Tasmanian Fishing and Boating News Issue 082 2009 October

$5

Issue 82 October - November 2009

Lake Echo – The NEW Hot Spot GreatLake–ShoreFishingtheWaves Lake Leake – A Reviving Gem f o r th e b ig g es t , Sinking Flylines for Success h o t te s t , b e s t an d Scamander Bream latest Tasm anian f ishin g n ew Tamar Hotspots s ‘Yak fishing Sea Trout

Print Post approved; PP 702512 00027

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Peter Hayes with a whitebait feeding Henty River ‘resident’ trout. Read Chris Bassano’s sea-runner article on page 28.

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Fishing News - Page 2

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CONTENTS

Lake Echo — Greg French 6

9

Lake Echo — Shane Flude 9 Jan’s Flies — Jan Spencer 11 Lake Leake — Matt Byrne 12 Great Lake – Shore fishing the waves — Shane Flude 15 Scamander River Bream — Jamie Henderson

18

18

Trout on Plastics – Not always easy — Simon Little 23 Tamar Hotspots — Damon Sherriff

26

Sea Trout — Christopher Bassano

28

Cast, Count and Pull – Sinking lines — Joe Riley 32

28

Beyond Lake Mackenzie — Craig Rist

35

Whitebait — Inland Fisheries Service

38

‘Yak fishing reviews — Craig Vertigan

40

Inland Fisheries News 43 Classifieds and Subscriptions 44 Marine Fisheries News 45 Fishing, Boating Services Directory

My Say

Water everywhere and constant flood watch warnings herald in some spectacular fishing.

The slowly rising level of Lake Echo is a great example of how a water can improve. Flooded margins with water slowly creeping up the shores has created an almost feeding frenzy for trout.

These trout were always there of course, but easily available food will always attract and concentrate them. We have two great articles on Lake Echo from Greg French and Shane Flude. The level 4 October was four metres from full.

Arthurs Lake suffered severely from drawdowns over the last couple of years, but at the start of October was 2.7 metres from full supply level. Cowpaddock Bay is filling nicely and areas uncovered for several years are now under water.

Great Lake has risen over five metres and still rising and Tooms Lake and Lake Leake have been spilling for a couple of months.

Even the Macquarie River has been in constant flood for many weeks. This is just a taste of what a change a wet Winter can do.

From the Bureau of Meterology - September • Wettest September on record at some eastern sites • Temperatures mostly above average • Floods and damaging winds • A wet year so far A number of low pressure systems passed close to the state creating the wettest September on record at some sites in the east, the southeast and the southern Midlands. Two that stand out are Oatlands where 116.8 mm was the wettest September in 122 years of record, and Bicheno where 180.2 mm while not quite a record was more than four times normal September rain. For many others (including Hobart) it was the second-wettest September on record or the wettest for

many decades. Even the driest locations (Ouse and Hummocky Hills) had over 60 mm. Areas of the north and the southwest had near-normal rainfall for the month.

The wettest days were the 8th, 22-23rd and 27th.

To 9 am on the 23rd a total of 122 mm fell at Gray, near St Marys. Totals also exceeded 50 mm at a number of sites along or near the east coast on this day and a number had their highest September daily rainfall on record, including Eddystone Point and Bagdad.

A wet year so far The rain of September, when added to that of the very wet August, a July that was wet in many areas, a June that was very wet in the east, and more rain scattered through the year has led to one of the wettest January-to-September periods for many decades, especially in the southeast.

Hobart, where the total of 133.8 mm is the second-wettest September on record there (although well behind the record 202 mm in 1957). Hobart has had 672.6 mm in the nine months from January to September, which is the third-wettest on record (behind 713 mm in 1956 and 820 mm in 1946).

This total is also above the average annual rain of 615 mm (over the period 1882 to 2008), and well beyond the 275 mm recorded in the nine months from January to September 2008.

Ian Barnes-Keoghan, Meteorologist Bureau of Meteorology.

So there you have a small taste of Tasmania’s rain over the last few months.

One hot tip. Buy some Red Rascal Yep pre-rigged lures next time you go fishing for trout. They are absolute killers.

Mike Stevens

Tasmanian Fishing and Boating News

Published by Michael Stevens PO Box 7504, Launceston, 7250.

Ph/fax; 6331 1278 Email; mike@tasfish.com Advertising: Quenton Higgs - 0427 129 949 Stevens Publishing, ABN 79 095 217 299

All material is copyright and cannot be reproduced without the permission of the publisher. Print Post approved; PP 702512 00027

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Green Jollytail Arthurs and Lake Echo trout love this

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Red Rascal Red hot on browns at Arthurs and Great Lake

Blue Ice Fantastic for Australian salmon

Here is our new soft plastic lure range developed over the last season. The range shown are pre-rigged with no need for extra jig heads. Just tie them on and start catching.

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NOW THE BAITRUNNER S A LT W A T E R C A S T I N G BAIT FISHING ESTUARY BEACH ROCK B AY Imagine a fish picking up a live or dead bait completely unaware that there is anything suspicious about it - with the Baitrunner mechanism keeping just enough tension to control the line prior to the strike. Flick the lever or turn the handle, lift the rod and the fight is on!

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Model Retrieve Ratio

BAITRUNNER D NEW

BAITRUNNER B

BAITRUNNER ST NEW

BAITRUNNER DL NEW

ST2500FA

ST4000FA

DL2500FA

DL4000FA

4000D

6000D

8000D

12000D

BTR3500B

BTR4500B

BTR6500B

BIGBTRLC

4.8:1

4.8:1

4.8:1

4.8:1

4.8:1

4.8:1

4.8:1

4.4:1

4.7:1

4.8:1

4.2:1

4.6:1

Retrieve Per Crank (cm)

74

81

74

81

74

89

91

95

84

94

91

116

Max Drag (kg)

5

7

5

7

7

9

11

13

4

7

7

14

BTR Drag

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

Bearings

1+1

1+1

3+1

3+1

3+1

3+1

3+1

3+1

3+1

3+1

3+1

5+1

Weight

350

350

410

385

570

615

850

561

629

870

790

3

4

3

5

4

5

6

9

4

6

9

5

Capacity meters

183

219

183

183

219

274

270

242

279

270

247

548

GRA21566

300

Capacity kg test

Fishing News - Page 4 GRA21566 v1F.indd 2

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FAMILY IS COMPLETE PELAGIC GAMEFISH SNAPPER WHITING JEWFISH BREAM

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Fishing 21/9/09 News 2:40:55 - PagePM5

Lake Echo

By Greg French In my opinion, Lake Echo is an even better wild brown trout fishery than the much revered Great Lake, yet it remains one of the most underrated waters in Tasmania.

Perhaps this is the year that will change public perceptions once and for all. Why? For a start, access has been greatly improved over the last few seasons. Moreover, there has been a commitment by the IFS to stop swamping the fishery with domestic rainbow trout. Most importantly, the big wet of 2009 has created phenomenal fishing conditions that have already resulted in the average catch rate going from about two fish per angler per day to about three fish per angler per day. This compares very favourably to Great Lake (which oscillates from 1.0 to 1.5) and even Arthurs Lake (1.7 to 3.0). Word of this year’s stunning fishing was being broadcast by boastful anglers long before I began writing this article, and the rush to the lake is already well underway. Don’t despair about the extra visitors, though. There is plenty of room for everyone and with much more rain predicted, the fishing is likely to get even better in the lead-up to Christmas.

Description

Set amid tall forest, the old (natural) Lake Echo was shallow and weedy but more or less the same size and shape as the current impoundment. It was fed by a handful of small tributary creeks, and drained out the southern end via the River Dee.

Hydro-industrialisation

The HEC began road-building in the early 1950s. By 1954 the HEC had constructed a coffer-dam and raised the lake by about 4 m.

However, the Echo Dam itself was much bigger, 18 m high, and was not completed until 1956.

Also in 1956, the upper reaches of the Ouse and Little Pine rivers were diverted via the new Monpeelyata Canal into the northern end of the lake. Since then, outflowing water has been diverted through a canal flume and pipeline to the Lake Echo Power Station at Dee Lagoon.

General description of the modern lake

At full supply, the modern lake is 846 m above sea level. This is much lower than Great Lake (1039 m) and even Arthurs Lake (952 m), meaning that the weather is relatively mild and the fishing usually fires up early. Very good results can usually be achieved on the opening weekend at the beginning of August.

The lake is usually kept well below fullsupply (draw-downs as large as 13.5 m are typical) and the exposed littoral scar permits convenient foot access along most shores. It usually takes two or three wet years for the lake to go from minimum operating level to full supply, but it can fill in as little as six months (winter to Christmas) if you get a period of exceptional flooding. Here’s hoping that 2009 is such a year. The last time the lake reached full supply was in 1997.

Echo is large—12 km long and up to 6 km wide—but despite the large draw-downs, the water never recedes too far from shore, as happens in, say, Lake King William.

Major logging operations have been carried out around the lake since mid-1990s, yet there has been no large-scale clear-felling

Trout guide, Dan Hackett into a nice Lake Echo fish.

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k ee Cr Teal Bay

PRIVATE PROPERTY

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Sukes Marsh

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Lake Samuel

Woodwards Canal

Brocks Bay

STATE FOREST ROAD

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Echo Dam

Five Mile Marsh

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Map courtesy of Anglers Alliance Tasmania and the Angler Access project.

Dee Lagoon

of re-established hakea. The fishing peaks Large Bay is fed by a small gutter, Harrys when the lake is at minus 1.5 or higher and the submerged Creek, and at normal levels is a gentle arching water backs up over expansive areas of grass The head of Teal Bay features expansive STATE trees FOREST beds of aquatic weeds, and the inflowing cove with some weedbeds and pin-rushes amongst dense stands of tea-tree. gutter, Dicks Creek, is flanked by persistent at its head. Broken Bay is fed by the larger marshy ‘lawns’. This is the most fertile and Broken Bay Creek and at normal levels is more Fish stocks To Dee Lagoon, Strickland and Ouse stable of the north-western bays and provides elongate—a flooded riverbed reminiscent of Until the 2000s Deetrout stocks were first-class sport at wider range of lake levels a tiny estuary. maintained entirely by natural recruitment Lagoon At low levels (less than minus 4 m), the from the River Ouse, than either Large Bay or Broken Bay. Monpeelyata Canal and a Teal Bay is at its best as the lake rises from marshy ‘lawns’ flanking these bays and their number of small lake tributaries. Brown trout about minus 5 m to minus 1 m creating classic associated creeks are often separated from the predominated, though rainbows accounted floodplain fishing. At higher levels the water lakeshore by expanses of exposed clay and for up to 10% of the annual harvest. begins to backs up into tea-tree and tall timber. mud. Consequently, they tend to fire up later Before hydro development of the lake, The fishing remains exhilarating, though you than Brocks Bay and Teal Bay, and they are the trout averaged about 5 lb, and 10 lb have to have to be prepared to stalk your way not especially remarkable until the lake gets fish were common. In the 1950s, when the to minus 3.8 m or higher. At minus 2 m, the offshore weedbeds were drowned and major around knee-deep gaps in dense shrubbery.

Teal Bay also fishes well when the lake water breaks out into sparsely vegetated clay new spawning grounds created in the new falling, but weedbeds give way to unattractive flats, and it is great fun hunting fish as they Monpeelyata Canal, the average size of the fish mud flats when the lake drops below about cruise over small clearings bounded by clumps dropped dramatically. By 1960, however, the minus 6 m. size of the fish had stabilised, and since then most wild trout taken by anglers have weighed Date Species Number Age/Weight (g) Origin Stock Type 0.7–1.5 kg. Better 25/05/2009 rainbow trout 25000 Fingerling 20 New Norfolk Wild Diploid still, the lake has 25/05/2009 rainbow trout 5000 Fingerling 33 New Norfolk Wild Triploid maintained a 25/05/2009 rainbow trout 18000 Fingerling 15 New Norfolk Wild Triploid healthy sprinkling 24/01/2008 rainbow trout 41000 Fingerling 25 Sevrup Domestic Triploid of specimens 16/08/2007 rainbow trout 6874 Fingerling/Yearling 30 Springfield Domestic do ip lD i in the 2–2.5 kg 22/12/2006 rainbow trout 25000 Fingerling 25 Sevrup Domestic Diploid range.

15/12/2006 rainbow trout 6500 Fingerling 25 Sevrup Domestic Diploid Despite four decades of 23/11/2005 rainbow trout 230000 Fingerling 6 Tassal Domestic Triploid remarkably robust 22/09/2005 rainbow trout 9000 Yearling 200 Tassal Domestic Diploid and consistent 17/02/2005 rainbow trout 7000 Fingerling 24 Cressy Domestic Triploid fishing, the IFS

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Dee flume

AD

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Large Bay and Broken Bay

Lake Echo stocking 2005 to 2009

Kenmere

submerged trees

ROAD

Highland Waters

Woodwards Bay

Teal Bay

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Bronte

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decided that Lake Echo was underutilised.

In December 2001, in an effort to popularise the fishery, it initiated a program of annual stocking with large numbers of domestic rainbow trout (mainlywww.tasmap.tas.gov.au fingerlings). The experiment was a spectacular failure, with visitation quickly falling from 1850 licensed anglers per year to something less than 900.

This did not reflect a decline in fishing, just the fact that given the choice the majority of Tasmanian anglers, like the great majority of anglers worldwide, would prefer to fish wholly wild fisheries.

In its Tasmanian Inland Recreational Fishery Management Plan 2008–18, the IFS recommended annual stocking with wild rainbow trout (natural diploids, not artificial triploids). This is a much better management strategy than the previous one, but the need for any stocking at all is highly questionable.

A current history of trout stocking is shown.

In addition to trout, Echo contains a modest population of redfin perch and some tench.

Access

Since the 1950s there has been a northern access to Lake Echo via Monpeelyata Canal, but it crosses private land and has usually been unavailable for public use. Also in the 1950s, 4WD routes were pushed in from the southern end of the lake to Teal Bay and Large Bay and Brocks Bay, but these were very rugged and difficult to locate. So, until the Fishing News - Page 7

AD RO

Currant Bush Shore

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(submerged)

Lake Big Jim

Lagoon Standard maps show Lake Echo at fullC173 supply, and Brocks Bay usually looks as if it is exposed to the full brunt of the prevailing north-westerly weather. At about minus 1.5 m or lower, however, this bay becomes something of a huge backwater lagoon. The north-eastern corner remains connected to the main lake by deep, wideA10 channel, but the rest of the bay is shallow and well sheltered.

It is encircled by amphibious grass flats and HYDRO supports the most expansive weedbeds in all LAND of the Echo system.

Brocks fishes well when the water is as low as minus 6.5 metres, and provides classic floodplain fishing as the level rises from minus 6 m to about minus 1 m. At higher levels the Bradys bar which separates the north-western shore from the main lake becomes inundated and Lake then most anglers prefer to fish the northwestern bays of the main lake.

Bronte Dam

Macclesfield Hill

Bull Bank

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Rowallan Bay

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submerged trees

Large Bay

HYDRO LAND

MACCLESFIELD

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Broken Bay

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Rainbow End

Three Mile Marsh

Surveyors Marshes

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Bronte Bay

PRIVATE PROPERTY

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and the water is still surrounded by spectacular tall eucalypts, mainly gumtop stringybarks.

Extensive stands of drowned trees persist in many areas of the lake too, particularly along the western shores.

The water is generally very clear but some bays and shores can become quite turbid after heavy rain or high wind. Problems with water quality are relatively mild, but have been exacerbated in recent years by logging operations and long periods of very low HYDRO water.

The sheltered western shore features steep LAND banks of rock scree and provides consistently good fishing.

The eastern shore is defined by dramatic wave-washed sand flats and is not favoured by many anglers.

The most dynamic fishing—by that I mean wonderfully variable, not always best—occurs in the series of shallow weedy bays at the north-western end of the fishery, and in Brocks Bay at the south-eastern corner of the lake. The nature of the fishing in the bays is highly dependent upon lake levels, and these can be monitored on the Hydro website, www.hydro.com.au or go via www.tasfish.com and you’ll also find them. wa od Wo

s

PRIVATE PROPERTY

mid-1990s, the only reliable access was via the 2WD road that led to the Echo Dam. At least there was plenty of scope for shore-based fishing here, and a good launching ramp too.

In the early 1990s, the Forestry Commission upgraded the Sukes Tier Road, which branched off the Brown Marsh Road (near Lake Samuel) and led to within easy walking distance of Teal Bay. This road was ostensibly maintained at 2WDstandard, but could become muddy during very wet weather and was sometimes gated. It has since been much improved and can now be reliably negotiated in the family sedan.

In the early 2000s, the road to Brocks Bay from the Echo Dam was upgraded to 2WD standard.

Further road works were undertaken in the mid- to late 2000s. First was the construction of the Echo Link Road, from the Mentmore Road (1 km west of the Echo Dam) to the Sukes Tier Road, giving convenient access to a bay on the western shore that has since become known as Middle Echo. There is a good launching ramp here but the steep log-strewn banks make can make access along the shores laborious at times, especially when levels are rising above minus 5.5 m.

In 2007 a brand-new road was pushed in from the Brown Mountain Road to Large Bay. This is an all-weather road, but much of it is surfaced with chunky road-base and it can be a rugged drive in the family 2WD. A good concrete boat ramp was constructed at southern end of the bay in 2008.

Boat owners should be aware that Lake Echo is large and exposed. Extreme caution should be exercised when operating small dinghies in open water.

Fly fishing

Worm feeders Wet fly fishing is usually quite productive on the opening weekend at the beginning of August, but things always get much better in early September. If levels continue to rise throughout spring, as looks likely to be the case this year, the action peaks from early October until Christmas. Hotspots are the shallow bays, though each one fires up at different times depending upon lake levels (for details, read ‘Description’ above).

This year is already proving to be a ripper for wet-fly enthusiasts. The lake has risen from historic lows in April, to a healthy – 4.25 at time of writing. Teal Bay and Brocks Bay have been going berserk for several weeks now. With rain cascading down all over the State as I write, and plenty more predicted in the weeks ahead, you can bet that the focus will soon shift to Large Bay and Broken Bay. Predictably, in August and September the principal food item for trout in the shallows has been worms. The grassy shallows in the heads of Teal Bay and Brocks Bay have been the real hotspots, but plenty of fish have been found grubbing about along the rocky approaches.

Some anglers prefer to use worm imitations for worm feeders, but I find no need to use anything other than black Woolly Buggers (#8 and #10).

In the first flush of rising water the worms can be quite wriggly, but they soon die. In fact many of the worms eaten by trout are little more than blobby strips of putrescence that disintegrate on contact. The trout are forced to suck this stuff up, and they behave the same way to your fly, always stopping a few centimetres short of your offering before inhaling. A blind strip-retrieve usually results in the fly being pulled away from the fish’s mouth at the critical moment. Some anglers try a stop-start retrieve, perhaps relying on an indicator to tell when a fish has taken, but the trout often spit the fly out without moving the line at all. For consistent results, then, you need to spot your fish and plop your fly half a metre in front of its nose. It is important to let the fly settle to the bottom, and to strike soon after the trout opens its mouth or flares its gills.

On dull days and in the evenings many fish can be seen tailing, but when the sun is out it often pays to wade knee-deep offshore and polaroid back towards the banks. You’ll probably be surprised at how many fish there are in the shallows that you failed to notice on your first approach to the water’s edge. How is it that the great majority of trout cruising in the extreme shallows completely fail to disturb the water surface?

Frog feeders After such a prolonged drought, you might think that it would take a couple of wet seasons for worthwhile frog populations to re-establish, but good numbers of common brown froglets have been spawning the weedy shallows since early September. Some fish are already feeding on them with gusto, sprinting several metres to intercept any suspicious splash or wake. Such activity often prompts novice anglers to blind fish wet flies in the conventional plop-strip manner.

Fishing News - Page 8

The problem is, only some trout will be feeding selectively on frogs. While the lake continues to rise, most fish will be eating a mixed diet of frogs and worms, and some will eat only worms.

Inert presentations with black Woolly Buggers work in all these situations, providing you make sure that fish sees the fly fall into the water.

Tadpoles Throughout December, the weedy shallows in the sheltered bays are likely to be full of tadpoles.

Many anglers insist that falling lake levels—the usual state of affairs in early summer—result in poor fishing.

Nothing could be further from the truth. As the tadpoles retreat with the receding water, they become ever more concentrated, and Echo trout feed on them in a frenzied manner reminiscent of sea trout chasing baitfish.

The best fly? A black Woolly Bugger, of course.

Summertime tailers Even when Echo is reasonably low, the sheltered bays generally feature carpets of amphibious weeds, so they are ideal for early-morning tailers at any time of the year. Of course, fish feeding on scud, damselfly nymphs and snails are much more challenging than fish feeding on frogs or tadpoles, but then that’s the fun of it.

Beetles and other terrestrials Whatever the water levels, the timbered western shore offers reliable dry fly fishing when the gum beetles are flying on warm summer days. The water is usually very clear at this time of year and polaroids are essential. The rocky approaches to the north-western bays are the best bets, though further shore-based vantages can be found near the dam and in Brocks Bay. Even the sandy eastern shore can be worthwhile, especially if a steady breeze has been blowing beetles across the water surface all day long and things become tolerably calm in the late afternoon.

Most anglers like to use a gum beetle imitation, but I am happy to use the same attractor flies I use in Great Lake: large Black Crickets and smaller Carrot Flies. These patterns even work on very hot days when the fish are reluctant to rise and I am forced to prospect shady areas amongst the drowned timber.

In autumn Echo can have a very good jassid fall, and it always pays to have a few imitations on hand.

Wind-lanes and offshore currents fishing From mid-spring to the end of the season, boat handlers should take time to look for risers amongst the drowned trees offshore. When the fish are not showing, prospecting with Black Crickets and Carrot Flies can still work wonders.

Outstanding wind-lanes form across the open reaches and also provide superb opportunities for boat fishers. These are noted hot spots for rainbow trout, though brown trout are common enough. The most reliable rises are triggered by gum beetles on warm days in summer and autumn. Midges can also provide exciting sport, with the best action occurring from October to March, especially early in the morning from sunup until the first rays of sunshine hit the water.

When it’s running strong, the rip from the inflowing Monpeelyata Canal fills up with stocked rainbows, and big bags can be caught on wet flies and weighted nymphs.

Mayflies Very good dun hatches can occur throughout summer and early autumn, particularly over the weedbeds in the sheltered bays.

Evening rises Notable mudeye migrations along the timbered shores stimulate good rises on fine summer evenings. Fishing amongst the drowned timber is best.

When the mudeyes fail, the fish will often be found

A superb Lake Echo brownie. rising anyway, usually amongst accumulations of beetles, but sometimes to sedges and other aquatic insects.

Spinning

Spinning from the deeper scree banks along the full length of the western shore can be extraordinarily productive, especially in spring and early summer. Drift spinning along the outer edge of the drowned trees is also highly recommended.

Later in the year, on very hot blue-sky days, you can nearly always lure up a fish or two from the shadier areas amid the drowned trees.

The rip from the inflowing Monpeelyata Canal is a reliable area for spinning when the flow is strong, and these days it is often chock-a-block full of stocked rainbows.

Trolling

The best areas for trolling are the mouths of the northwestern bays and the timbered shores in between. The best bags are taken by trolling just outside the tree-line.

Bait fishing

Worms are good bait early on, and any shore, even the deeper rocky ones, seem to give up good bags.

Later in the year, cockroaches and mudeyes are preferred.

You get the best results if you stalk your way along the shores and cast your bait in front of rising and cruising trout. The timbered shores are best, and polaroids are essential.

Camping

There are no toilets or other facilities at Lake Echo, but informal camping is popular nonetheless.

The most delightful campsites exist in Brocks Bay. Good sites can also be scouted out adjacent to the Echo Dam. Camping occurs at Large Bay, though you have to be prepared to set up your caravan or tent on bare clay, rock or mud.

These days the owner of the private land at the head of Teal Bay excludes vehicular access and camping.

The nearest formal accommodation facilities are located at Bronte Park.

www.tasfish.com - get the knowledge.

Echo Rising Shane Flude adds to Greg French’s Echo article. This was written right as TFBN went to press. Like Greg French Shane predicts this to be the ‘HOT’ fishery right up to Christmas and beyond.

For many years now I have travelled to Lake Echo around Grand Final weekend in September. I have discovered that this is a particularly productive time of year to fish the lake despite the often inclement weather. Having monitored the every rising water levels now for many months this year’s September trip looked sure to deliver the goods. At – 4.5 metres the lake was almost 8 metres higher than at season’s end in April and was 4.5 metres higher than September last year. I keep a fishing diary which has enabled me to pin point the best times and locations over the years. This article is an expansion of my diary entry for the trip and as you will read the results you will understand why my next trip is already planned.

DAY 1

Roger and I arrived at Toby’s Point near the new northern boat ramp and pitched our tents in record time to beat the first rain shower of the day. Our favourite campsite in the trees that was almost destroyed when the new road was pushed through was, luckily, devoid of other campers. Launching the boat was much easier this year as the water level was only about 50 metres from camp. With our ever reliable CD 7 Rapala lures attached (we opted for the brook trout pattern) we trolled straight up into Large Bay over ground that has been high and dry for years. The first fish fell to my lure as I twitched it along the tree line. It was only a small fish of about a pound, but in good condition. As I dehooked it a huge amount of worms fell from it, a sure sign of exciting shore fishing to come.

Another slightly larger specimen was landed before the end of the bay and if it wasn’t for two anglers already fly fishing the flooded marsh near the creek mouth I would have happily left the boat there to prospect the shore. We saw them grass two whilst trolling past. Around the corner next to Broken Bay and

Searching the shores on rising levels will result in good catches. continued trolling at the ten foot mark claiming another on the Rapala before Roger was forced to let me out and fly fish the magnificent flooded shoreline devoid of other anglers. I nearly trod on the first fish as he spooked from the shallows.

Three more steps in deplorable polaroiding conditions and a further three bow waved out of the shallows. I slowed to a snails pace carefully fishing all the new water with a small wet. After pricking the next two, scaring the next two and then having three refusals I decided this was not going to be my best day on the fly. Rogers constant hook ups out from shore

did nothing to improve my sanity so I jumped back in as the ground turned to rocks and the fish numbers diminished. Food for thought for tomorrow.

The next location is Tassie’s best spinning water, the Monpeelyata canal mouth which is located in the north east corner of the lake. On arrival with a fierce south westerly blowing and a canal running flat out this place was not for the faint hearted boat enthusiast. The mouth was basically split into two main currents complete with nasty snags in between.

The fishing we experienced for the next hour was simply

ENDURA

RIPTIDE

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remarkable and included three rainbows to about 2.5 pound to bring the session to 9. We lost several more. The snags only managed to claim one lure. As usual the canal produced the biggest fish of the day.

With fading light we raced back to Large Bay to finish the day and a final lap produced three more worm laden brownies. With bag limits reached it was time to sample some fine ale around a huge fire and ponder the fishing tomorrow.

DAY 2

Mostly overcast with a cold 15 knot westerly greeted us as we devoured the traditional eggs and bacon breakfast. We headed south into a small bay I call Cormorant Bay due to number of cormorant nests in the trees. With the levels up we were able to position the boat between the nest area and the shore. Three quick browns falling to my brook trout Rapala was a very positive start. We trolled the open water next heading towards Teal Bay but the 42 foot depth was unproductive over Stormy Bay and turned out to be the same across the entire lake for the trip. All fish were taken in 20 feet or less, the 8 to 12 feet mark being best.

Teal Bay looked superb with a very enticing flooded shoreline. As this bay fished very well last year spinning with Rapalas we were keen to try a few drifts. I nailed three in as many casts on the ever reliable stop-start retrieve.

Roger redeemed himself with a magnificent rainbow in the trees. It got snagged on some branches at the last minute but happily fell into the net. Several more drifts produced trout all over the bay.

Time to hit the shoreline for what was to be a disgraceful effort on the fly. Hooked the first nice brown right in the creek mouth, but the hook pulled out after five seconds. A huge swirl behind the fly next to the flooded tussocks, but no connection. Another hooked and lost brown behind the floating stump and recast to a waiting rainbow which tail walked and you guessed it, threw the fly again. All this action was in close over the flooded grass but the water was stirred up, and the clouds made polaroiding impossible. Further down the bank the water cleared and within minutes the sun poked its nose out. I spotted and spooked the next two, had one refusal and then finally succeeded in claiming one on a possum nymph. The shoreline became quite rocky and deep further down with no more trout to be found. A memorable, but unproductive session on the fly. Back in the boat and back to camp for lunch.

Friends Simon and Harley had arrived to fish the morning and were just about to pack it in. They had managed four browns but lost just as many. Simon informed me that he had strategically placed several new Rapalas into the mouths of two fish and onto two snags at the canal mouth. An expensive mornings fishing.

After lunch on the bank near camp it was back into Large Bay where a quick spinning session claimed a couple more. No anglers on this shore today so time to check it out.

Overcast and raining this time so still no sight fishing. I still had on the possum nymph and fished it blind down the edges. Just as I hooked up on another nice brown I spotted Roger into one out over the creek bed. He drove the boat in to pick me up with a smile on his face as he raised, still kicking in the net what was to be the biggest fish caught on the trip.

A three pound brown that had totally engulfed the Rapala lure head first.

Fishing News - Page 10

Without wasting time trolling the deep shore we shot back round into Broken bay to fish the shallows again. A break in the weather brought the sun out for almost 40 minutes so it was out with the fly rod and down the flooded shore again. This time with better results, three landed and one lost, four others seen but refused or spooked. Two more laps of the bay proved quiet so a dedicated session was had using soft plastics. Not even a nibble after a drift right across the bay and dozens of casts. The canal mouth was beckoning and the reasonable westerly that was blowing would provide calmer water to fish than yesterday.

Only eight in the next hour including one small rainbow. Roger donated another rapala lure to the Christmas tree like snags that must be under the raging surface and then lost another further out. His smile returned on his last perfect condition 2.5 pound brownie.

Back to Large Bay as the sun went down for a perfect September sunset and some last ditch action. It was almost dark when we pulled up the boat. Clean fish, light fire, eat hot food and oh yes, more cleansing ales. Life was good.

The outflow from Monpeelyata canal can be very productive.

DAY 3

Now knowing where all the action was and with only half the day to fish before we headed home we headed straight up the shore to Large Bay and quickly opened the account by spinning near the creek mouth. In two drifts we were off to a good start again. Around to Broken Bay but this morning I was beaten to the marsh by another angler so I left him to it. Canal mouth anyone?. Oh OK. Only four this time and a number of misses. One more Rapala again generously donated by Roger to the deep that made it five in total between us and four by Simon, ouch. We trolled through the trees on the return journey to camp but only managed one more fish. We just managed to pack up before the weather really set in and down came the snow. What a fantastic trip.

The fishing in September is usually good but this year was exceptional. Overall size and condition was down, average weight being around 600 gms. The best conditioned fish of the trip were the smaller ones and the rainbows. We released a number of the bigger fish as they nearly all had some improving to do and the bag limit for Echo is only 12 a day.

Another month on the worms should see a dramatic improvement. Echo normally rises until mid November and should come up another meter or so yet. It rose 12 cm while we were there.

Despite some great shore action it should be noted that the northern bays on Echo are only small with each bay offering only several hundred metres of flooded marshes.

If someone is already there then chances are there’s no room left for you. Teal Bay was closed to the public two years ago so this is now a boat only destination or a long shore walk. The canal mouth would be a huge shore walk and really needs fishing from a boat anyway. Beware the snags and if the south westerly is blowing then things can get bumpy.

With the water temperature currently at seven degrees swimming is not advisable. With the spring weather hopefully about to improve who knows what the fishing at Echo could be like in a few weeks. I do know that this will not be my last trip for the year.

Shane Flude

Another fish succumbs to a Rapala near the snags at the canal.

The dead timber can be very rewarding.

Rising water has fish in very shallow water. www.tasfish.com - get the knowledge.

Jan’s Flies Jan Spencer

As the year rushes by, our hopes are high for a good spring with warm humid days when the willows have greened, the hawthorns are in flower and the fly life is abundant. We have had some good rain falls to flush the systems out. I am sure the trout would have made the best out of the high water levels, feeding freely on worms and the many other morsels washed out by the excess water.

Personally I am hoping for good red spinner hatches on the Macquarie River, like the ones of old when the air was filled with an orange haze. Maybe I am dreaming, but one can only hope.

Bu the end of September and the first couple of weeks of October, there should be the first sightings of these insects. A lot of our lowland rivers are slowly flowing and they meander through the farmlands. These rivers are quite easy to fish as one doesn’t have to cope with hard flowing water.

The duns will appear in almost any weather, wild blustery conditions will see some really good hatches of these insects.

To get the best of spinner hatches, calm warm days are required. The trout will launch themselves into the air to get these delicate morsels. If you have a look at the stomach contents of a trout when there is a spinner hatch on, it is highly likely it will be overflowing with these insects. One can imagine the effort put in by these fish to obtain a meal as is would take many leaps into the air to get a stomach full.

This is one time of the fishing season I really look forward to. Being on the rivers at this time of the year can be amazing.

I try and keep my red spinner patterns simple—as I do with most flies. The one explained can be altered to suit the day. Clipping the bottom of the hackle—as shown on the top fly, will make the fly sit low on the water. This is a good idea at the end of a hatch when the fish will mop up the spent insects.

Trout will often just sit in the current taking the insects after they have mated, laid eggs and are dying on the water. This is an easy meal because so very little energy has to be used.

The following is normally fished on a ten foot six inch leader, four or six pound tip.

Red Spinner

Hook – Size 12, light gauge Thread – Black Tail – Black Microfibetts Rib – Fine gold wire Body – Orange turkey biots Hackle – Ginger cock hackle

Method:

1. Take thread full length of hook shank and tie in Microfibetts for tail.

2. Place rib in and leave hanging. Tie turkey biot in by the pointed tip, bring thread forward stopping well back from the eye.

3. Now wind biot forward to thread and tie down firmly, cut away excess. Bring rib forward with nice even turns over the biot, tie down with thread and cut away excess rib.

4. Take hackle and tie in firmly, wind hackle toward eye, now bring thread through hackle tying it in firmly. Cut away excess hackle tip.

5. Form a nice little head, whip finish and varnish. For highland red spinners make the hook a size ten and tie the fly in the above method. Here’s hoping the hatch is good.

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Fishing News - Page 11

Lake Leake Matt Byrne has fished Lake Leake consistently over the past 15 years and finds that despite its relatively central proximity to Launceston and Hobart, he rarely shares the lake with more than one or two other fishers! Here he gives a bit of incentive for anglers to explore this underrated and picturesque east coast water.

Visitor information

Lake Leake is situated approximately 30 minutes drive to the east of Campbell Town, with access via the Lake Leake Highway. Boat ramps are located just past the Lake Leake Chalet and also at Kalangadoo, the latter ramp being recommended for smaller boats only. Formal camping is available near the Chalet boat ramp and there are toilet and shower facilities available for use – contact should be made with the caretaker before using these facilities. At the time of writing, the Lake Leake Chalet and the Kalangadoo store are closed so visitors should not rely on utilising these services.

The Lake

The lake itself is relatively shallow throughout but has an excellent mix of thick weed beds and drowned timber which sees that a thriving aquatic life is present. At the time of writing, Lake Leake has benefited from the big winter rains in the Macquarie catchment and is now at full capacity. This has ensured that this fishery, that was only months ago at risk of almost being completely lost, has now thankfully been restored to its former glory.

Fishing on Lake Leake is reserved for artificial lures only and a changed bag limit in recent seasons now sees that anglers may take a five fish limit with a minimum length of 300 mm.

Brown, Rainbow and Brook Trout are all available, with the average size of fish being quite consistent around the 2.5 lb mark, although a growing number of fish around the 3.5 lb mark are being caught in recent seasons. Redfin Perch are found all over the lake and although the majority are stunted and often a pest to fishers, they can attain similar size to that of the trout – making them a welcome target for some anglers.

Tackle store owner, Allan Davey looks pleased with this Lake Leake brownie.

Fly Fishing

Lake Leake is very well suited to all forms of fly fishing.

Early in the season during August, fish respond well to a wet fly, fished slowly in Kalangadoo Bay, Chock ‘n’ Log Bay or around the Island. Although I don’t really enjoy ‘flogging’ wets that much anymore my favourite patterns have traditionally been the Cat fly, Green Machine and Black or Brown Woolly Buggers. Due to the shallow nature of the lake, weight forward floating lines and long leaders are all that is required to reach the required depths in just about all situations.

Provided water levels are up (as is currently the case), September normally sees a few fish foraging and to a lesser extent tailing, early morning and late in the evening. These fish are usually worm or frog feeders and they literally gorge themselves silly on these morsels! The marshes in Kalangadoo Bay and Slaters Bay are normally quite reliable locations with

a small black rabbit fur fly or a stick caddis pattern suspended under a buoyant dry fly normally all that is required to trigger a take.

A quick session early this season late one afternoon when fishing over newly flooded ground saw me catch three nice browns and lose a couple of others all in under one hours fishing. A close inspection of the fish saw that they were full of wood grubs, worms and frogs showing that these fish are now getting very well fed indeed. As expected, fish condition can be variable at this time of year but it is great knowing that this side of things will keep getting better as time progresses!

As with most waters, October – November really sees the fishing fire up big time on Lake Leake and keen fly fishers can expect to encounter the first of the dry fly fishing normally by mid October – albeit weather dependant. As the lake is at

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Fishing News - Page 12

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Snowy R

HOBART

TOOMS LAKE

PRIVATE PROPERTY

beth

Empty one month then full the next.

Dam Wall

Slaters Bay Coughlans Point

Lake Leake

Cutting Grass Bay

Bellevue Island

Gallows Point

Lake Leake

Clarks Point

STATE FOREST

PRIVATE PROPERTY

O’Briens Point Hardings Bay

d Be h

ac

To Campbell Town

Spencers Point

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a lower altitude than the highland lakes, the Duns start hatching earlier and this produces some excellent sight fishing over most of the lake with the pick of the areas being Kalangadoo Bay, Chock ‘n’ Log Bay, and the whole length of the Big Timber shore. Once insect activity becomes more regular and water clarity improves, fishing on blue sky days will result in memorable dry fly polaroiding opportunities and can easily rival that found any of the highland lakes on such days. All the usual patterns will work, with my favourites being the deadly Claret and Black Seals Fur ‘Bobs Bits’ style dries in size #12 – #14 when the fish are on top or a team of Brown Seals Fur nymphs if the fish are hanging deeper.

Traditional patterns such as the famous Barry Lodge Emerger also work very well and that pattern was pretty much born on this lake, with the late Barry Lodge being a devoted Lake Leake expert.

Any calm morning or evening from October onwards will produce good fishing to midge feeding fish and if you get the conditions right, don’t be surprised to see literally hundreds of midging fish on this lake. As usual, hunting out the windlanes and finding the concentrations of food will guarantee that you also find the fish!!! Again, I really can’t go past the seals fur dries as mentioned above as rarely have they failed but I would class good boat positioning with an electric motor and precision casting accuracy as being far more important than fly choice here as just about any small dry or nymph will

R

Big Timber Shore

Elia

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PUBLIC RESERVE

Kalangadoo Bay

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LAK

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E

Rawlinna

ROAD

PUBLIC RESERVE

B34

Dam Wall

STATE FOREST

Lake Yalleena (private fishery)

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2km Map courtesy of Anglers Alliance Tasmania and the Angler Access project.

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Lake Leake stocking 2004 to 2009

Roly Richardson caught this brownie under challenging conditions. do the job. Getting the casting and boat positioning side of things right is quite simply the difference between catching a couple of fish or catching big numbers.

After Christmas, the dry fly fishing is quite consistent but normally due to some quite significant rises in water temperature and a drop in water level from downstream irrigation, the fishing seems best early morning and evening.

For some frustrating and exhilarating sight fishing look out for the Redfin Perch fry that hatch all over the lake at this time of year. Trout can be seen smashing into these small fish everywhere, even in open water and I now find it quite entertaining to watch other fishers throw everything at these voracious feeders to no avail. As it took me around ten years to figure out how to consistently catch these fish I will leave it to others to take up the challenge but a big hint is to only bother targeting these fish during overcast weather conditions that coincide with a bit of a chop on the water – too brighter conditions and your imitation often isn’t good enough to match the selectiveness of the hatch!

Date

Species

Number Age Weight (g)

18/07/2008 10/07/2008 22/06/2007 04/03/2007 14/12/2006 08/12/2006 29/03/2006 07/12/2005 24/08/2005 03/05/2005 18/01/2005 07/12/2004 25/11/2004 10/11/2004

brook trout rainbow trout brook trout brook trout rainbow trout brook trout brook trout rainbow trout rainbow trout brook trout brook trout rainbow trout brown trout rainbow trout

2000 10000 8000 4200 17500 4000 1700 15000 9000 2000 16000 10000 30000 400

Spinning and Trolling

Origin

Yearling 200 Sevrup Fisheries Fingerling 20 New Norfolk Fingerling/Yearling 40 Yearling 120 Sevrup Fingerling 25 Sevrup Fingerling 25 Sevrup Fingerling 350 Cressy Fingerling 20 Cressy Yearling 200 Tassal Russell Falls Yearling 350 Cressy Fingerling 29 Cressy Fry 4 Snowy Range Fry Salmon Ponds Yearling Springfield

Trolling is only permitted on Lake Leake with the use of electric motors and rowing. This means that if you don’t have an electric motor and you enjoy this style of fishing then you will have to do some work for a change!!

The standard old 20 gram and 7 gram hardware such as Tassie Devils, Lofty’s and Tillins Cobra’s with a combination of Black, Gold, Green and Red do typically well and are popular in getting most lure fishers onto a fish or two. The runs along the Big Timber shore and the circuit along the old Elizabeth River bed near the back of the Island are as good areas as any to focus your trolling efforts on. August to November are really the best months to troll on the lake due to the prolific weed growth becoming a problem as the weather really warms up post Christmas. Trolling is also advised towards the end of the season in April when weed is also less of a problem and fish regain a renewed aggression to attack lures.

Drift spinning along the Big Timber shore often produces the most consistent catches for those that enjoy casting and drifting, with most locals using the older traditional lures such as small Ashley green and gold spinners or shallow running Redfin Wonder Wobblers. As is the case in most places, soft plastics work very well with Berkley three inch Power Minnows

Stock

Type

Domestic Wild Sevrup Domestic Domestic Domestic Domestic Domestic Domestic Domestic Domestic Domestic Wild Domestic

Diploid Diploid Domestic do ip l D i Diploid Diploid Diploid Diploid Diploid Triploid Diploid Diploid Diploid Diploid Diploid

in Pearl Watermelon, Pearl Olive, Smelt and that old faithful Pumpkinseed being hard to beat. Not surprisingly, soft plastics outfish traditional lures ten to one!

For those anglers that wish to target some of the big Redfin Perch that reside in the lake, the months of January and February seem to be a time when these big Perch get active and regular captures are made of fish between 2 – 2.5lb. All of the above methods will work and good areas to try are along the shack shore and near the dam wall not far from the camp ground. If you are lucky to catch one of these fish try cooking one up – you will be pleasantly surprised!

While Lake Leake might not have the known reputation of some of the more popular central highland lakes, it can provide some memorable fishing. The lake is well stocked and the weather is generally quite settled from spring onwards, making it an ideal venue to take the family. The really great thing about the location of Lake Leake is that Swansea is only 20 minutes away, meaning that if you want a change in fishing for Trout, you can be fishing for trophy sized Bream on the Swan River in next to no time at all!

So, why not give Lake Leake a try this coming season – the fishing is good and the scenery isn’t too bad either.

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Matt Byrne lures up another fish from his favourite water. www.tasfish.com - get the knowledge.

Great Lake

Fishing the waves As we go to print many of Tassie’s rivers are still in flood, most of the major storages are filling nicely and a number of those dams on the Mersey/Forth and Derwent river systems have been spilling for two months. What all this means to the avid trout angler is that we are simply spoilt for choice of locations at the moment. Great Lake is one storage that has risen dramatically this year coming up almost four meters. I have fished here a number of times this year with great success but am still amazed at the apparent lack of anglers. In fact I am yet to approach my favourite shoreline and turn away due to someone already fishing my bank. This article covers the very productive surf fishing that awaits the keen angler on one of Tassie’s best waters. Knowing exactly when and where to go, what to use once there and how to fish it properly will unlock some excellent fishing.

Methods

Spinning and wet fly fishing are my two preferred methods with the fly rod being replaced by the spinning rod as the wind speed increases above about 15 knots. Anything above this and back casts become troublesome and the waves that are created as they are blown across the lake simply form surf like conditions to rough to fish into. Huge waves pick up the fly line and wash it down the shore, dragging the fly to quickly through the water to fish it effectively. Up to 15 knots however the shore based wet fly fishing can be fantastic. I use a six weight rod and line with a simple short floating leader and six pound tippet. Short casts on a 45 degree angle downwind along the shore is best as the fish on these rough days patrol the shoreline just behind the breakers. Any steamer type pattern that loosely resembles the native galaxias should be used.

These small fish abound in the shallows and surf on rough days and are the prey of choice for the trout. I tie a no six or

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Some Great Lake galaxiids spawn in the rocks on shore. The fish know this only too well and take advantage of an easy and nutricious feed. Check the shores out when the waves are coming in and you could be in for a hot session. eight Rabbit Fur Fly in black, brown or olive. The majority of galaxias are around 50mm in length so use flies around this size. A stripping basket is essential when fishing the Great Lake surf as each wave will tangle up and wash away free floating line. There are a number of these overpriced gadgets on the market but my $3.50 plastic Kmart laundry basket does the job very nicely even if I do look like an idiot wading along the shores with a white laundry basket in front of me.

When spinning I use a standard seven foot graphite rod coupled with braided line. In fact I now use fireline for all my fishing whether it be inland or sea fishing. I still tie a short mono leader so any serious snag will break here rather than half way down the expensive braid line. A small snap swivel

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or rapala knot is attached to the end to tie on my favourite and most productive lure namely a Rapala CD 7 countdown.

At seven grams and seven centimetres I find it’s the perfect weight and length to fish the conditions. I’ve experimented with most colours but it’s a tossup between the muddler minnow and the rainbow trout pattern. The muddler is a great lookalike of the spotted native galaxias and the rainbow pattern perfectly depicts a small rainbow trout. This year the muddler has outfished the rainbow, probably due to the large number of galaxias on the shoreline. From the stomachs of the first five fish last trip I counted 27 galaxias.

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Clothing

As you can imagine, wading and fishing in a 20 knot surf at Great Lake in June is not for the faint hearted. To say it is cold is a ridiculous understatement, it is absolutely bloody freezing and three or four thermal layers and full wet weathers are needed. Nearly all the shores are rocky and difficult to walk along, so decent footwear is essential. I’ve just purchased my fifth pair of Horns waders and although not the warmest the boots are very grippy on the rocks.

So now you’re fully briefed on how to fish Great Lake, don’t just sit there. Buy some rather expensive rapala lures, drive to the dam at the southern end overlooking the lake and walk down to the face of the old arch dam. If it’s blowing into your face and the water is rough and stirred up, cast onemetre out from the dam and catch the big one that often lurks there, because this is probably the most productive spot on the whole lake.

Shane Flude

The contents of a shore caught fish — full of galaxiids.

Best locations and weather conditions

Fishing the surf at Great Lake is all about choosing the best time to go and unless you have the right weather conditions the other factors I’ve mentioned in this article will not come into play. It is essential that you fish in rough and windy conditions and overcast is always better than sunny. A perfect wind is around 15 to 20 knots as a general rule whitecaps start to form around 15 knots. Great Lake often experiences howling gales and I’ve found that much above 25 knots makes fishing impossible. The weather determines the relevant shore to be fished as it is the shores where the waves are breaking that are the best locations. Southwest to northwest winds are the most common wind directions on Great Lake, however I’ve experienced the best fishing in northwest to northerly winds.

These conditions usually see me fishing the southern shores of the lake at either side of the main dam and the headland around McLanahans Point. These shores also shelve away deeply into the lake and the most productive fishing I’ve experienced has been from these deeper shores. I mentioned earlier to fish from a 45 degree angle to the shore; this is very important as the trout patrol just behind the waveline and fishing at this angle or even less puts you in the strike zone for longer. When spinning with rapalas a rapid, start-stop retrieve is best, with many fish grabbing the lure as it stops. The overwhelming majority of fish will grab the lure in the last couple of metres, many taking it right at your feet. Despite fishing in atrocious conditions sometimes in the middle of winter, I always wear polaroid sunglasses and often see the fish bite the lure at the end. Some trout will almost beach themselves to grab the lure at the end of a cast, making for very exciting fishing. I don’t bother with a landing net, just slowly roll the fish in further with each wave until they are fully beached.

Great Lake is an extraordinary fishery — from a boat, but don’t neglect the shore.

Best times

I’ve caught my bag surf fishing at Great Lake from May through until November, the exact weather conditions seem to be more important than the specific time of year. Trout condition however is usually better later in the season. Large male trout are more frequently taken than females.

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Fishing News - Page 17

Scamander River Springtime Bream

Todd Holmes with a fine Scamander bream. The old bridge can be seen in the background.

One of Jamie Henderson’s favourite times of the year on the East Coast is the late spring months of October and November. It’s at this time that the everyday angler can experience some of the best bream fishing in Tasmania on the Scamander River, a mere 15 minute drive south of St Helens. The bream spawn during the spring months and by late spring are in large numbers throughout the river system. They are hungry, ready for action and can be caught on bait, lures and fly. The river is easily accessed by small boat and in the lower reaches offers excellent shore based fishing for those without a watercraft or with the family in tow.

The river

The Scamander River starts its life high in the hill country around 15 km (in a straight line) north west of the small coastal township of Scamander on the states East Coast. Here it is a small mountain stream slowly winding its way down through the hills and valley slowly building in size until it hits a series of small weirs, the last one approximately 6 km from town.

From here down its prime bream country and although as the crow flies this point is only 5.8 kms from the coast if offers over 12 kms of winding tidal river in which to fish.

As the river flows down towards the coast it grows larger, deeper and wider all the time offering a wide variety

of locations in which to fish. The upper half of the river is generally shallow with numerous small rock bars that flow into deeper holes and sheer rock walls. There are also plenty of fallen tree snags to play in, some even stretching almost right across the width of the river.

As you head further down river it gets progressively wider, the corners get deeper and the rock walls become larger, and there are still plenty of tree snags. From about mid river down there are also plenty of muddy shallow banks where the bream feed on small crabs and baitfish, these areas can put on some fantastic fishing at times.

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There are two good ramps on the Scamander River — one at the mouth and another at the southern end of Prices Reach (Straight).

Don’t do safety on the fly

Don’t go past the snags — some are loaded up with bream. near the road bridges and there is a reasonable amount of shoreline for the land based angler as well as two boat ramps. Just south of Scamander is the turnoff to the Upper Scamander road, a short drive brings the road along side the river and up to a small boat ramp and excellent jetty. Here there is around two kilometres of easily accessed shoreline for land based anglers and families to fish.

The fish

The southern black bream, or Acanthopagrus butcheri, is probably one of the most common species in our waterways around Tasmania, particularly the East Coast, and is more than likely what most of us would have cut our teeth on as a youngster bait fishing the rivers and jetties with prawns and crabs as bait.

They seem to have a migratory pattern during late winter and head into the Scamander River to get ready to school up and do the

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The lower reaches of the river are where more of the shore based fishing is done as it’s easily accessed by road and you can virtually pull up in your car and fish from your back seat. Here the river is quite wide with good rocky and muddy shoreline as well as deeper mid river sections and tends to favour the bait fisherman. In this lower region there are also a number of shallow mudflats that are covered with only a couple of feet of water at high tide and at times can be covered in hard fighting bream; these can only be accessed by boat at high tide.

The river slowly flows down to the mouth and barway where it flows over the sand and out to sea. Depending on the time of year and the amount of rainfall the barway can be open or closed up. Here at the bottom it offers good sand flat and bridge pylon fishing.

The lower reaches of the river can be accessed right in the township of Scamander

Fishing News - Page 19

spawn run once Spring arrives where they slowly move up river in large schools until the water temperature, salinity, algal growth and moon phase all align and then they spawn en masse.

Southern black bream are opportunistic feeders and will consume a wide range of prey. The diet of the species varies between river and estuary systems, in most systems in Tasmania crustaceans make up a large portion of the bream’s diet, this includes crabs, prawns, types of shrimps and nippers ect as well as a number of polychaete and annelid worms.

Other food items such as oysters, mussels and cockles are also consumed by bream and are crushed in the fish’s powerful jaws. Small fish such as gobies and anchovies, commonly referred to as “Sardines” or “Prettyfish” are also taken and at times feature highly on the bream’s diet.

Techniques, lures and baits

For the bait fisherman The Scamander River offers a great variety of fishing situations, anglers can choose to fish from either a boat or bank side. Simple running sinker rigs are the norm with a size #2-1/0 Gamakatsu Octopus hook and a small pea sized ball sinker let run down to the hook the most successful method for bank fisherman. Those targeting bream from a boat with bait should try and fish unweighted where possible and only use the

smallest amount of lead for a casting weight.

Baits can vary and it always pays to have a few different baits at hand. Prawns, mussels, pippies, oysters, whitebait, pretty fish (small baitfish), crabs and freshly pumped nippers from the mudflats are all perfect baits for bream. If there has been some rain and there is a little bit of runoff from the banks and drains some garden worms can do the trick as the bream will swim about mopping these up as they are washed in from the paddocks.

If targeting the bream with soft plastics it is almost a necessity to fish from a boat as it makes finding areas of the river where schools of fish are congregated much easier. For the most part much of the Scamander River has an abundance of fallen tree snags along its banks and sheer rock walls in between, these areas hold fish. The bream will sit around the snags and structure and along the face and the base of the rock walls. In these areas a soft plastic lure such as an 80-100 mm Squidgy Wriggler rigged on a light two gram #4 head is ideal. Cast into the structure or at the face of the wall and let drop down the action of the wrigglers tail is irresistible to the bream.

Let the lure sit on the bottom for a short while then a slow lift and drop retrieve back to the boat is all that is needed. The fish will either hit the plastic whilst it is on the drop or will grab it while it’s paused on the bottom.

James Fidian loves his bream fishing.

If the bream are seen to be close to the waters surface, which they will often be if the tide is moving and there is a bit of current moving through the structure, then change to a lighter head weight to keep the lure up in the strike zone for longer. Two of my most successful colours in the Squidgy Wrigglers for the Scamander River are the Wasabi and Bloodworm patterns in the Pro Range series, if the action is slow and the fish are not responding to the lure that well the Pro Range series have a packet of “S-Factor” scent included to help. Squeeze some of this goo out of the packet and rub it onto the belly of the lure and around the hook and pause the plastic for longer on the bottom during the retrieve, this usually causes the bream to hold onto the plastic a little longer.

If fishing the rock bars, mud flats and shallow bank sides the plastic lures will still work quite effectively however I favour the hard body bibbed minnow lures for this type of fishing. A 40-60 mm long suspending bibbed hard body lure is ideal for fishing the shallow water, it can be cast into the shallows and as most will only dive to a depth of around one metre and suspend/float they can be manipulated with the rod tip to keep them in the fishing zone for longer. A variety of retrieves can work and it’s a matter of experimenting on the day to find out which one will draw a strike from the bream.

Sometime just a straight retrieve, “slow roll”, back to the boat works, other times a sweep with the rod tip to cause the lure to swim and then a long pause while it suspends will drive the bream wild. Other times an aggressive fast whipping like retrieve is needed to fire the fish up, grabbing their attention and causing them to strike at the lure.

There are many lures on the market today and some are quite expensive costing up to $30 a lure, I am a big believer Jamie Henderson snags another Scamander bream. in value for money so I don’t follow the school of thought that an expensive bream lure is better at catching fish. Two brands that seem to be very effective at catching bream and don’t cost the earth are the •Strong,reliableper- •Leakproofandimpact Bushy’s Stiffy lure, this lure has formance resistant been used to win a number of Bream Tournaments, and the •Highcrankingpower •Strongcarryhandles Strike Pro range such as the • Shock endurance • Withstand deep Smelta, Bass-X and Pygmy, they have quality hooks and • No Vibe™ vibration dishcharge split rings and offer a variety of resistance excellent colours.

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Fishing News - Page 21

and more popular is the Vibe style lures. These lures are generally used when targeting bream in deeper water and suspended schools of fish however they are proving themselves as worthy flats weapons as well. The can be fished slowly or quickly, in mid water or on the bottom and can also be rolled slowly across shallow mudflats so it makes them very versatile lure. Models such as the Bushy’s Devil Vibe and the Strike Pro Cyber Vibe are excellent fish catchers.

Tackle

Tackle requirements will depend on whether you are targeting the bream with baits or soft plastics and lures. For bait anglers a good 7-8 foot 2-5 kg soft action rod is the norm as it allows lightly weighted baits to be cast a good distance with light line. It also lets the fish pick up the bait and turn to swim away before the rod loads and sets the hook into the corner of the fish’s mouth and soaks up the lunges of big bream. Reels need to be around the 2500-4000 size and have a smooth drag; spooled with quality six to eight pound line and it will cover most scenarios.

Targeting bream on soft plastics and lures in the Scamander does require the use of some more specialised tackle, there is no need to break the bank but buy the best you can afford. Rods need to have the ability to cast lightly, and often unweighted, plastics and lures accurately often into very snaggy country. High Modulus Graphite rods of 6’6”-7’ with quality guides suitable for braided line and small short butts are designed for this type of fishing. They offer light weight, casting accuracy over distance and incredible fish fighting power when you need to steer a good fish from heading back into a snag.

Reels need to be small and light, 1000 through to 2500 sizes will be perfect and will hold more than enough line. Reels should be spooled with a light braided line between three to six pound with a leader, usually fluorocarbon, tied on the end.

Mick Winterton loves sight fishing for any fish and rates Tasmanian bream highly.

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Shimano have a great range of rods and reels to cover most budgets for this type of fishing, with rods such as the Catana series and reels like the Slade, both at around $60 each, it is easy to get started in this form of angling.

One of my favourite soft plastic rod/reel combinations is a Shimano Sienna 2500 matched to a Shimano Starlo Stix 7’2” Squidgy Spin, this combo offers excellent value for money and reliability. If you are looking for lure casting rod a little more top end then the new Lox rods from Lox International are without a doubt one of the better models on the market at the moment. At a retail price of around $300 they offer top end casting performance at a medium price bracket and are superbly constructed.

The Scamander River has a lot to offer all types of anglers. It’s great for the family with easy access and a huge population of bream. It suits bait fisherman as well as lure fisherman and even handles hosting a number of bream tournaments and competitions over the course of the year. The late spring period is a great time to spend an afternoon on the river will always produce a few fish for a feed if need be.

Another great attraction to the Scamander is it offers great protection on windy days. So if it is blowing you will find plenty of protected corners on the Scamander.

Stiffy lures are dynamite on bream.

There is also the chance of a trout, trevally, salmon - or if you are exceptionally lucky a huge brawling chub mullet.

The next time you are on the East Coast take some time out and chuck a few rods in the car and stop off at the Scamander River, you might just be surprised.

Jamie Henderson

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Trout on Plastics It ain’t always easy

When I first moved into Launceston to study at the Australia Maritime College, I found that the easiest way to sneak out for a quick fish was to chase trout. Consequently I researched everything I could find on trout, in Tasmania and round Australia. Baits, lures, retrieves, locations and typical dwellings, tackle and gear—the works. After extensive investigation I set-up with a light rod and spinning reel and your run-of-the-mill bibbed minnows and cobras. Fishing baits from time to time and casting small lures into various streams around Launceston proved rather fruitless for the first year. My collection of lures evolved and changed and fishing methods and places substituted and modified. If I recall correctly I am pretty sure I caught less trout than anyone else who calls themselves a fisherman for the first season.

Understandably upset with the poor results I looked more into the new stuff coming out. Soft plastics have become a huge phase in angling lately and based on results that people were achieving in all other aspects of fishing I thought I would give them a good bash. A quick trip to the tackle shop for some packets of Gulp! and Powerbait, 6lb fluoro for leader and some nitro jig heads and we headed off to Hadspen to chuck away at the browns the everyone else was reporting.

Fast forward a month or two and about 15 trips later. After losing many plastics in trees and snags, wet feet (often), watching Matty hook himself in the backside (priceless moment that it was), lots of fuel, time and effort AND the results at stood at zero.

Admittedly, it seems fairly comedic to have done that many trips without a single fish, but for some reason the more we used plastics and talked to people about them the more excited we got about using them in practice. By all accounts it is amazing that we continued to go and flick them repeatedly for no result but none the less, persistence should always pay off. We hadn’t really worked out what we were doing wrong and we were both determined to solve the problem. I can’t remember the exactly when now, but the next evolution went something like this.

I had been living down in West Launceston for a while before we finally cracked the trout code. I can’t take full credit for it, my fishing buddy Matty Harris was actually the first to break our drought. I remember really distinctly because he woke me up at 7:00 am on a Saturday to show me his highly prized first trout on soft plastics. The funniest thing was that he had caught it first cast on a dawn fishing trip (not awfully appealing in the cold) and left straight away to drive half an hour and wake me up to show me.

Within minutes we were back in the car and motoring along the southern outlet towards Longford at speeds that would frighten Schumacher. I grilled Matty on every single detail I could about how he caught the fish, all to no avail. His most predominant response was that he didn’t know what he was doing differently. We arrived back at the river and kitted up. It’s only about 100 metres from the car park to the few gaps in the trees where you can fish the running water at Longford and olympians would have been proud of my sprint from the car to the water that morning. The prospect of finally seeing the fruits of my labour was so exciting I was near on shaking when I popped the first cast out under the trees.

Within seconds of hitting the surface that flash of silver appeared out from under the sticks and slammed the lure so hard I barely had time to click the bail arm over before I was hooked up to my first trout on plastics.

Based on the power of the initial strike my first size estimate of the fish was around the 100 kg mark. It’s hard to believe fish can hit soft plastics as hard as they do and new highmodulus rods give you such great feel that every touch is a buzz. After a short fight the trout was finally landed and photographed before being released back into the river.

Turns out that it was only about 35 cm tip to tail but a VERY memorable fish all the same.

Finally the drought was over. We fished out the rest of the day (which turned out to be a similar weather pattern to hurricane Tracy) through rain and sleet and freezing cold air catching trout after trout after trout. It was hard to believe that we had fished the same place with the same gear for so long without any sign of action and then suddenly we were getting blasted almost every cast. I think we landed around 30 trout that day. The fishing slowed down at Longford so we migrated to Hadspen and proceeded to extract every trout in the vicinity for a photo shoot before releasing them back into the crystal clear water. Following Hadspen we fished the rest of the day right through to dark at Evandale and Perth without letting down the steady catch rate all afternoon. It was a total back flip on previous experience and I was hooked on soft plastics for trout.

Last season we consistently produced fish from almost everywhere we went and to this day I am still convinced that the major thing that changed in our fishing was our experience. Once you catch a fish you learn everything about how it happened and mimic the process. You note where you cast, how you worked the plastic and where you got the hit.

Rinse and repeat.

With the popularity of soft plastics on the rise all over Australia, across a huge range of fish and anglers, it is inevitable that things will change and develop to produce more and better gear than ever and the knowledge we have on using them will increase exponentially.

Here is a basic run-down on how we go about chasing trout on plastics.

The Gear

To make the best use of soft plastic lures it is almost essential to have suitable gear. The old favourite rods just won’t cut it. I know that a lot of people are hesitant to go and buy a whole new outfit just to use a certain type of lure but although old tech gear will work, the new stuff will really increase your chances of getting that fish on. High-modulus graphite rods are a must. The ultra quick taper and sensitivity will making casting and feeling the plastic through the water infinitely better and you can get a must better grasp on how the lure is working when the fish hits it. For fishing the larger lakes, rivers and streams that have good angler access and casting room I am using a hi-tech graphite rod with a 2000 size reel. Its 7’6” long with a line rating of 2-8 lbs and with such a long smooth taper right to the butt it works brilliantly for casting the lighter plastics and maintaining a connection with the fish once he’s on. Having a good reel to cast with and a smooth drag for those bigger fish that peel the line away is pretty important as well. Any reel size from 1000 to 2500 is good

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as long as it is matched reasonably to the rod you’re using.

Plenty of rod manufacturers are building high-modulus rods now and you can pick them up for a reasonable price in any size and shape that you want to fish with. I also use a short rod 5”6’ from time to time, usually in those half-overgrown places that you sometimes end up in trying to catch that next fish and the 2000 reel sits ok on it.

The Line: Braid, braid, braid, braid, braid, braid, braid!

Having a nice light braid to fish with will miraculously change your ability to keep tabs on your retrieve and the fish in the water. The zero stretch maximises feel and contact in the water and it has no memory so casting farther and more accurately is practically a certainty. At the moment I am using Super PE in 10 lb, but there are some very good braid and fused lines on the market. Ask for advice and find some you like—you will never look back. Most people (including me) would say that 10 lb is overkill for trout fishing and they are mostly correct but I have found that casting plastics around in places like Brushy Lagoon the occasional 10 lb plus Atlantic salmon will grab a hold of your lure and take off into the sticks and having the extra bit of leverage and wear resistance can be a god send at times. Mostly for trout I prefer around a 3-4 lb braid and I have a spare spool for my reel which makes the changeover much easier. It’s not so much that you can fish with more drag because a lot of the time you’re only using 4-8 lb fluoro leaders but one of braids downfalls is that it frays more easily on snags than mono. Try to compromise between strength and fishability for your own particular application.

The Business End: Fluorocarbon leaders are a well known and recognised constant in soft plastics fishing for a few reasons. They are much more difficult for the fish to notice in the water so less will be spooked by the line as it pulls the lure across the front of its face. They are also hard coated and abrasion resistant which comes in handy when you’re fishing those areas that are particularly treacherous for lure fishing. The hard fluorocarbon line prevents wear and tear on the leader during the fight if the fish has slurped the plastic right down deep in his mouth (which is often the case with soft plastics). Brands don’t seem to be quite as important with fluorocarbon as with braid but try and find one that isn’t bottom of the line because there is nothing worse than losing a good fish due to cheap gear failing on you. One of the

other things that it’s important to learn here is knots and joining techniques.

When your fishing light braid with somewhere between 4 and 10 lb fluoro leader you will have to learn some new knots for joining them. You should find a strong knot that is easy to tie and small enough to cast well through the runners. Most favoured knots are the double uni and 5 turn surgeons knots.

There is also a new knot that I am yet to master called the FG knot, apparently it works extremely well on heavy stuff but A superbly condition brownie falls a ‘plastic’.

I’m yet to try it in the smaller weights. You can finish the knot off with Loon Knot Sense. This smoothes shop should be able to show you how to rig each style if you the join and stops it snagging in the runners as sometimes ask them about it. Weights are another matter all together. happens. Loon Knot Sense sets almost instanly in sunlight or This is where soft plastics can start to become complicated. under any ultraviolet light.

Don’t stress out if you have a lot of problems choosing the The Pointy Bit: Jig heads are available in so many right weight to begin with. Matty and I will usually be using different brands, shapes and sizes that it’s almost impossible a different weight even though we fish together—quite often to choose one to begin with. So far I have found that the with exactly the same lure. He uses a little more lead than Squidgy plastics actually swim better with the round squidgy me and works the plastic slightly faster through the water. heads and most other plastics swim better with the nitro heads. For trout fishing you can use anything from zero weight up Hook size is the easiest factor to account for, put as simply as to about 1/11 oz. Rarely will we ever go past this weight for possible, use the hook size that matches the plastic you intend trout waters unless it is fast flowing water and very deep. It to use on it. Most people will say that anywhere up to a 1/0 is hard to learn to keep in touch with your lure at the lighter is reasonably appropriate. The hook should be well clear of weights but the less you can use to get to the place in the the lure body and come out at the right point for the style of water column you want to fish, the more time you can hold it lure. It varies a little between different styles but your tackle in the strike zone once it gets there. Try a few different things

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and find out what works for you. I wish it was easier to steer people in the right direction but it’s so far from generic that to advocate a specific size and weight would most likely lessen people’s chances of catching good fish. As an example, in the fast, shallow, turbulent, running water of a clear stream such as St. Patricks River, I would start by using a three inch T-Tail with a size #1 hook and a 1/24 oz jig head casting square of the current as working it diagonally across the river just above the bottom as the water drags it back. Quite often I will cut 10-12 mm off the front of a T-Tail if the fish are fairly small. It doesn’t seem to alter the strike rate very much but the hook-up rate is much better. In the super shallow still waters around the top edge of Brushy Lagoon a three inch hollow belly with a 1/32 jig head will operate really well, darting left to right, in two inches of depth without dragging the bottom or floating on the surface (you should try touching the surface every few metres on the retrieve here, it works well for me sometimes).

I’ve got to say that I do prefer the Berkley Gulp! and Powerbait range of plastics and hence I mostly use the Nitro jig heads with Owner hooks in them. They are super sharp and work really well in the water. When you’re attaching the jig head to the leader you can choose one of two different methods (with a myriad of knots). The two methods are speculated over by all of the plastics fishing community and it seems to work both ways for me so try both and make up your own mind.

The first method is to attach the line hard down onto the jig head with any of the normal knots. The other method, which I tend to lean towards, is to tie the lure on using a small loop of about 2 cms which gives the plastic more room to move around freely in the water and lift and sink slightly differently.

The best knot for this is probably Lefty’s Loop Knot and it’s really easy to learn. Give everything a try at some point and find out what will work best for you.

The Plastic

Again it’s really ambiguous as to which plastic will catch you a fish. It depends on where you’re fishing and what for.

The general consensus is to “match the hatch”. Have a look at where you’re fishing and try to establish what the trout in the area are eating. If there are reeds and sticks around that could be harbouring fugitive larvae you could try a one inch Berkley Nymph, in running water or where you can see baitfish skirting along the edges try a T-Tail or minnow style plastic. There are so many styles now that you can pick and choose in the shop until the cows come home but it comes down to experience.

Try a few and see what works for the sort of fishing your doing.

Colours are also pretty hazy in plastics. Sometimes one colour will work really well and another one will perform poorly in the same place. One rule to start from is to try a natural colour for the area first and work from there. Less distinctive colours usually work well in clear water in particular the black/gold glitter T-Tail. For the more murky waters try something a bit brighter to catch the fish’s eye or something very dark that will make a good silhouette in the water. As with everything else in fishing, people have their preferred plastics that they will exploit more often than others and my personal favourites are the three inch pumpkinseed minnow, one inch off-white nymph and the three inch olive/pearl T-Tail from Berkley.

Don’t be afraid to put on a big plastic when you’re fishing for trout. I know people who use a four to five inch plastic when chasing the big bumpers in the lakes. The problem with bigger plastics is that you can decrease the hook-up rate on smaller fish. Get out there and do some testing of your own to find what works best in your area.

Retrieves

Retrieves are the most diverse, hardest to teach or explain, and peculiar part of all soft plastics fishing yet probably most critical to the strike rate. They will work when fished in almost any retrieve but to get the best results from your lure you have to be able to make it work in the water. I find that nearly all the trout that I catch hit the plastic just as it starts to drop but my friend Josh “Captain Courageous” Clark does quite well too and he barely ever lets the lure fall straight down through the water. It is good practise to watch your lure in clear still water and try and get an idea of exactly how it moves when you change your retrieve. Every place I fish and every different style of plastic requires a different action (even if only very slightly) and you can adjust to suit the situation by paying attention and focusing on what happens when you lift or drop the rod and how fast you retrieve the line onto the reel. I find that in deeper calm water two long fast snaps upwards and then a long slow sink (with the lost line wound up) works well and in the shallows fishing with a minnow style (especially a hollow belly) I use as little weight as possible and a low rod tip, twitching the lure along with only a few inches movement left to right. When I am using a nymph I tend to cast reasonably close to the fish and let it drop straight down for a moment as often they will not spook but instantly swim over and scoff the lure, it depends on where you fish, conditions

and how timid the trout are. The only thing that most people will agree on is that plastics generally work better when you incorporate pauses into your retrieve in some form, whether it is for just a split second or for long slow drops through the water column. Where you cast can have a dramatic effect on the plastic too. In shallow running streams many people will cast upstream because trout practically always face upstream and if you cast ahead of yourself the fish won’t have seen you walking the bank and frighten easily. The down side of this is that it is hard to make the plastic work well when it is being buffeted down the river towards you. With a bit of practice and patience it can be done very effectively but retrieving the lure diagonally with the river as it is washed downstream works reasonably and is easier to master. In the lakes it is usual to let the plastic sink right to the bottom before beginning your retrieve and because this can take such a long time a lot of fishermen don’t get the results because they get impatient and start the retrieve to early. As with everything else I’ve mentioned, such a huge part of soft plastics in general, it’s all about practical experience.

The biggest thing I want to mention to all anglers who are just taking up the soft plastics craze now, or those who are thinking about it, is that it definitely does work, but it takes time and patience. It really is hard work for some people to get the hang of it. Some people pick it up straight away and fall into a pattern that works for them. Others like myself (at least in the case of trout) spend hours throwing away at the water for nothing until they finally crack the code. The one thing I will just about guarantee is that once you have got it happening for yourself its addictive and you won’t look back for a moment and the results are all worth it. I am catching more and bigger trout every time I learn something new and the more you learn the easier it is to take the next step. It’s hard to beat the soft plastics I reckon, you just have to climb that great big steep learning curve and take the leap of faith.

It’s hard to believe, but they really are as good as people say they are once you are using them properly. So take the next step and get cracking on some big trout on plastics.

Simon Little

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Fishing News - Page 25

Six Lower Tamar Hotspots Wow what a winter. So much rain but we really needed it. I have never seen the rivers running like they are now. The Tamar is just starting to clear up now. October and November are my favourite times of the year. Everything starts to move as the water temperature in the Tamar starts to rise. It normally rises about a degree every 2 weeks at this time of the year.

In this article I am going to recommend six hotspots around the Tamar that a worth fishing this time of year.

1. Kelso Pontoon

Kelso is a quiet little town nestled on the West Tamar towards the mouth of the estuary. A wide variety of fish can be caught off this popular pontoon. The main species you might catch this time of year are Australian salmon, flathead, pike, couta and southern calamari. There are other species as well but these are the main ones that are targeted by anglers.

Australian salmon are mainly taken on slice lures or soft plastics but frozen bait can also be productive. My favourite frozen bait is Tassie Bait which is a Tasmanian owned company. They only use locally caught bait such as redbait, mini mackerel, fish fillets, fish strips, squid, mussels and a bulk pack. All the bait is cryovaced shortly after capture which ensures freshness is at a premium.

For Australian salmon I prefer the squid or mini macks cut into small pieces. I suggest fishing them under a float or on a double dropper rig on the bottom.

For couta and pike a slice lure normally does the trick, but for bait anglers Tassie Bait – red bait or mini macks rigged on a set of ganged hooks suspended below a float or unweighted would do the trick.

For calamari a squid jig such as a Pioneer power squid in the lumo colour or the Neptune tackle smoothie squid jig in fluro yellow or lime green is always a great tempter. A squid spike baited with a pilchard or mini mack also works well.

Flathead are also a popular catch at Kelso and many other pontoons and piers down the Tamar. A soft plastic lure is a deadly way to catch them. Yep Tassie tackle make a wide range of styles and colours. The plastic they use is a bit tougher than most other soft plastics and are great for not only flatties but many other species. Bait also works well on flathead. Squid would have to be my favourite but flatties will normally have a go at anything that you put in the water. Tide is not really important at Kelso but my favourite tide would be the run-in especially late afternoon.

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The main species taken at the wharf are Australian salmon, mullet, silver trevally, cod, m a c k e r e l , e e l s, g u m my s h a r k s, seven gill sharks and many different types of rays. You must remember t h a t i f yo u d o catch a ray or shark of any kind that it is a designated ‘shark refuge area’ and they must be released. gummy sharks are great fun to catch and they fight quite hard. In the Tamar they can grow in excess of 20 kg.

Gummies can The Clarence Point pontoon is a cracker and one of the most productive. be found in the deep water during the day which makes Inspection Head a great little sport fish and not bad eating either as long as they great spot to find them. Best baits for gummies would be are eaten fresh. A small Gamakatsu long shank hook under squid. A running sinker rig similar to trout or bream is ideal a float or free drifting with a small piece of prawn, bread or but the use of a 60 lb mono trace and a 7/0 Gamakatsu sea cabbage is very productive. This also works well on the Octopus hook is necessary. A heavier rod and reel than a luderick. standard bream outfit is also a must. A surf or snapper rod would be a great choice.

5. Low Head Breakwater When targeting the seven gillers a game outfit is a must This is at the top end of the Tamar. It is a great spot for as they can grow any where up to 150 kg. A 2 metre, 200 lb land based fisherman. The range of fish that caught be caught stainless steel trace with a 10/0 hook baited with squid or fish here includes whiting, mullet, Australian salmon, wrasse, couta, fillets does the trick. pike, sweep calamari, sharks and rays.

Whiting are one of the surprise catches you may make 4. George Town Pontoon at the breakwater. They are also great table fare. Whiting are This is a great land based hotspot! As the weather warms really quite easy to target when you have the right rig. I use a up many species can be targeted off these small pontoons. double dropper rig with 2 x Gamakatsu O’Shannesy hooks The only downfall being that it gets a bit congested through #4. They will succumb to many baits, but my favourite is the the school holidays and weekends.

Tassie Baits squid. Berley works well for the whiting as a good Garfish, couta, snotty trevally, wrasse, zebra fish and trail will increase your catch rate. A mix of cat food, chook luderick are just a small taste of the many different fish pellets and tuna oil is a good way too start. caught here.

Sweep are another fish you may catch here especially at the Zebra fish are taken off the pontoon all year around. The of the breakwater water wall in the swifter current. They can water temperature doesn’t seem to matter that much. They are also be taken on the same rig and bait as the whiting.

2. Clarence Point Pontoon

Clarence Point would have to be one of my favourite pontoons on the river. It is in a good spot for many species.

It drops off to about 6 metres at high tide. The main species that you would catch would be calamari, couta, silver trevally, Australian salmon, yellow eye mullet but there is always the chance of many different species as well.

Silver trevally is a great sport fish and is ok to eat if fresh.

Silvers will take a wide range of lures and baits. They also love soft plastics and small salt water flies. Silvers respond extremely well to berley. A mix of chooks pellets and tuna oil work great. A berley pot is also recommended at Clarence because of the strong tide that runs through the nearby shipping channel. Tie the pot to the bollards and give it a shake every few minutes. The only tip would be don’t over fill the pot because chook pellets expand when they are in the water and it will choke up the holes. Bait works really well on the silvers. Tassie Baits mussels or pretty fish would be a prime choice. A double dropper rig with smaller size #4 hooks would work perfectly.

Mullet are prolific at this time of the year and are one of the main species taken at Clarence. Berley is a necessity to attract big schools. A sure catch sabiki rig #12 works really well. Mullet have very small mouths are a quite a bit harder to hook if your hook is too large. Best baits are mussels, pretty fish pieces, whitebait, chicken breast and bread dough. My favourite tide would be on the top or bottom of the tide. Time of day doesn’t seem to make a difference.

3. Beauty Point Wharf

This is another fantastic fishing location. Many species are taken from this deep water platform. It has a water depth of around 18 metres right at the end of the wharf. The great thing about the wharf is you can fish out of your car in the Fishing News - Page 26

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6. Curries River Dam

Curries River Dam, a few kilometres east of Bell Bay along the Bridport Road is also a great spot to wet a line this time of year.

Many anglers have a great result through October and November on browns and rainbow trout. Curries was stocked this year by Inland Fisheries with some really nice fish. Curries has many deep shores which are ideal for bait fishing and lure casting. Fly anglers normally fish the southern and south eastern corners for it is shallower and has more weed growth. Curries is quite accessible and in some spots fishing from your car will keep you out of the weather if it is rough.

Some of my favourite lures at Curries would be Tassie Devil #80, #44 and #43.

Tillins King Cobra #44 and Kilwell Turbo in the Xmas tree colour. Pegron Minnows in fluro pink and black and Rapala CD5 and 7 in the colour brown trout are great and work really well. Soft plastics that come highly recommended by many anglers are Berkley three inch Gulp Minnow in Emerald shiner, Smelt and Rainbow.

YepTassie Tackle in the colour Pumpkinseed and DOA stick baits in the colour gold rush.

For the bait angler worms and wattle grubs are hard to beat. When the weather warms up a little more a mudeye under a bubble is also a deadly method.

Fly anglers still mainly fish with the wet flies through Oct/ Nov due to the massive amount of galaxia which live in the impoundment. Patterns which resemble galaxia are the most productive.

October and November have plenty to offer for the serious fisherman of for the fishing family. Good luck and let’s hope that the rain stops soon so we can really get out there and have a go!

Damon Sherriff

Beauty Point, or Inspection Head as it is sometimes known is a real favourite. It is safe, has good access and a good variety of ish.

Tim Axton at Curries River Dam.

There are plenty of gummies and rays, but all must be returned as the Tamar River is a ‘Shark Refuge’.

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Fishing News - Page 27

Fishing guide Christopher Bassano explores his favourite fishing—and shares a few tips that will help you discover the world of trout near the sea.

Sea Trout Fishing

M

October and November

A fly caught ‘resident’ brown that was taking the opportunity of the ‘whitebait run’

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ost fly fishermen sit through winter and the early months of the season waiting for warmer weather and dry fly action. Although the draw of summer fishing is obvious, the pursuit of sea trout has taken over as my favourite form of fishing. A big statement I know and one that is certainly not based on success in numbers. On the contrary, half of the attraction is the difficult nature of the fishing and the lack of knowledge that seems to have been pooled over the years about unlocking their secrets. It is my belief that we know less about these fish than we do about all other trout and their habits in Tasmania.

With August and September behind us, an opportunity has already gone begging. Fortunately, the best may still lie ahead.

There is a trend which suggests that estuaries ‘fire up’ at different times. That is not to say that you can not catch a sea trout in a river outside of these times, but simply that each spot has a peak time within the first months of the season.

Autumn fishing aside, runs of sea trout coincide with the migration of bait fish into the rivers heading up stream to spawn. While holding behind cover during tidal flow, trout ambush these fish—like tuna going through a bait ball. It looks spectacular and really gets the blood pumping. Tidal regions within a river have always been the best places to find concentrations of both bait and trout.

It has long been thought that heavy rain and the subsequent fresh water that arrives into a system will shut down any sea trout activity. It is said that they drop back into the saltier water and wait for the rain water to subside. If ever there was a year where fresh water should interfere with the sea trout, it would be 2009. However, I have not found this to be entirely correct. Yes, flood water condition certainly do have an adverse effect on the fishing but a small increase in water height will increase success by concentrating the bait and trout in a smaller area down stream from their normal haunts. Large floods will delay baitfish migrations as they will not be able to push upstream through such strong flows—even a good tidal flow forces them to the edge of the river for shelter. In light

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of the weather we have been having, every river in Tasmania may yet to have reached its full potential this season. For now though, assuming that all else is equal, history suggests some rivers should start to fish very well while others may have past their best.

But which rivers are going to provide the best fishing in October and November?

Southern Tasmania

The Derwent River fishes well from opening day and in fact for those people fishing below the ‘fresh water zone’, fish are regularly caught before August. Although very consistent, this river is the first to fish well every year.

Heading further south, the Esperance, Lune, Catamaran, D’Entrecasteaux, etc have been peaking in September with whitebait arriving here before other parts of the state.

The Huon is not quite as straight forward and this is where I would concentrate my casts down south. Although it too fishes very well through August and September, it can still produce big fish (and lots of them) well into November. The recent high water levels make this an even greater possibility.

Concentrate your efforts around Huonville but be prepared to move depending on the amount of fresh water in the river and bait present. During heavy rains, the area around Franklin is an excellent starting point. There is also plenty of scope for shore based access in this area and a falling tide will bring about the best action. Look for drains and gutters coming out of tussock lined banks. As the fish move upstream, shallow edges located on the inside of bends provide as much action as log jams and back eddies do, up to and beyond Huonville.

The main road bridge has been a consistent spot for many years, not only providing structure for trout, but the numerous Atlantic salmon that escape from time to time. Beware of the shallow rock bar that extends below the bridge – especially on a low tide. Above the bridge, log jams again provide good ambush points for trout and coupled with a large inflow creek and drain, there is a wealth of great water to explore between here and Flat Rock.

Remember that there is no substitute for finding the bait as the trout will not be far away.

October and November are the best times to get excited about going to the north, west or even north-west of the state.

Generally, these areas tend to have later runs of bait than their southern counterparts.

West coast

The west coast is often seen as being too far to travel for most people but it contains many worthy rivers. All of these are worth visiting during October and November. From the Gordon up to the Arthur, whitebait runs in this part of the state are later than anywhere else and the rivers along this coastline are truely hot spots. For me the pick of these rivers is the Henty.

The Henty is situated north of Strahan but below the Little Henty and Trial Harbour, this river epitomises the tannin stained wild rivers that slice the rugged, hilly terrain of this under fished coast. The location of the mouth can change dramatically in a wet winter but never fails to provide a wonderful back drop to an exciting fishing trip. It is a spectacular place to be with waves smashing on the beaches and running into the dark fresh waters over a shallow sandy spit. The river has always fished well in October and November whether doing so by boat or on foot.

A ‘southern’ river geeting some ‘close up and personal’ attention.

The boat ramp is small and difficult to navigate when other cars are present and although giving you access to much more water, a boat is not essential. The mouth can be accessed from the highway and over the Henty dunes, giving an angler enough water to fish to keep them occupied for days. One advantage of a boat is that it allows you to follow bait schools up and down the river. The truth is, I usually take my boat and get out of it to fish off the shore. Last season I visited the river a couple of times and found something there that I had not encountered on any other sea trout river in the state. Heading towards the mouth, I was shocked and disappointed with the lack of bait present.

Having driven for hours and not slept I was not about to turn around and go home and I decided to flog a couple of whitebait patterns blindly along the beach. It was not until I was at the mouth in the sea swell that I caught my first fish. It was a very silvery two pounder which promptly went back. I had a friend with me from Austria who was visiting the area for the first time and he soon joined me. For two hours we stood side by side and caught fish hand over fist without a sign of a whitebait. By their positioning and density in one small area we surmised that the fish were actually waiting in ambush for the bait to arrive. Although most fish were a modest size, one monster was hooked and promptly ran back out to sea.

The vision of my friend running along the beach with his backing heading into the waves and beyond will stay with me forever. A sinking line is handy to have in your armoury when things are quiet but sight casting is best done with floaters and intermediates. The best fishing occurs when schools of bait are found in the shallows on the lip of the river. Even in the dark water, they can be seen making dashing runs into inches of water before fleeing back to the depths of the river bed.

Early morning and low light levels are the best conditions for successful fishing but I have experienced equally good fishing on the few bright days I have had here. If you know anyone

who lives in Strahan, it might pay to get them to look for whitebait in the river before you make a trip there from one of the major towns across the state.

North west

The north west coast always provides a few monster fish during October and November. Although the Mersey is a river that provides good fishing from the start of the season, it can fish well in the coming months. Again, the recent rain will aid in this. Belles Parade is a well known hot spot for big fish and is also very easy to access. The river around Latrobe can be equally as good and access on foot is quite easy.

The nearby Forth River has given me more consistent sport but this may be due to more regular visits to the area. From the highway bridge right up to the weir, sea trout can be caught in back eddies and snags. The boat ramp has provided good action on a falling tide although small Australian salmon can

This is the fish shown on the cover. As well as eating whitebait it had also eaten a lamprey — its tails still showing in the trout’s throat.

The Henty River, like others, can really turn it on. Sometimes the fish aren’t showing, but it doesn’t mean they aren’t there. www.tasfish.com - get the knowledge.

Fishing News - Page 29

and the Gorge although a fish did make a fool of me in broad daylight last season, feeding freely under some moored boats without even looking at my offerings. On the same day I ventured to the base of the gorge and found the area to be full of small sea trout and some decent residents. The water quality is not wonderful but casting around boulders during periods of inactivity is a reliable fall back. For those in Launceston with an hour or so to spare, the Tamar is worth a look but for people wanting to spend a day or extended trip chasing sea trout, there are better options within an hours drive.

North east

The North East Coast has some excellent sea trout fishing.

The Piper, Forester, Little Forester, The author’s dear friend, the late Brid, etc all provide excellent site Ray Klimeck, fishing in the South Esk fishing in the third and fourth Gorge near Launceston. months of the season. Again, become annoying at times. Without doubt, the where possible a boat is handy but far less weir provides the most consistant sport. It is a essential in this area as it can be in other parts natural barrier preventing the bait from going of Tasmania. The rivers are also generally further up stream and this bottleneck provides smaller than the west coast and access is the perfect ambush point for our quarry. not too difficult from public roads although Heading further east, the Rubicon between I would advise seeking permission before the road bridge and weir provides excellent, walking onto anyone’s property. but not as consistent fishing. Access by foot is Fish in the Pipers River seem to be a little the only real way to fish this area unless using smaller on average than they are in the rivers a kayak at high tide. to the east. They are no less exciting however and if you can judge the tides correctly to get a Tamar River small tiny over the sand bar and head up river, Continuing east, the Tamar has now got a there is some great fishing to be had – but it band of devotees that catch a good number is very tight around the willow trees! of large fish. Night time can provide the The Little Forester has very confined most opportunities both around the tail race access and a boat launching area that is only

A productive side channel in the Forester River. suitable for car toppers and kayaks. It does hold very large fish and I have witnessed more whitebait in this river at one time than any other. For access reasons and no other, it is hard to recommend the Little Forester over other nearby rivers. If this was to change one day, I would be spending a lot more time here. For those with kayaks, time on the river in October and November would be well worth it The Brid is where I caught my first ever sea trout. It was on a ten weight fly rod, fast sinking line and a 3/0 green clouser minnow while fishing for flat head! Weighing in at eight pounds, it was also my biggest sea trout for many years. There is a weir on the Brid which stops the run of bait and hence that of the trout. The fishable area is quite small in comparison to other rivers but can be extremely productive. In spite of flowing into the sea at the popular destination of Bridport,

I have never encountered someone else fishing for trout there. The beginning of the run in tide is a good time to start looking for them around the mouth with any narrowing in the river being your fall back position.

The Forester River is the main sea trout river in this part of the state. Once again, a kayak can be launched from the road bridge or a boat brought up through the river mouth on a high tide if the sand bar, known as ‘the cut’, allows it. Of all the rivers I have mentioned, launching a vessel into the Forrester will give you almost no advantage at all over the shore based angler and in fact is more likely to hinder progress.

The mouth of the river is over looked by the beautiful Barnbougle golf course. It is very shallow at the best of times and is often home to Australian salmon, barracouta and flathead. Trout will often be found smashing baitfish under the tussock lined banks with

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Fishing News - Page 30

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sweeping bends and submerged sand bars providing excellent cover for the trout and hiding spots for bait. Looking down stream from the road bridge, a small gutter enters the river on the right hand side. Almost every trip, a large fish seems to be working hard on the bait under a tea tree which occupies a corner of the confluence. Everyone who has stood on that bridge must have (at some time) seen it and headed down to try their luck.

Last season I spoke to the owner of the property which flanks the river in regard to access. It appears as though not everyone is doing the right thing and gaining approval may become more difficult if gates and fences are not locked and looked after.

I must confess that I have never really spent time on the east coast chasing sea trout in rivers such as the Georges and am therefore not qualified to comment on them as late spring fisheries. You may want to talk to east coast guide Michael Hayley to get more information on this and other rivers in the area.

There is not as much finesse about sea trout fishing as there is about other forms of fly fishing. Hence, my equipment is standard no matter which river I am fishing. I use a fast action five weight when fishing with floating lines to deliver quick casts and a seven weight for all of the ‘sinking line fishing’. My flies are imitative and generally tide on size four and six hooks. Leaders are always around 10 feet long and consisting of twelve pound Flurocarbon straight through. Foot long droppers can be added with surgeons knots on if needed when searching blindly and after substantial testing, Fluroflex Plus has come up trumps as my tippet material of choice.

Floating and clear intermediate fly lines are used most of the time but fast sinking, sink tip fly lines are very handy during high

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A whitebait fly fooled this fish. water levels or fishing deep holes. I have a range of Scientific Angler lines with various sink rates that more than cover every scenario I have faced.

Fly patterns are almost the same as those used at the start of the season. The only difference is that they should be tied slightly darker in colour to imitate the changing colour of the baitfish. The longer it spends inside a river system, the darker it can get. Start to substitute gold for silver, dark grey for light, cream for white and dark for light olive. I prefer quite imitative patterns which are tied slightly larger than the natural although an olive BMS has always been a good fall back.

The October / November time period is excellent for chasing and catching sea trout no matter where you are. The weather is always warmer than it would be in the highlands and you don’t need a full day to chase them. They can be as intriguing as they are difficult to catch but when you locate them your feeling of success will be immeasurable. You may even find that during a beetle fall this summer, you are yearning for a good spring rain on your local sea trout river.

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Fishing News - Page 31

Cast, Count and Pull Australian Fly Fishing representative, Joe Riley shares a few tips on prospecting the depths for trout.

If the rain ever stops October and November will herald exciting times for the lake land fly fisher. Highland trout are emerging from a lethargic cold water start to the season and are beginning to feed with a gusto as the water warms and insect activity in and on the water picks up pace.

Moving into October and November, the process of fishing various fly lines, from fast sinking through to floating becomes more of a challenge if you want to achieve a good success rate in catching numbers of trout. As the water warms the various aquatic insects begin to emerge, first the diminutive stone flies start to hatch. This is followed by the mayfly as they begin to make an appearance, late September in the lowland lakes and some time through November in the highlands.

Early midge hatches are becoming more stable and reliable on calm mornings and evenings and there is even the chance of a terrestrial beetle or leaf hopper fall should the weather become warm and still, although beetle falls seem a vain hope and a life time away as I am listening to wind and rain batter the roof as yet another cold front pours rain onto us.

Insect action does not just happen on the surface though, in waters like Arthurs Lake, the scud, shrimp and snail all become more active, and boy do trout home in on active scud in big numbers, feeding voraciously. If you can find these fish you are in for a red letter day, provide you get the fly amongst these trout at the appropriate depth.

The prospect of the fish following available food to various depths in the water column makes line choice important to success. There is no point fishing below a fish that is near the surface and no point fishing several feet above a trout hugging

The great guru with the results of his theories. the bottom feeding hard on scud and shrimp on the bed of the lake. Even in shallow water which I regard as one metre or less, the use of a sinking line which will get your flies to a given depth and keep it there longer will out-perform a floating or slower sinking line that reaches the depth only for a moment at the end of the retrieve.

Where to start

The first conundrum is always where to start with assorted fly lines. The basic rule of thumb is simple, if fish are showing at the surface, fish high, a floating line, midge tip or slow intermediate. If there is no fish activity on the surface and

no sign of insects go down with a line that will get you near the bottom.

Many of the English magazines talk about daphnia (tiny water flea that form intense clouds in the water) how they move up and down in the water column and how trout, particularly rainbows move up and down feeding on them. While we do get daphnia activity and fish feeding on them the prevalence of daphnia as a food source is nowhere near what it is in English Reservoirs. The amount of snail, scud, shrimp, nymphs and galaxias as a general rule will keep trout close to the bed of the lake, amongst rocks and weed, so if there is no activity at the top, go to the bottom.

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The importance of the above statement is of course governed by how deep the water is that you are fishing. If you are wading, you will no doubt be in shallow water, so a moderately sinking fly line is all that you will need. An intermediate or type 3 sinking line will suffice. If you are in a boat in 10 feet of water, then a type 5 or type 7 line will be required to get your flies to the correct depth so you can fish deeper for longer.

Technical talk

So far all sorts of fly lines have been mentioned so it is probably appropriate to explain a few so that we know what we are on about. Some things will seem pretty obvious but some may not, so bear with me as we go through a few terms and descriptions.

Floating Line – Simply a line designed to sit on the surface of the water when cast.

Sink Tip – A fly line designed for the main running section to float but the end section to sink. Traditionally the sinking section is about ten feet long and the rest of the line floats. These lines are especially useful when wading as they avoid having to pull all of the line from under the water to cast.

Midge Tip – A recent addition to the fly fishing scene. Midge tip or Mini tip lines are used extensively in Europe but have not made much of a mark here in Australia...yet.

The sinking section is two to three feet long and pulls just under the surface. While this doesn’t seem like much of a difference from a floating line, flies can be presented dry, then retrieved just under the surface, a technique that can be deadly in a mayfly hatch or when fish are taking emerging nymphs.

Sinking lines – Traditional sinking fly lines are lines that entirely sink. This is a simple concept, however the nature of fly line development has lead to weight forward lines where the front section is thicker and therefore heavier than the running line, enabling you to cast longer. When applied to sinking lines the thicker heavier front section sinks quicker meaning that the flies would fish at the correct depth for only a short time prior to being retrieved upwards and away from fish feeding deep. This is also a problem with sink tip lines and why I believe their value has limitations.

Further development of fly lines has now lead to ‘density compensation’ fly lines.

These lines sink at an even rate regardless of the diameter of the line that is in the water, meaning the front thicker shooting head section of the fly line sinks at the same rate as the thinner running line further back.

Density compensation is now fairly standard in sinking fly lines.

The important thing to remember with sinking fly lines is to know how they work and understand the sink rates of your lines so you can fish accurately in a given depth of water.

S i n k R a t e s – Va r i o u s f l y l i n e

manufacturers all seem to have a different sink rate for their sinking lines. The sink rate for a given line can change from manufacturer to manufacturer so whatever sinking lines you have you need to know the appropriate sink rate. As a general rule Di5 or type 5

A huge selection of lines — especially different sink rates is essential to consistent catches.

A l l r u l e s h ave exce ptions and low light is the exception here.

If you are fishing dawn and dusk in near dark conditions, fish rely more on ambient light from the surface to silhouette prey. You can fish in the surface confidently in low light as fish will come upwards to take food above them as light penetration from above provides the greatest source of vision.

Mix up retrieves and if you fish multiple fly casts mix up fly sizes and colours as trout will change their preferences from time to time. Retrieves can vary tremendously and trout will definitely have preferences at certain times. Different retrieves need covering at another time as there are plenty of variables, experiment and work a few out along the way.

We all love to fish a dry fly on the surface and during October and November there will be opportunity to do this. Pay attention to fish and insect activity, and use the low light of dawn and dusk, these are important indicators for top of the water action. Unfortunately the weather will still be variable and the majority of the time trout will feed sub surface, finding them and fishing at the right depth for the longest time are the keys to catching consistently.

Joe Riley

lines will sink about five inches a second, Di3 three inches and so on, but check any fly line before you buy it and know your sink rates thoroughly as it will pay dividends when it comes to fishing the depths.

Intermediate Lines – These are slower sinking lines, i.e. the whole line sinks slowly, sink rates can be around one to two inches per second. These lines are ideal when fish are taking one to three feet below the surface.

Clear or glass lines fall into this category and although they give the angler confidence, I am certain they make little difference to catch rates compare to coloured intermediate lines.

Where to start – As I stated earlier, if they fish aren’t near the surface, go down.

If you are in a boat check the depth you are fishing and make sure you know it at regular intervals. Trout are fairly accessible to fly fishing in depths up to 15 ft, however most success comes for me from about 10 ft up. In October and November I find that fish are moving into more moderate depths looking for activity in warming water. Six feet is a really good all round depth for trout, it seems to be a depth where trout have the safety to stay down and there is sufficient light penetration for insect activity to thrive. As you drift, keep an eye on the landscape watching the rise and fall of the surrounding ground as you can notice drifts over drop offs and when you stray away from the catching depths where fish are congregated.

Cast, count and retrieve – counting down your line involves counting at a steady constant pace which multiplied by the sink rate of the line will give you an approximate depth that you are fishing. Start near the bottom—perhaps 15 seconds and if you are touching weed constantly then you can back off the count a bit until you only touch weed or rock intermittently, then you are about spot on. It is vitally important while you are counting down to keep in contact with your flies. Takes come with regularity to sinking flies. If you are in contact you will feel the take immediately. If you simply let the line sink as the boat drifts and a loose loop of fly line forms at the rod tip all of these takes will be missed or even go totally unrecognised.

Take up the line to keep a nice straight line as it sinks. If a fish takes on the sink, you will get some indication of what depth the trout may be and adjust your count accordingly to fish at that depth.

If you are not finding fish and you are confident in the flies you are using, change lines rather than flies to fish different depths.

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Fishing News - Page 33

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Beyond Lake Mackenzie Open up a 1:25000 series map of Lake Mackenzie and you will soon realise there is a huge amount of water to explore back there. Maps are wonderful things; they inspire the imagination and bring out the explorer in us. In Tasmania we have an immense wilderness to explore and a unique fishing experience that goes along with it. These lakes do not give up big numbers of fish on a regular basis. The weather and time of year play a big part in this. What they do offer, is the chance to fish many different waters in one day, each with its own special features that can bring fish into the shore line to feed depending on the time of day and wind direction. This allows the angler to first spot the fish and then decide on the best approach. This form of fishing will take you on a hunting and stalking experience that can be very addictive. Each lake has something new to offer leaving you wanting to explore the next lake just over the hill.

Access and Lakes

Beyond Mackenzie there are no roads into these lakes, only walking tracks. There are three main tracks used to access this area, two from Lake Mackenzie, the ‘Blue Peaks Track’ and the ‘Explorer Track’ and the ‘Higgs Track’ that climbs up over the Great Western Tiers from the small settlement of Western Creek, near Deloraine.

Higgs Track

The Higgs track is a popular route, passing through Lake Lucy Long and Westons Lake, before finishing at the Iron Stone Hut on the southern shore of Lake Nameless.

Lake Nameless has a good head of fish and is very fertile, supporting a good mayfly hatch during summer. The lake has a rocky shoreline, like most lakes up there and some high ground to help locate fish. The southern shore is shallow enough to be waded, if needed.

Lake Lucy Long has a steep shoreline to the south and a flat shoreline to the north. The southern shore is hard going, but gives a good vantage point to polaroid fish out into the Lake. The Lake is quite deep, but fish can still be picked up against the light sandy bottoms.

Lake Westons is relatively shallow with shores that can produce tailing fish in low light conditions. The south eastern corner of the lake has a high bank to assist polaroiding during heavy cloud cover.

Explorer Track

The Explorer Track takes you around the southern shore of Lake Mackenzie, across the Fisher River, and then up to Lake Explorer. Crossing the Fisher River is limited to rock hopping your way across during low water levels in summer or by wading across the river when it is flowing fast and high after a lot of rain in spring.

Lake Explorer has a silty bottom that can discolour the water during long periods of strong winds. When the lake has cleared up, this same silty bottom lets you see fish easily against the light coloured bottom.

Blue Peaks Track

The Blue Peaks track is used to access the Blue Peaks Lake, Middle Lake and Little Throne Lake. This track is not well marked and is easily lost when trying to navigate after nightfall, or in thick fog.

Blue Peak Lake is set in amongst the flats beneath Blue Peaks. The Lake is a good place to find fish tailing along the shallows in the early morning and in the flooded margins when the water is high.

Middle Lake has a deep rocky eastern shore, while the western shore offers a shallower silty bottom where fish can be seen cursing the edge.

Little Throne Lake has a maze of shallow bays in the west that offer good sight fishing and flood fishing conditions. The eastern shore has slightly deeper water with channels used by the fish to move in and out of the shallow bays.

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Kevin Nichols - Tasmania Photo courtesy Bill Corten Fishing News - Page 35

Early Day Trip

The track loking down onto Lake Lucy Long and Westons.

Late one night in October I was studying a map of the area planning a summer walk. It just so happened I had the following day off so I made the late decision to see what these lakes had to offer in spring. A quick look at the weather sealed the deal. Light winds and overcast, that would do me. I was out of bed the following morning at 2:45 am, on the road by 3:10 am and walking the Explorer track by 4:30 am. I made my way around the shore of Lake Mackenzie. The night was still, with only a light breeze blowing from the southeast. I could hear the sound of the Fisher River in the distance and wondered how high it was going to be flowing today. As I reached the river it was flowing hard with the row of rocks I usually jump across, now completely submerged. I found the shallowest section and removed my trousers and shoes.

The water came up over my knees and was icy cold. Using my headlamp to find a way around the large slippery rocks, I slowly made my way across, taking the time to find a solid foothold in-between the rocks.

Fishing News - Page 36

Back on the track, my feet soon regained their feeling as I continued up towards Lake Explorer. My headlamp was no longer needed by the time I had reached the Lake. I took the route to Lake Nameless via the northern shore of Lake Explorer. Surprisingly, I hadn’t seen a single fish along the way. Leaving the Lake I crossed over towards Lake Nameless to pick up the Higgs track to make my way down to Westons Lake. Once there, I immediately found a fish tailing in the shallows amongst the pin reeds. I put a small nymph on and made the cast. The fish continued feeding towards the fly. I waited and watched the leader floating on the surface for any movement that would suggest the fish had taken the fly, but nothing happened. The fish kept feeding with its back out of the water. I put another cast a little closer, but again nothing. I quickly changed to a size 14 Red Tag and made yet another cast.

I watched its exposed fins track over towards the fly through the shallow water, and then out came the snout over the tag and it was gone. I lifted the rod and the shallows erupted as

the hooked fish charged out through the pin reeds, leaping clear of the water. The fish took line off the reel as it headed out into the lake but quickly settled down with a little side strain as it turned back towards me. A stubborn tug of war followed until I could finally persuade him into the net, I took a few shots and let him swim away. I continued around the lake using the high banks and shadows to see into the water in the overcast conditions.

I fully expecting to see a few more fish but nothing showed, I couldn’t even spook one. I had a quick look at one corner of Lucy Long before deciding to cover a bit more ground and head back up to Lake Nameless. As I walked the western shore of Nameless I could clearly see two or three metres out into the water. The only fish I saw along here had already seen me, as it swam out from under an over-hanging kerosene bush at my feet.

With the thought of what the fish might be like at Lake Halkyard, I made the late decision to walk another kilometre further back over the hill.

I walked down the eastern shore line of Hawkyard into a southeasterly breeze. I hadn’t walked very far before I came across a fish facing into the wind close to the edge. I crept in behind the fish and punched the Red Tag up into the wind. The fly drifted back with the wind towards the fish. I watched the fish move from its stationary position and slowly rise up to inspect the fly; it paused briefly under the fly before taking it from the surface. I lifted and the rod bent into a solid fish. I managed three more fish along this shore, all off which were facing into the wind within a metre of the shore’s rocky edge. I had covered a lot of ground and experienced a small insight of what each lake had to offer at this time of year and in these conditions. Things like—which lakes have the right shores for tailing fish, and a mental note of the high banks and trees that cast a shadow across the lake, allowing some visibility into the water on an overcast day.

On my walk back out, I cut across to the southern shore of Lake Explorer to pick up the track back to Lake Mackenzie, bypassing Lake Douglas, Lake Chambers and Lake Johnny along the way. After walking approximately 25 kilometres, I was back at the car by 6 pm. I had just squeezed in another

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day trip into the Central Plateau and didn’t see a single person all day.

That’s one of the great things about this place, some days you’ll have it all to yourself.

Gear to take – Keep it light and simple

• 5 or 6 weight fly rod • Some 4 and 6 pound tippet.

• One box of flies containing both wet and dry flies • Wet Flies:- Black Wooly Bugger, Wooly Worm, Montana nymph, Stick Caddis, Fur flies.

• Dry Flies:- Cocky Bondu, Zulu, Red Tag, Black Red Tag. • Some Gink to float the dries and leader • Polaroid sunglasses and a hat.

• Waders – optional • Camera – optional

Preparation

A GPS or a map and compass are a must when you venture back here. You just never know when your once familiar landscape will be covered in a thick fog or a heavy snowstorm. These conditions can leave you so disorientated that you can easily become lost. Another good reason to carry not only a Map and compass, but a torch as well, is when you have not allowed enough time to walk out in the daylight.

The late evening cadis hatch is hard to leave, and I have walked out in the dark more that once because of it. Carry some basic survival items, even on a day trip. Waterproof matches or a lighter for an emergency fire, a pressure bandage for snakebites and sprains, an EPIRB if you are travelling alone and a waterproof jacket.

Dress in layers, with thermal gear that will dry out easily and will not take up too much space in your daypack. A pair of gloves and a neck gator will keep the cold wind off your skin.

Before taking on these walks, consider your level of fitness and do some walking before you make the trip. Even if it’s only to try out those new walking boots to see how your feet hold up. There’s nothing worse than feeling a blister coming on within the first kilometre. By the end of the day you will be wishing you had never set foot back there. Like anything, be prepared and you will give yourself the best chance to enjoy the surroundings, and the fishing.

Craig Rist

Jon Knowles releases a brown at Lake Nameless.

In the net, but about to swim free.

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Tasmanian Recreational Whitebait Fishery Season opening and management 1 October to 11 November

Tasmanians can again take up the much-loved pastime of whitebaiting with the annual opening of the whitebait fishing season at the start of October. The season runs for six weeks from 1 October to 11 November in selected rivers around the State. Reports from the South and North of the State are that the whitebait runs are just beginning, with only a small number of fish being sighted making their way up some rivers. Hopefully, the high flow rates will subside enabling a solid run of whitebait and good numbers of fish available to fishers.

The season opening is a good time to remind people to help sustain the whitebait fishery by abiding by the regulations, which are aimed at protecting fish stocks while allowing everyone to get their fair share of the resource. The consequences of not doing the right thing can be expensive, with severe fines imposed for poaching and the use of illegal fishing equipment. In addition, the Inland Fisheries Service has a history of successful prosecutions against poachers, and has strengthened its compliance in recent years with the assistance of Tasmania Police in joint surveillance and enforcement activities.

Whitebait fishing regulations If you want to fish for whitebait, you must hold a 2009 Whitebait licence (separate from a 2009-10 Angling Licence) and be aged over 10 years. You can buy a Licence, which costs $26.60, from selected agents and Service Tasmania stores (listed below). You must also abide by whitebait fishing regulations, which govern the catch and possession limits, and the method of fishing, as well as the season, time and waters open for whitebait fishing.

Whitebait can only be taken between the hours from sunrise to sunset. The following waters are open for whitebait fishing during

the season this year: Little Forester, Brid River, River Tamar including Trevallyn Tailrace, River Derwent, Huon River, Rubicon River (except 50 m below the weir), Don River, Forth River (except within 100 m below the weir), River Leven, Inglis River, Black River, Duck River (except within 50 m below the weir), Pieman River and Henty River.

The maximum daily catch is 1 kg, the maximum catch per season is 10 kg and the maximum quantity that can be held by a license holder at any time is 10 kg. The whitebait net must not be greater than 120 cm in circumference and should not be fitted with any additional device (funnels, screens, wings etc) aimed at diverting fish into the net and impeding their escape. It should carry a tag showing the whitebait licence number held by the user who must be within 8 m of their net when fishing.

Whitebait species Whitebait is a collective name for several species of small (30 – 70 mm in length) Tasmanian native fish that migrate from estuarine and coastal regions each year, forming upstream schools or ‘runs’ typically during late winter and spring. These whitebait runs may be composed of six to eight different species of fish, usually dominated early in the season by the Tasmanian whitebait (Lovettia sealii) or by juveniles of the common jollytail (Galaxias maculatus) and spotted galaxias (Galaxias tuttaceus). Climbing galaxias (Galaxias brevipinnis), Tasmanian mudfish (Galaxias cleaveri) and smelt (Retropinna tasmanica) are also often present in low numbers. The species composition of the runs varies with tide, time and location. Most whitebait are juveniles, with the exception of Lovettia which are adults migrating to spawn.

History of the whitebait fishery A recreational and commercial fishery for whitebait operated in Tasmania since the 1940s but both were closed in 1974 following several years of poor catches. The basis of the commercial fishery was the Tasmanian whitebait (L. sealii) which was taken in large quantities during this period, resulting in a major crash in its population and the collapse of the fishery. The main reason for the collapse was that the commercial fishery targeted spawning adults, which were removed before they had a chance to spawn and complete their one-year life cycle and this species has a naturally low reproductive success rate.

Monitoring of Lovettia populations showed that the species recovery after exploitation is extremely slow. However, research in the late 1980s showed that there was potential for a sustainable recreational whitebait fishery, providing fishing effort and timing was tightly controlled. As a result, a licensed recreational fishery for whitebait was reopened in 1990 but was limited to selected rivers, season and times, and with a restricted catch rate to ensure the sustainability of the fishery.

Sustainable fishery management The sustainable management of the recreational fishery is aimed at protecting populations of Lovettia, which are particularly vulnerable to overfishing. The timing of the season and the selection of certain rivers, therefore, is designed to target the runs of juvenile common jollytail (G.maculatus) and spotted galaxias (G. tuttaceus) rather than Lovettia. By targeting whitebait species in the latter-part of the seasonal run, the majority of adult Tasmanian whitebait have an opportunity to spawn while the anglers keen to target whitebait, have the chance to lawfully take fish.

Participation in the fishery over the past seven years has fluctuated due largely to the fishery’s dependence on seasonal weather variations. It is particularly affected by high water flows due to winter rains and spring floods, which tend to hold back and disperse the runs. In 2003, the season was delayed to the start of October to avoid high water flows in early spring and in 2006, the Whitebait

Fishery Management Plan was released, resulting in the extension of the season by two weeks to enable whitebait fishers greater opportunity to capture their seasonal limit.

The Whitebait Fishery Management Plan also identified those rivers susceptible to over-exploitation and developed a strategy for managing select rivers on a two-yearly rotational open-close system. A postal survey of whitebait fishers was also undertaken to gather catch and effort data on the fishery, in order to monitor and manage its sustainability.

Illegal Fishing Since its closure due to over-exploitation in the 1970s, the whitebait fishery has been characterised by poaching, which has slowed the recovery of Lovettia numbers.

It has also required significant compliance resources although the extent of poaching has decreased since the early 1990s. Repeat offenders commit many of these offences which are more frequent in the North West of the State.

Compliance operations are being targeted towards commercial scale operations and repeat offenders in order to protect the sustainability and recovery of whitebait populations. Fishery rules have also been modified in recent years to enable poachers to be prosecuted more effectively.

If you witness or know of any illegal fishing activity, please contact the Inland Fisheries Service immediately, during office hours on 6261 8050 (or 1300 463474), or after hours on 0408 145768.

Year 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Licence Numbers 497 563 761 777 1106 641 899

Number of Whitebait Licences sold from 2002-08 Courtesy of IFS

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Ocean Kayak Prowler 13

I’m going to attempt to be as objective as possible when reviewing this kayak. I own one myself and love it to bits. But like all anglers I’m always on the lookout for the perfect bit of tackle, whether it be the perfect bream rod and spinning reel, the perfect five weight fly rod, the perfect fly reel to match, or as a kayak fisherman I am of course always looking for the perfect kayak for fishing from. I wouldn’t say the Prowler is the perfect fishing kayak, but it is one that will perfectly fill the needs of many kayak anglers.

The New Zealand built Prowler has all the ingredients for a good all rounder kayak – if such a thing exists. It is a 4.1 metre, polyethylene sit on top kayak, weighing 28 kg, with a width of 71 cm and a carrying capacity of 180 kg. Designed primarily for fishing it also includes: • two flush mount rod holders behind the seat • a specially designed scupper hole for holding a fish finder transducer. There is a ‘Humminbird fish finder ready kit’ you can purchase that comes with all the bits to easily fit a Humminbird fish finder. Or you can do a DIY fish finder install. See issue 78 for the fish finder install I did on my Prowler.

• an adjustable padded seat • large rear tank well with quick release bungee cord • a six inch bucket hatch between your legs • two drink holders • a waterproof Plano tackle box that fits into a recessed centre console and is held in place by a bungee cord • handles for and aft as well as one on each side of the cockpit • bungee paddle keeper on each side of the cockpit • very large forward hatch • rudder (an optional extra - but I suggest a necessity on a fishing kayak) • deck rope around the entire kayak • multiple deck loops around the cockpit for strapping all your gear to

A real selling point is the inclusion of moulded in screw-in lugs or attachment points for attaching extras. In fact all the attachment points on the boat have been done using this 100% waterproof moulded in process. The extra attachment can be used for extras such as a Scotty rod holder between your feet in the cockpit and for constructing an anchor trolley. There is an anchor running rig available from Ocean Kayak, but it is cheaper and fairly easy to make your own. I covered that in a previous article in issue 77 of TFBN. There are also a number of other lugs around the rear tank well. These were positioned for a New Zealand designed insulated cover for the rear tank well. You may be able to think up some other novel way to use these lugs for attaching extra bits of kit to.

All this is a recipe for a kayak capable of taking you up small rivers and creeks seeking out species such as bream and trout as well as taking you far off shore looking for a feed of salmon or flatties. And taking all the gear you need with you.

On the mainland and in New Zealand anglers use the Prowler 13 for targeting big fish such as snapper, yellowtail kingfish, large mackerel and some of the smaller tuna species. This is testament to its seaworthiness and fishability.

The Prowler is a very capable kayak for paddling through a decent swell or choppy conditions. The day I bought mine it was blowing a gale at 45 knots on the Derwent, but I couldn’t be stopped and took it for a paddle in Prince of Wales Bay. The Prowler proved itself as a very seaworthy SOT kayak in atrocious conditions. The rudder helped it track straight through the wind. A rudder is an essential item on any fishing kayak for helping you paddle straight when you’re going across or against the wind, as well as maintaining your current drift angle when drift spinning along a shoreline, weed bed or other structure. In fact the hardest part of the trip was getting the kayak back on the car with a 45 knot cross wind threatening to blow it off the racks.

There are two types of stability that get talked about when referring to kayaks. Primary (or initial) refers to how the kayak performs in flat water, or how tippy it feels. Generally speaking a wide beam and flat bottom or V shaped bottom will give good primary stability.

Then there is secondary stability, which refers to how easy it is to stabilise and control the kayak when it has already been pushed onto its side, by a wave for example. A U shaped hull provides good secondary stability by riding the waves, whereas a flat-bottomed hull will tend to tip up with the waves. A tippy U shaped hull gives you plenty of warning before the kayak reaches the tip over point, and you can use your body to move the centre of gravity and keep the kayak upright. A flat-bottomed or V shaped hull can tip very suddenly without any warning, even though they’ll give you a sense of stability all the way up until that tip over point.

The Prowler hull is a triform design, which gives good primary and secondary stability. It combines a beamy mid section and long centre keel design that provides primary stability with a U shaped exterior with round shoulders for secondary stability. The keel helps it track straight. In conjunction with the rudder it does a very good job of keeping the kayak on track when the wind is against you. Another good feature of the hull are the flared V bow and stern. This is very useful for riding the waves, especially during a surf launch, since it allows the bow to ride over the wave nice and high rather than punching straight into it and sending the force of the wave over the top of the bow. I’ve done some big surf launches and landings on the

Prowler and had n o p r o b l e m s.

One last point about the hull shape is that it produces a very quiet ride with very little hull slap, which will come in handy when you want to sneak up on some fish.

The seating position is comfortable for a whole day of paddling, though the standard seat may give you a bit of a numb bum after that amount of time in the saddle. There are a number of different seats you can get with more luxurious padding to fit the Prowler if this becomes a problem.

The rudder is raised and lowered by a rope pulley on the starboard side. The rudder is well constructed with a metal blade and fittings and steel wire to the adjustable foot controls for steering.

There’s enough room in the cockpit to allow larger paddlers around six foot to fit in comfortably. With a weight carrying capacity of 180kg, it’s certainly specked high enough to carry those on the larger side.

The Ocean Kayak ‘Prowler’ is one of Although the Prowler 4.5 may Australia’s most popular fishing kayaks. be a better fit for larger paddlers.

The layout of the deck works well for the Is it the perfect fishing kayak? Well if you’re angler. It’s easy to reach the rods and your tackle behind you. Though if you need to get after an all rounder that is okay in rivers and at something back a bit further in the large lakes as well as the choppy seas then it gets a tank well you are best off sitting side-saddle to tick. If you are after something more dedicated reach it. The numerous deck loops are handy such as an ocean going tourer then you’ll want for attaching your gear so you don’t lose it something a bit longer like a Prowler 4.5 Elite overboard. There are four screw lugs ready or a Hobie Adventure. The Prowler 13 is an all to take a Scotty rod holder at the front of the rounder, and if your fishing takes place in all cockpit, and there is enough room to drill and sorts of waters chasing all sorts of species then screw other extras such as another rod holder it’s worth a serious look.

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Fishing News - Page 41 5/10/09 1:06 PM

Hobie Mirage Revolution Fish

Lately I have been thinking about the benefits of the Hobie MirageDrive and having your hands free for fishing. For those not in the know, the MirageDrive is a pedal driven method of propelling a kayak. Hobie calls it a “Revolutionary new propulsion system”, and I must admit it certainly is an impressive system. The two blades look like the wings on a penguin. There is a good reason for this too. The MirageDrive system was modelled on the wings of penguins and the fins of tuna. They borrow the efficiency and effectiveness from what has been perfected and proven in nature, rather than trying to re-invent the wheel. The fins flex at the back edge on the up and down stroke exactly like the wings of a penguin, providing thrust with each stroke. It feels a bit like riding an exercise bike or an elliptical trainer and is good exercise for the calf muscles.

The pedals and seat can be adjusted for different sized people to get a comfortable pedalling position.

I have a few mates who own different Hobies, and have had a quick paddle and pedal in the Adventure, and seen the Outback in action. But the one that really got my attention is the Revolution.

I think one of the first things that really appealed to me was that the dimensions are almost exactly the same as my Ocean Kayak Prowler 13. The specifications for the Revolution are as follows: Length – 4.09 m Width – 0.72 m Weight – 29.3 kg (including the MirageDrive) Capacity – 159 kg If you compare these specs to the Prowler 13, you’ll see little difference. This places the Revolution in prime position to be a great all rounder performer, capable of handling rough seas as well as having a decent enough turning circle for fishing the rivers and snags.

When I had the opportunity to have a go in the Revolution last weekend I was very interested to see how it would handle.

The Revolution I tried was fitted with the ST Turbo fin kit and the large twist-n-stow rudder. The ST Turbo fins sure do generate a lot of speed and the large rudder does a decent job of turning the kayak. To really generate some speed, you can push yourself down and back in the seat to get better purchase on the pedals. For those times when you have a large distance to travel to get to the hot spot the Revolution will get you there

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Hands free fishing is one of the big attractions of Hobie’s Mirage Drive systems. quick smart. By far the biggest positive of the MirageDrive is that it allows hands free propulsion, allowing you to have a rod in your hand at all times. And the more time spent actively fishing the better your chances of catching fish!

The only way to steer while pedalling is via the rudder unless you pick your paddle up. On a full time paddler I am able to use sweeping strokes in conjunction with my rudder to turn around on the spot. So the extra large rudder was a real benefit for the Hobie when you’re pedalling. When you get to more tricky spots, such as snags requiring tight turning, you just push the pedals out to lock the blades up and then pick up the paddle to get yourself around the obstacle.

The seating position feels comfortable while pedalling, and the Hobie seat is nicely padded and has a high back. The only problem with such a high back seat is that it restricts the number of life jackets that can be comfortably worn. You’ll need to make sure you get one with a very high back. Hobie do make a high back vest to suit.

One of the things that concerned me about the MirageDrive is how it performs in shallow water, given that I do a lot of fishing in shallow flats as well as over snaggy areas with sunken logs and oysterencrusted rocks. By using very short strokes with the pedals, with the blades against the hull, you can still move by pedal power in very shallow water around half a metre deep. To tuck the blades right up against the hull to avoid damage from rocks you just need to push one of the pedals all the way forward. If you fish around the oysters and rocks regularly then you may need to purchase a new set of blades every now and then. But the good news is that the blades come as a relatively cheap separate part that attaches to the pedals.

So the MirageDrive Hobies really are a very versatile kayak, with their choice of propulsion methods. The Revolution in particular is a versatile kayak, since its hull is perfectly suited for paddling as well as pedalling.

Some of the other Hobies are quite beamy, making them less than ideal for paddling. But the Revolution with its sleek profile similar in dimension to the Prowler is a very good paddling hull. The only area where the Prowler’s hull is a better performer is the flared V bow and stern which allows the Prowler to ride over the waves.

In large choppy conditions the Revolution has the tendency to push directly through the waves, with water spilling into cockpit. The water will drain out of the scupper holes, so

the main problem here is your comfort level while pedalling in choppy conditions.

The only other issues that are less than ideal are that when paddling you have trouble getting your feet comfortable and also problems with steering. With one pedal pushed forward that foot is okay, but the other foot needs to be squished around the MirageDrive, since it’s not comfortable to paddle with one foot forward and the other back. The steering issue is that the Hobie’s rudder is controlled by a hand control on the deck next to the seat. When paddling you don’t have the ability to make constant small adjustments as you can in a standard paddling kayak. But I guess it’s just too much to ask to have the best of all worlds. In an ideal world the kayak would have both hand and foot controls for the rudder, and a little extra room for your feet when paddling. Hobie has such amazing ingenuity that it wouldn’t surprise me if one day they built such a beast. The reality is that you won’t do much paddling anymore with the Revo, since you’ll fall in love with the ability to cast lures at likely bits of structure as you peddle along.

The Hobie range of MirageDrive kayaks are some of the best fishing kayaks available. I believe that if you’re going to spend the top dollars to get one of the Hobies then you might as well spend a little extra to get some of the luxuries such as the turbo fins and the larger rudder. There is a large range of extras in the Hobie catalogue too, so that you customise it to suit your needs.

Some of the great features of the Revolution include: • MirageDrive pedal system • Two piece paddle with paddle storage on the side of the kayak • Large front cargo hatch • Two moulded in rod holders • Carry handles fore and aft and on either side of the cockpit • Sail mount • Cup holder • Two mesh covered storage pockets on either side of the cockpit - great place to store some pliers and lip grippers and a small box of lures.

• Two 8 inch twist and seal hatches – one between your legs and one in the rear of the rear cargo area.

• Padded adjustable high backed seat • Large rear cargo area with bungee tie downs.

The storage options on the Revo are very well laid out for the angler. A gear bucket with dividers fits in the hatch between your legs. It’s large enough to carry just about all the tackle you’ll need for a day on the water. The bucket pulls out revealing more room to store extra tackle. Most Hobie owners stick a bit of non-slip matting in the hull to put their extra gear onto, so it doesn’t slide away inside the hull. The large hatch at the front will hold any extra clothing you need for the trip. I really like the easy twist and seal hatches on the Hobie, they’re much easier than the screw in type of hatches.

And there’s plenty of room in the rear hatch for the ubiquitous crate or a tackle box.

I’ve got to say I’m very impressed with the Hobie Mirage Revolution. It’s got to be one of the most versatile, comfortable and functional fishing kayaks available. If you’re like me and enjoy a lot of diversity in your fishing, from rough seas to calm bays, lakes and flowing rivers then you should do yourself a favour and check out the Revo. There’s plenty of opportunity to deck it out with customisations such as extra rod holders, fish finder, GPS or an anchor trolley.

Craig Vertigan

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management perspective since it will automatically enhance the sustainability of these premium highland waters which are the mainstay of the Tasmanian fishery.

Sustainable Fishery Management

Following three very dry winters in recent years, the State has received a deluge of rain which has been a godsend for fisheries management. Tasmanian inland waters have been inundated with freshwater, filling dams, flooding rivers and flushing streams.

Several fisheries have been brought back from the brink of non-existence and others are showing miraculous signs of recovery. The abundant flows have dramatically increased fish habitat, creating extensive backwaters and fertile feeding grounds, greatly improving the sustainability of wild and native fish stocks. The result is that anglers have a plethora of sensational fishing locations to choose from all around the State and a season that promises to be one of the best in living memory.

The records show that the State’s winter rainfall was well above average and many sites (mostly in the east) had their wettest winter on record or their wettest winter for many years. There was persistent rain in the north and west from cold fronts in the second half of winter, as well as heavy rain in the north and east. Several sites received over 100 mm in a day during these events, and some sites had their highest winter daily rainfall on record. For the whole of winter, over a metre of rain fell in the western highlands, and over 200 mm fell even at the driest locations in the southern Midlands. Several episodes of flooding were reported in most of the monitored rivers, with major flooding in the South Esk. Further reports show that there was no real let up in the rain in September and this is likely to continue in October.

This wet weather has meant the return of of three very popular fisheries in the southeastern region, Craigbourne Dam, Tooms Lake and Lake Leake which had suffered dramatically over the last few years due to a lack of water from continuing severe drought conditions. All three waters filled dramatically during winter and began spilling in Spring.

The Service capitalized on the situation at Craigbourne and began its restocking with fingerlings as well as adult browns and trophy salmon as soon as the levels rose. The planned stockings at the other waters have been put on hold until later in the season when spilling from dams ceases.

Another major bonus of the drought-breaking rains is that several prime fishing waters in the Central Highlands, including Arthurs, Woods and Great Lake are now out of danger from continued low water levels. In addition, these and other premium waters such as Little Pine and Penstock lagoons, Woods Lake and the Western Lakes, will have a chance to rest and recover from the intense angling pressure received over recent seasons as angling options narrowed due to the ongoing drought. Now that there are so many attractive alternative fishing locations available, the angling effort can be spread more evenly across the State. This is ideal from a

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experiences. The Service has boosted stocks of wild rainbow trout at the Lake by continuing to stock fingerlings at a high rate since 2000. It is open to all methods of angling – all year round – and hosts large populations of wild Ranking Water Catch (fish per day) Anglers brown and rainbow trout.

Of the top five waters last season, Woods 1 Great Lake 1.84 6,964 Lake in third place was the highland star 2 Arthurs Lake 2.21 6,756 offering exceptional fishing and the highest 3 Woods Lake 2.82 4,460 catch rate of all the State’s fisheries. With 4 Penstock Lagoon 1.03 3,365 improved water levels this season, the fishery at 5 Little Pine Lagoon 1.52 2,895 Woods is set to flourish and will deliver anglers 6 Bronte Lagoon 1.99 2,738 great rewards in more sheltered surroundings 7 Four Springs Lake 1.36 2,712 than at Arthurs or Great Lake.

8 Bradys Lake 0.83 2,191 Penstock and Little Pine Lagoons were 9 Brushy Lagoon 0.96 2,060 both popular waters last season, both offering 10 Lake Burbury 2.01 1,747 reasonable catch rates. Although the rewards at 11 Huntsman Lake 1.89 1,486 Little Pine were greater than Penstock in terms 12 Lake Barrington 0.98 1,434 of catch effort, the beauty of the fishery at 13 Meadowbank Lake 0.68 1,252 Penstock Lagoon is second to none.

14 Lake Echo 2.38 1,226 It is not surprising that the top five 15 Lake Binney 1.17 1,147 premium fisheries in the Central Highlands, Top Waters last season and those to watch this season Great Lake, Arthurs and Woods lakes, and Penstock and Little Pine lagoons, as well as the more remote waters in the Western Based on results of the 2008-09 Angler Postal Survey, Lakes, continue to be the mecca for Tasmanian and visiting shown in the Table below, the top five waters last season anglers and their popularity is only likely to continue. according to popularity, in descending order, were Great Lake, However, it is easy to become myopic about these Arthurs Lake, Woods Lake, and Penstock and Little Pine fisheries and to follow the crowd, missing the excellent fishing Lagoons. The top ten waters in terms of reward for effort in opportunities that are available elsewhere around the State. descending order were Woods Lake, followed by Lake Echo, These include more remote waters such as Lake Echo and Arthurs Lake, Lake Burbury, Bronte Lagoon, Huntsman Burbury, and those in the Bradys chain, as well as lowland Lake, Great Lake, Little Pine Lagoon, Four Springs Lake and waters such as Huntsman and Four Springs Lake.

Lake Binney.

Of particular interest from the survey results are the high Of the top five most popular waters, the standout waters catch rates reported at several of the less popular fisheries such were Great Lake and Arthurs Lake, which shared around 32 as Lake Echo and Burbury, and Bronte Lagoon. This indicates per cent of angling effort. The number of anglers at Arthurs that a few shrewd anglers enjoyed the benefits of more solitary Lake dropped by 1,693 to 6,756, while the number increased fishing with a greater return for effort last season. Lake Echo, at Great Lake by 1,571 bringing it into the top spot with 6,964 for instance had a higher catch rate than Arthurs but less than anglers. The most likely reasons for this shift were the low 20 percent of the anglers. lake levels at Arthurs, leading to boating access problems,, The reports at the start of this season from Lake Echo, the loss of fishing grounds and a decline in water quality. A of excellent fishing and catches of well conditioned rainbow new low level boat ramp was constructed at Pumphouse Bay trout, add weight to the call that this fishery has been underlast winter to combat the situation but the low water levels rated until now. Last season it was made more accessible throughout the season are likely to have deterred a significant with a new road and boat ramp at its northern end and newly number of boating anglers. installed signage to help direct anglers. This is a fishery on the Arthurs Lake has held the top ranking position as the State’s rise and well worth a visit this season, particularly for southern most popular fishing destination for the past five years at least based anglers. largely due to its high catch rate and quality of fish. Despite Other waters that did not even rate a mention over the the low levels last season, many anglers remained faithful to past couple of seasons such as Craigbourne Dam, Tooms Arthurs and continued to be rewarded with high catch rates Lake and Lake Leake, are definitely back on the radar this year. at around 2.21 fish per day, only a small drop compared with The key message to anglers is that there is an unprecedented 2.98 the season before. Given the dramatic improvement in array of excellent fishing options to choose from this year lake levels this year, Arthurs Lake promises anglers a bumper and there’s never been a better time to explore new waters season, ensuring that its top reputation continues. or visit old favourites that have been reinvigorated with the Great Lake is also an exceptional fishery and one which abundant rains. This will also help fishery management by has not been overlooked judging by its popularity last season. spreading angler effort across the State and enabling the top It provides consistent rewards, represented by a catch rate of five premium waters some respite for recovery this year.

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• Adjustable seat and footpegs–Forultimate comfort.

•Waterproofbulkhead and stern hatch •Easilyhandledbyone person Length3.66m,Capacity 147kg, Weight 23kg 120 (12 foot) $1495 Alsoin140(14foot)for$1560

www.tasfish.com - get the knowledge.

Huge Range Instore

Tsunami

TassieTackle know Heapsofsealedbulkheadstorageinbowandsternforovernighters. kayaks,andfishfrom Hulldesignforspeedandstabilitywithrudderfittedstandardtokeep themregularly.The youontrack.Availablein125$1,599145$2,299165$2,690 best advice on: • Boat Selection • Paddle Sizing • Boat Setup •TransportandStorage 37 Wilson St, Burnie Ph 6431 6500 • Fishing Techniques Email: tassietackle@keypoint.com.au Fishing News - Page 43

Rainbow Season Opening Although most inland waters open in line with the brown trout season from 1/8/09 to 2/5/10, a smaller number of waters are designated as rainbow trout waters and are open from 3/10/09 to 30/5/10. These include Dee Lagoon, lakes Rowallan, Skinner, Meston, Youd, Junction Lake, Lagoon of Islands as well as sections of the Mersey River, River Leven, and the Weld Rivers in the North and South.

Stocking info

Spilling waters meant that stocking was put on hold. The only stocking undertaken in September were of Curries River Reservoir (3,800), Lake Rosebery (8,000), Big Waterhouse Lagoon (700), Little Watershouse Lagoon (500) and Blackmans Lagoon (1,100) with 100 gram triploid rainbow stock and Clarence Lagoon with 8,000 brook trout fingerling at 5 grams.

Lake Augusta gate closure

The entry gate to the Nineteen Lagoons area at Lake Augusta (just beyond the dam) will remain closed until the weather settles significantly. Not only has there been periodic spilling from the dam but the condition of the road is very poor due to the wet conditions, and driving vehicles on it would cause significant damage to the surface. It will require at least a fortnight of reasonably settled weather to dry out and allow vehicle access. Check the website for updates and notification of reopening.

Courtesy of IFS

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Advertisementsofanon-commercialnature,tocurrent subscribersofTasmanianFishingandBoatingNews,are freeandcanbeinsertedfortwoissues.Costforcommercial andnonsubscribersremainsat$11andmustbepre-paid.

Minn Kota 30lb

Transom mount Endura model30lb thrust. Brand new and still in box. With Amptech deep cycle battery (never used). $300. Ph 0429 011213.

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Fly fishing gear Innovator HLS #8 9’ saltwater rod $200 Scientific Angler large arbor reel #8 $200 Lamson LP2 fly reel + spare spool and bag $250 Plus post or pickup Phone 0417 543 815

Quicksilver 5.1m Dominator Cuddy cab. 90Hp mercury, dunbier trailer Brand new from $26,000 PH 62671456 Channel Marine Services 10 Gemalla Road, Margate Phone 6267 1456

IMA Japan is one of the most prestigious hard lure manufacturers in Japan.

IMA earned its reputation by creating an extremely extensive and premium product line up for both fresh and salt water. The brand was launched in Japan 1998 capturing the i n s h o r e m a r ke t with the release of the Komomo SF-125, a super shallow runner. Japanese anglers realized the quality and fish catching ability of the lure and it became one of Japan’s best selling lures – reaching the 500 000 unit mark since its debut. IMA lures are manufactured in Japan and are equipped with OWNER/Cultiva hooks.

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For more information contact GLADIATOR Tackle info@gladiatortackle.com.au.

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St. Croix Legend Ultra Fly Rod USA made 9 foot 9 inch, 7 weight, 3 piece. Rarely used, great for lake fishing. Includes 2 Cortland 555 floating lines unused in box. $300 the lot.

Call Tim (03)6331 2441.

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Tasmanian maps for any

Map a nd

Angli

A DV E N T U R E

ng No tes

TASMAP’s Central Tasmania Map and Angling Notes

Launceston’s Only Authorised Dealer and Service Centre

is an invaluable guide to the world class trout fishing in the thousands of lakes and tarns located throughout the region.

It covers most of the Central Plateau, shows all of the lakes, how to get there along with launching facilities, accommodation, camping and caravan areas, fuel supplies and services.

The reverse side features detailed notes and maps covering the prime fishing lakes. The notes are packed with valuable information on regulations, fish types and the best fishing locations and methods.

It is available online, along with TASMAP’s full range of maps, books and historic charts, at:

Savage 440 Angler

www.tasmap.tas.gov.au

40hp Mercury four/stroke, Side console,Bait & fish tanks, Nav lights,Bilge pump, Casting platforms, Brand new $17,000 Channel Marine Services 10 Gemalla Road, Margate Phone 6267 1456

Maps may also be purchased from Service Tasmania outlets and TASMAP agents statewide.

8 Legana Park Drive Legana Industrial Estate, Ph: 6330 2277 Email: cjmarineptyltd@bigpond.com

Depar tment of Pr imar y Industr ies and Water

Subscribe today Subscribe, Back Issues: Just fill in the form, or send your details as below.

Fax to 03 6331 1278 or post to Stevens Publishing, PO Box 7504, Launceston, 7250 or email details to fishn@bigpond.net.au Classifieds - FREE for subscribers

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Subscriptions:___ $30; 1 year. ___ $60; 2 years. Back issues; $5 each - Issue No req’d.____________ Payment by; ____ Bankcard ____ MasterCard ____ Visa ____ Cheque ____ Money Order Credit Card __ __ __ __ / __ __ __ __ / __ __ __ __ / __ __ __ __ Exp. date __ __ /__ __ Total amount; ______ From issue no. ____ Fishing News - Page 44

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Recreational marine fisheries news Spawning closure for east coast calamari and squid

The commercial and recreational southern calamari and squid fisheries will be closed in an area off Tasmania’s east coast from 15 October to 14 November (inclusive) to protect southern calamari at their peak spawning time.

Research shows that this area of the east coast includes significant breeding sites where calamari congregate in large numbers. The closure ensures calamari aren’t targeted when they are at their most vulnerable.

Prohibiting the take of both Goulds squid (previously known as arrow squid) and southern calamari means calamari aren’t inadvertently taken by fishers targeting squid in this area.

The closure applies to all waters south from Lemon Rock (south of Wineglass Bay) to the northern end of Marion Beach (south of Maria Island) and includes Coles Bay, Great Oyster Bay and Mercury Passage.

Seasonal closures of these fisheries in this area have been in place for several years. This year the duration of the closure has been reduced from 10 weeks to 4 weeks following significant structural changes to the commercial calamari fishery.

Rock lobster review

The Department has commenced a review of the rock lobster fishery. Public consultation will take place during the 2009/10 fishing season.

During the review major issues for consideration will be identified. To date, these include: • The continuing trend of declining lobster stock levels since the post-quota fishery peak in 2005; • Inshore fishing effort on the south east and east coasts; and • The risk of long-spined sea urchin barrens spreading on the east coast.

There will be several opportunities for you to provide your views. Initially, a questionnaire will collate initial feedback on major issues affecting the fishery, and then this information will be used to develop a new management plan. In mid to late 2010, the draft plan will be publicly released for further comment.

The questionnaire will be available online from 14th October. To fill it in, please visit: www.fishing.tas.gov.au Or if you’d like to receive a questionnaire in the mail, please ring 1300 368 550 or email fishreview@dpipwe.tas.gov.au Return your completed questionnaire to: Rock Lobster Review — DPIPWE, PO Box 44, HOBART TAS 7001 The review will help guide the management of the fishery for the next five years so please provide your feedback before 13 December 2009.

Elephant Rock research area boundary extension

The northern boundary of the Elephant Rock Research Area off St Helens will be extended by around 230m from November 1st. The purpose of the extension is to protect large lobsters in the research area where Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute scientists are investigating possible controls of long spined sea urchins.

As for the established area, the extended area will also be closed to commercial and recreational fishing by diving and the use of rock lobster pots or rings for up to three years.

However, recreational fishing for scalefish by rod and line is permitted.

The boundary extension will reduce the inadvertent capture of the large research rock lobsters, which initial trial results show, are predating on the destructive introduced sea urchin.

The urchins overgraze on seaweeds and algae on rocky reef areas, which are a key habitat for abalone and rock lobster as well as a nursery area for many scalefish species.

Research indicates that urchin numbers are decreasing in the area and that the released lobsters are ranging toward the extremities of the current designated research area while foraging for food. Some regrowth on the barrens created by the urchins has also been noted.

See the 2009-10 Recreational Sea Fishing Guide for exact coordinates of the boundary extension.

Scallop Season 2010

A short season applies for the D’Entrecasteaux Channel from 1 - 31 July 2010 with a special minimum size limit of 110mm for commercial and queen scallops. A limited season with special size limits is necessary to allow for future seasons by leaving stock for spawning.

All other State waters will be open from the Saturday before Easter, 27 March until 31 July 2010.

Outcomes of the Scalefish Review

The Minister has approved changes to the scalefish rules and these are expected to be publicly released on 15th October.

More information?

• Get a copy of the Recreational Sea Fishing Guide (2009-10 Guide available from Service Tasmania from mid-October) • visit www.fishing.tas.gov.au; or • subscribe online to have fishing news information updates emailed. • Phone 1300 368 550 or 03 6233 7042

Stabi Craft — renowned for outstanding safety, performance and stability You could ask yourself why these boats are so popular, but better still, ask someone who owns one. If it sounds too good to be true, come for a test drive.

Compare the ride, performance and stability against what some would call competitors and you will agree a Stabi Craft doesn’t have any.

The 2250 SC pictured right is a 6.85 metre Supercab with genuine GIII performance. The super slim profile of the positive buoyancy™ tubes that provide the virtual life-ring of all Stabicraft boats also delivers a generous 4.2 M2 cockpit, add that to an impressive list of standard features and it’s a recipe for great value boating. The icing on the cake is the unsurpassed handling delivered by the distinctive hull shape and GIII chines.

Check out this fabulous boat on the water at Tasmanian Boating and Leisure Sports Expo – Hobart October 17 and 18.

Book a test drive today. www.tasfish.com - get the knowledge.

NEW 2250 arriving soon. Try it in Hobart Oct 17-18

Stabi Craft 2250 shown

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We Take Tasmania Boating Fishing News - Page 45

Fishing and Boating Directory Advertise here for $77. Contact Quenton Higgs 0427 129949

St Helens Your every need catered for • Eight en-suite cabins • Convenience store • Hot takeaways • Groceries • Newspapers • Boat parking • Fuel • Bait and tackle • Boat and car wash

Hillcrest Tourist Park & Mini Market

The Tamar’s fishing authority For the very best advice on fishing the Tamar River and surrounding area call in and see Sarah and Damon Sherriff.

For the best range of fishing tackle and watersport gear in the Tamar Valley.

Open: 9 - 5.30 weekdays 9 - 1 Saturday

Tackle and Supplies

Call in for all your fishing tackle including full range rods, reels, lures, landing nets and bait. Also life jackets plus diving gear and stuff for all water sports.

Scott, 53 King Street Scottsdale.Ph. 63522357 Julie-Anne, 41 Quail Street St Helens. Ph. 63761390

44 Macquarie St George Town Ph: 6382 2373

100 Chimney Heights Rd. 6376 3298

Boat building and repairs

Aluman

Engineering

Vandieman Seaman boats

Top Service – Top Price

Proplate BURNIE MARINE custom boats Services • Over 30 years experience on all types of motors • Approved Boat repairs insurance repairer to boats and motors • Propellor rebuild and refurbishing • Repairs of all types - including skegs etc.

• Contact: Cyril Stevens Phone 6431 3082 Fax 6431 1255

MOONSHINE CHARTERS

36’ Steber Sportsfisher Eaglehawk Neck - Jan-April Pedra Branca - July Bookings/info - Steve Gilbert 03 6261 1558 or 0408 105 311

Propellor repairs Mark Tapsell 424 Hobart Road, L’ton Ph 6343 3341

www.moonshinecharters.com.au

Fishing and Outdoor The store with more on the West Tamar.

Everything you need for fishing and outdoors.

St Helens

STORAGE SHEDS

Brand new industrial sheds at St Helens

Strata titled - $60 000 incl GST. Size: 10m x 6m x 6.5m.

Facilities include: • Security fencing • Electricsecuritygates•Electricrollerdoors• Easyaccess•Designatedwashdownfacility• Greatforboatowners,smallbusiness,general storage, Industrial use.

PhilMcMaster0418524970orBarrySproal0408561370

Fishing News - Page 46

Seven days a week and public holidays.

139 Weld Street Beaconsfield Ph 6383 1555 Protect your boat, motor and trailer with BEL-RAY. Waterproof grease and 6 in 1 Lubricant Available from selected dealers including: Webster Bearing and Engineering Tas Bearing and Chain, Launceston NBC Engineering, Kings Meadows Port Sorell Marine, Shearwater St Helens Mower Centre Trade enquiries P.M. Glover 6327 2322

Gone Fishing Charters

• East coast estuary and bay • Bream, salmon, garfish, flathead, mullet and squid • Specialising in BIG BREAM • Soft plastics, lures, flies and bait • 5.8 metre sportfishing boat.

Gone Fishing Charters St Helens

Michael Haley 63 761 553 or 0419 353 041 mhaleycharters@bigpond.com www.breamfishing.com.au www.tasfish.com - get the knowledge.

TASMANIAN FISHING ACCOMMODATION 

AAA Rating

Airlines of Tasmania Your link to Flinders Island

Explore King Island

www.kingisland.org.au 1800 645 014

2074249 dp

Flights available from Melbourne and Launceston Book online at www.airtasmania.com.au p: 1800 144 460 e: flinders@airtasmania.com.au

People search the world for a place like Flinders Island...

Stackhouse Beachfront Accommodation

Absolute beach frontage to Killiecrankie Bay. Explore endlessly the surrounds via the beach, rock-hopping or bushwalking tracks.

You can practically fish from the balcony or if your casting is not so good, walk the 30 metres to the fishing rock right outside the front door.

Phone: 03 6359 6518

Lady Barron Cottage A great place to stay while you explore, discover, sightsee and fish Flinders Island Fully equipped cottage with all home comforts. Contact Shane or Dianne.

Phone 6359 3703

Get around the Island in comfort Enjoy one of the best fishing destinations in Australia Fishing holiday packages,2to5days.

Continental shelf, inshore and surf cateredfor.Fromtunaandtrumpetertosnapper andkingfish-fishwithJamesLuddington03 6359 4507 www.flindersisland.com.au James Luddington Ph 03 63594 507

P & A Car Rentals •Businessorholidayrental.•MitsubishiMagna vehiclesfrom$66perdayinclGSTandinsurance.

•Bookingsareessentialpriortotraveltoensure availability.•Freepickupanddropatairport.

Ph:0364621603E:kimotors@bigpond.com Web: www.kingisland.org.au

Divers Paradise

Flinders Island is a diver’s paradise.

Diving, fishing, snorkelling; day or halfday fishing tours or cruises.

Shipwrecks, reef dives, scenic dives, drift dives, crayfish and abalone diving, photography, naturalist and research dives are all in abundance.

Flinders Island Dive - Mike Nichols (03) 6359 8429

Shannon Coastal Cottages Set on 2 hectares overlooking Currie Harbour and the rugged West Coast, Shannon Coastal Cottages offer a complete home away from home.

The air is clean and the sunsets spectacular.

Three kilometres from the main town of Currie or a fifteen minute walk along the beach and track.

One and two bedroom cottages accommodate up to 6 people.

Fishing rods are provided. Sightings of wallabies, possums, pheasants, turkeys and a variety of sea birds are common.

The perfect base to explore the island.

Denise O’Keefe 03 64611074 Moores Drive, Devils Gap, King Island TAS 7256 Email: denise@shannoncoastalcottages.com.au

Portside Links “ What a great place to stay! These quality, new bungalows have everything you could ask for to comfortably explore this beautiful region of Tasmania.” (Wendy & Harry- Ulverstone TAS)

Lady Barron Holiday Home—comfortable self contained accommodation in a garden setting with sea views of Franklin Sound.It is just a moment from the waters edge and within walking distance to restaurant, supermarket/post office/news agent and all attractions that Lady Barron has to offer.

This 3 bedroom home sleeps 6. The main bedroom has a king size double or 2 king singles. The other 2 bedroom both have twin singles. There is a fully equipped kitchen. The lounge room has DVD/VCR, TV.,& CD player and sliding doors to front patio—great place to watch movement of boats and yachts. A reverse cycle heater/ cooler has been installed for winter/summer comfort. Most of the year yiu have the choice of a gas or wood BBQ. Separate laundry has washer, dryer, airer, iron and ironing board.

Cnr Andrew and Harvey Sts. Strahan 7468. ph: 03 6471 7268

email: enquiries@strahanbungalows.com.au

The house is opposite the start to the Lady Barron coastal walk also the boat slip area one of the popular fishing spots. The wharf is also very popular with fishermen and within easy walking distance. The tennis courts are nearby and tennis racquets are supplied. A visit to Vinegar Hill is essential as the views of Franklin Sound and Islands are superb and is within walking distance. Flinders Island has a lot to offer and all attractions are amazingly close and a short distance by car.

Phone Allan or Pat on (03) 6359 3555

www.tasfish.com - get the knowledge.

JustoneklmfromthecentreofthetownofGrassy,ontheSouthEastcoastof KingIslandwithviewsoverBassStrait,theoldGrassygolfcourseandupto the town of Grassy.

Twoluxuryself-containedunits,plusaBedandBreakfastsuite,providinga quiet and relaxing atmosphere for the ideal get away.

FeaturedonNine'sTV‘Postcards’andSouthernCross‘DiscoverTasmania’.

Bookings or enquiries: Ken or Marilyn Chapman Grassy Harbour Rd, Grassy, King Island, Tasmania 7256 Ph: (03) 6461 1134, 0427 093194 Email: ki@portsidelinks.com.au www.portsidelinks.com.au

Fishing News - Page 47

QLD FM 260x352.indd 1

2/10/2009 1:16:59 PM

Print Post approved; PP 702512 00027

Issue 82 October - November 2009

$5

$5

Lake Echo – The NEW Hot Spot Great Lake – Shore Fishing the Waves Lake Leake – A Reviving Gem f o r t h e b i g g es t, Sinking Flylines for Success hot t e s t , b e s t a nd Scamander Bream la t e s t T a s m a nia n f is h i n g n ew Tamar Hotspots s ‘Yak fishing Sea Trout

Peter Hayes with a whitebait feeding Henty River ‘resident’ trout. Read Chris Bassano’s sea-runner article on page 28.

Read about it - then just do it