By CHRIS PITMAN
ALLAN Browse ventured out from Limeburner’s Point late last week, anchoring up off the quarries where he set a spread of baits.
At 8.30am his rod buckled over with a 6.25kg snapper. A few hours later another rod sprang to life, this time with a 5kg snapper.
Other anglers found a steady supply of squid in close off Hermsley Rd, with size-3 jigs the most productive.
I trolled deep-diving hard-body lures off Clifton Springs on Saturday afternoon for snapper but instead boated some large flathead to 55cm.
St Leonards Pier provided Tommy Ruff on maggots suspended under floats, while the odd squid was taken on jigs. The pier is worth fishing at this time of year for large snapper at night.
Queenscliff kept anglers busy with good quantities of squid over at the bight and further around to the mouth of Swan Bay. Anglers fishing the cleaner water caught the most squid.
Anglers who again made the effort to fish in 40m to 50m off Ocean Grove and Barwon Heads were rewarded with snapper to 6kg on larger baits such as whole squid.
The Barwon River estuary’s Sheepwash section produced bream and some surprisingly big whiting to 42cm, with the better quality fish of both species taken on live Bass yabbies. Anglers fishing the lower section of the estuary at night with baits like mullet managed mulloway to 8kg.
The western district continued providing world-class fishing for southern bluefin tuna, with a record 174kg fish reportedly taken on Saturday afternoon out of Port Macdonald.
Dave and Alex Haygarth took a run to the Hopkins River early last week in search of bream and estuary perch. Fishing land-based, they banked perch to 40cm on hard-body and soft plastic lures after wading out far enough to reach the drop-off.
Chinook salmon really switched on at Lake Bullen Merri, where bait-fishing was the most-effective method. Powerbait rigged on a running sinker rig cast from the bank caught fish to 2.5kg, while anglers fishing from boats around Potter’s Point caught similar size salmon on baits such as pilchard fillets.
Wurdee Boluc Reservoir was productive for Azi and Jean Osmic, who landed a 1.5kg rainbow trout on pink Powerbait. Azi also had success a few weeks with a brown trout of 2.2kg on a mudeye suspended under a float.
Highton’s St Augustine’s Lake was a hotspot for kids chasing the yearling rainbow trout liberated for school holidays. Redfin were also caught by anglers seeking trout with small spinners.
Clifton Springs should be worth fishing for snapper over the next week, particularly around any tide change coinciding with dawn or dusk. Freshwater enthusiasts should consider driving to Lake Bullen Merri for its Chinook salmon.
