Shane Handley with the bronze whaler he caught, and released, at Point Lonsdale last week.
On Wednesday night, Shane Handley tried his luck from the Point Lonsdale Pier once more where he’d previously caught a bronze whaler of probably 160 kg, and which we featured on February 8.
His luck was in, and – using a small bonito for bait – caught another bronze whaler; less than half the size of the one previously featured, which – on this occasion – was returned, very much alive and kicking,
Senior fisheries officer David Burgess poses for a selfie with Point Lonsdale sharker, Rohan Mandad.
Fishing the beach at Jan Juc early last week, Ray Millman’s nocturnal vigil produced a couple of juvenile bronze whalers – which he returned –before hooking something much larger.
After a long struggle, he managed to bring in a large black stingray, a species with a much longer tail and tail spike than our more common smooth stingray. And this one, a male, was arcing its tail threateningly at Ray as he tried to remove the hook that was caught in its flap.
Finally, at some risk to himself, he managed to free the ray that continued arcing its tail through the surface, not only as it swam away from the beach, but on its return shortly after; extraordinary behaviour also witnessed by Ray’s companion Callum, who’d arrived soon after the initial event.
Melton angler, Mark Francis, arrived at Edwards Point (the headland just south of St Leonards) at around 7.30 pm Wednesday, after a 4 km trek in from the nearest road access.
The action began at around 8.30, with each rod signalling bites from what turned out to be pinkie snapper, only one of which he considered large enough to keep.
All was quiet after that until 10.00 pm, when on the outgoing tide, one of his rods signalled a bite from what turned out to be a gummy shark of possibly 6 kg, that was followed by a smaller gummy that he released.
Fishing from the Swan Bay jetty last week, Martinus de Lange was hoping to catch a gummy shark. However, he was surprised to find the fish that took his whole pilchard was an 80 cm flathead of possibly 3.5 kg.
Kevin McLoughlin with the bronze whaler that he and Marcus Pearson caught off Torquay on Saturday.
Martinus de Lange with the 80 cm flathead he caught from the Swan Bay jetty.
Offshore
Kevin McLoughlin and Marcus Pearson regularly fish offshore from Torquay for gummy and school shark, and on this occasion, a yellowtail scad (yakka) was among the baits they were soaking, but what they hooked seemed somewhat larger than a gummy, or even a really large school shark.
It was, in fact, a two-metre bronze whaler that should keep them in flake for some time.
Mark Francis’ gummy shark from Edwards Point at the entrance to Swan Bay.
Corio Bay
A daybreak start on Saturday saw Andrew Phillips and Mark Sesar head out to one of their usual haunts off Leopold, but with little doing from the whiting they were seeking, and with other boats arriving, up came the anchor.
Moving into deeper water did the trick, and in 7 metres off the Pelican Shores caravan park, they had a good whiting bite to themselves.
Come 8.30 am, they’d picked up 30 fish to 41 cm when the wind swung into the north east, moving them off their mark, and that – coupled with the sun breaking through – persuaded their return to the ramp.
Mike Windsor of Clifton Springs Boat Hire reports that whiting are on offer and among those to catch them was Andrew Johnson who also made a daybreak start, and – as in the previous report – initially found lean pickings.
However, with faith in this previously productive spot off Curlewis, he waited, and – after most of the other boats left – his patience eventually paid off with a bag limit catch of whiting to 41 cm by 10.30 am.
Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire reports that whiting were off the bite last week, squid though were plentiful he said, and that good size pinkie snapper were on offer at the Prince George Light.
Colin Tissear caught this 3 kg chinook salmon while downrigging a Tassie Devil at Lake Bullen Merri, along with several other chinook and rainbow trout.
Brian Rivett with a sample of the redfin currently on offer at Tullaroop Reservoir.
Freshwater
Kevin Wild reports that fellow Maryborough Angling Club members have done well at Tullaroop reservoir where Brian Rivett and Shane Stevens took redfin to 49 cm using ice jigs.
Club member Ken Hinks also took three dozen good size redfin, and reaped a serious catch of yabbies from the same water with well-placed yabby nets, while club members, Don and Robert Rayner, fished Cairn Curran Reservoir where they took any number of yellowbelly.