Snapper, snapper and more snapper. Last year it was mainly pinkies, but this year it’s good quality snapper and plenty of them.

We’ve seen some beauties come in to the boat ramp and the places they’re being caught are wide and varied. Mick Alderson was one of the first out of the box with a couple of beautiful fish, one 8kg and the other 6.4kg. Just to prove it wasn’t a fluke, he went and did it again a couple of nights later. Although these were a little smaller, they were still good quality fish and were caught out wide from Manns Beach on pilchards and a slow steady berley trail.

Generally there are fish being caught from Whale Bay all the way east to McLoughlins Reef and, although the runs don’t last long, there are plenty there to be caught. Paul Mayer was successful on the inside, with some nice snapper ranging 4.5-7.2kg. These fish were caught just inside the entrance to Port Albert and, between them, he also caught a nice gummy to top the day off.

On the shark front, Darren Whelan tells me he has been hooking some nice bronzies out from Whale Bay, with the biggest nearly 2m. The importance of good quality baits when shark fishing is paramount. Darren’s bronze whalers were caught on live salmon, left swimming in a constant berley trail. On the same day he had a 70kg wire trace bitten through by what he suspects might have been a small (protected) Great White.

It’s top news on the whiting front as well, with the fish being of good quality and consistency. The best places for these fish are the usual haunts around the Basket Beacon, the Clonmell Banks and in behind Sunday Island. The best results are when using pipis and clickers on a paternoster rig.

All this, along with the usual huge offshore flatties, it’s shaping up as a memorable fishing season.

The local rivers are producing some silver trevally, particularly at the Tarra River entrance and at the Tarraville Bridge, and nice flathead are being caught along the river at Robertsons Beach. There are also some nice perch around the cemetery.

The Port Albert jetties are producing their usual fish. The odd small whiting is being landed there, as well as silvers and flathead.

We at Chase’m Charters hope everyone has had a happy and productive festive season and hope you enjoy your fishing over summer.

For the latest fishing information, contact Chase’m Charters, (03) 5183 2267 or 0409 798 018.

CAP

Mick Alderson with an 8kg and 6.4kg snapper. Both fish were caught on pilchards, fished in a slow berley trail.