With winter setting in and air temperatures dropping, water temperatures are also dropping very quickly on the Central Tablelands of NSW. The cooler water temps trigger a feeding binge from native fish, lasting for a couple of weeks.

Brown trout will feed heavily at this time of year with larger prey items on the menu. Perhaps this is a result of small Spring and Summer offerings growing a little bigger. It certainly pays to offer a larger fly, lure, or bait at this time of year.

At least the bass were on the chew. Over the Easter period, surprisingly quite a few bass where caught at Lake Wallace, or Wang dam, as it is affectionately known. These bass captures are a result from some small stockings over the last couple of years.

More recently Mark Shanahan caught a 27cm specimen fishing a small crankbait out of his canoe. Hearing about this great capture, I decided to give it a go too and caught three bass, one on a 7cm minnow and the other two on a surface lure. The same morning I landed two nice rainbow trout the larger one pulling the scales down to just under 3lb.

These bass were the fattest I had seen for quite a while. During that Easter period I can confirm four other bass being caught all around 25-30cm.

I would like to thank the Fisheries for the faith they have shown, and the members of the local stocking committee who have pushed for the stocking of bass for a number of years now. With the results shown, it sure is looking good for years to come.

If you haven’t already, its time to drag out those big cod lures. As each season wears on more anglers are embracing the notion of big lure big fish on waterways such as Wyangala, Burrendong, and Windamere. I believe we have only scratched the surface on the bigger lures theory, and better designs for both casting and trolling will be the next big thing. Just don’t expect to pay $15, they will be upwards of $40 and $50. Although that does sound like a stretch for a cod lure, but I am sure the results will speak for themselves.

Hope to see you on the water, remember you can catch me bright and early most Saturday mornings on 2KY’s high tide radio programme with Kerion and Bruce between 5:00am and 5:30am.

1

Large baitfish, such as this small redfin, tend to make up a fair portion of a trout’s diet at this time of year. You will find more success by using larger lures, flies, and baits.

2

Another species to add to the Central Tablelands calendar, bass in lake Wallace. What a buzz, I thought I was in some exotic foreign region that morning.

3

The ‘big lure big fish’ theory is gaining popularity in the cod stakes. Believe me, we have only scratched the surface when you know what these big fellows can get down in one gulp.