Corio BayRight on Geelong’s doorstep Corio Bay saw pinkie snapper hold in tight around structure casting soft plastics. Making sure your jig head hits the bottom was key to success with a 1/6oz head ideal in the rougher conditions. The odd flathead and salmon made for bycatch. Out on the Stingray Bay spoil grounds whiting were still on offer with pippie that standout bait.
Peri with a pinkie snapper.
Clifton SpringsLandbased fisho’s encountered numbers of squid from the new Clifton Springs jetty of a night. Casting 2.5 sized jigs was ideal in the shallow water.
PortarlingtonHeading over to Portarlington and Indented Heads the wild weather made squid fishing tough but when able to find break in the weather and the water clarity was good, boating a bag of squid was no trouble.
Surf BeachesHitting the surf beaches was another option when the weather allowed. Spinning with 30 gram lures on the lead up to high tide saw Australian salmon to 1.5kg beached. Anglers fishing baits also had success on salmon with top beaches Bancoora & Jan Juc.
Stony CreekOn the freshwater scene Stony Creek saw the odd larger brown trout snap up a lure. There is also thumping big redfin that call Stony Creek home which are always worth targeting with Fish Arrow soft plastics.
Lake Bullen MerriLake Bullen Merri was productive for chinook salmon both bait and lure getting the job done with fish averaging the 1kg mark. The area known as Potter’s Point is a great place to start your search for chinook salmon and rainbow trout.
Lake BolacDown the road Lake Bolac has the odd rainbow trout snapping up powerbait fished from the bank. This location should really become a hot spot over the next month or two.
Goulburn River Unfortunately with the current environmental flow going down the Goulburn at the moment, Cray fishing is nearly impossible, I have heard of a few fisho’s thinking outside the box and resorting to the old string on a stick technique with good success, slowly pulling the Crays towards a carefully placed net and scooping them in. Kirwans Bridge area is fishing ok, try the shallower water with smaller lures such as Jackall Chibitarels and Size 2 Stumpjumpers for some Cod around 50 to 65cm. Below the Weir is really high, but if you find where the deeper water is along the bends where the water swirls and slows, normally a few sticks and leave building up, and bob some Worms or Soft Plastics, your in with a chance of a Cod or Yellowbelly.
Shepparton Region A few nice sized Trout in Victoria Lake, Powerbait under a float fishing the Western Side of the Lake working well, and the standout method at the moment is Fly fishing, when these local lakes are stocked with Trout for the school holidays, it is a really good time to teach the kids or yourself how to fly fish. Some of the Channels still hold some water, mainly number 6, 7, 8, and 9, worms the best bait and move frequently to find the Redfin, as they aren't concentrated around drop bars at the moment.
Lake Mulwala Lake Mulwala is the standout at the moment, not huge numbers of Cod, but most Fisho’s are getting a shot at 1 to 3 big fish a session, the Cod seem to be on the Eastern Side of the lake and in quite shallow water, fish coming out of less than 60cm of water in some cases, surface lures have been hard work, most fish being caught on Jackall Gantarels and Giganterels, and extra shallow divers.
Blowering Dam Shop regular Jason Webb caught a fish of a lifetime at Blowering last week, going an awesome 138cm, we have had reports filtering through from Blowering, not huge numbers and a lot of Fisho’s traveling up there for donuts and to get freezing cold, but worth the effort if you get a massive fish like Webby did, Good Job.
Loddon River System Reports are few and far between but as always at this time of year if you put in the time and are prepared to brave the cold you will get the chocolates.
For Pro-Staffer Justin this was certainly the case after taking his own advice from the last fishing report and tips and hitting the Loddon River in the early morning to land a nice 85cm Murray Cod on a Gangster Lures Hoodlum in Purple/Black.
Casting larger profiles lures hard to structure is certainly the key. Lures such as the Gangster Lures Hoodlum, Jackall Pompadour and Ganteral will certainly give you the best chance of catching that large Winter time cod.
Justin Rees with an 85cm Murray Cod caught on a Gangster Lures Hoodlum.
Campaspe River System There have been a few good reports coming from around the Barnadown area of Murray Cod up to 80cm being caught on both bait and lure. Surface lures have been accounting for a number of cod as well as larger profiles spinnerbaits and hardbodies all cast tight to the structure. Cheese and chicken are still the flavour of the month if you are heading out bait fishing.
Lake Neanger & Lake Tom Thumb With the school holidays coming quickly to an end, one of the best spots to take the kids fishing has been Lake Neanger & Lake Tom Thumb. With amazing access around the entire lake, reports of redfin up to 40cm being caught recently and the release of 500 Rainbow Trout by the Victorian Fisheries Authority in the past week, make sure you head down there.
Spinners have been the standout lure, but we also recommend you try small shallow diving hardbodies and lipless crankbaits cast near the weed beds and powerbait to target those recently released trout.
Kennington Reservoir Kennington Reservoir received 1000 Rainbow Trout in the past two weeks ready for the school holidays and That’s The Thing About Fishing’s clinic for caring families. Trelly’s Outdoor Bendigo was proud to sponsor this event run in conjunction with Bendigo Health and the Victorian Fisheries Authority. Families braved the cold and wet weather to come down and give fishing a try with pro staffers Bryce and Karen there to assist families and help them learn the basics of bait fishing.
Pro staffer Bryce assisting a young kid at the fishing clinic.
Some of the very happy (and wet) kids with their prizes. Photo courtesy of Victorian Fisheries Authority.
Next Week The bream fishing in the Hopkins in well worth the drive with some beasty bream starting to come on the chew. Soft plastics like the Z Man 2.5” grub and vibes, Eco Gear VX35 are the most effective way to target these fish at present.
Next week let’s hope the weather eases up. Anglers looking to wet a line can’t go past the Bellarine Peninsular for squid. Surf beaches for Australian Salmon are an easy option. There should still be a few large winter snapper kicking around Corio Bay too.
