November is a busy month for trout anglers in the Snowy Mountains. Since the environmental water releases down the Snowy River in October, the lake has been pretty stable and is looking great for all methods of trout fishing.

We have seen some great catches of late with big browns and plenty of rainbows captured. There is no place better than the other on Lake Jindabyne at present with the cooler water temperatures, but the edge fishing is still very good.

There was a lot of snow on the mountains this year to melt and so the rivers and streams are still looking great. If anything we have a little too much water in some of the streams and it may be the end of the month before the best of the dry fly fishing starts.

How the season will progress from now on will depend on how much rain we get. A wet end to spring may mean a continuation of the great lake fishing.

On the rivers and streams, we are starting to see plenty of white moths and tea tree beetles; the beginning of the hopper season may be happening soon as well. If you want to you can still use a small nymph dropper in the faster water just to double your chances at catching a fish.

The flyfishing on the lake is still very good around the edges. Fishing the small bays and inlets will get some results very early and late in the day if you’re careful not to spook the trout. Woolley Buggers, Craig’s Nighttime and Williamson’s Goldfish have been the flies well worth using at dawn and dusk. The shallow bays on the lake are well worth fishing at sunset with both Hayshed Bay and Hatchery Bay fishing the best.

Bait fishing has been good in the lake, and teaming up your rig with worms and artificial baits are really producing. Put two hooks on the line and combine a worm and artificial bait to double your chances of a trout. If the fish are a little picky try using muslin on your line to keep it floating out of the weed and reduce the drag created by the water tension.

Best areas for bait fishing at the moment have been Waste Point area, The Claypits and at East Jindabyne near Rushes Creek.

For the lake trollers, surface trolling lures at 2m deep and lead core lines will be the best methods to get a trout at the moment. It is also definitely worth trolling some minnow lures early in the morning off the lead core lines.

The Scatterrap Rapalas have proven to be very effective with their unique action and it would be wise to try one off your lead core line early in the day, especially before sunrise. Don’t worry about using bigger lures as they are best for the bigger fish.

If targeting rainbows, and yes there are plenty being caught at the moment, smaller StumpJumpers along with Tassie Devils Canberra Killer and the Willy’s Special are still catching their share of fish. We are using leadcore lines and downriggers at the moment and in the middle of the day on those sunny still days we are downrigging to almost 40’ where the bigger rainbows are holding out.

Best areas to troll at the moment with the high lake level have been the East Jindabyne Islands, Hayshed and Hatchery Bay and up at Creel Bay.

Lure spinning has been good early and late in the day and should continue that way for a while yet. There are trout about and the best fishing is in the shallows early and deep water later in the middle of the day. Minnow lures like floating Rapalas, StumpJumpers and other minnow style lure in either natural rainbow trout and brown trout patterns or gold colours to represent the Jindabyne goldfish that the trout love to chase and eat.

Don’t stay in one place too long and only put in a couple of casts in each area.

On 8 November I will be holding my 25th Anniversary Fishing Competition and my Celebration Dinner on Saturday night. The competition has limited numbers and you need to call my shop to see if there are any last minute positions available. There are also limited seats available for my official celebration dinner so get in while you can.

A lot is happening this November especially with the Snowy Mountains Trout Festival week coming up (more information can be found at www.troutfestival.com ).

• Why not call into my shop next to the Shell Service Station at the intersection of Kosciusko Road and the Alpine Way or give me a call on 02 64561551 for more details and latest updates. Don’t forget that if you want the best daily update you need to become our Friend on Facebook – Steve Williamson’s Lake Jindabyne Trout Fishing Adventures.

Trout

Best method: Bank-based bait on the lake with artificial bait or scrub worms

Best lake trolling lure: Rapala CD07 Scatterrap Gold and Tasmanian Devil green and gold number 111

Best lake area: Creel Bay and Waste Point area and Stinky Bay (The Haven)

Best fly method lake: Black weighted Woolly Bugger and Williamson’s Goldfish

Best River Fly Fishing: Black bead head nymphs and a size 12 Tea Tree Beetle

Best River Lures: Gillies Feathertail Spinner and Trout pattern 3cm Bullet Lures

Best lake spinning lures: Spotted Dog or Brown Trout pattern Rapalas and 7g Holographic Tassie Devil