Meng Zhang with one of the tuna caught from the charter boat Adamas on Sunday (Picture: Skipper, Rod Lawn).
Bruce Jheng with another tuna caught from Adamas (Picture: Skipper, Rod Lawn).
Offshore
Taking a run offshore from Barwon Heads on Sunday, Daniel Gallop had tuna in mind, and didn’t have to go very far to find them.
His first hook-up of five, was in 27 metres of water a kilometre or so out from Barwon Heads; four of them were bluefin tuna – two of which he returned – his biggest around 20 kg.
The other was a fair size mako shark that took his lure and leaped from the water several times before biting through the leader.
The tuna seem to be widespread: Simon Werner reports on an encounter just outside Port Philip Heads, also on Sunday, with a group of clients that included Meng Zhang and Bruce Jheng, aboard charter boat Adamas; nine anglers in all that took a total of eleven tuna, also from approximately 15 to 20 kg.
Simon also mentions that Australian salmon to 2 kg or so, are plentiful just inside Port Phillip Heads, eager to take most lures and providing an entertaining fishery for those unable to enter Bass Strait because of rough seas.
Chris Farrugia, who bagged out, both on bluefin tuna and gummy shark outside Port Phillip Heads last week.
Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula
Enticed by calm weather on Sunday afternoon, Murray and Darcy Scott launched off Avalon, but – no sooner had they done so – than the wind blew up, again from the south of south east; but they persisted, with whiting their quarry.
They soon found a good patch and had boated several before they hooked the first of several banjo sharks, that they released. Each and every one of these had obviously spooked the whiting, because – on each occasion they caught one – the whiting vanished; and this was the pattern for the afternoon and into the evening, forcing them to move several times to re-locate yet another school of whiting.
However, by dark, they’d finished up with 22 excellent fish, some nudging the 40 cm mark, which was a great effort considering the deteriorating weather and the onslaught of flat chaps.
Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports rough weather has been the stumbling block. However, on the days when weather permits, and clients are willing, whiting and squid have been on offer, along with flathead, and the occasional pinkie in the deeper water.
Al Castro with a nice mulloway from the Barwon estuary.
Freshwater
Danny Skene and Josh Leach have lure-fished Wurdiboluc Reservoir lately, their favourite being the good old Pegron Tiger that used to be a one-time favourite of many: Danny adds a little extra colour to the concave side with black nail polish, and reckons it ups the strike rate. Well, their catch of numerous redfin to 47 cm, and Josh’s 52 cm rainbow trout from here, speak volumes.
Michael Evans with a 3.4 kg brown trout from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: Victorian Inland Charters).
Warren Hales with his 1.7 kg Cheetah trout from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: John Clements).
John Clements of the Lake Purrumbete Holiday reports that among the successful anglers was Chris Farrugia of Oaklands Junction, who has taken bag limit catches of chinook salmon while trolling lures at some depth using a downrigger, while Sunshine resident Warren Hales’ catch included a 1.7 kg cheetah trout, which also garnered some attention.
Michael Evans of Victorian Inland Charters has had little trouble finding redfin for his clients, also on Lake Purrumbete, and during his infrequent lay days, he’s been trialling some “Bullet” lures that have proven effective on trophy size brown trout, his biggest measuring 67 cm and weighing 3.4 kg.
Another nice chinook salmon taken by Melbourne angler Colin Tissear, from Lake Bullen Merri, downrigging Tassie Devils at some depth (Picture: John Clements).
Tassie Reds
Damon Sherriff has had no trouble taking his bag limit of snapper, mostly just offshore from the Bridport harbour entrance, on every occasion that he has tried of late, mainly in the early morning or evening. And one good thing about it is, that he has this fishery virtually to himself.
Last week however, he put in a late-night vigil and was rewarded with a snapper that measured 87 cm (around 8.5 kg). Previous to that he caught a number of snapper from around 60 to 65 cm, all of which were released.
Damon Sherriff with yet another snapper, this one measuring 87 cm, and taken after dark just offshore from Tasmania’s Bridport Harbour entrance.
Garry asks,
Geoff, it’s my understanding that, as from April 1 this year, all commercial netting in Port Phillip will cease. However, I am concerned that the remaining 8 snapper longlining license holders are lobbying for an unlimited by-catch: By-catch resulting from snapper longlining is statistically predictable and definitely not unlimited: Can you clarify?
Garry, despite various rumours of backroom deals being done by Melissa Horne, the minister for fishing and boating with said license holders, I am in receipt of a media release dated 26/02/22, from her office revealing that: “Over the coming days, consultation by the Victorian Fisheries Authority (VFA) will commence regarding the number of other species that can be caught alongside the longlined snapper.”
This is an official release by the minister: So submissions to melissa.horne@parliament.vic.gov.au, and to executive director of Fisheries Victoria, Travis Dowling travis.dowling@ecodev.vic.gov.au, by yourself and other concerned parties, congratulating them on the exclusion of non-longline by-catch like flounder, whiting and squid, should be sent post haste.