RECREATIONAL FISHERIES REPORT
Opening of the brown trout season 2019-20.
John Diggle: Director of Inland Fisheries The Tasmanian brown trout season will opens Saturday 3 August and the outlook for fishing looks good. We are excited that Tasmania will be host to the World Fly Fishing Championship this year. The five Over 22,000 wild brown trout have been moved from heavily populated waters to other areas. venues that will be used from Monday 2 to Friday 6 Of course, there are plenty of other waters that are Fishing on the opening and through the season will December are Penstock and Little Pine lagoons, Woods be popular at Four Springs Lake, Craigbourne Dam and under fished and exciting to explore like lakes Pedder, Lake and the Meander and Mersey rivers. Be aware that Brushy Lagoon. We have been busy transferring wild King William and Burbury. These are reliable but be there are special closures of these waters to support adult brown trout over winter to popular waters. Check prepared for some rough weather particularly early the competition. Check your Tasmanian Inland Fishing out the IFS website (www.ifs.tas.gov.au) to see what we in the season. For a more sheltered option with good Code 2019-20 for details. Performance Assessment Fisheries numbers of fish, try Huntsman Lake. have been up too. We are looking forward to seeing how the international For anglers chasing a trophy trout, try Lake Crescent Rivers will provide great fishing in the coming season. competitors perform and hearing their thoughts on Technical Report early in the season, it is producing some big well- Just how good they are will depend on the rainfall for the fishery. Check out the short movies about the conditioned trout. The water level is low and it will the rest of winter and spring. If the major rivers aren’t championship venues in the IFS website–video library. Bronte Lagoon September 2018 need some rain in the catchment if it is to rise into the in flood, the sea run trout will be about in the estuaries The brown trout spawning runs have been solid. marshes. Fish it early (August/October) for the best and lower reaches from the start of August. This can The run started in Liawenee Canal in early April and chance of a big fish provide exciting fishing right through to Christmas. Visit continued well into July with fresh runs on each rain Another trophy trout chance is Blackmans Lagoon. Hobart and fish the River Derwent or Huon River. Of event. The run was late at Arthurs Lake with the first Over winter, we transferred 500 wild adult brown trout course the Lune, Pieman, Forth, Mersey, Great Forester heavy rain coming in early July. The fish pushed up in Blackmans Lagoon. These fish will grow quickly in this and Duck rivers are great places to seek out a sea runner. force on this event and as a result there should be some As of 3 July, we have relocated just over 22 000 wild water. It will fish well early in the season. good recruitment. Data from the Tumbledown Creek Talbots Lagoon fished really well last season and this adult brown trout from spawning traps in the Central fish trap (Arthurs Lake) this winter shows a solid pulse Highlands. Fisheries that have benefited include: of young healthy spawning fish that look to have come is expected to continue this year. With the improved • Blackmans Lagoon received 500. from the good recruitment year in 2016. This all goes angler’s access, everyone is talking about how good a fishery it is. It will fish well all season but aim for well for the rebuilding of this important fishery. The • The Bradys Chain of lakes with 7 048, trap on the Derwent River at Lake King William has the October mayfly hatch and you will see something • Brushy Lagoon received almost 2 000. caught almost 10 000 brown trout as we write this in special. • Craigbourne Dam gained 1 000. early July and they were still running in. Angling in Tasmania is not all about trophy trout. It • Curries River Reservoir, 1 175. The West Coast and most of the Central Highlands is about the amazing fishing experience. It is impossible • Four Springs Lake with just over 4 000. has had some good rainfall. The Nineteen Lagoons and to list all the fisheries expected to perform well going this coming season. Beyond the well known waters • Lake Crescent received an even 1 000. greater Western Lakes have benefited from this. There should be some good fishing for those that want to like yingina/Great Lake, Woods Lake, Lake Echo, • Lake Leake with1 050. explore this area. Woods Lake, Lake Crescent, Tooms Bronte Lagoon, Little Pine Lagoon, Penstock Lagoon, • The Nineteen Lagoons received 450 Lake and Lake Leake have seen below average rainfall Four Springs Lake why not explore the Bradys Chain. • Pet Reservoir also 1000 and the lakes are low the further east you go. Rain is It has had a large number of wild adult brown trout • Penstock Lagoon a little over 3 000 transferred into it over the last few years. This year 7000 badly needed for these eastern fisheries. fish have been transferred from the River Derwent fish • South Riana Dam with 550 The water quality at Woods Lake is still good and trap at Lake King William to the Brady’s Chain alone. • Tooms Lake, 1 100. based on the young fish that were seen coming through Check out the King William Fish Trap video to see how last season it will fish well again right from the start of Exact numbers on the website stocking database. we do this. Some of these fish have been tagged to allow season. It may require a release of water from Arthurs If you want to buy a licence, know more or simply a Fisheries Performance Assessment to be undertaken Lake before the season is over, if the rain does not come. and we would like anglers to report the numbers and want to pass on your experience then visit the IFS We will be keeping a close eye on this and will work with locations of captures. Send information to infish@ifs. website (www.ifs.tas.gov.au), ring on 1300 INFISH or Hydro Tasmania to maintain suitable environmental email infish@ifs.tas.gov.au, we do value your feedback. tas.gov.au. conditions. Fishing News - Page 36
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