Mount Gambier

Despite the cool weather over the long weekend, plenty of anglers still made their way to the water to wet a line. We saw plenty of fish from offshore, off the beach and up the river, so there was plenty caught, so let’s get into it!

The offshore guys have had a reasonable run of weather over the last week or so, with most days being quite fishable. The big tuna news has been a bit scattered, but the fish are there. Towards the east seems to be the most productive area, but as we all know, these fish can pop up anywhere at anytime. The lures of choice are still the Troll So Hard Kandy Kains and Green Goblins, or the Bonze Exocet paris skirts. There have been a few caught too on deep diving minnows such as the Nomad DTX series, or Samaki pacemakers. We’re still yet to see any school size fish rock up down our way, but they shouldn’t be too far away. The bottom fishing has still been excellent, we’re seeing great numbers of shark, snapper, nannygai and flathead caught at the moment, along with several other species of tasty reef fish. The 60 metre line through to that 120 metre area is probably the most consistent, but there are still plenty of fish wider on the days when the weather allows.

The Port MacDonnell Offshore Angling Club’s Tuna and Sports Fish Tournament kicks off this weekend and the weather looks like it could be a bit iffy, but I have absolutely no doubt that the competitors will all have a very memorable week. With the big tuna around and maybe only a couple of fishable days, we should be in for a tight one!

The surf fishos have turned their focus this week to the salmon which are just going from strength to strength, and the numbers are continually improving. The hot spots are still the same as last week, Cape Banks and Canunda if you’re down this way, or the Beachport Salmon Hole if you’re up there. 35g – 50g metal slugs flicked out with a 9 foot graphite rod will do the job nicely, and your arms won’t fall off holding onto a heavy outfit all day! The guys targeting shark have been finding the odd one this week, areas around Nene Valley and Canunda have been the most productive, with many opting to stay away from Browns and Paradise until the brown water disappears. Snapper numbers are starting to thin out a bit, but we’re still seeing a handful most weekends.

Inshore fishing has heated up recently with more nice shark being reported from along the coast. Fishos targeting schoolies have done well in that 5mt to 10mt depths in the Green and Danger Point areas, or even wider down near the border. Keep a steady trail of burley flowing and you should see them turn up at some point, you’re also a shot at a snapper too!

Whiting fishos are still getting some good bags of fish this week. Inside the Port Mac Breakwater has been reliable, as has Cape Douglas, Hutt Bay, and Blackfellows Caves. Numbers are certainly starting to back off a little bit, but the average size is still good, so keep into em while we can!

There are still plenty of good garfish around at the moment, and it seems to be the land based fishos finding the better fish. The Port Mac Jetty is producing some nice fish in the afternoons, just get a steady burley going, pop out a bunch of gents under a float and you’ll be right on the money. There are also plenty of salmon trout, mullet, mackerel and other species floating around who’ll happily eat the same, so you never know what’ll come up!

The inland fishing around Rocklands has been hit and miss, but there has been some decent yellowbelly caught on lures around the wall area. Vibes,  heavy weighted plastics and shudderbaits are getting the results for the lure guys, while the bait fishos are finding the best results on live yabby.

The Glenelg River has produced more nice bream and perch this week, with local young gun and Nelson legend Joe Unwin once again showing the rest of us how its done, landing some more absolute rippers from the river. They’ve been spread out down there, from the flats of the estuary, right up to the sticks of Dartmoor and even higher, it’s definitely worth getting down there. The water level is steadily rising and we’re losing the landings one by one, but take your gumboots and you’ll be fine. Mulloway news is again patchy, the odd fish has been boated down the estuary, along Taylors Straight and up around the caves, but there’s a bit of water between them.

The forecast for the coming week ahead unfortunately doesn’t look all that good, but with our coastline, rivers and lakes all in close proximity, we can always find something to catch!

Until next week, safe fishing!

Coatsy.