The 71mm of rain falling across the district in November was a welcome sight to many, although a little late for some. For the farmers it was a bad case of Murphy’s Law, with many holding out for rain on their crops for as long as they could, only to harvest the paddocks and then cop a good dumping of rain. The poor buggers can’t take a trick!

This snag riddled waterway turned it on for Echuca anglers Damien Bennet and his brother-in-law recently. The boys had a cracker of an afternoon landing 27 Murray cod in just three hours. Spinnerbaits and Custom Crafted 70mm Hammerheads were the pick from the box.

Casting these lures around snags resulted in cod to 58cm. Plenty more fish would have been caught but the boys had to retire early due to the very friendly mozzies. It’s good to see so many small cod getting around, which goes to show the closed season is allowing the bigger fish to do their stuff and keep populating the systems.

The Edward around Stevens Weir has produced good numbers of golden perch in the last few weeks. Rising water levels and temperatures really get them active. Bobbing shrimps and small yabbies in amongst the timber has been the preferred method for bait anglers.

Deniliquin’s Jason Sheehan landed several cod recently by trolling with Jackall lipless crankbaits from the TN70 range. Blacks and purples were the best colours and, surprisingly, they were fairly snag resistant.

Another good cod that measured 118cm also came from around the Stevens Weir area. Apparently the fisho was casting for goldens when his spinnerbait was smashed by this massive fish. After a few quick pics it was released.

On a recent trip to the Edward above the Gulpa Creek junction, I managed to pick up a couple of goldens while casting red and black lipless crankbaits. Although this stretch of water is a bit on the shallow side, there are still some deep holes and plenty of timber to cast to. It’s a perfect spot for those who like to walk the banks casting lures.

In the Goulburn, several golden perch have been landed by shore-based bait anglers, with the biggest coming in at 3.5kg. It took a liking to a yabby.

Lure casters have also done well, with one boat catching and releasing nine cod in an afternoon. Although the fish weren’t legal-size, it’s still a good day’s work.

The recent rains created good inflows to the Murray from Goulburn River and Broken Creek, which also brought the duckweed. This made trolling lures a bit of a battle. Those who could get around it managed cod of 55-80cm downstream of the Five Mile Boat Ramp. Closer to town around the port area, plenty of small cod have been taken on bardi grubs. It seems the motion of the paddleboats gets the baits moving, and this gets the fish biting.

The golden perch below the Torrumbarry Weir have slowed down a little. They’re still there, just not in the numbers of the past.

Crankbaits have still been the best performer with spinnerbaits a close second. Keen local Jason Boal and his friend Matt spent a few days camped on the river picking up several cod and golden perch. Their successful method was to troll 5/8oz spinnerbaits with a dark skirt.

Further downstream towards Gunbower, cod to 58cm have been taken using bardi grubs from the bank.

Waranga Basin is currently holding at 33% of capacity. Redfin to 1.75kg have been caught by anglers drifting unweighted yabbies. Once again, keep an eye on the wind as many boats have had to pack up early due to the rough conditions.

For more information on what’s biting around Echuca and Moama, drop into J.T’s Fishing and Camping, Moama (opposite the Border Inn), or phone Justin on 03 5480 3868.

There’s been plenty of cod – both big and small – biting in the Murray River around Echuca-Moama.