Monduran Dam has been firing on all cylinders for the last month.

It’s great fun to take a rest from gamefishing in order to sharpen our barra skills. The fish have been so thick that even beginner anglers should be able to catch one. On some days, all you need to do is put a lure in the water and the barra will find it.

Dave Woollard and I have fished the dam for the last month and have had some incredible fights with big barra. Most of our fish on earlier trips were around 80cm, but after a recent increase in water temperature, fish over 1m and 20kg are very common.

I recommend crimping the barbs on your hooks so that if they get caught on somebody, they will come straight out. I always do this when fishing with clients. However, when I recently fished Monduran with a group of friends who are experienced and careful anglers, I decided to leave the barbs uncrimped. I was holding a fish for a photo when it suddenly bucked and I was left with a set of trebles in my arm and a barra connected to the other end of the lure – very painful. After a visit to the doctor and two stiches, my arm was looking a little better, but I will definitely be playing it safe from now on. Despite this accident, the day was very successful. My friends managed to hook 8 fish from 12 hit-ups, which wasn’t bad for an afternoon’s fishing.

The afternoons have been producing the best fishing, particularly the last two hours of sunlight.

We have been using RMGs in bleeding mullet, gold and orange colours. Tropic Angler lures are great when the fish are timid, while the biggest gold Bomber is the way to go when they are on the bite. Tropic Angler also make a large Bomber-type lure which is very good on big fish. They are sometimes hard to find, so if you can’t see them at your local tackle store, give me call and I’ll tell you the nearest store location.