With the onset of cooler conditions, anglers have dragged out the thermals and donned beanies in preparation for the cooler months that lay ahead. The ‘true’ cod season is about to begin, where size outclasses numbers every time.

In saying that, the fishing along the Murray has been a little slower than that enjoyed last season, but that’s to be expected as the majority of cod have had all manner of lures dragged across their noses in the past 12 months. Murray cod are far from stupid, especially when they acquire a bit of size, and the big fish are proving harder to persuade, but they are still prone to making the odd mistake.

Big lures still remain the key to relaxing this lockjaw attitude and while the action is slow, the rewards are most often at the bigger end of the Brag Mat. Robinvale in the pool water has good numbers of smaller cod to 80cm taking both bait and lures depending on the water clarity. Golden perch too, have been biting well, especially on bait. Shrimps or small yabbies bobbed around the timber are working, with most anglers catching their bag in a short session.Upstream around the Nine Mile has fished well, as has the Toll Toll area. The perch have been of quality size, with most above the 45cm range. A few catfish have also been landed in the Robinvale area, especially when fishing baits of worms around the willows. Carp are ever-present and the pesky silver perch are alive and well.

A protected species, it’s great to see catfish numbers on the increase.

Downstream to Wemen and it’s a similar story, although the cod are quite a bit larger in size. Several cod over the metre mark have been landed at Wemen on both bait and lures. Generally shallow and fast flowing, most of these larger fish have been caught around the numerous rock bars that are typical of the Murray in this area.

As the ghost moths hatched with the autumn break, several good cod were also landed on surface lures. As this form of fish continues to grow in popularity, we are sure to see some honking fish landed from the surface over the next few seasons. I have already had a couple of near misses, with 1 large fish hitting the lure so hard I expected to see nothing but powdered remnants floating on the water. I will be back to annoy this bad boy throughout the season, and with a little luck he will slip up and have another crack.

Golden perch have also been on the chew in the Wemen area, with bait proving most effective. Shrimp are starting to become scarce as the water cools, but are proving to be the best bait, which is always the case when something is hard to source.

Hattah Kulkyne has also fished well for cod on lures, the largest reported this past month stretching the tape out to the 121cm mark. Large shallow running lures are working best, but they are hard to find. It’s a common perception among lure makers that to think big is to think deep, when in fact these same giant lures are what’s required to tempt big fish in shallow waters. Perhaps by season’s end we will see a few larger models fitted with shallow bibs.

All up, the fishing has been quite good and with the big fish season now underway, we can expect some large cod captures over the coming months.