OCTOBER is always a great time of year. The warmer currents are getting into the estuary and the lake and stirring up the food chain, and with the baitfish come the larger critters to stretch a line or two. The prawns will be running soon, attracting those elbow-slapping whiting.

The salmon have been running and some nice catches have been recorded from Blacksmiths Beach. Quite a few have been ending up on bream lines in the channel and Salts Bay.

Flathead were a little on the scarce side through the cooler months but these fish should be back in force from this month onwards.

For those lucky enough to own a boat, Lake Macquarie is the place to be. It doesn’t get much better than spending a day fishing, crabbing or just taking a cruise on the beautiful lake.

This will be my last report for the Swansea area. My number one deckie (Teresa) and I have decided to sell the ranch, hook up the boat, chuck in the camping gear and head north to wherever the fancy and the fishing takes us.

I would like to thank all the anglers, both locals and visitors, who have helped me with my reports over the last few years. Our local bait and tackle outlets have also been a wealth of information. If you are a visitor in the area I recommend that you go and talk to these blokes – they won’t lead you astray because they want you to come back!

There’s a fine balance between giving away too much information and not enough. I must have found a measure of that balance simply because the local fishos have not broken any of my bones yet, so with a bit of luck I might escape unscathed.

During my few years living in the Lake Macquarie area, a couple of very important events took place. The Government declared the lake a no-net area, banning all commercial fishing. The second event was the closing down of the Pasminco smelter on the western side of the lake. After 100 years of polluting the lake and the surrounding area, this closure is possibly the best thing that could have happened to this waterway.

There are also local groups working toward a healthier lake and surrounding areas. Keep up the good work and educate the kids to look after the land, and there will be a bright future for our waterways.