Over that past month we have received very little rain in the Victorian Alps. Consequently most of our high country streams are running quite low.

The Mitta Mitta River above Lake Dartmouth is low but still flowing reasonably well but the fishing is very quiet. It really needs a good downpour of rain to get the fish in Lake Dartmouth running up the river. At the moment, try elsewhere.

Livingston Creek is a small tributary of the Mitta Mitta River but it is down to a trickle. A few few small fish are being caught in the pools in the Cassilis area where there are some reasonable pools but generally the fishing is poor.

The Bundarra River is low but flowing and it is really a light in the dark. It is providing good fishing, particularly in the scrub for fish up to 700g. Interestingly there are quite a few rainbows mixed up with the browns in this river.

The Cobungra River also has a reasonable flow and some fair to good fishing is being had around Innisfail and further upstream. It appears to me that most of the trout have moved out of the Mitta River and into these two tributaries. It’s likely a few have also returned to Lake Dartmouth.

The Tambo River is little more than a trickle. The CMA contractors are in the process of some major willow removal on this river following the recent bush fires. With the willows gone it really changes the complexion of the river.

One thing that we have noticed over the past few weeks is the relative poor condition of the trout. We have had a poor grasshopper season together with a drought that has resulted in low water flows and high stream temperatures. All these factors have combined to leave our trout in a sad state. Given favourable conditions, the trout population can recover quickly. Let's hope for a good spawning season this winter followed by some decent rain over the catchments next season.