Vic/Tas Fishing Monthly January 2018

NEW YEAR NEW TECHNIQUES • SUMMER FUN

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DIY Lure making: Glidin’ Doc • Pumping yabbies for summer fun

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Boating & kayaking Getting into kayak fishing • Kayak holiday destinations • Pioneer Cape Island 186 with Mercury 115hp • Formosa 550 Tomahawk Offshore • Horizon Searunner 485 •

Features The value of squid jigs • Stalking the estuary flats • Trout fishing the Tassie Highlands •

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January 2018, Vol. 13 No. 3

Contents WEST COAST West Coast

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16

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25

40

Portland 18 Warrnambool 18 Apollo Bay

20

Cobden 20

CENTRAL Geelong 22 Port Phillip West

24

Port Phillip North East

26

Port Phillip East

28

Mornington Peninsula

30

Western Port North

32

Western Port South

34

Phillip Island

36

EAST COAST Gippsland Lakes

40

Marlo 40 Lakes Entrance

41

McLoughlins Beach

42

Bemm River

42

NSW SOUTH COAST Bermagui 44 Eden 44 Mallacoota 45 Narooma 47 Merimbula 56

VICTORIAN FRESHWATER Horsham 60 Robinvale 61 Yarrawonga 61

From the Editor’s Desk...

We fought and we lost.

More than six years ago, we raised the price of Fishing Monthly magazines (all states) to $5.95 from $4.95. I honestly believed that it would be our last price rise. Ever.

After all, it’s our readership that makes this magazine what it is. We have lots of readers all loving to hear about their own state. Reports on what’s going on in places they fish is more relevant than exotic species in exotic locations.

So, when our newsagent distributor dictated that they needed a bigger chunk of the pie, we were left with no choice but to add a dollar to the cover price.

This issue is the first time a Fishing Monthly magazine has cost you $6.95. Well, not if you count the old Annual magazines ($9.95), Catch magazine ($19.95) or Tournament Angler Guides ($9.95), but you get what I mean.

It’s not an easy road for publishers at the moment.

In recent years we have encouraged anglers to sign up for subscriptions, with the result that over 7000 copies of Fishing Monthly are mailed each month to loyal readers. However, in the last few years, Australia Post has raised postage prices by over 50%. Couple that with increasingly poor service in the same timeframe, and there’s no wonder that I have much less hair that I did in 2013!

We have been left with no choice but to pay a premium to Australia Post to send our subscriber magazines via Priority Post. It grinds my gears to pay a company extra because of how poorly they do their job. But we will, because we owe it to our supporters.

A DIGITAL SOLUTION? Concurrently, we’ve quietly launched a digital subscription to Fishing Monthly in the background.

Delivered via the issuu.com platform, we now have a way that you can read the magazine only hours after it goes to press. That’s

a couple of WEEKS earlier than you’d get it in your mailbox.

And, in the light of the Australia Post dilemma, we’ve made the deal irresistible. You just have to read the magazine on your desktop, tablet or handheld device.

For the standard subscription price of $65, you now will have access to not just your home state, but ALL THREE Fishing Monthly titles – the day they go to the printer!

If you value being the first to read the monthly issue, then this solution may very well be for you. As an added bonus, all of the video boat tests, tackle reviews and other content we create is embedded and clickable

in these editions.

I’m not a massive fan of reading magazines online, but even I think that the speed of publication and the experience is pretty cool.

Are we giving up on print? No way. I’m the world’s biggest fan of unwrapping a magazine that the postie has delivered, and enjoying the contents without the clutter that you’re bombarded with in social media. So no matter what hurdles that distributors and the postal service put in our way, you have my assurance that if you’re a fan of print, we will satisfy your need for years to come.

Jindabyne 62 Wangaratta 63 Shepparton 64 Bonnie Doon

66

Eildon Rivers

66

Eildon 67 Ballarat 68 Bendigo 70

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BOATING AND KAYAK

89

REGULAR FEATURES

VICTORIA FISHING MONTHLY Business Office: Unit 1, 11 Knobel Court, Shailer Park, Qld, 4128 Phone: (07) 3387 0800 Fax: (07) 3387 0801

Back to Basics

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Chappy’s Hotspot

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Dam Levels

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Fun Page

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Managing Editor: Steve Morgan s.morgan@fishingmonthly.com.au

Inland Fisheries Service

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Spearfishing 48 Tasmanian Lake Levels

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Sub-Editors: Bob Thornton Nicole Penfold Cordelia Adams

Track My Fish

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Trade and Services Guide

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Publishers: Steve Morgan Matthew Drinkall

Victorian Tide Times

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What’s new fishing

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What’s new boating

91

SPECIAL FEATURES The value of squid jigs

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Advertising Enquiries: Peter Jung ads@fishingmonthly.com.au

Subscriptions: Kym Rowbotham

TO SUBSCRIBE SEE PAGE 93 FIND THE GAMAKATSU LOGO COMPETITION PAGE 53 Victorian and Tasmanian Fishing Monthly magazine goes on sale the last week of each preceding month (latest sale date 31st of the month).

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Qld Fishing Monthly Pty Ltd ABN 72-010-542-195 All material is © copyright, and cannot be reproduced in part or in full, by any means, without written permission of the Managing Editor. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher.

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DIY lure making: Glidin’ Doc

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Matt Cini holds up a football class squid!

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Trout fishing in the Tasmanian Highlands

Production: Karen Millward Jenna Milburn Keith Hawley

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Pumping yabbies for summer fishing

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Stalking the estuary flats

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Fishing Diary Angler: Paul Lennon Date: May 31st 2015

Location: Port Stephens Conditions: NNW 10 kts, incoming tide

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CALAMARI

What it’s worth: comparing the value of squid jigs WESTERN PORT STH

Jarrod Day jarrodday@iprimus.com.au

Do calamari really know what an artificial jig is worth? I think not. Can calamari tell the difference between a $2 jig and a $30 jig? I think not, so then why are squid jigs worth $20-30 all the rage?

I myself am a selfconfessed squid jig addict and while jigs under $10 don’t have a place in my tackle kit, I find myself constantly wondering why on earth I have this addiction to buying expensive jigs. Is it the advertising behind the brands? Is it the attraction to the colours? Who knows; for whatever reason it is, my collection can only be

even cheap lures for that matter are made in China.

For some reason we always seem to associate China with manufacturing cheap products. In fact, squid jigs are actually made right around the world in Japan, Vietnam, Korea, China, America, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Russia, Fiji and many more places.

There are a lot of cheaper jigs that are made in China, but there are also plenty of Japanese quality jigs made there too. Different Chinese factories have access to high quality components, which may be manufactured in China or purchased from Japan, and build the jig in China because of the cheaper labour cost.

Out of all the components purchased from

Choosing a squid jig can be a difficult task. Most jigs today all resemble the same shape style – a prawn – however it’s how they are made and what they are made from that makes the difference. all resemble the same shape style – a prawn. However, it is how they are made and what they are made from that makes the difference.

For the most part, the

Some squid jig manufacturers put a lot of R&D into the cloths available as well as developing their own. This is achieved by studying squid and, more

importantly, the intricacies about them, such as how they see and how they hunt.

This helps to perfect a cloth superior to rival brands.

We know that squid are colour-blind and despite having retinas similar ours, they see in monochrome (black and white) as well as seeing UV or ultraviolet light and bioluminescence, which they use to hunt their prey.

Shrimp, crabs, prawns and a variety of other crustaceans contain bioluminescence on and in their bodies, which makes it easier for squid to find them.

With a lot of study done by squid jig manufactures, incorporating UV and other technologies into their jigs makes them more appealing to squid. Japanese company Yamashita is one such manufacturer that does this with their latest Warm Jacket cloth – the latest technology to be used. In fact, the Warm Jacket cloth is now so effective that other companies that produce

There is no substitute for quality. described as obsessive.

Brands aplenty – there are thousands of squid jigs in the market place, each with their own features to differentiate between them.

One common fallacy is that cheap squid jigs and

Japan, crowns and cloth are the bulk of it. Just because the packet says, ‘Made in Japan’ doesn’t always mean that it is 100% made there, and often the bulk of the product can be manufactured in China – the lure and or

packaging are assembled in the native country. Don’t be fooled by the advertising.

WHAT’S IN A JIG Choosing a squid jig can be a difficult task and all in all they do the same thing.

The majority of jigs today

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Shimano’s white Keimura is a proven calamari catcher but can wear quite quickly. bodies are made from polyurethane or metal depending on the jig, which is then coated with a cloth material.

Bodies can vary in weight too, and different body weights allow the sink rate between models vary depending on the depth you fish. This allows jigs to have slower sink rates to maximise the water columns being fished. Jigs can also contain internal rattles to emit a type of clicking sound similar to that of a live prawn. If you fish in 2m of water, a slower sinking jig is highly recommended, and if you fish out deep with current to contend with then a faster sinking jig will get down faster to where the squid might be lurking.

Cloths can also vary greatly as there are many types of cloth used and it is the cloth that catches the eye of a preying squid.

Big calamari are jig destroyers. When they are about, you need to be using jigs that withstand their ferocious attacks.

CALAMARI squid jigs are buying it from Yamashita to use on their jigs.

Other cloths can also contain UV additives to make the jig more appealing to preying squid. UV is invisible to the human eye, but to a squid it lights up and attracts them. One wellknown jig cloth that has been one of the standouts in Victoria is Shimano’s Sephia jig in the white Keimura UV. To see its effects, a UV black light can be shone onto it. Squid have a heightened sense of vision, which allows them to see a higher level of UV light, hence many jig manufactures are opting to add this into the bodies and cloth of jigs.

important attribute, as many don’t last being in saltwater.

Cheaper jigs, or at least those in the less than $10 range, tend to have basic crowns; these can also be found on the more expensive brands too. Some are made from ultra-light wire, which, if not cleaned or rinsed with freshwater, will rust very quickly or break off the jig when you attempt to get it back after you’ve become snagged.

Ideally, crowns made

from stainless steel tend to be a little more expensive, but they last a lot longer and hold their sharp points longer.

CHEAPER OPTIONS Of course, there is also a myriad of cheaper jigs on the market and some are as low as $1. There is nothing wrong with these, but they just don’t have the same quality built into them to last. For instance, you won’t find cheap jigs To page 10

Don’t go out armed with one jig – go with many. Depending on the time of day, different colours work better than others. might opt for a silver foil with a cloth containing more natural colours.

Rough guides on colour selection can be found scattered throughout the internet and once you look through a few, you’ll soon discover they are all similar.

This is a good thing because it will guide you on the right way to build your jig selection.

Crowns are also a very

With a lot of study done by squid jig manufactures, incorporating UV and other technologies into their jigs makes them more appealing to squid.

Colour matters, so match the right colour and get the results. Overcast days tend to warrant darker coloured jigs.

Barbs or ‘crowns’ are the most important part of the jig. Cheaper jigs tend to have weaker crowns that might not retain their sharpness.

Colours play a big part; more expensive squid jigs also have a lot more varying colours than their cheaper cousins. This is because of the science that has gone into how and what squid see and the development of colour ranges that work more effectively at different times of day. It pays to select the jig you’re going to use, combining both foil colour and cloth colour.

For instance, on overcast days or at night, it is recommended you use a jig containing a red or orange foil with black or grey cloth.

For a bright sunny day you

The new range of Yakamito Abyss jigs are clothless and have been proving their worth. To prevent the cloth being destroyed on jigs, you can always opt for a clothless jig. These work just as good and will last a lot longer.

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CALAMARI From page 9

with sink rate variations, nor will you find a cloth that can withstand multiple squid strikes without

tearing apart, or even in an extensive colour range for that matter. More often than not, the crowns will deteriorate a lot faster, but

Some expensive brands have quite fine crowns. If these are not cleaned and washed with freshwater after use, the barbs become brittle and can break off.

Jigs with stainless steel crowns will stand the test of time. Although the cloth might tear from vicious attacks, you’ll get more longevity from a jig like this.

You can always tell a successful jig by its cloth damage, so it always pays to have a few of your favourite colours at hand.

they still count for hundreds of calamari caught.

Cheaper jigs still have their place and do catch a lot of squid, however depending on the waterway you fish you might want to opt for something a little more expensive to counteract the area and the time of day.

I’m not saying that you should only ever buy cheap jig or expensive jigs; rather, look into the jigs you intend to purchase more and buy the jigs that are applicable to the area and time of day that you fish. Doing this will have you buying a wider range of jigs and each one will be bought to fit a purpose.

Calamari are vicious critters and destroy jigs to no end. From tearing cloth to ripping off crowns, it’s hard to find a jig that will stand up to them. Although the cloth may tear, stainless steel crowns do last longer than those glued in with graphite shafts.

Damage to a jig’s cloth depends on where the calamari gets hooked but you can’t always rely on hooking them in the head where damage won’t occur.

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Stalking the estuary flats GEELONG

Brenton Hodges

The arrival of warmer weather signals increasing water temperatures, which is good news if you’re

engages a number of our human senses. Observing fish behaviour and the changes in body language when hunting and feeding is interesting enough; being able to actually see the take unfold in water barely deep

slurping and popping sounds as a bream or whiting attempts to suck down a prawn imitation amplifies the experience, resulting in further engagement. All this information, transferred via our eyes and ears, stimulates

foot, the more details are exposed. At an initial glance, some areas may seem devoid of life. Closer observation, aided by a pair of polarised lenses to block out glare (as well as perhaps a more diligent and purposeful approach, which we’ll cover later), can be telling.

Try to look through the surface and watch for shadows and signs of movement, as opposed to actual fish shapes. It’s generally quite easy to see fish darting away in fright once disturbed. The challenge is to spot them well before they become spooked by your presence. Sunlight reflecting off the flanks of a

The more time spent drifting over shallow flats from a vessel or wading on foot, the more details are exposed. Try to look through the surface and watch for shadows and signs of movement, as opposed to actual fish shapes.

The ability to visually locate fish and execute a plan to deceive and coerce one in to eating an artificial (and then repeating the process over and over) is the ultimate sport fishing challenge. keen to get into some ultra shallow lure casting action. At this time of year,

enough to cover your knees is truly captivating.

Hearing the splashes,

In terms of tackle selection, stalking bream, whiting and flathead on the flats requires some attention to detail. In ultra-clear conditions, semitranslucent lure patterns, which allow sunlight to pass through, are far more realistic options. bream, yellowfin whiting and dusky flathead can all be found casing the flats in the lower to middle reaches of various east coast inlets, rivers and creeks.

Here prawns, shrimp, crabs, yabbies, marine worms and small baitfish all become fair game, which brings lures such as shallow diving minnows and surface presentations into play.

ENGAGING THE SENSES Exploring the shallows, and in particular sight casting on the flats, is highly intriguing and incredibly exciting. Indeed, anticipating the moment of impact as a fish homes in on a lure

the brain well before any contact is made through the line, rod and reel handle.

Setting the hooks into a bustling blue nose bream, a whopping big whiting or lizard-like flathead and feeling the weight, headshakes and every flick of the tail finally brings our sense of touch into play.

Most species seem to find another gear on the flats, running further and pulling harder all the way to the net, which really gets the adrenalin flowing.

POWER OF OBSERVATION The more time spent drifting over shallow flats from a vessel or wading on

JANUARY 2018

bream, for example, stands out like a beacon to the trained eye.

Likewise surface disturbances caused by, say, a fleeing prawn or nervous

Bringing the boat to shore and walking or wading the shallows adds another level of stealth.

THE AUTHOR’S PREFERRED FLATS TACKLE Bibbed Minnow Outfit: Abu Salty Stage 6’10” (1-3kg) / Revo MGX 20 Surface Presentations Outfit: Abu Salty Fighter 7’ (1-3kg) / Revo ALX 20 Line: Berkley Fireline 4lb Leader: Vanish Fluorocarbon 4-10lb Bibbed Minnow: 3B Puppy Dog and Fat Dog (shallow) Surface: 3B Prawn Dog (45mm) and Scum Dog (68mm) 12

Bream will turn up regularly when fishing the flats, even when you’re chasing other predators like whiting or flathead.

baitfish, become more obvious (even in windy conditions) to the skilled observer. Listening for the sounds of bait skipping hurriedly across the top or indeed a predator rising to engage prey at the surface

also helps to identify targets outside of our immediate line of sight. Over time, experienced eyes soon become trained to recognise more of the subtleties, such as traces of bream and whiting rummaging below in the sand in search of tucker.

These dinner platesized dig-holes can usually be identified from quite a distance by several darker grey or brownish coloured silt stains spread across an otherwise sandy bottom.

When actively foraging, there may even be signs of discoloured or cloudy water in the surrounding area, which is a dead giveaway.

Evidence of fish feeding in this manner is also available when walking the flats at low tide.

Again, take note of the holes or digs, as well as markings where flathead have been lying up. Areas of hardened or corrugated sand, due to continuous strong tidal flow, tend to hold very little in the way of burrowing bait. Instead, look for the richer soft sand or silt dotted with yabby holes or crawling with crabs when exposed at low tide.

Slightly deeper runs, formed

as a result of sand shifting in the prevailing winds and tidal run-off, are also likely to hold fish. Flathead, in particular, use these subtle changes in depth as ambush points.

Likewise, bream and whiting congregate along these lines, especially during the later stages of a receding tide. Other forms of more obvious structure such as patches of rock, weed beds or perhaps a solitary log, which might have come to rest on a shallow sand bank after being washed downstream during a previous flooding event, have the potential to attract and hold fish on the flats.

Interestingly, the feeding habits of stingrays, which involve digging in the sand and sucking up crabs, worms, yabbies and the like, act as a mobile attractant for scavenging bream hoping to snare an easy meal. These indicators (and many more) vary from one day to the next according to the local conditions. It’s a matter of absorbing as much detail as possible and quickly processing the information to develop a stealthy plan of attack.

STEALTH MISSION Prior to even making a cast, perhaps the greatest challenge is concealing your presence. Once a fish becomes spooked on the flats, all feeding activity will immediately cease. Bream are especially sensitive in this regard and it doesn’t take much for panic and preservation mode to set in, which usually involves bolting erratically for the safety of deeper water.

Whiting and flathead seem more tolerant in this regard, but once on high alert, they certainly won’t chase an artificial either.

There’s generally a barrier surrounding the boat within which fish have become aware of our presence

any sounds from the boat, so we can get closer without them realising.

It may be uncomfortable and near impossible to retie knots or take a decent photograph, but (as long as it’s safe for boating) drifting the flats in the wind can be

epic. By contrast, when the wind is light (<5 knots) or perhaps non-existent, we don’t cover as much ground, casting distance is reduced and fish are quickly put off by boat noise, which is amplified under a glassed-out surface or calm

It can be well worth experimenting with leader length and diameter. A shorter length of 6lb monofilament is a good starting point for surface presentations intended for whiting.

These cracking yellowfin whiting fell to a surface presentation twitched across the flats.

and are almost uncatchable in most instances. Weather, water clarity and the ability of those on board to adopt a stealthy approach determine the parameters of this invisible boundary. Wind is both friend and foe. Too strong (>20 knots) and the drift speed becomes way too fast and conditions difficult for lure casting.

Even so, the fish are likely to be on the chew, taking advantage of wind lanes and surface chop, which bring both food and cover.

Periods of strong wind push warm water and loose ribbon

weed (which also carries food) to one side of a lake or inlet and the fish follow. This is particularly pertinent in systems periodically closed or separated from the ocean.

Constant wave action stirs up the bottom and encourages fish to feed in the shallows for longer. It also muffles

Most species seem to find another gear on the flats, running further and pulling harder all the way to the net, which really gets the adrenalin flowing. Aaron Hassett carefully puts the finishing touches on a respectable dusky in just centimetres of water.

SIGHT CASTING TIPS Make the longest wind-assisted cast possible.

Wear polaroid sunglasses and a peaked cap.

Look through the surface and watch for shadows or signs of movement.

Concentrate your efforts either side of high tide.

Minimise boat noise to increase stealth.

conditions. Ideally, moderate wind speeds of about 8-12 knots are preferable, though fish can most definitely be taken outside of this range by varying your approach.

A drogue is helpful to To page 14

JANUARY 2018

13

A quiet approach, be it from a boat or on foot will always result in more enquiries. Boat noise can be minimised by cutting the engine early and gliding into position under electric power.

Trim the outboard up so that it doesn’t scrape across the sand, and switch off the depth sounder, recirculating livewell and automatic bilge pump.

Once a drift line has been established, try to avoid overusing the electric motor

From page 13

slow the drift in strong winds.

Some circumstances may even warrant the use of an anchor, stake/power pole or electronic spot-lock function to hold position. More often than not, drifting silently with the breeze behind you is the go. Bringing the boat to shore and walking or wading may provide another level of stealth. Either way, long wind-assisted casts bring the most consistent bent rod action.

to continually correct or reposition the boat. Although relatively quiet, even a short pulse of the propeller is likely to spook any nearby fish, therefore lengthening the ‘no catch’ zone. Avoid knocking or banging the hull with items such as rod tips, landing nets, lures, keys and so forth.

Lastly, stay light on your feet when moving about the deck, carefully opening and shutting storage hatches and placing items such as scissors

Taryn Hodges was all smiles when this whopper whiting slurped a prawn imitation off the top.

or pliers down gently after use. It may seem trivial, but it all counts when working in less than 1m of gin-clear water. It’s no surprise and no coincidence that when my young daughters (aged 3 and 5) are on board and clanging things about while playing as kids do, fishing the flats becomes far more difficult…

FLATS TACKLE In terms of tackle selection, stalking bream, whiting and flathead on the flats requires some attention to detail. In ultra-clear conditions, semi-translucent lure patterns that allow sunlight to pass through are far more realistic. It’s also well worth experimenting with the leader length and diameter. About 2-4 rod lengths of 4lb fluorocarbon is the norm when pitching shallow divers at bream.

A shorter length of 6lb monofilament is a good starting point for surface presentations intended for both whiting and bream.

Upgrading to 8-10lb leader is theoretically a better option when specifically chasing flathead to combat their raspy teeth. In reality, all three species can turn up in the same areas where they can be coerced and played out on the same gear.

THE ULTIMATE CHALLENGE Flats lure casting can

Larger dusky flathead use subtle changes of depth to ambush prey in the shallows. be dangerously addictive – dangerous in that you’ll become completely mesmerised by fish that simply won’t eat a lure! Over the years I’ve been guilty of wasting away hours in this fashion. When all the elements align and everything clicks in terms of your approach and presentation, however, there’s some incredible fish-a-cast action on offer. Knowing how exciting and satisfying it can be makes it tough to move away, even when conditions are clearly unfavourable.

Despite the fickle nature of sight casting on wide open estuary flats, the ability to visually locate fish and execute a plan to deceive and coerce a fish into eating an artificial (and then repeating the process over and over) is the ultimate sport fishing challenge. Irrespective of the environment, be it a high-country stream, inland lake or – as discussed in this piece – coastal estuary flats, stalking your quarry and watching the action all unfold is about as good as fishing gets.

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15

Finding the fish amongst all the fishers WEST COAST

Brett Carson

Fishing on the mighty Glenelg in January can be exceptional. Sure, there are plenty of people having a crack but it’s fair to say there isn’t a waterway in Australia that doesn’t get a workover

into the system, which at times will push 50km up to the Moleside Creek. The saltwater wedge doesn’t roar in and out, but with the river bed being so flat, it slowly pushes higher and higher with each tide. It’s common to catch mulloway 40km+ upstream at this time of year.

Good numbers of

and into the dusk with a live mullet under a float. It’s what they are in the system eating and a tethered mullet presented to feeding fish is like lollies to kids.

Trolling the mullet slowly with an electric motor is also deadly. The trick is to put just enough weight a metre or so in front of the fish to get the bait down to where the schools of mulloway lie in wait then not move too quick.

Watch the tip of your rod and the mullet will tell you

what’s going on; trust me, when he starts bouncing around, he’s nervous. If a mulloway is hungry, get ready and hang on.

The schools of breeding winter bream have now spread back through the river and are back picking the edges and shallows for crabs, shrimp, podworms, whitebait and anything they can get their teeth into. Natural coloured plastics and shallow to deep diving hardbodied lures fished along the edges

Matty Bell with a decent bream.

Buck Saunders had a good morning on the bream casting lures. by the post-Christmas masses. The difference being the Glenelg with its 50km+ of easily navigable water spreads the fishing effort so thinly that you can always find plenty of serenity.

At this time of year the rainfall slows to near nothing, and the river will clean from the dirty winter freshwater flows to full summer conditions.

Clear water in the warmer months means that the salt has pushed well back

solid mulloway are right through the system now chasing the ever-moving masses of mullet and other baitfish. The fish seem to be weighing heavy for their length, showing just how healthy the river is. It’s the time of year that lure fishos will constantly catch mulloway while peppering the edges for bream and perch, only to hook a monster in a foot of water.

If you want to target the mulloway with bait, fish the tops of the tides, dawn

nights and the bait and bugs up on the surface the river comes alive on dusk with the familiar ‘boof’ of perch smashing tucker from the top. Surface walkers or poppers are cast over snags and edges and worked erratically away before a

Stewie Mac with a big bream caught on bait.

The author with a mulloway taken on a soft plastic while fishing for bream.

will produce plenty of fish.

When the sun gets high in the sky fish a bit deeper or work the shady side of the river or snags.

The best bait for big fish is the humble crab – it slows the little pickers and means when you get a fish it’s most likely a good one.

Fish a running sinker for the bottom feeding bream.

I can’t stress enough that the lighter the weight, the more natural your bait will present.

My favourite fishing in the river is coming into its own this time of year is estuary perch on surface lures. With the warmer

Perch up to 40cm are common and great fun on light gear. pause. The perch love the pause and will smash the lure so fast it will surprise you, they hook-up at best half the times they hit; often with another short twitch they’ll hit again.

All the plastics and hardbodies you work for bream will account for perch too and it’s not uncommon to catch as many perch as bream in a session.

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Perch also can’t resist small lives under a float hovering over a snag but you have about a millisecond to react before the perch wins the battle. Do it long enough and you will have stories of unstoppables that keep you coming back.

• Good luck and feel free to come and see us at Nelson Boat Hire for the latest. We have the local ‘live bait licence,’ meaning we stock live mullet, crabs and podworms along with all the frozen bait, tackle and lures you need for the area. We’ll do our best to give you some local knowledge and get you on the fish quicker.

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Summer is looking jam-packed PORTLAND

John Johnstone

With the onset of summer, Portland has again come alive, with the kingfish being the choice for many anglers. Kings to 15kg have been caught, from all of the usual spots, with anywhere from Julia Reef to the harbour producing reliable catches.

Mako sharks and the summer run of school tuna have provided a bit more variety for anglers to chase.

The Lee Breakwater has had snapper to 8kg, whiting to 50cm, kingfish to 10kg, gummy and school sharks to 15kg and the ever-present salmon and barracouta. There have been plenty of juvenile snapper coming off the Lee and the Trawler Wharf; this provides great entertainment for anyone fishing with kids, as you generally don’t have to wait long for a bite.

Anglers willing to venture out to the shelf have enjoyed good catches of blue-eye, pink ling, gemfish and grenadier. Heading in

slightly, anglers fishing the 140m area have enjoyed catches of school and gummy shark, knifejaw, latchet, flathead and the odd Tassie trumpeter mixed in as well.

Venturing into Bridgewater anglers have been catching plenty of flathead, and the odd gummy or school shark, with anglers bagging out quickly once they find the fish. Heading in to the whiting grounds, good catches have been coming from all of the usual spots, anywhere from the quarry to Point Danger or Blacknose, and down under

Zoe Stanford with some whiting she caught.

the water tower has been producing good catches. Over on the north shore there have been pinkie snapper to 50cm, kingfish to 15kg and the odd shark as well.

The local beaches have been producing snapper, salmon, school and gummy sharks and even a few mulloway. This can be a great way to spend some family time while waiting for a bite on a hot summer’s night.

Later on in the month we turn our attention to the annual Australia Day fishing competition; with categories for both land and boat-based fishos, there is something for everyone.

The competition will focus on what species are in Portland Bay: kingfish, snapper, whiting and others.

There will be cash prizes, giveaways and a live band as entertainment. You never know – you or one of your kids could walk away with a prize. For more information, check out the Fisheries website or the Glenelg Shire Facebook page.

While we are on the subject of fishing competitions, the Sea Sherpa North Shore Challenge will also be running on Australia Day. This event is a kayakbased competition with prizes in three categories – individual tally, team tally

The author managed to get out for a fish and caught this gummy of about 4-5kg around Bridgewater. and best catch.

It is a length-based competition with catch and release photo entry allowed.

The eligible species are tuna, kings, snapper, salmon and squid and there is $7000 worth of prizes and gifts up for grabs. More info is available at www. seasherpa.com.au or on their Facebook page.

• Portland Bait and Tackle is family-owned and operated stoking fishing tackle, bait and marine accessories.

They are open 7 days a week from 7 to 7. Portland’s one stop fishing tackle shop,

we cover everything from chasing redfin and trout in fresh water to blue eye and other deep sea fish over the continental shelf. The new owner John Johnstone has extensive fishing experience for both fresh and saltwater.

He has fished most areas of Australia, from chasing trout in the high country to the jumbo tuna down the West Coast – the chances are John has done it. To get the latest advice on what’s been caught call Portland Bait and Tackle on (03) 5523 5213 or drop in and see them at 111 Bentinck Street, Portland.

Warmer-than-usual weather good for fishing WARRNAMBOOL

Mark Gercovich mgercovich@hotmail.com

Writing the January report usually means trying to imagine what will be happening in summer while enduring some late-spring cold, wet or windy weather.

This year things are different with the South West enjoying some protracted spells of summer weather in late

spring. We can only hope it is the precursor to a long, hot summer full of exciting fishing opportunities.

Cray anglers have been taking advantage of the flat seas and lack of swell at the start of the season. Both divers and hoop netters have been taking quality crays to 2kg+. Make sure you have your new tags.

All recreational fishers are now required to tag the rock lobsters they catch and keep them as part of a three-year trial program.

Tags are free and can be ordered online or collected from selected Victorian Government Offices. I had to write off the option of an impromptu drop net session when I remembered I didn’t have any tags!

With the warm weather and water temperature, many anglers’ thoughts turn to kingfish. I already hooked (and unfortunately lost) our first king of the season in November, so things look good for the rest of the season. Hopefully

With the warm weather and water temperature, many anglers’ thoughts turn to kingfish. Hopefully come January we will be enjoying targeting these fine sportfish.

18

JANUARY 2018

come January we will be enjoying targeting these fine sportfish. Last January also saw many schools of bluefin in the 10-20kg range turning on some exceptional summer sportfishing fun.

These inshore school fish were pretty quiet during the traditional autumn/winter last season, so hopefully this means they’re coming back again this summer.

The kings of the estuary, the mulloway, have also been taken from the Hopkins recently and they should still be in the system come January. Fishing into the night or early in the morning is the key during this busier time of year on the water.

If the dedication to target a mulloway doesn’t suit your January aspirations, there are plenty of smaller species available. Lightly-weighted baits and a bit of berley can soon have a variety of species like bream, mullet, salmon and trevally providing plenty of holiday action.

Even if you don’t have a boat, places like the Hopkins Bridge or any pier or landing can produce good fishing if you stick with the principles of quality light gear and a bit of berley. For those looking

There should be plenty of surface action on kings and tuna. to target their estuary species on lures some warmer weather and clear water will see both bream and estuary perch smashing surface presentations on calm

mornings and evenings.

Watching the fish hunt down a pink grub or surface popper is addictive stuff. Get out and give it a go this January.

Your fishing licence fees at work More snags into Pyramid Creek Fishing licence fees have helped the North Central Catchment Management Authority install ten snag complexes into Pyramid Creek.

Made from red gum timber, the snags will provide shelter for native fish to feed and breed.

Fish surveys of the complexes show they are being used by golden perch, bony bream, Australian smelt and Murray cod, some more than one metre long!

Signage has been installed at Box Bridge, a popular fishing destination nearby.

Surry River jetty A new fishing jetty on the Surry River, east of Warrnambool, has improved access for southwest anglers.

The all-abilities jetty is wheelchair friendly and features rod holders for those chasing the riverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s black bream.

The project was managed by the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, which has also constructed a two metre wide boardwalk over the estuary to improve pedestrian access.

Excitement is around the corner APOLLO BAY

Wayne Diffey

We’re starting to see a bit more activity off the beaches recently with reports of salmon up to 2kg and the odd bigger one.

Blue bait and squid are the most common baits; use a paternoster rig – single or double. Many fishos like to use a double paternoster rig, with bait on the bottom hook and a surf popper on the top dropper.

Spinning off the beach with metal slugs is still the most popular with the locals and visitors alike. I’ve been

trying out a couple of Asari lures lately – the Asari Mahi (single in-line hook) and the Asari Lethal Hunter (double assist hooks) – and have had some good results with both.

Out wide there have been good reports of gummies, snapper and some big flatties about in reasonable numbers. Matt from Hit-n-Run charter says that from Bald Hill to Cape Otway along the 40m mark has been very productive for the gummies with his passengers bagging out nearly every trip.

I also had a report of yellowtail kingfish possibly starting to show up. One

local was fishing near the Pinnacles recently, jigging, when his line was hit hard and it nearly spooled him with all of the feel of a kingy.

King George whiting are still being caught in good numbers off the Bumbry Reef, Marengo and off the Waterfall, in that 8-10m mark. Pipis remain the best bait on a running sinker rig.

The local streams and rivers are still fishing well, with some nice bream and brown trout being caught.

For lures it’s hard to go past the Rapala 4cm X-Rap, the Ecogear SX40, or the Squidgy Bug in bloodworm on a no. 6 jighead. Be very

careful of snakes when walking the streams, as there have been many spotted.

January should see a further improvement in the weather, and also an increase in the number of people out fishing. If you’re going to be chasing calamari or whiting in the harbour, get there early.

Likewise, if you’re going after salmon off the beach, get out early to ensure you get a good spot.

• If you’re coming to Apollo Bay for a fish, be sure to pop in to get all your bait and tackle needs, as well as an up-to-date report, or call us on (03) 5237 6426.

A good catch of snapper and gummies aboard the Hit-n-Run charter boat.

Lots of fish-feeding frenzies this storm season COBDEN

Rod Shepherd

This rock flathead fell to a 3” Fish Arrow Shad fished from the surf at Newfields Bay, Peterborough. lightning strike. If in any doubt, cease fishing and get off the water. No fish is worth dying for.

Plenty of anglers are venturing offshore and some excellent fish are being boated. Anchoring

over rubbly reefs round the 50m mark has seen some excellent snapper to 2.5kg boated along with some tasty nannygai to 900g. School and gummy sharks are taking bottom bounced baits; they’re not

big specimens, mind you, but legal all the same.

Large squid strips and chunks are the gun baits employed by many.

Closer inshore King George whiting and accompanying squid are

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The mouth of the Curdies estuary has finally closed but this hasn’t stopped the bream from biting.

Many anglers have struck gold in the bream department.

Recently two anglers from the Colac area caught and released over 40 bream by fishing deep close up against the reed encrusted banks. They employed deep diving minnow lures ripped close to the bottom and hopped metal blades almost black in colour along the bottom and very close to the bank as well. It is often a straight drop-off into 3m+ depth and this is exactly where the bream feed.

The bream are scattered right up and down the river in schools and it’s just a matter of locating them. Some anglers have great success and some don’t – that’s fishing.

I hope all readers had great Christmas and New Year’s celebrations and I hope that the man in red left some fishing gear under the tree for you.

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The summer weather has finally arrived with a bang and with quite a few thundery changes thrown in as well. It’s common knowledge amongst anglers that the build up to a thunderstorm can be quite productive, as fish can almost go into a rapid feeding frenzy before the storm front hits.

I have experienced this many times over the years, but on the same note fishing in an exposed position along a waterfront or beach – or out on the water in an aluminium boat – is not the place to be when a storm is looming, if you get my drift.

Most rods now are made of composite materials including carbon as opposed to the fibreglass rods of yesteryear, so in actual fact, the modern day rod makes an excellent conductor for a potential

the catch of the day from depths of 10-20m. Smaller squid strips and tentacles topped off with pipi meat have worked well on the whiting; again they’re not huge fish, but certainly worth chasing.

The squid often expose themselves by clinging onto a whiting as it is brought up from the bottom. This is where many anglers quickly switch over to a jig and take full advantage of the situation. Smaller, often undersized pinkie snapper are also about and sometimes in plague proportions.

The famous flathead grounds that lie between the waters just off Warrnambool and Boat Bay at Peterborough have been producing some excellent fish to 1.8kg. Drifting over the sandy bottom using cut or filleted pilchards has been the go.

Some ‘yank’ and rock flathead can be found quite close inshore as I recently found out. At this time of year these fish come in very close to shore to breed and can be almost sitting at your feet.

January is a peak time for fishing GEELONG

Neil Slater slaterbunch@optusnet.com.au

January sees the Bellarine and Surf Coast peak in numbers of people fishing and often numbers of

fish landed. The weather can be breezy, but warm water temperatures can see heightened activity of popular species such as kingfish.

GEELONG FRESHWATER The Barwon River in

Some happy Beachlea Boat Hire customers with some Bellarine seafood.

22

JANUARY 2018

Geelong has had a flush of water recently and when things clear up the redfin have been biting well. The best bet has been evening and casting soft plastic lures in and around the bank side weeds or using a live minnow or gudgeon for bait.

European carp have also been biting and are awesome fun on light tackle, with some nudging 6kg. Sweet corn kernels, worms or white bread squashed over the hook are top baits.

CORIO BAY Corio Bay’s inner harbour has seen a few snotty trevally caught along the Geelong waterfront and Cunningham Pier. High tide at dawn or dusk has been best and they have also been caught during the day. They have been falling to singletailed soft plastic grubs in motor oil colour with raw chicken and pilchard fillets being the best baits.

The Aussie salmon have been solid inside Corio Bay, with schools popping up randomly from Clifton Springs to Western Beach in Geelong. Most fish have been from 800g-1.4kg and eager to scoff flies and lures.

I found a few salmon around Point Henry recently.

They were hanging deep in 9m of water and I sent a plastic down thinking they were snapper. They were fussy as hell, but I managed to connect to one after changing to a black soft plastic with silver flecks, sending it deep and ripping it back erratically to the boat.

I fished Corio Bay with Hugh Hanson last month. We were dragging Rapala Tail Dancers along the edge of the channel near Point Henry when Hugh’s rod loaded up.

After a short battle I slid the net under a beautifully marked 53cm snapper.

We flicked soft plastic lures around in 5-6m of water out off Curlew is where we caught a few flathead to 46cm and pike. The pike were keen and Hugh managed a whopper at 85cm while I caught a pair around 60cm. Back at the ramp, another angler had three pike around 60cm and another chap had around 15 flathead with one up around 50cm he’d caught using bait. Hugh also caught a stack of garfish in Corio Bay recently. Hugh said he used a mix of tuna oil and chook pellets as berley and that they were taking almost any bait.

As early as November,

Xavier with a pair of quality snapper, with the one on the left his new PB of 7.3kg. the surface temperature inside Corio Bay was a balmy 23°C and with the November burst of warm weather, this could mean kingfish! We’re long overdue for some kingfish action in Geelong and with the action at Docklands late last November, this could be our year!

Clifton Springs and

Portarlington have turned it on for snapper fishers over the last month, with anglers enjoying quality fish up to 8kg. Silver whiting, pilchards and fresh squid have been the pick of the baits in the region.

Collan and Malcolm Erard launched at St Helens and headed to Point Wilson

where they’ve done well on the snapper over the past month.

While they managed to boat a 30cm pinkie and nice feed of flathead, it was nothing substantial, so they went across the bay to Clifton Springs and set the anchor in 10m of water just outside the channel. About 30 minutes later Malcolm hooked a nice fish and after a good fight the brothers welcomed a 5kg snapper aboard!

Marty Ellul and his son Xavier fished the reefs between Portarlington and Clifton Springs for squid last month and found them willing and able. Some no. 3 jigs in black and white worked really well in depths of 2.5-4m.

The lads also took some nice snapper just north of Point Wilson with Xavier capturing his PB at 7.2kg. Their bag fell to sand whiting and squid.

Rod Ludlow from Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports they are getting more and more whiting – no bag outs just yet. The fish are decently sized and up to 43cm, so you don’t need many for a feed. Rod says that the flood tide is probably fishing a little better and the start of the run-out is also producing fish. The best baits have been mussels and pipis and the stretch of water from St Leonards to Indented Head is worth a crack with the outer

areas fishing a little better.

Over the past month the snapper and gummy sharks have been active with the Prince George Light area a standout. The gummies, while not huge, have been plentiful and the average size of the snapper has been up to about 3kg. The best baits were fresh squid, pilchards and silver whiting and Rod notes that the high tide has been the time to hit these spots. There are some

good snapper around Steeles Rocks near Portarlington; first and last light are the best times.

Rod says he managed to get out recently and had his first good whiting dinner for a long time. He said that it felt great to land some of these thumpers.

Carlos Nunez from Drysdale fished off Portarlington Pier last month when he managed to land a ripper snapper of 68cm

Xavier found plenty of squid around the Bellarine.

and 6.5kg.

Phil Walters from St Leonards Angling Club says 36 competitors entered the Family Fishing Competition run by Bellarine Pirates, St Leonards Angling and St Leonards Yacht Club and Motor Squadron in November.

The Adult Male Champion was Joe Scaffidi with the heaviest snapper. His bag included whiting, flathead and squid while the runner up was Matt Paech with the heaviest flathead of 327g, heaviest squid of 1185g and some whiting. The heaviest leatherjacket of 462g was caught by John Bustard.

Jayden Pont fished from the Point Lonsdale Pier last month where he caught stacks of calamari casting and retrieving his jigs.

The Barwon River Estuary has been fishing well for King George whiting to 35cm on the run-out tide down near the mouth while further up, there have been silver trevally and small salmon. Those seeking mulloway this January should have a crack in the estuary after dark on the lead up to the full and new moons. The best bait is the freshest squid possible. Run a nice long leader using 15-20kg monofilament.

January should see a few schools of salmon concentrated in the Rip while

Plenty of flatties are available out off St Leonards. the kingfish and mako sharks should show up out in Bass Strait. Lay a long berley trail out around the 70m mark for the sharks and send jigs down over the reef areas in 10-30m of water out off The Rip and Barwon Heads for kingfish.

• Catch a few around Geelong, Bellarine Peninsula or Surf Coast to Lorne recently? Send

in a report to slaterbunch@ optusnet.com.au with VFM in the subject field or give me a call on 0408 997 348. Please include where (without giving away your secret spot!), when, what on and who caught the fish. Pictures are always great, but please make sure they are at least 1mb (file size).

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Have a very snappy New Year PORT PHILLIP BAY WEST

Alan Bonnici alan@fishingmad.com.au

It’s the start of a new year and hopefully you’re on holidays relaxing with your loved ones. Don’t get

too comfortable just yet, as the big reds are in town and the usual areas near Melbourne are firing.

Michael Smith with a pair of snapper.

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The Port Phillip Bay boat ramps have gone crazy as local anglers try and get their fair share of the current snapper fishing frenzy. To get amongst the hot snapper action, you should head out towards St Kilda, Port Melbourne, Black Rock, Geelong, Altona, Williamstown and Werribee.

Cooper Trigg and Kevin Warwick have sent me details of a great snapper fishing session they had recently while fishing around Werribee. Getting up very early and being on the water upon first light was key. As the sun came up the guys had their rods rigged up and ready with unweighted half pilchards.

It didn’t take long for the action to heat up with Cooper and Kevin catching a beautiful pair of Port Phillip Bay snapper.

Kevin caught the larger 6kg version and Cooper was still very pleased with his lovely 4kg red. The boys came in shortly after as the conditions got quite choppy and uncomfortable.

Michael Smith has also been in full snapper hunting mode this month with his brother Peter. Taking their time to carefully use the sounder in areas around Altona and Williamstown has paid dividends. Michael has told me of several frantic bag-out sessions that ended almost as soon as they started.

The preference has been fishing mainly with soft plastics; the go-to soft plastic options have

Nahid with his first-ever snapper catches. included 4” curl-tails and minnows in natural bait imitation colours. This technique of sounding and targeting snapper on soft plastics has consistently produced snapper around the 60cm mark.

To make things a little more interesting, both Michael and Peter have been using very light

spinning gear including a Daiwa Trauma Centre 2-5kg class rod coupled with a 2000 size Shimano Sedona reel. After reaching their bag limits, they fished along the shallow and weedy areas surrounding Point Cook and caught a good feed of squid. The standout jigs have been the brightly coloured squid jigs

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JANUARY 2018

Cooper Trigg with his PPB snapper.

in 3g size.

With all the snapper hype it’s great to see inexperienced anglers also having great success and catching their fair share of snapper. Nahid Rahman has been waiting patiently to catch is first-ever snapper.

On a recent fishing trip around Port Melbourne Nahid couldn’t contain his excitement as he finally got onto a few nice ones.

The conditions were very choppy, and Nahid was in a small boat. Rather than risk heading out into known snapper territory, Nahid stayed nice and close to the shoreline near the large moored boats.

Using fresh squid recently purchased from the market Nahid caught his first-ever snapper and

lot of effort and at times hundreds of casts between catches of good-size fish.

Our tackle of choice included Jackall TN series lipless crankbaits, 3” grubstyle soft plastics in dark colours, spinnerbaits in a range of colours and some trolling hardbody lures such as StumpJumpers.

Collectively the group caught several nice-size golden perch including one 5kg monster, several large brown trout and an avalanche of small redfin that were eager to take just about anything in their path.

The thunderstorms kicked in keeping our Bonnie Doon serenity away. With much heavy rain, we abandoned the boat and fish to get out of the wet and wavy conditions.

No doubt I will be back again; I look forward to taking my kids there on some camping adventures.

January must be my favourite time of the year to be on the water early in the morning or late in the afternoon in the fishing kayak. Pedalling around Port Phillip Bay and looking for shallow reef areas on calm sunny days is great. I simply drift around flicking a range of soft plastics, which is a great way to cover distances and drift over reefs.

The combination of good sunny weather and quality fishing gear such as my Savage Gear Black Savage Spin outfit has continually produced many flathead, pinkies, whiting, leatherjackets and the odd

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Kevin Warwick with a fantastic 6kg snapper. ended up catching three snapper in total, beating his personal best size each time.

This month I ventured up to Lake Eildon with good mate Dean Yeoman and his beloved angling club Didyabringyarodalong.

Lake Eildon at this time of year is a known hotspot as trophy-sized yellowbelly, redfin and cod are frequently being caught by anglers. We camped along the river around Bonnie Doon then hit the water on first light.

The plan was quite simple – to stay out fishing for most of the day targeting the submerged trees in the water, which provide terrific structure for fish to hide in, then target the soft muddy banks and rocky areas.

Yellas are notorious for hiding deep in the structure. This requires a

To keep active, we threw in some scrub worms, which kept us busy catching carp after carp after carp – even the odd mirror carp, which was a nice surprise. It was great to see Dean’s young bloke catching many large carp.

Once again, I lost a brand-new rod and reel combo to a big carp. Can you believe this is the third new rod combo I have lost to carp this year? A good tip from this is to keep your drag nice and loose to let the carp run so you don’t lose rods.

Hopefully I’ll remember this next time around, however if you happen to find a new Shimano Nasci rod combo around Eildon, you know who to contact. Eildon is truly a remarkable fishing location and one that needs a lot more time than a couple of days to master.

snapper. This is one of the most pleasurable ways to catch fish and I always enjoy that moment when the fish first strikes the plastic and goes for the first run.

This year sure looks to be an exciting year for fishing and there no doubt that snapper have been the heroes around Melbourne recently. Hopefully the snapper fishing stays strong for another month or two; make sure you get out there and get onto a few big reds, and share your photos and experiences with me.

That’s all for this month.

I’d love to hear about your recent fishing experiences around Melbourne and Port Phillip Bay. Feel free to contact me by email on alan@fishingmad.com. au, at www.fishingmad. com.au, or on Facebook via facebook.com/ fishingmad.com.au.

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JANUARY 2018

25

Mid-summer madness PORT PHILLIP NE

Wayne Friebe wfriebe@bigpond.net.au

Who would want to be a weather forecaster? After a prolonged hot spell during the last couple of weeks of spring, I reckon many anglers thought that the warmth of the summer months had definitely arrived, as the ramps and shores were finally buzzing with snapper fever.

And then the start of summer actually arrived, and the temperature fell to the floor again! Who could pick that? But with the changing weather has come some quality storm activity and some frantic snapper bites for those keen anglers brave enough to take on the conditions. During the early part of summer it seems that things are starting to settle again for a long summer ahead.

Snapper reports have been well and truly centred around changes in barometric pressure, especially before,

during and after recent storms.

Some really great fish have been landed, especially in closer around Mount Eliza, Frankston and Seaford in 8-15m of water. Areas around and near reefs and other structure have been the best, along with the use of a variety of baits.

Having said that, the humble pilchard has accounted for more than its fair share of snapper so far this year, and is still the go-to bait for many of the bay’s anglers. The bigger fish that have been taken, however, seem to be responding to more specific baits like fresh squid and salmon, and also to those anglers willing to put in a little extra time fishing outside the box. I have had at least two reports of snapper over the magic 20lb mark taken already this season, which is great to see, and let’s hope there are plenty more to come this year.

Over the month, expect the reds to move into more of a grazing pattern; they will look to put on condition before spawning later in the summer

months. They will move into the wider and deeper marks, so finding fish on the sounder before dropping the pick and setting the rods becomes more important along with the use of berley.

While many of the bay’s anglers will have moved on from the snapper at this time of year, the bite continued last season well into the new year; I would expect the same to happen this season as well.

Traditionally, wider marks closer to the shipping channel will fish well, especially out from Mornington, Mount Martha and Safety Beach.

The time to fish in closer, and from the piers and rocks is during and after onshore winds, so there are plenty of snapper options for anglers of

Logan Hodgens and his dad with Logan’s new PB snapper at 65cm and 4kg taken on a pilchard and 10kg line. Logan claims his secret berley was the difference.

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The author has been getting amongst some solid pinkie snapper from the inshore reefs on Squidgies. all persuasions this month.

I would expect the light line lure fishing on soft plastics to be very good over the coming months as well, as it was during the early parts of last year. I’ve had some great sessions in recent times, especially around the inshore reef areas in 8-12m out from Mount Eliza, Mornington and

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JANUARY 2018

Mount Martha.

UV enhanced soft plastics have been a real standout, but like the bait fishing reports, bite windows have been very short at times, and centered normally around the change of light in the morning or at night, and sometimes during the change of tide. The kayak anglers have been doing very well in these areas as well, especially those keen (or brave) enough to fish when the storm fronts have been rolling in.

Expect many of the bay’s mainstays to really become part of the furniture along the eastern seaboard over the next few months, especially the calamari and whiting.

They haven’t really started to load up heavily just yet, but they certainly will as water temperatures continue to rise and the days get even longer.

Good reports are already coming from further south in the bay as they have been doing for some months, so things aren’t far away from firing up in out part of the bay as well.

Big schools of salmon

have been around our part of the bay for some time,and will most likely stick around for the rest of summer, especially with the amount of bait on offer for them to gorge themselves on. The humble sambos are great fun for anglers of all ages – they provide great sport and will eat just about anything. Keep your eyes out for working birds and busting fish. Other boats will often give their presence away as well.

And with them over the summer months there are likely to be kingfish as well.

The kingies in PPB have been a bit of an enigma in recent times to say the least, but the frequency of the captures has definitely increased in the last few seasons, in line with much more success in the rip and local offshore areas as well. Stay tuned for more news in the coming months.

Some really great snapper have been landed, especially in closer around Mount Eliza, Frankston and Seaford in 8-15m of water.

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Crazy weather keeps the fishing interesting PORT PHILLIP EAST

Lee Rayner info@fishingfever.com.au

Last year was crazy – we ended up with the hottest spell of weather on record in November, and then one of the best batterings of cold wet weather to kick off December that we have seen for many years. Saying that, it has kept the fishing really interesting with a continued snapper bite. At this stage it

crazy wind that we copped in early December – once the water cleared – the pier has been fishing quite well in past weeks with pinkie snapper being taken at night. There have even been some decent reports of garfish. The coming weeks should also see some good opportunities to get a feed of land-based whiting for those anglers that fish into the reef and sand holes on the north side of the pier – fishing in this area later in the afternoon and into the evening

patch of reef then berley very lightly, so you don’t attract too many pinkies, then fish with a paternoster rig and baits of squid or pipis.

Out wider snapper continued to bite right up until Christmas. For those that haven’t had their fill of reds, there will still be plenty of fish to be found during the dawn and dusk periods, especially out wider on locations such as the Gasso and further north towards T1 and T2.

Back in closer anglers fishing the stretch between Ricketts Point and Black Rock have started to get into some good salmon and it shouldn’t be too long before we hear a few kingfish reports. Adding to these the reef area has also been holding pinkies and some big snapper. For most anglers fishing this part of the bay now is the time to focus on the

whiting and garfish that are in the area.

SANDRINGHAM TO ST KILDA It’s whiting time in this area with anglers already reporting a few catches of whiting off locations such as Yorkies reef, which lies between Half Moon Bay and the Sandringham breakwall. This is also a very good location for garfish and it’s well worth getting a small bait out with a fine berley trail while chasing the whiting. It’s also a fantastic way to find a roaming kingfish, as they will be lurking around this location in coming weeks – they’re quick to home in on a school of garfish.

If you’re after a mixed bag of fish, it’s worth heading a little wider to the Anonyma Shoal, which has been holding good numbers of pinkies, snook, and a few big whiting.

The author with a great night-time whiting. looks like we may see decent numbers of whiting for the summer period.

As always there have been plenty of squid and pinkies of offer along the reef areas.

Fingers crossed that after all the rain and nutrients put into the bay with the flooding rain in December we will see some really good fishing during January and February.

MORDIALLOC TO BLACK ROCK After the heavy rain and

with baits of mussel or fresh squid could find you with a great feed.

For the anglers in boats there are literally kilometres of good ground to be fished over the coming weeks with whiting to be found from Parkdale all the way up to Ricketts Point. Through this area anglers have been getting some good whiting, especially around the Parkdale Pinnacles, with the best method being to try to find a bit of a lighter

Use a lot of berley to get the whiting going this month. Pipis and baby bottle squid make great bait for these fish.

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It shouldn’t be too long before we start to hear a few kingfish reports.

It’s also a prime location to find a few salmon.

Further to the north the shallow inshore reef areas between Green Point and up to North Road really tend to fire up over the coming weeks, with the shallow reefy bottom really helping to warm the water; this in turn attracts species such as garfish. This is also an especially good area to be fishing small soft plastics between the reef patches, as now is the time that the big blue-spot flathead become active. Catching a half a dozen of these guys provides a bunch of fun and a fantastic feed.

If you’re interested in getting into a bit of this fun fishing then all you need is a light spin outfit and a few plastics on 1/8oz jigheads.

When it comes to the tails it’s hard to go past the ZMan 4” MinnowZ and the 4”curly-tail grub; this season the new 4” Storm Joker Shads are going to be deadly. Either wade the shallows casting at likely spots or sit close to shore in a boat and you are sure to have some fun.

ST KILDA TO PORT MELBOURNE This area has been one of the hottest parts of the bay over the past few months

and at this stage it doesn’t look like it’s slowing down, with anglers having great snapper fishing up along the edge of the shipping lanes all the way up to Christmas.

It will be interesting to see if that continues this month.

There have already been some whiting reports starting to filter through from the St Kilda area. The promising news has been the big garfish that have started to turn up around in the warm water off St Kilda breakwall and up towards Kerford Road Pier.

One of the other great options for this time of the year is the great lure fishing around the moored boats in behind the breakwall at St Kilda, where numbers of big bream hang in the shadows of the boats tucked in this area.

It’s here that lure anglers have some great action on bream, trevally and even the odd school mulloway.

If you’re shore-bound there are also plenty of good land-based options on offer.

Wading the shallows casting small soft plastics turns up plenty of good flathead, as they hold in the shallows feeding on the small baitfish that are in the area.

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29

The summer fishing is off to a good start MORNINGTON PENINSULA

Julian Frank

The start of the summer holidays was a cracker and there are lots of reports coming in from all over the southern peninsula. I hope everybody had a safe and fishy Christmas break and a happy New Years.

Looking back to November, we’ve had a pretty good lead up in the weather and this has no doubt helped with how the fishing on the Peninsula has panned out.

MT MARTHA The warmer weather we had during November has really spiked the water temperatures and due to this a number of our local fishers

have been cracking some excellent snapper in close and out wide.

The top end of the Spoil ground is a great spot to fish at this time of year. For one, it’s deeper water between 21-24m; this is good when you have tide changes later in the mornings or early afternoons. This will suit a lot of you fishos on holidays

Another horse taken by local Johno – this fish also 7kg came from out wide.

Ben Broomfield took this 7kg snapper along the fairway lane.

Ph: Craig Winch 0417 646 711

30

JANUARY 2018

who are out to relax a bit and still have access to some good fishing.

The baits on the go are silver whiting, but you still need to berley quite a bit to get them going and bring these fish in, as they haven’t been schooled up or found in big numbers.

The rocks have always been a hotspot for land-based fishos and they’re great for spearfishing too at this time of year. There is no shortage of fish at the moment with reports of garfish and salmon being seen and caught regularly. Plenty of squid are around the Bradford Road area if you’re out and about in the earlier mornings.

ROSEBUD TO TOOTGAROOK Rosebud Pier is a very popular one for land-based guys at night chasing calamari and tommy ruff (Australian herring). During the morning through to midday garfish are always a welcomed catch off here, and have a spin outfit ready as you always get schools of smaller salmon that come through.

Rosebud Reef has been a hot area for anglers chasing whiting and pinkies, which are still being regularly caught up to 2kg with the odd gummy taken as by-catch.

There are also plenty of good-sized flathead in a little closer, If you look for the change in depth on the bottom from 8-3m anywhere inside these depths are great and be sure to use big baits, a whole pilchard strip won’t be turned down.

RYE TO SORRENTO Rye and Sorrento are extremely busy at this time of year with everyone wanting to launch their boats and jet skis. Be mindful that there can be delays at ramps and please be patient during these times. Help out others if need be, as launching and retrieving can be quiet

stressful for those who haven’t had the experience or may experience issues with their boats.

Onto the fishing, squid have been a little hit and miss some days but they are still in great numbers.

You just need to find areas to fish that don’t have as much boat traffic, or try very early mornings and late afternoons if you want to fish your favourite grounds near shore.

Often the top of the Pinnace Channel is a great spot and also very popular for whiting. You can fish for gummies and snapper a few hundred metres out off the north end and there are some very good flatty grounds up there too.

Blairgowrie wall is worth a look if you want to

flick soft plastics. With great numbers of flathead and salmon around you’ll find yourself nicely rewarded.

There are schools of trevally amongst the boats, so if you can berley them out, you’ll be hooked up in no time.

The Sorrento boat moorings are excellent for a fish during the late afternoons and evenings.

Whether you’re fishing from a boat or decide to cast a line off one of the jetties in the area, squid, garfish and whiting are all up for grabs.

For any other fishing info, swing past the Compleat Angler in Rosebud to have a chat with myself or one of the other knowledgeable staff members so we can help you get onto whatever it is you’re chasing.

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31

Top end whiting continue to fire WESTERN PORT NTH

Jarrod Day jarrodday@iprimus.com.au

It really is that time of the year when many anglers have started to make the switch from snapper to whiting. Don’t get me wrong, the snapper are still about and in fairly good numbers in the top end of the port. Most of the action seems to be coming from the mouth of Boultins and Bouchier Channels. Fishing the last few hours of the run-out tides has seen the most consistent fishing.

Joes Island is also producing some nicely sized snapper, although there are plagues of smallersized fish, which tend to ravish your bait as soon as it hits the bottom. Many of these fish range from undersize to 40cm, so it’s worth sticking it out and sifting through them until a larger model manages to get to the bait first.

Similar action is also around Crawfish Rock. The bottom here is very reefy and holds good numbers of snapper right through until late March. By then there will be very little pressure on the snapper and they tend to bite quite well.

Most of the fishing action now though is all about the whiting with the upper channels all producing nice fish. Berley is essential, mainly because of the strength of the water flow; using berley can bring the fish to your area from afar.

When using berley, it is imperative you use a berley pot – something with a substantial amount of weight. Light berley pots without added weight will be forced up into the water column with the water pressure. If this is the case, you’ll attract more silver trevally, salmon and a host of other unwanted species instead of whiting.

Berleying must be done

The top of the Middle Spit weed beds holds good calamari. from the seafloor, this way the current will push the fine particles along the bottom and the whiting will be onto it in no time at all.

It also pays to be using small circle hooks on your rigs, too. Circles will prevent losing a fish and subsequently spooking the school. Paternoster rigs or extended rigs are ideal in the fast current.

While there is a lot of water to cover up in this section of the Port, most of the whiting are found along the channel edges.

Gentle Annie, Charing Cross, Tooradin and the Warneet Channel are top locations to berley up a good feed for fish.

At this time of the year, the Middle Spit becomes the location of choice for many whiting anglers, however it can become over crowded. While it continues to produce fish, getting

away from the crowds can lead to better quality fish.

The Eastern Channel – particularly the French

Island side of it – has been fishing its best on the beginning of the run-out tides. As the water recedes off the shallow banks, the whiting also move off into the deeper channel.

Working along the edge of the Eastern Channel is very productive.

While fishing along here don’t be afraid to toss a squid jig about over the sea grass as there are plenty of calamari in this area too.

In saying that, anywhere along the Middle Spit is productive for calamari as the tide is abating. Calamari are also prolific in the top end but they tend to not like areas where the water gets silted up. Some of the best fishing for calamari is south of Crawfish Rock at the top of the Middle Spit, Quail and Tyabb Bank.

These three locations are high-tide-only fisheries, because on the low tides they are almost exposed.

There are two effective ways to fish for calamari over the weed beds; the most popular, of course, is casting and retrieving squid jigs. As the water depth is quite shallow (often ranging 2-3m) jigs can become snagged very easily. While you won’t lose a lot of jigs on the weed,

Using circle hooks will ensure your catch stays connected during the entire fight. it can become frustrating having to remove the weed after nearly every cast.

To prevent this, bait

The top end of the port is thriving with solid whiting.

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fishing with a silver whiting under a float is quite often more effective. A surface berley of mashed up pilchards can attract them to the area where they’ll find the bait. If you are using this technique, you only need to set the silver whiting around 1m under the float. This will have it just off the bottom in most cases.

This month, despite the urge to continue targeting snapper, whiting will certainly be the top pick of species on many anglers’ hit lists. Fish the tides and the right locations and be sure to berley. Pipi baits and mussels will undoubtedly be the top bait choices and if you have the time, head to the shallow flats on a mid-tide along the Middle Spit or at Warneet and pump some Bass yabbies to use as live bait. If there is one top bait to rival all others, it is the humble Bass yabby.

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33

Cracker catches coming in, day and night WESTERN PORT STH

Jarrod Day jarrodday@iprimus.com.au

There has been no shortage of cracking catches over the past month and some fish are just mind-blowing.

It never ceases to amaze me just how good the fishery of Western Port is every year and it really doesn’t matter where you’re fishing, something always manages to take your bait.

Western Port, amongst

its maze of deep channels and shallow mud banks, has so much to offer anglers of all levels of experience. No matter the weather (with an exception of 20+ knots) there is always somewhere to go and some fish to catch; it all depends on the tides and techniques used.

With the water temperature still up snapper are still a viable option. While they have slowed down a little due to spawning time, there are huge numbers of pinkies still willing to devour

your offerings. Locations such as ‘the Corals’, Rhyll, Observation Point, Corinella and down the Western

You’ll still have no trouble hooking and landing larger fish and you’ll also have no trouble hooking into the

Corinella during the night last month in search of a big red. Unfortunately there were no snapper to be found but instead they struck silver with a monster mulloway that weighed in at 29.95kg.

At this time of year this area is a mulloway hotspot and quite a number of

gummy sharks will also be patrolling the muddy banks.

Lang Lang is another top location to fish for gummies, especially for those in kayaks.

Launching from the beach at Lang Lang is no problem on a high tide; there is a little current to contend with the further out into the deep you get. With

Matty Bond is getting onto a lot of gummies at the moment. Photo courtesy of Matty Bond.

Yak fishing out from Lang Lang is very productive at this time of year, as Jayden proved. Photo courtesy of Jayden Campbell.

Entrance still have an abundance of snapper on the hard reefs. The pinkies are in plague proportions and there are some bigger fish amongst them.

Standard snapper techniques continue to serve well but don’t be shy to drop your hook size down to a 3/0 or 4/0 size circle hook.

small fish ranging 1-2kg.

Of all the hot locations to fish at this time of the year, Corinella and up towards Lang Lang are still worth a try. There are a number of snapper still lurking around and the by-catch can always impress. Local angler Jony Ai Ung and his mate Dale Birznieks ventured to

A decent by-catch for Marcus – kingfish are plentiful in and around the port from now until April. Photo courtesy of Marcus Bulte.

The Superb range of XP Bait Butterfly Ice Jigs are going to be a must have lure in 2017!

These Baits feature many unique attributes and have many various Patents.

The XP Bait Butterfly Ice Jigs feature butterfly wings that open up on the drop to slow the glide down and makes the Jig flutter through the water column.

This keeps the Jig in the strike zone for longer so it allows for more strikes.

It also features a holographic foil on the body under the wings to emit light and attract the fish to the bait. Another key feature is the ‘TFLF’ Line System that allows you to drop your jig to a desired depth without fluttering to save time and get your lure to the strike zone quicker.

The new XP Bait Butterfly Jigs are going to be a huge hit with Bass & Redfin anglers across Australia.

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The main design feature of the bait lies in its ability

to open its wings. The construction is designed in a way that while lowering into the water, the wings are unfolded up to a certain angle, allowing the bait to glide, keeping it in the strike zone longer.

While lifting up, the wings are folded and that leads to a decrease in water resistance and the ice jig moving aside. It also features a Holographic foil on the body that emits a flash when the wings open up to attract fish and trigger a response.

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the nice weather we have been having, few kayakers have been out with snapper and gummy sharks making up the bulk of the catches.

Jayden Campbell hit up the area in his yak fishing out from Lang Lang. Working out towards the channel, Jayden had a mad session catching some magnificent snapper and gummy sharks.

Land-based fishing in this area is also extremely productive, especially from Stockyard Point. Warm, balmy evenings make the trek worth it. Remember to fish the low tide so you are casting out into the deeper water. There are a myriad of species on offer here including bronze whaler sharks, sevengill sharks, gummy sharks, snapper, yellow-eye mullet, silver trevally, mulloway, tailor and elephant sharks which will begin to appear around the end of next month.

It always pays to flick out a few rods from here: one with a big bait using a running sinker rig and a lighter rod with a paternoster rig running small long shank hooks to catch the bread and butter species. Catching mullet, tailor and trevally can make for good fresh baits to better your chances at catching much bigger.

Although many holidaymakers still have their eyes set on catching snapper,

Bruno and his clients with some of Western Port’s finest. Photo courtesy of Reel Time Fishing Charters. most seasonal anglers have already made the switch to targeting whiting. They certainly are prolific within the port at the moment with the usual haunts firing. The more productive locations include Tankerton, the Middle Spit, Tortoise Head Bank, Dickies Bay, Ventnor, Balnarring, Flinders and Cat Bay are the pick.

Local angler Matty Bond has had quite a few sensational sessions on the port with plenty of whiting coming on board.

While whiting fishing there is always the by-catch of mullet, silver trevally and flathead, which make a nice bag of fish at the end of the day.

Matty has also been

sticking out a few big baits on occasion and managing some nice gummy sharks.

Bruno Colosimo has been

putting clients onto some spectacular whiting fishing of late. Fishing the southern end of the Middle Spit, Bruno has managed some sensational whiting with fish up to 45cm.

Pipis and mussel baits have been the best. Most of the bigger fish have been in the deep. Fishing the top of the high tide in 2-3m of water has been very productive, and as the tide abates the action drops out into the deeper water.

You’ll find that in around 15m of water the fish tend to be bigger and fatter. Fishing here is’nt that easy mainly due to the strength of tide, so it pays to hit up the area around two hours before the low tide change. This will enable you to fish with a 6oz sinker to get to the bottom. In these depths, a paternoster rig with size 4 circle hooks is ideal. Tie up There are a lot of gummies about at the moment. Photo courtesy of Matty Bond.

Jony cradling his special catch, a solid slab of Western Port silver from Corinella. Photo courtesy of Jony Ai Ung.

your rig from 6lb fluorocarbon to prevent being busted off if a snapper decides to take your whiting baits.

Fishing in close along the edges of the port has its bonuses too, especially with strange species taking your baits. Local angler Marcus Bulte was out in the port catching bait for a gummy session when a steam train took one of his baits. After an epic battle, Marcus landed a

cracking 74cm kingfish.

These brutes are already in the port and from now on until April they are readily available if you know where to search for them. Of course, live baiting is one of the best methods, especially offshore.

The prime locations are Cape Schanck, Seal Rock, Pyramid Rock and around Kilcunda.

This season is sure to be epic.

All we need is the weather to get out there.

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Flatties are showing up in good numbers PHILLIP ISLAND

Craig Edmonds

With another Christmas gone, most of the big snapper are now just a memory on your phone and everyone will turn their attention to heading offshore looking for kingfish and mako sharks. The bay will also start to see an influx of pinkies, many of them undersized. The warmer holiday period will see more fishing under the water, both from the land and the boats, especially around the pinnacle.

If you are diving or snorkelling, don’t forget to have all the correct gear with you: fishing licence, tags for crays, dive flag or buoy and something to measure your abalone with that isn’t marks scratched into a knife. Just as there is for rod and reel fishing, there are plenty of dos and don’ts for diving and all the regulations are in the Victorian Recreational Fishing Guide or on the Fisheries app.

One of the best things about this time of the year is Attomic PRINT.pdf that with all the visitors that 1

come down for holidays we see lots of different ideas used to try and catch a fish. Those who regularly fish this area and the locals tend to become stuck doing the same thing year in and year out; for some reason we don’t try other areas or ways of fishing. Sometimes I think people put too much thought into fishing – spend too much time on the unnecessary technical aspects and not enough time on the simple exercise of fishing itself.

If you are traveling away to somewhere new to go fishing over the holiday period, your obvious first stop is the local tackle shop to get an idea of any dangers and restricted areas then some basic knowledge of the area. The dangers and restrictions are obviously important, but don’t be scared to use some of your own fishing ideas and try some areas that look as if they might be successful – you might just be surprised what success you could have.

One method of fishing that is almost never used by the locals – and we only see it when the visitors 31/08/2017 3:03:53 PM arrive – is saltwater flies.

In a combined father and son effort, Harry netted this 70cm flathead off Cowes.

While a few modifications are needed for the current, we see plenty of fish caught on fly while the water is warm enough to wade around on the mid tides.

Flathead and salmon are the most common fish we have

reported and with the many schools of mackerel and yakkas around the odd one is caught as well.

You don’t even need a fly rod, as many will use their whiting gear and work with the current to get the

fly out, rather than casting it, then simply wade around up and down current giving the fly a twitch every now and again. There are plenty of areas around the island for fishing this way and you just have to understand the way the tide works to pick the best spot.

This snapper season started slow with cold windy conditions through the early and mid-spring and finished strong. We had more genuine 9kg and better fish reported than we have seen in the time we have been in the shop. The best we saw pulled the scales down to 11.95kg and a dozen or more were over 10kg.

Most of those snapper were caught back in November and now a 4kg, 70cm one is exceptional with most around the 30cm mark and plenty of throw-backs.

We will see, as we do throughout the whole year, the odd bigger resident fish, but for now it’s time for the whiting gear and paternoster rigs with 4/0 or smaller circle hook and plenty of bait. They aren’t too hard to find and the corals, Cleeland Bight and out from Cowes/Ventnor

have been the best spots.

Whiting are continuing to be frustrating and really haven’t turned it on all season.

To make it worse there are a lot of undersized ones moving in and making it difficult to find a bigger one. The only saviour this season has been the quality; until recently it has been excellent and if you manage 6-8 fish, that would be several feeds of whiting. If you are fishing daylight hours, take plenty of bait – the small whiting and often pinkies in the same area will pinch plenty.

To improve your chances fish into the evening and even into the dark. While you won’t get as many, you won’t need as much bait either because it seems that the small ones head to bed early and the bigger ones come on the bite. The best area has been Dickies Bay and towards Bass River.

Cleeland Bight is better on the other end of the day, during very early morning.

We have seen some of the best flathead fishing offshore for about eight years and the best in the bay since we took over the shop. In the bay the corals area on the shallow end is best and while they were a nuisance a couple of years ago they are now big enough to keep and to get a reasonable

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tail off. The flathead offshore have been so good at times that you can get your bag without even realizing it and having only travelled a short drift.

They have been mixed species of flatties; we should see the tiger flathead start to show in good numbers from now on. Not a lot of fuel has been needed either with some of the best reports only a short distance offshore. The go-to spot has been as close as 25m and just outside the eastern entrance. The cape to Kilcunda has also been successful. One of the main tricks to getting

that successful catch of flathead is low swell and you must use enough lead to get to the bottom.

Makos have already shown up and while none of the rod and reel customers have found the kingfish yet, those under the water are reporting them already, especially around Pyramid Rock and back towards Harmers Haven.

During the early season target the makos in around 40m of water just off the windmills, then as the season goes on you will see the bigger ones deeper out to the 70m line.

STA16051-449half_Layout 1 6/07/2017 5:38 PM Page 1 Plenty of quality flathead are available offshore.

READER’S STORY

The shark that parked itself on board The weather forecast was for a scorcher of a summer day.

From the flat sandy shore backed by low sand dunes, my friend and I, who are of retirement age, launched a 14ft Quintrex Dory from Port Macdonnell in South Australia. We planned to fish for an hour or so for whiting and snapper. After this, we were going to check a few lobster pots.

We planed outward about a mile, and dropped anchor in 4 fathoms. We cast our rigs out, and Peter and I sat facing one another, he in the stern by the outboard motor, I right up in the bow. Between us was the fish box for kept catch, tackle hold-all, a landing net, gaff, and a mix of bait including pilchards, cockles, and squid.

King George whiting and snapper had been boated, when Peter’s light whiting rod bent abruptly. As Peter stood and set the hook, the line broke.

Retrieving slack monofilament a relieved Peter remarked, “Just as well, probably an eagle ray.”

Peter sat back down and began to get his whiting rig back in order. A short distance behind him and to his right something disturbed the surface. Before I could speak

a large thresher shark rockets from the water and speared back into ocean it speared.

Further astern and not 20 yards off, the great fish again propeled itself fully clear of the surface. Another spectacular leap followed. What a show!

Peter swivels about to stare out to where the thresher last emerged, when, coming straight at me over his right shoulder, is a black-eyed head and gaping mouth. The sharks 200lb bashed across Peter’s shoulder, and completed a classic belly-flop landing, slapbang on the deck between the two of us thrashing its great tail among the baits and tackle, its business end snapping wildly.

The black eyes were right by my sea-boots, and I rammed my boots onto the thresher’s head and, bow plate bracing my spine, jam the shark’s toothy portion hard up against our fish box and the dingy’s aluminium side.

Heading for shore, a pair of young men were vacationing in a tent near the shack and with their help, we tipped the shark out of the dingy and into the shallows about half an hour later.

We still needed to check our lobster pots. Leaving the thresher in the shallows Peter and I head back out. Should

The boat’s owner Peter sits with a broken whiting rod, and a 200lb live threasher at his feet. on our return we find the great fish has come good and swum off, then terrific. If not, and our shark has carked it, we decided we might as well get Peter’s brother Paul, the coast’s ace fish butcher, to slice it up for tucker. Ultimately,

for the unfortunate thresher, the latter situation applies.

By that evening, we and several friends plus some elderly pensioners, had our freezers and fridges stocked with fresh fillet of thresher.

- Jim Ewing

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PRIME TIME For natives the warmer months are the go if its consistency you’re after.

December through to February is prime and will see cod and other natives more willing to hit your lures.

Fishing the winter period can be a little slower, but the chance of a big one is always on the cards and winter is a favourite time for anglers chasing the dream fish.

THE GEAR When casting lures for natives in the rivers 6-10kg baitcast gear with 30lb braid or thereabouts is ideal. If you prefer to use spin gear then a 3000 or 4000 reel with 15-30lb braid is the go. Just remember to have that drag locked because the hit from an 80cm+ cod will have you back into the timber in no time if you don’t lock up and hold on.

THE RIG A 30lb braid attached to a 30-40lb leader is pretty standard when casting lures at cod in the rivers. As the fish range from undersize to over 1m, it is a good happy medium to use for all sizes.

For bait fishers a running

A small clear water cod that smashed a Lucky Craft Sammy Bug off the top. sinker rig with a ball sinker running all the way down to hook is the best and won’t snag as much if the sinker is running down to a swivel then your leader.

BAIT AND LURES Lure fishers have success on the cod with a variety of methods and lures.

Surface lures at dawn and dusk are really effective and also exciting. Lucky Craft Sammy Bugs in both sizes are deadly, as well as the Tiemco SlugFest wakebaits.

BEST METHOD Casting lures at any type of structure is the best method. They love to hang out in snags and fallen timber as well as along rock bars and weed beds. Casting lures as tight and as close to these and working your lures back out is by far the best method to catch a cod.

MOTHER NATURE Just remember that Murray cod have a closed season. This is from 1 September through to the 1 December. Cod opening is 1 December, so if you catch a cod in this time in the rivers while targeting other species, please do the right thing and let them go to do their thing.

HOT TIP The use of two cars is a must and makes it easier to cover ground. Checkout a map of the river, sort out a launch and a retrieve point and drop one car at each area. This will save you traveling downstream then having to paddle all the way back upstream again in the current. Also you can just pull out, load up and go get the other car and do it all again at your next spot.

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39

Bruiser bream and dino duskies are in town GIPPSLAND LAKES

Brett Geddes b.geddes@bigpond.com

All the fishy talk at the moment in my area is about those big ‘dino duskies’ being caught. Pictures of trophy flathead well over 90cm have been splashed around all over social media recently.

Even my old email inbox is now crowded with pictures

of anglers struggling to hang onto huge flathead. There are also plenty of big bream to talk about and the local bass are firing up as well.

DUSKY FLATHEAD If you are serious about targeting flathead in the Gippy Lakes, the first thing to do is to use leader materials of at least 10lb breaking strain. I’d prefer you start with about 15lb to give you a better chance of landing those really huge

Bryan Lazzaro with his new PB 86cm dusky flathead.

duskies for a once in a lifetime photo before release. Be on the water early and use big plastic lures upwards of 80 or 90mm.

It’s such a joy to see some of the biggest Gippy Lakes flathead turning up again this year. There are so many reports and photos to sort through but my favourite was sent to me by Bryan Lazzaro of a thumping 86cm dusky he landed recently. His new PB flathead was caught on a small hardbody lure and it was just his fourth cast of the morning after launching at the Paynesville boat ramp.

It’s fair to say that Lake Tyers has recently taken all the glory when it comes to huge flathead with at least 15 monster fish over 90cm caught and released over the last month or so. However, let me tell you, don’t ever underestimate the vast expanse of the Gippy Lakes for flatties just as big.

The trick to finding the really big girls in these parts is to use live mullet or extra large soft plastic lures. The 120mm plastics are a good starting point if you are looking for trophy flathead and even 150mm lures will catch you plenty.

The shallows are now starting to fire up all over the eastern parts of the Gippy Lakes with most fish this year going between about 38-55cm.

Huge trophy girls up to 85 or even 90cm have also been landed by anglers who gear up for them. The hotspot areas are now Metung, Nungurner, Nyerimlang, Kalimna or up

towards the mouth of the Tambo. Paynesville and Duck Arm are now fishing just as well and with less boat traffic there I find the flatties will sometimes bite all day in the shallows.

BREAM ARE BACK Tony Pettie and Peter Nord have kept me updated with some mouth-watering reports and stunning pictures over the last few weeks. With the many stud bream the boys have been hooking, they have been putting together bags of five bream that were pulling the scales down to well over 6kg – a competition-winning bag in anyone’s book.

Tony and Peter said the Mitchell River from Bairnsdale right down to the end of the Silt Jetties and the bottom section of the Nicholson River is probably the busiest area at the moment. The lower Tambo is firing on early mornings out around the snags and the upper reaches from the highway to the Blue Hole are excellent for land-based bream sport.

The Mitchell Flats in Lake King are holding some very big bream for lure anglers casting hardbodies around the rock groins. The bream are especially hungry when the wind picks up in this open lake area and they will bite hard when waves roll into the shallows. Even ugly days when the wind barrels in at 30km or more can see big numbers of fish finding the landing net. Nungurner is full of pinkies as usual with flathead to 45cm, a few bream around 40cm and even the odd

Big bream are now taking blades like this Hurricane lure in the nitro axe colour.

King George whiting caught on blades.

Hollands Landing and Seacombe are starting to fish a bit better. Once again, get on the water early for the best results. At the moment the real disappointment comes from Toms Creek, which has been very depressing this year so far. I hear that surface lures are starting to trick a few bigger bream at first light, particularly in the Mitchell River at the Cut. Slowly worked suspending hardbodies along the very edge of the river are also proving deadly. The bite time seems to peak by about 7am, so it’s imperative to be out of bed well before first light. As the day wears on try working blades out in deeper lake water; bream will tend to school up in those areas.

METUNG To wrap up, a special mention goes to Metung

because it can really treat you to some great fishing as summer peaks. Even land-based anglers can get some action here by fishing from the long boardwalks and jetties using prawn baits or soft plastics.

Mullet and whiting can also feature with sandworm baits and a big bream also on the cards early in the morning.

The long strait from Metung to Kalimna is where you will find some large duskies.

Boating in the area can put you onto some excellent flathead and by using small blade lures you will cover a lot of prime shallow flats. Expect any number of medium sized bream to attack your lures and tiny pinkie snapper can turn up in their hundreds at any time as well.

Happy New Year, everyone. Let’s hope the next 12 months are as fishy as the last.

Great reports coming in of good-size fish MARLO

Jim McClymont mcclymont@net-tech.com.au

Now the summer has arrived it’s time for the offshore anglers to start wondering when the warm currents will move down the east coast and turn into Bass Strait, bringing with them the big schools of baitfish and all the pelagic fish

that feed on them.

Last year we had a very good kingfish season with lots of kingfish caught on Marlo Reef, offshore from Cape Conran down to Tamboon Reef and several reefs in between. Along with the kingfish, mako sharks start to appear in good numbers, which creates great excitement for the gamefishing anglers.

The o ff s h o r e gamefishing anglers have

also been waiting for the warmer weather and calmer seas so they can go out to the continual shelf to again do battle with the big broadbill that can be found in the canyons. Fishing from Cape Conran at the moment is excellent; anglers have reported getting good catches of flathead, gurnard, barracouta and gummy sharks, weather permitting of course.

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fishing well with plenty of salmon and tailor. The best results come on surf rods with blue bait, white bait, pilchards and squid on a paternoster rig with a popper, and from spinning with metal lures on light gear. Summer time is also gummy shark time, so anglers have been fishing late in the afternoon and into the evening, usually on an incoming tide with squid legs, pilchards or fresh fish fillets.

The estuary is also fishing well with plenty of bream, luderick and mullet on the chew. Anglers have reported getting good-size bream and luderick fishing in and near Lake Corringle with sandworms. A great nephew of mine, Jess Sanna caught a good-size bream measuring 38cm in the lake in shallow water using sandworms. Jess caught several other bream measuring 30-38cm.

Anglers have also reported getting plenty of bream up the Brodribb River as far up as Lake Curlip.

Other reports have come in

Jess Sanna caught this great bream. of anglers catching goodsize luderick around the rock groins that surround the

islands and along the river banks using sandworms under a float.

Prawn run kicks off

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Danny Valencic with a estuary perch taken in Lake Tyers during a recent trip. have found the best results.

LAKE TYERS Recently Lake Tyres has truly started to fire up with the higher reaches of the Nowa Nowa providing quality action. Bream anglers are enjoying the challenge of sight fishing cruising bream and catching them along the rocky and timbered margins of the lake. These fish have been

Straight-through fluorocarbon lines can make a world of difference, especially on those sunny days.

Areas such as Nungerner and Fraser Island have been the centre of the attention.

The scattered weed beds are an ideal hunting ground for whiting. Mostly these fish have been targeted with traditional tactics; a paternoster rig with baits of fresh mussel or local prawn

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The New Year is here with new opportunities for fishing throughout the Gippsland Lakes. It’s that time of year when the annual prawn run is fully underway and locals and tourist alike are spending long nights chasing them.

LAKES ENTRANCE Over the last few months Lakes Entrance has had steady amounts of tourists visiting the local area. Our town wharves have been the centre of attention for a lot anglers with good numbers of bream, trevally and King George whiting caught along with the odd dusky flathead. Anglers have mostly targeted these fish with unweighted baits fished tight to the pylons and boats. At this time year it’s best to get your baits or lures right up into the hard-to-reach areas in the shady pockets where other anglers don’t.

The main lake has begun to produce quality King George whiting.

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eager to climb all over a well-worked surface lure cast up tight to rocks or fallen trees.

Consistent success has come from walk-the-dog topwater lures such as the Bassday SugaPen and Bent Minnows are the key to quality fish. Make sure

you’re hitting those hardto-reach areas at the back of fallen snags where other anglers don’t dare to cast.

This will produce betterquality bites most of the time and the fish aren’t used to seeing lures or baits in this area.

Lately the local estuary perch stocks have begun to make their appearance known with anglers finding large schools holding in the bank-side timber. These schools have be highly mobile but some anglers have been lucky enough to find the areas where they regularly hold.

Larger flathead have begun to take up their ambush spots along the points scattered throughout the main lake and the connecting arms. The area around the power lines to the island in the Nowa Nowa Arm has been the centre of attention for anglers targeting these large flathead.

HAVE YOU BEEN FISHING? If you have been out for a fish lately and have a great pic, please send it to stevenprykefishing@gmail. com with a short description and you could be in the next edition of Victoria & Tasmania Fishing Monthly.

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For more information or to find your nearest Stessco dealer visit Larger flathead have begun to take up their ambush spots along the points scattered throughout the main lake and the connecting arms.

www.stessco.com.au JANUARY 2018

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A happy start to the New Year’s river fishing BEMM RIVER

Robyn Sturgess

Recently the water level has been high, the fishing is excellent, and bream and flatties are right throughout the system.

The luderick are about but difficult to get due to the high

water. They are taking soft plastics and lures, mainly in the channel along the weed beds. One angler reported catching a 53cm luderick on a hardbodied lure in the channel in late November.

Reports of large duskies (please be mindful of the regulation size) are being spotted in the sandy bottom

Species like flathead and bream have been right throughout the system.

areas right through the waterways including the river. EPs are being caught by anglers using live shrimp; most of them are being caught around the snags and logs in the river, so be prepared to lose plenty of gear as they are a tricky fish to catch.

The entrance remained closed recently but the fishing on the surf at the entrance has been exceptional with large salmon and tailor being the main species. Anglers targeting gummies have been rewarded with good catches at Binn Beach and Gunnai Beach. Mullet and trevally are also being caught in the surf.

One word of warning – if you are using a drone on the surf to transport your bait out to deeper water, be aware not to put too much weight on, as one angler recently discovered that drones don’t like the water.

In the past couple of months we have seen Bemm

A group of happy anglers with some good-sized bream.

River at its best. If the mornings haven’t produced then the afternoons have.

Dave Russell and Graham Black spent one week in Bemm in November. The boys had endless fun catching and releasing quality bream.

The fishing platform was a popular spot recently for a

couple of young girls visiting from the Hunter Valley. Our granddaughters, Sophie and Ruby Ketteringham spent hours practising their baiting, casting, catching and releasing skills. The bream weren’t of great size but there were plenty of them and the girls enjoyed hours of excitement.

• For on the spot and up to date fishing reports check out Robyn’s website: www. bemmaccommodation.com. au or ‘like’ us on Facebook – Bemm River Holiday Accommodation Phone: (03) 5158 4233/Mob. 0427 584 233 Email: bemmaccomm@ bigpond.com.

Warm water brings fish MCLOUGHLINS

Will Thompson allwaysangling@bigpond.com

A lot has happened over the past month, so let’s get straight to it. Starting in

the western end of the inlet near Port Albert, a couple of weeks of hot weather and constant easterly winds have warmed the inlet to 21°C in parts and offshore is also in the 18-20°C

Shane Wedrowicz with a cracker 6.5kg snapper caught offshore from McLoughlins Beach.

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range as well.

The snapper are well and truly on the chew now and while not everyone is bagging out on them, most anglers are managing to get a few each session. As the water is so warm, a lot of the snapper have moved into the deeper sections of the Franklin channel and the entrance. The warm water has also brought in stacks of good-sized pinkies of up to 40cm and they are spread throughout Corner Inlet, Port Albert in the Snake and Drum channels and as far as McLoughlins Beach and Manns Beach in your conventional whiting spots.

The big reds haven’t been very easy to work out this season, however after dark has produced some really big specimens of 10kg+. Early mornings or tide changes have been the next best times. The best baits have been squid and pilchards or fresh baits such as salmon and tailor, which are in the system at the moment as well.

The gummy sharks are going awesome, and inside there are plenty around the 80-90cm mark; offshore has some bigger ones well over a metre and the odd really

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JANUARY 2018

Russel Macklin with a decent red measuring 70cm taken from Port Albert in the Snake Channel. big specimen of 15kg+.

The whiting have just come on the chew this week with some anglers getting up to a dozen at a time. They are also further east towards Manns and McLoughlins Beach as well and are being caught on pipis or California squid. There are some massive flathead down that way as well with the soft plastic fishos catching them up to nearly 70cm now, so it’s definitely worth having a cast with some lures around the sand flats and weed beds for some big blue-spot flathead on the run-out tide.

The larger 4” size plastics and producing all the big models. If you want a feed, the smaller 3” plastics are catching better numbers of 35-50cm models.

The calamari are still going berserk, especially down at Port Albert, and they’re even spread as far as McLoughlins Beach. This is a little unusual and shows how good a calamari season we are having. Yamashita Live Jigs in whiting colour have been a standout jig lately and most anglers are getting their 10 squid easily.

Now, I have saved the best for last – the yellowtail kingfish are in! They are offshore in big numbers, especially recently since the hot currents have come down and the water has warmed to over 20°C. Even better – they are inside Port Albert and Port Welshpool in big numbers as well, so you don’t even have to go offshore for them, you have just as good a chance of

catching one inside.

They have been caught by whiting anglers using squid baits and they have been caught on soft plastics or hardbodied lures by anglers casting or trolling. Offshore, they are responding to knife jigs really well and have been seen busting up on the surface and have been caught by anglers casting stickbaits and poppers.

Most of them have just been rats but there has been the odd bigger fish amongst them and they are worth having a go for.

• For more information, contact Will at Allways Angling Bait and Tackle on 5174 8544. You will get expert advice and great deals on bait and tackle.

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Wallaga Lake has finally opened to the sea BERMAGUI

Darren Redman djsxstreamfishing@bigpond.com

Great news – Wallaga Lake was opened to the sea recently following rains that flooded the road. With this fresh, migrating fish stocks are moving in and out of this system on a regular basis. Over the flats bream, whiting, luderick and mullet are dominating the catches.

These fish are also being encountered in the channels along with flathead, trevally, tailor and salmon while up the back reaches towards Narira Creek flatties are responding well to soft

plastics. One fish that has moved back in to the lake are those tasty, feisty garfish.

Using a little berley, anglers can easily catch them from the shoreline south of the bridge over the weed beds.

January is usually the start of the marlin season, however it is all in the currents; they determine what gamefish arrive along the east coast and where they concentrate. It all starts with a food source with the minute organisms such as krill and plankton attracting small predators in the form of massive slimy mackerel schools feasting on this rich food source, which in turn brings in the largest predators of all, such as

marlin, sharks and tuna.

Studying the water currents on BOM’s BLUElink site over the past few months, a series of several eddies have formed along the coast, drifting south to our part of the world and they just ooze fish. If these currents keep coming south as predicted, we should have water temperatures around 22°C for the holidays – perfect for striped marlin.

Baitfish will often congregate along or inside the edge of the Continental Shelf where up-welling currents bring in the food source. This is where you find the marlin; one of the best areas is the TwelveMile Reef, 8nm southeast

Albacore are a welcome by-catch while chasing marlin.

Wallaga Lake opened recently and fish stocks soon recovered. of Bermagui. Lure fishing early in the season may be best until you find where the fish are in numbers and then change over to baits.

Sharks in the form of hammerheads, makos and whalers may have a liking for your baits, while various species like yellowfin, striped tuna or mahimahi may be a welcome by-catch on the lures. Something to remember is that there has been more big blue marlin caught in the first month of the year than any other time, so if it’s a big marlin you seek, this may just be the month.

Up at the rock, Montague is producing reasonable amounts of kingfish. These

are being taken using various methods, with jigs or live baits being the most consistent fish-producers, however don’t be afraid to try some fresh squid.

On the way back you can stop off east of Tilba to try for sand flathead, gurnard or maybe a gummy shark over the sand. There have been good numbers of these fish there to top up a bag on the way home. The reefs southeast of Bermagui like the Four-Mile, Six-Mile

species moving along the coast. Mullet, bream, whiting and mulloway have been a regular capture along our coast while salmon are around in many numbers, making for easy fishing of a night time, especially around the moon. Expect to encounter sharks in the form of whalers and gummies. Tailor will keep you entertained between strikes from the larger fish.

Fishing from the rocks is similar to that of the

Visitors to liven up the area EDEN

Kevin Gleed captainkev@wildernessfishingtours.com

With the warm weather and Christmas holidays upon us, Eden has come alive with plenty of visitors to the area enjoying the waterways.

The warm water is pushing its way down the coast, with the temperature on the beach nearly 20°C and warmer water out wide on the shelf. Once again the problem with heading out wide has been the strong northeasterly winds, which have been

blowing for a while. There was some reports coming in of yellowfin tuna before the wind started blowing, and with the warm water it shouldn’t be long before the marlin make an appearance.

Closer to shore there are plenty of schools of slimy mackerel and there have been reports of kingfish lurking in the same area. The warmer water has brought the sand and tiger flathead on the bite, and all the flathead spots have had reports of fish.

Once the warm water pushes into Disaster Bay, you can be sure of some good fishing.

Snapper are also being caught along with morwong,

with some good size fish reported down off Green Cape. When chasing snapper, it often pays to start fishing in close using a berley trail, then as the sun rises move out wider.

Plenty of salmon are moving along the local beaches, with anglers tossing metal lures catching plenty, but fishing with bait both whitebait and pilchards is also catching fish.

The local estuaries are fishing well too. The dusky flathead are on the bite, with a variety of soft plastic lures working well.

Yellowfin bream, sand whiting and trevally are all

on the bite, with fresh baits like nippers and beach worm all catching fish. If you can’t get either of these baits, local prawn has also been a good choice of bait.

The coming months should see some good prawning in the local estuaries, and the prawns will only get bigger as each month goes by.

The warmer weather sees the local bass come on the bite, with fish being caught on surface lures around dawn and dusk. Catch and release is the go with these fish, as they are such a great sporting fish – it just doesn’t make sense to kill them.

Already it is looking like a good whiting season around Bermi. and those east of Goalen Head are producing reasonable snapper, plenty of very large blue morwong, plus quite a few jackass morwong thrown in. Once off the edge of the reef, tiger flathead will take over and it has been one of the best seasons for a long time for these lovely table fish.

On shore the beaches are alive with many different

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beach, where passing schools of salmon are allowing anglers some good lure fishing. Mixed in are the odd bonito and kingfish, and tailor are also a common catch. Luderick and drummer are another common catch recently for anglers using bait, with the occasional blue groper appearing to make things interesting.

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Hot northerlies and hot fishing MALLACOOTA

Kevin Gleed captainkev@wildernessfishingtours.com

Well summer is upon us, with hot days much to everyone’s liking. Unfortunately with summer comes the wind, and it has been blowing the northeasterlies, which

at this time of year are relentless.

If fishing offshore, get out there early and you should be able to get back before the wind makes things too unpleasant.

Fortunately, when fishing in the lake you can nearly always find somewhere out of the wind. The water temperature inshore is around

16°C, and over the next few months it will rise to around 20°C. The lake, however, warms a lot quicker than the ocean.

The wind has not allowed too many boats to head offshore, but when the weather allows, fish will be caught. Flathead, both sand and tigers, are on the menu, and as the water warms there

There are plenty of eating size flathead on the bite, but the bigger fish are a bit harder to come by.

will be some big tiger flathead caught as well. Those in the know will be catching a feed of pinkie snapper along with gummy sharks.

Over the next few months, plenty of people will be trying to head offshore For those new to the area, it pays to watch the locals navigate at the boat ramp, as the sand is constantly moving, so don’t head out if there is a bit of a sea rolling, as you can be sure it will be worse when you return.

Remember over the busy period that you can guarantee there will be police and fisheries officers on the water, so make sure everything is in line like your fishing licences, boat registration and so on, otherwise you will be going home with some fines.

Fishing the beaches has seen some good fishing for salmon, with all the good gutters on all the local beaches seeing salmon caught, particularly around the high tide. As the water warms, yellowfin bream and sand whiting will be caught.

Anglers chasing gummy shark at night along Quarry Beach are also coming up trumps.

This time of year sees plenty of boats fishing the lake and plenty of fish being

Matching the hatch goes a long way when targeting flathead. caught, and dusky flathead are spread throughout the top and bottom lake and right upstream to Gypsy Point.

Remember to stick to bag limits, as this is not an infinite resource.

Yellowfin and black bream are also being caught, with fish moving around the edges of both the bottom and top lakes. The fish are moving quickly, so if you find fish one day, don’t be surprised if they have moved

the next. Silver trevally are also being caught, and these fish are often found close to the baitfish schools and can be caught on a variety of lures, with fresh bait also an option.

With the visitors in the town over the holiday period, everyone’s hoping for a decent prawn run, as it has been some years since the prawning has been good and everyone enjoys a good feed of prawns.

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Summer beach fishing is a good option MERIMBULA

Stuart Hindson stuart@ausfishing.com.au

It’s a busy time with holidaymakers everywhere around the Merimbula area, but don’t let this fool you; there is still some excellent fishing on offer.

On the beaches both bream and whiting numbers

have really increased over recent weeks. This should continue right through the month and with the recent rains it should only get better. Anglers using a lightly weighted rod with live beach worms or pipis will catch plenty with most local beaches holding fish. Look for those slightly deeper gutters close to shore, as this is where most of the

fish have come from. Using a little berley will help but don’t use too much or the banjo and shovelnose sharks will drive you nuts.

The rockier corners like North Tura towards Bournda Island are definitely worth a look, especially for bream.

After the recent rough seas these corners can really fire at times. If you’re after the pelagic species like salmon,

Trevally like this 800g model are thick in the channels in the lower parts of the Merimbula system.

Whiting love surface presentations during summer and the Lucky Craft Sammy 65 is a favourite amongst many anglers.

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you’re in for some serious fun. These fine sportfish are in great numbers with the usual haunts all producing like North Tura, Tura Main and Haycock all producing at times.

On the inshore reefs the action has been steady with snapper, morwong, kingfish and striped tuna keeping

most boaties happy. The flatties have been quiet, but this will change this month as the water warms. The area off Pambula River mouth should produce results over coming weeks with the 40-45m line the go-to spot.

Some decent reds have been encountered in the deeper water off Lennards

Island (30-40 fathoms) with kingfish to 20kg at both Long Point and Horseshoe Reef.

All this action will continue over January; if one reef isn’t firing, move to another until you find the fish.

The kings are there in good numbers at times and have been extremely

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NSW South Coast

The summer action is heating up quick NAROOMA

Stuart Hindson stuart@ausfishing.com.au

January is a busy time around the Narooma region, and visiting anglers are hitting our shores with gusto. With the recent rains the fishing has picked up considerably just in time for the tourists.

At Montague Island things are hotting up nicely with the kingfish turning it on. They are belting jigs with the northeast corner around the saddle the place to fish.

Anglers have been getting their bags with relative ease though the seals are playing havoc at times. Most fish are around the 4kg mark with the odd better fish to 8kg. A few of the bigger models are being caught on live slimy mackerel. Please be wary of where you fish with the marine park rules, as the rangers will be certainly be about.

If you’re live baiting, the Fowl House Reef on the

western side of the island has been good with the kings on top some mornings, so casting live baits into the schools will produce great results at times. This should continue throughout the month. Expect some thumping big bonito when fishing like this as well.

Anglers fishing the bottom are happy with snapper to 2kg plentiful on the inshore grounds. Both Tuross and Potato Point are worth a look and the 60-70m area is a good starting point.

Drifting with paternoster rigs is all that’s required with fresh squid or tuna the top baits. Mixed in with the reds are morwong, pigfish and heaps of flatties on the sand/gravel edges. The flatties have been thick off Kianga with the 40m line loaded recently.

If gamefishing is your go, you will be happy.

Marlin, yellowfin tuna, albacore and a host of shark species will be chewing; it’s just a matter of what you want to target! The shelf is

the place to fish when the weather allows. Trolling a mixture of skirted pushers and bigger bibbed minnows will work. It’s exciting times on the gamefish front – we just need some decent weather to have a serious crack at them.

The rock hopping fraternity are doing well, especially on salmon and bonito. Both these species are thick close in and are a stack of fun on spin tackle.

Casting smaller shiners around 40g is the go. Anglers casting ganged pilchards on heavier tackle have also fared well. I’d expect to see some solid kings in the next few weeks, especially down at Mystery Bay and the golf course rocks in town.

Both these platforms are quite deep and easily accessible with ample bait.

Use a little berley to keep them around. Drifting a live bait is certainly the go if a king is what you’re after.

There have been a few bigger fish lost recently, so if you have the right tackle,

Some very big tailor have been working the deeper parts of Wagonga Inlet.

From page 46

frustrating for anglers, as 95% of the time they’re not interested in anything. When one does make a mistake, live bait and big sinking stickbaits have been the best way to tempt one. These are big kings too with a local nabbing a 20kg fish off Merimbula Wharf a few days back, so they’re certainly there. Early mornings are definitely the go if you’re targeting these greenback hoodlums.

In the estuaries both Merimbula and Pambula were good last month and sure enough they’re both still firing. Every estuary species is chewing in both systems, such as solid

bream (mainly yellowfin and some cracking blacks).

Both these species are taking surface lures around the weed-fringed margins. This type of visual fishing is stacks of fun that everyone can do.

There’s the odd big whiting succumbing to the same method, especially around the back of the airport in the very shallow water.

This area is really only accessible by boat on higher tides but it does fire from time to time – it’s worth a look for sure.

The flatties have been excellent with 6-10 fish a session the norm, with the odd croc over 85cm being caught too. These bigger fish have responded

well to bigger soft plastics fished slower than normal.

Targeting them in water depths of 4-6m is ideal.

In the channels, whiting, bream, flounder, luderick and flathead are all there for the taking with bait and lure throwers getting results.

The species most anglers are having fun with is the humble ‘blurter’ – trevally as most people know them. They are thick in the channels with 20+ sessions readily available to those fishing the correct styles.

Casting softies across the channel on the draining tide has been best with thinner profile plastics getting better results.

Off the rocks the

Croc-sized flathead like this big girl are a welcome capture for many visiting anglers to the region. you may be in business.

On the beaches, with the warmer water that has pushed in, both bream and whiting are high on anglers’ lists. These bread and butter species can be found on almost every local beach with a half-decent gutter close to shore. Long casts aren’t required here, so a light outfit with a running sinker rig baited with live beach worms or pipis will see some nice fillets for the pan. Better beaches to try include Narooma main, Tilba and Brou Beach just north of Dalmeny.

Brou Beach has been a standout lately with salmon, tailor and gummy sharks all succumbing to baits fished on heavier tackle. Fishing three or four days before the full moon on a flooding tide into the evening was excellent last month, so if a gummy shark or mulloway is on your agenda then this month’s full moon lead up is certainly worth a look.

The local estuaries have all been fishing well depending on what species salmon fishing is excellent with anglers casting metal shiners and surface stickbaits catching plenty. It’s late for salmon to be around in these numbers, though the water has taken a long time to warm, so that may be why.

What is exciting is the kingfish, which are patrolling the northern end of Merimbula Bay near the big wharf and Long Point.

There have been some substantial fish caught; as mentioned earlier there was a 20kg fish a few days back.

This fish isn’t a loner either with plenty more seen and a few hooked, also. Let’s hope these brutes stay around and if the bait stays there I can’t see it changing anytime soon.

you’re after. Wagonga Inlet, Corunna, Tuross and Dalmeny Lakes have been firing; flathead are the main species being targeted. Fish to 90cm have been caught regularly, with most flatties averaging 40-45cm. All methods are working with smaller soft plastics, live poddy mullet and strips of striped tuna all producing results.

The fish are widespread, but the bigger models are coming from the shallower sections of the river and main basin, especially up at Tuross. Whiting are around in big numbers too. Anglers using bass yabbies and squirt worms are getting the best results. Again the shallower sections are the place to fish; anglers fishing surface presentations this month are getting amongst them.

Wagonga Inlet is firing up nicely with whiting, bream and mulloway all chewing at times.

The mulloway will be widespread; the bigger fish tend to hold deep under the tailor schools, which are prolific at the moment in this system. Fish larger soft plastics and live mullet in this situation and be prepared to get hammered by the tailor. Yes, they can become a nuisance but if it’s a bit of silver you want then this method is the best for this system.

The bread and butter species like bream and whiting will start to feed on the sand flats looking for nippers, squirt worms and small prawns. Live bait will definitely work better here, and small shallow running hardbodies fished on a high tide around the mangroves will certainly fool a bream or two. Depending on conditions after the rain, surface presentations should work for a whiting or two as well.

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Brett Illingworth

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This issue’s reporting period has encompassed some of the better, and most stable run of weather we have seen for years. There were 12 straight days where the sun shone, the breeze was predictable and the swell was small. Needless to say, the Victorian diving population made the most of a good thing.

Visibility, in general, has been sensational. Underwater vision has at times exceeded 20m, and in some cases 30m

This month is all about kings! early if you can.

Remember also, Great Glennie has plenty more to offer than kingfish. At the moment there are large schools of very good-sized King George whiting in the bay. Squid are also about as

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The author caught this fantastic pair of whiting. visibility has been experienced.

It’s always good to be able to see things before they see you. The water temperature has also been most enjoyable.

Marine life has been prolific, which certainly is a bonus if spearfishing is your thing.

There are good reports coming from the entire Victorian coastline.

The calmness of the ocean has probably resulted in all Christmas obligations being met this year. Promises made earlier in the year have come to fruition. Don’t get me wrong; although I still believe that crays are thin on the ground, it’s certainly a simpler matter to search when there is a prolonged period of calm and clear water. The tagging program is now in full swing and I have yet to hear of any problems or violations.

Stick to the rules and drama

will be non-existent.

Drama with abalone can also be prevented if all the rules are followed. If you fish the central zone, make sure that you are familiar with what days that you can and cannot extract abalone. Know the possession limits, and use the correct tool.

Great Glennie Island has been bathed with stunning visibility so far in this early part of the season. This is a much welcomed change, as the previous couple of years have seen putrid, cold water enveloping it. It is certainly much more fun drifting for kingfish in 20m of water when the bottom below is clearly visible. Kingfish have already arrived in some numbers and a few great specimens to 15kg have already been taken. It won’t take long for these fish to become gun shy, so get in

Big kingfish make great eating, and it’s no wonder so many spearos target these brutes.

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well as some thumping black drummer. We usually do the reef whacking first up and then spend the rest of the day flashing for kings.

Kingfish have also shown up at Phillip Island and also in the west of the state between

Kingfish will be hanging around for a few months, so get into them while you can!

Portland and Port Fairy. Dr Christian Hughes opened his account with a couple of rippers, which he managed to capture on his birthday.

This run of kingfish can be expected to last at least until early May. Get yourself a decent float, a bigger gun, heavier floatline, a set of flashers and get out there and get amongst it. Your first kingfish capture is a truly special moment, and an extremely addictive one.

They are my favourite fish and have been since the first one dragged me under, many decades ago.

Victorian spearfishing is in a very good place at the moment. Lots of species, warm clear water and calm seas. Get out there!

Pumping yabbies for some summer bait fishing FMG

Ethan Sondergeld

Often, anglers are faced with the question of what bait to use to catch fish such as bream, flathead,

whiting and other estuary dwellers.

My answer is saltwater yabbies, which in my opinion are one of the top baits. But when you’re first starting out, getting your hands on yabbies can sometimes prove

The bottom of the tide exposes the habitat you should be looking for when after yabbies.

The pump is the most important tool in the process, and they are fairly inexpensive.

to be quite difficult, so before you go out and get yourself into a huff I have five simple steps to help you find some saltwater yabbies.

STEP 1: THE TIDE The best tide to collect yabbies is the bottom of the

bottom of the tide, or low tide. This exposes all the sandbars where yabbies can be collected.

STEP 2: WHAT SANDBAR? When cruising around at low tide the number of

While some like to use a sieve for pumping yabbies, it’s easy enough to just pump the mud and sand out onto the bank and pick the yabbies up off the ground.

sandbars to choose from can be quite overwhelming. To find the right sandbar, look for one that is last to become exposed on the outgoing tide and has mud and sand mixed together. This sand and mud composition holds onto moisture longer. One last thing that is vital to you finding yabbies are little holes all over the sandbar, which are the yabby holes, and obviously the more holes, the more yabbies there’ll be.

STEP 3: THE PUMP The equipment you’ll need is a bucket and a sieve, which can be bought from most tackle stores, and a yabby pump which you can pick up for around $50-70.

To use the pump, you simply push the bottom end into the sand so that it is almost fully submerged, and while doing this pull the handle up. In doing this you are sucking the yabbies up and into the pump. Then pull the pump out and spray the content on the sand beside you, or into the sieve if you have one.

Now this may sound easy, but for your first few times it may prove to be difficult. If you keep at it you will get it, and you will work out that it is all about timing.

STEP 4: PICKING UP THE YABBIES After you have

This is how the author choses to keep his yabbies alive for days at a time. The slant in the box allows them to crawl out of the water should they want a bit of air.

This is what you’re after – saltwater yabbies. They’re excellent estuary bait that few fish can pass up.

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successfully sprayed out yabbies from your pump, you then have to pick them up.

There is no special way about doing this, I just pick them up and put them straight into a bucket. If you are worried about getting pinched by the claws, then the best way to pick them up just behind the head, squeezing gently. Just remember that if the kids are helping that you teach them the safe way to pick the yabbies up.

STEP 5: KEEPING YABBIES ALIVE FOR LONGER THAN A DAY To successfully keep your bait alive for longer than a day is quite simple.

You must first give them clean saltwater every day, keep them in a cool place and have a constant supply of aerated water, which can be done with a simple and affordable aquarium aerator, or you can buy a portable air pump from any tackle store for about $10. One other little tip is to put the yabbies into a styrofoam box or anything similar and elevate at one end so that there is a bit of the box that is dry, and this allows them crawl out and get their own air when needed.

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Trout fishing in the Tasmanian Highlands BRISBANE

Wayne Kampe wkff@aapt.net.au

Just ten hour’s sea travel from Melbourne, via the Spirit of Tasmania, the Apple Isle is a must-do fishing adventure for the keen freshwater angler.

quality Tassie trout.

MIENA HQ The town of Miena is around 1030m above sea level, and situated on the island’s Central Plateau.

Nights can be cold, even in summer, but the crisp, clean environment has a lot going for it.

On our latest expedition,

There’s an adjoining small goods store and fuel outlet, and a camping area next to the store as well.

The lake is within easy walking distance of the hotel complex and has large sections open to angling all year round. This lake is huge, at 17,610ha when full, and is virtually an inland sea

You can see a very small part of the huge Great Lake in the background of the hotel. for trout fishing were virtually boundless. We took our portable boat along and used it from time to time, but we mostly fished land-based. There are so many great opportunities to try your skill from the shore, and trust me on this

The southern canal leading from Bronte Lagoon is a favourite for shore-based fly anglers.

That’s not to say there isn’t also great saltwater angling as well. Tassie bream are brutes, the trevally are titanic and the salmon are superb, but it’s the trout that I really enjoy.

The Kampe fishing team have made the journey quite a few times, driving down from Queensland before moving up onto the

– those trout demand skill to catch! They’re not like river fish, where a moving fly hardly gets more than a glance before being scoffed.

Tasmanian still water trout take a good hard look at your offerings. If things are not quite right, they

we based our fishing at the Great Lake Hotel in Miena.

We departed the Spirit at Devonport, stocked up on tucker in Deloraine and an hour later we were moving into a comfortable fisher’s cabin at the hotel. There are several of these cabins, all set up with comfortable beds, lovely warm bedding and power on hand. The kitchen and bathroom

David Falconer netting a trout from the Great Lake.

Angler David Falconer fishing for quality brown trout from the north wall of the Penstock Lagoon. big car ferry for a relaxed journey across Bass Strait.

Following the success of our most recent visit, I wanted to share with readers just how easy it is to enjoy trout fishing in this small but very attractive state.

Whether you’re flying down to Tassie and hiring a vehicle, or taking your own car across on the Spirit, there are so many opportunities for the keen fly or lure angler to catch 50

JANUARY 2018

facilities are shared, and the piping hot showers were greatly appreciated, as were the clean kitchen facilities.

There’s also a great fireplace within the adjoining TV room. On a cold night it’s great to really stoke it up!

The Great Lake Hotel has some very pleasant dining facilities (venison pie is always a favourite), and the fantastic view of the lake from the outside veranda is a highlight of any visit.

holding huge stocks of large brown and rainbow trout.

There are ample boat ramps, but shore-based fishing is a sure thing as well.

SOME LOGISTICS Miena, arguably the main centre on the Great Western Tiers, is around two hour’s travel from either Devonport, where the Spirit berths, or from the Hobart International Airport.

There is also an airport at Launceston in the northern part of the state, not far from Devonport. Whether you’re going to Miena from Devonport or Launceston, it’s handy to stop at the town of Deloraine to get some groceries from the local Woolworths, which is open until late.

From our base at Miena, the opportunities

won’t bite.

THE GREAT LAKE As mentioned, the Great Lake is just a couple of hundred yards from its namesake hotel. This ultraclean body of water fishes well of an early morning and evening, and many anglers make the effort to cast a fly or spinner at these magic times of day. Hatching caddis and rising trout are the norm on sunset, and the next 2kg fish to be taken off the shore in that lake certainly won’t be the last.

Along with spinning, bait fishing is also permitted in Great Lake.

LITTLE PINE LAGOON Moving further afield there’s Little Pine Lagoon, just 8km west of Miena, which is famous for its easy shore-based fishing. This lake, with its magnificent weed beds, is shallow and has easily-waded edges.

When a dun hatch is occurring the rising brown trout are a sight to see.

Catching them is not always easy, as it can be hard to tempt them to take a fly when the water is covered

The author shows off a Lake Botsford trout. Botsford is one of the premier sight fishing lagoons within the Western Lakes system.

in the natural insects. We always try though. That’s the fun of it!

WESTERN LAKES The Western Lakes are within the 140,000ha Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage area. This true wilderness area is devoid of human habitation, but you can still access many of the lakes and tarns (a tarn is a small mountain lake) by car, or by walking from a designated parking spot.

Liawenee, ten minutes north of Miena, is the entry point for road travel into these famous lakes, with their clear waters and wily trout. The

fly. Spin fishing is popular in lakes Ada and Augusta, as these are much larger bodies of water.

Note that these lakes and their surrounds are environmentally sensitive and it’s essential to stay on marked tracks and leave no trace of a visit.

PENSTOCK AND OTHER NEARBY LAKES Penstock Lagoon, Bronte Lagoon, Arthurs and Woods lakes are also all within an hour’s drive (or less) from Miena. Penstock and Bronte offer very good shore fishing thanks to easy vehicular access and angler-friendly

this statuary organisation within Tasmania does a very active part in maintaining the fishery for optimum results and also provides up to date information and guidelines for visiting anglers. Visiting any tackle outlet or sports store will see the angler come away with a handbook or pamphlet setting out essential information in regard to a local or individual fishery, rules and regulations concerning the respective fishery as well as seasons.

For instance, the Western Lakes sheet sets out over 30 waters for the angler to try, with fish species and

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A view within one of the deluxe rooms at the Great Lake Hotel. general rule is the further the walk, the better the fishing, for obvious reasons.

The lakes are little more than tarns in some instances, yet they can hold incredibly large trout. Many of these wilderness lakes are shallow, have great weed beds to support insect life, and are easily fished from the shore, where sight fishing to moving fish is a definite highlight. A number of lakes hold trophy-size fish, and these particular waterways are subject to restrictions – they are catch and release only, and you can only fish

shores. Penstock Lagoon in particular is a favourite bank angling destination for the fly angler. It’s only around a half hour’s drive from Miena and has a rock wall at either end.

Bronte Lagoon has easily accessed shores on all sides, with both the northern and southern canals to spot fish from. The eastern shore is also very popular, as many trees overlook the water and fish feed freely on insects hitting the drink.

TASMANIAN INLAND FISHERIES In contrast to many of the mainland fishery bodies,

applicable bag and size limits well-documented.

Other waters are similarly documented and it’s easy, when moving about the island, to collect a treasure trove of useful information for present and future visits.

THE OVERVIEW Accommodation will be as good as ever with the deluxe rooms also on hand. As this is a very popular venue during winter, it might pay to book prior to looking at the airfares.

The phone number for the Great Lake Hotel is (03) 6259 8163.

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Denise Kampe enjoys the ambience of a Western Lakes Wilderness area tarn.

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Inland Fisheries Service

Keeping up the heat on the carp spawning IFS

Tim Farrell

The peak carp spawning season (October to February) is now in full swing, and as a result the IFS have started actively following ‘Judas’ transmitter-implanted carp seven days a week.

Since July, only 10 carp have been caught in Lake Sorell, which was much less compared to the same time period last year where 46 were caught. Carp numbers are known to be low, but the lack of ideal environmental stimulus may also be a factor.

Low amounts of rainfall, a falling lake level and very few warm days have slowed carp movement. These environmental conditions are the main triggers that encourage carp to push into the shallows and aggregate to spawn.

Most of the carp caught so far were from gill nets set

off shallow rocky shores, as well as one small female carp, which was caught in a barrier fyke net off Silver Plains Marsh.

Of the six transmitter fish released in September, five of these fish have been targeted and caught, resulting in a total of only two carp, with one being an ex-transmitter fish that ran out of battery in early 2016.

With low carp numbers left in the lake, the aim over the coming months is to focus closely on the movements of the ‘Judas’ transmitter fish to see if they lead us to their friends. This plan worked in the tail end of the Lake Crescent eradication.

The warm weather forecast over the next few days will have the team on high alert for any opportunities that may arise.

ANOTHER WHITEBAIT POACHER CONVICTED On Tuesday 7 November

BROWN TROUT % PER WEIGHT RANGE Weight Range (kg) Percentage 0.5-0.75 1 0.75-1.0 12 1.0-1.25 33 1.25-1.50 35 1.5-1.75 12 1.75-2.0 3 2.0-2.25 4

2017 Peter Leslie Coventry of Devonport was sentenced in the Devonport Magistrates Court for offences relating to the illegal taking of whitebait.

Mr Coventry was found guilty on three charges. The Mersey River was closed to the taking of whitebait at the time, so Mr Coventry was fined $1,654 and ordered to pay $82.15 in court costs for illegally taking whitebait from the Mersey River in 2015.

These penalties should serve as a warning to anyone choosing to disregard the strict regulations around the taking of whitebait. Poaching and the illegal sale of whitebait are ongoing threats to a longterm recovery plan for the recreational whitebait fishery.

Stephen Hepworth who is the Manager of Compliance and Operations with the Inland Fisheries Service said, “The management of the whitebait fishery is of the utmost concern to the Inland Fisheries Service, and illegal poaching activities have the potential to seriously jeopardise the ongoing sustainability of the fishery.”

Please report any suspicious behaviour to the Inland Fisheries Service on 1300 INFISH with information such as dates, times, vehicle descriptions and registration

Rob Freeman with a typical Shannon Lagoon brown trout. numbers, along with any details of the people involved.

A quick response improves the chances of us catching them.

SHANNON LAGOON – PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT Shannon Lagoon is a fishery that receives very little attention from anglers.

However, a recent survey of the brown trout population suggests this water may well be worth the extra effort.

Using 40 box traps over

two nights, we captured 106 brown trout and one rainbow trout. The average weight of the resident Shannon Lagoon fish was a healthy 1.25kg.

Even more impressive was the fact that 68% of the fish weighed between 1-1.5kg, with some fish weighing in at just over 2kg.

During the survey we also captured 25 tagged fish that were released into the lagoon during July 2017.

These fish were sourced from

the Lake King William trap and released into the lagoon to enable us to estimate the size of the population.

Our survey data suggests Shannon Lagoon has a population of around 2200 brown trout. Given the extremely shallow nature of the lagoon, this figure is within our expectation.

Anglers should consider throwing a line in the lagoon, as the catch may surprise you!

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Go Behind the Scenery

Tasmania

Tasmania’s fishing scene is top-notch TASMANIA

Kelly Hunt

The secret is out – Tasmania is firing on the fishing front.

To be fair, it’s not that much of a secret. Tasmania has

been substantiating itself as a fishing Mecca for years and years and this January it will continue to do so.

The magazine and social media have been filled with some fantastic fishing over the years and Tasmania

is fast becoming a coveted destination.

Ok, sure we don’t have 1000lb marlin or metre-long barra, but what we do have is an extensive spread of sportfish and, just as importantly, delicious fish. If you’re an

you would want to have. If you attempt it at any time, I would also recommend some sunscreen, food and water and a good book. This is a good idea if you go that way and get stuck on a sand bank then spent eight hours waiting for the tide to come and refloat you. You wouldn’t be the first, or indeed the last to be in that predicament.

The fishing is done in and around the rocky outcrops of Harbour Islet and the Woolnorth Anchorage. This is where the moving water really works the fish up and they can be taken on lures and soft plastics. Heavy jigheads that are big enough to hold in the current and don’t kill the soft plastic’s action are best. The soft plastics chosen for this fishing are long and slender and allow good tail action.

We had some great weather in December. We can only hope that this continues right through January. Not only did we see some great sunny days with little or no wind, we were also blessed with light swell conditions. This allowed people to get out and really hit the west coast hard and this will continue this month.

The low winds keep chop low and comfort levels high,

but often down in the wild west there is still swell.

This swell isn’t wind swell built up by local weather patterns. This is the sort of swell that is built in massive southern storms hundreds of kilometres away in the Southern Ocean. This swell is known as ground swell and it is big and powerful.

Surfers love it and people who like to pot and ring for crays hate it.

The swell on the west has been small and stayed small, so this allowed for some good fishing recently. If you keep an eye on the weather apps and spot low winds with low swell conditions, plan a trip and get around it. The stripy trumpeter fishing is fantastic and the specimens found are often bigger than in most parts of the state.

I wouldn’t know too much about that, as on a recent trip we went down to hit them up and didn’t do any good.

We did, however, do well on the crayfish and also some big school sharks as by-catch. We didn’t feel too bad; on the same day west coast guru Mason Paull and his son Daniel were out on the water and managed three good-sized stripy. This is testament to their skills, as we punished the bottom and couldn’t find a stripy. We

NORTH WEST WEST COAST CONTINUES TO FIRE We spoke about the yellowtail kingfish briefly last month and they came on as expected. They were in good numbers and good sizes. Mason Paull and his son again found them early, but so too did a heap of other keen anglers. The north-northwest fishing grounds don’t come without their trials and tribulations, so it’s not for the faint-hearted.

The water that moves in and around the Hunter Islands creates the fastmoving current these fish love and thrive on. They fire right up when the water starts to move and feed on the bait the water flow stirs up. This same water flow and tidal movement can also make the trip a little treacherous, if it’s not thought out well.

The ramp at Montague campground is the most popular choice to start a trip here. Then head out under Robbins Island to the east. I have mentiond before that you can go the opposite way and cut under Robbins to the west but local knowledge and a full tide is something

angler that likes diversity or chasing a personal best then Tasmania is the place for you.

We have long been famous for trophy-sized trout, but you can add to that list.

King George whiting and southern calamari are found

in similar areas and they are massive in Tasmania. The southern bluefin tuna are as big as you will get anywhere, with the only difference being the ease of accessing the fishing grounds. The big new player in the game is of course

Charlie Vella with a west coast monster. did however have one chap in the boat that managed to catch a lot of cod, who will remain nameless. I was very happy to take down a big school shark on a soft plastic of all things.

I was using a Penn Clash reel and Oceans Assassin rod with a 2oz Elevator jighead.

A fish hit the jig just off the bottom in 120m of water and I thought initially I was onto a stonking big trumpeter.

I was a little disappointed when we saw that it was another big school shark, but this was dispelled when someone reminded me that it

made four for the trip. These fish are sensational eating and went well with the cray we took home as well.

The cray fishing was fantastic as well. The swells – being so small – allowed us to pot wherever we wanted and set some rings in areas you normally can’t get to.

This meant we picked up a few cray in a short time, which had us brimming with smiles. We weren’t the only ones enjoying the spoils of the west, as the very next week Eythan Purton and Jake Morris went down and bagged out.

DEVONPORT RED FEVER The snapper moved in during December and will continue right throughout January. While Devonport has seen most of the focus, the good news is that they are to be found all along the north coast. I went out to find some flathead and gummy sharks last month and did quite well. The next morning, I saw on Facebook that local snapper whisperer Glen Saltmarsh had picked up two nice snapper. That was enough for me and it was on.

I went out that night and tried in a spot at the east end of Lillico Strait and didn’t do any good for snapper, but found a couple of nice gummies. On Wednesday night I decided to go deeper, as Glen was having success in 20m or more off the back of Egg Island off Devonport.

All I managed that night was gurnard after gurnard.

I was out with the infamous Joel Gent who won’t touch a gurnard, so I was taking 54

JANUARY 2018

them off two lines.

These fish – while good eating – are bad news. A spike from a gurnard can be as painful an experience as you are likely to want to have in your life. The only respite from the pain is hot water. Any fluid warmer than cold will help to reduce the pain but hot water will bring much sought-after relief.

Super long nose stainless pliers and welding gloves are a great way to avoid being nailed by their poisonous dorsal spikes.

I was a little frustrated and went to another spot off Ulverstone where snapper have been taken over the years. This was again unsuccessful, but I filled the freezer with a couple of nice gummy sharks. The next morning I was in a tizzy. I had snapper fever and I was starting to doubt what I was up to and how I was going about it. It was then that it struck me that I had fallen foul of the age-old mistake –

Jan Damian Turner has had success off Devonport.

I had left fish to find fish.

This is an old adage from when we used to gamefish hard. When out on the open ocean in a game fishing competition it’s paramount that you never leave fish to

the broadbill swordfish, and by ‘big’ I mean ‘massive.’

In January this ramps right up and continues to build as summer is here in full-swing. Join me as we talk about all this and more in this month’s edition.

find fish. In this instance I had a spot that I had caught snapper from before, and I wasn’t spending the time there. We have caught snapper in my spot X over a number of years and it has

proved itself. I just needed to go back and get the time and tide right for results.

On one evening when the tide and falling light conditions were looking favourable, Jarvis Wall and

Then to rub salt into our wounds, Charlie Vella and Damian Turner found some more very good fish the weekend after that. If you see a weather window, get a crew together and hit it up.

This year the cray fishing seems to be going well across all areas including the east coast. West coast cray are a fabulous table piece and are a favourite with many. In December a number of crews went down to get their annual Chrissy crayfish and will be looking to restock in January for BBQ crayfish.

I left the ramp at the Forth River and headed to the end of Lillico Strait. We roared the little 420 Buster down and pulled up well short of the waypoint I had saved previously. I like to do that with this sort of fishing – the waypoint is a starting point and not a specific feature on the bottom I am looking for.

Pulling up 500m short and coming up to the waypoint at a slow trundle off the plane allows me to sound the area and see if I can find some fish arches or bait activity. I then do a square pattern around the mark that slowly moves to the centre right on the mark.

This allows me to sound the bottom thoroughly and get a really good idea of what the bottom contour looks like in my mind.

In doing this with Jarvis I could see that the up and down rocky reef was ending and my mark was 50m off the reef into some flat sandier bottom. In this session the sounder also helped me work out that To page 55

Go Behind the Scenery From page 54

this sandy section was 40m wide and in a depression that climbed up a little back to some harder rock. It was a channel of sorts.

Once you have identified where you want to put your anchor down you then have to work out which way you are going to lay. There’s no point us setting up only to have the boat lay back over towards the major reef section. This would only have our efforts bring wrasse and draughtboard sharks.

The idea here is to come off the reef section just enough to slow the rubbish fish by-catch, yet be close enough to draw the snapper

off the reef to your berley and cube trail. The general train of thought is that the snapper are moving in and around the reef using it for cover and looking for baitfish and squid to eat.

Two things I have mentioned are absolutely crucial: fishing at anchor and using berley. These are the cornerstones of any snapper fishing session and you are wasting a lot of time if you’re not employing both.

Yes, the anchor can be a pain to drop and raise, but it’s worth the effort.

We are lucky in our bigger boat to have a Lone Star 12v anchor winch and it’s the best thing since

someone decided that bread should be available sliced. In the 420 Renegade, however, she is a manual operation.

This is why you always fish with a mate or two!

The other part of the puzzle is berley and cubes.

You need a fine mist of berley and I use pilchards as cube base. I use the pilchards, as they are also what I use whole as baits on the rigs. Get your berley out as soon as you have set anchor. I have my berley tied up, so it’s just under the surface. I do this so the berley is high in the water and travels far and wide as quick as it can before settling on the bottom.

Jarvis found some of the red and gold of Lillico Strait.

Cubes can be cut up and plopped over the side from time to time. Doing this regularly is the best method.

There is some thought that you can over-cube and therefore diminish your bait’s effectiveness in attracting a bite; that is, of course, if you think that every cube sinks down through the water table and hits the bottom. I caught a ‘couta during this session that had seven of my cubes in its stomach!

Now you are set and like all fishing capers it is a waiting game. I normally have four rods out at a time in the little boat: two strayline rigs with whole pilchards on and two snapper catcher style rigs from Hookem Fishing.

On these I will have pilchards until I catch a fresh ‘couta and then I’ll have one hook of the twin hook rigs with that on as well.

Then it’s time for the snapper shuffle. Jiggle the berley, plop some cubes, watch the rod tips and repeat.

After 15 minutes if you have had no action, check the baits, wriggle the berley, cut some cubes, plop some cubes and repeat. While all this is going on you will be dealing with by-catch of squid, couta and gummies if you are lucky.

The not so lucky will be dealing with bluehead wrasse, gurnard and

Tasmania

The author found this big school shark. draughtboard sharks. Don’t be discouraged with this, as this means you are on pretty good ground. You’ll have to sort through some unwanted by-catch to find the end goal – a nice red snapper with those magical iridescent blue spots.

Good luck.

Areas off the coast have been fishing very well for flathead and gummy sharks from Burnie all along the coast. Australian salmon are still thick off the rocky points and can be targeted

by shore-based anglers. The breakwall on the river side of the Leven River has been fishing well on an incoming tide with those using a little berley having better success.

Salmon and mid-sized tailor have been common with the occasional appearance of larger silver trevally. I spoke to one gentleman who decided to fish the surf club side of the breakwall out towards the end and he showed me a nice flathead that went 54cm, so he was very happy with himself.

JANUARY 2018

55

Go Behind the Scenery

Tasmania NORTH EAST ST HELENS The water has been crazy warm of late and the sea surface temperatures (SST) have been sparking a lot of conversations here in Tasmania. January is the time when the East Australian Current starts to move down the eastern seaboard of Australia, bringing lots of gamefish with it. In a good year it can bring down good numbers of large striped marlin, yellowtail kingfish and mahimahi. In an average

talking about 1mm or less, so it can be affected by unusual weather events and I think this is what we saw in early to mid-December.

That being said, I still feel we are in for a very good gamefishing season.

Those fishos that have made the journey to St Helens in December have been rewarded with good numbers of table fish and crayfish.

There have also been some early season mako sharks taken and albacore

Jake Morris pulled this horse out of 160m with a spin rod. year it holds good numbers of albacore tuna, striped tuna and solid numbers of mako sharks. It is little wonder that the gamefishers really look at January with wide-open excited eyes.

All eyes have been on the mad SST charts and the unusual amounts of early warm water in and around Tasmania. This has shown up as a broad carpet layer of warm water across a vast area. I’m not getting too caught up in the excitement just yet, as I would prefer to see a nice, long wide finger of warm water slowly moving down the coast from a bigger body of warm current in NSW. The blanket look to the chart is likely the result of the unusually and unseasonal warm weather we had in late November and early December. The SST is measured from satellites and is a measure of the energy due to the motion of molecules at the top layer of the ocean with the use of radiometers.

When I say top layer, we are 56

JANUARY 2018

and striped tuna in the last few weeks.

These fish are both great fun and one eats better than the other. I have eaten both, so I know from firsthand experience. A lot of people will tell you that striped tuna is only good for cray bait and berley; they are wrong.

Well, they are not wrong all together, as they do make awesome berley and cray bait, but they also taste ok.

Like any fish from the ocean, it is what you do with it post capture and how you care for it until you get back to shore that really affects the eating quality. If you bleed them out quickly after capture and place them in an ice slurry, striped tuna can be used in any number of recipes that will have you coming back for seconds. Is it as good and as easy to make them as awesome as albacore? No. It is, however, worth taking the time to look after the first few you catch in case you don’t find any albacore or better.

Finding the albacore

is normally fairly easy off St Helens. Get your boat in at Burns Bay and head out to the 100m line on the sounder and put your lures in. Continue at trolling pace at right angles to the shelf until you are 2nm over the shelf, then turn 90° to the east and troll 5nm up the shelf while zig-zagging back into the shelf and back out to your original line. Then turn 90° again and travel to the shelf and troll down the shelf line, zig-zagging into the land and back out to the shelf until you are back to where you crossed the shelf originally.

If you got there and didn’t catch a fish then pack up and head back in, because the albacore aren’t there yet.

If you have another day there on the coast, look to find the yellowtail kingfish in close. If the weather is really good, hit the bottom in 70m and out to 100m for stripy trumpeter or head wider for some blue-eye trevalla on the shelf. What will normally happen there while you are on the bottom with three rods is the albacore will come up and jump out of the water, feeding on the surface right in front of you. Then you will swear and mutter under your breath about ‘why weren’t they here yesterday?’

BICHENO You will all know from my past ramblings that Bicheno is a favourite place of mine in January and I like to spend some time there.

There are a few reasons.

The place comes alive at this time of the year and the fishing is as good as the company. Myself and a clan of keen fishos have an annual pilgrimage to the seaside town of Bicheno on Australia Day long weekend.

It’s a little informal event we like to call Fisheno.

When I say ‘event’ I actually mean just a flag in the calendar where we all like to try and converge, have a few beers and fish, and talk fishing and a great deal of trash. So if you are in the area, feel free to come and join in. You can find info on the weekend at our Facebook sites: Team Penn - Simrad Fishing and Go Fish Tasmania - with Moz and Hooch.

Last year in January we caught a treasure trove of species and you can do it quite easily from Bicheno.

Small boats, big boats – it doesn’t matter. There are also a heap of land-based options for squid and beach fishing.

We managed to find some decent size king flathead out in 100m of water and we also found them back closer in at around 40m. These shallower king or tiger flathead were mixed in with good size sand flathead and it took no time to find a feed.

We picked the deeper king flathead up while prospecting for stripy

The Swansea boat ramp upgrade is an absolute belter. trumpeter ground, ever so slightly north of the launch ramp. We managed two stripy, some morwong and a good-sized school shark. Once back in close we managed to find some southern calamari, so we had one heck of a seafood basket for that night and some good squid baits and belly flap baits for the next day.

The next day we just waltzed out the front and hit the shelf. With a few laps of the area letting the big Simrad sounder pound the bottom, we marked up what looked to be gemfish and sure enough within

10 minutes of working our drift out we had baits going down on electrics and gemfish coming up.

We sounded and marked fish that were showing differently on the sounder – a little deeper yet off the back of the gemfish – but they would not take any of the baits.

We tried different baits and only got gemfish. It was decided that we would put a few marks around the fish and troll for a bit then come back when the tide changed. We didn’t go far and we had a couple of nice school-sized bluefin to add to the species count

Glen Saltmarsh put young Jordy onto a nice night session snapper.

and food esky. After a few more we went back to the marks. The fish had moved lower in the water and seemed to be much closer to the bottom; after a while we had success. A couple of big dangly squid baits got the bite and we had two nice blue-eye trevalla on the deck.

The attraction of Bicheno isn’t just with the fishing; if the weather goes pear-shaped, you can check out the decor of the local pub, or you could play some golf at the local course. There are a couple of rivers nearby for anglers that like to try their hand at some of the big bream that the area is famous for.

If you get really, really desperate for something to do, the walk up to the lookout in town is actually not bad. All in all, it’s a great place to go with a group of mates that like to fish, or your family. There is a lot to see and do in Bicheno in January.

SWANSEA If we are talking about areas that come alive during January in Tasmania then we could not leave out Swansea. The Swansea area is a funnel for hundreds of locals and tourists alike. Its numbers swell and it has a great holiday vibe about it. All the shacks are either rented out or being used by the owners themselves to enjoy all the area has to offer.

The scenery is spectacular and that is thanks to the Freycinet Peninsular and Great Oyster Bay. While this landscape and its features are pleasing on the eye they also have a lot to do with why the area fishes so well. There is also something for everyone, like St Helens and Bicheno.

Small boat, big boat and even land-based, you can have a really good day of catch and release or filling the esky up with tasty treats.

The bream fishing in To page 57

Go Behind the Scenery From page 56

the Swan River is worldclass and arguably only bettered by the high water fishing in the Little Swanport on the opposite end of town. These fish can be accessed by boat or by land-based methods. Lures are the sport fisho’s option with either hardbodies or soft plastics.

I have had some great success in January on high water with topwater lures.

When cast long and hard in the shallow water on high

tide, these are a spectacular way to find bream.

If you are finding it tough and can’t seem to get any bites, try plastics; cast them out, let them sink to the bottom and give them a couple of little hops. This wakes up the fish that have watched it swim to the bottom and when you pause they will grab it. Be prepared to pause for ages and even fish it like fresh bait.

There is a new ramp in Swansea thanks to MAST and it is a beauty. MAST

is the government body that looks after our boat ramps and all things marine in Tasmania. They do an absolute fantastic job and everything they do is well thought-out and actioned by people with years of experience. This new ramp at Swansea will allow all the keen boating anglers to access all the great fishing grounds available and there are heaps.

The shores on the town side hold big schools of Australian salmon and they can be taken on larger diving bibbed lures to 120mm or the good old-fashioned Halco slice. Once you find a school, these are great fun on lighter gear casting soft plastics. They are also a great land-based option.

The flathead fishing is superb in the bay and everyone has their favourite spot. If that doesn’t work for you, just move a little bit and find a new favourite spot. There are some great gummy shark spots on the other side of the bay as you make your way up to Schouten Passage. Keep an eye on your sounder and look for a slight depression or deeper section. If you can find a bank there that is the best place to start.

If you move out through

the passage, you are always on the lookout for fish on the surface of the water.

The bait moves through there in the many currents and water eddies that form on the tides. This in turn brings in the bigger fish; you are looking for bluefin tuna or yellowtail kingfish.

A longer casting rod and a few poppers and stickbaits worked in close to the seaward side of Schouten Island are always worth a try. The fish can get right in close and work the bait schools hard up on the underwater clefts and shelfs down this shore and towards the south end of the island.

The activity in and around Schouten and the baitfish make it a great place to try your hand at a mako shark as well. All down the coast they can be caught from St Helens down to Bicheno, past Swansea and down south to Eaglehawk Neck. I love the area off the passage in 100m of water or more for mako sharks.

It is a convergence point for current and tide and this brings bait in like a supermarket for the big apex predators.

If I’m putting some berley in the water off here for two hours I’ll be disappointed at this time of

year not to have something to play with. While you are out there and drifting along, you can be throwing over some cubes as well. Once an hour has gone past, get some

big jighead weighted soft plastics or metal jigs out in your berley trail. We often get albacore of yellowtail kingfish in the trail while waiting for a big mako.

Yellowtail kingfish have started to thicken up after being seen early by commercial fishos in the area. One capture that was pretty impressive was a big thresher shark.

Eyes will be on the area in January and those looking to target the big swordfish will be getting itchy feet. There is very little known about this fish and the fishery itself, that any fish caught supplies much-needed information.

January is a month when you will see some crews try their hand at raising one of these giants.

It was great to see the interest in tagging and releasing these fish last year and that looks to continue again as we learn more and more. The trick seems to be fishing with heavy gear and getting them up quick while not being to forceful and pulling hooks. Some 80-100lb braid with 70m of 37kg mono is an accepted setup on as big an overhead as you can afford.

The new Penn 70VISW is finding favour due to its smooth oversize bearings allowing quick dropping of baits. This alleviates having too much belly in your line allowing quicker bite detection.

This is becoming more and more crucial as a lot of experienced crews believe they are getting bit on the way down or very soon after hitting the bottom.

This makes sense, as the big lights these anglers use would stand out as the rig descends into the depths.

SOUTH

Miller Terrill, 6yo, with a yellowbelly that he caught all by himself while fishing with his Pop at the Torrumbarry Weir Holiday Park.

EAGLEHAWK NECK The area we know and love has been a little quiet lately and we are all expecting big things.

There has been a bit of normality creeping into the area; there have been some good catches of king flathead reported recently and that will continue this month.

The stripy trumpeter caught aren’t massive but they have been consistent.

Tasmania

The Eaglehawk Neck king flathead have been on the chew for Locki.

HYDRO TASMANIA WATER STORAGE INFORMATION Water Storage Information as at 7th December 2017 Lake/Lagoon

Metres from full

Comment

Lake Augusta....................................2.60...................................................................

Arthurs Lake.....................................0.67...................................................................

Great Lake........................................13.23.................................................................

Trevallyn Pond..................................0.93...................................................................

Shannon Lagoon.............................................................................................Spilling Penstock Lagoon............................................................................................Spilling Lake Echo.........................................5.46...................................................................

Dee Lagoon.......................................0.02...................................................................

Bradys/Binneys/Tungatinah..............1.68...................................................................

Bronte Lagoon..................................0.62...................................................................

Pine Tier Lagoon.............................................................................................Spilling Little Pine Lagoon.............................0.04...................................................................

Laughing Jack Lagoon.....................0.56...................................................................

Lake St Clair.....................................1.57...................................................................

Lake King William.............................1.22...................................................................

Lake Liapootah.................................0.69...................................................................

Wayatinah Lagoon..........................................................................................Spilling Lake Catagunya................................0.80...................................................................

Lake Repulse....................................0.24...................................................................

Cluny Lagoon..................................................................................................Spilling Meadowbank Lake...........................0.11...................................................................

Lake Pedder......................................1.17...................................................................

Lake Gordon.....................................21.97.................................................................

Lake Burbury....................................2.08...................................................................

Lake Plimsoll....................................2.44...................................................................

Lake Murchison................................14.77.................................................................

Lake Mackintosh..............................4.48...................................................................

Lake Rosebery..................................0.25...................................................................

Lake Pieman.....................................0.74...................................................................

Lake Mackenzie................................3.83...................................................................

Lake Rowallan..................................1.04...................................................................

Lake Parangana................................0.70...................................................................

Lake Cethana....................................1.28...................................................................

Lake Barrington................................1.46...................................................................

Lake Gairdner...................................3.16...................................................................

Lake Paloona....................................3.19...................................................................

Woods Lake......................................0.79...................................................................

Whitespur Pond................................7.66...................................................................

Lake Newton.....................................3.25...................................................................

Lake Margaret..................................3.31...................................................................

These levels are provided for an indication of lake level only and can vary from day to day. For more up-to-date lake level information please visit www.hydro.com.au/home/Tourism+and+Recreation/Lake+Levels.htm JANUARY 2018

57

DIY Lure Making

DIY lure making: Glidin’ Doc BRISBANE

Greg Vinall support@makewoodenlures.com

Welcome to our fifth lure making project of the series! This month I’ve got a cool little glider for you.

Depending on who you talk to, this style of lure might also be called a sinking stickbait, jerkbait, wobbler or twitchbait. No matter what you choose to call it, the Glidin’ Doc will add a whole new dimension to your hardbody lure fishing.

Gliders are an oftenoverlooked style of hardbody lure, but they can be very effective if fished properly.

Even better, gliders are reasonably straightforward to make. There’s no diving

lip to cut or fit, just get the body shape right and weight it correctly. A coat of paint and some hooks – and voila!

FISHING WITH THE GLIDIN’ DOC Gliders have a lot in common with stickbaits, the main difference being that they work below the water surface while stickbaits work on top. Both styles have very little action if you simply crank them back at constant speed.

Gliders that are designed to be worked fast tend to be heavily weighted, but the Glidin’ Doc is not one of them! This is a finesse lure, designed to sink very slowly. It’s best fished with twitches and pauses, a walkthe-dog style retrieve or other slow and erratic movements.

Template: 1 Square = 1cm

Allow plenty of slack line between twitches and you should get an erratic side-toside action.

It’s perfect for imitating foraging baitfish that are unaware of an imminent ambush, or an injured baitfish that’s easy pickings.

Bream, bass, ‘toga, flathead, trout and sooties are all fair game! Work it alongside fallen timber, through standing timber or around weedbeds for the best results.

Balsa is a natural material that can vary in density, and no two handmade lures are the same, so you might find that your lures vary in their sink rates. No problem!

By switching between lightweight and heavy-duty hooks and rings you can adjust the sink rate, or use

100% Scale

the small stick-on weights you’ll find in good tackle shops to adjust the sink rate to suit your needs.

Glidin’ Doc can be fished on whatever bream, bass or trout gear you might own.

As for stickbaits, a rod that’s a little soft in the tip will get more action from your lures. It just seems to soften the twitches and smooth the lure movement.

I prefer a braided line with a fluorocarbon leader for fishing the Glidin’ Doc. The lure is often worked slowly, so the low visibility of fluorocarbon is an advantage, because fish have plenty of time to inspect it.

MAKING THE GLIDIN’ DOC All the lures in this series have been pretty simple, but this one is about as easy as they come. The usual tools

TOOLS AND MATERIALS Tools Utility knife, battery drill and bits, hacksaw, pliers.

Materials • 12.5mm x 75mm balsa plank • 1-1.2mm stainless steel wire • 120 and 240 grit sand paper • 240 grit wet sanding paper • Epoxy adhesive (with syringes and mixing sticks) • Ball sinkers (size 000) • Methylated Spirit • Holoscale foil (optional) • 3D eyes (optional) and materials apply: balsa for the lure body, a little stainless steel wire, some size 000 ball sinkers and a good epoxy adhesive like 24hr Araldite are all you’ll need. Add some paint and clear coat to tart the lure up, of course.

PAINTING AND CLEAR COATING For something different, I wrapped this lure with a thin holographic material I’ve developed for lure makers, called Holoscale. This self-

adhesive film stretches over the lure and can be painted and clear-coated to give exceptional flash and brilliance that attracts fish from miles away. You can get some Holoscale for your own lures at my website makewoodenlures. com/product/holoscalemirroscale/.

Of course, you don’t have to give your lure the holographic treatment. It can be painted in the same ways as our previous projects.

1

Visit www.MakeWoodenLures.com/Fishing-Monthly/ to download all the templates in this series.

You should be used to this step by now! Print the template and transfer the side profile onto a piece of 12mm thick balsa wood. Use a utility knife to cut away most of the waste, but stop just short of the lines you marked.

2

3

With your lure blank on a flat surface, square up edges using sandpaper glued to a flat wood block. Use a curved sanding block to clean up the concave edge on the underside of the lure. Work gently to shape the profile down to the guideline you drew on the blank.

4

5

Transfer the top profile to the lure blank using your template then trim away the waste almost down to the line, and square up the blank using your sanding block.

58

Mark a line down the centre of the blank and use your side profile template to mark the locations of the hardware. Carefully drill a 2mm hole into the blank for each of the hook hangers and for the tow point. Use a 5mm drill bit to make a hole for the belly weights. You can use a couple of small sinkers rather than one larger one. It’s important for these lures to stay horizontal while they’re sinking, which is more easily achieved if the weight is spread along the underside a little.

JANUARY 2018

6

The Glidin’ Doc has reasonably flat sides, so the shaping process is similar to the Flat Doc from last month. You can skip drawing a centre line on the sides if you like, and simply draw a line a few millimetres in from the edge, all the way around.

Use a sharp knife to slice away the timber between the carving guidelines. Chip away with light cuts until you’ve rounded off the edge to get a pleasing body shape. A few minutes with some sandpaper will refine the shape and remove the lumps and bumps left by the knife.

DIY Lure Making 8

7

Twist some stainless steel wire to make your hook hangers and tow points, then glue them into the holes you drilled previously. Use plenty of 24-hour (super strength) epoxy for this. While you’re at it, glue the weights into the belly of the lure. You might find that you need to squash them a little with some pliers so that they sit neatly beneath the surface of the wood. Set your lures aside to cure.

Harden the balsa using some thinned epoxy. You can get full instructions for this at makewoodenlures.com/lure-bodies-hardeningsealing/. Then set your lures aside for a further 24 hours minimum before sanding off the gloss with 240 grit wet sanding paper.

FINISHED LURE

9

If you’re going to try the Holoscale lure foil then now is the time to apply it. Make sure the film is nice and warm, stretch it over the lure and coat again with clear epoxy before you move on to painting. If you’re not going to foil your lures then move straight onto painting. You can also use self-adhesive eyes on this lure, rather than painting eyes on.

You’ll find these on the shelves in larger tackle shops, or online.

• For extra information and video tutorials please go to Greg’s website MakeWoodenLures.com/Fishing-Monthly/ and complete the free registration. To check out Greg’s other work visit crazylureart. com and his Facebook page Wooden Lure Making.

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Contact your local dealer for more information.

MELBOURNE

LAVINGTON

GIPPSLAND

MELBOURNE

GEELONG

612-614 Plenty Road, PRESTON

474 WAGGA RD, LAVINGTON

71-77 Chickerell Street, MORWELL

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59

January is the time to get buggy on the trout HORSHAM

James Perry

Hot summer nights and plenty of insect activity make January a fun time to fish the Wimmera region for trout.

The key to success is getting out there when there is insect activity. Both sunrise and sunset are great times to fish, however don’t limit yourself to these times.

Keep an eye on swallows feeding on insects on the

the wall in the search for fish on the move. Small mouse type lures would be a great option, as the wall often holds small rodents.

The deeper waters of Lake Bellfield are also well worth a look on the hotter days. Bellfield offers fantastic land-based opportunities due to its deep water access and heavy timber close to shore,

this may tip you off as to what method will be firing.

Lately the Wimmera River has been fishing well, with the hotspots being the main weir pools and deeper section with undercut banks.

Small spinnerbaits and vibes have been performing well for the lure anglers, while worms and yabbies are getting the job done for the bait fishers. Either method the formula is the same: target deeper water and sheltered undercuts.

Rocklands Reservoir’s

along with great kayaking opportunities due to no motorboats being permitted on it. At this time of the year it can be hard to find a lake without a ski or wake boat on it, However Bellfied is a fisher’s haven for wake free waters.

Ice jigs and other bobber style lures are by far the most reliable choice if you’re after a feed of

A typical summer lake trout caught by the author.

Double headers on reddies are a common sight in the peak of summer. surface, as this is a good indicator that trout may be rising to feed on the same emerging insects. Also, periodically scan the water for other surface activity, as

form has continued with large numbers of redfin being easy to catch. While the average size of the fish may be down compared to some other lakes, the numbers more than

make up for it. The most reliable method seams to be to locate a school of redfin close to a tree and vertically jig plastics or blades. Slow jigging worms is also a sure fire way to hook up. Start in contact with the bottom and slowly increase your jigging height until you find the depth they are feeding at.

If you prefer trolling, work the tree lines with small bibbed minnows, targeting the 2-3m depth range.

Taylors Lake is great in January, with cod, yellowbelly, redfin and silver perch all on offer. Bobbing worms seams to be the most consistent method, be it tight against a tree or working a rocky shelf. If you’d prefer to flick lures, it’s worth downsizing your spinnerbaits from typical cod size snacks to something that reddies and yellas can handle. Cod will still take smaller lures, but often yellas will pass up a oversize spinnerbait.

Set up a drift along a tree line and give each tree

a handful of casts each. Pay particular attention to what limbs are missing from the tree, as they are more than likely now under water, creating good structure for a hungry cod. The main thing is to make sure you’re getting your lure right in there, if you’re not getting a few snags you’re probably not near the fish. Late evening, it is worth slow rolling a surface lure along

The author caught and released this rainbow.

This well fed rainbow couldn’t resist a Woolley’s Morsel.

redfin, however if you’re targeting trout, realistic baitfish pattern plastics are a great starting point.

Natural colours with bits of purple have been all the talk of recent times, but don’t discount the everpopular motor oil colour. If you prefer to use hardbody lures, look to long profile lures. Any lure with a cast assist system will be a great advantage too. Keep a close eye on the edges as it not uncommon for trout and redfin to push up to the edges chasing small minnows.

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JANUARY 2018

This month you are probably looking for what’s firing where and when and who has caught what so far, but this report was penned only days before the season opened! I can guarantee next edition’s report will be a beauty.

Looking at the new Murray cod season, you can’t help but get excited about the possibilities at the home of the Murray cod, Lake Mulwala. If the 2016-17 season is anything to go by, it will be amazing.

The latest craze of topwater fishing has sure produced plenty of big cod. Swim, wake and glidebaits along with 100mm+ surface To page 61

Ben Lawless with an 82cm Mulwala beauty taken off the top.

There will be plenty more like this on offer this season.

Anglers concerned about future cod numbers ROBINVALE

Rod Mackenzie codmac@bigpond.net.au

In the run up to the Murray cod open season anglers fishing the Murray River around Swan Hill reported good numbers of cod amongst the perch.

Of course the cod were simply by-catch as the season was still closed at the time. According to locals they were all but impossible to avoid.

these locations this season?

You might think that with so many fish lost to our rivers in the past two black water floods that those that govern these waters might consider the future of this once great fishery and the communities and businesses that rely on it. Sadly this is not the case, as the next environmental disaster looks primed and ready to go.

With construction of the $467million pipeline from the Murray River to Broken Hill set to start this

Carp are about in plague proportions along many sections of the Murray River and some of them are quite large.

This is great news, especially when you consider some of these cod were up around the magical metre mark. The Murray at Swan Hill will be a popular destination this season, and rightly so with anglers rediscovering a fishery that is first class for cod.

Anglers fishing the Murray River below the Murrumbidgee Junction will notice that cod numbers are all but non-existent. While the perch have been running hot at Robinvale, no reports of Murray cod of any size were reported in the run up to the open season.

It’s a similar story downstream through Wemen and beyond with heaps of golden perch on bait and a mountain of carp to wade through. Will we see a few cod landed at From page 60

lures will be the go-to weapons of choice for those looking to top the magical 1m mark. Low light and cloudy periods at any time of the day will be your best option.

Don’t discount throwing around smaller hardbodied lures, spinnerbaits or crankbaits as the old ‘an elephant will eat a peanut’ theory proves itself time and time again. With cod seeing more and more big lures recently, it may be a case of presenting them with something they haven’t seen for a while. Depths ranging from 1.5-4m with

month, anglers and riverside communities should be clear on the real cost it may bring long after the job is done.

Many may not realise that recreational fishing is one of

the largest contributors to the towns and communities along the Murray-Darling Basin.

With approximately 430,000 fishers in the basin it’s estimated that recreational anglers spend a whopping $1.3billion each year wetting a line in our local waters. With the growing popularity of native fish amongst anglers it’s estimated that Australia wide there are more than four million anglers that regularly fish for Murray cod and golden perch.

With the construction of the Broken Hill pipeline we look set to potentially see reduced flows into the Menindee Lakes and the Lower Darling River, which will spell disaster for native fish numbers. The past two black water events have been devastating for Murray cod stocks and in order for things to turn around we rely on future breeding to reintroduce and increase cod numbers.

The Lower Darling River downstream of Menindee supports one of the strongest populations of breeding-sized Murray cod in the basin. If these fish are affected or potentially lost because of reduced flows caused by the building of the pipeline then it could spell the end Murray cod in our local waters.

Dean Norbiato with a ripper Murray cod from the Darling River.

Could the Murray to Broken Hill pipeline see future stocks of golden perch and Murray cod all but disappear?

Compound this with the simple fact that most of the excellent golden perch fishing being experienced these past few seasons is largely thanks to productive breeding in the Barwon Darling Rivers.

Recent science looking at ear bones of perch to find out where they come from shows that the majority of golden perch from Echuca down to the Murray mouth at Goolwa in South Australia were first spawned up north in response to floods in 2009-10.

Once the eggs hatch they

then drift with the flow as far as the Menindee Lakes, which act like a giant fish nursery where small fish grow strong enough to ride the next flow down the Darling and into the Murray River. From here they traverse into all the anabranches of the Wakool, Murrumbidgee, Edward and so on, populating some of our favourite fishing destinations. The big floods in 2011 delivered a payload of these young fish to the Murray, which now at six or seven years of age are chasing our lures and bait.

I have the luxury of seeing things in a simple manner without getting caught up in the greed of politics and the profits of water. If this pipeline has the cause to see reduced flows into the Menindee Lakes and Lower Darling River then we will all suffer the loss of what was once a mighty fishery. Is this truly the price we are willing to pay when other alternatives were put forward? I fear if we continue on the current path we will all but wipe these iconic fish from our rivers.

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Golden perch have been biting well at most locations on both bait and lures. areas holding some good weed patches tend to hold larger quantities of Murray cod. Don’t overthink things; the harder you work, the more you will be rewarded.

Fishing below the weir early in the season generally produces plenty of undersize Murray cod, the protected trout cod and the fun-to-catch silver perch. Throw in numerous carp and good numbers of yellas. The Murray cod is, more often than not, a better option for the family if you’re looking to put the kids onto a fish or two.

Looking back, November’s yella action was hit and miss compared

to other years. The best thing to see around town was the large amounts of young kids haunting the local hotspots. While they have a rod and reel in hand they are not causing you any dramas.

The most outstanding and rare capture for the month came in the form of a 44cm brown trout taken by Pete Ceri underneath the train bridge on a cast Daiwa TD Woofer. Over the past 25 years I have heard of only half a dozen trout taken in Lake Mulwala.

I wish everybody all the best for the upcoming season. May all your fish be big and green!

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Trout feeding everywhere JINDABYNE

Steve Williamson steve@swtroutfishing.com.au

Happy New Year from all of us at Steve Williamson’s Tackle Shop and Fishing Adventures. Up until now we have had some quite unusual weather and some reasonable falls of rain, so the area is looking fantastic.

The rivers and streams are now fishing much better, the lake level is still quite high and the water is cool enough to keep the trout happy and the fishing consistent.

Normally what happens in summer is the trout feed around the edges of the lake at sunrise and sunset when

the insect activity is at its peak. This is the time for the shore-based angler with bait, lure or fly.

Boat trollers might like to fish with surface lures close to the shoreline. Later in the morning, the trout retreat to cooler deeper water, so for shore-based anglers, you also need to think about looking for some deeper water.

Boat anglers will go from using surface lures to using deep divers, lead core lines and even to using downriggers in the late morning and early afternoon.

On the rivers and streams the trout have been waiting very patiently for a feed, and they are now very hungry and with only a few more

The result of a successful day trolling lures.

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months before the cooler weather settles in once again, they are going to take every opportunity to grab something to eat. This means that with plenty of water still running off the mountains with the last of the snow melt from last winter and overflowing springs, the river trout will also be feeding longer and we are to see some of the best trout fishing for many years.

River spinning has now fired up finally with some good trout being caught by those prepared to walk a little further away from the holiday crowds. Find some deep pools or some deeper running water where the fish may lay under cover.

Small minnow style lures like CD Rapalas work very well and the old favourite green and gold Gillies spinners and Trollcraft spinners will also be worth trying. Change lures often and never work one area of water over any more than about a half a dozen casts.

January is ‘hopper season’ for fly anglers, and there are various grasshopper patterns available, but just have a look around and see what the size and colour the real ones are and find a fly to match. In the early stages of hopper development, we like to use smaller patterns, and even flies like a yellow Humpy will imitate the local hoppers, but as the hopper develops wings then the Snowy Mountains Hopper pattern or a larger yellow Stimulator are a couple of flies you should have in your box. Also keep your eye open for evening hatches of other insects, such as the mayfly. I love the dry fly fishing at this time of year, and again with a later season there is now plenty of insects about for trout to eat If you are a lake fly angler, nights are the best time to fish the lake and bigger dark or black flies like a Woolly Bugger or other dark streamer patterns are good flies to try.

Craig’s Nighttime is also another Snowy Mountains favourite, not to forget my

own Snowy Mountains Gold Fish where fishing the bays and the inlets will be best places to get results.

Lake spin anglers will also do best in the first hour or so of light, and again I like to spin with lures that are dark coloured early, and when the sky becomes brighter, move over to bright colours like greens and gold, which are summer colours for trout.

Other lures that have been proving themselves very effective on the trout are the Bullet lures, with some excellent colours in the range that also look a lot like the goldfish, as well as the little trout fingerlings that have recently been released into the lake from the Gaden trout hatchery.

Trolling lures from a boat is a very effective way of catching trout any time of the day, but you must vary the depth as the fish go deeper in the middle of the day. This season with cooler water I would expect no more than 35ft will be all you will need for lunchtime fishing.

When trolling from a boat in January, we start the day off by surface trolling lures like Tasmanian Devils in green colours like the number 111 Willy’s Special or my special red nosed yellow wing is also great when the sun starts to get higher in the sky.

On the overcast days the holographic and number 48 brown bomber or other darker lures will be best. Other lures I would recommend over the coming month for trolling would be StumpJumpers in greens and golds, Gillies Natural Vibes and 5cm Bullet lures in goldfish colours that will always attract a trout

Early morning has produced some great results for those trolling on the lake. when they are lazy.

The best areas to fish have been Hayshed, Hatchery and Rushes Bay and the South Arm into Stinky Bay. Later in the morning, the best fishing will be deep using either lead core lines, paravanes, trolling sinkers etc. But the best way to achieve results is to use a downrigger, so as you know exactly what level you are fishing. At the moment the depth continues to vary from 35ft early in the day to 45ft later in the morning.

Bait fishing early and late in the day is another great way to fish the bays, just remember to move to deeper water as the day brightens up. The cooler weather this year has made it hard to find mudeyes, and so if that is the case, you can’t go past a local scrubworm fished off the bottom. Scrubworms are going to catch that big brown

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trout that you have always wanted to catch, and they are best fished unweighted.

The shallow bays are the best nighttime fishing locations, however look out for the snags. If you want to bait fish in the middle of the day, then you are best to look at bottom fishing using either a scrubworm or one of the artificial baits.

The secret at the moment to catching trout on bait is to also grease up the line to stop the drag on the water and to stop it sinking to the bottom into the weed and getting caught up. You need a trout to run with the bait without feeling any resistance and greasing the line will help catch more fish and always fish with the reel bail arm open so the fish can run with the line. The best line grease is Silicone Mucilin as it will not harm the line.

w w w. b a r g a i n b o a t b i t s. c o m . a u

Dam............................... % Full

Dam............................... % Full

LAKE/DAM

Oct Nov Dec

Mulwala

Cairn Curran

80

(Yarrawonga) 93 95 82

78 76

Dartmouth 84 87 87

Newlyn

Eildon

72 72 74

Nillahcootie 91 91 103

Eppalock

93 91 86

Rocklands 42 44 42

Fyans

87 86 83

Taylors

76 77 76

Greens

64 64 66

Tullaroop

76 74 72

Hepburn

n/a 98 101

Upper Coliban 100 100 100

Hume

87 87 76

Waranga

63 55 61

Lauriston

100 99 94

Wartook

98 99 96

Malmsbury 70 99 57

94 100 92

William Hovell 99

99 102

(All levels correct at time of going to press. Dam levels can change at any time, so please check with local authorities to ensure safe boating and fishing.)

Trout love a good wet summer WANGARATTA

Robbie Alexander

Has anyone seen where 2017 went? It’s hard to believe another 12 months have come and gone so quickly. I swear as I get older the years pass by more and more quickly.

Don’t overlook the high country if you are hoping to catch a midsummer trout.

Lake Catani and the reservoir (both on Mt Buffalo) offer great trout fishing all year round. At Falls Creek, Rocky Valley Dam and Pretty Valley Dam can both be fantastic waterways to fish during summer, when even on the

can start to produce some very good redfin fishing, as can Lake Buffalo, Lake Sambell and Lake Kerford and a number of smaller waterways that hold redfin in the lower reaches.

Redfin can be caught using bladed spinners, soft plastics, small minnows and baits of garden worms, small

trying for them; bait would be your best option, as they will most likely still be quite small. Try using garden worms, small shrimps or small yabbies.

If you want to catch a decent-sized yellowbelly then the Bundalong area of the Ovens River is worth a try, but to be honest I think you would be better off heading to Lake Nillahcootie or Lake Hume.

MURRAY COD January is the second best time of the year to target Murray cod in the Ovens River catchment, following December, which is my favourite. This month I am expecting to see some fantastic Murray cod fishing

A lovely Murray cod caught by the author on a Bassman DT spinnerbait on Murray cod opening morning. be allowed to sink to any depth, which means they can be worked nice and slow underneath large dead trees and other structure, and they can also be fished shallow and up close to the edges.

The author’s biggest trout for the spring. It’s great to see a few larger trout kicking around in the streams. These streams will be worth fishing during January, however the trout may be hard to catch.

Anyhow, folks, welcome to 2018. I hope this year brings you all tight lines and screaming drags.

TROUT January can be a challenging time for trout fishers in North East Victoria. Summers with above average rainfall tend to lead to better-than-average summer trout fishing, whereas dry summers make catching trout difficult.

Recently it has been pouring rain at the start of December with a deluge forecast, so with any kind of luck most streams should maintain a decent flow of water this January.

The Ovens River upstream of Bright is a great starting spot for January trout fishing as the water is usually a bit cooler up there.

The upper reaches of the Buckland and Buffalo Rivers will also be worth a look.

The author has had the yabbying bug for a few months now and is having a blast catching yabbies with meat and string. Yabbying is great fun, great for the kids and they taste amazing.

Brett Corker opened his season with this nice Murray cod, which took a surface lure before sunrise. hottest days the temperature only just climbs up over the mid 20s.

REDFIN January can be a great month to target redfin across North East Victoria, as the water starts to really warm up. Lake William Hovell

yabbies and small shrimp.

GOLDEN PERCH There aren’t a lot of golden perch in the Ovens River catchment. There were 30,000 stocked last March, but thus far I have not had any reports of them being caught. It’s definitely worth

right along the Ovens River from Myrtleford to Bundalong and everywhere in between. Many anglers had a great start to the season, which is a fantastic indicator of better things to come.

There are no real standout areas that I would consider better than anywhere else. To be honest there’s cod under just about every snag in the Ovens.

Try using lures during the day that get down deep.

Diving lures that get down deep and dive steeply are fantastic.

Spinnerbaits are brilliant as they can

Once that sun sets, it’s time to pull out the surface lures for the most exciting fishing that you will find anywhere in freshwater Victoria. In recent years there has been an explosion in surface fishing for Murray cod. Give it a go – once you get your very first Murray cod boof, regardless of whether it hooks up or not, you’ll understand why so many people love it.

YABBIES If you’re looking for an alternative to lure fishing, or fishing in general, then head out and catch a few yabbies.

Yabbying is amazing fun and December is a great time to catch some freshwater crustaceans. I have been catching quite a few recently and having a blast! Catching yabbies using the meat and string technique takes me straight back to my childhood.

Young rainbow trout are a very pretty fish. They may be hard to catch during January when the water is a bit too warm. Focus your attention on the early mornings and immediately after downpours of rain.

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Local fishery is starting to get back on its feet SHEPPARTON

Nick Brown teamriverrats@hotmail.com

It’s a new year and over the past weeks I have really reflected on the last 12 months in the local area after last year’s devastating black water event. Those who witnessed so many quality fish die as a result of this event really questioned whether the fishing would ever be the same. Dozens of cod well over a metre were washed up on the banks with hundreds of smaller natives as well.

The doom and gloom has well and truly disappeared, because in between river rises the Goulburn has fished very consistent to previous years. The sizes of the fish haven’t been as big but the numbers of natives around the legal size have stayed much the same.

Over cod opening there were many legal-sized fish reported as well as heaps of smaller fish and it’s such a great sight to see. I spent plenty of time talking to Fisheries after the blackwater event and they were very confident that the fish would again remigrate up to our

area and they have done that.

With the rain event in December the river again went into minor flood level, which made fishing very tough. Those who managed to get out in the backwaters caught fish. At this time of year we normally see plenty of smaller fish caught in high numbers around the Arcadia and Toolamba areas; both bait and lures work well in these areas.

We finally got some natural river rise in the Broken in early December.

This normally occurs in the spring, however, last year we didn’t see any spring rises, which resulted in lower catch rates from the Broken.

As soon as we got the heavy rain and the rise the fish went nuts, just like in previous springs. Casting spinnerbaits such as the Bassmans or Pirates worked best at this time with some yellowbelly recorded around the 50cm mark and cod up to 70cm.

Up to 15 fish were reported in a session at both the Broken River weirs, all on small spinnerbaits or Jackalls cast into the pool water and hard into the rapids near the weirs themselves.

If we get more follow-up

Justin Cirillo with a 50cm yellowbelly caught in the Broken River on a Pirate spinnerbait. rain this month, I would be again targeting these areas as they are easy to access and the fishing is almost always great.

With cod season a month on there will be

many more headlamps being switched on and surface lures being cast in the Broken. The Broken seems to be a much easier location to surface fish compared to the Goulburn

and any type of topwater lure will work well.

KIALLA LAKES With the early summer rain event the lake system went back to its old state of being very dirty. This

didn’t deter the fish and anglers willing to slow their retrieves right down maximised their catch rates.

Spinnerbaits and Jackalls are always standout lures; just remember to go as slow as possible and try to keep your lures nice and deep so they run up the rock drop-offs about 4-5ft from the bank.

Bait fishers are reporting higher numbers of carp since the rain in December, mostly caught around the willows with yellowbelly also taking baits such as worms and shrimp.

CRAIGMUIR LAKE The redfin and yellowbelly are on the bite and again the reports keep coming in from both landbased and kayak fishers.

Redfin and yellowbelly up to 40cm have been caught recently trolling Jackall TN50s or casting blades around the edges.

Unfortunately the weed is very thick and finding clear water can be a task.

Anglers using baits such as worms or shrimp have found the best method to be floating baits in the weed areas or near the pontoons.

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JANUARY 2018

SHEPPARTON LAKE The Shepparton Lake is now producing some good-sized cod caught on both lures and bait. The cod were relocated to the lake in the winter months after hundreds of fish were taken from the local channel system. Legal-size cod have been caught and released back into the lake, which is a great sign.

There has been some weed taken out of the lake and that has made chasing yellowbelly and redfin a lot easier with blades and spinners working well.

Anything that gives of a flash seems to be working well on sunny days out in the middle of the lake with the odd fish being caught on trolled lures.

Bait fishers are still catching silver perch and trout around the grass hill in the evening with worms or PowerBait being best.

WARANGA BASIN With the rain event we had in December it really fired up the bigger redfin at the basin. This is a welcomed change as there were really only reports of tiny fish in big numbers prior to the rain and rise in height. Trolled and small diving lures have worked well and from there casting plastics or drifting baits has accounted for the bigger fish.

The fish seem to be holding deep in the heat of the day and move into shallower water in the afternoons. I have also found if it’s overcast, the fish seem to hold in shallower water and can be caught on the edges of most point drop-offs in 8-10ft of water.

LOCAL CHANNELS I have been getting a lot more reports of good-sized cod being caught up and down the channel system.

With more and more locals targeting Murray cod it’s only a matter of time until we see fish close to a metre being caught. In the winter months when Fisheries relocated a heap of fish, cod were caught up to 90cm, which is great sign that the channels can hold fish close to 1m long.

Those targeting redfin have reported good numbers of fish being caught casting soft plastics rigged with a Beetle spin towards Nagambie. There haven’t been many reports of redfin around the Shepparton East to Pine Lodge area, which has been the case for many months.

Those bait fishing have drifted unweighted baits around the bridge pylons with success. Worms and cooked yabby tails are the standout baits.

Relax at the Eildon Bakery Cafe I assume many anglers are like myself and are creatures of habit. Some habits are angling-related but others are trip-related, and for myself and many others this revolves around food and a beverage.

A recent trip to Lake Eildon really brought this home for me. Three days in the area were punctuated with multiple visits to the Eildon Bakery Cafe in the town of Eildon. Whether it was for coffee and breakfast, a pie for lunch or to grab a loaf of bread to have with the

smoked trout I purchased, I felt compelled to go to the cafe.

Something creates these habits and for me the Eildon Bakery Cafe is the epitome of why we just have to stop at certain places. Friendly staff, good coffee, fresh quality food and a comfortable place to sit down and relax make it a pleasure to be there.

Well done to Len and his team, the recent refurbishments look great and I look forward to feeding my habit again soon. – Peter Jung

There are plenty of treats you can buy to reward yourself.

Friendly staff and good coffee are just a few of the reasons to visit the Eildon Bakery Cafe.

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65

Downpours are keeping the anglers upbeat you fish it, the more chances you have of having the day of a lifetime – there is no substitute for time on the water. The new year could deliver some of the best fishing we have seen in the summer months for years – even decades.

BONNIE DOON

Andy McCarthy

December was a crazy month weather-wise with the biggest rainfalls since 2010 and a staggering 151ml in one day at the Jerusalem Creek Caravan Park, followed up by another 60 or so in the following two days. The lake went up by around 1.4m over the space of five days with 49,000ML in a day, which is a lot of water.

When the drought broke the record day was 129,000 where the lake went up by 1.3m overnight. Nature is an incredible force when it wants to be.

During this time the fishing went off all over the state. A handful of cod over the metre mark were caught at the Cod Classic and Eildon also produced for those who

I hope you all had a great holidays and I hope this beautiful lake we have brings you as much fun as it has to me over the last 15, sometimes-testing years.

Those of you who fish it on a regular basis will know exactly what I mean.

The master Trevor Holmes with a healthy Delatite yella.

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braved the conditions; there were reports of a couple of fish over the metre mark and loads between 65-85.

The condition of these fish is outstanding we are so lucky to have such a thriving healthy fishery that just gets better and better with each season.

After the Melbourne Cup weekend the yellas seemed to slow down again, which is another anomaly for the weird year we had and we can only guess what 2018 is going to bring us. I often speak to people who have lived here for 30+ years and the common theme is a shrug of the shoulders and a ‘who knows what’s gonna happen next.’ Don’t forget this is Lake Eildon, a continuously evolving puzzle that more than likely will never be mastered by anyone. It’s the days when

you catch 25-30 fish in a session with cod, yellas, trout, reddies and even the odd giant carp that fill your mind with memories that just draw you back time and time again.

The one thing we do know now is this lake is absolutely loaded with every species it holds, so the more

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Chris Hunt was fishing the Glenelg River at Nelson and caught this 68cm mulloway.

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JANUARY 2018

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Local cod are making metre-plus memories EILDON

Daniel Piazza

What a start to summer it has been with many making it over the magic metre mark and Eildon cod making memories.

Most of the lake has fired up. I have been fishing a bit lately and every trip has a few cod or yellas being caught.

I have been concentrating around the Delatite to learn what the water and conditions are like in different winds and which wind produces a bite. What I’ve found is a westerly wind direction has brought a bite on; one outing I was fishing the entrance to Delatite and it produced nothing until the wind changed to a westsouthwesterly. The bite

was hot for 15 minutes with three yellas and five reddies on a drift of 200m or so. As soon as the wind changed the bite was gone – the fish I sounded up had moved and that’s fishing on Lake Eildon.

I’m telling you this because we all see the social media sites with all the one-hit wonders that catch natives and everyone flocks to the area of the catch. The fish definitely know what’s going on and the truth is the fishers just get lucky 90% of the time.

If we can take the time to learn the lake we can have a lot of fun.

The main dam is coming up with some great fish taken on lures at dawn before the boat traffic starts to churn the water up. Don’t let this deter you from fishing during the daytime

hours; if the cod or yellas are on the chew, the redfin definitely will be. As slow and quiet as possible, pick a group of trees and work them jigging a 50-60mm black grub curl-tail soft plastic on a light jighead.

Fish in 8-10m of water then get your soft plastic lure to the bottom and a slow retrieve will do the trick. Moving around the tree without banging into it works a treat for reddies and these fish go great with a side of chips and veg, and a cool beverage of course.

Working your way from the dam wall and left towards Fraser Arm has seen many big cod taken from the shallow banks that are just under the powerlines. This area has many steep banks and tight tree-filled bays that just scream ‘natives.’ I’ve

Jarrod with another great cod.

Jarrod Biles with a beautiful Eildon cod taken on a spinnerbait. caught plenty of cod in the past in this area. Don’t drive past it!

Fraser Arm fishes well all year round and the trout are still on the chew first thing in the morning. Flat lining Tassie Devils is still working but at this time of year the surface water temperature is at around 19°C at 10am, so I like to stay in the 1.5-4m zone from first light. A big F13 Rapala or similar lure with a few split shots off the front just to get it in the range will work well.

Howqua Arm is still seeing all species of fish taking bait and lures. There is a healthy river inlet with lots of inflows, which means a lot of food coming in off the grassy flats. There isn’t much to report from the Goulburn Arm and Big River – there are no fish in there.

Eildon’s low flows a go-go EILDON RIVERS

Gary Constantine

The Rivers above Lake Eildon such as the Goulburn, Big, and Jamieson will be starting to slow down a little due to water flows decreasing and temperatures increasing.

However, if you’re keen enough to get out in the cool of the morning or late evening, you should still do well for brown and rainbow trout between 1-3lb. Small brightlycoloured or shinny bladed spinner type lures are a must if you’re targeting these rivers. Shallowdiving small hardbodied lures are also worth a shot.

As far as baits go, lightly or un-weighted scrubbies, maggots and

meal worms fished in the deeper holes and below the rocky shallow runs work as well.

Below Jamieson in the Goulburn River, there are several good size holes that are worth exploring with vibes, surface lures and spinnerbaits, as there are often reports of yellowbelly and Murray cod taken in this area.

Irrigation and power demand are what controls the water level and temperature of the Goulburn River below the Eildon pondage at this time of the year, and if the water is running high, then the grassy areas and overhanging trees close to the banks are a prime target for trout.

A great stretch of the Goulburn River between Yea and Molesworth runs

deep and wide at this time of the year and provides a great opportunity to have a crack at the Murray cod that inhabit the area. Anglers quite often choose kayaks and tinnies for better access to get amongst the trees and spinnerbaits and darkcoloured soft plastics will work in this section of the river. It’s also not unusual to pick up the odd Murray cod up to 90cm there.

Escapees from the Eildon pondage are being caught down the Goulburn on chunky cheese PowerBait, spoons and pink Tassie Devils. Fly fishers are doing well on nymphs, caddis, and white moth patterns near McMartins Lane targeting the willows.

Small brook trout are still occasionally being caught in the Rubicon River on minnow type lures,

and in the Acheron and Steavenson rivers brown trout up to 3lb are taking scrubbies.

Let’s all be safe in the January holidays, as boating on the lake is at its peak.

Remember to respect the other sorts of fishers and water skiers and wake boarders; we all have our

pastimes and we all don’t know each other’s interests!

There is plenty of lake for everyone, so let’s keep safe distances away from each other’s boats and it’s happy days for all.

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JANUARY 2018

67

Early summer has pushed everything forward BALLARAT

Shane Stevens

The weather is hot, hot, hot! And it’s not just the weather around the Central Highlands Region of Victoria; the end of our spring turned into a very early summer, which changed the dynamics of our fishing over the past month – everything has been brought forward a month.

Last month, all I was talking about was the mayflies/ dunn hatches that would occur

where there’s food, there are fish. It’s pretty simple really, except for one thing: we have to tempt the trout or redfin into eating our flies, bait or lures.

Over the past month the fishing around the region has really warmed up (like the weather) with some excellent reports coming in from Wendouree, Burrumbeet and Tooliorook, just to mention a couple.

Lake Wendourre has certainly been the shining star for the district, as I thought it would be. Anglers from all over the state are coming to fish the lake and many have

And yes, Craig got very wet for his efforts.

The warmer weather also means the water temperature rises. On Wendouree, due to the shallow nature of the lake, this can be the trigger point for fish to either stop biting or start biting. In this case the resident redfin that live in Wendouree have started to show up in numbers.

Jakey Young, who is well tutored by gun angler and dad Ben Young, has been out chasing the redfin over the past month with excellent results. Jakey managed to land a magnificent 49cm redfin on an Ecogear Power shad soft plastic, and Ben snagged a bag of Wendouree’s finest table fish – two big reddies weighing in at 1.7 and 1.8kg (48 and 49cm) while casting Nories Spoon Tail Shads late one afternoon.

I expect the redfin fishing will continue over the next few months with early morning and evenings being the best times as previously mentioned.

The fishing has been excellent for land-based anglers. I have been catching plenty of trout

Craig Coltman prior to releasing this magnificent 67cm brown trout caught while flyfishing Lake Wendouree. Photo courtesy of Jim Baimbridge.

Craig’s Night-Time and Muddler Minnows will bring them undone.

A slow retrieve is my recommendation for best the results. Ballarat Fly Fishers Club President Greg Armstrong flyfishes

Jakey Young nailed this massive 49cm redfin while casting soft plastics with his dad Ben Young. Photo courtesy of Ben Young. over the next month in a lot of the district waters and how exciting that was going to be for myself and a lot of other anglers who love to fish during that period. Game over – bright blue skies and temperatures nudging 30°C for a few weeks have stopped these little insects from hatching during the day and put a sad face on many anglers.

When I mentioned that the dynamics have changed, I meant that we as anglers need to adjust what we do and when we do it. Normally you would be able to head out and go fishing any time of the day and have a chance to catch a fish, but with the onset of really warmer weather so early, we need to adjust our timing to give us the best shot. It’s no good sitting out on Lake Wendouree on a 30°C day with no wind hoping to catch a fish – all you will end up with is sunburn.

When we go fishing, especially around the Ballarat district during the warmer months, it doesn’t matter whether you flyfish, fish bait or cast lures or plastics, early in the mornings and evenings are the prime times for anglers to try their luck at catching fish.

There are reasons for this; insect activity will occur on evenings and mornings and 68

JANUARY 2018

not been disappointed. Local fishing identity Craig Coltman scooped the pool earlier in the month on a overcast stormy day – perfect conditions on Wendouree. Craig landed six

hard-fighting brown and rainbow trout; these fish pull as hard as any trout I have encountered. It’s not often you can say you’re catching and releasing 5lb rainbow trout.

The most successful method for me has been to fish with mudeyes under a bubble float at depths of 6-10ft.

Other anglers have used the same method with gudgeon for bait. Patience is the name of the game at Tooliorook; you can sit in one spot and get nothing or you could get a full bag. Again, I suggest early morning and evenings are the best however on a recent trip the trout were on the bite all day.

The author with a magnificently-conditioned rainbow trout caught from Lake Tooliorook, which he released.

Ollie Pickering landed this lovely rainbow trout while fishing with father Ben and his little brother Harrison on local white bait from Lake Burrumbeet. Photo courtesy of Kane Pickering. trout – a mixture of brown and rainbow trout – while flyfishing out of a drifting boat, Loch style. In Craig’s haul of fish, which were all released, there were two thumpers: one was 60cm and the other 67cm.

2.5kg and brown trout to 3kg.

These fish are being caught on a variety of methods; trolling winged lures like pink Tassie Devils has been bringing some of these brutes undone.

Other anglers have been using PowerBait, mudeyes and local gudgeon for bait.

Lake Toolirook is a very special lake to me and brings back fond memories from a long time ago, as it’s where I caught my first-ever rainbow trout (over 30 years ago) and the best place to fish is still on the jetty in the same spot. I have had a few trips to Toolirook over the past month and caught some absolutely magnificently conditioned

and redfin using mudeyes for bait fished under a bubble float.

For flyfishers it’s the time of year when the trout really turn it on feeding on mudeyes on evening and after dark. Fly patterns like Mrs Simpson,

Wendouree on evenings and after dark during the warmer months, and he recently caught and released an absolute beauty of a brown trout, which measured 67cm.

Lake Burrumbeet is the place to try your luck. The lake has been well stocked over the past couple of years with both rainbow and brown trout. It’s only a matter of time before a few start to get caught.

Kane Pickering and his sons Ollie and Harrison have been out trying their luck on the south shore of Burrumbeet using local whitebait. The boys have been catching some lovely rainbow trout around the 1kg mark. I expect there will be a few more trout caught over the coming months as angler numbers increase at Burrumbeet. The local whitebait, PowerBait and worms would be the best baits. First light and evenings will be the best times to fish Burrumbeet.

Lake Toolirook near Lismore approximately 80km from Ballarat has fired up with some excellent rainbow trout to

Ben Young with a couple of thumping big redfin from Wendouree caught casting Nories Spoon Tail Shads. Photo courtesy of Ben Young.

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The heat is on for cracking summer catches BENDIGO

Roger Miles codhuntertours@bigpond.com

The Bendigo region had experienced a cool start to spring, and with the arrival of summer we have seen a significant change in weather patterns.

The daytime temperatures have increased and we have also been experiencing a lot of warm nights. This is producing a good rise in water temperatures in our local waterways. The productivity in the fishing during spring has been for the most part disappointing and lower than expected. With the warmer weather, we should start to see a good increase in anglers catch rates over the next couple of months.

LAKE EPPALOCK The fishing in Lake Eppalock has been producing a mixed bag over recent weeks, but redfin have been making up the majority of anglers’ captures.

The majority of redfin lately have been caught in deep water. Trolling deep diving hardbody lures like the Custom Crafted Basshunter has been working well.

If a good concentration of redfin is located, then casting soft plastics and working them in depths

of around 10m has been working. Conditions are now changing, however.

The layer of warm water is getting larger by the day.

As this layer of warm water gets greater and goes deeper, a greater concentration of fish will start to move into this warmer water. So anglers need to be aware of this changing trend and be prepared to fish several different depth ranges enabling them to locate a good concentration of fish.

The numbers of golden perch being caught has been low. In recent weeks, anglers trolling mediumsized hardbodied lures have caught the majority of golden perch. A depth range of around 5m has been the most productive. As the water temperature continues to increase, we will start to see more golden perch move into the shallower water, so the number of anglers casting will increase in the next few weeks. There has been also small numbers of Murray cod being caught, with the best reported capture being an 84cm Murray cod, which was caught on a redfin lure.

CAMPASPE RIVER ‘Slow as she goes’ is the best way to describe the fishing in the Campaspe River. Small numbers of golden perch have been caught, but the majority of

Cooper Scoble displays a quality 40cm redfin, which was caught at Lake Eppalock. these golden perch have been caught by anglers walking the banks and casting and retrieving hardbodied lures.

Small numbers of redfin have been caught in the Campaspe River lately, and the most productive lures have been small hardbodied lures and soft plastics.

The water clarity is the best in the section of the Campaspe River from below Lake Eppalock to Barnadown. It is in this section of the river where the

productivity in the fishing has been the best. Water clarity is only average at Elmore and Rochester, but depending on rainfall we should see a steady improvement in water clarity over the next couple of months, and the productivity in the fishing should also start to improve.

CAIRN CURRAN The water clarity is still poor, and unfortunately the large population of European carp in this waterway is not helping the

water clarity. Redfin are making up the majority of captures from anglers, and the best concentrations of redfin are now being caught in shallow water, with depth range between 2-4m productive.

Those anglers targeting the redfin on lures are having the best results casting soft plastics. Bait fishing with worms and yabbies has also been working.

Small numbers of golden perch have also been caught

by anglers fishing off the bank with bait. The numbers of golden perch being caught has been low, but we should see an improvement in the next few weeks as the water temperature increases.

LODDON RIVER The productivity in the Loddon River has been disappointing so far this season. Unfortunately poor water clarity along the majority of the Loddon River system has seen catch rates significantly lower than normal.

We have seen the productivity the highest at two separate sections of the river. Fishing the Loddon River below Cairn Curran and Laanecoorie has been good at times, and both of these sections have fished well when increased flows have been released.

During these periods good concentrations of fish have moved up into these areas and anglers have been landing a mixed bag of species. However when the flows are reduced, the productivity in the fishing has also reduced.

If the water clarity continues to improve slowly, then the productivity will also improve slowly. The increased water temperatures will help and we should see some improvement in the fishing over the next month.

Savour the holiday fishing time WST/STH GIPPS

Steve Haughton steve@habitatcreations.com.au

Fish shouldn’t be the only ones having fun in the water this summer. The school holidays provide the perfect opportunity to take

the family out for a day trip to have some fishing fun in the West Gippsland region.

Surrounding forests provide shade and cool air makes Noojee the ideal place to escape the summer heat.

The trout streams are refreshing and very inviting

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www.codhunter.com.au 70

JANUARY 2018

after a flick of the lure or fly on a hot day. Blue Rock Lake is also a welcoming place on a warm summer’s day.

Bass, redfin and carp provide anglers a lot of fun over the warmer months and can all be targeted from the shoreline, kayak or boat.

Set amongst farmland, native bushland and small country towns, are the peaceful flowing streams of the Latrobe, Toorongo and Loch rivers in the Noojee Valley. Closer to Melbourne, the Tarago River flows from Neerim South down to Labertouche, entering the Bunyip River, and offers some terrific recreational areas for fishing and cooling down.

In Noojee you have a choice of three rivers to fish from but the most familyfriendly spots are dotted along the Latrobe River in town.

There is a large playground (a good backup if the fish aren’t biting), toilets, an undercover rotunda with free BBQs and picnic tables. Upstream from the main picnic area are plenty of smaller picnic tables and car parks close to the water.

Access to the Latrobe River is ideal for children wanting to wet a line. For the big kid at heart, the river presents ideal wading conditions to

maximise fishing ground.

There are three main picnic grounds along the Tarago River downstream of the Tarago Reservoir, which offer terrific stream access. Starting upstream, Rokeby Reserve is a little unknown picnic ground that requires a small walk from the main road. It offers picnic tables alongside the river in an ideal peaceful setting. Fisher Road at Robin Hood Reserve offers a rotunda, picnic tables and a nice, open slow-moving area to have a dip in the river.

Picnic Point off Princes Way at Drouin West offers a large playground, BBQs, picnic tables, toilets and area to swim in the river.

Baiting up a worm on a hook and casting out in a slow-moving pool is the most relaxing form of stream trout fishing. For those keen to burn a bit of energy, hardbody minnow lures with small bibs, soft plastic wrigglers or small spinner blade lures work best cast into moving water. Dry flies to match the hatch are best fished in the evening when the trout are rising to feed. During the day beaded nymphs are the most productive.

Blue Rock Lake fishes well with plenty of good-sized bass about. It’s a very popular

The author with a nice 36cm bass caught and released on a soft plastic cast at the banks and retrieved slowly.

Most fish are amongst the snags so make sure you fish a heavier leader of around 8-12lb and the drag is set well, otherwise you risk losing a few lures. destination now that boat and engine size restrictions have been lifted. The water temperature is spot-on for hungry bass feeding up at the surface. Many anglers have had a lot of success on surface lures and have been catching and releasing many bass in a session. Late afternoon in to the evening is the best time with most fish caught in the shade.

Worms and other live baits such as yabbies have been received well by bass too. Redfin are very active at the moment and some decent-sized fish are being landed. Trout will go quiet

as the water warms up and will likely be caught in the evenings as they feed off the surface. While carp might have a bad name, they are very active at this time of the year and can be a lot of fun for the family.

The native river blackfish’s season has re-opened for the year and offers an alternative target species to trout in the rivers of West and South Gippsland. Feel free to send me a report or photo, particularly if you have any success stories over the school holidays. Please email me any questions too.

The lakes are heating up a little too fast CRATER LAKES

Rod Shepherd

Up until the start of December the sweetwater scene was nothing short of superb. The trout and redfin fishing in all our lakes was absolutely brilliant.

lakes’ maximum depths are around 5m and outside dawn and dusk, this is currently where the fish are to be found.

Deep Lake near Derrinallum and Lake Bolac are even shallower. Lake Bullen Merri has a bad case of blue green algae so that

been Lake Tooliorook near Lismore. Fish approaching 4kg have been reported.

These have all been rainbow trout and at that size they have been in the lake for around three years.

At the same time there are plenty of two-year-old fish weighing in at well

The author’s whopper brown trout up close. then lost a very large reddy, so I can confirm that there is least one in there!

Most boaters are choosing to troll lures across the lake concentrating their

efforts closer to the bank in shallower depths at dawn and dusk then they move out deeper in depths approaching 5m during the day. A variety of lures are

A 54cm Tooliorook brown taken on a Pontoon 21 Crack Jack deep diver that weighed around 2.3kg.

However; there has been a downside. Even though the winter rains topped up our crater lakes, and we had a mild lead in to summer, our lakes are warming up a tad too quick, especially our shallower lakes. This is quite disturbing.

Around the start of December, the water surface temperature on Lake Tooliorook exceeded 22°C and almost 25°C at Elingamite. Both of these

leaves Lake Purrumbete, where a thermocline layer has formed and the fish are holding deep during daylight hours anyway.

It all sounds a bit doom and gloom but recently all the lakes were firing. No doubt it will be a different story come this month, but as they say in the classics, that’s fishing.

One lake that has really produced the goods lately has

over 2kg and not just rainbows, but browns as well. I as well as many others can attest to this. On top of that there is almost an unlimited supply of one-year-old releases that are definitely pan-sized and weighing in at over 800g.

According to many anglers there has been a definite absence of redfin, but when I was there recently I hooked, played boat-side

Another Elingamite rainbow taken on a Damiki Saemi lure trolled deep; this one was kept for the table.

working well here including Loftys Cobras, which are a winged lure, as well as a wide variety of others. I had success trolling Pontoon 21 Crackjacks and medium divers such as Damiki Saemis, which worked an absolute treat for me.

Plenty of anglers are successfully working the bank as well as off the jetties for fish by either casting lures and plastics or static bait fishing.

Lake Elingamite has plenty of yearling trout weighing in over 800g+ and some huge redfin to boot. Again, trolling lures is working here. Concentrating your efforts in the deeper section during the day has become a must-do with the warming water temperatures.

We’re off to a cracking summer start already MELBOURNE METRO

Dylan Brennan

It’s January 2018 already.

The Christmas rush is now over, kids are on school holidays and there’s normally a few days away from work to unwind. If you’re bamboozled with where you could possible go for a fish locally then never fear; even most of the urban lakes receive a top up of feisty rainbow trout to have fun with.

Karkarook Park Lake is one such spot. Situated in Moorabbin, it’s well within reach for a few hours of fishing. The height of summer can see the trout a bit quieter than usual around the edges, so cool mornings and afternoons can be excellent. By far the most productive method in the lake is berleying and bait fishing. The key to the berley mixture here

is to make sure it is fine enough so that the trout can’t actually eat it but they are fired up and hungry.

The best mixture has been a two-part concoction of crushed specialist trout pellets and Stimulate Fine Grit Berley with a small amount of water added to turn the whole lot into a claggy cake batter consistency. This berley can either be flung out using a berley spoon or mixed into a feeder cage for a slow release scent. Fished on fine gauge mosquito style hooks in size 12, PowerBait in various colours and maggots are the best accompaniments for your berley.

Over in the Yarra River the two main targets recently have been Murray cod and trout. Anglers fishing the upper reaches as far as Reefton have been picking off the odd trout in the deeper pools, most of which are resident browns in the 150-300g size.

Small soft plastics that imitate insect nymphs or yabbies have been very effective when slowly twitched back through the depths of the pool, as the insect activity during summer is normally quite high. The middle reaches of the river have produced cod between 35-60cm and they are always partial to a big bunch of scrubworms or medium sized yabbies.

You could also try your luck with either a spinnerbait or surface paddler around dusk.

Sugarloaf Reservoir seems to have flown under the fishing radar for the last couple of months, with golden perch and redfin both fairly active and few reports.

Most of the goldens here have been averaging around 40cm and the redfin are generally around half that size. If you head across to Sugarloaf, be mindful that you don’t use bait, as it is prohibited here, with lure

A typical summer brown trout from the runs of the Yarra. casting generally much more effective anyway.

The most productive lures lately have been small lipless vibration baits fitted with snag-resistant double hooks, and weedless rigged soft plastics that imitate either small yabbies, or

shrimp. Both of these lure styles are sinking and can be prone to snagging up on underwater debris. The key is to keep a tight line and soft hands so that they can be slowly crawled back around timber with minimal losses.

• For any of the latest metro

reports and information, pop into Compleat Angler Dandenong at 241-243 Princes Highway, Dandenong, give us a call on 03 9794 9397 or jump on to the ‘Melbourne Metro Freshwater Fishing’ page on Facebook.

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WHAT’S NEW FISHING C POINT HOOKS VALUE PACK

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Black Magic’s C Point hook is recognised as one of the best performing Japanesemade hooks on the market. Manufactured from high carbon steel, they won’t let you down for strength and they are nickel coated to provide excellent rust resistance.

Their ‘signature’ three cutting points, coupled with a smaller than average barb, means they penetrate with ease.

The popularity of C Point hooks has grown over the last two to three years, and this has encouraged Black Magic to make them available in a new Value Pack – meaning you get more hooks for your dollar. The value packs are available in 4/0 – 10/0 sizes.

With the new season almost upon us, make sure you grab some packets of your favourite hook sizes. www.blackmagictackle.com

PELICAN MOBILE PROTECT

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Pelican has crafted the ultra-rugged Mobile Protect backpack range for when you’re hauling your valuables such as laptops and tablets. These backpacks provide exceptional device protection as well as great utility – and will last a lifetime.

Thanks to a well-thought-out interior and exterior pocket design, the Mobile Protect series can hold it all: water bottles, laptops, tablets and smartphones. The unique loopand-lock zipper pull system is featured on all laptop and media pockets, to ensure your more valuable cargo remains safe and secure.

There’s also plenty of payload space for the regular items you want to carry.

The foundation of Pelican’s Mobile Protect range is the durable 1000D nylon shell that boasts a water resistant coating designed to handle whatever nature throws at it. It features ballistic nylon-coated impact zones and compression-moulded EVA shoulder straps, back panel and impact zones. The polyurethane-coated YKK zippers deliver strength and durability in the face of constant use. There are three models – 35L, 25L and 20L – and all are backed by Pelican’s lifetime guarantee.

Price: SRP$139.95 - $229.95 www.pelicanstore.com.au

GARMIN INREACH

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Garmin’s inReach SE+ and inReach Explorer+ handheld satellite communicators can send and receive text messages with any mobile phone number, email address or another inReach device, for when you’re outside of mobile/radio range.

These devices have an interactive SOS, are impact resistant and have an IPX7 water rating. Their high-sensitivity GPS provides basic navigation, location and tracking data. The inReach Explorer+ also has preloaded DeLorme topographic maps, a digital compass, barometric altimeter and accelerometer.

Both units are compatible with the webbased MapShare portal, which lets you send your trip data to friends and family and exchange messages with them.

Every inReach device has free access to a cloud-powered portal. They can also sync with the free Earthmate smartphone app, which lets you access unlimited maps, aerial imagery and other data. Optional weather updates are available.

The battery lasts from 100 hours to 30 days, depending on the setting. To access the Iridium network and communicate with an inReach SE+ or inReach Explorer+, an active 72

JANUARY 2018

PRODUCT GUIDE

satellite subscription is required. You can opt for a month-to-month plan, which allows you to pay for service only when you need it.

Price: from SRP AU$599, subscription plans from AU$20 per month explore.garmin.com/en-AU/inreach/

TT LURES NEDLOCKZ 4 JIGHEADS

Designed for the US market as a heavy duty jighead for the ‘Ned Rig’, a finesse rig that has blown up in the states, TT Lures NedlockZ jighead was soon being requested by Aussie anglers for applications on home waters.

The flattened head of the NedlockZ jighead combines perfectly with the buoyancy of ZMan’s 10X Tough ElaZtech plastics to create a presentation that is either fleeing when retrieved or rapidly standing up vertically in a defensive pose when paused, much like a crab, shrimp or yabby throwing its claws up to defend itself, and in turn triggering a strike from predatory species.

The NedlockZ also features the ‘head lock’ grub keeper to better secure your soft plastic in place.

Available in two natural colours, black and green pumpkin, the NedlockZ are available in four weights of 1/15oz, 1/10oz 1/6oz and 1/5oz, with five per pack.

Price: RRP of $9.95 www.ttlures.com.au

DEPS SLIDE SWIMMER

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Japanese tackle giant DEPS are world renowned for quality and attention to detail, and the DEPS Slide Swimmer is no exception to this. It’s very easy to see why these cod magnets are now one of the most sought after glide baits in the country!

You simply won’t find anything else like it in the Australian market place. Featuring a superbly crafted ABS plastic body, which is then encased by a soft plastic material, this bait has a more realistic look and feel not matched by any other manufacturer.

The bait also grips well in the mouth when hit by species such as Australian bass and Murray cod. You will get much more time to set the hook and to ensure your catch is well and truly hooked up.

Available in two different sizes (250mm and 115mm) and some great colour patterns, the DEPS Slide Swimmer is truly unique and should feature in any cod angler’s box! www.dogtoothdistribution.com.au

BASSDAY SUGAPEN 120

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The iconic Bassday Sugapen family has been expanded with a new larger 120mm model. It’s perfect for larger estuary fish as well as the offshore species.

The 120 has all the fantastic attributes of the hugely popular 70mm and 95mm models.

This new bigger brother has excellent casting distance, thanks largely to its slimline profile which produces minimal wind resistance to get the lure out further. The Sugapen’s most famous feature has always been its slanted cup face, and the 120 still has that spitting action while being walked, which is a big part of why this lure is so unique and effective.

Coming in six great colours, including some more specialised offshore or barra colours, the Sugapen 120 is a must-have for any keen surface lure angler. For more information visit www.bassday.com.au, or for the latest news and photos check them out on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BassdayAus. Price: SRP $33.95 www.bassday.com.au

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WHAT’S NEW FISHING TICA ZATARA LBXT REELS

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The new TiCA Zatara range of reels is outstanding for the budget conscious angler, boating strength, versatility, durability and smoothness.

The Zatara reels feature a high tensile strength thin body design with an aluminium alloy spool, solid bail arm wire, an intelligent oscillating system, computer-balanced rotor, instant anti-reverse and feature 5 rust resistant bearings.

The Zatara reels offer a smooth drag system with plenty of drag washers and an oversize line roller.

The Zatara reels come in 4 models, a 2000, 3000, 4000 and 5000 so they have most fishing situations covered and look smart in their black and turquoise finish.

If you’re in the market for a new spin reel and are after a smooth but hard-wearing spin reel and don’t want to break the bank, make sure you give TiCA’s Zatara range of spin reels a look. www.jurofishing.com

Available in either a twin spin or a single blade construction, Australian made Obsession Spinnerbaits Mini Baits are a must-have if you are a avid bass, golden perch or redfin angler.

Mini Baits come in 1/8oz, 1/4oz, 3/8oz and 1/2oz sizes and are built on Eagle Claw hooks. Each Mini Bait ait also includes a size 4 Gamakatsu stinger hook. They come in various jighead colours and are matched with either a hot tip or turbo-flared skirt. There are also seven blade colours in the range to further enhance their appeal.

To find out more about Obsession Spinnerbaits you can contact Ray on 0428 462 397, or to find your nearest stockist go to the Obsession Spinnerbaits website. www.obsessionspinnerbaits.com

CHASEBAITS BOBBIN’ FROG

Land-based anglers are loving the new Daiwa Hip Bag, which provides a sturdy, reliable option when it comes to storing essentials around your waist. It is the ideal choice for anyone who’s tired of stuck zippers and ripped seams on their waist bags.

There are two models, and both have a heap of compartments to hold all your essential tackle when you’re wading and hiking. The smaller version measures 14 x 30 x 19cm, and the larger model measures 16 x 34 x 23cm. Both are made from heavyduty denier with a padded back for maximum comfort. Other features include YKK zips, lots of pockets, a plier holder, bottle holder, belt loop and more.

To see the full list of features visit the Daiwa Australia website. For all the latest news, photos, videos and competitions check out the Daiwa Facebook page at www.facebook. com/daiwaaustralia. If you want to see more great catch photos and videos from Daiwa, follow them on Instagram @daiwaaustralia. www.daiwafishing.com.au

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The Chasebaits Bobbin’ Frog is designed to bob up and down and move like a real frog. It has retracting arms and incredibly lifelike legs, presenting an incredibly realistic presentation to the fish.

Made of super strong 10X material, the Bobbin’ Frog is robust, flexible and soft enough to ensure an easy weedless hookup when fishing around lilies and weed beds.

The hole around the hook ensures air can escape from the lure on the strike, making for solid hook sets. Before you cast out again, simply squeeze the lure to remove any water, and start twitching it along the surface.

Alternatively, you can let it sink for a different swimming action.

The Bobbin’ Frog measures 40mm, weighs 11g and has twin custom weedless hooks. It comes in a range of colours, including some natural patterns which match common native frog species. It’s set to be a hit with freshwater anglers chasing bass, barra, cod, trout, mangrove jacks, sooty grunter, jungle perch and more. www.river2sea.com.au

KOOLERGEL ICE EXTENDER 11

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KoolerGel is an ‘ice extender’ – a clever product that makes ice last up to 50% longer.

KoolerGel was scientifically formulated and developed to be mixed with water. To use, you just take a container (such as an empty soft drink bottle), add water, and then add the KoolerGel powder. The powder will turn the water into a gel, and when frozen it will be 25-50% colder than ice, and can last for days. One packet of KoolerGel will make 6 x 2L bottles.

Your frozen containers of KoolerGel can be used to keep your esky cool either with or without ice. You can also keep them in your freezer to improve its overall performance.

KoolerGel is non-toxic, non-hazardous, and environmentally safe. This product is also reusable and refreezable, and can last for years.

To see videos of how to use KoolerGel, check out the KoolerGel Australia website.

The site also has an online store where you can buy both KoolerGel powder and KoolerKube freezer bricks.

Price: SRP $29.95 www.koolergel.com.au

DAIWA HIP BAGS

SQUIDGIES BIO TOUGH RANGE

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For the first time, Squidgies has teamed up with Shimano to develop a synthetic bioplastic that is highly durable, stretchy and more environmentally friendly: the Bio Tough range.

The series is manufactured in Japan and has taken Squidgies’ most reliable lure shapes and redeveloped the design to improve their already great fish catching ability. With the Bio Tough Wriggler (100mm and 120mm), Fish (80mm and 100mm) and Flick Bait (75mm and 100mm) now all featuring in the range, anglers have a range of baits to suit a variety of estuary and freshwater applications.

With six UV enhanced colours in the range, there is a lure to match most conditions and species, whether it be bloodworm for bream or pink glitz for flathead.

These new soft baits combine UV enhancement with responsive actions that work effectively when twitched through the water column but also at rest in low current conditions. When a fish is caught, the Dura Stretch properties ensure the lure remains in top condition and ready to catch another.

Squidgies Bio Tough lures are verified to be 50% biodegradable within the first three years.

So if you happen to snag a lure or get busted off, the environmental impacts are reduced when compared to traditional plastic waste. www.squidgies.com.au

Please email contributions to: nicole@fishingmonthly.com.au JANUARY 2018

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WHAT’S NEW FISHING TIDE APPAREL SUMMER RANGE

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The creative guys at Tide Apparel have just released the second part of their summer range for 2017. This new range features over 20 new products, with everything from trucker hats to longsleeve fishing jerseys.

Earlier this year Tide also teamed up with their good friends from Daiwa Australia and released a collaboration range called The Collab Collection. The whole range has been extremely popular and is selling fast. The Collab Collection includes a longsleeve fishing jersey, head sock, cap, shorts, boardies, spray jacket and T-shirt. All Tide apparel is made from top quality materials to provide the most comfortable fit possible, and the shirts and tees feature a flattering cut that allows you to look your best both on and off the water.

The new ranges are available from selected tackle shops and from the Tide Apparel online store.

Price: SRP $24.99-$89.99 www.tideapparel.com.au

NEW TEMPT COLOURS

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There are two brand new colours in the Tempt Powder Paint range: galaxy and red toad.

Galaxy is made up of an abundance of holographic colours from every angle you look. Set on a base coat of black, it is sure to match a wide variety of colours and conditions.

Red toad is a super realistic natural colour designed to tempt those really fussy bites.

With a gloss olive green base coat and a distinctive red fleck to catch the attention of anything in sight.

Tempt Industries offer a comprehensive range of high quality Powder Paints designed to powder coat your jigheads. The colours have been chosen to best suit Australian conditions, giving you the flexibility to custom match your jighead to your favourite soft plastic colours.

Also available are a range of UV colours, including a clear coat that can be applied over the top of any colour, giving an intense UV glow.

Tempt Powder Paint is easily applied and gives a professional smooth powder coat finish.

It’s available in a 60g net jar or bulk orders on request.

Price: RRP $16.50 www.temptindustries.com.au

MARIA RAPIDO

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One of Costa’s latest models is named after a popular fishing destination: Reefton. With 12 different river systems less than an hour’s drive from town, it’s no wonder New Zealand’s Reefton is worldrenowned for its freshwater fishing.

These size large frames are the perfect companion to explore any body of water.

They will stay put on larger heads under any condition, thanks to their co-moulded temples, Hydrolite nose and temple pads, and cam action spring hinges.

All Costa lenses have 100% UV blockage for maximum protection and 100% polarization to kill reflected glare. Their 580 lens technology effectively blocks the harshest light waves in the visible spectrum, and enhances the portions that help you see more clearly into the water.

Costa’s Bio Resin frames now come available in four new colours, including two new brilliant matte teak finishes. To check out the full range of Costa sunglasses, plus their range of apparel and accessories, visit the Costa Australia website or look them up on Facebook. www.costadelmar.com.au

SAMAKI STARGAZER SHIRT

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Samaki Stargazer shirt brings you one of Australia’s most iconic fish species for the ladies. The barra’s beauty is so striking you’ll want to take a moment to admire each and every scale as she launches from the depths to attack the Samaki Vibelicious. Running off the success of the ladies Dreamcatcher shirt, the Stargazer sports a warped scale design in the colours of the ocean.

The lightweight fabric is perfect for all outdoor elements, protecting you from the harsh sunrays with our UV50+ resistant technology, the soft touch 100% polyester material is comfortable on the body plus has the added feature of being breathable keeping you cool and dry.

Samaki designs are brought to you by Australian anglers who love to design Australian species. Stargazer shirts are available in adult, youth and kids sizes from a size 2 through to a 2XL allowing the whole family to get in on the action and out onto the water.

With an RRP $59.95 in adults and RRP$49.95 in youth and kids. www.samaki.com.au

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DAIWA TD 18 SOL III 15 Our December issue featured an editorial

The Rapido is the latest stickbait from Maria, and its strong wire through body and ribbed construction give it extreme strength.

Maria Rapidos feature a slim profile and a natural swimming action which makes them ideal to use when your target fish are not aggressively chasing poppers or other more aggressive stickbaits like the Maria Loaded.

These great new floating stickbaits are available in three sizes: 130mm, 160mm, 230m. The 130 model weighs 30g and is fitted with ST-66 #1 trebles, the 160 version weighs 50g and has ST-66 #1/0 trebles, and the 230 model weighs100g and is fitted with 230lb oval split rings.

For more information on the Rapido and other models in the range, check out the EJ Todd website or like them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Yamashita.Australia. www.ejtodd.com.au 74

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on the Daiwa TD Sol III with incorrect pricing. The correct pricing is MSRP $479.

In case you missed the December issue, here’s the low-down on this innovative new reel.

Daiwa’s TD Sol III is the first reel to feature the design concept LT or ‘Light Tough’.

The new LT Zaion body is the lightest, most compact and strongest body frame Daiwa has ever produced. It’s composed of carbon resin and long carbon fibres, and far exceeds the strength of magnesium in strength per unit weight. It transmits vibrations efficiently, and is lighter and stronger than conventional reels made with similar resins or graphites.

Other features include Air Rotor, ATD, Magseal, Tough Digigear, aluminium Airspool ABS, Perfect Line Stopper and more. You will feel more connected to lures, detect more bites and fight fish with ease. www.daiwafishing.com.au

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WHAT’S NEW FISHING

Testing the slick CFS PE8 Fish Floss – how sweet it is Wading your way through the multitude of braided fishing lines on the market can be quite a task for any angler.

There are products that cover all price points, and price doesn’t always relate to quality.

When it comes to choosing a braided line, there are a number of questions to ask yourself before you purchase. I will take you through this process while I test Fish Floss PE8 from Custom Fishing Solutions.

Line Diameter Line diameter affects a number of things.

First, and most importantly, it determines how much line you will be able to get on the spool of your reel. If you need to maximise your line capacity, thinner diameters at higher breaking strains can be your friend.

Additionally, if your requirements relate to finesse and minimum visibility, finer diameters allow you to top shot spools rather than fill spools, maximising your dollar spend.

Is fine always your friend? I don’t think so.

Super fine diameters create their own evils.

If you are using fast retrieve ratio spin reels, wind knots are inevitable – and fine lines and wind knots tend to end in disasters.

The same can be said with baitcast gear.

Backlashes happen, and fine lines reduce the ease in which you can untangle what your lack of thumb control has created.

Knot tying is another thing that needs to be considered with fine lines. Many an angler has come unstuck when the knot they have been using for many years just doesn’t work, or gives way at the most inappropriate time.

CFS Fish Floss Although Fish Floss is marketed as one of the world’s finest and thinnest lines, I would not consider it to be in the super thin category. It is certainly fine for an 8 carrier braid though, and this PE8 construction provides extra strength for its diameter. It also provides the line with a bit of weight, and because of this it lays on your spool better and reduces the wind knot and backlash issues. Even when they occur, they tend to be less terminal than the ones you get with really fine, lightweight lines.

Fish Floss is also rounded in construction rather than flat, which reduces the line digging into itself on the spool and helps with castability. It does impact a little on line capacity, but this is far outweighed by the positives that a rounded construction provides, especially if you have not used braid before.

Colour and production quality Colour is and will remain a big debate amongst anglers. I believe colour relates to the fishing application you are going to use it for. Fishing with lures, particularly soft plastics, is about knowing what your lure is doing, and the braid becomes a strike indicator or a visual guide for this. Bait fishing is less about line colour and more about the low stretch and sensitivity that braided lines offer.

I am a firm believer that not all braids are created equal. Production quality can vary from spool to spool, and I have had a couple of cases where a section of a spool of line was brittle to the point where you could break 20lb line between your hands,

but couldn’t 10m further into the spool.

What made it worse was that I discovered it when a metre-plus barramundi was on the end of the line!

CFS Fish Floss is available in hi-vis yellow and green, so you can pick the colour that suits your needs or your preference. The PE fibres are impregnated with a Teflon coating and this has a number of effects, one of which is that it reduces water intrusion into the fibres, which can compromise the colour and the strength of a line. The Teflon also allows the line to run through the rod guides with less friction, to improve castability. I received a spool of each colour to test and there is no question which reel has the hi-vis yellow line on, even after six months of use.

It is difficult to test production quality, however it being a 8 carrier braid gave me the peace of mind that I wasn’t going to

ATC Combat baitcaster – a reel for many occasions a couple of days fishing could mark the end of a inferior reel. However, eight months down the track I have no hesitation in picking up the rod with the Combat on it first up, every time.

The other extreme is the ability to cast light lures and jigs with accuracy and good casting distance. Maroon has large pockets of lily pads and weeded areas, and bass in these areas are best targeted with jigs or surface lures. Accurate casting is a must (hence a baitcast outfit), but too much weight

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Steve Morgan slung XOS plastics on the ATC Combat for a couple of weeks on the ZEREK BARRA Tour and found it his ‘go-to’ combo for the big baits.

ATC is a brand best recognised for its spin reels in recent years, which are made with quality components, look great and don’t break the bank. The Valiant and Valour reels have proven that this brand is a viable alternative to the major brands.

Enter the ATC Combat baitcast reel. It has a larger hand feel than a standard low profile reel, which translates to better line capacity, an 8kg drag system and heavyduty gears. For me this is a crossover reel. It has all the casting attributes any baitcast reel has, as well as the capacity to deal with offshore jigging applications (ATC provide a second handle which is ideal for jigging).

A reel well travelled My ATC Combat has seen a lot of places and many different fishing scenarios. It has ranged from casting seriously big surface lures for Murray cod at Glenlyon Dam to 1/8oz jigs for bass at Maroon Dam. The extremes didn’t stop there either, as I also explored places like Lake Eildon (casting 2oz and 3oz spinnerbaits as well an assortment of hardbody lures), Somerset Dam (casting metal slugs and drone fishing) and back to Maroon casting buzzbaits for bass. Each time the reel performed the task required of it.

Casting heavy spinnerbaits and big surface lures put a huge amount of strain on a reel’s components, to the point where

The ability to cast lures that weigh a little or a lot is a great feature of the ATC Combat reel. will have you fighting the structure instead of the fish. Fortunately, casting light lures is not a problem with the Combat, and the magnetic cast control system has a lot to do with this. With minimal tweaking it assists your casting by reducing the error rate of an uneducated angler’s thumb control. I tested this to the point where I was casting 1/4oz buzzbaits with little or no thumbing of the

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have any problems with the Fish Floss.

Final thoughts Custom Fishing Solutions Fish Floss braid comes in 150m and 300m spools in the two colours I have mentioned. Line classes range from 10lb to 50lb in the 150m spools, and 20lb to 50lb in the 300m spools.

For the fishing I do and the reels I do it with, Fish Floss ticked the right boxes.

The line diameter was fine but not to the point that I had to change the knots I use. Its castability has been what I would expect from a PE8 braid, and in six months of use I have not had any line failures.

My preference is the hi-vis yellow colour, as most of my fishing is with lures, and surprisingly the line colour has held up well.

Check it out at your local tackle store or go to www.jurofishing.com for more details. Peter Jung

TESTED reel. It’s great to spend more time fishing and less time unpicking bird nests.

It survived Steve Morgan One of the best tests we can put a reel through at Fishing Monthly is to give it to Steve Morgan and see if he can break it, and the Zerek BARRA Tour provided a great opportunity to put it through its paces. Steve said that when he tests a reel, there are two main factors that matter the most.

“The first one is, does it survive the experience?” he said. “There’s probably no greater test for a small baitcaster then the rigors of a casting-only BARRA event.

There’s no let up. Every minute the reel is firing out another cast and the baits can be big – up to 25cm long.

“But the other, more subtle test is this: do you find yourself picking up the outfit as a matter of preference? We all have the outfit that becomes the ‘favourite’ for the trip. If you lose a lure, you end up re-rigging it rather than picking up a new outfit and starting there.

“I fished the ATC Combat on a Venom Swimbait rod and for big baits, it was by far the most comfortable rig to deliver the 130250mm soft plastics we were throwing.

“Landing metre-plus barra on the outfit was the final test. Loaded with 48lb Mustad braided line, I wasn’t shy screwing up the drag and trying to bully the fish a little. The drag was smooth, even if my fish fighting technique with the swimbait rod wasn’t!”

Check them out The ATC Combat is available in left and right hand wind, and for under $250 you get a lot for your money. To find out more go to www.wilsonfishing.com.- Peter Jung

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Black Magic

Tough enough for trevally: Black Magic popper Topwater fishing is considered by many to be the most exciting way to catch a giant trevally. For popping or stickbaiting, my lure of choice would be the Black Magic 180mm popper. It’s great for long casts and the amazing thing for me is the cupped face, which creates the noise and bubble trails.

Admittedly, you have to work some poppers hard to make them bloop to call the fish in but with the Black Magic 180mm popper, this is not the case; a firm pull and the lure will do the work for you.

I have enjoyed using this lure for three years and still have my first

one. There are so many teeth holes in it but I still have the confidence to throw it out and know it can handle a big giant trevally.

I’ve changed the hooks on it countless times.

That’s one thing you don’t want – a bent hook. You never know when that next fish will be the fish of a lifetime. There are no second chances with a big giant trevally, and if there is a weakness in your gear, this fish will find it. It’s as simple as forgetting that one hitch on an FG knot through to split rings with fatigue. I take my hat off to these creatures – they are my favourite fish in the ocean.

Three main things I look for when I’m

You can catch some big fish with this lure.

trevally pushing the bait up, all you have to do is put the Black Magic 180 popper to the side of the bait school and get ready to watch that surface strike.

I don’t like to throw the lure directly into the bait school, as it spooks the bait; the trevally end up herding the bait back up instead of hitting your lure. Birds are a good indication of where the bait is, so it’s good to pay attention to your surroundings.

Poppers are a great lure for the splash, but to me they are much more than that, especially the Black Magic 180mm popper.

On every retrieve the noise is what calls the

After three years and a lot of bite marks, the Black Magic 180mm popper still works wonders. searching for giant trevally are current, bait and birds; as all anglers know, no run, no fun. Watch the surface and once you see the commotion on the top of the water from giant

This popper really makes some sound to attract big GTs. You have to work some poppers hard to make them bloop but with the Black Magic 180mm popper it’s just a firm pull and the lure will do the work for you.

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Giant trevally are great fun to catch. Watch the surface and once you see the pipping on the top of the water from giant trevally pushing the bait up, all you have to do is put the Black Magic 180 popper to the side of the bait school and get ready to watch that surface strike.

These lures are great for their casting distance.

fish in, so the harder the retrieval, the further the noise goes to attract a fish in and the odds are a lot better for hooking these beautiful creatures.

I rig my Black Magic 180mm poppers with a Shimano Stella 14000 SW with 80lb YGK Castman down to my leader (100lb Black Magic tough trace) to a solid ring to a size 9 split ring.

That now brings me to the Black Magic 180mm popper. I like to have two different size hooks so there is less chance of fowling up.

I use a size 4 hook on the belly and a size 5 on the rear.

If you would like to follow me and see the different styles of fishing I do, find me on Facebook, twitter @ lollo_eric or instagram @eric.lollo.

– Eric Lollo, Black Magic

Cranka Crab

The Cranka Crab is growing Lure-makers, designers and manufacturers have never been more prolific. Lure fishing is huge and it’s hard to

that we are familiar with.

The idea behind the single hook is that it can be used on larger fish without the issue of small trebles giving way.

It’s fair to say it was a long wait before I could get one of these in my hands and onto the end of my line.

The lure itself comes in

interchangeable parts (like a LEGO kit for fishers).

I believe there are also plans to introduce heavier base plates for these to allow anglers to fish them in deeper and faster running water. They are available in a number of colours, allowing you to easily match the hatch.

When I got my first of these new lures a few months ago, I was excited as a kid on Christmas, but a part of me was a little worried. They looked amazing, but had I hyped myself up too much for it? There are a lot of other lures out there that look quite good too, but they don’t seem to work as well as expected. I felt like I had put a bit of pressure on myself.

Luckily enough we had a good weather forecast and planned a big day off the Gold Coast chasing snapper.

Another successful Crab attached a whopper snapper.

A Cranka Crab up close. This lure had the potential to be the perfect choice for a well-loved target species – snapper. fathom that there is still space for innovation.

It’s easy to think that it’s all been done before.

Of course, that is until we see something out of the ordinary and even something that appears so simple that it makes us ask, ‘why hasn’t this been done before?’

The Cranka Crab, a lure that has been made famous over the past few years, is one of those lures.

It’s an Australian-designed crab imitation that looks and swims like a crab.

Simple on the outside, the Cranka Crab is a very complex lure when you take a closer look. If you have used one, you can understand why they have been made famous, – they just catch a lot of fish!

The most recent addition to the Cranka range is the new 85mm Crab that now features a single hook, totally re-designed from the original treble hook models

Initially announced at the Australian Fishing Trade Show a little over two years ago, it was a lure that had caught my attention, as it had the potential to be the perfect choice for a well-loved target species of mine – snapper!

at 85mm wide and weighs 21g (3/4oz). Given the shape of the lure, the sink rate is a lot slower than your standard lure in that weight range. The Crab is comprised of a number of different components with

The new 85mm Crab now features a single hook that can be used on larger fish without the issue of small trebles giving way.

Cranka spotted crab.

The world is your oyster when it comes to target species on Cranks Crabs. Dan Powell loves a new challenge.

It took all of an hour and I had convinced myself, and my two mates that were out with me, that these crabs rock! So what convinced us? Well we had just boated two monster snapper going 93cm and 94cm!

We were fishing in water 30-40m deep with minimal current and had no trouble sinking the Crabs down. We also found that they were fairly snag resistant with only one lure snagging up, which then came off after I changed the angle and jiggled it off.

The day concluded with one other big hook-up that didn’t go our way; the guess was that it was a big cobia. Cobia are another fish I can see taking a liking to this lure. I’m excited to throw these crabs into other areas I usually fish just to see what else will jump on.

A big mulloway is on the cards next!

Speaking to Steve Steer, the man behind the Cranka brand, reports are coming

in left, right and centre of different fish being caught on these new crabs. Golden trevally, tuskfish and cobia are just a few. The great thing about these lures is that they just look so real that I can’t see fish getting used to them, unless they stop eating crabs altogether! They are a lure that you can tie on and know that it looks like the real deal. If a fish

is there, he’s going to nail it!

These lures are available online from www.crankalures.com.au and from any good tackle store. At $23.95 RRP, they are very well-priced considering what goes into making one of these. I highly recommend giving a Cranka Crab a crack. - Nabeel Issa, Cranka Lures

Bottom feeding golden trevally are suckers for the big crustacean.

JANUARY 2018

77

Just what does it really take to win?

SUNTAG

Stefan Sawynok

Why would anyone watch golf? That was what I was asking the service staff at the Darwin Airport Lounge. Given the expressions on their faces as they politely rebuffed the line of people asking for a change to the cricket, there was plenty of tension in the room – just not the sporting kind.

Nonetheless, sporting tragic that I am, golf was better than nothing. Fishing, test cricket, and golf have one thing in common – most of the time not a lot happens.

fishers in competitions.

The ABT Barra Tour has just finished and given that it’s a short, punchy event with a mix of venues and formats, it’s an excellent dataset to work with to explore that theme.

A TEST OF CHARACTER The Barra Tour is split into four rounds: one at Lake Kinchant, one at Lake Teemburra and two at Lake Proserpine. All the events are night affairs (4pm to midnight) with the last an all-nighter. Round three is held over two days, so effectively there are five fishing days in total – six if you count the final round as two days.

Speaking as the guy who was up until 3am for most of

Team BARRATRAUMA, Peter (left) and Zac (right).

A lack of action provides something of a challenge to commentators who must provide a constant stream of anecdotes to fill in the gaps. On this occasion one of the commentary team remarked of a golfer I had never heard of: “We know he can win with his A-game, but not with his B-game. Until he can win ugly with his B-Game, he won’t go to the next level.”

Hearing that little gem, I rummaged through my bag for my notebook and noted the comment down, knowing I had the topic for my next article. I am very interested in the 1% fishers – the anglers who stand out from the rest as the ones you expect to win. A-B games are one of the elements that I have observed make the difference between the 1% 78

JANUARY 2018

that getting the scores done, there is no doubt in my mind this is an endurance event.

The endurance aspect adds a twist because competitors are fighting the fish and other competitors, and by the end they are fighting themselves.

Best of all, the Barra Tour is a team event and having looked at the results, that is a crucial element. Teams are only as good as the weakest link.

These are the sorts of conditions that will quickly divide the field and are as such perfect for uncovering the 1% fishers.

FISHING AND SPORTS SCIENCE It’s at this point I want to bring in an introduction to sports science, especially as it relates to fishing. Sports science is a huge part of professional sports and falls

into four basic categories: • Physical training regimes – tailored to the role of the individual • Human performance – making sure that the player is mentally peaking at the right time • Sports statistics – the ability to measure an athlete and their progress • Injury management – rehab and prevention.

Elite fishers are like all elite sports people; they work to a plan, have a consistent preparation routine and execute with high skill. They seem to be able to perform miracles and operate in a league of their own. I have talked to enough fishers that have in one way or another ‘cracked the code’ and know that a more systematic approach to improving performance does deliver results.

If there is a barrier to the use of sports science in fishing, it’s prize money.

Sports science is feasible in sports like cricket, AFL and rugby league because there the difference between success and failure can be many millions of dollars of income to a club. When it comes to fishing, the stakes are much lower, and like all amateur sports, much of the focus is on pride.

That said, there is a dawning understanding that there is an audience for fishing and a need to capture that before someone else does. Improving the overall skills of our fishery is part of that, so I am always willing to share things I have learned.

PHYSICAL TRAINING Physical training is a tricky one with fishing.

Some fundamental elements are required to maintain peak concentration, but that doesn’t extend to aerobic activity.

Running, for example, won’t make you a better fisher, but if you enjoy running, don’t stop. Some weight training (without going crazy) and activities that improve core strength, flexibility, balance and fine motor skills are essentials.

The one area that people don’t consider is casting technique. If you’re going to be a competition fisher in a high casting environment, your back, shoulders and

Team FISHTEC/EJ TODD, Craig (left) and Karim (right). arms are going to get a work over and here is where there is a risk of long-term injury. I have spent time with professionals looking at casting technique, and while we need to spend some time with biomechanical modelling, this is the one section of the body all highintensity fishers need to look after.

While there is no official program, I recommend spending a bit of time with a quality personal trainer or sports medical group who understand the exercises that will build up a balanced muscle through the back, shoulders and biceps. The risk comes if you have a casting technique that favours one muscle group, which creates weaknesses in others, leading to injury or arthritis later in life.

I do have exercise regimes that I have worked through with experts; there should be no need for anything other than bodyweight training.

HUMAN PERFORMANCE Human performance

management is focused on efficiency. Think about driving; when a learner first starts driving they are conscious of everything that’s happening, but as skills develop a twentyyear driver can have a journey and not even remember getting in the car. This process is called ‘unconscious competence.’

Elite fishers have repeated the tasks in fishing to the point where they don’t have to think about them. Having analysed the performance of high-end competition fishers with experts in human performance, they can be broken down into five key areas.

Planning – planning is not about merely having a plan of attack. Careful planning means working out all the issues that are likely to come up. There is no room to be focused on anything other than execution during the competition.

Casting – this is a no-brainer and is just muscle memory. The thing about muscle memory is it works for both good and bad

technique. While it’s a given that high-end fishers have proper technique, that is not true for all fishers. All new competition fishers should get input from a casting clinic or other high-end fisher early on and address any issues before building muscle memory. It’s always much harder to fix poor technique than develop the proper form from the start.

Tackle – the interesting thing about tackle is the important element is map building. As fishers spend more time on the water, they build up a larger range of circumstances under which a combination of tackle should be used. Top fishers have a surprisingly narrow map, in that they have worked out the specific combinations that work best for them most often. That is not to say they don’t have tricks up their sleeves, but their best techniques deliver results, so they don’t need too many alternatives past plan B. Emotional state – all high-performance athletes manage their emotional

FIG. 1 FISHTEC/EJ TODD VS BARRATRAUMA VS JACKALL Team Min bag Max bag Average bag Total weight Highest place Lowest place Average place Top-five placements Top-three placements Wins Five-fish bags Zero-fish bags

FISHTEC/EJ TODD 40.690kg 70.470kg 58.944kg 294.720kg 1 4 2.5 4 3 1 5 0

BARRATRAUMA 0kg 86.630kg 46.364kg 231.820kg 1 17 6 3 2 2 3 1

JACKALL 24.840kg 69.810kg 54.814kg 274.070kg 2 6 3.5 3 2 0 5 0

state well. That is not a case of always being neutral, but rather knowing when to lift the intensity. The other trick to managing your emotional state is handling the tough times – being resilient and positive in tackling challenges rather than being reactive.

Secondary strategy – this is the B-game, the ‘win ugly’ method. Simply put, the best fishers can be off their game, or make a bad call, and still make sure that a bad day doesn’t see them dropping down the leaderboard. Fish in the boat is always the first goal.

SPORTS STATISTICS AND FISHING Most of the best fishers know their game well, and most people can read a scoreboard. The thing that is most often missing is a real underlying understanding of how close or far away an individual is and how to get there. Fishing more won’t help if that practice is not focused on fixing up the gaps in performance. This is where digging into data

contention. Here we have a great example from the most recent Barra Tour comparing the team that won with the hottest team on form.

FISHTEC/EJ TODD is the elite combination of Craig Griffiths and Karim DeRidder. As a dynamic duo, they are the well-established team to beat; Craig is the most successful of the current barra tournament fishers in Queensland. I believe Craig is the number one in the country.

BARRATRAUMA are the Mackay local dynamos, Zac Hunt and Peter Laine.

With two first placings, an eye catching maximum bag of 86.63kg, one night totalling 338kg and an overall total of 649.86kg, BARRATRAUMA had the A-Game to compete. To put things into full perspective, they boated 355kg more than FISHTEC/EJ TODD over the course of the events. That is the kind of red-hot form you bet your life on.

for stats.)

Katy Perry might tell you that you are a firework, but over the long haul, you need to make sure you that your fuel doesn’t burn out.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FIRST AND SECOND The two top teams at the event included FISHTEC/ EJ TODD and JACKALL, the combination of Dan Curry and Ash Simms.

Over the course of the tour, only 20kg separated the two, which amounts to one solid fish.

JACKALL managed five-fish bags on every night and had the A-game to match the leaders with only a half kilo separating their maximum bags. Here is where the differences in B-games come to the fore, and the ‘win ugly’ factor comes in.

In the last two events JACKALL marginally outfished FISHTEC/ EJ TODD, meaning they nullified the ‘Griffo effect.’

However, in the first two impoundments, where

Team JACKALL, Dan (left) and Ash (right). is useful. The purpose of developing sports statistics is to accurately model the standards of ‘high performance,’ contextualize individual performance relative to the ‘high performance’ state, and to break down the actual strengths and weaknesses of the competitor and measure progress towards goals.

THE FIVE-FISH BAG There is an endless set of competition formats out there, and regardless there is always a number that is a minimum you need to achieve to be positioned for victory. For multi-day events or multi-event circuits like the Barra Tour, there is a second number – the worst performance that will take you out of

On the other side of the ledger, a no-fish bag in event one and then a one-fish bag on the first night of the two-night third event told on them. When they were hot, they were hot, but their B-Game left them with far too much work to do.

In contrast, the strength of Craig and Karim was the ability to share the load and make sure they always managed a bag. In the first two events, Karim made the running on the scoreboard while in the last two Craig dominated. The ability to get five-fish bags every day ensured they never finished lower than fourth, even though they only managed the biggest bag on one night. (Check out Fig. 1

Craig wasn’t as productive, Dan and Ash failed to match Karim. In this case, their B-game let them down, conceding more than 20kg in the smaller impoundments.

SCIENCE-BASED ADVICE TO BARRATRAUMA AND JACKALL I might point out that neither team likely feels the need to be taking advice from a guy who would be happy to walk off the lake with any fish in the boat.

That said, there are lessons for those that might find themselves in a similar situation. It’s important to remember that this is one event in isolation and from a sports science point of view, ignoring history is a big no-no when providing

advice. That said, where is the fun in saying nothing?

Given there is no history to examine, let us proceed with hypothetical advice, assuming similar results in the recent past. In this case, we have two teams with very different problems.

One team has that X-Factor brilliance while the other is just short of the top.

BARRATRAUMA have X-Factor in spades. They managed to boat more kilograms of fish than FISHTEC/EJTODD and JACKALL combined. In a series like the Barra Tour, there is only one night you can afford to have a bad night on, which is the first night on Lake Proserpine.

A big second evening may recover placings, as BARRATRAUMA managed on their second evening going from near last to fifth.

All the other events are sudden death. It seems tragic that they were done on night one. Of the two, they are the trickiest to advise.

There is a risk of damaging the things that make them unique in the search for consistency. Second, on the performances, it’s not as simple as addressing a specific weakness.

My advice would be to focus on form.

With all practice, it’s important to simulate event conditions. Stop fishing upon completing a five-fish bag, and stay on the water past time to finish off a five-fish bag. Additionally, to spice that up, the team can set specific bag weight targets for additional challenges, which will make good use of that ability to get numbers.

JACKALL have the much better problem to solve. In this case, their small impoundment game is not as potent as their big impoundment game. For JACKALL, the challenge is to find the time to spend on the Mackay impoundments, refining their tactics until they can turn a weakness into a strength.

If they can focus on practice in event conditions (same fishing times, same tides), improving bag sizes in the smaller impoundments, they can target a move into the top three for the first two events.

Assuming they maintain their high standards at Lake Proserpine, they have a real chance of becoming a force.

For all the guys back in the pack, the challenge is simple. Get to the point where the A-game is consistent enough that achieving a five-fish bag becomes second nature. It’s at that point they can start tweaking up their B-game.

Lots of practice in event conditions and paying attention to the results are the only way to go.

A U S T R A L I A

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79

Hobie Series 9 Australian Championship Round The Hobie Kayak Bream Series 9 Australian Championship commenced in Mandurah, Western Australia with the Lowrance pre-fish day on Friday 17 November in hot, dry conditions and a light breeze blowing across Peel Inlet.

The field of 45 qualifying anglers competing in the

mid-afternoon, the majority of anglers had experienced their first taste of the system and offered comments that suggested that there were fish about the canals and bridges. The same areas were plagued with blowfish, but there were bream among them and they were catchable with persistence, patience and a lot

The new 2017 Hobie Kayak Bream Series Australian Champion Paul Burton. tournament came from Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, the ACT, New South Wales and Queensland. From the event launch site, the anglers ventured in different directions across the arena sounding out and throwing lures at the shallow weedy flats, canal systems, two channels and two feeding rivers (the Serpentine and the Murray).

On returning to shore

testing out the waterway.

For many, it was their first experience in a 2017 Hobie Pro Angler 14 with their forward-reverse MirageDrive 180 pedal system.

Local angler Alex Greisdorf from Halls Head in WA, runner-up in the championship, said after pre-fishing, “I had a bit of a fish to get used to the yak. I managed to pull a few fish and lose a few. It was a fun little day on the water, nice and warm. The yak went well, so bring on a big three days.

I won’t go the same direction tomorrow; I’ve got something up my sleeve.

“Today it was about trying out the kayak and pedalling for a few kilometres and just kind of having a fun day. I’ve done well in a couple of WA comps, but unfortunately, those results didn’t come at Mandurah, where I’ve found it a bit tough of late. Maybe she’ll come good for me this weekend.

You’ve got to be in it to win it; anyone’s in with a chance, so

of lost and damaged lures.

Reports pointed to being a difficult competition, but there were large fish about in specific locations; the expressed fear of those that found them was that they would shut down reasonably quickly.

Most had a good day and found it interesting having never fished in WA before, and despite the difficulties of bagging bream, they enjoyed their first day navigating and

we’ll see how I go.”

Day one of the Australian Championship kicked off early the next morning from inside the Mandurah Quay Resort Marina in a 12-15knot north-northwesterly breeze with cloudy skies creating optimal conditions for fishing.

The anglers pedalled out into Peel Inlet with most chancing the hour-long pedal to the mouth of the rivers. Some anglers travelled for nearly an hour further upstream. The 13 anglers headed up Mandurah Channel towards the township and the canal systems just 20 minutes away.

Reports from sceptics of no fish were soon laid to rest when by around 8:30am three of those anglers had already filled their Hobie Livewells with their bag limit of three fish.

At the end of the day one session the leaderboard was extremely close at the top end; Paul Burton (WA) was leading the field with three fish for 2.17kg. He was followed by

Alex Greisdorf with three fish for 2.15kg, just 20g short of Burton, and Sean Higgins (WA) was a close third with

the newer ones. He threw lures in most of them and all of his fish were caught on rock structure close to pylons.

The field of 45 qualifying anglers competing in the tournament came from all over Australia.

From the event launch site, the anglers ventured in different directions across the arena. three for 2.11kg.

Burton who, had been hitting the canals, was concentrating on the older canal in the system rather than

Anglers prepping for a day on the water on day two.

He found a shorter rod more advantageous when fishing around and close to structure.

The average weight of fish caught on day one was 520g but Higgins smashed that mark, netting the monster of the day – at 1.29kg – in the canals and finishing his three fish bag by 8:40am. He caught the fish throwing a ZMan GrubZ in watermelon with a green Pro-Tec painted jighead at a boat hull. That Atomic Big Bream won him $250 and at the finish of the event it turned out to be the biggest fish landed in the tournament.

Massimo Salomone (WA) managed 1.89kg and Simon

TOURNAMENT CALENDAR 2018

FEBRUARY

MARCH APRIL

MAY

3-4 Feb

ANSA Victoria State Championship

www.ansavic.com.au

Portland ansavic@bigpond.com

10-11 Feb

Round 1 Hobie Kayak Bream Series

Bemm River

24 Feb

CVLCSS Round 1

www.cvlcss.com

Lake Eppalock

David Nelson 0418 378 944

3-4 Mar

ANSA Victoria State Championship

www.ansavic.com.au

Glenelg River

ansavic@bigpond.com

24 Mar

CVLCSS Round 2

www.cvlcss.com

Mitchellstown

David Nelson 0418 378 944

7-8 Apr

ANSA Victoria State Championship

www.ansavic.com.au

Port Phillip Heads

ansavic@bigpond.com

5-6 May

Round 4 Hobie Kayak Bream Series

www.hobiefishing.com.au

Metung

5-6 May

ANSA Victoria State Championship

www.ansavic.com.au

Apollo Bay

ansavic@bigpond.com

19 May

CVLCSS Round 3

www.cvlcss.com

Lake Mulwala

David Nelson 0418 378 944

www.hobiefishing.com.au

Add your tournament or competition to this list by emailing jthomas@fishingmonthly.com.au or calling 07 3387 0800 in office hours.

Just supply a date, venue, tournament name and a telephone number and contact name.

80

JANUARY 2018

Morley (NSW) bagged 1.72kg to round out the top five.

There had been some excellent fish caught on the day in various locations across the arena. Many anglers, from the top to the bottom of the field, reported being busted off by some huge fish.

Like Higgins, a lot of other anglers who did well also had their three fish bag limit in their Hobie XL Livewells in the early hours of the session.

Most found it much tougher to attract the bite later in the day.

Some locations were stocked full of squeakers lingering among the blowfish, but the right locations, if you could find them, had fish around the 700g mark.

The rain poured down on day two as anglers headed to the start. Fortunately it cleared

to travel the distance hoping to reap the riches that won Chris Burbidge (Vic) the 2014 Australian Championship in that same location.

At the close of the day, Alex Greisdorf – who concentrated his plan of attack in the Murray River and the small canal system attached to the river – had moved from second to the top of the leaderboard with a 1.79kg bag, accumulating a two-day total of six fish for 3.94kg. Paul Burton dropped to second with his day two bag of 1.73kg and now had six for 3.9kg over two days.

Simon Morley with the biggest bag of the day at 1.83kg moved up to third place with a six-fish 3.55kg total, knocking Sean Higgins into fourth. Higgins finished with

money on day three, day two went to Greg Cooper, and on day one Kevin Boese won the money.

The Australian Team to compete in the 7th Hobie Fishing World Championship in Amal Sweden in May 2018 was then announced.

The top three anglers – Paul Burton, Alex Greisdorf and Sean Higgins. creditable third place; he landed three more fish on day three for 1.59kg and totalled nine black bream over three days for 4.89kg.

After a massive battle for the top spot, second place fell to local Alex Greisdorf who bagged 1.5kg up-river on day

The rain poured down on day two as anglers headed to the start. Fortunately it cleared and excellent conditions appeared just moments later. and excellent conditions appeared just moments later.

After assessing their day one performances, many competitors adjusted their strategies and took off in a different direction to day one.

Others who bagged out, and had deliberately left numbers of large fish in areas they had previously worked, headed back hoping to bag out early on the solid fish they had sighted and left alone.

The field split 50-50 at the turning buoys at the start, with the ‘river risk takers’ once again chancing the long journey to the Serpentine and Murray rivers. At the same time, a much larger number than on day one headed to the canals. The canal group had their lures wet before the ‘river riskies’ had even got a third of the way to their destinations.

It was a huge gamble to head to the rivers, especially for those who go way upstream; getting back on time could be difficult, particularly in a strong headwind. There was a chance of incurring a time penalty or even disqualification if they were to get back after the 3pm deadline.

Nevertheless, many chose

six for 3.30kg after pulling in a 1.19kg bag on the day.

Shane Owens (WA) moved up into fifth on 2.71kg and Luke Rogan (Qld) who had moved into the eighth position won the day two Atomic Big Bream $250 with his 960g bag kicker.

In ideal conditions, tournament leader Alex Greisdorf was among the leaders of the pack that headed straight to the Murray River on the final day of the championship. Third-placed Simon Morley and fifthplaced Shane Owens were also river risk takers. Secondplaced Paul Burton let that group go their way, and turned away to the left and powered straight to the canals for the third day straight – a decision that would ultimately pay huge rewards at the 2pm weigh-in.

Fourth-placed Sean Higgins also chose to continue his assault on the title from the same area he had fished for the previous two days, and where he had caught his 1.29kg fish on day one. He was rarely sighted fishing outside a 300m radius over the three days of the event.

Higgins finished in a

RESULTS Place Angler 1 Paul Burton 2 Alex Greisdorf 3 Sean Higgins 4 Simon Morley 5 Massimo Salomone 6 Joseph Gardner 7 David Shanahan 8 Danny Jobson 9 Shane Owens 10 Glenn Allen

Total Weight (kg) 5.81 5.54 4.89 4.70 3.47 3.27 2.97 2.94 2.71 2.60

Congratulations to Simon Morley, Mark Young, Jack Gammie, Steven Pryke, Richard Benson, Tony Pettie, Glenn Allen, Richard Somerton, Chesney Fung (reserve) and Mitch King (reserve). – Hobie Cat Australia

three giving him nine fish for 5.54kg. He had travelled over 80km by the end of the tournament heading to the Murray each day where he had fished slowly, twitching with a steady retrieve.

Greisdorf took on the black bream of the Murray with a Duff Rods 7’0” 1-5kg rod matched to a Daiwa Ignis 2505 reel with Daiwa Evo 8 8lb PE line and Sunline FC 3lb leader.

His go-to lures were ZMan SwimZ 3” in bloodworm and hologram shad rigged on TT

sportsmanship and dedication to the Hobie Way of Life won him the Anglers Choice Award. He was presented with a trophy and will have his entry fee refunded.

In recognition of his volunteer assistance to his fellow angler’s travel plans to the championship resort, Geoff Alford was presented with the Mortgage Corp Movers and Shakers Award, a power pack and a Hobie jersey. Michael Halliday won a Lowrance Elite-5Ti sounder, the same fish finder mounted on the 2017 Hobie Pro Angler 14 kayaks used in the championship.

Matt Williams from the Getaway Outdoors Group, who were such an integral part of the organisation of the event and Tanya McFarlane, Mandurah Quay Resort were both presented with trophies and jerseys signed by the competing anglers.

Specially designed Hobie trophies were awarded to the three Atomic Big Bream winners, followed by sponsor prize pack and souvenir placard presentations to the tenth to fourth-placed finishers in the championship.

A $100 Donut Dough consolation prize was presented to raise the spirits of an unlucky angler who had caught no legal-sized bream each day.

Tameika Purnell took the

WINNING TACKLE

2018 SUPER SERIES DATES

Round 1.

Round 4.

Feb 24 Feb 25 Mar 24 May 19 May 20 Aug 24-27

Round 5.

Oct 27

Round 6.

Nov 24

Round 2.

Round 3.

Mitchellstown (Major Creek Camping area) Mulwala - Gangster Lures Daily Double (Pre Fish Only) Mulwala (DC on the Lake) INTENTS Lock 9-4 Day Major Trip Mildura - JD Eddy Lures Not for the Faint Hearted Eppalock (Lake Eppalock Holiday Park) REDFIN COMPETITION Lake Eildon (Peppin Point Holiday Park)

** CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS ** November 25, 2018 Top 3 place holders from each round compete for the ‘Champion of Champions’

2018 CENTRAL VIC PRO SERIES DATES Round 1.

May 6 & 7 Mulwala (DC on the Lake)

Round 2.

Dec 8 & 9 Lake Eildon (Fraser National Park)

This Series is for Teams of two only, check out the Central Vic Pro Series group on facebok for more details www.facebook.com/groups/CVLCPS/

Rod: NS Black Hole Amped 6’6″ 1-3kg Reel: Abu Garcia Revo ALX High Speed Line: Sunline Bream Special 3lb Leader: Sunline FC 3lb Lures: Ecogearaqua Bream Prawn

40mm in salt and pepper Lures Hidden Weight 1/16oz and 1/28oz jigheads (for shallow water) and TT Lures HeadlockZ 1/16oz (for deeper water) with stinger hooks.

On day three Paul Burton bagged 1.91kg up in the canals towards the Mandurah township by fishing unweighted slow-sinking lures.

The bag weight took his total to 5.81kg, 270g ahead of secondplaced Griesdorf. After an epic battle, an ecstatic Burton – the first Hobie Fishing Australian Champion from WA – proudly hoisted the perpetual trophy over his head to an ovation from the large crowd of proud Western Australians.

The official tournament dinner took place in the evening.

Chosen by his fellow anglers, Simon Morley’s camaraderie,

Eppalock (Lake Eppalock Holiday Park Fundraiser Mosquito Creek CFA Redfin Comp

Check out our Facebook pages:

• Central VIC Pro Series • Central VIC Lure Casters Super Series For more information contact David Nelson 0418 378 944 roundy@cvlcss.com • www.cvlcss.com

ANSA Victoria

ANSA Victoria is the peak body for Sportfishing in Victoria and encompasses all the needs of the beginner as well as the experienced angler. It represents recreational sportfishers through various affiliated clubs across Victoria.

BENEFITS OF CLUB AFFILIATION: Able to claim IGFA records Able to claim ANSA Australian records Able to claim Victorian records Participate in ANSA State Championships - with Club awards, team awards and individual awards We offer - Line class awards, length only/catch and release

STATE CHAMPIONSHIP EVENTS: Lake Purrumbete - October 21/22 Port Phillip Bay - November 25/26 Portland - February 3/4 Genelg River - March 3/4 Port Phillip Heads - April 7/8 Apollo Bay - May 5/6

www.ansavic.com.au ansavic For more information email ansavic@bigpond.com

JANUARY 2018

81

Franklin crabs for GF win Graham Franklin claimed the biggest title in bream fishing, the Costa BREAM Grand Final, with the Sydney breamer hitting the ground running on day one.

He showed the field a clean pair of heels as he powered to a wire-to-wire victory in the Lake Macquarie event.

Pinpointing his Grand Final winning location and technique in a pre-fish weeks before the final, Franklin was confident about his spot and the fish it had to offer, but he knew success depended on being able to get there first.

“It’s no secret the bridge at Swansea holds good bream but I needed to get

THE FUTURE IS HERE Self-contained Electric Outboards

Graham Franklin and Neil Kelly with their 5.44kg day two limit.

WINNING TACKLE

STORM

R

Visit www.abt.org.au for entry forms. For general enquiries phone ABT on (07) 3387 0888.

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JANUARY 2018

Rod: Samurai Reaction 201, 203 and 302 Reels: Daiwa Certate 2500 and 3500 Line: 10lb Sunline Castaway PE Leader: 6 and 7lb Sunline FC Rock Lures: Cranka Crabs – 65mm (9.5g) in brown, cockle, and olive colours, 50mm (5.9g) in brown, cockle, and olive colours, Jackall Chubby Deep and Shallow in brown suji and ghost gill colours, OSP Bent Minnows, and Megabass Dog X Junior. there before other anglers did, and I needed there to be deep enough water on my shortcut to be able to get there as quick as I could and before anyone else,” explained Franklin.

It all fell into place and a clean run on his chosen stretch of pylons at the bridge awaited him when he arrived at the bridge on day one.

With the tide in the final stages of running in, Franklin positioned himself upriver and back from the pylons and cast a Cranka Crab towards the bridge and the waiting bream.

With the boat positioned in about 7-8m of water Franklin would sink his Cranka towards the bottom, drifting it back with current towards the boat.

“The bream would hold on the bottom, and once the crab was down there and a fish was showing signs of interest, I’d shake the rod tip to make the lure quiver in front of them and entice them to bite,” explained Franklin.

As the incoming tide started to ease and the current started to back off Franklin would position himself closer to the bridge. He fished in under the bridge tight to pylons that he couldn’t reach previously due to the fast flowing water.

“Once we were under the bridge, you’d occasionally see the fish flashing and moving high on the pylons and at times you could cast your crab close to them and get them to take it,” explained Franklin.

While Franklin admits he didn’t catch as many fish as Jamie McKeown who was fishing close by, he got the big bites that he needed to win. He dropped a 5.20kg limit on the scales on day one, showing

that he had the fish to the win the final. Would they last for three days?

Day two showed that day one wasn’t a one-off, with Franklin and his day two partner Neil Kelly bagging out early and bagging out with big fish.

At their heaviest, Franklin ran running ball sinkers on his leader above the crab and sticky weights stuck to the underbelly of the crab.

His approach on day two was the same as the day before – hang back when the tide was strong then move closer and under the bridge as the tide eased. Once the tide started to run out, Franklin would reposition himself on the downriver side of the bridge and fish the back eddy as long as he could until the run-out tide was too strong and made the area unfishable.

“Once the bridge became unfishable we went and fished the flats, biding our time until the end of the session,” explained Franklin.

The Costa BREAM Grand Final victor and his spoils.

“I modified my Cranka Crabs on day two, adding weight to them to get them down when the current was running really hard, then progressively taking the weight off as the current slowed,” explained Franklin.

Each day by the time Franklin left the bridge the work had been done and he could rest easy.

Breaking the 5kg mark again on day two (5.44kg) Franklin headed into the final day with a 2kg lead over Jamie

McKeown, a comfortable, perhaps insurmountable lead, that had Franklin very relaxed for an angler leading the ABT BREAM Grand Final.

Day three started the same way – fish back from the bridge with weighted Cranka Crabs, then move in closer and pair back the weight as the tide eased. Once again Franklin filled his limit early, but as the current eased and he moved in under the bridge, the bite turned on but not to the extent of the first two days.

“The bridge started to show signs of the fishing pressure it had received over the last three days and while we caught fish, we couldn’t get the last big bite to upgrade the smallest fish (32cm) we had in our limit,” explained Franklin.

The last angler to hit the stage, the results were in reality a fait accompli and despite the fact that Mark Healey had weighed in a 6kg limit on the final day, Franklin actually extended his 2kg and his 4.82kg final day saw him claim the Costa BREAM Grand Final by a 2.30kg winning margin.

Fresh off the weigh-in stage Franklin was humbled and perhaps still in shock of what he’d just achieved.

“Having your name on the BREAM Grand Final shield is everything. To know I have my name on it, and achieved it with a lure – the Cranka Crab that has been so good to me since I came out of retirement – is very special,” explained Franklin.

RESULTS – BOATERS Place

Anglers

Fish

Weight (kg)

Payout

1 Graham Franklin 15/15 15.46 Boat prize package 2 Jamie McKeown 15/15 13.16 Lowrance Sounder 3 Mark Healey 15/15 12.74 Diamond Deck 4 Craig Greenaway 15/15 10.31 Diamond Deck 5 Ross Catnnizzaro 15/15 9.75 Diamond Deck 6 Todd Riches 14/15 9.60 7 Anthony Wishey 15/15 9.33 8 Mario Vukic 15/15 9.28 9 Warren Carter 14/15 9.26 10 Charlie Saykao 15/15 9.12 For full result listings, see www.abt.org.au

PRESEN TED BY

McKeown goes heavy and deep for second Jamie McKeown claimed the runner-up title at the Costa BREAM Grand Final with the Queensland bream gun fishing a deep water Cranka Crab at the Swansea Bridge to catch his fish.

McKeown’s approach was the same as event winner Franklin – fish back from the bridge when the tide was its strongest then move in closer to the bridge as the tide eased.

Fishing the Cranka Crab in the heavy 50mm and 65mm models, McKeown used mainly the olive colour, but caught fish on others as well.

“I primarily threw the olive, but on three days my kicker fish fell to a spotted crab colour. On day three, however, I was low on crabs

and pretty much threw every crab colour available and caught fish on them all,” explained McKeown.

Weighting the crab to get it to the bottom in the strong current was key and McKeown was prepared and used an assortment of different weights.

“For most of the session each day I had my crabs weighted with a drop shot sinker connected to the split ring. I had three sizes pre-rigged: a 1/4, 3/8 and 1/2oz. I matched the weight to what was needed depending on how strong the current was flowing. I only had about 20 minutes each day where an unweighted crab could be used,” explained McKeown.

McKeown generally caught his bigger fish as

the tide slowed when the fish ventured away from their hidey holes to feed.

The key, regardless of the current flow and the weight being used, was to stay in touch with the crab to feel the nibbles and when one did come simply wind them on.

The approach paid dividends each day with McKeown catching his limit in the first 30-45 minutes.

“The fish were super active each day there was one period on day two when I caught three fish in three casts. It was a bridge that delivered plenty for the Grand Final, and big credit to Franko for getting the biggest fish off it. He’s a very deserving winner, I couldn’t be happier for him,” concluded Jamie.

Tani Konsul and Jamie McKeown were all smiles with their Swansea Bridge bream.

Kelly bridges his way to victory Southern NSW breamer Neil Kelly claimed his biggest tournament win to date with the quietlyspoken angler fishing with Chris Gates on day one and catching a 5/5, 2.94kg limit to kickstart his Costa BREAM Grand Final.

Sitting in equal 19th place at the end of the day, it was his day two pairing with Graham Franklin and their Swansea Bridge Cranka Crab assault that would spearhead his charge for the Grand Final.

Fishing the upriver side of the bridge on the

incoming tide, Kelly’s approach involved casting his Cranka Crab towards the bridge then letting it sink down and drift back to the boat with the flooding tide.

Kelly would feel and watch his rod tip for the bites, twitching the rod tip then allowing the bream to take

Event winners Graham Franklin and Neil Kelly stood proudly with their prize boat packages.

the crab before loading up on a hooked fish.

The approach paid dividends with Kelly boating a string of fish for the session and together with Franklin weighing a 5.44kg limit for the session.

The heaviest limit for the tournament so far, Kelly’s XOS bag catapulted him into 1st place.

With the leading boater paired with the leading non-boater on day three, Kelly once again found himself standing shoulderto-shoulder with Franklin at the Swansea Bridge on the final day.

It was a crab attack once again with Kelly casting up-current, landing his Cranka tight to the bridge then drifting it back to the boat and into the path and the mouth of waiting bream. The pair caught fish upstream of the bridge as the tide pushed in, then as the tide eased and current backed off on the tide change the pair moved closer and in under the bridge to catch their fish.

The moment a new champ was crowned.

While Kelly and Franklin caught plenty of fish for the session, it was the smallest fish in their well at 32cm that they couldn’t upgrade that held them back from weighing another 5kg bag.

Weighing in a 5/5, 4.82kg limit for the session, Kelly finished the tournament with a total of 13.20kg for his 15 fish – an impressive 880g average that delivered him a 550g win over the strong finishing Louie Wardini who weighed in a 5/5, 6.05kg

Cranka Crab

limit on the final day.

For the win Kelly collected himself a Bluefin Boats Estuary Pro hull/ Mercury 4-stroke outboard, Garmin sounder, Power-Pole Micro Anchor and Marine Dynamics tournament boat package.

The Costa BREAM Grand Final at Lake Macquarie wraps up the ABT tournament calendar for 2017; visit www.abt.org. au to check out the calendars and events for 2018. – ABT

Bridge

RESULTS – NON-BOATERS Place

Anglers

Fish

Weight (kg)

Payout

1 Neil Kelly 15/15 13.20 Boat prize package 2 Louie Wardini 15/15 12.65 Diamond Deck 3 Russell Winters 15/15 12.52 Diamond Deck 4 Simon Johnson 15/15 10.18 Diamond Deck 5 Jonathan Thompson 15/15 9.48 Diamond Deck 6 Scott Wilson 15/15 9.45 7 James Morgan 15/15 9.42 8 Anthony Hassarati 15/15 9.18 9 Brenton Madaus 13/15 9.11 10 Justin Reeves 14/15 8.99 For full result listings, see www.abt.org.au

Current

Shake rod tip

JANUARY 2018

83

Team Minn-Kota prove to be the best of the best The end of November in Victoria for Bream Tournament anglers means warmer weather, feeding bream, surface action and the 2017 Atomic Vic Bream Classic Series Grand Final. The top 50 teams from the five qualifying rounds throughout the year across Victoria converged on Mallacoota Inlet to experience one of the best bream bites in recent memory.

For Team Minn-Kota it was business as usual for Cameron Whittam and Warren Carter. No matter the conditions, locations, or time of year, they have a plan and successfully execute it, and this weekend was no different.

In one of the hottest November weekends on record, anglers awoke on the Saturday to clear skies, zero wind and a temperature of about 25 degrees by 6am. With these conditions and 50 of the best bream teams entered for the Grand Final, it was going to be a tough and very competitive tournament for all. For Team Minn-Kota’s Cameron

The top three teams: Team Minn-Kota’s Warren Carter and Cameron Whittam, Team Fishin.com.au’s Mike Reber and Stuart Curruthers and Team Spot On Mt Gambier’s Bodhi Pannenburg and Kobi Rothall.

Whittam and Warren Carter, it was time to execute their shallow water plan that they discovered on pre-fish day.

“On pre-fish we checked out many of our old haunts, both deep and shallow, but given our preference for shallow water we spent more time looking there. We found more fish than we had seen on the edges for years; only problem was that we didn’t see many fish over a kilo.

Our thoughts were that two bags around 3.5kg would be very competitive,” Cam said.

Cam was using a quality combination of custom

Some of the quality fish that handed Team Minn-Kota’s Cameron Whittam and Warren Carter the Grand Final victory along with the Maria Lures Best Bag for the weekend.

Duffrods rods, Daiwa Certate and Luvias reels spooled with 12lb Sunlines Castaway braid and a 3lb Sunline FC Rock bream special fluorocarbon leader.

Warren used Edges Rods with Shimano Stella reels spooled with 14lb Varivas braid and 3lb Varivas Absolute fluorocarbon leader. They set about filling their well very early on both days of the tournament.

Cam detailed how they took out the 2017 Atomic Bream Classic Grand Final, “The lead up to the event had seen abnormally warm weather combined with the natural closure of the entrance to the system, which saw water temperatures between 23.5-25°C. Our thoughts were that the combination of these two factors had seen a huge influx of fish on to the lake margins with literally thousands of fish hiding under bank-side tea trees.

We would drive along an edge and anywhere between 10 and a hundred fish would pile out from under the trees as we passed.

“The problem with these fish is that given they are under the trees, presenting a lure to them is very difficult.

Being fairly experienced with the system, we were

able to put a plan together to fish the bottom lake edges where we saw the largest fish on pre-fish day.

“We fished the shallow margins of the bottom lake and had 3kg in the well by

Peter Stephens from Team Prostrike displaying the 1.19kg JML Anglers Alliance Big Bream.

7.30 each day. This enabled us to cycle through one of about five banks that we had pencilled in after pre-fish.

Both days were fairly prolific with approximately 35 legal fish on day one and around 40-50 on day two; the fishing was just red hot.

“Double hook-ups and many fish intent on suicide

2017

84

JANUARY 2018

presented themselves on both days, particularly day two. We caught quite a few fish within 4-5m of the electric motor and the bonus was that we caught most fish by sight fishing them.

“We used many lures for the weekend but the standouts were Smith Jade hardbodies and lightly weighted grub-style lures pitched to either cruising or feeding fish.”

On day one of competition Team MinnKota weighed in 5/5 bream for 3.41kg, which had them sitting in 4th place with some quality competition above them. Only 600g separating 2nd and 20th place after day one; it had created an incredible setting for a final day clash of the top 20 with

all places still up for grabs.

Day two brought about better weather conditions for targeting black bream with extra cloud cover and a stronger breeze.

With these conditions and a tight competition, a big bag overtaking the field for the victory was a huge possibility. For Team Minn-

Kota, they executed the same strategy as day one and were able to find a better quality of fish.

As they placed their bag on the scales it showed 5/5 bream for 4.40kg, which was the Maria Lures Best Bag for the weekend. It also rocketed them to the top spot and handed them the 2017 Atomic Vic Bream Classic Series Grand Final. Coming from 7th place to take 2nd place were Team Fishin. com.au’s Mike Reber and Stuart Curruthers with 10/10 bream for 7.10kg.

Coming from 5th place to take 3rd was Team Spot On Mt Gambier’s Bodhi Pannenburg and Kobi Rothall with 10/10 bream for 6.92kg. The JML Anglers Alliance Big Bream went to Team Prostrikes Peter Stephen and Bradley Baade with a 1.19kg bream and with a bag of 5/5 bream of 4.18kg they moved 22 positions up the leaderboard to also take out the Hurricane Monster Movers Prize.

Now we turn to the newly sponsored 2018 NS Rods Sunline Bream Classic Series with round one at Metung on 2-3 February.

Cameron Whittam would like to thank Duffrods, EJ Todd and Cranka Lures for their support. Warren would like to thank Brick Pig Business Coaching, Edge Rods and Australian Angling for Smith lures and Varivas product. The boys would both like to thank BLA for their support with Humminbird and Minn Kota products; in their opinions these are the best depth sounders and electric motors on the market. Last but not least, they thank Doug Phillips at Tonic eyewear who assisted them with polaroid fishing glasses. – Vic Bream Classics

JANUARY 2018

85

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This section in V&TFM Fishing Monthly consolidates the trades and services in your area that are relevant to your fishing and boating. Whether you’re a local looking for more options or a travelling angler fishing around the state, this guide will direct you to reputable businesses in the area you’re searching.

86

JANUARY 2018

HOLIDAY ACCOMMODATION

Geelong Charters & Fishing Trips, Geelong (03) 5275 7107 Katrina Louise Charters, Cheltenham 0402 828 140 Kestrel Charters, Queenscliff (03) 5258 1783

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Big Red Fishing Charters, Queenscliff 1800 805 587

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STEREOACTIVE Waterproof Floating Stereo

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If you have any other trades or services that you would like to see in this section please don’t hesitate to give us a call Email: pjung@fishingmonthly.com.au

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Advertisers wanting to be involved in this directory can call (07) 3387 0800 or email pjung@fishingmonthly.com.au JANUARY 2018

87

FUN PAGE AND COMPETITIONS WEIRD AND WONDERFUL SEA CREATURES

FROGFISH YELLOW BOXFISH CROCODILE FISH ALARM JELLYFISH POISONOUS SEA SLUG ANGEL SHARK PISTOL SHRIMP COFFINFISH PACU FISH

DUMBO OCTOPUS BUTTERFLYFISH MONKFISH SLIMEHEAD HOGFISH ORANDA GOLDFISH JAWFISH OBESE DRAGONFISH

Valley Hill Rocketeer Slicer

Name: Address:

P/Code:

The first correct entry at the end of each month will win the prize pack.

SEND ENTRIES TO: VIC Find-a-word Competition, PO box 3172, Loganholme Qld 4129

VIC JAN 2018

Phone (day):

BARRA COUNTRY by Brett Currie

The Rocketeer Slicer from Japanese tackle giant Valley Hill is a real feat of Japanese design and engineering.

The Rocketeer Slicer has a unique metal plate at the nose of the jig, which lets you secure line in two places, and ensures a superior swimming action even through debris. In addition, its tail system lets you cast more effectively into the wind.

The Rocketeer Slicer is available in two sizes (3.0 and 3.5) and 13 different colour combinations. It has proven to be highly effective on Australian squid. www.dogtoothdistribution.com.au

SPOT THE

10 DIFFERENCES

GEORGE & NEV by Michael Hardy

ORIGINAL

FIND-A-WORD

Congratulations to Darren Hill from Cranbourne, who was last month’s winner of the Find-a-Word Competition!

Monthly winners receive a sponsor prize.

Prize delivery can take 8 weeks. – V&TFM

SUBSCRIBER PRIZE

The subscriber prize winner for November is M Van Emmerik of South Launceston, who won a Gunnel Rod valued at $370.

All subscribers are entered in the monthly subscriber prize draws. Prize delivery takes up to 8 weeks. – V&TFM

of Daylesford, J McNamara of Goornong, A Lattant of Keilor Downs, G Whinney of St Albans, J Saunderson of Chelsea, R Carlile of Cranbourne, B Shelton of Romsey, A Pollard of Darley, J Killian of Paynesville, J Collier of Smythes Creek, W Tippet of Nurrabiel, R Coombes of Vermont, F Saunders of Rosanna, E Forrester of Merricks, B Stokes of Morwell, L Gruar of Portland, G Toogood of Upwey, J Randall of Torquay, P Musgrove of Casterton, M Meyer

of Dartmouth, J Jenner of Drummond.

Prize delivery takes up to 8 weeks. – V&TFM The Major prize winners for the Coastal Black Logo competition are: 1st T Ryan of Wagga Wagga, who won $1000 Rapala VMC prizes; 2nd R Morgan of Dingley Village, who won $500 Rapala VMC prizes; 3rd B Halberstater of Yeppoon, who won $200 Rapala VMC prizes.

Prize delivery takes up to 8 weeks.– V&TFM

LAST MONTH’S ANSWERS

FIND THE COASTAL BLACK LOGO

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JANUARY 2018

GUESS THE FISH?

This month’s Guess the Fish Answer: Coral Trout

The answers to Find the Black Coastal Logo for November were: 13, 14, 20, 23, 28, 40, 44, 47, 51, 58, 62, 69, 78, 84, 88, 94. – V&TFM The Find the Coastal Black prize winners for November were: J Barns of Euroa, G Smith of Stawell, L Murray of Sale, C Kelly of Cranbourne, T Burge of Traralgon, G Ball of Kyabram, T Mathieson of Patterson Lakes, D Parry of Stawell, J Drummond of Moe, N Beck of Newington, K Hartley of Coburg North, B Whyte of Myers Flat, H O’Brien of Wangaratta, H Siesmaa of Ferntree Gully, C Smith of Traralgon, I Wild of St Arnaud, N Sanders of Irymple, R Hartmann of Narrawong, R Eames of Essendon, A Darker

Answer:

boats & kayaks

In the skipper’s seat 90 Kayak holiday ideas Corey Gallaghar looks at some holiday destinations for the keen kayak angler!

Inside story...

Pioneer are constantly pushing the envelope in design and construction methods. This ensures that they deliver the absolute toughest, eye-catching products to satisfy the requirements of anglers and their families for many years to come.

Made for...

Pioneer Boats are exceptional products that are built for anglers, their families and their friends to enjoy. Pioneers are built by people who enjoy boating and fishing.

This month...

Peter Jung catches up with Andrew from Melbourne Marine Centre to give the Pioneer Cape Island 186 a run on Blue Rock Lake. Check out the review on page 98!

92 Entry level yakking Starlo outlines some things you’ll need to know before you get into fishing from a kayak.

94 Boat backing basics

Backing your trailer boat is a skill every boat owner should know, and Wayne Kampe provides a few tips.

96 Formosa Tomahawk

It’s been a while, but Wayne Kampe finally boards another Formosa rig for testing, but will he like this one?

100 Horizon Searunner 485 with Yamaha 90hp Editor Steve Morgan puts this serious offshore rig through its paces out from the Tweed Bar!

Top holiday destinations for summer kayaking MELBOURNE

Corey Gallagher

As the school holidays are in full swing and many families are looking to get away for that much-needed break from the daily grind, January is the perfect month to be planning a holiday.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a holiday without the kayak strapped to the roof to sneak in a few sessions on the water.

Whether it be a couple of weeks away camping with the family at the majestic Mallacoota or a quick day trip to Blue Rock Lake on your RDO to make the most of the summer surface bite, the options for Victorians looking to get away this summer and catch a fish or two are plentiful.

This month I will explore five of the best holiday destinations for kayak anglers this summer.

MARLO Located in the East Gippsland region, Marlo has long been a favourite amongst holidaymakers looking to mix some fishing in with their time away. Over four and a half hours’ drive from Melbourne’s CBD, it’s a great spot to spend a week or two camping with friends or family.

The iconic Snowy River dominates the landscape at Marlo and when combined with the nearby Broadribb River the angling options are extensive to say the least.

In summer the estuary can be a great place to cool off with some excellent beaches downstream of the town boat ramp; they also double as excellent launch sites with great access to some of the best fishing only a short paddle away.

Bream are by far the

pack plenty of topwater lures and hit the shallows for a memorable time away.

MURRAY RIVER The recovery of the mighty Murray cod in recent years has seen a huge resurgence in anglers chasing cod in the many rivers located along the state’s northern borders, particularly the Murray River itself. Bathed in a seemingly endless supply of sunshine, the area offers holidaymakers plenty of options including some of the best cod fishing in

freshwater predator.

SURF COAST Who doesn’t love a beachside holiday? Victoria’s Surf Coast has long been a crowd favourite for Victorian families looking to spend some time in the sun and surf over the holiday period, and why not pack the yak next time you’re down that way?

Littered along the coast are a number of small estuaries that are perfectly suited to kayaks with the systems often far too small to allow boats

Joel Bramble with an excellent example of a Murray cod taken from his Hobie Outback in the Murray River. Photo courtesy of Joel Bramble.

Darren Weda exploring the vast Mallacoota Inlet in his Hobie Outback during the warmer months.

better suited to those heading away for a week or two.

The estuary itself is extensive and home to large schools of black bream and trophy-sized flathead, among others. Kayak anglers can

for families looking for a time away in the west.

Warrnambool and nearby towns such as Port Fairy are perfectly suited to families looking to mix in some fishing with their beachside holiday.

the state.

From Mildura to Wodonga and beyond, there are any number of hotels, caravan parks or campsites for kayak anglers to base themselves while enjoying the vast array of activities the region has to offer. In fishing terms the two standout species are of course the Murray cod and golden perch, and both are available in good numbers in the Murray River.

Casting and trolling artificial lures is always the best way to target these ambush predators, with

Marlo is a great holiday destination in the state’s East Gippsland region – prime black bream territory.

Family favourites, Warrnambool and the Hopkins River are excellent locations to catch a bream or perch while holidaying down the coast. most common catch. Other species including estuary perch, trevally, luderick and flathead are also high on many kayak anglers hit list when holidaying in Marlo. Marlo is home to extensive flats and offer some of the state’s best shallow water bream fishing.

Over summer make sure you 90

JANUARY 2018

topwater lures a favourite.

Watching a huge Murray cod explode on your topwater offering from the comfort of your kayak is a sight hard to top in any form of fishing – it makes a holiday in this area one of the top options for kayak anglers looking to take on Australia’s iconic

to launch.

Surprisingly, these small systems are home to good numbers of black bream and estuary perch with the occasional mulloway often turning up. Estuaries such as Spring Creek, Anglesea River and the Erskine River are all excellent options.

They are also a great place for children to experience the joys of kayak angling, due to their small size and protected waters.

MALLACOOTA Finding that perfect location to take the family during school holidays can be difficult, but if it’s a great family location set amongst one of the premier estuaries in the country then Mallacoota Inlet is the place for you. At almost six hours’ drive from Melbourne’s city centre, it is

maximise their time on the water by launching at any number of locations around the estuary, such as Gipsy Point, Karbeethong foreshore or the town ramp.

Along with the Inlet itself, with a short drive south of Mallacoota kayak anglers can hunt for estuary perch, black bream and flathead in the pristine Betka River, a small, shallow river only a few minutes’ drive from the main street of Mallacoota.

Holiday accommodation and facilities are excellent in the region with any number of caravan parks and hotels available, however it does get busy during school holidays, so booking ahead is recommended.

HOPKINS RIVER Victoria’s Shipwreck Coast is an excellent location

The Hopkins River has been a favourite estuary system of mine ever since I began targeting bream.

A relatively small system full of natural rock walls, reed edges, snags and flats, the Hopkins has plenty to offer kayak anglers. A number of launch locations along the river allow anglers quick and easy access to their favourite spots. The big three Victorian estuary species are on offer including trophy-size black bream, good numbers of estuary perch and mulloway that often enter the system when conditions are right. The township itself has plenty to offer holidaymakers with excellent caravan parks and hotel options.

CONCLUSION Holidaying with my family is something I will always look forward to. Hitching up the van, strapping the yak on the roof racks and hitting the road for a quick weekend down the coast or a week up at the river will always be made that much better with a bit of fishing thrown in, particularly when the kids can get involved.

Next time you’re heading away on a break, make sure you pack the yak and get on the water.

Owen and Corey Gallagher enjoying some time on the water during the holidays at a Surf Coast estuary.

WHAT’S NEW BOATING NAVICO EXPANDS TRACK OFFERINGS

1

TROJAN BEARING KITS

4

Navico, parent company to leading marine electronics brands Lowrance, Simrad, and B&G, has expanded the range of reporting and connectivity options offered by its Track telemetry system, with the all-new Track HD. Historically Track has provided instant access to vessel location and status via a mobile app and online dashboard.

Now with Track HD, users can take remote control of lights, pumps, HVAC, or other systems. Track HD also enables cloud storage for key vessel documents, and TripReplay to capture and share details of previous trips.

With multiple connectivity options including WiFi and cellular, with satellite coming soon, consumers can choose the option that best meets their needs. These new plans are available now and existing customers can upgrade their subscriptions online.

To learn more about the Track telemetry system, please contact 1300 NAVICO or visit track.gofreemarine.com. www.navico.com

A common cause of bearing failure is foreign matter in the bearing, and Trojan Parallel Bearing Kits come with high-quality seals to limit the entry of unwanted particles. The precision ground matched cones and bearings provide excellent rolling resistance and minimal wear, giving you longer life in your bearings. They are the perfect addition to any trailer breakdown kit.

The first kit is the Parallel Standard Bearing and Seal Kit. It includes high-quality oil seals to keep dust and excess foreign matter at bay.

Perfect for use on caravans, camper trailers and work trailers, the bearings are rated to 1750kg per pair.

The second kit is the Parallel Marine Bearings and Seal Kit. It includes triple-lipped marine quality seals with a stainless steel wear plate, perfect for ocean dips. It’s ideal for boat trailers, off-road campers and where water resistance is necessary. For stockist enquiries visit the Trojan Parts website. www.trojanparts.com.au

NEW MERCURY INNOVATIONS

WHITTLEY ONLINE DEALERSHIP

2

Whittley Marine has launched their new online dealership feature on the Whittley Marine website. It gives potential buyers a unique in-dealership experience on their screen, to make the new boat buying experience as easy and un-confrontational as possible.

New information tools include a virtual tour (you’ll feel like you’re walking around the boat via clicking a mouse or pushing a finger to the screen); and Build A Boat (lets you choose factory options and see a MRRP price, to customize your package).

You can also live chat with Whittley Factory staff, apply for finance and see what the weekly payments would be; check which models are in stock at your local dealer, request a brochure, and access a detailed list of exactly what comes in the standard boat package for each model.

To take a virtual walk around the latest Whittley boats, just select a model on the website and click ‘Build A Boat’ to get started. www.whittleymarinegroup.com.au

GARMIN STRIKER PLUS

The Lowrance HOOK2 series of fishfinders/ chartplotters deliver superior ease of use and affordability. They feature Lowrance’s new Autotuning sonar, which corrects sonar settings for the clearest underwater view so you spend less time manually adjusting sonar settings. Most models also feature full navigational capability and pre-loaded, high-detail mapping.

New wide-angle Broadband Sounder and CHIRP sonar providing more sonar coverage than most other fishfinders. SideScan and DownScan Imaging complete the HOOK2 sonar arsenal on select models, delivering lifelike images of fishing-holding structure to the side and below.

There are three easy-to-install, value-priced sonar categories: 3-in-1 sonar with High CHIRP, SideScan and DownScan Imaging; 2-in-1 sonar with High CHIRP and DownScan Imaging; and proven Broadband Sounder.

There are 12”, 9”, 7”, 5” and 4” display sizes, and most models will also feature full navigational capability and pre-loaded C-Map cartography. HOOK2 fishfinder-only models – with the exception of the sonar-only HOOK2 4x Bullet – include a built-in GPS plotter (without charts).

Price: from $129-$2149 www.lowrance.com/en-au

3

Garmin’s new Striker Plus fishfinders are the perfect entry-level solution for anglers who want superior sonar plus the ability to create and store their own contour maps.

Like the first-gen Striker series, the Striker Plus offers built-in CHIRP traditional sonar and CHIRP ClearVü and SideVü scanning sonar technology. And thanks to the built-in Quickdraw Contours mapping software, it’s easy to create and store up to 2 million acres of maps with 1ft contours, which can be viewed in real-time.

The Plus series comes with a built-in high-sensitivity GPS receiver, and users can also take advantage of the free Garmin ActiveCaptain mobile app that connects compatible mobile devices with a Striker Plus unit.

The Plus series also adds 4.3” and 9” models to the existing line-up, all with bright, sunlight readable displays. With a rugged design, the Striker Plus series is compatible with a wide-range of optional Garmin scanning transducers.

Price: SRP $249-$899

1

2

5

Mercury Marine has introduced an ultralightweight and reliable 15 and 20hp EFI FourStroke platform. Features include battery-free EFI for fast, reliable starting, instant throttle response and better overall performance.

The new 15 and 20hp EFI is designed with ease of maintenance in mind. Its clean, no-drip, no-spill oil drain system, fresh water flushing attachment, and water separating fuel filter makes this one of the most user-friendly outboards available.

At 45kg, this platform is also among the lightest engines of its class, improving acceleration, top speed and handling. On top of all that, it delivers exceptional fuel economy.

Mercury has also launched an innovative new Multi-Function Tiller Handle, which offers true ambidextrous operation. This new centremounted tiller is adjustable horizontally – up to 18° to either port or starboard. The throttle grip rotation is reversible to provide an intuitive boating experience, regardless of driving-hand preference. The tiller handle is also adjustable vertically, and there’s a tilt lock feature that locks the tiller angle at 73°. www.mercurymarine.com.au

LOWRANCE HOOK2 SERIES

PRODUCT GUIDE

3 4

6

5 6

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JANUARY 2018

91

Getting into kayak fishing NSW STH COAST

Steve Starling www.starlofishing.com

Kayak fishing is booming and more and more anglers are getting into it each year. Here are some tips if you’re considering that path yourself.

used in these lightweight boats developed rapidly.

Aluminium and then fiberglass replaced canvas and timber strips, before being largely superseded themselves by modern plastic polymers, carbon composites, Kevlar and various other space-age materials.

shrouded with a canvas or rubberized apron. In more recent decades, sit-on-top kayaks have become very popular, especially amongst anglers. As their name implies, the occupants sit on these vessels, which typically feature hulls with sealed, watertight chambers.

Sit-on-top ‘yaks offer a

Just because you’re in a kayak, it doesn’t mean you have to give up the good things!

Many keen ‘yak fishers run very sophisticated electronics on their little boats.

Kayak fishing tournaments are becoming increasingly popular. Here, competitors mill and chat before the beginning of a round.

The watercraft known as kayaks originated in Arctic regions where narrow, double-ended vessels made from animal hides stretched over whalebone or timber frames have been used as hunting platforms for well over 4000 years.

Recreational anglers took a little longer to realize the usefulness of kayaks, but these paddlepowered craft were certainly being employed as sport fishing tools by the early 20th century. Through the second half of that century, the designs and materials

Dedicated fishing kayaks came a little later. They were typically wider and more stable than traditional kayaks, and were often fitted with rod holders and other accessories. Today, the most advanced fishing ‘yaks are extremely sophisticated, and many users trick-up their boats with all manner of on-board electronics and other goodies.

Originally, kayaks were designed to seat one or more occupants inside the hull, with their upper bodies emerging through an opening that was often partially

The author battles a feisty little bass hooked from his Native Watercraft Propel kayak.

higher seating position, giving their occupants better vision into the water and a drier ride, at least in calm water.

You can pay as little as a couple hundred dollars for a basic, rotationally-moulded plastic kayak, and as much as several thousand for a top-of-the-line, pedal-drive model with all the bells and whistles. As with most things, you tend to get what you pay for. However, it makes good sense to opt for a more budget-priced model when starting out, at least until you decide if the sport is truly for you. Later, you can always sell your first fishing kayak second-hand and upgrade to a more expensive and sophisticated model.

One of the greatest advances in fishing kayak technology has been a shift away from paddles as the primary means of propulsion.

Sails, small outboard motors and electric engines have all been used to push kayaks, but it was the advent of pedal-powered flippers and propellers that really freed up anglers’ hands to fully engage in the fishing process.

There are two primary

pedal-power systems in use today: a step-motion design driving penguin-like flippers (developed and made famous by the Hobie company), and a bicyclestyle design driving a small propeller (created by the Native Watercraft company).

Both propulsion systems have their advantages and disadvantages.

The flipper-style, step-

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(bicycle-style) pedalling or step-motion, and your desire for instantaneous reverse or spot-holding.

Finally, I’d stress that ‘yak fishing is potentially dangerous, especially in rough, fast or very cold water. Kayakers should be competent swimmers and wear a comfortable flotation vest at all times, even if local laws don’t demand it.

Owning a dedicated kayak trailer like this ripper from Redtide can make it much easier to transport and deploy multiple rigs. motion system is fast, efficient and able to operate in surprisingly shallow water, by virtue of the fact that more experienced operators can easily flatten out and ‘flutter’ the flippers close to the underside of the hull.

On the downside, until recently it was impossible to pedal in reverse and back up using the flipper system.

Find your new favourite place to fish and camp...

www.youcamp.com

While this issue has now been addressed, switching from forward to reverse — or using a combination of forward and reverse thrust to hold position — isn’t quite as fast, intuitive or effective in flipper-driven craft as it is in propeller-driven ‘yaks.

On the other side of the ledger, the biggest drawback of existing propeller systems is their inability to function in

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very shallow water. Typically, the propulsion leg and propeller must be lifted clear in water shallower than about 30-50cm and a paddle used to traverse this skinny water.

When deciding between the two rival pedal propulsion systems, evaluate the amount of shallow water work you’re likely to undertake, your preference for either circular

In addition, ensure that your kayak can be easily seen under all lighting conditions.

In some jurisdictions it’s mandatory to fit kayaks with a pole carrying a small flag, and to display lights after sunset or in heavy fog. Even where the law doesn’t mandate these steps, they make good sense.

Happy ‘yakking!

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93

Beat those trailer backing blues BRISBANE

Wayne Kampe wkff@aapt.net.au

Reversing a boat trailer is part of boat ownership, unless of course your craft is stored on a covered hard stand. In that case, you won’t be reading this article at all – probably having a look at the stock market reports or The Financial

but it’s not much chop in the rain. Besides that, depending on your height it can be downright dangerous when leaning, say, half out of a big 4x4. It looks dodgy too!

Being advised by another person walking beside the driver is all right but it can – should things go wrong – lead to less-than-polite comments (with friends giving advice) or a hissy fit leading to a major quarrel

cars (apart from mine) have reversing cameras. These are brilliant in a tow ball to trailer tow hitch connection but are a bit useless at the ramp when a camera full of boat bow leads nowhere at all. Use the mirrors for the best success.

USING THE MIRRORS Taking the scenario of boat to water as an example – the reversing method I’m about to outline will

the ramp. Done properly, the car and boat will certainly be going backwards in perfect alignment, no risk about it.

Once the car and boat are in good alignment on the ramp, it’s dead easy to keep them that way. Naturally, prior to any reversing practice it’s smart to ensure mirrors are equally adjusted so far as looking at the rear of the car is concerned.

The car and boat should be reversing back smoothly in perfect alignment, but what happens if the boat starts to move out to one side or the other? The trick is to make small – note that word, small – adjustments by moving the steering wheel in the direction the boat is heading at the same time keeping an eye on the trailer.

Watching in the mirror, you should see the boat straighten nicely with further rearward movement. It’s important not to overdo things. The beauty of the

The moment of truth – the ramp at Peter Faust Dam is a bit tricky because the sudden slope at the top makes it difficult to see the ramp in the mirrors. It’s also fairly narrow with large rocks on each side waiting to devour wayward tyres.

This method, using mirrors, is by far the easiest once you become accustomed to it. In fact, when moving down a particularly long ramp it’s a pretty neat trick to gently move the steering wheel from one side to another just to get a glimpse of the boat trailer

It’s less vital once you’re accustomed to the mirror reversing system and can judge how necessary it is to move the wheel to make a correction. For the new chum to the game, a good line makes for good easy reversing.

Practice this system where there is sufficient

When there is as much boat showing in the mirror as this some major adjustments will be required to straighten things up.

Times. If you’re like me and need to sometimes back the rig down a ramp – or what passes for a ramp at a particular locality – you might find this small article of some use.

Reversing boats down inclines that may or may not be entirely visible is not a skill humans are born with, yet some seem to master it easier than others. For the record, I have been reversing craft down ramps for over 45 years and have tried several different approaches to the problem with varying degrees of success, or otherwise.

Hanging half out of a car door to see how things are going is a reasonable method of lining things up

(spouse or partner advising) but it can still work.

Ultimately it all depends on the driver’s expertise as to whether the boat goes in on the first or second try.

It’s a classic case of practice making perfect and the more you do it, the easier it becomes to employ correct judgment.

To assist that judgement there are two items on every motor vehicle that can really assist when reversing: the side mirrors. These will assist whether reversing down a ramp with a boat in tow, or simply linking the car and trailer couplings to form one unit. Before I elaborate on using side mirrors, kindly allow me to diverge a little.

I understand that most

work on other situations, naturally – the clue is to rely on the side mirrors of the car and make carefully calculated adjustments as things proceed.

One tactic is to have a look at the ramp first and ascertain whether it is possible to line up the car and boat with the ramp well before starting the descent to the water. This first alignment is very important, so with both car and boat aligned perfectly straight there should be equal areas of boat trailer (mud guards are ideal to line up with) in view in each side mirror.

The idea is to keep these areas as equal as possible while reversing slowly down

There’s a very slight misalignment here with a small surplus of boat showing compared to the other mirror.

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JANUARY 2018

Looking good – the car and boat are in excellent alignment here.

The boat is well placed for a straight run down the ramp. system is that these small corrections can take place on either side with equal ease. As I mentioned, don’t overcorrect; just make a small adjustment and observe the result.

as things progress.

The one thing that makes or breaks the method might be failing to line up the car and boat correctly with the ramp in the first instance.

room to reverse with the trailer on. It’s handy to work out just how little movement of the steering wheel will bring a large result. As mentioned, practice makes perfect.

With this amount of boat showing in each side mirror, things should go well on the way to the water. Note the narrowness of the Peter Faust ramp.

Mahindra

All New Tougher Next Generation Mahindra PikUp The Mahindra Group is excited to announce the launch of their All New Tougher Next Generation Mahindra Pik Up. Mahindra’s next Generation PikUp, with its refreshed outer body styling, new six speed transmission, increased turbo diesel power, and stylish new interior is a tough no nonsense ute that is as rugged as ever.

The original Mahindra PikUp, launched in Australia in 2007 has been plying the roads and backcountry of Australia for ten years.

With thousands of Mahindra PikUps sold to Australian customers over the past 10 years, the PikUp has built a trusted and solid reputation as a reliable, rugged and value for money ute for the Australian market.

The All New Mahindra PikUp boasts significant enhancements in its drivetrain to 103KW of power/330Nm torque, and all-new 6-speed gearbox.

Its totally new attractive interiors will appeal to a much wider customer profile with the inclusion of ISOFIX child restraints with top tether standard on all Dual Cab models.

Mahindra products offer, proven reliability, function and premium value for money. The upgrade, with its aggressively-styled exteriors and plush interiors includes a complete overhaul of the Mahindra PikUp’s aesthetics, with specific emphasis on the front-end styling. The vehicle comes in two specification levels, S6, which provides function

rated to 2.5 tonne braked towing); aluminium trays, galvanised steel trays, colour coded steel trays; genuine winch compatible steel bull bars; genuine fiberglass snorkels; genuine carpet floor mats; genuine canvas seat covers; genuine suspension upgrade with bash plate and lift kit; genuine stainless steel nudge bar with bash plate; and, genuine vinyl floor kit.

PRICING, VARIANTS AND WARRANTY At launch, there were four variants of the new Mahindra PikUp: The Single Cab PikUp is available in 4x4 S6 Cab Chassis from $26,990 drive and value and the S10, which offers an SUV-likespecification yet remains within the identity of the Mahindra PikUp’s rugged and reliable legacy.

EXTERIOR: A FRESH NEW LOOK The Mahindra PikUp’s clean, contemporary lines improve the look of the vehicle while maintaining a tough signature stance. The most compelling changes are to the front of the vehicle where the grille, headlights, bonnet and foglamps have all undergone a substantial redesign.

The new grille design is smarter, using a glossy black finish with subtle chrome accents (S10 Models), as well as a more prominent Mahindra badge, while the lower air intake has been reshaped to provide a stronger visual integration with the grille. Black mesh inserts are consistently applied to both the main grille and the lower

air intake, creating a more consistent appearance.

The headlights on either side of the grille are also completely new, with a cleaner, more resolute appearance and a new curved LED Daytime Running Light signature for the S10 Double Cab. Bolder fog lamps are mounted in restyled apertures that are linked to the lower edge of the headlights. The redesigned front-end styling is accompanied by static bending projection lamps.

INTERIOR: THE NEW AGE STYLE The spacious cabin of the Next Generation PikUp has undergone important upgrades as part of the model line-up. Perhaps the most obvious improvements are to the upholstery and the 6” full colour touch screen display on the S10 Double Cab models located in the centre console.

The Mahindra PikUp’s

cabin is also comprehensively equipped. As the flagship model of the range, the S10 Double Cab benefits from useful features such as remote central locking, cruise control, satellite navigation, reversing camera and a multifunction steering wheel.

The upgrade doesn’t end here. With smart features like auto wipers and intelligent headlamps the vehicle promises to take the customer experience to the next level of comfort and performance.

Fully Automatic Climate Control further enhances the comfort of occupants in the S10 variants.

SAFETY: REASSURING PEACE OF MIND Safety features like Hill Descent Control, ESC, ABS, EBD, Roll-over mitigation, Airbags, Crash protection crumple zones and a Collapsible steering column are standard across the range. Strengthening our commitment to safety and comfort, we have added head rests and 3-point lap sash seat belts for all seats along with two ISOFIX anchors in the rear seat with three top tether points for all Double Cab models.

DRIVETRAIN: POWER AND EFFICIENCY The Next Generation PikUp has an updated 2.2L 4-cylinder mHawk turbodiesel engine that makes use of a variable geometry turbocharger to produce 103kw. The impressive torque peak of 330Nm is reached at just 1,600rpm, and sustained

to 2,800rpm, ensuring excellent in-gear acceleration and great towing power.

The turbodiesel engine is linked to a six-speed manual gearbox driving the rear wheels, with 4×4 transmission with low range.

The entire range of the Next Generation Mahindra PikUp is fitted with an Eaton MLD (Mechanical Locking Differential) as standard.

GENUINE FACTORY ACCESSORIES Mahindra Automotive Australia prides itself on working with some of the best global accessory manufactures, many based right here in Australia. Our Genuine Factory Accessory Program, many of which are available from launch, includes but is not limited to: genuine tow bar (currently

away; the Dual Cab PikUp is available in 4x4 S6 Cab Chassis from $29,490 drive away; the Dual Cab PikUp is available in 4x4 S6 with factory well-side tub from $29,990 Drive Away; and the Dual Cab PikUp S10 4×4 with factory well-side tub from $31,990 drive away.

From early 2018 the 4x2 S6 Cab Chassis will also be available from $21,990 drive away.

The pricing includes a 5-year/100,000km limited warranty with 5-year roadside assistance. They are available in four colours – Artic White, De-Sat Silver, Napoli Black and Red Rage. More information go to www.mahindra.com.au and www.facebook.com/ mahindraaus. – Mahindra

JANUARY 2018

95

Formosa 550 Tomahawk Offshore with 140hp Suzuki

BRISBANE

Wayne Kampe wkff@aapt.net.au

It’s been a few years since I had the pleasure of reviewing one of Formosa’s Tomahawk craft, but as is always the case with renewing acquaintances with old friends, it was again an enjoyable experience. The Formosa’s eye catching good looks, courtesy of a decent lift in the forward sheer line plus a rakish swept back stern area leading to the engine pod with it’s boarding ladder and side rails, were still as attractive as ever.

Proud as punch on a

tandem Redco Sportsman trailer, the 550 Tomahawk Offshore was certainly a larger rig than I’d previously enjoyed. For a 550 it was a very big boat in every sense of the word! Which, of course, is great for offshore fishing, or any sort of fishing, for that matter. With boats, more for the money is the way to go.

To me, it’s pretty obvious that the new Formosa Tomahawk V2 hull has moved the Formosa line right up to the minute. A sharper 18° deadrise hull has been combined to outer reversed chines for enhanced overall ride and stability.

Increased floor rigidity sees an underfloor construction

that locks stringers and multi cells directly to bottom sheets. The 550 featured Marine 5083 high tensile 4mm alloy sides and bottom, although Formosa craft over 6.2m in length have 5mm bottom sheets as a bonus.

The O ff s h o r e Tomahawk’s self-draining decks range from 4.8-7.4m in size, so there’s certainly a wide range to chose from.

The diversity also extends to design, with side and centre consoles sharing kudos along with centre and half cab rigs, plus a runabout and bow rider to round off the Aussie made line up.

GENUINE OFFSHORE RIG The six-person 550

Main: Sitting easily at rest the Formosa 550 Tomahawk Offshore is a mighty handsome craft. Note the many features easily visible in this image, like the the sensibly-sized console, boarding gate in the transom and big bait station astern.

Above: With a bit of pace on it’s easy to see how freely the Tomahawk runs. Note the big bait station at the transom, a handy bit of kit.

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Tomahawk came equipped with numerous features to qualify it as a genuine offshore craft. Metre high sides linked to a beam of 2.45m ensured huge amounts of work room for five or six to fish in comfort. A 500mm high raised deck up front complimented the big cockpit aft, with both areas being carpeted for comfort and stability. Under floor storage bins up front were designed to cater for tackle, clothing, PFDs and safety gear, while a large plumbed fish box aft was for the day’s catch.

Seating was for five in the test rig, with three floor spigots aft, two more ahead of the console with its Suzuki digital multi-function gauge and switch panel handy to the skipper. A Garmin echo map 955V sounder plotter was console flush mounted above the rig’s five-spoke sports wheel, and while a slightly larger sounder unit might also fit there, a big 16” job would require a RAM bracket to set it up.

I found the standard console, as fitted, was obviously designed to maximise the fishing area, yet was large enough to fulfil its role as a central helming station. Note that an upgrade to a larger console is on Formosa’ option lists.

Aft within the cockpit area side pockets offered storage of items around a metre in length, the pockets being broken into paired segments. This did surprise me, as most craft of this size offer full length side storage compartments in work areas.

I did note that Formosa advertise customisation of their craft and extra long

fishing rod lockers are on the list of options, so no doubt a potential owner wanting larger side pockets could discuss the matter prior to construction.

That small matter aside, there was no complaint about the usefulness of the transom area, with its large bait station, cutting boards, rod holders and a live bait

from wave action around the Jumpinpin Bar area were hardly felt and the hull exhibited a refreshing lack of noise upon wave impact.

Formosa have certainly ticked some boxes, with the design and set up of their new V2 hull, which certainly provides a lot of sea keeping and ride confidence for an owner wanting to use the craft

SPECIFICATIONS Length.........................................................5.7m Beam.........................................................2.45m Hull weight............................................... 760kg Deadrise.....................................................18.5° Engines.......................................... 115 to 150hp Engine fitted..................................... 140 Suzuki Fuel capacity.............................................. 150L Persons............................................................6 Towing.......................4x4 or large family wagon well. At a sensible height for easy use, the bait station was equipped with a hinged lid, a neat and quite user-friendly arrangement.

140 SUZUKI DID THE JOB Engines for the solidlybuilt Tomahawk were rated from 115-150hp, and with a 140 Suzuki on the pod, the rig ran very sweetly indeed.

Is more power necessary?

Only if four or more would be aboard most times.

The craft, two up, planed at 3000rpm at 18.4km/h, 4000rpm saw 36.2km/h on the Garmin 95sv, 5000rpm a speed of 49.6km/h and a quick burst to 6000rpm saw 67.3km/h.

Doubtlessly with the Suzuki 140 fully run in, 70km/h and beyond would be the hammer down pace.

Just like the last Tomahawk, I drove the ride was quite good. Bumps and thumps

for serious fishing pursuits.

OVERVIEW As an offshore fishing rig, the big Formosa 550 Tomahawk makes a lot of sense. About the only change I’d envisage would be to request one section side pockets. I liked the flexible seating layout, the huge amounts of internal freeboard, the vast work areas all around the craft, and last but not least, the great ride and easy handling of the rig mated to inherent stability.

As tested, the craft would come home for $61,950. A 115 Suzuki on the transom would see a base rig come home for around $51,920.

The reviewed Formosa was provided by Australian Marine Centre at Springwood. You can get in contact with them at (07) 3808 7333 or by emailing sales@amcboats.com.au.

You can also visit www. formosamarineboats.com.au.

Even at launch the Formosa 550 Tomahawk Offshore is an impressive sight.

Note the easy release Tow Catch on the winch post, this handy bit of kit provides instant (one person ) release of the boat with the skipper aboard.

A very useful bait station, complete with a livewell, was one of the user-friendly features of the Tomahawk.

The 550 Tomahawkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s flexible seating set up means that more work room for anglers is as easy as moving a seat to a chosen area, or leaving it back at base for the day.

Centre consoles vary in size as much as the craft they are fitted to; the Tomahawkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s was obviously designed to optimize fishing room but still do the job.

Variable seating is just one of the really handy features about this craft.

Cockpit side pockets were wide, although of two-part construction.

An option allows for full length unobstructed pockets if required.

JANUARY 2018

97

Pioneer Cape Island 186 with Mercury 115hp

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SPECIFICATIONS Hull.Length ....... 5.64m Beam................. 2.90m Depth ................ 2.29m Hull.Weight ....... 726kg Max.hp .................. 150 Number.of.People.... 6 Fuel Capacity ..... 170L as happy sneaking around an estuary or dam as it would out in Port Phillip Bay. KEY FEATURES A very important part of any fishing boat is the ability to keep your fishing areas clear. This means storage, and this is something the Pioneer has in spades. It has a rod locker in each gunnel that will hold up to six outfits, a large storage 98

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Main: Andrew and the team at Melbourne Marine Centre have put a lot of effort into the fitout of the Cape Island 186. They have ensured the additional items complement the fishing nature of the boat.

Above: The Pioneer’s hull provided fantastic ride and handling. space under the front casting deck, even larger storage under the main seat and great access via the transom to store batteries and other items out of harm’s way. It would be remiss of me not to mention the livewell or fish swimming pool located at the rear of the boat. The few fish we put into it were very comfortable with their time in it and were seriously alive when we went to let them go.

As far as fishing space goes, there is not a level surface on this boat that cannot be fished from in comfort (depending on conditions of course). Two anglers can easily fish from the front casting deck or the rear deck and the freeboard in the cockpit is high enough so that if you were locked into something bigger, you could brace yourself against it. Andrew from Melbourne Marine spent much of his time walking around the gunnels casting with no problems at all.

The stability at rest of the Cape Island is excellent.

It’s always nice when all spaces in a boat are used effectively. The seat in front of the console doubles up as an esky and the seating for the driver and passengers is comfortable and can be made

more so if you keep the back rest in place.

Put simply, the Cape Island is great, whether you are driving it or fishing from it.

RIDE AND PERFORMANCE The Pioneer Cape Island 186 is not a light boat and in particular it has quite a bit of weight at the rear of it. Weight in itself has its benefits and its issues. Hull weight helps cut through chop and swell and provides a soft ride as well as increasing stability at rest. Too much weight or weight that is not even can affect motor performance and steering the craft.

The boat tested had trim tabs to assist with the additional weight at the rear of it. Small adjustments to them push the nose of the boat down and the performance improvement is plainly noticeable when you are in the boat. When you got the motor trim and the trim tabs settings correct, the Cape Island was an absolute rocket.

It handled beautifully and was incredibly quiet on the water. At one point on the test day, when we were travelling between fishing spots, I was replacing my leader using a FG knot. A testament to how well the Pioneer rode, the

knot was tied and new lure attached, all while we were on the plane. You have got to be happy with that!

MERCURY 115HP PRO XS The Cape Island is rated to a 150hp motor and I was certainly interested to see how the Mercury 115hp Pro XS would perform on it. In two words, “extremely well”.

In my mind the 115hp Pro XS was hardly a compromise.

It provided a good hole shot (5.2 seconds) and got the boat to a very respectable 65km/h top speed. The key economy range was between 3500-4000 revs, where motor used a little over 15.5L of fuel per hour.

I expected the boat to feel underpowered, but that certainly wasn’t the case. If anything, the 115hp Mercury was the perfect balance for the boat.

MACKAY MULTIROLLERED DUAL AXLE TRAILER The pioneer was matched with a Mackay duel axle multirollered trailer. The multi roller system allows the boat to be easily launched and retrieved.

Ideally you would do this with two people (Andrew and Jamie made it look very easy), however, the drive on drive off nature of the roller system

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It’s always nice to go and test a boat brand that you’ve not seen or heard of before. Your sense of anticipation prior to doing the test in heightened and there is that little bit more effort put into the your research before seeing the boat in the flesh.

Pioneer is an Americanbuilt boat that is being sold through Melbourne Marine Centre in Hallam, Victoria.

They produce a range of boats that are aimed firmly at the fishing market, and your first impression of the Cape Island 186 is exactly that. It has significant tackle and general storage and plenty of fishing space. The centre console configuration lends itself to fishing from any part of the boat and the addition of the MotorGuide electric motor and Talon anchoring system just broadens its horizons as far as fishing locations go.

The Cape Island would be

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pjung@fishingmonthly.com.au

means that it can be done by a single person if need be. The duel axle system also spreads the load of the trailer, which makes for easier towing.

OVERALL My first experience of a Pioneer boat has been a positive one. There are a few standout things for me: Everything has a place or a place to go. There is plenty of storage, which means in my case I can take even more fishing gear. Fishing from it is an absolute pleasure. We had a full afternoon casting

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Pro XS on the back of it.

I am usually a supporter of running the maximum horsepower on any boat, but after being in the Pioneer, it was treat to find out how well it performed, which gives you the flexibility to add the electronics that Melbourne Marine had on the test boat.

As tested the Pioneer Cape Island 186 will set you back about $73,000, with a starting price in the low 60s with a smaller motor. To find out more about the Cape Island and the other boats in

PERFORMANCE RPM........... Speed.(km/h). Economy.(km/L) Idle.(700) ...................... 3 ..........................1.5 1000 .............................. 5 ..........................2.5 2000.............................10 ..........................6.0 3000.............................18 ........................ 12.3 4000......................... 40.7 ........................ 16.3 5000............................ 51 ........................26.7 WOT.(6200) ................. 65 ........................44.0 lures and no matter where you were in the boat you had the ability to cast where you wanted. The additional stealth that the MotorGuide electric motor provides makes it a must have on the Cape Island. I was impressed by how well it pushed quite a large boat around and how nimble it was around the structure where we did the test. Last but certainly not least, how well it performed with the Mercury 115hp

the Pioneer range, you can contact Melbourne Marine Centre on (03) 9703 2003 or go to their website www. melbournemarine.com.au • Quoted performance figures have been supplied by the writer in good faith.

Performance of individual boat/motor/trailer packages may differ due to variations in engine installations, propellers, hull configurations, options, hull loading and trailer specifications.

Any keen bay, estuary or lake fisho would love to have the Pioneer Cape Island 186 parked in their driveway.

The author was impressed by the console layout.

There was plenty of room for the Garmin sounder and all the various switches and gauges.

Top: The main seat had a removable backrest. It provided that little bit more comfort for the driver and passenger on long trips or in rougher weather.

Above: The Pioneer had some serious storage, with one of the larger storage areas in the driver seat.

Trim tabs were fitted to the boat to maximise performance. They assisted with pushing the bow of the boat down, negating the weight at the rear of the vessel.

Although not the maximum horsepower for the boat, the Mercury 115hp Pro XS outboard was a great match for it. It provided excellent performance (see fact box) and plenty of power.

Top: The rear cast deck was a great size and had storage and a live well in it.

Above: There is a serious live well in the Cape Island. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more like a fish swimming pool.

Top: Each gunnel had a rod locker in it that holds 4-6 outfits.

Above: The forward casting deck had some serious storage under it. There is plenty of room for all that extra gear anglers need to take with them each trip.

Top: You can fish from all the flat surfaces on the Cape Island. Andrew spent most of his time standing on the gunwales and fishing. The stability at rest was excellent.

Above: A seat in front of the console not only provided extra seating while under way, but doubled up as an esky.

Top: Boats like this are all about fishing space. There is plenty of it in the Cape Island including the deck the cameraman is standing on to take this picture.

Above: The stealth the 80lb MotorGuide Xi5 provides makes it must have in the authorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mind.

The dual axle Mackay trailer made launching and retrieving a breeze.

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Horizon Sunrunner 485 with Yamaha F90hp - SC

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Length.....................................................4.985m Beam.........................................................2.02m Hull weight............................................... 450kg Max hp............................................................90 Fuel...............................................................80L Test weight............................................... 889kg Main: There’s nothing like being offshore as the sun rises. The SunRunner is eminently capable in both inshore and offshore situations, and the 90hp Yamaha gives the rig a range of over 200km with an 80L fuel tank underfloor.

Above: There wasn’t enough swell or wind chop to give the Hydro Lift hull a proper workout. the internal layout. A full, flat, internal floor runs from bow to transom. Instead of a front cabin, there’s a simple rail system that helps your gear stay in place up the front while opening up the maximum amount of fishing space down the back. Indeed, there’s a lot of cockpit room for a sub-5m boat, and that’s exactly what the Horizon

RPM......................Speed....................... km/L 1000........................... 6.5........................... 3.3 2000..........................10.9........................... 2.7 3000............................ 24........................... 2.7 4000............................ 40........................... 2.9 5000............................ 53........................... 2.3 6000............................ 63........................... 1.6 * With a 16” alloy Yamaha SDS propeller.

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single-axle trailer, this rig is just as manoeuvrable off the water as it is on the water and you can jack-knife it into a tight parking or storage space if needed. This may include a garage.

For more information, you can visit www.horizonboats. com.au and make sure you like Horizon Boats on Facebook.

SPECIFICATIONS

PERFORMANCE

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I found it hard to believe that while testing Horizon’s 2018 SunRunner, it was the first time I’d ever been over the Tweed River bar. Of course, I’d been through the Southport Seaway (to the north) and the dicey Brunswick River bar (to the south) countless times. Apart from the great scenery to take some images for this test, it was obvious the fishing opportunities the entrance offered. These were noted for a future fishing trip.

Travelling on the SunRunner 485 with Scott James from Horizon Boats, it was good to be in the boat with a local. The factory for both Horizon and Stessl Boats is just up the road and the boat has been designed with offshore anglers on the southern Gold Coast particularly in mind.

Horizon’s Hyrdo Lift hull has the runs on the board, so it’s the internal fit-out improvements that herald the 2018 version of this craft.

Unique to the boat is

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to run around on a glassed-out weekend offshore.

The other thing that turns heads about Horizon boats is the price. With packages starting from under $40,000 (the rig as tested was under $45,000), it’s a great stepping stone for anglers upgrading from their first tinnie. You get shade, offshore capability and

FMG

team wanted to deliver.

What the hull has also delivered is a rig that’s east to anchor, with a split-access to the anchor well. With the added Bimini top and bait board, it was obvious that this boat had been set up with the keen snapper angler in mind.

Loading and unloading is easy with the transom door to the starboard side of the outboard.

Powered by the new Yamaha F90 4-stroke outboard, the rig was economical, delivering 3km/L burned at a comfortable cruising speed of 3500rpm and 34km/h.

With an 80L fuel tank, this gives a theoretical range of around 24km. Plenty enough

the ability to spend a family day on the water with ease.

Often, buyers will overlook the practicalities of trailering. Supplied on a

You can also contact Chelsea Yamaha on (03) 9772 1212 and check out www. chelseayamaha.com.au for more information.

With the transom bait station, the SunRunner is set up for bait or lure fishing. That’s the Gold Coast in the background.

The 90hp Yamaha delivered excellent economy, with 3km/L at 3500rpm.

The dash of the 2018 model is improved.

There are plenty of places to hang on and access to the anchor well is easy. You can also flush mount large electronics.

Designed with the serious angler in mind, there’s plenty of rod storage in the rocket launcher and shade for when you’re traveling.

The SunRunner will turn heads at the boat ramp and on the water.

The fully flat floor and rail system makes storage simple.

Check out the large kill-box under the cockpit floor. It keeps things neat when the mackerel are running.

Cradled on a single-axle trailer, the rig is manoeuvrable off the water as well as on. It helps with tight storage spots.

Boarding is easy with the fold down ladder and the slip-in transom door.

The rear lounge can fold away after you’ve finished travelling to your fishing spot.

The anchor well is simple and easily accessible through the split section for’ard.

The rear bait station is practical and has enough room to work around.

The transom deadrise isn’t massive, which provides a balance between rough water ride and shallow water loading ability.

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Victorian Tide Times

2018 2018 Local Time

POINT LONSDALE – VICTORIA POINT – 144° VICTORIA LAT LONSDALE 38° 18’ LONG 37’

JANUARY Time Time JANUARY m

Time m 0033 0.81 0033 0.81 0545 1.32 0545 1.32 TU 1152 0.26 1152 0.26 TU1813 1813 1.51 0123 1.51 0123 0.79 0649 0.79 WE 1246 0649 1.35 1.35 WE1904 1246 0.20 0.20 1904 1.61 0206 1.61 0206 0.73 0742 0.73 TH 1336 0742 1.40 1.40 1336 TH1949 0.14 0.14 1949 1.69 0244 1.69 0244 0.64 0825 0.64 FR 1422 0825 1.46 1.46 1422 FR2030 0.10 0.10 2030 1.74 0318 1.74 0318 0.55 0905 0.55 0905 1.50 1505 SA 1.50 1505 SA2107 0.11 0.11 2107 1.75 0352 1.75 0352 0.47 0942 0.47 0942 1.52 1545 SU 1.52 SU 1545 0.15 2141 0.15 2141

18’ of High LONG 144° TimesLAT and38° Heights and Low37’ Waters Times and Heights of High and Low Waters MARCH FEBRUARY MARCH FEBRUARY m Time Time m Time m Time m

m 1.38 1.38 0.83 0.83 1.22 1.22 0.38 0.38 1.43 1.43 0.79 0.79 1.24 1.24 0.34 0.34 1.48 1.48 0.72 0.72 1.27 1.27 0.31 0.31 1.53 1.53 0.66 0.66 1.31 1.31 0.30 0.30 1.57 1.57 0.59 0.59 1.35 1.35 0.30 0.30 1.59 1.59 0.54 0.54 1.38 1.38 0.31 0.31

Time 0131 0131 0715 0715 FR 1311 1311 FR 1927 1927 0213 0213 0802 0802 SA 1402 1402 SA 2011 2011 0250 0250 0843 0843 SU 1448 1448 SU 2048 2048 0326 0326 0919 0919 MO 1531 1531 MO 2124 2124 0400 0400 0954 0954 TU 1613 1613 TU 2159 2159 0434 0434 1028 1028 1653 WE 1653 WE 2236 2236

m 1.38 1.38 0.73 0.73 1.23 1.23 0.39 0.39 1.44 1.44 0.65 0.65 1.30 1.30 0.37 0.37 1.50 1.50 0.56 0.56 1.37 1.37 0.36 0.36 1.54 1.54 0.48 0.48 1.43 1.43 0.36 0.36 1.57 1.57 0.41 0.41 1.47 1.47 0.37 0.37 1.57 1.57 0.34 0.34 1.50 1.50 0.40 0.40

0508 0447 1.73 1.73 22 0426 0426 1.60 1.60 0545 1.61 1.61 22 0508 770447 77 0545 1026 1142 1102 1026 0.40 0.40 221017 1017 0.49 0.49 1142 0.25 0.25 22 1102 1734 1646 1.51 1626 1.40 1820 1.49 TH SU MO WE

1.56 1.56 0.29 0.29 1.51 1.51 0.45 0.45 1.53 1.53 0.26 0.26 1.50 1.50 0.50 0.50

Time 0416 0416 1046 1046 MO 1645 MO 1645

11

220022 0022 0534 0534 TU 1157

1157 TU1757 1757 0124 0124 0645 0645 WE 1304 1304 WE1902 1902 0220 0220 0746 0746 TH 1405 1405 TH2001 2001 0313 0313 0842 0842 FR 1500 1500 FR2056 2056 0401 0401 0934 0934 1554 SA 1554 SA2147 2147

33 44

55 66

16 16

17 17

18 18 19 19

20 20 21 21

Time 0102 0102 0621 0621 TH 1246 1246 TH 1849 1849 0201 0201 0730 0730 FR 1352 1352 FR 1952 1952 0255 0255 0830 0830 SA 1451 1451 SA 2046 2046 0343 0343 0923 0923 SU 1546 1546 SU 2137 2137 0427 0427 1013 1013 MO 1639 1639 MO 2223 2223 0508 0508 1059 1059 1730 TU 1730 TU 2305 2305

11

22

33 44

55 66

m 1.52 1.52 0.72 0.72 1.37 1.37 0.20 0.20 1.59 1.59 0.62 0.62 1.44 1.44 0.18 0.18 1.65 1.65 0.50 0.50 1.50 1.50 0.18 0.18 1.69 1.69 0.40 0.40 1.54 1.54 0.21 0.21 1.69 1.69 0.32 0.32 1.55 1.55 0.27 0.27 1.66 1.66 0.27 0.27 1.53 1.53 0.34 0.34

16 16 17 17 18 18 19 19

20 20 21 21

Time 0440 0440 1118 1718 TH 1118 TH 1718

m 0.75 0.75 1.30 1.30 0.34 0.34

0038 2 0038 0604 2 0604 1237 FR

1.44 1.44 0.67 0.67 1.36 1.36 0.33 0.33 1.51 1.51 0.55 0.55 1.45 1.45 0.31 0.31 1.57 1.57 0.43 0.43 1.53 1.53 0.30 0.30 1.61 1.61 0.33 0.33 1.59 1.59 0.32 0.32 1.62 1.62 0.26 0.26 1.61 1.61 0.36 0.36

11

FR 1237 1838 1838 0138 0138 0715 1345 SA 0715 SA 1345 1942 1942 0230 0230 0815 1445 SU 0815 SU 1445 2036 2036 0317 0317 0906 0906 MO 1538 MO 1538 2123 2123 0400 0400 0952 0952 1628 TU 1628 TU 2206 2206

33

44 55 66

Time 0521 0521 1139 1750 FR 1139 FR 1750

16 16

m m 0.80 0.80 1.18 1.18 0.55 0.55

Time Time 0109 0109 0559 1238 SU0559 1828 SU 1238 1828 0101 0101 0654 1335 MO0654 MO 1335 1919 1919 0146 0146 0740 1426 TU0740 TU 1426 2004 2004 0227 0227 0822 1511 WE0822 WE 1511 2045 2045 0303 0303 0901 0901 TH 1550 TH 1550 2121 2121 0337 0337 0939 0939 1627 FR 1627 FR 2157 2157

11

0045 1.32 17 0045 0638 1.32 0.72 22 17 1246 0.72 1.24 SA 0638 SA 1246 1857 1857 0132 0132 0730 1343 SU 0730 SU 1343 1945 1945 0215 0215 0810 1431 MO 0810 MO 1431 2025 2025 0253 0253 0846 0846 TU 1516 TU 1516 2103 2103 0330 0330 0922 0922 1559 WE 1559 WE 2141 2141

18 18

19 19 20 20

21 21

1.24 0.53 0.53 1.39 1.39 0.62 0.62 1.34 1.34 0.50 0.50 1.45 1.45 0.52 0.52 1.44 1.44 0.47 0.47 1.50 1.50 0.42 0.42 1.53 1.53 0.46 0.46 1.54 1.54 0.33 0.33 1.59 1.59 0.46 0.46

33

44 55

66

Local Time APRIL APRIL Time m

m 1.47 1.47 0.49 0.49 1.50 1.50 0.49 0.49 1.52 1.52 0.39 0.39 1.59 1.59 0.48 0.48 1.55 1.55 0.31 0.31 1.66 1.66 0.48 0.48 1.56 1.56 0.26 0.26 1.68 1.68 0.49 0.49 1.55 1.55 0.25 0.25 1.67 1.67 0.52 0.52 1.52 1.52 0.26 0.26 1.64 1.64 0.55 0.55

m Time m 0540 0.59 0540 1219 0.59 1.42 1807 1.42 0.66 MO1219 MO 1807 0.66

16 16

0030 1.43 17 0030 0624 1.43 0.47 17TU0624 1311 0.47 1.54

TU 1311 1854 1.54 0.63 1854 0.63 0115 1.48 0115 0705 1.48 0.37 1358 0.37 1.65 WE0705 WE 1358 1937 1.65 0.60 1937 0.60 0157 1.52 0157 0746 1.52 0.29 1443 0.29 1.72 TH0746 TH 1443 2019 1.72 0.58 2019 0.58 0238 1.54 0238 0829 1.54 0.23 0829 1526 0.23 1.75 FR1526 FR 2100 1.75 0.58 2100 0.58 0317 1.54 0317 1.54 0912 0.21 0912 0.21 1609 1.74 SA 1609 SA 2143 1.74 0.58 2143 0.58

18 18

19 19

20 20 21 21

0437 7 0437 1033 7 1033 WE 1714

0411 1.48 1.48 0359 1.53 1.53 0407 1.55 1.55 70411 220359 22 0407 1015 0.29 0.29 22 0956 0.22 0.22 0959 0.27 0.27 7 22 1015 0956 0959 SA 1701 1.59 SU 1653 1.70 TH 1640 1.63

0513 8 0513 1113 1113 TH 1756

1.56 1.56 0.22 0.22 1.56 1756 1.56 TH 2322 0.47 0.47 2322

0443 1.54 1.54 0445 1.44 1.44 0441 1.50 1.50 23 0443 80445 230441 1037 0.22 0.22 1049 0.33 0.33 23 1040 0.26 0.26 8 1037 1049 1040 FR 1721 1.63 SU 1736 1.53 MO 1739 1.63

0546 9 0546 1149 1149 FR 1837

0519 1.52 1.52 0521 1.38 1.38 0528 1.45 1.45 24 0519 90521 240528 1116 0.21 0.21 1124 0.38 0.38 24 1126 0.33 0.33 9 1116 1124 1126 SA 1804 1.60 MO 1814 1.46 TU 1830 1.56

0104 0036 0606 0104 0.60 0.60 0036 0006 0.41 0.41 0606 1.53 1.53 10 0735 0655 1159 10 100006 25 0735 1.39 1.39 25 0658 0658 0655 1.56 1.56 25 1159 0.36 0.36 10 1340 0.34 1257 1248 0.33 1831 1.39

0620 10 0620 1225 1225 1917

0600 1.32 1.32 0623 1.40 1.40 0558 1.49 1.49 100600 250623 25 0558 1200 0.45 0.45 25 1215 0.42 0.42 1157 0.22 0.22 10 1200 1215 1157 1857 1.40 1930 1.49 1851 1.55

0121 0147 0.68 0.68 0121 0050 0.52 0.52 0005 0.50 0.50 11 110050 11 0147 260005 0737 0816 0642 0816 1.31 1.31 26 0744 0744 0737 1.48 1.48 26 0642 1.49 1.49 11 1333 0.35 1423 0.38 1344 1236 0.32

0036 11 0036 0656 0656

0026 0.73 0.73 0051 0.67 0.67 0022 0.59 0.59 110026 260051 26 0022 0645 1.26 1.26 26 0732 1.35 1.35 0640 1.44 1.44 11 0645 0732 0640

0134 0.62 0.62 0237 0.76 0.76 0213 0049 0.58 0.58 0213 120134 270049 12 0237 12 0820 1.39 1.39 27 0904 1.24 1.24 27 0841 0841 0722 1.44 1.44 12 0820 0904 0722 1420 0.37 1515 0.43 1441 1317 0.30

0115 12 0115 0734 0734

0112 0.77 0.77 0200 0.67 0.67 0107 0.65 0.65 27 0107 120112 270200 0741 0857 0730 0741 1.22 1.22 27 0857 1.34 1.34 0730 1.39 1.39 12

0224 0.72 0.72 0337 0.82 0.82 0318 0138 0.66 0.66 0318 13 0337 130224 280138 13 0907 1.32 1.32 28 1001 1.19 1.19 28 0953 0953 0809 1.39 1.39 13 1001 0907 0809 1513 0.40 1618 0.45 1553 1406 0.28

0159 13 0159 0819 0819 1422

0208 0319 0208 0.79 0.79 0319 0.63 0.63 0159 0.70 0.70 28 0159 13 28 0849 1015 0830 0849 1.19 1.19 28 1015 1.38 1.38 0830 1.33 1.33 13 1423 0.65 1543 0.67 1423 0.39

0452 0.84 0.84 0322 0.80 0.80 0234 0.74 0.74 14 0452 140322 290234 1107 1.17 1.17 0959 1.26 1.26 29 0904 1.34 1.34 14 14 1107 0959 0904 WE 1730 0.45 SU 1611 0.41 MO 1504 0.27

WE 1730 0.45

0250 14 0250 0915 0915 WE 1516

0319 0433 0319 0.77 0.77 0433 0.55 0.55 0304 0.72 0.72 29 0304 1007 1125 0950 14 29 1007 1.22 1.22 29 1125 1.46 1.46 0950 1.30 1.30 14 SA 1537 0.69 SU 1701 0.69 TH 1536 0.46

0432 0.84 0.84 0042 1.32 1.32 0343 0.80 0.80 15 0042 150432 300343 1055 1.22 1.22 30 0611 0.81 0.81 1012 1.31 1.31 15 15 0611 1055 1012 MO 1714 0.41 TH 1212 1.19 TU 1615 0.27

0357 15 0357 1025 1025 TH 1627

0440 0535 0440 0.69 0.69 0428 0.69 0.69 0535 0.46 0.46 30 0428 1118 1116 1228 15 30 1118 1.30 1.30 30 1116 1.32 1.32 15 1228 1.56 1.56 SU 1702 0.69 MO 1806 0.68 FR 1703 0.50

1646 1.51 SU2236 2236 0.22 0.22

1626 1.40 MO2214 2214 0.34 0.34

1820 1.49 WE 2345 2345 0.42 0.42

1734 TH 2314 2314

0459 0542 0531 1.69 1.69 0459 1.59 1.59 0622 1.54 1.54 0542 880531 88 0622 1115 1051 1222 23 1115 0.35 0.35 23 1051 0.44 0.44 1222 0.26 0.26 23 1138 1138 MO 1740 1.48 TU 1705 1.40 TH 1911 1.43 FR 1817 MO 1740 1.48 2322 2322 0.31 0.31

TU 1705 1.40 2247 2247 0.38 0.38

TH 1911 1.43

FR 1817 2354 2354

0532 0618 0532 1.57 1.57 0025 0.51 0.51 0618 0614 1.63 1.63 99 0025 990614 1124 1202 0659 24 1124 0.40 0.40 0659 1.47 1.47 24 1216 1216 1202 0.33 0.33 24 TU 1837 1.43 WE 1746 1.40 FR 1300 0.29 SA 1905 TU 1837 1.43

WE 1746 1.40 2325 2325 0.43 0.43

WE WE 1248 0.33 TH TH 1831 1.39 1938 1938 1.38 1.38

TH TH 1333 0.35 FR FR 1236 0.32 2039 1923 2039 1.34 1.34 1923 1.38 1.38

FR1420 0.37 SA1317 0.30 FR SA 2138 1.32 1.32 2022 1.37 1.37 2138 2022

SA1513 0.40 SU SU1406 0.28 SA 2237 1.31 1.31 2130 1.37 1.37 2237 2130

SU 1611 0.41 MO 1504 0.27 2336 1.34 1.34 2244 1.39 1.39 2336 2244

MO 1714 0.41

TU 1615 0.27 2357 1.44 1.44 2357 0502 0.79 0.79 0502 1130 1.32 1.32 1130 1735 0.24 0.24 WE 1735 WE

31 31

FR 1300 0.29 2000 2000 1.38 1.38

SA SA 1340 0.34 2052 2052 1.32 1.32

SU SU 1423 0.38 2146 2146 1.29 1.29

MO 1515 0.43 MO 2245 1.27 1.27 2245

TU 1618 0.45 TU 2345 1.28 1.28 2345

TH 1212 1.19 1834 0.43 0.43 1834

1.49 1.49 0.24 0.24 1.47 SA 1905 1.47

0.57 1.44 SU SU 1257 0.24 2000 2000 1.43

0.65 1.39 MO MO 1344 0.26 2104 2104 1.39 0.72 1.33 TU 1441 0.29 TU 2217 1.37 2217

0.76 1.30 WE 1553 0.33 WE 2331 1.39 2331

1.60 1.60 0.23 0.23 1.60 1714 1.60 WE 2245 0.41 2245 0.41

1.51 1.51 0.25 0.25 1.50 1837 1.50 FR 2359 0.53 0.53 2359 1.45 1.45 0.29 0.29 1.44 SA 1917 1.44

0.59 0.59 1.38 1.38 1300 0.34 0.34 SU 1300 2000 1.37 1.37 2000

0.66 0.66 1.31 1.31 1339 0.40 0.40 MO 1339 2048 2048 1.32 1.32 0.73 0.73 1.24 1.24 0.46 TU 1422 0.46 2144 2144 1.27 1.27

0.79 0.79 1.19 1.19 0.51 WE 1516 0.51 2245 2245 1.26 1.26 0.82 0.82 1.16 1.16 0.55 TH 1627 0.55 2348 2348 1.28 1.28

1.63 TH 1640 2220 0.47 0.47 2220

FR 1721 1.63 2300 0.50 0.50 2300

SA 1804 1.60 2341 0.54 0.54 2341

SU 1851 1.55 SU

1240 0.25 0.25 MO 1240 MO 1943 1.49 1.49 1943

1327 0.31 0.31 TU TU 1327 2045 2045 1.43 1.43

WE WE 1423 0.39 2155 2155 1.39 1.39

TH 1536 0.46 2305 2305 1.38 1.38

FR 1703 0.50

1.59 SU 1653 1.70 SA 1701 2232 0.58 0.58 2226 0.60 0.60 2226 2232

SU 1736 1.53 MO 1739 1.63 2309 0.63 0.63 2310 0.62 0.62 2309 2310

MO 1814 1.46 2346 0.68 0.68 2346

TU1857 1.40 TU

1238 0.51 0.51 WE1238 WE 1947 1.34 1.34 1947

1325 0.59 0.59 TH TH1325 2045 2045 1.31 1.31

FR FR 1423 0.65 2148 2148 1.30 1.30

SA 1537 0.69 2248 2248 1.33 1.33

SU 1702 0.69 2343 2343 1.37 1.37

TU 1830 1.56 2358 0.65 0.65 2358

WE1930 1.49 WE

1312 0.52 0.52 TH1312 TH 2033 1.44 1.44 2033

1421 0.61 0.61 FR FR1421 2137 2137 1.42 1.42

SA SA 1543 0.67 2239 2239 1.43 1.43

SU 1701 0.69 2335 2335 1.45 1.45

MO 1806 0.68

0011 1.42 1.42 31 0011 0551 0551 0.61 0.61 1231 1.40 SA 1231 1.40 SA 1823 1823 0.50 0.50

CopyrightCommonwealth Commonwealth of of Australia Australia 2016, 2016, Bureau Bureau of of Meteorology Meteorology Copyright Datum of Predictions is Lowest Astronomical Tide Datum of Predictions is Lowest Astronomical Tide Timesare areininlocal localstandard standardtime time (UTC (UTC +10:00) +10:00) or or daylight daylight savings savings time Times time (UTC (UTC +11:00) +11:00) when whenin ineffect effect New Moon First Quarter Moon Phase Symbols Full Moon New Moon First Quarter Moon Phase Symbols Full Moon

Last LastQuarter Quarter

Tide predictions for Port Phillip Heads have been formatted by the National Tidal Centre, Australian Bureau of Meteorology, Copyright reserved. All material is supplied in good faith and is believed to be correct. It is supplied on the condition that no warranty is given in relation thereto, that no responsibility or liability for errors or omissions is, or will be, accepted and that the recipient will hold MHL and the Australian Bureau of Meteorology Australia free from all such responsibility or liability and from all loss or damage incurred as a consequence of any error or omission. Predictions should not be used for navigational purposes. Use of these tide predictions will be deemed to include acceptance of the above conditions.

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