Fish just can’t resist

Surf Coast beaches fished well again over the past week, with well-conditioned Australian salmon devouring metal lures.
Bancoora and Jan Juc were standout locations on the rising tide for anglers pitching out Sea Iron Pelacus lures.
Down the coast, Craig Varker fished the Wild Dog Creek area for Australian Salmon to 1.2kg. Craig also gathered some scrub worms and fished the Bahram River at Apollo Bay where he banked some nice bream to 33cm.
Queenscliff produced bag-limit captures of squid on the grass beds and further around to the mouth of Swan Bay. Whiting were also still about, with the average size nudging 40cm.
Clifton Springs kept anglers entertained with squid. Anglers who spent time searching the deeper sections in 4m to 5m caught the biggest specimens.
Drifting for flathead nearby also paid off, with numerous fish to 45cm on the chew for those fishing baits and soft plastics.
Tackleworld Geelong’s Adam Van Der Luht fished the Geelong waterfront for snapper on Monday evening. Avoiding the temptation to hunt down Pokemon, he cast out a pilchard and soon caught a snapper of 82cm that was a serious challenge while fishing land-based.
Tuna anglers had plenty of options down the west, with Port Fairy and Portland producing school fish to 15kg on lures cast into feeding schools. With the feeding tuna sometimes hard to tempt, allowing lures to sink for a few seconds before retrieving sometimes made all the difference.
Also down west, lakes Purrumbete and Bullen Merri were generous for anglers who put in the time. Numerous brown trout to 3kg were trolled up on Spotted Dog Rapalas and Daiwa Double Clutches along the east bank at Purrumbete, while lightly weighted pilchard fillets during the middle of the day worked well on Chinook salmon to 3kg.
Wurdee Boluc Reservoir was popular for redfin anglers, with fish to 40cm taken from the main rock wall.
Next week could fish well for snapper along Geelong’s waterfront as the weather warms, while anglers seeking squid look to Clifton Springs and Swan Bay. Freshwater options include Lake Purrumbete for trophy brown trout.