Offshore

OFFSHORE Kelly Hunt

It’s exciting here in Tasmania at this time of year because we have more sun. It’s not quite as exciting as when daylight savings is green lighted by putting our clocks forward one hour, but we do get a real sense it’s coming. This is great news as we can knock off work and feel we have some time to do something before it gets dark.

September means that something is casting to salmon schools from a rocky point, spinning for trout with a Celta in a small river or casting small suspending minnows in a local bream haunt.

It is the shoulder of the season in Tasmania. Nothing is really kicking off and firing and the weather is not brilliant. It is, however, good enough to give us hope that some great fishing is on the way. Well to be fair, that’s if you are saltwater biased like I am.

There is a great deal going on in the freshwater world with the trout season getting away to a flying start last month. The weather has been improving, as I mentioned, but there has been enough rain to ensure lake levels are up and there is the odd flooded margin for the fly fishers to play in. The reports I have back from most of the favoured lakes is that the fishing has been quite good and plenty of trout are being caught to keep all amused.

I see a few mates getting right into flyfishing of late and it is fabulous to watch. I think it is worth reminding all that flyfishing is a game of technique and subtlety. My cobbers from the saltwater fraternity think it’s all about muscling and double hauling 60ft of line out in one cast. Some of the best trout fishing I have ever enjoyed is quietly casting to fish in proximity. Concentrating like crazy and having a good fish swim between my legs – good fun! SO LET’S TALK TROUT

The Forth River was a wonder to me growing up. It was a powerful stretch of water with signs at the weir and river mouth, detailing how many had drowned. The river was dangerous and was to be taken seriously while we played and fished its length.

In my early years, we would fish the spring days of September with light Platypus mono and an unweighted

Whitebait flies can be as fancy or as rudimentary as you like. Place them in the zone and lookout! Aaron Bisset with an early West Coast fast water fish.

worm in a back eddy. The bigger, juicier wiggly worms were better. The bail arm would be left tripped and the rod placed in a crafted branch pressed into the bank. We would watch rod tips for hours, waiting for the bounce and line to run out.

The Forth River has plenty of great spots to drown a worm or flick a soft plastic. The stretch of river that fills on the incoming tide along Leith Road is one, and access this shore is from the elevated road. It’s quite steep, so be careful.

Once you’re in position, you’ll see an open rocky shore. It’s shallow towards the highway road bridge, and deepens as you head upriver. Take a look at the deep hole where the main river splits into a rivulet along the road edge. Further up the river, as the water flow starts slowing check out Pump Station and Wilmot roads. WHITEBAIT

When we were a little older, Warren Fisher would set his son and I up with a whitebait fly set up. This would consist of a reel of a closed face nature and a trigger grip rod. The rig was 8lb mono with 3-4 small split shot leads