The Pelican's Pick
Friday, 16 October
Winner, winner, gummy shark for dinner! Steve had a ripper session on the Bellarine, landing this impressive gummy while fishing at night in just 3–4m of water.
Salmon was the bait of choice on a running sinker setup, proving you don’t need to fish deep to hook into something special!
To be our next Pelican’s Pick star, submit your photos to pelicanspick@vfa.vic.gov.au, and share your fishing story here.
Along the Coast
It’s tuna mayhem in Lakes Entrance with many anglers hitting the water ready to score the catch of a lifetime. There’s been record breaking specimens caught on a range of skirted lures. It has now been confirmed these spectacular fish are Northern Pacific bluefin tuna (a species usually found in the Pacific Ocean between Japan and Mexico) so make sure you get a trip out on a boat, whether it’s with a friend or a charter for a chance to snag one of these trophy fish! But be warned these tuna can get up to 450kg in weight so be prepared for a fight of a lifetime.
Gummy sharks are well and truly on the chew this week with mammoth catches along the coast. 90 Mile Beach is rivalling for the top spot with respectable catches from land-based fishers. Fresh oily baits have been working the best – the smellier the better! Aussie salmon are hiding in deep gutters, cast out metal slugs to find them!
Port Albert has had consistent gummy action. Deeper waters are holding big specimens. Dropping oily fish baits around 8m depth especially near steep drop offs has been landing them on the deck. Shallower waters are filled with ambush predators. Casting out paddle tail soft plastics in greens, golds and browns are resulting in a delicious feed of flathead.
Port Fairy anglers are reeling in gummy shark the size of jaws on salmon chunks and whole squid. Closer inland there’s plate sized trevally and tasty Aussie salmon in fast moving waters on metal lures. Or fish the banks of the Moyne River equipped with imitation crabs and tailor strips for a chance to reel in a nice bream or mulloway.
Around the Bays
Black Rock pinkies are nipping at angler’s heels and with the right bait you’re guaranteed to peel some line! Squid cubes, pilchards and mullet are this week’s favourite cuisine for these juvenile snapper! Squid are also inundating the area with natural coloured 3.5 sized jigs easily delivering good results!
Queenscliff is buzzing with activity with ink-credible squid swarming sandy shallows and weed beds. Dark coloured jigs are best used when fishing sandy areas while white glow has been a clear standout when targeting weed beds. For fast paced action switch to curl tail soft plastics and get stuck into a wide variety of flathead, trevally and pinkies.
Snapper are absolutely dominating Western Port with large catches across the bay. Peak bite times have been on tide changes especially on a run in tide. Target shallow flats as water moves in equipped with fresh baits like pilchards, squid strips and yakka chunks. These are active feeding grounds and will give you the best chance of earning a trophy fish!
The bottom end of Western Port is producing solid gummy shark and kraken squid. Drifting jigs around the bottom of French Island is a sure-fire way to hook in to some tasty squid! Deeper waters near the mouth are where gummy and school shark are feeding. Squid strips and mullet on paternoster rigs are reeling in quality catches!
Inland
Lake Eppalock is becoming the worst kept secret with anglers boasting epic native fish catches! Trolling with bibbed hardbodies is productive way to fish deep lake edges and reel in some cracking cod! Yella’s have been inhaling worms and can often be found as a welcome bycatch for those chasing cod. In amongst the action anglers have been hauling in decent feeds of redfin to take home to the family. The key to fishing Eppalock is hitting the water at sunrise to cash in on the morning bite!
As we hit mid-October there’s no other place to fish like Lake Hume. The yellowbelly being caught are wider than they are long and are actively feeding. Worms, yabbies and shrimp are the best bait option when it comes to enticing a big bite! Small bibbed lures have also proven effective in securing a catch.
Lake Dartmouth is consistently producing quality brown trout with a few rainbows in the mix. Inline spinners are switching on aggressive bites from brown trout especially near structured areas. Worms, mudeyes and Powerbait are best used when fishing through daylight hours as the rainbows switch on to feed.
The Wimmera River is a spring fishing hot spot, as the weather heats up so does the fishing! Dark coloured spinnerbaits are as effective as a metal detector when it comes to finding gold with class yellowbelly feeding along the riverbank. Casting out worms is securing a catch with both reddies and catfish on the chew.
Tight lines – Mr. Percy!