The Pelican's Pick
Friday, 11 September
David was feeling restless in bed with fishing on his mind, so he was up early and decided to try his luck at the Portarlington Rockwall hoping for his first snapper of the season.
With lines in the water at 5.30am, it was nearly nine hours of waiting without a decent bite before David’s rod suddenly buckled in half on this 80cm beauty!
Cheers and joy erupted as this beautiful specimen became the attention of many local and visiting tourists. Fishing in such a beautiful place, with a lovely atmosphere and friendly faces made David’s day!
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Along the coast
There’s been some class fish caught around Port Fairy this week and the fishing magic is expected to continue throughout the weekend. Anglers are landing silver platter sized trevally on a range of soft plastics with reds, browns and golds being the choice of colour. Martin’s Point on the Moyne River is a ripper spot for land-based bream fishing with a healthy population of fish ready to devour your baits! Salmon are consistently biting off the beach with surf poppers and bait both working effectively.
In Gippsland, Nicholson through to Metung is bream fishing heaven as donkey sized specimens are actively feeding and waiting for you to cast your line. When fishing for bream, structure is your best friend! These fish are homebodies and are best tempted to leave the home with sandworms, black crabs or soft plastic grubs. Aim for areas where fast moving water pushes into slow spots where food filters through.
The Port Albert jetty has some rod-bending action in store for keen anglers with reports of mixed-bag catches! Flatties and salmon are among the most commonly reeled in on squid and pilchards. Drifting white glow-coloured jigs will land you a meal sized squid! Catches are only expected to improve as the weather warms and the bite heats up!
Port Welshpool squid are on a feeding frenzy and plenty of anglers are bagging out! Gold coloured jigs are giving fishers the advantage when it comes to snagging a catch! Flathead are loving pilchards especially near the jetty. In deeper waters gummy shark can be found lurking, large squid strips will help you find them around 15m in depth. Early season snapper will start to move throughout the area so be ready with fresh mullet strips and squid.
Around the bays
Western Port is home to arguably some of the biggest squid in Victoria! Especially the lower end of the bay near Flinders. Under the water there is extensive squid habitat with large kelp forests and vast seagrass beds. Choosing the correct jig is the biggest challenge, a size 3-3.5 jig is the go-to with colour dependent on water clarity. If visibility is low use bright coloured jigs such as orange, gold or pink. If the day is clear cast natural and transparent colours such as whites and olive greens.
Snapper are officially starting to hit Western Port and they are moving up the channels. Corinella is always a hotspot to hook into a big red! Large squid strips and pilchards are the secret key to unlocking a ripper session on the water. Fish around 8m depth with a paternoster rig to keep bait suspended directly in the firing line!
Port Phillip snapper are following suit as large fish move up towards St Leonards and Portarlington. Whilst waiting for a mammoth snapper to bite, tie on a smaller hook baited with pipis and score yourself a feed of whiting. King George whiting are continuing to frequent shallow waters with plenty of fishers reporting consistent bites!
A nice spring day can only mean one thing! It’s time to get ready to launch the kayak and visit Kayakers Reef at the end of the Kerferd Rd Pier. This artificial reef has turned into a thriving habitat full of healthy fish! Flathead and whiting are the most common species of fish being landed on deck but it’s only a matter of time before the large snapper make their way up to the reef!
Inland
Eildon Pondage was the place to be for the opening of the trout season! Anglers have been reeling in absolute stonkers! Large rainbow trout are on the chew and moving along the edges ready for a feed. Tassie Devils in pinks and oranges are working well to create a strong silhouette in murky water.
The golden perch, or yellowbelly, in Cairn Curran Reservoir are firing up for a cracking spring ahead! These fish love to hang out near the southern end of the reservoir and can sometimes be found up near the sail club. Trolling either a size 2 or 3 stumpy is a surefire way to earn a bite! The best part of fishing at Cairn Curran is that it is one of our year-round Murray cod fisheries! Using cheese cubes and chicken is the perfect way to reel in a big one!
Lake Hume is a prime spot to target this time of the year as brown trout continue with a steady bite, while yellas and reddies start to come on the chew as the water warms. Fishing with worms near structure can result in good catches. Otherwise trolling at an approximate depth of 5m with hardbody minnows or casting out spinners near the wall should have your line peeling in no time!
The stonker madness has continued in our urban lakes across metro Melbourne with loads of happy anglers scoring a trophy sized catch from their local lake! These rainbow trout are big and hungry! Worms and orange Powerbait are definitely taking the top spot for generating aggressive bites! Spavin Lake, Ferntree Gully Quarry and Nanak Lake are just three of the 17 lakes where you can find the catch of a lifetime!
Tight lines – Mr. Percy!