What an exciting time – the launch of a new magazine for Victorian anglers, the onset of some warm weather and the much anticipated ‘start’ of the season!

Working at Cranbourne fishing tackle I’m constantly speaking with anglers and it never ceases to amaze me that so many people really do regard November as the start of the season. However, those in the know will tell you Western Port has been fishing well for months!

The late winter run of gummies has been keeping serious anglers busy. For those willing to brave the chilly conditions, gummies over 10kg have been taken with some consistency, particularly from the southern end of the port. Areas such as Buoy 7, Buoy 13 and the patchy ground known as The Corals off Rhyll have proven to be extremely productive.

Adjacent surf beaches are also worth a look with customer Jason Shields landing a quality 6kg gummy on a fresh squid head at Gunnamatta after dark.

The first few snapper reports have already been chalked up and all we need is a little more warmth in the water to get things really firing. Early season marks worth a look include the reef between the Fairway Buoy and Buoy 1. If last season is anything to go by, November should see plenty of decent reds being taken up the top end near Crawfish Rock and Joes Island.

One of the keys to deepwater snapper and gummy success this season will be the use of a downrigger to battle Western Port’s raging tides. If you’re not familiar with this technique, downrigging allows you to keep a bait on the bottom (in fact at any depth) without a sinker on your main line. Imagine that – no more heavy sinkers… no more packing up because the tide became too strong.

Whiting reports lately have been very sporadic at best. Hopefully summer will see these tasty fish enter the shallows of Dickies Bay and Coronet Bay. An extended paternoster rig with a strip of fresh squid or pipi fished in a berley of pellets usually does the trick. Last November/December the best bags came from the Hastings/Stony Point region in 9m of water. Will they be there again? Let’s hope so!

For the latest fishing information, contact Cranbourne Fishing Tackle, (03) 5996 6500.