Jetty jubilation: Chas and Jed Laforgia with the 4.8 kg brown trout they caught from the Lake Purrumbete Jetty at the weekend (Picture: Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park).
Freshwater
John Clements of the Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park reports that fishing from the jetty is popular and occasionally, equally productive as from a boat, something illustrated by brothers Chas and Jed Laforgia while soaking a mudeye here, beneath a float at the weekend.
John said the commotion this event caused could be heard from his office as the pair eventually subdued a 4.8 kg brown trout with the landing net.
Steve O’Keefe had a story to tell after fishing Lake Mulwala near Bundalong with a few of his mates last week.
While the fishing was slow with yellowbelly scarce, Jamie Avery of Mathoura took a spectacular strike which resulted in a battle through an obstacle course of timber and twigs before he was able to capture, and then release, a Murray cod that measured 1.22 metres in length.
Offshore
Following his previous success on snapper off Black Rock, Chris Stamalos headed over that way again last week, and – anchoring up in just over 30 metres of water once more – picked up two more snapper, the biggest around 4.5 kg.
After that though, apart from having squid take his baits every now and again, things were pretty quiet. However, as he was about to leave, he hooked what turned out to be a large gummy shark of probably 15 kg.
Mark Sesar with a sample of the whiting catch off Point Henry (Picture: Mark Sesar).
Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula
Mark Sesar and his friend Peter Richards fished offshore from Point Henry near the Alcoa Pier last week, where they were successful on the whiting during the early morning flood tide.
Using fresh squid for bait, they caught 12 before the bite eventually shut down, and what beauties they were; the biggest measuring 42 cm.
Fishing the ebb tide at one of their favourite whiting marks off Curlewis, in just under 7 metres of water last week, were Andrew Johnson and Dennis O’Brien, who took half a dozen good size fish before they went off the bite.
Moving west off Leopold to another formerly productive spot was no better, so they resumed fishing at Curlewis, where – with the aid of a substantial berley input of crushed mussels – they eventually finished by early afternoon with a tally of 20 keepers to 42 cm and three respectable flathead, the biggest measuring 48cm.
Snook have also been present over the seagrass beds, something mentioned by Andrew and Dennis who lost several through being bitten off on their whiting gear before boating two around the 80 cm mark; others have had little trouble catching them on lures.
Mike Windsor of Clifton Springs Boat Hire also reports that good size flathead are about, and on Sunday, John Hollis and John Dunlop’s catch included fish to 40 cm; that was before the wind came up, persuading their return.
Gummy shark are about as well said Mike with Lachlan and Jake O’Brien picking up two to 1.2 kg off Portarlington, while Henry Wynhover and Andrew Chandler picked a couple up off Clifton Springs.
Lachie Wombell with a sample of the Portland whiting catch.
Portland
Bob McPherson reports that the fishing has been somewhat slow down Portland way, but he and Lachie Wombell been picking up whiting around the 40 cm mark along the north shore using pipis for bait.
Geoffrey asks:
Geoff, what are your thoughts on the FG Knot? I couldn’t find it in your knot book or video.
Geoffrey, I take it you do understand what FG stands for in this context?
And, none of the so-called FG Knot versions are actually knots, they are all progressive splices based the process of plaiting, either conventionally or in reverse.
While the plaited splice I’ve illustrated has been used for over 40 years to my recollection, and is formed in the manner of a hairdresser plaiting hair – with two of the three required stands being manifest by forming a loop in the main line, the third strand required being either an additional length of similar line, or a leader of heavier line – methods of tying the so-called FG Knot usually form the plait in reverse.
Most YouTube versions involve attaching a monofilament leader, the short end or tag being introduced at right angles to the main line, which is held under some tension. The leader tag is then alternately wrapped around each side of the main line until a splice of sufficient length is formed. The fixed end of the main line is then released and used to form a series of half hitches around both the leader tag and main line to secure the splice.