Port Phillip East

Right in the thick of it

PORT PHILLIP Gerry Morsman

The water temperatures are starting to get right up there, firing up all of our most desirable species. There are reports coming in from left, right and centre, and for me this is my favourite time of year as it is starting feel a lot like summer.

The snapper are really

Mornington is always an easy option if you’re after a feed, or want to quickly get some bait.

starting to play the game, and the King George whiting are on fire across both Port Phillip Bay and Western Port. Our southern calamari don’t seem to stop all year round so, like always, there are plenty of reports coming in for those also.

If you want to chase a feed of flake there is always a good chance down the southern end of the bay, and if you are lucky there are definitely some trophy gummy sharks out there. SNAPPER

September/October is when the snapper start showing up high around Altona and Williamstown, and they then start to push down as the warmer water temperatures spread throughout the bay. Carrum usually starts to fire up at this time of year, and it’s not hard to tell as there are always plenty of boats to indicate where the snapper are biting. Don’t let this put you off though, because Carrum is a huge feeding ground and there is enough room for hundreds of boats to get in on the action. Most of this area is just muddy, rubbly ground that the snapper will move along and feed across.

The key to success with berleying is ‘little and often’. Keeping a steady trail going will bring the fish to you and hopefully keep them there. Take care to not release too much berley at once. You don’t want to feed the fish, you just want to fire them up.

The best baits have been fresh squid strips/rings, silver whiting and the humble old

pilchard. If you are lucky you might even stumble across one of the many dumps (artificial reef) in the area. Large amounts of snapper can hold on these dumps, and if you find one you could be in for a good session.

Not far from Carrum there have been some good fish caught at Mt Eliza in around 18m of water. Sounding up fish in this area is key, as they can move around a lot. Typical spots like the hospital at Mornington are starting to show signs, and will improve as the warmer water spreads out. WHITING

There was a poll recently to find out what our most-targeted species is here in Victoria. A lot

of people would assume it would be our most iconic fish, the snapper, but no! It was actually King George whiting. That doesn’t surprise me, as they are truly plentiful, they fight hard and they are absolutely fantastic to eat. They are one of my favourite species to target, that’s for sure!

There are plenty of good reports coming through, with Mornington and Mount Martha popping up regularly as hot spots. The key is to fish either in the dark, early morning or late in the evening. Most areas along the coastline in the sand just off the reef will hold whiting, and there are some very good-sized fish in the mix. If you find yourself being bombarded by small pinkies or leatherjacket, the best option is to just move to the next spot.

Another spot that is producing plenty of fish is a place called Bird Rock at Mount Martha. Anchor up around 20m off the rock itself and you will find yourself in around 5m of water, with the perfect ground to catch whiting.

The best baits for all these areas have been squid strips, pipis and mussels. If you can get it, cuttlefish works very well too. Portsea is getting good reports also near the pier on the incoming tide, and so has Sorrento in the boat moorings. You will see them just as you are driving out from the Sorrento boat ramp. SOUTHERN CALAMARI

As always, there are big numbers of southern calamari all across the bay. They only live for around 12 months and they breed a couple of times of year, so they will always be sustainable.

There have been a lot of reports coming through from Sunnyside Beach at Mt Eliza.

This has a huge area of reef, and you can catch them all the way from 2m of water out to 6m. The green and gold jigs always work well here, and don’t be scared to throw around bigger jigs like size 3.0 or even 3.5. This can really fire the squid up and make them react more aggressively to their target.

The red bluff at Mornington has been getting a lot of reports, along with the pier.

If you want to catch some larger models, head down to Rye. There is great reef all throughout this area, and the reports say there have been plenty of squid across them. Larger jigs have been the key, preferably in the red foil and more natural colours.

GUMMY SHARK

As always, you will start to see reports of people targeting snapper, and catching gummy sharks as by-catch. The more common areas you will see this happening are out deep in around 20-22m of water off Mornington,

and moving down towards Safety Beach on the edges of the shipping channel. Of course, you have to stay out of the actual channel itself. Although it is very difficult to target them in these areas and consistently catch them, there’s always a chance.

The southern channel off Rye and Sorrento has been seeing consistent reports of quite good-sized gummies. Fishing in the night seems to be the more favourable time to target this species, with fresh flesh baits like Australian salmon and trevally if you can get it. Gummy sharks have an exceptionally good nose, so fresh baits are key to catching big gummy sharks.

Amy Day with her hands full. King George whiting are continuing to fire.

Scott Humbles fished out off Carrum and landed this nice eating sized snapper.