BY BRIAN LONG
SNAPPER dominated captures again over the past week, with fish taken from Corio Bay’s inner and outer harbours.
Geoff Chambers fished Stingaree Bay’s spoil grounds to bag out on fish to 55cm with salted pilchards at first light.
Garry Shields fished the same area with soft plastics for snapper to 3.2kg cleaned.
Brian Bam and Alan Marshall caught five to 2.5kg off the quarries, while Noel Stevens tried the same location into the night for three big snapper over 5kg.
Wilson Spit was inconsistent but Peter McKenzie enjoyed plenty of action by casting baits well into the deep water of the channel. He released all but two of his seven fish.
Soft plastics angler Xavier Patterson fished the outer edge of the mussel leases at Clifton Springs for a mixed bag of flathead and snapper to 58cm.
Flathead were also taken by anglers drifting in 5m off Portarlington where Stuart Cunningham used soft plastics to catch fish averaging 35cm and two reaching 50cm.
Squid were caught on the inshore grass beds between Hermsley and Swan Bay’s entrance on small natural-coloured jigs.
Swan Bay’s entrance was productive for Shannon Tait who used berley to catch a variety of fish including flathead, garfish, salmon, mullet and snapper.
Salmon were spread out throughout the bays, chasing whitebait shoals, while Lorne’s Loutitt Bay was productive for lure enthusiasts.
The incoming tides in the Barwon River estuary produced bream on fresh baits such as sandworm, Bass yabby or shrimp.
Small rainbows dominated captures at West Barwon Reservoir. Tassie Devil lures cast well out and allowed to sink before retrieving worked well, while deep-diving bibbed lures such as the Daiwa Double Clutches were the best option for brown trout.
Harold Martin fished Moorabool Reservoir where the action was slow until the wind died and fish began feeding on the surface. He then caught four brown trout around 1.5kg weight on a shallow-running Laydown Minnow lure.
Lake Tooliorook was the best destination for trout, with anglers fishing mudeyes close to the weed beds catching fish over 3kg.
Plenty of eels were caught from the Barwon River between Buckley Falls and Breakwater, with worms the best bait.
The Murray cod season opens this Sunday, with good fishing forecast for opening day and beyond. Lake Eildon looks like a worthwhile trip, with the bonus of outstanding yellowbelly captures in recent weeks.
This weekend’s early afternoon high tides should suit snapper on soft plastics around the spoil grounds off Hermsley and Leopold or in Stingaree Bay.
Send reports and photos to info@raylongtackle.com.au or visit Brian at Ray Long’s Fishing World, 105 Shannon Ave, Manifold Heights.
