The last month of winter is finally here! This is great news for anglers, as you may be getting excited for the warm spring weather.

The big golden perch spring time run, cruising lake trout… but I want to stop you dreaming right there, because now is the time to be fishing! It may be cold, it may be wet, but if you love big cod, then you cannot beat August!

As you may have remembered from my last report, I spoke for the first time about Blowering Dam and that it would be beginning to pick up. Well, now it is in full swing and the monster cod are on the chew!

I talk to so many anglers about this location and I hear similar comments. They all seem to be negative, and I’ll agree that it is one of the toughest locations to target cod in the entire country. In saying that, if you’re keen to finally crack this place, rug up and get out there now.

I’ll explain why it fishes so well at this time of year. The heart of winter has just passed, which means the food and activity has been at a minimal for a solid two months. The water temperature will have passed the winter minimum and will now be on the rise.

This just starts to roll the activity over and the bait begins to move. The big cod need to eat and they will be switched on ready to chase the bait, or even better, your lure.

Now let’s talk lures and fishing techniques. Think big! Big lures, heavy gear and big fish. The most proven technique is to troll large lures along rocky banks. During the daylight hours, try to stay in deeper water, because the water is so clear. Around the 6-8m mark is a good depth to start your search. Make sure to keep the lure right on the bottom. We like to troll the large 150mm and 120mm AC Invaders in the 40ft+ bib.

Another fishing style that we like is to cast big soft plastics and spinnerbaits. That’s right, big soft plastics for Murray cod! It’s not a lure used by many cod anglers, but they are proving to be the new weapon of choice.

If you are going to use plastics, you want to look for lures between 100-200mm in length. The bigger the lure, the bigger the fish you will be likely to attract. Rig them on a big 7/0 3/4oz jighead and ensure you run a stinger hook as well.

Big spinnerbaits are also a proven monster cod lure in Blowering Dam. The all new Mud Guts Big Guts is a 1.5oz lure and has accounted for some cracking fish. Jack Zyhalak from the Social Fishing team landed a brute 119cm Murray cod casting the Big Guts in the early hours only a few weeks ago.

Unfortunately, due to the massive amounts of rain we have received, the river has run higher than expected all winter long. It has been up and down during winter due to the large amounts of rain, which has made for a difficult season. In saying that, between the rains we have managed a few good Murray cod casting spinnerbaits tight in against the bank. This will begin to pick up before close season so definitely worth a shot.

If you’re keen on monster cod and don’t mind battling the winter elements, then head to one of your local dams as they will all fish as well as Blowering before the season closes. If you wish to find out more on targeting monster cod in dams, make sure you visit www.socialfishing.com.au for more information on this style of fishing.