Victorian trout season to close

by Jarrod Day, FishingBoating-World Editor on 6 May 2013 And so yet again, the Victorian trout season closure is approaching for another year. Rivers all over the state will close as of midnight Monday the 10th of June until midnight Friday the sixth of September. During this time, anglers must not take or possess trout or salmon in rivers and streams (except those waters designated for ‘sea-run trout’ see below).

This is a sad time of year for us freshwater anglers but then again, it is also a great time of year as millions of trout leave the lakes and head upstream to spawn. The next few weeks around Victoria and going to be amazing for trout anglers as this is the time of year in which anglers have the opportunity to catch their trophy fish.

While the larger rivers will see a larger run of fish making headway upstream, don’t forget about the smaller streams. Often, smaller streams will produce some very big fish and it is not uncommon to catch fish in excess of 10 pounds. In saying that, some of the most productive waters are those above a lake or dam. It is these rivers and streams that will see many of the larger fish that have inhabited the lakes leave to spawn. Anglers fishing above the lakes generally catch top quality fish.

Many different techniques will be successful at this time of year and the big bucks do become very territorial. Lure tossers should be up sizing their lures at this time of year with lures as larger as 110mm working well. Of course, stick to rainbow and brown trout patterns as they are deadly.

Should you be flicking a fly, glow bugs take the cake and if you’re up for something a little left field, try using a spin rod and tie a glowbug to the end of the leader, followed by a nymph attached to a 30cm length of 6lb which is attached to the glowbug hook. The trailing nymph will catch a lot of fish. You will require a little weight though, so it pays to place two or three AAA size split shot sinkers onto the leader above the glowbug. A highly effective rig, this is one for all to try.

The end of season is approaching quickly, if your keen on catching a trophy, now is the time to get amongst nature. It may be cold wading the rivers but can be some of the most visual and exciting styles of fishing any angler can endure.

Below is a list of the rivers that do not close as they are known for carrying sea-run trout. These can still be fished throughout the year from their specified areas.

Sea-run Trout Rivers
The specified sections of these waters contain populations of sea-run brown trout that provide salmonid angling opportunities during the salmonid closed season:
• Aire River – downstream of the Great Ocean Road Bridge.
• Avon River – downstream of the Stratford Railway Bridge.
• Ford River – downstream of the Great Ocean Road Bridge.
• Gellibrand River – downstream of the Great Ocean Road Bridge.
• Hopkins River – downstream of the Hopkins Falls.
• Merri River – downstream of the Bromfield Weir.
• Mitchell River – downstream of Princes Highway Bridge at Bairnsdale.
• Moyne River – downstream of the Toolong Bridge.
• Tambo River – downstream of the Bruthen Road Bridge.

This week we introduce a new writer to the fishingboating-world team, Ben Knaggs. Ben is a highly regarded fishing writer and is an editor himself. Ben now resides in Exmouth, WA and will be bringing many entertaining and informative fishing articles from Western Australia directly to your computer, Iphone or IPAD on a monthly basis.

This week Ben explains just how exciting it is to witness such crazy fishing and describes how mind blowing it is to catch fish amongst all the mayhem.

Lee Brake goes in search of Australia’s most common species, the humble flathead. The central and north Queensland coasts are currently going through a transition period where, as temperatures change, anglers need to adapt their approach to maximize their success. Lee Brake explains how to do this to be successful when it comes to hunting frogs.

Gary Brown has left our shores bound for Europe for a few weeks. While he is trampling all over, he will be popping into internet café’s and uploading his articles to keep you keen for more fishing in New South Wales. This week Gary looks at the techniques used to catch luderick from the rocks. Luderick are a lot of fun to catch and there are quite a few specialised techniques required to catch them as Gary explains.

Having received a very weird email from Chaparral boats, I was whisked away and flown to a secret location in Gippsland, Victoria to have a play on some very new and impressive boats they have imported from the USA. With the keys put into my hand and the words 'Go and have fun' spoken, it didn’t take me long to put the new Robalo 180 to the test. If you’re in the market for an 18 footer, this boat is worth a serious look.

Until next week,