Searching for Wild Rainbows — Kelly Mackenzie

Ihad been in Tasmania, fishing and working, for a few months when I stumbled across a unique story. About 70 years ago, fisheries planned an aerial drop Searching of rainbow trout into Lake Adelaide, a reasonable for wild sized lake situated within the Walls of Jerusalem National Park. The weather was bleak and visibility poor, so instead of being dropped into Lake Adelaide as planned, these fish were mistakenly dropped into rainbows Lake Meston. It was here that they continued to thrive, establishing their own population of what we now consider, wild rainbows. These rainbows now inhabit Lake Meston and its immediate sister lakes, Lake Youd and Junction Lake and from there - winding its way down - the upper reaches of the Mersey River and By beyond. This is a special region for these rainbow trout, being exclusive rainbow water which is inaccessible to Kelly Mackenzie the below browns, and one I thought I would be very interested in taking a closer look at.

The serenity, breathtaking scenery and size of some of these wild rainbow trout are all lures for the keen hiking angler. I have read about the inaccessible banks around Lake Meston and thought this trip would be more successful if I took my packraft and hence, that is what I did! There was a long weekend approaching and the weather was looking pretty amazing. I managed to convince one of my best friends to come and join me on the adventure. Laura does not fish, but I think slowly I may convert her. I lured her in with the talk of towering pencil pines, the wilderness and the chance of not seeing another soul. It didn’t take long and she was convinced and off we went to pack. Tent, two rods, three reels, flies, packraft, paddles, food supplies, sleeping supplies, clothing, first aid. The list seemed endless. You are wondering why in a bag that nearly weighed half my body weight, did I need two rods and three reels? - who knows! I was about to find out! www.tasfish.com - Get the knowledge - Get the fish.

I had no idea what to expect from the Walls of Jerusalem National Park. I had seen various posts on social media and in tourism outlets boasting of its vast mountainous, alpine landscapes and spectacular peaks with historic pencil pines. Despite spending some time in Tasmania, I had not yet had the privilege of experiencing its wonder. Having done a little walking in other regions of the Western Lakes, I mistakenly somehow imagined the gentle sloping, open plains of the Chudleigh region. I was soon to learn that my imagination had led me very far astray! The route we had planned was as follows: Moses Creek Track - Junction Lake - Lake Youd - Lake Meston - Lake Myrtle - Jacksons Creek Track. We had three days to take on this marvellous adventure.

Day One

We started along the Moses Creek Track about mid-morning. A steep incline, almost a little too early to be welcome, made me question my array of rods/ reels. Maybe I really did only need one. At this point, the stunning alpine scenery and towering trees had Laura convinced that this was a good idea. As we progressed along the track, we spotted the impressive deciduous beech, or Fagus, a tree unique to Tasmania. It is Australia’s only cold-climate winter deciduous tree and during the autumn, puts on a stunning show of vibrant sunset colours before losing all its leaves. We had planned to do some detours to nearby waterfalls, but the inclining nature of the terrain kept our minds on our destination (and a break). We could hear the crashing of the falls nearby as we came upon the turn off for Junction Lake. From this point onwards, the track veered down and progressively became more and more camouflaged. ‘What was track vs what was wombat’, became a fun game. Thankfully, our GPS map had this track marked, and luckily, very accurately. The overhanging trees, shrubs and grasses almost consumed the track of what I once imagine was a more frequently trafficked path. As the day went on, we got closer and closer to our first night’s destination - Junction Lake. We had planned to stay in the Junction Lake hut, but a very clean waterproof jacket I picked up along the way suggested that we might not be alone.

As we approached Junction Lake, my excitement levels rose. I was just as excited about Junction as I was for Meston. We began to see the lake with the beautifully elevated hills with stunning purple blooms, sloping downwards before they met with the water. There was a gentle movement in the air and it was prime time for casting a fly. I realised by the time we returned the jacket to the hikers in the hut (yep, they were there - three kind men and one very grateful one) and set up our campsite, I would be fishing in darkness. I set up the packraft and was on my way. I fished around the banks near our camp, casting out and quickly stripping in my dark coloured streamer. I tried for a short while, however, saw no fish and got no takes, so using the moon as my GPS, made my way back to our camp.

Day Two

With my spirits only mildly dampened from my brief attempt the night prior, I set off early onto the lake in the packraft again. It was low light and a gentle mist covered the entire surface of the lake. There was no evidence of any surface action and with the mist and low light, there were not any polaroiding opportunities - so I pulled out my good old friends, the streamers. The day was like one from a dream. There was not a breath of wind and I could effortlessly paddle myself around the entirety of the lake. I began casting my way around the bank, and with little sign of life, decided my best efforts would be best focused on the small inlets located on the opposite side of the lake.

As I approached the small stream, I silently let down my makeshift anchor (rope, lingerie bag, rocks) and began casting into the regions where I was sure an unsuspecting trout would be waiting for a decent feed to float by. It only took two casts before the line went tight and I hooked into what felt like a decent little rainbow! My heart was absolutely racing. Not only was I potentially about to catch a wild western rainbow, but this would also be the FIRST fish caught in the packraft AND the first fish caught on my new Sage rod! Not to mention, on a home tied fly! I was thrilled to have even hooked up, nevermind the smile on my face and squeal I let out when that little beauty was safely in my net! While on the small side, this fish was one of the most impressive rainbows I have ever seen. The densely packed spots and luminescent sheen of rainbow radiating off its small body, it was a sight to behold. With my dreams achieved already so early into the trip, I was a happy girl. I continued to fish my way around the remainder of the lake, only hooking one other smaller rainbow that managed to throw my fly during its acrobatic show. Happy with my Junction rainbow, we packed up camp and forged our way onto Lake Meston.

Now, this is where I explain my thought process behind the two rods and three reels - x1 5wt, x1 3wt nymphing rod, x1 floating line, x1 sinking line, x1 nymphing line. My original plan was to euro nymph the Mersey River that joins Junction to Youd and Youd to Meston. Unfortunately, to do this properly and not completely irritate your non-fishing hiking companion, it is critical to plan this for a journey with a bit more time to spare. Realising we were time poor, we walked straight to Meston. We arrived at Meston early afternoon and were greeted by two hikers who had come from an alternate route. Thankfully, space allowed this time and we were able to share this special hut. Constructed from the surrounding pencil pine timber in 1969, this hut was an architectural beauty and a greatly appreciated warm spot for the night.

Lake Meston, as expected, was an enormous and incredibly impressive spectacle with large pencil pines hugging the banks for as far as the eye could see. I didn’t waste any time in setting up the packraft. I launched the raft just a short walk down from the hut and a little disappointingly, soon realised how much the wind had picked up from the day prior. There was nothing effortless about my paddling today. I struggled my way against the wind, paddling up along the bank, trying to let out the anchor to aid with the fast drift (I decided

I also need a drogue). This lake is unimaginably deep only a short distance from the bank, and still being cold, it did make me nervous. I mixed it up by fishing some of the deep water with my sinking line and the shallows with the floating. The Galaxia were present, so a chose a similar colour and sized bugger to try and entice fish into taking my offerings. The wind made my life difficult and this evening it was Meston 1 - Kelly 0.

Day Three

The next morning I woke early to gentle bird chirping and thought this was my best chance to beat the wind. To my dismay, I reached the bank and was greeted with the same gusting from the day before. I cursed the wind and told it again, as I have many times before, how it truly is the worst element. Despite this, I proceeded to launch the raft. I could have almost cried as I quietly placed the raft into the water, hopped in and started to gently paddle, only to have spooked a monstrous rainbow sitting in the shallows only a short stone’s throw from me! I paddled onwards to the deeper water, hoping not to spook any more Meston monsters. I cast repetitively into the shallows, only to be met with snags and a distinct lack of fish. Ultimately, the wind brought my fishing to an early end - the lake being too deep for my anchor and the inability to slow my drift made it almost impossible to land a cast where I wanted it (who knows whether or not there were fish in said locations).

So, with the Meston monsters evading me, we packed up our things at the hut and set off on the remainder of our journey. As we passed by Lake Myrtle we admired its beautiful, clear yet somehow aqua tinged water and ample shallow wading opportunities. I can only presume that this lake is devoid of trout, otherwise, why would no one be fishing this picturesque location? We swapped over to the Jackson Creek Track, a path not marked on all maps anymore and ambled our way through the fire-ravaged terrain. Fortunately, taking this path out means that most of the way home was downhill.

Happy to arrive back at the car after a surprisingly challenging downhill journey out, we began our two-

Bottom Dwellers

hour drive home, giving me time to reflect on the past 3 days. I am ecstatic to have caught my first western lakes rainbow and look forward to managing some more! I have a lot I want to do next time around. I want to euro nymph the river! I would like to give Lake Youd a shot at producing some nice rainbows. There is a sandy shallow, wadeable bank at one end of Meston which I did not make it to this trip, which I hear deserves a visit. Overall, the Walls of Jerusalem National Park is an unbelievably beautiful part of Tasmania and despite my continual complaining about the wind, I do feel very privileged to be able to experience this special part of the world so intimately. I am thoroughly excited to plan my next trip into these lakes (once my body heals) and hopefully, that will be when the gum beetles are falling and I can get some dries out! Kelly Mackenzie