Last month I suggested that the hot spot was Waranga Basin. I hope that some of you managed a trip or two out there to get amongst the action.

In early July Waranga was still fishing well with 1 to 1.5kg redfin the norm rather than the exception. Many anglers were also taking advantage of this lake’s reputation for large Murray crays. Although they’d been slow in the early part of the season, they’ve stepped up a notch and were improving. No doubt some of the frosts that we’ve had have helped. So if you chasing a few redfin at Waranga then throw in a couple of hoop nets as well.

Whilst we’re on the subject of redfin, the Goulburn River at Seymour has produced some terrific fish of late. Despite being overshadowed lately by Waranga, redfin to 1.6kg have been taken in large numbers.

The river is low, but rolling or casting lures along the deeper sections has produced good results. Two top spots to try are the Mitchelton Bridge and the Trawool Bridge.

I know it seems as though I’ve been pushing the redfin trolley a lot over the last couple of months, but that’s because they’re making up the majority of catches. Surely that can’t be such bad a thing given that the bigger specimens are worthy sportfish and amongst the best eating freshwater fish in the state.

With the riverine trout closed season in place many anglers have been trying Lake Eildon and the pondage. Until to now the lake hasn’t fished as well as it has in recent years. Anglers are simply not catching the quality fish that we know inhabit the lake.

But don’t despair because it will happen. I believe that the dry conditions may be contributing to the lake’s performance. If we can just get a decent amount of rain to freshen it up then the fish will respond positively.

The Eildon Pondage on the other hand is fishing well, no doubt aided by recent releases by Fisheries. Fish to 4kg have been taken regularly on spinners and bait.

Lake Mokoan and Lake Nillahcootie have been quiet lately so if the Goulburn or Waranga don’t appeal then you will need to head further north.

Whilst the water levels aren’t great in our northern rivers my wife Carol and I have made several trips north lately to the Wakool and Edward rivers around Moulamein and Kyalite. These trips have produced Murray cod and Murray crays. These waters may be a little out of my patch as far as report coverage goes, but there’s no point fishing where the fish aint.