The best spots to focus your efforts

CANBERRA Toby Grundy

The cold weather has well and truly set in, and the angling options in Canberra are becoming increasingly limited.

Now is the perfect time to get stuck into some serious rod and reel maintenance. I fish both salt and freshwater locations on a weekly basis, and this means that my gear cops some serious punishment, especially in the build-up to winter when the fishing is but there are now so many great products on the market designed for rods and reels, and if used properly will add 10 or more years to a quality set-up.

So, if the weather is particularly nasty over the coming weeks, spend some time preparing your gear for when the weather warms and the fish really come on the bite.

Local Lakes

The fishing has been relatively quiet on Lake Burley Griffin. There were some periods of heavy rain through May, which resulted in an early up a decent catch. One of my favourite winter spots is the concrete ledge which sits directly behind the museum café. Though this is only a small area, the fish do push into this location as the water is deep, and it is possible for predators to sit close to the eventuated, and the cod seem to be laying low until the water warms and clears up a bit.

That said, some anglers using beetle spins coupled with grub-tail plastics have landed a few decent-sized reds near the back of the college. Also, the weed beds which line particularly good. During those sub-zero days when the rain pours in seemingly endless waves upon the windows, I head out to my shed and oil, grease and service my rods and reels.

I use a low viscosity oil that can creep into even the tiniest crevices of my reels, and reel grease that has been specifically developed for fishing applications. Back in the day it was all WD-40, spot in winter than I would during the warmer months. The fish just sometimes need that little bit more convincing to make it worthwhile using their energy to smack your lure.

With the Murray River being a main focus of many cod anglers around the region at this time of year, it’s very exciting once the river gets to a lower level with flows. On a low flow, the water tends to slow down and the level drops, shut down because the water cooled quickly and sent a lot fish into hiding. Traditionally, LBG can be relied upon by anglers looking to pick up a few redfin during short winter sessions, but even the redfin have (for the most part) moved into deep water.

That said, there are a few pockets of the lake where the fish are feeding, and it’s about being in the right place at very specific times to pick shoreline but still in 4-5m of water. Golden perch feed in this location during the coldest of days, but are especially active at dusk while there are also large reddies here that do look for an easy meal. Slow rolling plastics parallel to the concrete walls is the best way to connect with a fish, but be prepared to make a lot of casts because the fish can take some convincing.

Lake Ginninderra is in much the same condition as LBG. The rain in May caused the water to cool quickly, and the water has remained discoloured ever since. The cod in Lake G usually fire in early June, and can be targeted using surface lures. However, the surface bite hasn’t the bike path from the college to Diddams Close playground are good for spinning Jackall TN50s for yellas.

I will make mention of the fantastic carp fishing. The carp in Lake Ginninderra are really on the bite, and are hitting soft plastics and small diving lures right around the margins of the lake. The good thing about flicking plastics for carp is that inevitably, at some point, a good-sized redfin or yellowbelly will eat your lure.

Lake Tuggeranong seems to be bucking the trend. While the fishing has been slow across the other urban lakes, the fishing at Lake Tuggeranong is improving.

The lake often fishes well through the winter months, and it seems like winter 2023 will be another good season to target reds, yellas and cod. This is in part due to the rain through May, which topped up the lake, but also because a lot of the fish released into the lake around five years ago are now reaching catchable size. This is evident in the golden perch catch rates, with anglers landing big numbers of golden perch to 30cm (although there have been few caught above this size). The same can be said for the cod.

Most of the natives have been caught by anglers using vibes or blades and fishing near the bridge while the reddies have been landed in a variety of different locations.

Surrounds

Googong Dam is finally starting to slow up. From February right through until the end of May, the action on Googong was exceptional with big cod, yellowbelly and huge redfin all hitting lures with abandon. This is in stark contrast to the here and now where the fish have, for the most part, shut down. The roving packs of surfacefeeding redfin are nowhere in sight. This should come as no surprise, as Googong has always been a summer exposing snags properly, and also revealing structures you otherwise wouldn’t know were there. Picking all of this apart, even the areas with a strong flow pushing through can be prime areas for a cod willing to eat. At this time of the season, you have a good chance of hooking a decent fish. fishery, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to catch a big cod. In fact, the largest cod caught in the dam was landed during August, and some the bigger yellas also turn up in the cooler months. It is simply a case of putting in plenty of time on the dam and braving the sometimeschallenging conditions when the wind whips up.

So the flows are looking good as I write this, the clarity is the best it’s been in a long while, and it’s go time. By putting in the time and effort, anyone will get results. Best of luck everyone, and enjoy!

Pejar is also worth a look at this time of year. I have caught bass and trout here recently, and while I never catch big numbers, catching bass in winter is always great fun.