Early bird: Danny Skene who won first prize in the Leopold Angling and Aquatic Club’s snapper competition at the weekend with a sample of his catch.
Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula
The Leopold Angling and Aquatic Club held its snapper competition over the weekend with Danny Skene catching the biggest fish of 7.7 kg: Second biggest, 6.3 kg, was taken by Matthew Kirby and third biggest, 6.2 kg, was taken by Ian Skirka.
Good weather on Thursday night saw Andrew Phillips and George Uranus on yet another nocturnal snapper vigil in their usual spot, which is north of the Curlewis Channel Junction, but they had to wait until 10.00 pm for their first fish of 5 kg.
After that, there was wasn’t much doing until the high tide change in the early hours of the morning when they caught another two fish of five and 6 kg, making a total of three altogether, all being caught on silver whiting and squid.
Mike Windsor of Clifton Springs Boat Hire also reports that snapper are about off Clifton Springs, and among those to catch them was Aaron Newtown with two of 6 and 8 kg. And on Sunday, Andrew Johnson and Dennis O’Brien caught one of 5 kg, also near the channel junction off Curlewis; that was before the wind picked up and sent them packing.
Australian salmon are about as Mike told us last week, and on Friday, Simon Werner, Jake Callahan and Frank Thorogood spied of flock of birds over a shoal of toward the Wilson Spit and caught their share, so to speak.
Anchoring up in much the same area, and using the freshly caught salmon for bait and berley, the dinner bell eventually rang at around 4.30 pm, heralding a catch of five big snapper within an hour, Frank catching the largest at just on 9 kg.
Matthew Kirby whose 6.3 kg snapper won second prize in the Leopold Angling and Aquatic Club’s snapper competition at the weekend.
Freshwater
Fishing Lake Purrumbete last week, Garry Ridgeway and Roger Tolland caught so many redfin on scrubworms that they eventually lost count, but of those they kept, the biggest weighed 950 grams. They also fished mudeyes beneath floats for a tally of nine rainbow trout ranging in size from 750 grams to 1.25 kg.
John Clements of the Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park, reports that those to do well during the weekend ANSA comp – which was held at Lakes Purrumbete, Bullen Merri and Ettrick – included Daniel Sparks with a 2.4 kg brown trout, Peter Thorpe with another brown of 3.6 kg and Glenn Miller with a rainbow trout of 2.1 kg; all from Lake Ettrick. Frank Naylor weighed in a redfin of 1.1 kg, and Terry Haig, another of 1.3 kg from Purrumbete, and fishing Lake Bullen Merri was Kevin Hunter who caught a chinook salmon of 2.4 kg.
John Woolard and David Torelli with their tuna at Portland (Picture: Bob McPherson).
Portland
Bob McPherson reports that large bluefin tuna are still to be caught offshore from Portland and among those to find them was Simon Rinaldi of Red Hot Charters. He located a school off Cape Bridgewater last week for clients John Woolard and David Torelli who both hooked up to big fish that eventually weighed 120.4 and 95.6 kg.
As for Bob, he and his friend George Gereige took advantage of the current run of whiting, and – while fishing close in to Cape Nelson – caught some good ones.
George Gereige with a sample of the whiting presently on offer at Portland (Picture: Bob McPherson).
Ron Nelson Memorial
The Ron Nelson memorial fishing competition for junior anglers is to be held from 9.00 am until 1.00 pm on Sunday 29/10/17 at St Augustine’s Waterhole off Pigdons Road in Highton, which is on the grounds of Deakin University (Melway ref: 464 J-K5).
The event is hosted by the Association of Geelong and District Angling Clubs Inc. and sponsored by Trelly’s Fishing Tackle and Taylor Made Insurance; so there are valuable prizes to be won.
Prizes will be awarded in various sections including:
Heaviest trout for boys and girls from 2 to 10 years old.
Heaviest trout for boys and girls from 11 to 16 years old.
Heaviest species other than trout in all sections.
Encouragement awards.
All anglers must register before competing, and – while entry is free – you will need to bring your own bait and fishing tackle (one rod and reel). Drivers are to ensure that their vehicles are parked within designated areas:
For further information phone Ian Pickering 5266 1008 or John Hotchin 5248 6817