Offshore

OFFSHORE Kelly Hunt

Praise be to the sun! I can see why the Egyptians have so many Gods created around the splendid orb that warms our planet. We have again beaten the winter and have it receding into our local trout hot spots fishing well. The Great Lake and its many bays and stretches of food-filled banks have been very popular. The often left alone eastern shores have been producing good fish. Typically, any westerly breeze carries a range of food on the wind and deposits it on the water. The fish enjoy this a typical-sized lake dingy the distance across to places like Cramps Bay and Flexmore Creek change. Yes that’s right, change. Picture this: you’re keen as mustard and the sun is out with little to no breeze, you put the boat in and skip across there seemingly in no time. Then you catch a few fish and the arvo bite hots up. The weather closes in a bit nasty and a breeze gets up. It gets dark and the wind picks up out of the west a few more knots and it seems like the boat ramp is 10km away. OK you have me, that is the exact distance it was to get there, but I’ll give you the red hot tip. Pushing into the westerly wind that has rolled over all the snowcapped mountains to get to you, with constant icy water spraying you from pounding into 2ft of nasty chop that is growing in size and it’s going to seem like 100km. So, as always, look at the weather and not just once; keep a close eye on it and dress for the worst.

TROUT TIDBITS

Tooms Lake did not fish well on the opening weekend. There was a big crew in there having a great time, but the fishing was slow. The fish were also in poor condition, attributed to low waters levels from last year. The water that has fallen since will have those fish feeding and putting on some condition. Spinning with hardbodies and soft plastics accounts for most fish here.

Tooms Lake lies within the Tooms Lake Conservation area managed by the Parks and Wildlife Service, and there is some great camping available. Getting there is pretty easy as Tooms Lake lies approximately 42km east of Ross and can be accessed from Ross via the C305 or York Plains via the C307.

Four Springs in the north is fishing very well. Opening weekend saw a heap of fish caught, with plenty being the subject of some great pictures then gently released. I’ve fished this water a couple of times and if you can get there mid-week it’s a great place to throw some soft plastics about. On the weekend it can get a bit crowded, but still seems to fish quite well. Boat and wading anglers should keep in mind the lake has varying depth changes if they want to keep their props in good nick and their pants dry.

The Lake is open to all forms of fishing with fly casting and bait fishing being popular. I like to drift throwing hardbodies and work the bottom with Berkley T-Tails and Nemesis soft plastics let is a bit of action, and if it seems slow try something different. Set three divers out long, way longer than you would normally, and come right down to 6 knots. Let the lures pull their

Jarvis Wall with a south east school bluefin.

rear-view mirrors.

Heck! Next month, we even get to roll our clocks forward and enjoy the freedoms of daylightsaving adventures, but let’s not get too far ahead. What can we expect this month in Tasmania?

September is where we see some warmer water temps, and all sea and freshwater bodies start to push the mercury up. This can trigger some spawning situations in certain species as spring progresses, and there are some closed seasons to keep an eye on. Striped trumpeter are a non-take species in September and October, so we leave them well alone.

In the north of the state we had trout opening kick-off in August, and as we move through the month of September the weather allows everyone to have a crack. Traditionally it is only the super-keen trout tragics that head up to the highlands early. Now we can all have a crack as the snow and chilly winds have abated and the sun makes it very pleasant up there. News has been very encouraging, with all the smorgasbord, and if you get there early before they eat their fill you can have some spectacular fishing.

Be very mindful that in Make sure you rug up and watch the weather for comfort and safety.

Jeremy West managed 20 fish from Four Springs recently.

down deep and hopped and tip-stripped. Four Springs Lake is 20km north of Hagley via the C735. TUNA TALES

Some will tell you that the best of the tuna fishing is over for the year, but actual captures from the last few seasons has put paid to that. If there is a good weather window and you have a crew to head out it is more than worth the effort. The school size fish continued through August and some bigger specimens were caught late in the month, so keep on presenting lures over them and they will keep biting.

Try three skirted lures over two divers if there chins down and the bibs do their job. Sometimes it can mean the difference between not turning a reel and having a pretty good day. When tuna are up and pushing bait about, the skirts do a great job of building on the frenzy and getting a bite. Slow days you have to ignite that frenzy by getting an erratic twitching lure right down with them. It feels weird and not ‘normal’ to pare back to fewer lines and go slow, but if what you normally do hasn’t worked for four hours, why not try a couple of hours of something different?

Stay safe and until next time, Tight lines.