May and June on Flinders Island saw some of the best weather for the year, with long still spells and less rain.

Locals fishing offshore were able to make the most of this and enjoyed some excellent fishing in the 80-450m water for striped trumpeter, trevalla and all the other deep water species, with the fish in good size and numbers.

The annual humpback whale migration added to the interest, as the whales passed through on their annual trip north.

Inshore the North East River has again been fishing in full swing with Australian salmon and tailor in good numbers off the mouth of the river, while the long surf beaches of the east coast have quietened down a little, as is usual for this time of the year.

July and August are our two winter months and while there is still good fishing to be had in settled weather, overall things tend to be a little quieter.

Thoughts then have to turn to maintenance and by the end of July with spring and the longer days not far away, boats need to be cleaned and painted, engines serviced or overhauled and fishing gear checked, replaced or re-spooled.

I am sure those of you who attended the Melbourne Boat Show will find lots of useful gear on offer, now being the ideal time to prepare for the coming spring and summer fishing.

Flinders Island is a great place to plan a fishing trip and through the late spring and summer the boats, flights and accommodation can become quite booked up.

To secure the best dates it certainly pays to plan early, many of our regular fishing groups start setting up in August or September for their peak season fishing holiday, enabling them to lock in to the best of the fishing.

The web carries good information on Flinders Island fishing and is a good place to start looking.

For more info contact one of the local operators and they will be happy to help with advice and planning.

James Luddington operates the Strait Lady on Flinders Island and is the islands most experienced skipper for a wide variety of fishing experiences. James can be contacted through www.flindersisland.com.au/fishingtours

The calm weather offshore certainly helped with catching excellent deep water fish like these blue eye.