The Pelican's Pick
Friday, 28 June
As if fishing for 100kg+ southern bluefin tuna wasn’t hard enough, this week southwest local Brandon made it a bit harder! Known as a man-of-the-sea and future legend of the abalone industry, Brandon has been eyeing off an International Game Fishing Association line class WORLD RECORD for some time now. Last weekend, as the weather window opened, Brandon headed out searching for barrels on the surface with a 15kg game outfit. These are usually suited to small tuna less than 40kg. After trolling around for a while, he’d started to lose interest and was filming the dolphins, when the drag alarm on one of the rods started screaming! Four back breaking hours later, his girlfriend helped him lift the 120kg beast into the boat (apparently she did most of the lifting), making him a pending IGFA world record holder. Rumour has it that Brandon has since given up fishing. Well done, Brandon!
Inland
A week into the cold snap and things have started to shift from natives to trout and redfin across the board!
Up in the north, we heard about a well-conditioned 60cm+ Murray cod taken on a bardi in the lower reaches of Gunbower Creek.
Closer to Bendigo, cold weather has slowed things down but with some sunny afternoons, fishing has been good when people are getting out. Local Family Fishing Lakes Thom Thumb, Crusoe and Neanger are fishing well land-based with spinners, plastics and hard bodies for reddies and rainbow trout we’ve stocked for the holidays. There are more than 80 lakes that’ve received catchable size ‘bows in the last 2-3 weeks. Check out the list – www.vfa.vic.gov.au/holidaytrout
Eppalock natives have gone quiet, but good bags of larger reddies from deep water have been taken. Fishing baits like worms and yabbies, or trolling lures, has been effective, with the odd yella still getting picked up as by-catch. Springtime will see that yella action really heat up again!
Tullaroop is fishing well when conditions are right, for good size trout and reddies. They’re being caught in the shallows and in deeper water with lures and bait. As soon as we get some rain, the western bank will fish well as the lake fills.
At Lake Eildon, anglers are still picking up Murray cod and the occasional golden perch using deep diving lures and baits such as yabbies and worms. Early morning and late evening have been productive times, with the biggest cod getting caught during the cold nights when targeted with live scope sounders.
Trout fishing in Lake Wendouree has been excellent, with anglers having success using fly fishing techniques and small lures. We’ve seen the occasional dun hatch occur out of season, so the lake’s nymph life is still active and should see fish continue to feed.
Don’t forget the Crater Lakes in the southwest. These places (Purrumbete and Bullen Merri) are sleeping giants and so are the trout within them. Good tiger trout have been taken on lures and white bait.
Moorabool Reservoir near Ballan is worth a look. It’s land-based fishing only, but don’t let that deter you. It’s home to some big reddies and even bigger brown trout. They’re not easy, but 3kg+ browns are caught from Moorabool every year. That’s a thumper in anyone’s book.
Along the Coast
This week has provided good weather to get offshore at times, particularly in the far east and west of the state. Mallacoota is looking to have a few more good days before the wind swings around again. There’s been great reports of gummy sharks caught on closer reefs from Marlo to Lakes Entrance.
Bream fishing has been consistent around Metung and Paynesville, particularly near fallen trees and jetties. Soft plastics and peeled prawns have been effective baits, with early morning the best time to target them. Bream are still on the chew in the Tambo, with a few local kids getting their kayaks ready for the school holidays to continue their great run of fishing lately. Small suspending lures and soft plastics are working well, as is fresh cut crab.
Salmon fishing off the beaches is a popular way to fish during winter. Just rug up! Casting metal slices long or fishing a pilchard in closer are two deadly ways to find them.
In the southwest, there are plenty of school tuna about and the barrels are back amongst them. Watch the weather before heading out to find them, as the wind is about to swing onshore and cause a few headaches. Gummies are on the bite for those who don’t want to troll lures around. Several good gummies have been taken lately on oily fish baits.
Around the Bays
Salmon fishing has been productive this week, especially around the shallow parts of the bay from the Bellarine to Avalon. The big story is still calamari! The bay is full of them at the moment, with some really large squid getting caught along the Bellarine.
There are a few ways to tackle squid fishing if you’re new to it. Drifting with the wind is a great way to cover water and find a patch of them. Size 2.5-3.0 in a few different colours can be cast from the boat into the wind. Then click the reel’s bail arm over and let them drift along behind the boat. Don’t be afraid to let more line out to get them down in the water column a bit more. Or try a 3.5 jig to get down closer the bottom. A sea-anchor is a great tool to slow the drift too.
If you’re feeling lazy, suspending jigs below a float is another great way to tackle squid. Floats ensure the jig can’t sink too much and are terrific if drifting over heavy seagrass or shallow reef. Nobody likes losing squid jigs after all! And floats are wonderful for kids too, because they can watch them and wait for them to be submerged by a squid. Fish on, hopefully mum and dad!
Whiting continue to bite along the Bellarine from Point Henry around to Clifton Springs and Portarlington. There’s smaller fish amongst them so be prepared to move if pestered by fish under 30cm.
A few winter snapper have been about for bay fishers targeting them. They’re not easy this time of year, but they are there. Gummies are about too so you can have a bet each way if fishing the deeper water.
In Western Port, whiting fishing has been excellent near Tortoise Head and Tankerton. Anglers are using pipis and squid strips on a running sinker rig to catch their bag limits. Flathead have also been biting well in the sandy channels and big squid are always on the cards in Western Port.
Tight lines – Mr Percy!