Geoff Wilson’s Fishing Knots And Rigs

Kane Ardiri sent in this picture of sons Ashton and Joseph, and granddaughter Phoebe with their mixed bag of fish taken off Barwon Heads.

Offshore

Bottom fishing offshore from Barwon Heads in 30 metres of water last week were Kane Ardiri, sons Ashton and Joseph, and granddaughter Phoebe.

They were off to a good start taking some reasonable pinkie snapper and gummy shark before Kane hooked a bronze whaler of possibly 30 kg, but which ultimately escaped.

After that, they spied some action at the surface that turned out to be tuna, and – breaking out the appropriate tackle – were kept busy for an hour or so taking several, and a kingfish that Ashton caught on a jig amongst the tuna.

Also taking advantage of the remaining good weather last week, the Lorne Aquatic and Angling Club’s third fishing competition this year produced 28 nice fish. Carolyn Griffiths of Lorne caught the largest, a 60 cm flathead that came from 25 metres of water.

Whiting were the main catch though with Mal Hunter taking the biggest at 535 grams; his son Jack took out the junior section with another nice one of 510 grams.

Carolyn Griffiths with the southern blue-spotted (yank) flathead she caught offshore from Lorne

John Ireland with a bumper catch of redfin from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: John Clements).

Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula

Early last week, Andrew Phillips and Mark Sesar fished the morning high tide change in perfect weather off Point Richards, but the whiting were hard to find. And, with grass whiting, small leatherjackets and other unwanted fish taking their baits, they continually kept on the move.

Eventually though, they found a good pod of whiting off the east end of the mussel farm, and using pipis and squid for bait, they finished with a bag limit catch, the biggest, 42 cm, along with several nice flathead, the biggest measuring 51 cm.

Mike Windsor of Clifton Springs Boat Hire reports good fishing prior to the weekend, and that on Wednesday, Bill McHardy and Steve Kent caught good bags of whiting to 40 cm, and some good size flathead using pipis for bait just 300 metres off the boat ramp.

They said they would have caught even more had it not been for the number of small pinkie snapper that moved in on their baits.

Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head also reported excellent fishing before the unseasonal weather rolled in with any amount of flathead being taken on the drift out in the deeper water.

Closer in, squid were the main catch said Rod, and there were some good ones up to a kilogram or so along with the welcome appearance of some good size whiting.

Among those to find the whiting on Wednesday were Jeff Richards and Chris Hateley who picked up eighteen really good size fish to 42 cm just north of the No 6 West Channel Marker before the pinkies moved in on their baits.

Geoff Bice with his 3.15 kg brown trout from Lake Purrumbete.

Andrew Ketelaar with a 2.5 kg rainbow trout that he caught from Wurdiboluc Reservoir.

Freshwater

Andrew Ketelaar had a fantastic session at Wurdiboluc Reservoir on Saturday using soft plastics in the Berkley power bait minnow 3-inch range, and Nories Wasabi Spoons.

He finished up with 3 rainbow trout including one beauty of possibly 2.5 kg, and recommends fishing this water early in the morning or late afternoon for best results.

Redfin remain the main catch at Lake Purrumbete with John Ireland from South Australia scooping the pool using live minnow for bait.

Jeff Bice of Werribee also fished Lake Purrumbete, and trolling Tassie Devils along the surface, caught a nice brown trout of 3.15 kg and 9 chinook salmon, each around the kilogram mark.

Most of the larger chinook seem to be down deep near the bottom though, and among those to pick them up was Lauren Pearce of Brighton whose catch included one of 2 kg that took a fillet of pilchard.

Geoff Bice’s catch of brown trout and chinook salmon from Lake Purrumbete.

Andrew Ketelaar’s rainbow trout from Wurdiboluc Reservoir.

Ollie Asks:

Geoff, congratulations on having an artificial Reef in Corio Bay named after you; but where is it?

Thank you, Ollie, the reef in question at the entrance to Corio Bay between Portarlington and Kirk Point. GPS co-ordinates, in the Geocentric Datum of Australia (GDA94) format are 38° 03.436’ x 144° 36.588’

It’s on the north side of the Point Richards shipping channel at a depth of 8.5 metres and consists of six, 6×4 metre modules within a 38×18 metre rectangle, which is marked.

Construction involved 330 tonnes of basalt, capped with 33 tonnes of limestone and seeded with approximately 3 tonnes of mussels and about 130,000 native oysters.

Roger Lewry with a sample from his last week’s catch at Queenscliff.

Paul Rahman with one of the large squid he and wife Selin caught off Clifton Springs on Sunday.

Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula

Fishing for whiting near Coles Beacon (off the mouth of Swan Bay at Queenscliff) on Wednesday afternoon, Roger Lewry found the fishing slow, as many others have lately, and only caught four whiting.

However, he did catch a quite a few legal-size pinkie snapper and a flathead weighing 2.2 kg.

Making an early start on Wednesday morning, Andrew Phillips and Tony Greck were greeted with calm seas, clear water, and floating weed off Point Richards, not the most ideal fishing situation.

And, the overwhelming presence of leatherjackets and grass whiting taking their baits wasn’t encouraging either.

Paul Rahman with the 46 cm King George whiting he caught from Corio Bay on Thursday.

Olivia Kettner 11, with a 2 kg chinook salmon from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: John Clements).

The pair made several moves but there wasn’t much on offer; not until a breeze came up ruffling the water, something that changed their fortunes for the better with bag-limit catches of whiting, the biggest measuring 42 cm.

Others to do well on the whiting included Dennis O’Brien and Peter Dawson who took bag-limit catches from the same area, also on Wednesday. And, on Sunday, Andrew Johnson and wife Jenny fished here as well, but leatherjackets were continually taking their baits.

Moving in shallower was initially promising, that was until the wind changed to the south, and blowing quite strongly for a while, before settling down, allowing a resumption of a near bag-limit catch of fish to 41 cm.

One of the blue whales Bob McPherson photographed off Portland on Friday.

On Thursday evening Paul and Selin Rahman headed over to Point Wilson where they had no trouble taking whiting to 35 cm, but no really big ones: Well, not until sunset when that all changed with a run much bigger fish, the biggest measuring 46 cm.

On Sunday, the pair also did very well on the squid off Clifton Springs taking 14, all really good size fish with the biggest weighing 2 kg.

Mike Windsor of Clifton Springs Boat Hire reports there are whiting to be caught off Curlewis as well with John Huismann, and his sons, taking 26 some 300 metres out from the red shed.

Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire also reports that clients have been taking good catches of both squid and whiting, some within 100 metres or so of his shed, while flathead continue to be taken in good numbers on the drift from the deeper water.

Tory and Jacob Ardiri with the tuna they caught offshore from Barwon Heads.

Offshore

Heading off Barwon Heads on Saturday, Kane Ardiri was hoping to find a tuna each for son Tory and nephew Jacob, the first course of action being to locate them, either feeding at the surface or at some depth using the sounder.

Michael Goldby with an XOS gemfish taken out wide from Portland (Picture: Bob McPherson).

The second was to berley them up with

pilchards, and – having got their interest – put one over the side on a hook; a subterfuge that had eventually had the desired effect with two tuna in the boat.

Kevin Wild with the 1.05 metre Murray cod he caught from Lake Mulwala (Picture: Amber Wild).

Freshwater

Kevin and Amber Wild of the Maryborough Angling Club have just returned from Lake Mulwala having caught a number of Murray Cod that included one of 1.05 metres. It was the third cod over a metre that the pair caught and released over the past three months.

Tony Missen from Airport West with a 3.2 kg brown trout from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: John Clements).

Mind you, other club members also did

well with Glen (Boof) Lorenzo taking a 96 cm cod from the Murray at Murrabit, and other members doing well on redfin at Tullaroop Reservoir and on yellowbelly at Cairn Curran Reservoir.

John Clements of Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park reports that redfin are still plentiful with John Ireland from South Australia getting his share on live minnow.

Brown trout have been a little scarce said John, but Jason Bongart from Ballan picked up a nice one of 2.75 kg while fishing mudeyes under a float.

John also reports that chinook salmon are still on offer and sent in a photo of Olivia Kettner with one around the 2 kg mark.

Michael Goldby with a cucumber fish taken out wide from Portland (Picture: Bob McPherson).

Michael Goldby with a school shark taken out wide from Portland (Picture: Bob McPherson).

Portland

With calm weather on Good Friday, Bob McPherson, along with Michael Goldby and Ben Malcolm, headed out toward the Continental shelf, coming across a pod of blue whales feeding on krill in 160 metres that Bob stopped to photograph.

Michael Goldby and Ben Malcom with a sample of the blue-eye trevalla they caught out wide from Portland (Picture: Bob McPherson).

They finished up in 500 metres of water where they did a job on the blue-eye trevalla they were seeking, along with a by-catch of gemfish, school shark and even the unusual cucumber fish; Paraulopus nigripinnus for anyone wanting to look it up.

Rohan Mandad with the seven-gilled shark he caught from the Point Lonsdale Pier on Wednesday evening.

On hearing of sharks being caught from the Point Lonsdale Pier, Melbourne angler Rohan Mandad – suitably equipped with game-fishing tackle and a bonito he bought from the Preston market for bait – drifted his line out from the pier on Wednesday evening’s rising tide.

All was quiet until the tide slackened off at around 9.00 pm. That’s when the reel’s growl had Rohan at action stations, eventually beaching a 2.4 metre seven-gilled shark that should see him well supplied with flake for some time.

Off the Beach

With his favourite beach at Torquay fouled with weed on Thursday evening, Ray Millman found the beach in front of the main Jan Juc car park much cleaner.

That was at about 8.00 pm, but – apart from small pinkie snapper taking his baits – his first decent bite produced a fair-sized Australian salmon, a fillet from which he cut into bait-sized portions, one being taken by what was almost certainly a shark that bit him off.

Another, presented on a wire trace, was duly taken by what turned out to be a two metre seven-gilled shark, that – with assistance from an angler fishing nearby – greeted Ray’s digital scales: But, with a maximum capacity of 50 kg, they fell well short of the task.

Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula

I’ve had very few snapper reports lately, but on Saturday evening, Darcy Scott picked up two of 5.5 and 5 kg in 8 metres of water along the west side of the Wilson Spit using squid for bait.

He was joined by his dad Murray on Sunday evening and they caught another two of 5.5 and 3 kg, again on squid.

Whiting have been a little hard to come by in Corio Bay, but fishing in the vicinity of Point Wilson, Paul Rahman caught 20 from 30-35 cm in a two-hour session. Also included in his catch was a 3 kg snapper which put the icing on the cake.

Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports that good catches of flathead were taken on the drift out in the deeper water, while modest catches of good size squid and whiting were taken between Grassy Point and Governor Reefs.

Among those to do well on the squid were Andrew Phillips and Tony Greck who found a good patch off the entrance of Swan Bay, and had just taken their respective bag-limit catches when the wind came up curtailing their plans to fish for whiting.

John Clements with the redfin catch from Lake Purrumbete.

Offshore

Tuna are still about off Barwon Heads and among those to catch them on Saturday were Simon Werner and Mario Callahan. They caught one each before heading back in; one weighing 18 kg, and the other 15 kg. Both fish were taken on small skirted lures.

Freshwater

With redfin on their mind last week, John Clements of the Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park, along with Kurt and Joe Rundle, had no trouble catching approximately 100 Reddies to 800 grams or so.

However, the trophy size trout the lake is famous for have been lying low with none being weighed in at the office over the past week or so.

Kevin and Amber Wild of the Maryborough Angling Club fished “Go-fish Nagambie” held on Lake Nagambie downstream from the Goulburn Weir, each picking up valuable prizes including a fish finder and a boat stereo.

Who won the $80,000 prize for the largest cod? That I’ve not been able to discover, the event’s home page not as yet having been updated.

Fishing Clinic

Fishing guide and charter boat operator, Andrew Malouf, is running fishing clinics at Point Lonsdale on Tuesday April 6, Wednesday April 7, and again on Tuesday April 13 and Wednesday April 14.

Participants are to meet at 8.45 am at the Point Lonsdale Skate Park which is situated on the Bellarine Highway at the roundabout adjacent to the Beacon Resort Caravan Park from where it is less than a 100 metre walk to the beach.

• Junior participants are to be at least 8 years old and supervised by a parent or guardian.
• Fee for participating adults is $20 and $10 for children under 15.

Book at https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/fishing-clinic-tickets-148254403913 and for additional info contact Andrew on 0407 517 122 or by email hookedonland@gmail.com

Martinus de Lange with the tailor he caught from the Swan Bay jetty.

Swan Bay

Historically, we’ve seen a good many tailor in Queenscliff’s Swan Bay, and they’d often take baits intended for the large flathead this water sometimes produces. We’ve even caught them from the jetty when they’d round up bait-fish there toward evening, but they’ve apparently been absent for some years now.

However, on Saturday evening, Martinus de Lange caught one from the jetty on a fish fillet with which he was hoping to catch a snapper in the driving easterly that had discoloured the water, but – apart from the tailor – there were only small pinkies on offer.

Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula

Making an early start off Point Richards in overcast conditions last Tuesday, Andrew Phillips and Tony Greck were looking forward to some great whiting fishing, but – apart from a nice flathead, several of which they eventually caught – there wasn’t much doing until the outgoing tide picked up around 7.00 am.

They’d already made several moves, but eventually found the action they’d sought just east of the mussel farm, and using pipis for bait, they finished up with their respective bag limit catches, several of which were around 38 cm with one beauty of 44 cm: Their biggest flathead measured 52 cm.

Fishing off Curlewis on Friday, Andrew and Jenny Johnson were also into the whiting but with a strong easterly setting in, their trip was cut short after taking only 12 good size fish.

Fishing off the entrance to Swan Bay near Coles Beacon on Wednesday, Jeff Richards and Chris Hateley picked up 23 whiting on the ebb tide.

Waiting out slack water, they expected the incoming tide to trigger another productive session. Not on this occasion however, and with toadies becoming an increasing menace, they called it quits.

Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports that clients had good fishing despite the indifferent weather with squid, whiting and a good many flathead making an appearance.

Joseph Ardiri with his tuna taken offshore from Barwon Heads.

Offshore

While tuna are still plentiful offshore from Port Phillip and Barwon Heads, they can be somewhat finicky when it comes to taking lures, and last Thursday afternoon was one of those times when Kane Ardiri, Phil Fisher and Joseph Ardiri found them so.

Never the less they persisted and Joseph eventually picked one up around the 20 kg mark.

The fishing was almost certainly better on Thursday morning when Daniel Gallop, who – after making an early start – found fish mid-water on his sounder, and caught five on deep-running lures, keeping his bag limit of two, each around the 20 kg mark.

Kevin Wild sent this before and after shot of the redfin that he and wife Amber caught from the Hume Weir.

Freshwater

Kevin and Amber Wild, both members of the Maryborough Angling Club, report staying on at Lake Mulwala after the “Cod Nationals” the weekend previous, catching and releasing some 4-5 Murray cod a day on spinnerbaits.

But after getting the drumbeats from fellow club members, Ken and Faye Hinks, that Hume Weir was firing, they collected a quantity of Murray shrimp from Mulwala, and – keeping them alive for bait – that was their next destination.

And well worth the trip as it turned out, for they caught 75 redfin.

Kevin also mentions that club members Stephen Eales and John Gray have both reportedly taken good catches of redfin from Tullaroop Reservoir, which has been in slumber-mode for some time.

And, in addition to that, Kevin mentions a VFA release of 47,000 golden perch (yellowbelly) into this water, adding even more variety.

From all reports, redfin are the main species on offer at Lake Purrumbete, with Steve O’Keefe from Geelong among the successful anglers taking a dozen using live minnow for bait.

Sammy asks:

Geoff, I hear the mulloway are on the bite in the Barwon estuary; do you have any tips on catching them?

Sammy, to say that the mulloway are on the bite is an exaggeration, but some have recently been caught from the Sheepwash.

Baits used have included live mullet, or small but legal-size Australian salmon, squid – preferably freshly caught rather than frozen – and bait-size portions cut from fillets of freshly caught fish.

Anglers skilled in the art of fishing with soft plastics have also caught quite a few, particularly throughout the duration of either tide change, the low tide change in particular.

Ray Millman with the mulloway he caught from the beach at Torquay on Thursday night.

Off the beach

Fishing from the beach at Torquay on Thursday evening, Ray Millman caught a good size whiting just on dark, but nothing else for some time after that.

Ray’s next fish stripped metres of line from his reel before biting off the hook. Hard to say what that was, but later on, Ray was onto another good fish, a mulloway as it turned out that registered 12.36 kg on his digital scales.

Cleaning it revealed the probable cause for the whiting going off the bite earlier on, for it had three prime specimens of same in its stomach.

Barwon Heads

Paul and Selin Rahman caught eleven mulloway from the Sheepwash over three days of hard fishing last week, five of which were caught in the space of 20 minutes using squid for bait. Others were caught on live mullet, and the fillets from a large Australian salmon.

Although the mulloway they caught were an acceptable 70 to 95 cm, Paul hooked what was clearly a much larger fish that he had on for some time before the hook pulled free.

Darcy Scott with the 25 kg tuna that he caught on a pilchard off Barwon Heads last week (Picture: Murray Scott).

Offshore

With tuna still the attraction off Barwon Heads, Murray and Darcy Scott headed out with a good supply of pilchards, somewhat chastened after last week’s gummy shark fishing trip off Torquay, when surrounded by tuna that they were unable to tempt with lures.

It was a different story this time though, with their best fish weighing 25 kg.

Selin and Paul Rahman with a sample of their mulloway catch from the Sheepwash.

Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula

Mike Windsor of Clifton Springs Boat Hire reports that Dylan Lewis, who – along with companions Michael and Damian – caught whiting to 43 cm from 3 metres of water offshore from the fairly prominent red shed at Curlewis, using pipis for bait.

Graeme Russell also did well, taking a bag limit catch off Avalon with pipis again the preferred bait.

On Friday afternoon, Andrew and Jenny Johnson headed out into 4.9 metres of water off Portarlington and were also into the whiting, catching 19 fish to 40 cm before the tide slackened.

They stayed on hoping the bite would resume on the ebb, but – apart from a couple barely making the grade – all was quiet.

So, they headed out a little deeper to where they caught another 13 before the wind picked up a little too strongly for their liking.

On Friday, Colin Mann and David Richards were into the whiting over the Swan Island grass-beds at Queenscliff, and – only having to make one move when that bite died – found them again out near Coles Beacon, both finishing with bag limit catches.

Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports that there’s any amount of flathead to be caught on the drift in the deeper water, along with the occasional legal size pinkie snapper.

Whiting were also a welcome catch said Rod, along with good numbers of squid.

Bob McPherson’s mixed bag of fish from Portland, both for the table and for bait (Picture: Bob McPherson).

Bob McPherson reports that a variety of leatherjackets have been a by-catch while fishing for whiting, and sent in photos of a couple.

Freshwater

Kevin and Amber Wild, both members of the Maryborough Angling Club fished the Cod Nationals at Lake Mulwala, was pretty busy with 36 teams from different clubs catching, and releasing 573 cod to 93 cm, 181 of which were of legal size.

There were a good many reports of even bigger cod following angler’s lures but turning away at the last moment.

Kevin also reports that club members Stephen Eales and John Gray have both taken good catches of redfin from Tullaroop Reservoir using ice-jigs and lures in the vibe category.

John Clements of the Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park reports that there are plenty of redfin on offer from the lake and that he and Shaun Weiring of Monbulk caught any amount from 400-800 grams using worms and live minnow for bait.

John also reports taking chinook salmon to 2.5 kg from the lake in 21 metres of water on pilchard and mackerel fillets fished just above the bottom.

Forwarded to me by John Clements of the Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park was this picture of a young lad, first name Ryder, who caught this 3.4 kg brown trout from the lake on a scrubworm.

St Helens

VRFish board member and Secretary of the Association of Geelong and District Angling Clubs, John Hotchin – who has long been instrumental in acquiring grants for recreational fishing infrastructure – reports that two solar lights have been installed along the St Helens Rock wall.

They are the first of six to be installed there said John, the foundations for the remaining four having been already laid; something sure to be welcomed by the numerous land-based anglers who fish here after dark.

Jamie asks:

Fishing from my Kayak on the Barwon River early last week, I caught, and released, what I believed to be an Australian bass. It measured 42 cm and was caught just upstream from the Fyans Street boat ramp.

I am familiar with bass, having caught a good many from Queensland’s impoundments. But could it have been an estuary perch, a fish with which I am not familiar?

Jamie, there are certainly estuary perch in the Barwon River, both juveniles from recent VFA releases and a population of mature specimens within the estuary downstream, some exceeding 50 cm. However, I have it on good authority that there is a discreet population of Australian bass in the Barwon as well.

And, since bass are basically a freshwater rather than an estuarine species, the fish you caught was, almost certainly, what you recognised as a bass.

Justin Burns with a tuna he caught offshore from Barwon Heads (Picture: Simon Williams).

Kane Ardiri and Nello Sorgiovanni with the tuna they caught offshore from Barwon Heads.

With a favourable weather forecast for Sunday, a good many were out off Barwon Heads in search of tuna. Among them, Justin Burns and Simon Williams who caught one each with the challenging technique of casting lures (stick-baits on this occasion), to fish feeding at the surface.

That was out in sixty metres of water, while Kane Ardiri and Nello Sorgiovanni found them a little closer in and broke out the pilchards; a free feed for some – those that missed the Trojan horse with the hook – four that didn’t, finished up in the boat.

Anchored up in 50 metres of water off Torquay on Sunday were Murray and Darcy Scott, and Ben King. They were hoping for a gummy shark or two, and – as it happened – they caught three, two around the 6 kg mark and another of 8 kg. They also caught a 40 kg seven-gilled shark.

However, two big fish got away: One that Ben hooked, possibly a very large gummy shark that just kept peeling off line until it broke free, possibly snagging the line a reef, and another that Murray hooked, which was probably a school shark rather than a gummy, because – well within sight of the boat – it bit through the trace above the hook.

Mind you, they cast many a lure toward endless shoals of passing tuna, some well within casting distance from the boat, but there were no takers.

Wayne Bastin with yet another trophy size brown trout from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: Cranbourne Fishing World).

Bob McPherson and Lachie Wombell’s mixed bag of fish taken off Portland (Picture: Bob McPherson).

Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula

With Clifton Springs boat ramp car park at capacity, and vehicles parked up Bay Shore Avenue, Andrew Phillips, along with Mark and Tina Sesar, headed down to the less crowded Point Richards ramp from where they launched and were away by 9.00 am.

Initially, there wasn’t much doing with the whiting, but they kept picking up the occasional good size flathead for an eventual tally of six. And, their luck with the whiting eventually improved as well, with a final tally of 50 fish, the biggest measuring 45 cm.

But that was before the undersize pinkies moved in on their baits, so at around 1.00 pm, they returned to the ramp with a very respectable catch.

On Saturday, Andrew Johnson and Dennis O’Brien finished up with 20 really good size whiting after releasing a good many that, although of legal size, didn’t quite meet their standard.

Mike Windsor of Clifton Springs Boat Hire reports that squid are about, and among those to catch them were Paul Moore and Nathan and Toby Campbell who found a productive patch in 3 metres of water out from The Dell. And, using a portion of their squid for bait, they also caught 6 nice whiting from much the same area.

Flathead are also about in good numbers said Mike, with Nathan Huybens picking up 17 offshore from the boat harbour, along with 3 small gummy shark, four pinkie snapper and several Australian salmon that he returned.

Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat reports that squid are also the main chance off Indented Head, along with flathead abundant out in the deeper water.

Lachie Wombell with a sample of the catch taken by he and Bob McPherson off Portland at the weekend (Picture: Bob McPherson).

Queenscliff

Anchored up over the Swan Island grass-beds at Queenscliff on Friday evening, and hopeful of a good whiting catch, were Murray and Darcy Scott and Trent Budinski.

Conditions were good with quite a bit of run left in the tide, but the whiting were biting timidly. In fact, they would go completely off the bite at times despite the favourable conditions,

Never the less, they finished with 35 rather than the bag limit catches they’ve been used to of late, but for many, that would have been a completely satisfactory catch.

Portland

Fishing close in off Portland on the weekend, Bob McPherson and Lachie Wombell were hoping for a good catch of King George whiting, but – although they were there – the large population of silver whiting usually beat their larger brethren to the bait.

Never the less they finished up OK with some prime specimens of the royal variety.

Abe asks:

Geoff, I’ve noticed that huge tracts of seagrass have disappeared from some areas in Corio Bay. What would have caused this, and will they return?

Abe, for as long as I can remember seagrass beds in Port Phillip and Corio Bays have flourished then regressed in what some have described as a natural cycle.

Searching scholarly articles on the causes of seagrass regression revealed that intensive aquaculture, algal blooms, bottom trawling with nets, along with turbidity from dredging, are the chief concerns over the health and longevity of sea grass meadows and the intricate biological webs dependent on them.

Bernard Abrams with his 99 cm kingfish from Port Phillip Heads.

Simon Williams with one of the tuna he and Justin Burns caught offshore from Barwon Heads at the weekend (Picture: Justin Burns).

Offshore

Kingfish are on the bite inside Port Phillip Heads, and among those to catch them last week was Bernard Abrams and his mates, Karl, Ben and Wayne.

And, judging by the photos Bernard send me, there were some beauties among them including one measuring 99 cm; Bernard’s biggest to date.

Outside The Heads however, bluefin tuna still remain the main attraction with Bernard and his crew getting into those as well.

Trolling small pink skirted lures in 27 metres of water off nearby Barwon Heads, they caught four tuna that they kept, the biggest weighing 25 kg. They also caught and released several others caught on bibless minnows – customarily referred to as stick-baits these days – a preferred lure for cast and retrieve.

And casting stick-baits to tuna feeding at the surface off Barwon Heads, also proved successful for Justin Burns and Simon Williams, who – in calm conditions on Sunday morning – caught two tuna using this technique.

Justin Burns with another, using the same approach.

Bernard Abrams with one of the tuna he caught offshore from Port Phillip Heads last week.

Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula

Early last week, Andrew Phillips and Tony Greck were out off Indented Head by daybreak with squid on their mind, and after several unproductive drifts, they found a good patch from which they each took bag limit catches that included a large cuttlefish.

On Saturday evening, Andrew – this time with Mark Sesar – fished offshore from Point Richards for whiting. And, after making a half dozen or so moves for little return, they found a good patch toward dark – just east of the mussel farm – and from here they topped off their respective bag limit catches of whiting.

Calling his friend Dennis O’Brien before heading out with wife Jenny, Andrew Johnson got the drumbeats that good size whiting were indeed off the east end of the Point Richards mussel farm, but with undersize pinkie snapper about, an occasional change of location was warranted.

Fishing a bit shallower than Dennis, who was out in 5.5 metres, was a good move as it turned out, for Andrew and Jenny caught 32 whiting and no pinkies, their biggest measuring 40 cm. That was before the southerly came up persuading their retreat.

However, Dennis stuck it out and finished with a bag limit catch that included two fish that measured 43 cm apiece.

Lachie Wombell with an ocean perch taken out wide from Portland (Picture: Bob McPherson).

Four tuna taken by Bernard Abrams and his crew off Barwon Heads.

Mike Windsor of Clifton Springs Boat Hire reports that the fishing has been good, with even the occasional good size snapper coming in.

Among the successful anglers was Cam Knuckey who found a large pod of snapper off Point Wilson from which he caught one of 5 kg before losing them. Also included in his catch was a 5 kg gummy shark, both fish being taken on pilchards.

Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports that improved weather over the weekend saw an improvement in catches with flathead and legal-size pinkies being taken in the deeper water. However, garfish are plentiful inshore, said Rod, along with squid, while regular client Sean Martin, picked up a nice gummy shark.

Whiting have been a bit scarce off Indented Head said Rod, but says that anglers fishing from the pier at St Leonards have been catching them, particularly of an evening.

Kevin Wild of the Maryborough Angling Club with his 1.17 metre Murray cod that he caught from Lake Mulwala at the weekend (Picture: Amber Wild).

They didn’t go to waste either.

Freshwater

“His and Hers” was the title of Lake Mulwala’s weekend competition that fielded 44 teams from different clubs, compliance being dependant on teams consisting of one male and one female angler.

Kevin and Amber Wild of the Maryborough Angling Club were one such team.

A somewhat successful team as it turned out, coming second. They were beaten on points generated by numbers of legal fish caught rather than size: Had size been the deciding factor they would have won it outright with their biggest fish, a 1.17 metre Murray cod.

Interestingly, it was only after stopping to eat lunch, with baits of chicken over the side, and after fruitless lure-casting and trolling sessions, that they caught their first of several fish, and eventually, their biggest.

Lachie Wombell with a nice sample of blue-eye trevalla taken out wide from Portland (Picture: Bob McPherson).

Lachie Wombell with a blue grenadier taken out wide from Portland (Picture: Bob McPherson).

Portland

With good weather at the weekend, Bob McPherson and Lachie Wombell headed out to the edge of the Continental Shelf, where – in around 500 metres of water – they caught blue-eye trevalla and a variety of other species including ocean perch and blue grenadier (often referred to as hoki in the commercial fishing trade).

Darcy Scott with a kingfish from Port Phillip Heads (Picture: Murray Scott).

Offshore

Tuna remain the main attraction off Port Phillip Heads where on Sunday morning, Justin Burns and Simon Williams plucked four fish, each around the 20 kg mark, while trolling lures in around 30 metres of water.

Naturally, a good many others caught them as well including Paul Worsteling of Cranbourne Tackle World who headed out with the IFISH TV crew, ready for action:

They weren’t disappointed either, catching four tuna, also around the 20 kg mark.

They also caught several kingfish and good size Australian salmon they describe as a by-catch that fell to the variety of skirted and deep-running lures they were trolling.

Simon Williams with one of the tuna he and Justin Burns caught outside Port Phillip Heads on Sunday morning (Picture: Justin Burns).

Also successful on the kingfish at Port Phillip Heads last week was Matt Cini of Reel Time Charters and his clients. They also bagged a small mako shark that took an unhealthy interest in one of the kingfish being brought alongside.

Fishing near the wreck of the Orungal off Barwon Heads, Simon Werner and Jake Callahan were after the large whiting this area is noted for and got off to a good start taking four beauties from 38 to 42 cm. That was before the undersize pinkies moved in on their baits.

Matt Cini of Reel Time Charters (Left), and his clients (Right) with a good sample of kingfish form Port Phillip Heads (Picture: Cranbourne Fishing World).

Matt Cini of Reel Time Charters with a mako shark that had its eye on one of their kingfish (Picture: Reel Time Charters).

Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula

Mike Windsor of Clifton Springs Boat Hire reports that on Sunday, client Dylan Lewis, who fished offshore from the prominent red shed off Curlewis, caught whiting to 40 cm and flathead to 42 cm and several Australian salmon using squid for bait.

Earlier in the week, Graeme Gittens also did well on the flathead. He also caught a small seven-gilled shark, which was returned along with an undersize gummy shark.

Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports that squid were the main chance in the latter part of the week, along with the occasional legal size pinkie snapper.

With whiting on their mind, Andrew Johnson and Dennis O’Brien headed out off Clifton Springs where they were welcomed by a multitude of small, but legal-size fish that really didn’t make the grade.

They did catch a large flathead though, the first of five approaching the 50 cm mark that they caught during their day’s fishing.

They were after whiting though, and eventually found a better class of fish in 4.5 metres of water off Curlewis from which they took 32 fish to 40 cm, and – with squid jigs suspended over the side – they also took six of those: A tidy catch as it turned out, only curtailed when the wind squalled up from the south east sending them back to the ramp.

Speaking of whiting, Darcy Scott and workmate Scott Smart, headed down to Queenscliff on Friday evening to fish the Swan Island grass beds; a productive exercise as it turned out, for each took bag limit catches of whiting.

Todd Broughton with a tiger trout from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: John Clements).

Jason Eastman of Ballarat with his catch of redfin from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: John Clements).

Following their success, Darcy was on the job again before dawn on Sunday morning, this time with father Murray, and again they were well and truly into the whiting, taking bag limit catches along with several squid and a yellowtail scad.

Then, with the day still young, kingfish were now on their mind, so they headed out toward The Rip having kept two of the squid, the yellowtail scad, and even a couple of whiting, as live-bait.

Having begun their drift in 30 metres of water, the scad was first over the side and quickly demolished. It was followed by one of the whiting which resulted in a solid hook-up on a 7 kg kingfish that rounded their day out nicely.

Jason Gray with one of his yellowbelly from Taylors Lake, Horsham (Picture: Amber Wild).

Jason Gray with his 71 cm cod from Taylors Lake, Horsham (Picture: Amber Wild).

Freshwater

John Clements of the Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park reports that exceptional catches of redfin to 800 grams or so were taken from the lake by Jason Eastman of Ballarat and Jacinta Kelly of Drysdale: Three species of trout were taken as well.

Todd Broughton of Geelong took a 2.6 kg Tiger trout and a 3.6 kg brown trout, while Wayne Kettner, also of Geelong, took a 2.5 kg rainbow trout.

Kevin Wild of the Maryborough Angling Club reports that the club visited Taylors Lake near Horsham which has been fishing well of late, and they weren’t disappointed.

Leonie Jones took the largest fish, an 87 cm Murray cod, which was followed by a 79 cm cod taken by Jason Gray. These were taken of chicken and cheese cocktail baits. The largest yellowbelly measured 41 cm and was taken by Rob Rayner.

Wayne Kettner of Geelong with a 2.5 kg rainbow trout from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: John Clements).

Todd Broughton with a 3.6 kg brown trout from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: John Clements).

Wave Attenuator

Andrew Ross, Coordinator of Central Geelong and Waterfront confirms that, as from this coming Saturday – and in compliance with Government funding – recreational fishing and public access will be permitted from the new wave attenuator.

This structure, which extends from Geelong’s Waterfront, is adjacent to, and managed by the Royal Geelong Yacht Club, will be open to the public from 6.00 am until 10.00 pm.

Any questions can be directed to RGYC. (03) 5229 3705, info@rgyc.com.au

Ray Millman with the 20 kg gummy shark he caught from the beach at Torquay on Wednesday night.

Masterclass

On Wednesday evening, Ray Millman set up his tackle on the beach just north east of the Torquay boat ramp. From then on, he caught a number pinkie snapper – some of which were undersize and returned – along with three really good size whiting.

Suitably impressed, Melbourne couple, David and Natalie, admitted they’d fished here earlier in the day but had caught nothing at all but were receptive to any tips that might come their way, Ray obliged with a baiting-up and casting demonstration.

Waiting for a bite took a while though, but the fish Ray hooked this time was no whiting or pinkie. It was in fact a large gummy shark, that David – after wading into the slop –grabbed by the tail and dragged ashore where it registered 20 kg on Ray’s digital scales.

Also taking advantage of last week’s low evening tides were Tony Ingram and Col Simmons who fished from RAAF’s Beach at Ocean Grove.

They too caught a number pinkie snapper at the bottom of the tide, and – although some were undersize – they included a couple around the kilogram mark. These were all caught on squid, along with a couple of gummy shark, each around 4 kg, before the incoming tide began covering the beach.

Peter Horrocks caught this 20 kg tuna at the Portland ship anchorage 8 kilometres or so east of the harbour (Picture: Bob McPherson).

Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula

On Thursday morning, Andrew Phillips and Tony Greck headed out off Clifton Springs, hoping to catch a few whiting, but – initially at least – the fishing was slow with only an occasional small fish.

Andrew said they must have moved a half dozen times before the incoming tide changed their luck. And, in 7 metres of water, off Leopold’s Pelican Shores Caravan Park, they eventually caught their respective bag limits of whiting to 42 cm.

Mike Windsor of Clifton Spring Boat Hire reports that, before the state lockdown, there were some good catches of whiting taken, and that garfish have made a welcome appearance.

Among those to catch both were Gordon and Carol Williams who took a respectable catch of whiting as they did the week previous, despite having to cope with the undersize pinkies that often turn up. The garfish though were a surprise, but welcome catch.

There are also whiting in the Corio Bay inner harbour as Paul Rahman and Selin Inan proved on a trip before the lockdown, catching 27 keepers in Stingaree Bay.

Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports that the fishing had picked up last week before the lockdown with a variety of fish being caught.

Species included whiting and squid, which had all but disappeared the week previous. However, both of which were taken by Harley Griffiths and Stan Owen who fished Governor Reef.

Freshwater

Paul Rahman also fished Lake Purrumbete on two occasions recently taking bag limit catches of chinook salmon to 1.8 kg on both occasions.

John Clements of the Lake Purrumbete Holiday Park and Michael Evans of Victorian Inland Charters, also fished for chinook salmon, and – using cut pilchards for both bait and berley in depths from 18 to 25 metres – caught chinook salmon to 2 kg.

Redfin are still the most prolific catch said John, with George Gillies of Winchelsea and Terry Lindsay of Leopold both getting their share of fish to possibly 800 grams.

Large brown trout have been a bit scarce said John, the only one sighted last week being taken by Wayne Snell of Colac. It weighed 2.7 kg and it took a mudeye fished beneath a bubble float.

Cooper asks

Geoff, where have the snapper gone? We caught them up until late December, but none since.

Cooper, snapper are still about, but you are right, they become harder to find at this time of year. One of the most productive grounds for snapper in the new year is over the deep mud off Indented Head and St Leonards, and fishing dawn, dusk and the tide changes out in 17 to 21 metres of water, can be time well spent.

Closer to home though, the all-night sessions I used to put in at this time of year, in around five metres of water ENE of the Limeburner’s Point boat ramp, produced good size snapper on almost every trip, most being caught between midnight and dawn.

Simon Werner, Chris Cole, Shay Doherty and Jemma Thorpe with their catch of tuna.

Offshore

On Wednesday afternoon, Simon Werner, along with Chris Cole, Shay Doherty and Jemma Thorpe, headed out from Barwon Heads to have another crack at those bluefin tuna currently schooled up off Port Phillip Heads.

Locating a good patch out in 50 metres of water, they put out their lures, but – as is frequently the case with these fish – they weren’t having any.

However, on this occasion, Simon had a secret weapon that made all the difference; a generous supply of pilchards.

A continuous trail of these, dropped over the side at short intervals – one of them a “Trojan horse” concealing a hook – took their first fish.

The same approach took three more – one each – making a tally of four fish weighing from 18 to 27 kg; ample reward for a trip lasting only three hours.

Roger Lewry with a sample from his catch of pinkie snapper from Queenscliff.

Corio Bay/Bellarine Peninsula

With a break in the weather on Wednesday afternoon, Gordon and Carol Williams headed out off Clifton Springs hopeful of catching a few whiting, but getting away from the small fish proved a problem.

Never the less they persisted, and – after making quite a few moves – found a good patch off Leopold that produced fifteen reasonable fish before the undersize pinkie snapper moved in on their baits.

Bob McPherson’s catch of silver trevally, and others, off Portland at the weekend.

Rod Ludlow of Beachlea Boat Hire at Indented Head reports that strong onshore winds were the stumbling block to good fishing last week. However, those who did get on the water had no trouble catching flathead on the drift and the occasional pinkie snapper.

Squid and whiting were quiet said Rod, but further south off Queenscliff some good catches of whiting were taken over the weekend.

Among those to catch them were Steve O’Keefe and son Murray who fished off the Swan Island grass beds. Here, in a five-hour session, they took bag limit catches of whiting of varying sizes with a handful of really good size fish among them.

Also fishing for whiting off the Swan Island grass beds was Roger Lewry, and indeed he did catch a few, but on dusk, the pinkies arrived.

These were all larger than the usual undersize pests that turn up when whiting fishing and it wasn’t long before he had his bag limit along with a few other species.

Off the Beach

Last week’s evening high tides attracted quite a few anglers to Bancoora Beach where Australian salmon were the main catch, both on bait and on lures. Among them was Tony Ingram who fished on into the night to be rewarded with a gummy shark of about 6 kg.

He was hoping for more of the same, but as the tide dropped away, all he caught were various unwanted species including Port Jackson sharks and skates.

Merv and Squizzy’s catch of redfin from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: Victorian Inland Charters).

A pair of chinook salmon, one of 1.3 kg, the other 2.1 kg taken by Merv Hughes and Squizzy Taylor from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: Victorian Inland Charters).

Freshwater

Michael Evans’ filming sessions aboard Victorian Inland Charters, continued last week with Australian cricket legend – and recent inductee into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame – Merv Hughes, along with Merv’s mate “Squizzy” Taylor, on Lake Purrumbete.

Chinook salmon were a target species on the day, and of which they caught two; one of 1.3 kg and another of 2.1 kg. These were caught down near the bottom in 20 metres of water using pilchard fillets for bait.

Merv and Squizzy’s catch of redfin from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: Victorian Inland Charters).

Redfin were also on the agenda, and their catch of nearly 50 certainly kept everybody honest during that session.

Mind you, Michael did quite a bit of fishing on his own last week, his best fish from Lake Purrumbete was a brown trout weighing 3.85 kg. It took a clown pattern Tassie Devil trolled at a depth of 18 metres.

Michael Evans’ 3.8 kg brown trout from Lake Purrumbete (Picture: Victorian Inland Charters).

Zeb asks:

Geoff, I have purchased two Shimano 4500 bait-runner reels for snapper, but have been told that many fish are missed by using the bait-runner function: Is this right?

However, having your reel in free spool (bait-runner mode) while bottom fishing at anchor for snapper in the mistaken belief that your quarry must take line freely before striking, will indeed result in many fish being missed