No signs of slowing down WIRF
Cara Cummings
As we roll into winter, we would expect fishing across the state to slow down, but this is not the case. Saltwater fishing is still firing, and doesn’t show signs of easing up. The freshwater scene is exciting for those who chase the winter Murray cod, and I suspect we are going to see some absolute beasts caught this season. HOOKED ON PORTLAND This fabulous annual event, run in partnership
cooking whilst Lee Rayner and I showed the quick easy home cooking of our own ‘catch and cook’. The kids’ clinics went well, with a wrasse and grass whiting caught, along with plenty of sweep and Tommy’s (herring) to see.” Robyn Grellet ended up having a much more adventurous weekend than she had anticipated. “I arrived in Portland on the Friday night, ready to run the WIRF stand at Hooked on Portland festival,” she said. “I took my Hobie kayak with the plan to hopefully get some fishing in. As I was parking my boat trailer, I happened
The ladies after their successful fishing trip. to meet the rest of the crew. The weekend was already off to a great start. “The next morning, we set
It wasn’t long before we had our first double hook-up on deep divers in about 50m of water. Mima and I reeled in the first two while Tibby and Jerry manned the Go Pros and gaff. Jerry and I then reeled in the next two, and I was
Amy Day with her calamari catch.
The Bass Coast WIRF local catch-up squidding session at San Remo, hosted by WIRF Leader Amanda Keilar. with the Victorian Fisheries Authority and Glenelg Shire Council, celebrates the fantastic fishing and seafood
to run in to Mima from ‘Happy Fisherman’. Mima was thrilled to see a fellow fisherwoman and invited me
Shea Bloom with her PB Aussie salmon. the south-west region has to offer. Hooked on Portland provided a jam-packed day, with fishing clinics, seafood cooking demos, markets, kids’ educational activities, live music, food trucks and fishing celebs! WIRF leaders Michelle Brittain and Robyn Grellet were busy bees over the weekend with manning the WIRF stand, helping with fishing clinics and assisting with live cooking demos. “The weather certainly turned on for the weekend,” Michelle said. “Plenty of people came down for all the fun. I’m a huge fan of Paul West from ‘River Cottage’ who showed us the ‘fancy’ 94
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up the WIRF stand at 8:30am and prepared the goody bags to hand out. It wasn’t long before the crowds arrived, and they were keen to learn all that ‘WIRF’ is about. I had my personal photo album that my mum had made for me, full of photos from my past four years of fishing. People were delighted to flick through the album, and my moto for the day was, ‘If I can get out on my kayak by myself fishing, so can you!’ “Sunday morning, I was invited to go on board with Mima, Tibby and Jerry from ‘Happy Fisherman’ to try and catch my first ever tuna. We headed out past Laurence Rock at about 10am and looked for signs of birds working the water.
Amanda Keilar with her first Kingfish caught inside Western Port Bay. granted the pleasure of reeling in another three. We landed a total of seven tuna before heading back in, where I learnt how to fillet and prepare the tuna for eating. “That night they taught me how to make tuna steaks the ‘Happy Fisherman’ way. “Happy Fisherman have a wonderful YouTube channel that you should check out, as they happily share very useful information, locations,
and experience with their viewers. I cannot thank them enough for the opportunity to go out with them and get onto some beautiful tuna. We also got to see a gorgeous pod of dolphins that swam and played in the boat’s wake. The footage from my adventure will soon be available to view in a new episode of Happy Fisherman coming soon.” WIRF/OZFISH EVENT A collaborative event
The cooking demos and fishing clinics were popular at Hooked on Portland.
between Ladies Fishing Charters, San Remo, OzFish, WIRF, Bass Coast & South Gippsland WIRF Locals, BCF and Reel Big Fish Project proved much fun for all. Amanda Keilar (Ladies Fishing Charters and WIRF Leader) said it was a memorable event. “We had a fabulous weekend of fishing, friendship, fun, food, music and prizes,” Amanda said. “We discussed and brainstormed the Westernport habitat along with future plans to help look after it, and had a tour of the magnificent coastline at Cape Woolamai and came across a frenzy of big salmon. There was a videographer onboard and we look forward to seeing his work. “I highly recommend the valuable work that OzFish does to make local fishing grounds healthier and more productive. If you are interested in giving back to your fishing hobby and improving, restoring, and protecting fish habitat, look up OzFish Unlimited, join and get involved. They are planning on starting a Westernport Chapter and would love to have you on board!” WIRF LOCALS Our local groups have kicked off and are currently underway. These are small groups run by our leaders across Victoria to run clinics and catch-ups in their areas. The response and feedback has been wonderful and it’s great to be actively out and about running these interactive events, not only to encourage and teach but to also make new friends who share the same passion. These catch-ups are open to people of all levels of fishing experience. So far, local catch-ups have been held across the Bass Coast, North Metro, South Metro, Bellarine and Bendigo regions. For updates
