Many local anglers flocked to freshwater lakes in search of trout over the past week.
Lake Wendouree, situated in the middle of Ballarat, remained one of the hot spots, as Paul Kwiecinski and Michael Cocomanovski can certainly attest.
The pair began fishing from the banks of Wendouree early Saturday morning and did not have to wait long for some action. Casting Bob ‘N’ Spoons in the Glow colour, they landed two exceptionally well-conditioned brown trout of 1.8kg and 2.7kg.
Just down the road at Lake Bostock anglers experienced some outstanding fishing on Chinook salmon, brown and rainbow trout and even the odd redfin. Anglers walking the shoreline while casting soft plastics such as Berkley T-tail minnows in black and gold caught all four species, including salmon averaging 800g to 1kg and rainbows of similar size.
Casting Tassie Devils resulted in catches of brown trout, some nudging 2.5kg. Steve Prior visited Bostock on Sunday, landing a healthy brown trout of just over 1kg amid rain and hail.
Bostock has also been productive on bait, with Powerbait or worms presented on a running sinker rig taking all four species.
Lake Bullen Merri, near Camperdown, continued fishing well for Chinook salmon. Many were larger than the Bostock specimens, some Chinooks pushing 2kg.
Anglers trolling deeper-diving lures such as Daiwa Double Clutches achieved good numbers of fish.
Next door, Lake Purrumbete produced brown trout to 2kg on Tassie Devils trolled along the east bank at first light. As the day progressed anglers casting lures along the weed banks caught trout to 1.5kg.
Further afield, Lake Eildon has been fishing well for trout. Mark Roberts fished Eildon last Friday afternoon, catching a chunky brown of 1.5kg while casting a Vibrax spinner.
Other anglers had success trolling the lake’s Big River arm.
On the saltwater front, Australian salmon were taken in good numbers from local surf beaches. Staff member Michael Moore fished Saturday evening off Collendina where he beached salmon to 1kg.
Other beaches to produce fish were Jan Juc and Bancoora. Casting 25gram lures such as Sluks or Gillies baitfish worked well.
Andrew Orchard set out in search of bream and estuary perch along the Surf Coast with some good results. His best result was a trophy-size estuary perch of 58cm, which engulfed his lure.
An estuary perch that size is an incredible fish, the likes of which Andrew thinks he’ll be unlikely to encounter again any time soon.
Whiting and squid continued to be caught just out from the St Leonards boat ramp. The start of the run-out tide produced the better fish.
Queenscliff Harbour fished well for silver trevally on Z-Man 2.5-inch Grub Zs during the tide changes. Anglers fishing during the higher tide amid stronger tidal flows found the trevally among the moored boats.
The harbour entrance also produced Australian salmon.
Southern bluefin tuna continued biting at Port Fairy. Many were taken in 40m or less, depending on the weather.
Trolling skirted lures in the smaller sizes or casting at schools of fish on the surface with metal slugs have been the most productive techniques.
Anyone seeking options over the next week should consider trying Lake Bostock, which is only a 55-minute drive from Geelong and has large amounts of banks access. With the variety of fish on offer, it’s well-worth a look.
