ON THE BITE with Peri Stavropoulos
Another great weekend for fishing with lots of reports coming from Corio Bay with anglers picking up some nice fish.
The inner harbour is producing some nice fish with pinky snapper, flathead, salmon and whiting. The Stingaree Bay spoil grounds have been hosting some hot action especially for those casting soft plastics, the famous Gulp Turtleback worm again is standing out the best.
Limeburners and St Helens rocks have been popular for land-based fishos with flathead, garfish and pinkies. Mainly fishing at night as the fish come in close to feed, as we get some nasty rough nights it’s well worth having a go for a BIG winter snapper in these locations too.
The outer harbour is still fishing well for better sized snapper with fish to 4kg being taken from what you would call your ‘traditional snapper spots’ (spoil grounds, channel, quarries, 9ft bank).
Pilchards, squid and any other fresh bait have all been working well and ideally fishing on a tide
change or first and last light. Garfish have been in good numbers close around Clifton springs for those fishing in super shallow with pencil floats in a burley trail.
Fishing super shallow water like 1 to 1.5 metres seems to be the sweet spot on where they are hiding but keeping a solid consistent burley trail is definitely the key to success
Offshore Barwon Heads has been hot with gummy sharks. Gone Fishing Charters has been right amongst the action – the other day Chris and his crew landed nine sharks with a mix of school and gummy sharks. Salmon chunks are by far the best bait on either a running sinker or Paternoster Rig.
Down the west coast between Portland and Port Macdonnell there has been a hot barrel tuna bite with reports of fish being caught daily with sizes ranging from 50kg right up to 150kg.
Trolling skirted lures and hardbodies have both been doing the damage and so too has bait fishing. It really has been that good a bite the fish are snatching up most things. Peri Stavropoulos from Trellys Geelong fished alongside his brother Aston Stavropoulos down at Port Mac over the weekend with Aston landing his first tuna weighing in at 107kg bled and gutted.
