The productivity in the fishing throughout the summer months has generally been good in the Bendigo region, but the change in seasons brings with it changing conditions.

As a general rule, autumn is a fantastic time of the year to spend some time fishing, the more mild temperatures make for an enjoyable day on the water. Weather patterns are improving with slow moving high-pressure systems becoming the regular pattern. These patterns bring with them days with reduced wind associated with ideal temperatures, making for some great fishing opportunities.

The fishing in Lake Eppalock has continued to be productive. The productivity in the redfin fishing has improved over the last month, but is still significantly lower than the previous few seasons.

At the present time redfin are being caught by both bait anglers and anglers fishing with lures. Bait fishing around the trees with yabbies and worms has been producing reasonable numbers of redfin, but anglers need to be prepared to move around a lot in order to locate a good school of fish. Trolling deep diving hardbodied lures and casting soft plastics has also produced reasonable results on the redfin.

The productivity in the golden perch fishing has also been good, with good numbers of golden perch being caught by anglers both casting and trolling lures. Casting lipless crankbaits around the trees and rocky shoreline has been productive. Trolling deep diving hard body lures around the rocky shorelines have also produced reasonable numbers. The average size golden perch being caught has been between 40-48cm, making them great fun on light tackle.

The numbers of Murray cod being caught has been low. With the water temperatures starting to cool we should see a small increase in the numbers of Murray cod being caught in the next couple of months.

The fishing in the Campaspe River has been spasmodic over the last month. The general trend is seeing greater numbers of golden perch being caught in the deeper sections of the river at Elmore and Rochester. The most productive lures on the golden perch have been spinnerbaits and lipless crankbaits.

The higher catch rates of Murray cod are currently being experienced by those anglers who are walking the banks and are fishing the shallower sections of the river casting spinnerbaits and hardbodied lures. There has also been some quality cod being caught by those anglers fishing with surface lures. There is currently a good amount of food present on the surface with cicadas being quite prolific, so the productivity in the surface fishing should remain good for the next couple of months.

The fishing has only been average over the last month, with water levels are continuing to decline. Locating a decent school of redfin has been difficult for the majority of anglers and they need to be prepared to move around a lot in trying to find a concentration of redfin.

Bait fishing around the trees has been okay and trolling deep diving hardbodied lures has also produced some reasonable redfin captures on certain days. Unfortunately the majority of redfin being caught are currently small, we should hopefully see some increased captures of larger redfin in the next couple of months.

There continues to be some average numbers of golden perch being caught and trolling small and medium profile lures around the edges of the lake in 6-10m metres of water has been a productive technique. Casting both the timber structure and the shoreline with lipless crankbaits has also produced some quality golden perch.

Water clarity remains good at most locations along the Loddon River system. The productivity in the fishing has continued to be good as well, with the majority of fish being caught in the first two hours or the last two hours of light. The fishing has often been tough during the middle of the day.

Golden perch are making up the majority of captures in the deeper sections of the Loddon River and casting lipless crankbaits continues to be the most productive method for catching them, but casting spinnerbaits and hardbodies have also been good options.

The highest catch rates on the Murray cod continue to be by those anglers who are walking the banks and fishing the shallower sections of the river. Anglers should always do the right thing and gain permission before accessing the river through private property. There have been some very large Murray cod, which have been caught in the Loddon River recently by those anglers fishing with surface lures. The best report I received was from a local angler, Hugh Lethlean, from Bendigo. Hugh managed to catch a beautiful 97cm Murray cod on a Custom Crafted Jaws Surface lure. The productivity in the surface fishing should remain good for the next couple of months.