The distant rumble of thunder and the sweet smell of warm, moist air are tantalising promises that rain is close at hand. Every bit as welcome as the signs of rain, are those that indicate the best of the cod fishing is about to start.

As the days begin to shorten, the crisp morning air reminds us that a warm jacket long since forsaken, once more becomes a comforting friend. It also reminds us that this gradual cooling of the weather means the biggest of our beloved Murray cod become far more susceptible to lures and bait as they begin to feed more freely.

Over coming months as the water cools, the fishing heats up with plenty of big cod on offer in most of our rivers.

The Murray at Robinvale generally fishes well from now on in, as do the other deep sections of pool water around Mildura and downstream of Wentworth. Trolling deep-diving lures is often the most productive method and it’s also common to score the odd golden perch as big as 4kg as you patiently wait for a giant green fish to smash your lure.

Just like the larger cod, these well-conditioned goldens are the breeders and are best returned to the river.

When targeting these deeper sections of pool water you will require a range of deep diving lures. These might include AC Invaders, Jumbucks, StumpJumpers and Boomerangs.

If you are fishing baits, then the bardi grub has few equals. Fished tight to timber, they are hard for any hungry cod to resist.

Our smaller rivers, the Edward, Wakool and Murrumbidgee, will also start to show their productive side for larger fish. As these rivers clear, those working spinnerbaits will account for plenty of cod with a few nice goldens always a chance.

The Wakool River below Kyalite continues to produce some humongous cod about this time every season on trolled lures. Several of these fish, topping the good old 100lb mark (45.3kg), have been taken over the past few years to prove that big water is not a prerequisite for holding big fish.

While the Edward produces large numbers of small cod on bait and lures, there are some lunkers holding amongst the snag piles in this river also.

One thing the cooler water temperatures do is slow down the piranha-like appetite of the silver perch. Regardless of where you talk to anglers who are fishing bait, the comments are the same and for the most part unprintable.

For a fish that’s supposed to be almost extinct in the rivers, they seem to be pretty thick up this way.

If our waters stay low and clear, I urge all fishos to practise a little restraint in the size and number of fish they keep.

So far the season has been excellent and if past years are any indication of what’s to come we’re in for a beauty.

So what if you are within your bag limit when you head home? It’s designed to be a maximum, not a minimum. Take a feed of fish but also remember, what we take today is gone tomorrow.