I’m happy to report the mulloway fishing has picked up since the Glenelg River mouth was opened to the sea just prior to Christmas. Early in January we saw a slump in fish numbers but thankfully more schools have now entered the river.

Mulloway of 3-4kg were closely followed by another school of fish to 7kg. I suggest trying around the Princess Margaret Rose Caves Landing as a starting point for your search during February. As usual a bit of local advice doesn’t go astray so don’t be scared to ask for the latest reports at any of the businesses in the village.

Once again the bream fishing has been awesome. The hardest thing is suggesting a place to try. My brother and a couple of his mates fished nearly 70km upstream, just below Dartmoor, and they each caught their limit in no time on fresh whitebait. At the very same time some guys from Timboon were fishing the estuary using crab for bait and boated one of the best bags of bream I’ve ever seen. This is a good example that bream can be caught on very different baits - the key is to make sure the bait is fresh.

For bream I suggest you try as many spots as you can but keep moving around and remember use a little berley, often. The soft plastic fishers have also had good success. January has brought a lot of anglers to Nelson as they prefish for the ABT BREAM competition in February. We look forward to these competitions as the competitors are a great bunch of guys and ladies and the support they give to local operators is much appreciated.

Perch have again been caught from as far up as the Pines Landing and down to Sapling Creek. Live gents, shrimp and gudgeon the best baits.

Green point should fire up in February too. This awesome spot on the coast between Nelson and Point MacDonnell produces huge mulloway, snapper and a variety of sharks. It is accessible by 4WD and you can beach-launch a dingy there. It is a natural rocky point with huge kelp beds surrounding it. Fish around these beds and get ready because you could well be in for the fish of your life. We haven’t weighed in a mulloway over 30kg yet, but I reckon this year we will. You are also allowed to drop net for crayfish in South Australian waters so a feed of the lovely crustaceans could also be on the cards. Check the South Australian regulations before you go.

Surf fishing along the coast has also been good. Just 6km from Nelson you can 4WD onto the beach at Piccaninny Ponds. Here there are lots of good spots to try for snapper, mulloway, shark and salmon. Be careful on the beach down here as we have fresh water washes spotted along the beach and the biggest ones will swallow your 4WD. It’s advisable to have two vehicles just for safety. Hope to see you down here soon!