On the Bite, by Chris Pitman
Anglers targeted more than just kingfish over the past week, with a wide variety of species on offer.
Point Richards though to Indented Heads had excellent numbers of whiting devouring pippies. Finding a patch of sand in 5m to 6m of water not far from a weed or reef patch was the best tactic, with anglers fishing late afternoon and into the evening boating the best bags.
Some thumping big flathead were taken as a by catch.
Snapper to 6kg hung along the Point Richards channel but persistence was needed.
The reefs dotted along Indented Heads made for fun squid fishing on size three artificial jigs. Bag-limit captures were possible when the wind backed off.
St Leonards Pier was great for casting squid jigs near the pier lights at night, while the ever-reliable Bourke St area nearby was still a hot spot for boating King George whiting to 44cm.
Queenscliff the Harbour fished well for silver trevally, Australian salmon and, at the entrance, some great land-based whiting. A paternoster rig with pippies or squid worked best on all species, especially on the slower-running tides.
Plenty of anglers tried their luck on the kingfish outside the harbour. Trolling white occy skirts with a strip of squid was productive but knife-jigging produced the biggest, some over 8kg.
Kingfish also erupted among salmon schools off Barwon Heads. Casting soft plastics like gulp 7” Jerk Shads worked well when allowed to sink below the salmon.
Trolling in close to Ocean Grove with occy skirts also resulted in kingfish.
Some impressive snapper and gummy shark were taken offshore in 30m, with fresh salmon the number-one bait.
The Barwon River estuary provided small salmon, whiting and silver trevally. The Sheepwash fished well on the incoming tides.
A few bluefin tuna were taken off Port Fairy on small skirted lures.
On the freshwater front, Lake Bullen Merri was hit and miss but produced numerous Chinook salmon over 10lb when firing. Deep-trolled Tassie Devils or hard-body lures worked well, with depths around 12m fishing best.
Lake Purrumbete was consistent for trout and redfin. The east bank and the section just out from the boat ramp gave up fish to anglers casting hard-body lures such as Daiwa Double Clutches.
The Barwon River fished well for redfin from Breakwater to Queen’s Park. Small hard-body lures and soft plastics worked a treat.
The hot weather should really fire up the river’s larger redfin, too, while plenty of carp are cruising around for corn on a running sinker rig.
Next week, anglers should keep St Leonards Pier in mind for squid at night, while kingfish should keep holding in The RIP and offshore. Freshwater anglers could try Lake Bullen Merri.
