As you would expect for this time of the year, the weather is warm and the fishing is hot.

Whether it’s the Murray, Edward, Wakool, Bidgee or any other creek or puddle you care to name, the golden perch have been providing plenty of action. From bank or boat, anglers are enjoying the bounty that looks set to continue for some time yet.

Most fish are falling to bait because this is the most practised form of angling in these parts. Shrimp have been excellent, followed closely by yabby tails. Those anglers who are fishing smaller lures and spinnerbaits are also cashing in on the fish, bagging out on most sessions.

Fort Courage, on the old Wentworth Road, has been a popular destination with most doing well. There is limited bank access in this area unless you are in the know – a beer and a yarn with Ray at the caravan park will see you pointed in the right direction.

The fishing around Robinvale has been a little slow but this should improve as the weather continues to warm. Commonly known as the Nine Mile, this section of river upstream of the Robinvale bridge is always worth a look for a few goldens and is one of the better locations close to town.

The Murrumbidgee at Balranald is producing plenty of perch on bait and small lures cast around the timber. Anglers bobbing shrimp are doing well, with this method most effective when water clarity is at its best. Reluctant to venture far from cover, perch are suckers for a bait that’s dangled right in their faces.

You can mark it on your calendar that about this time every year, the fish become very cooperative along the Wakool River around Kyalite.

Not only are the perch on the chew but there are also a good number of cod lining up for a feed also. With cod out of season, they are an unwanted by-catch that can at times, dare I say it, be bloody annoying.

Such has been the success of the stocking program that these catches often outnumber all other fish about five to one. It’s no fault of the angler or the cod that they are often caught.

In saying that, as is the case every season, anglers need to be reminded that any of these fish that are hooked deeply have a far better chance of survival if the hook is left right where it is. Poking around in a fish’s throat or gullet for the sake of a few cents’ worth of hook is, to say the least, pretty miserable.

Before any hook removal-device is released onto the market it should first be stringently tested on the manufacturer and those tight-arse anglers who deem this piece of medieval equipment so necessary.

The price of a hook is minimal; landing your first Murray cod or that once-in-a-lifetime giant is, in monetary terms, priceless.

All going well, the fishing should continue along this vein over the coming weeks. With most areas experiencing a great run of goldens, anglers are just happy to be out on the water catching a feed of fish.