What a great weekend for the Easter break – low wind, fine warm days and comfortable nights, who could ask for more. And yes, the fish obliged as well.
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From the mountains to Lake Mulwala and beyond, camping space was at a premium. As was fishing space, and the reports are many.
Angling was a little on the trying side down on Lake Mulwala. Anglers had to put time and casts in to get results, though as the holiday period rolled on the cod became a little more aggressive.
The main method was to cast spinner baits to sunken drowned trees that surround the channels, although cheese did account for a few fish. Generally small in size, they at least provided some reward to those who worked hard. Just a quick reminder that anglers require a New South Wales fishing licence for Lake Mulwala.
Trolling with downriggers did the job on Dart during the day, however I heard reports that the fish were down as deep as 80 or 90 feet in the old scale.
Flatline trolling early and late also fired up the fishing, with yellow winged Wigstons being by far the lure of choice.
The streams also fished well, with trout exceeding 1kg not uncommon. The Snowy and Nariel creeks, Mitta and Kiewa rivers all lived up to their reputations as blue ribbon water, either drifting bait (worms and crickets) or spinning with bladed lures (Celtas and Vibraxes).
Stories of the one that got away were common, however Heath Hancock managed to land a 1.28m Murray cod while fishing Burrinjuck.
Subject to a lot of discussion, the world’s second worst fisherman managed to land a 1.1m horse in the upper Murray. After listening to many versions, from what I can work out one angler threw a yabbie baited rod into the river. Then, at 11pm, after the owner of the rod went to bed another one hooked the fish while I believe a third person played it to the net.
So do we conclude that Graham Mason’s fish is only 1/3 of a metre? Well, at least he will have bragging rights over his brother Russ when he returns.
For the weekend, they managed to land 10 cod and a thumping trout cod of 65cm – all on bait right in front of their campsite. So, I guess he is now the world’s third worst fisherman.
While on the upper Murray, a concreter and a glazier tried out their new boat and landed 13 cod, mainly on spinner baits with one good fish taken off the top. The concreter did lament over a decent sized fish that the glazier somehow managed to lose.
The Murrumbidgee around Wagga Wagga is well worth a trip, though you have to work through the smaller cod and trout cod before you get a keeper, all methods working well.
Blowering’s still great on the reddies, but you have to look around. Some better fish are around 1kg on yabbies and vibes.
Tantangara Dam is fishing extremely well, either tossing worms off the bank or trolling smaller hard bodies. It would be well worth planning a trip before it gets too cold up there.
Eucumbene and Jindy are still chugging along, mainly around the rivers and creeks. We’re starting to hear of a few early spawners running up the rivers in both lakes.
- Like to show off your catch? Send your fishing photos, along with a few details, to 0475 947 279 or 0475 953 605.