Linda Stewart with a sample of the snapper she and husband Murray caught near Point Henry on Saturday (Picture: Murray Stewart).
Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula
Murray Stewart and wife Linda did well on the snapper last week, and over the weekend.
They were easy enough to find on Friday, with plenty showing up along the edge of the old access channel to Alcoa at Point Henry, but they showed no interest. However, another pod of fish they located some 250 metres from the channel produced fish to 4 kg.
A return trip on Saturday’s low tide change produced a much better class of fish, but Linda lost what would have been the biggest fish of the day, a beauty of easily 8 kg when the hook pulled beside the boat.
Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports that discoloured water from recent rough weather made lean pickings on the squid. However, whiting remain good, he said, having cleaned more whiting than flathead for clients lately, something of a first.
Keeping a late night vigil on the St Leonards Pier on Sunday night, as he has in recent months with some success, was Martinus De Lange who caught his first snapper shortly after midnight.
He caught five from then until 2.00 am or so; three around the 4 kg mark, the other two a good deal smaller, but well over legal size as were the fish that others caught from the pier that night.
Fishing Queenscliff’s Lonsdale Bight on Sunday afternoon was Steve O’Keefe who found the water somewhat cleaner than further north on the Peninsula. The squid were more co-operative as well with he and his companion catching their 20 without too much difficulty.
Barwon estuary
Chris and Daniel Stamalos had intended to make an early start on Corio Bay on Sunday morning, hopeful of catching a snapper or two, but with hot and breezy conditions forecast, they fished the incoming tide on the Barwon estuary from around 7.00 am.
A good move as it turned out for they were soon into some really good size silver trevally, but what was a real surprise were several large leatherjackets around the kilogram mark that they caught as well.
They also caught any number of Australian salmon, large mullet, and – although there were some small ones amongst them – a number of King George whiting to 35 cm.
Freshwater
Steve O’Keefe, who has been doing well on squid and whiting in Corio Bay and Queenscliff of late, headed off to Lake Elingamite near Cobden on Saturday afternoon. And, while this water can be an unknown quantity in respect to launching conditions, all was fine on this occasion.
The fishing was a bit low to begin with though, with his mudeyes only tempting redfin to 500 grams or so, but his luck changed toward evening with a 2 kg rainbow trout.
John Clements of the Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park reports that redfin are still on the go, and that he, John Longtack of Port Fairy, and Jeremy Richardson of Colac fished together on Sunday morning for 82 reddies using minnow for bait.
Trophy size brown trout are still on offer, said John, with Trevor Phillips of Bendigo picking up one of 3.6 kg on the fly.
Trevor also visited nearby Lake Bullen Merri where he caught several chinook salmon to a kilogram or so, berleying with, and baiting up with cut pilchards.
Kevin Wild of the Maryborough Angling Club and wife Amber visited Lake Mulwala over the weekend, where – fishing in hot and windy conditions – all they could manage were a few small cod.
However, club member, Rohan Schroeder caught several cod to 60 cm casting spinnerbaits over the shallow weedy areas.
Kevin also mentioned that club member Kevin Parker continued to do well on Cairn Curran Reservoir for yellowbelly over the weekend. As usual, he used yabbies for bait amongst the timber, taking his bag limit of five fish to 43 cm or so on both visits.
Steven asks:
Geoff, I keep hearing about Paternoster Rigs: What are they?
Steven, Pater Noster means Our Father in Latin, initially intended I guess, to invite some divine intervention.
Paternoster rigs are very basic, featuring a sinker at the end of the line with one or more hook lengths or droppers attached above the sinker.