The past 12 months saw us still trying to recover from the pandemic, and what hit us was a cost-of-living hike, with power bills, food and grocery costs increasing significantly. We can all hope this next year will be a better one.
Without being too gloomy, it was not a good year, so this one should be better — well, I sure hope so.
Let’s talk about fishing. All reports from the local scene are promising. Cod are still on the bite in all the local rivers and streams. Although most are small juveniles, this is a good sign for the future. Yellowbelly have also been caught. Anglers fishing for cod also catch yellowbelly, as they share a similar habitat and feeding behaviour.
With most of Lake Eildon covered by holidaymakers, the areas open to fishing boats will be limited. The same goes for both the Murray and Goulburn rivers. To ensure you can get on the water to fish, go early in the morning, at lunchtime or at dusk. These times are also the best for fishing, especially early morning.
Lake Dartmouth does not allow skiing or wakeboarding boats, so they are not a problem on this waterway. You can fish there without the danger of excessive boat traffic. Lake Hume, however, does allow ski boats and wakeboarding.
Remember, we share all these waterways, so be polite on the water and stick to the rules.
I had a chat with one of the fire bomber pilots this week. He said one of his call-outs was to a camp in the Barmah Forest. While there were several tents, cars and a couple of boats, the camp was deserted, and one of the cars had caught fire, potentially causing a serious blaze. While I don’t know the full outcome, this should serve as a warning to anyone camping.
Speaking of Barmah, the fishing in the Murray in that area, up to Morgans Beach, has been good, with plenty of reports of juvenile cod. Some bigger fish and yellowbelly have also been caught by anglers using bait such as yabbies, shrimp, worms, cheese and chicken — all getting similar results.
While most areas along the Murray are occupied by holidaymakers, there is still plenty of room for anglers, including from Ulupna all the way to Cobram, as well as, of course, the Goulburn River from Seymour to Shepparton and downstream to the Murray.
Then there are the two Broken waterways: the Broken River from Benalla to Shepparton, and the Broken Creek from Numurkah to Nathalia and on to the Murray. Both are good fisheries for cod and yellowbelly.
Now, down south for some saltwater action. Rod Lawn from Adamas Fishing Charters, based in Queenscliff, said the fishing around his area had continued to be good. While it had been hard to get offshore due to the weather, the fishing in the bay had been productive, with plenty of whiting and flathead around the usual spots, including Swan Bay, St Leonards and from Point Nepean to Sorrento.
Rod Lawn said that offshore, he had been bagging snapper, trevally, salmon and gummy sharks.
North of the NSW border at Eden, John Liddell said there had been little action offshore, but snapper and morwong were being caught inshore. Graham Cowley from Narooma said it was the same off Montague Island.
Down south at Flinders Island, James Luddington reported plenty of flathead and gummy sharks around Lady Barron.
Well, on behalf of the team, have a happy and safe new year — and good fishing!
10°C