Dan Gallardo with a sample of the snapper catch off Avalon.
Dan Gallardo with another nice snapper from Corio Bay’s outer harbour.
Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula
On Sunday afternoon, Collan and Jorran Erard went cruising along the channel’s edge between Point Henry and Clifton Springs, picking up some promising marks on the sounder. Among them appeared a very large arch, and that is where they dropped the anchor.
At first, there was nothing doing, but after 20 minutes or so, Collan’s squid strip was taken by a snapper that later weighed 9.1 kg. There was nothing else but flathead after that though, so they headed to a nearby spoil ground where they had some action on pinkie snapper to 40 cm.
After leaving work on Wednesday afternoon, Dan Gallardo, Tony Ortega, and Dule Savic decided that heading out onto Corio Bay after a snapper or two might be time well spent.
Sounding around in some of the spots where they’d caught them previously didn’t reveal much at all, so they headed across the bay toward Avalon’s Mountain View Quarries, and – as they approached the Nine Foot Bank – their screen lit up like a Christmas tree.
So over went the anchor, along with their lines, and within five minutes or so they’d hooked their first fish, the first of five ranging from 5.2 to 7 kg as it turned out, all taken on baits of pilchard and silver whiting.
Collan Erard with the 9.1 kg snapper he caught from Corio Bay’s outer harbour on Sunday.
On Wednesday morning, Andrew Johnson and Denis O’Brien headed into four metres of water inshore from the mussel farm hoping to get onto the whiting.
And not in vain as it turned out, for they got a dozen big ones before the bite shut down. But they knew from their first bite of the cherry that they were in a good area, so they only moved 50 metres or so to the east toward Portarlington.
And it was here, in six metres of water, they topped off their respective bag limit catches of whiting that measured from 35 to 43 cm on cocktail baits of mussel and squid.
Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports that clients who took advantage of the brief spell of good weather last week did well.
Whiting were the most sought-after fish, said Rod, with catches made from Grassy Point to the Governor Reefs which are just out from the Indented Head boat ramp, with anglers fishing on the drift also taking some good size flathead to 45 cm.
Four-year-old Mia Mallet with the snapper she caught while fishing offshore from Queenscliff with her father and grandpa.
Queenscliff
Four-year-old Mia Mallett loves fishing and sometimes goes out in the boat with her father and grandpa.
Last week, they launched at Queenscliff, and fishing offshore from the harbour entrance, Mia hooked what turned out to be her first snapper.
It put up a good fight, but Mia declined any assistance, save for a lift onto the cooler to give her some clearance over the gunwale as she brought it alongside, her dad scooping it up in the landing net.
Charlie Farrugia with a nice rainbow trout from Lake Purrumbete.
Chris Farrugia with a brown trout that was taken whilst downrigging a Tassie Devil.
Barwon estuary
Early last week, Simon Werner returned to the Barwon estuary after his previous success on the estuary perch here the week before, and once again, initiated a casting session along the mangroves upstream from Sheepwash.
And again, estuary perch were on the bite, and while most of those he caught on the soft plastic lures he was using were a bit on the small side, he kept four that were noticeably larger, measuring from 32 to 36 cm.
Kevin Wild of the Maryborough Angling Club with a nice redfin from Tullaroop Reservoir.
Don Rayner holding out another nice redfin from Tullaroop Reservoir.
Freshwater
John Clements of the Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park reports that regular trout aficionados Chris and Charlie Farrugia took both rainbow and brown trout while downrigging with a variety of lures over the weekend: Their biggest fish was Chris’ 3.63 kg brown trout.
Kevin Wild of the Maryborough Angling Club reports that Tullaroop Reservoir, which was recently re-opened for boating, has been producing redfin of which he and Don Rayner took a good sample to 42 cm while bobbing with worms.
Kevin also mentions that the Loddon River below Laanecoorie Weir is still producing good size yellowbelly, and among those to catch them here was club member Ian Morse who caught several to 52 cm using worms for bait.