Wangaratta

Cray fishing season

WANGARATTA Robbie Alexander

Welcome to June and welcome to winter. Many of the more popular fishing activities have slowed right down, or even stopped by June,

Terry Alexander caught this Murray cod in late May last year at Lake Buffalo. This lake will be worth fishing for Murray cod, and even redfin, in June.

but some species are still biting and we have a new species to target in June: the Murray crayfish.

MURRAY COD

For the common angler, the Murray cod fishing is usually quite slow during June. Most of my regular fishing spots have slowed right down, and fishless trips far outnumber successful trips.

By far the most reliable spot to go fishing for Murray cod in June is Lake Mulwala. Each year Lake Mulwala out-fishes the Ovens River in the cooler months. But there’s just one problem: Lake Mulwala is being drained this winter and access will be limited and difficult.

Based on that, I suspect the Murray River downstream of Lake Mulwala will be the place to head during June. Or, perhaps Lake Buffalo might be worth a try. I caught a few Murray cod in Lake Buffalo last May while targeting redfin, so I think it will definitely be worth a try this June.

The dedicated big cod specialists will be catching big fish during June. The Murray River between Lake Mulwala and Tocumwal is a hot spot, with many large cod caught there each winter by anglers keen on spending hours, and even days casting huge lures for that once-in-a-lifetime fish.

Up here on the Ovens River though it is a different story, with very slow cod fishing in June. TROUT

Trout season closes at midnight on the Monday of the Queens Birthday long weekend, so you only have a week or two at the start of the month to get your trout fishing fix in.

In that time, the trout fishing can be very hit-andmiss because most brown trout are already spawning and it can be hard to entice

a strike with a lure. That being said, a larger lure may entice a strike from an aggressive trout.

The good news is that the lakes do not close for the trout season. The whole

idea of having a closed trout season is to protect the spawning trout, and trout need running water to spawn. So after the Queen’s Birthday long weekend, it’s time to hit the lakes for our trout fishing fix.

My favourite is Lake William Hovell. I love it up there. It can be very cold in winter, and to be fair I never catch a lot of trout up there in winter, but it’s a special spot to sit with a thermos and a couple of bait fishing rods while waiting for or a nibble.

A bit further away is Lake Dartmouth, the king of trout fishing lakes in Victoria. It will be very popular with people trout fishing from boats in June, as it is every year, but at 94% capacity, and with over 3.6 million megalitres in storage as I type, there will be plenty of room for people to disperse. I didn’t realise Lake Dartmouth was so full until I just searched it up while writing this

report. If the giant lake hits 100% this winter and spills over, it will be well worth a drive up there just to experience that.

Later in June, just before the school holidays, Victorian Fisheries will stock catchable-sized rainbow trout into the region’s many familyfriendly waterways. I will have more to say about that in next month’s report. REDFIN

Redfin can still be caught in June in some places. They can be harder to find, and catches are usually a lot less, however June can be a great time to catch the really big redfin.

Both Lake Buffalo and Lake William Hovell have been known to produce the odd June monster redfin. A lot of dedication usually goes into catching them, but they are definitely there for those willing to brave the cold and risk fishless trips. These monster redfin are not a common catch, which makes them even more special for those who do manage to tangle up with a few.

For the best part though, the redfin fishing will be really slow in June. Last June I caught a few tiny redfin on worms at Lake William Hovell while targeting trout from the banks, and Lake Hume fished quite well for redfin, but that was about it.

YELLOWBELLY

Yellowbelly in June… forget it. They will turn up occasionally as a by-catch in the Ovens River, but on the whole June is a very slow month for yellowbelly fishing in North East Victoria. Redfin tend to

still bite, albeit slowly, in winter but the yellowbelly tend to disappear off the face of the earth until the weather starts to warm up.

OTHER SPECIES

It’s cray fishing season. Murray crayfish can be caught in many waters in North East Victoria during winter. They have a 3-month open season, and that is the three

winter months.

I love cray fishing and am excited to head back out again, although this wet year we are experiencing could throw a spanner in the works. I am unsure where I will go at this stage.

For anybody planning on heading out cray fishing, it is always a great idea to refresh yourself with the cray fishing rules as they are usually the most complicated.

And lastly, the ever so despised European carp will also be on my hit list this June. My favourite winter fishing destination for them is Lake Moodemere. Once again, if the Murray River floods, this option may become unavailable to me, but I’m sure I’ll be able to find somewhere to go carp fishing.

I have even been known to fish for them in table drains on the sides of roads in wet years.

Crayfish are subject to a minimum and maximum size limit. This crayfish was 20mm oversize and had to be returned last winter.

Murray cray fishing season opens on the 1st June and stays open all winter. Cray fishing can be cold and wet, but it’s a lot of fun. A carp caught at sunrise at Lake Moodemere last winter.