Autumn fishing is settling into its usual patterns and anglers in the know are taking advantage of the great fishing on offer in our part of the bay.

This month we’ll see some great catches and for those not being bitten by the tuna bug, staying close to home will still see you taking home a great feed of fresh fish from local waters.

The Mordialloc Pier has really started to swing into the autumn fishing quite nicely with good numbers of pinkies being caught of an evening. The other species of interest that has started to turn up with the cooler weather is the ever popular squid, with several anglers reporting some reasonable numbers of them being found when the water is clear. This has been the same story for anglers fishing off Beaumaris pier and over the coming weeks the calamari fishing will definitely get better.

On the Parkdale Pinnacles pinkies are in good numbers and larger harder baits, such as squid strips and half silver whiting, are definitely getting some bigger pinkies up to 45cm. This reef system is also holding some great squid with a lot of bigger calamari in the 800g-1kg size being found, especially in the deeper water off and around the edge of the reef.

This month will also see the local Mordialloc anglers turn their focus to the creek itself as the annual yellow-eye mullet begin to move into the creek. This can and does make for some great fishing with small floats and bait of dough or peeled prawn.

Garfish have been a bit scarce over the past weeks but lets hope this month sees them start to fire up as I know a lot of anglers are eagerly awaiting their arrival.

Up off Ricketts Point the pinkies are in full swing with plenty of fish to be found all along the reef edge and as a mix to the bag so e anglers have still been finding the odd whiting with one customer finding some solid fish to 38cm during several trips over the past weeks.

Out wider the bigger snapper are starting to have a late season chew with some fish in the 3-5kg size being found in the 16m line. The trick here is to sound around till you find a fish or two on some rubble bottom then Berley hard on the tide change and the fish will fire up for a short but often very sweet period.

Back in along the reef edge between Ricketts Point and the Cerberus at Black Rock it's the perfect time to be trolling 10cm diving minnows or garfish on gang hooks for the big snook that are feeding actively through the area at present.

Finally off the car park at Half Moon Bay land-based anglers are starting to get fish and best of all the crew can do it while quite literally sitting in the car.

Plenty going on here at present for both boat and land-based anglers. But to star with the Anonyma Shoal is a favourite of mine at this time of the year with some very big snook on offer and even the occasional school of whiting, which if you get onto I am fairly sure they will be cracking big fish.

This month should also see some great fishing for pinkies off the end of Sandringham breakwall and the rock groynes at Hampton. While further along at Green Point squid have been in good numbers on the shallow reef, especially late in the afternoon.

From here up to Brighton all the shallow reef areas have been fishing well for boat anglers chasing the pinkies in 6-10m of water. I also had one customer report that he got some huge red mullet off Brighton one evening while fishing with pilchard fillets.

From Brighton up to north road boat ramp there are pinkies on offer but for the most part all the good shallow reef areas through here seem to be attracting squid in great numbers so that in turn is what is getting the attention from both boat and land-based anglers.

Up towards St Kilda the reports have been a little slower but for the anglers who are willing to put in the effort there has been the occasional 2-4kg snapper being taken at night in the shallow water off places like Elwood drain. While around the Marina and breakwall there has been the occasional flathead to be found but for the most part the past couple of weeks have seen this part of the world getting ready for the winter months.

I find it interesting how the area immediately around St Kilda can go a bit quiet at this time of the year but just along the shoreline at lagoon and Kerford Road piers the fishing can be great and this month should be no different as the winter pinkies will give into these areas.

Over the coming weeks a berley trail off these areas and small baits under flats should also see anglers getting into mullet and garfish.

As I have also mentioned in the past now is also the time to always make sure you have a large fresh bait out in the water no matter if you are land based or in a boat. Be it dawn dusk or the middle of the day as you could be in with a chance of running across a big mulloway.

Up off station pier this month will see some big bream on the chew before they start to head up the Yarra to spawn so try floating peeled prawns or small crabs or freshwater yabbies down next to the pylons for some very exciting fishing