Fishing Monthly Magazines : Options opening up in October

After a fairly quiet winter season, anglers will be looking forward to the latter weeks of October, and hoping for a good start to a productive summer season. The onset of the warmer weather will prompt fish to turn up in worthwhile numbers.

The inshore reef areas between Warrnambool and Port Fairy should begin to produce pinky snapper, squid and King George whiting. Schools of decent salmon have been fairly scarce this winter, but may make a later appearance. Good surf fishing conditions occur in October before the summer pattern of sea breezes set in. Salmon, pinkies, gummy and seven-gilled sharks are the main targets with Logan and Yambuk beaches often producing well at this time.

The final leg of the Victorian

Bream

Classic is being held in the Glenelg River at Nelson on 13-14 October. If you’re making the trip there are plenty of alternative locations on the way through to test out your equipment and refine your techniques due to the two week ban at the location itself.

The Hopkins River has long been a popular venue for lure casting anglers and the techniques that produce in the Hopkins often also usually work well in the Glenelg. Fishing in the Hopkins has been pretty quiet lately but by October things should be heating up. After a quiet period, some good captures of estuary perch have finally been reported. These reports have been from both the upper and lower ends of the estuary. Trolling hard-body lures after dark and at first light has been the most productive technique.

Continuing west, the Moyne often has a population of bream and silver trevally to test anglers’ drags in October. Mulloway are also often targeted. The turn of the high tide is a popular time to try for them with live mullet, spewworms and bass yabbies being the most productive baits.

Further along the highway lies a turn off to the Fitzroy River, which has been producing consistent catches of bream for some time now. Fish to 700g are being taken on a variety of baits and soft plastic lures.

On the freshwater scene the Merri River has been producing some good brown trout. The average size has been 1.2-1.8kg.

Most anglers are working fairly hard for their fish though with most being taken in low light periods. The really productive trout fishing that can occur with high, dirty flood waters hasn’t come to pass yet this season. Local lakes such as Gillear, Ellingamite and Aringa remain low and will need some serious inflow of rainwater to make fishing an attractive proposition come the warmer months.