There have been crazy conditions – horrific weather mixed with some insanely good days, and fishing that just leaves you scratching your head in amazement that the local fish population doesn’t seem to know its been a real Victorian winter.

With some spectacular snapper reports over the past weeks, not to mention that the garfish and squid have been really calling this part of the bay home for the past month or so. And now as we roll into September it also heralds the start of the new snapper season. Although saying that, several of our customers at Fishing Fever have already got some good numbers of big snapper under their belts.

A daily procession of anglers fishing in the creek itself can and does only mean one thing, the mullet are biting with great numbers and some very solid fish to be found for those anglers fishing with delicate floats and small hooks.

On the pier, pinkies and a few salmon have been keeping anglers busy during the rougher weather, while the calm conditions have seen plenty of squid hitting the deck.

The upcoming weeks however are often the most exciting as Mordialloc Pier will produce some spectacular fishing for big snapper, especially in the rough conditions. And don’t think you can only catch them at night, with the daylight hours often producing some great fishing.

In the boats, anglers have been getting stuck into some great pinkies and even some very solid early season snapper on the inner shallow reef areas, such as Parkdale Pinnacles and up off Ricketts Point. Not to be out done, the kayak crew are also making their mark with some solid fish being taken by this lot of keen anglers.

Regular customer Beau opened up his season a few weeks back with a lovely 4.6kg fish taken on a 40g Koika jig on his Gomoku outfit. Interestingly, Beau had baits out also but the fish clobbered the micro jig over the pilchards.

On Beaumaris Pier, squid and garfish have been the focus for anglers over the past month or so. During some of the rough weather there has also been some solid snapper being taken by those keen or crazy enough to sit it out in the cold, wet and windy conditions.

During the daylight hours however, the garfish have been great and with school holidays on this month it’s a great way to spend a few hours out of the house, and sure to keep the kids entertained.

Out wider we are starting to hear and see those early season reports from boat anglers as they begin to sound up schools of fish in areas, such as the 12-15m areas off Mordialloc through to Black Rock. And for those that have been getting a few bites on the early season fish it is definitely the morning period that is seeing most of the action.

Land-based options in this area will really fire up this month as anglers continue to catch squid, garfish and pinkies. However, there will now be a bit of a change in tackle, as the long rods come out with bigger baits being hurled out into the bay in search of the big early season snapper that will move through the area. Locations such as the Sandringham breakwall, Hampton Rock Groynes, and of course the famous Brighton breakwall being notable locations to put in some effort.

While in the boats, it’s the same sort of areas that will produce the goods for anglers; the 8-12m areas off Sandringham and Brighton holding some really great reef bottom that attracts and holds big early season reds on the chew.

As a bit of a side note, and I say it every season, I encourage boat anglers to be aware of and respectful to the land-based anglers. They can’t just fish anywhere like boaties can, so please give them the space they deserve.

Moving further to the north the shallow reefs of the North Road to St Kilda area have been producing pinkies and some solid squid up around the 600g-1kg size, which should continue if we don’t get too much rain.

During late July and August I also heard of some lovely ling getting taken out on some of the rough bottom that lies in 12-14m of water off North Road. While these slimy fellas may not look great they are spectacular eating and well worth the effort to chase.

September can be a real surprise packet in this part of the world. It often sees a big early season school of snapper move into the area well before what is regarded as the correct time. In turn, it can also offer some first class land-based fishing off St Kilda breakwall and the surrounding piers. If the past weeks are anything to go by, then it may well be a belter of a season, as there has already been enough bigger reds being taken both in the boats and land-based to indicate that there must be a few fish in the area.

One good tip to remember in this part of the world is that it’s never too shallow for a big snapper, with some of the stories I have heard over the years of big snapper being taken in 2-4m of water being more than a rare situation.

So no matter if you are land-based or you have a boat, now is the time to get the gear out and get ready because winter is on the way out and we are rolling into snapper season 2014-15.