always willing to take lures. You need a Inland Freshwater Licence to fish any freshwater in the south of the state and snakes are very active around water. Fire restrictions apply in most areas so be careful and enjoy what our great outdoors have to offer. Until next time keep your lines tight.