Reel Life | Winter’s best bites

A time for skiing and couch-sitting, woollen jumpers and polar fleece.

Staying warm is important.

But you can add a couple of layers, and that will overcome the cold — and bingo, it’s okay to continue fishing.

In fact, winter is ideal for fishing for trout.

While dams such as Eildon, the Hume and others fish well for trout during winter, Dartmouth is the best.

Trout are on the bite just about all day and most of the time right near the surface, meaning less need for sinkers to get your lure or bait down to where the fish are feeding.

It is less than three months until the closure of cod season.

But remember, there is no closed season in Eildon.

However, the normal restrictions of size and bag limits remain the same.

All fish over 75cm must be released.

Cod in Eildon are not considered breeding stock — that’s why the season does not close there.

While there is a bag and size limit on yellowbelly, there is no closed season, and you may take them all year round.

Just a tip about eating yellowbelly: the bigger they are, the more fat they have, and the fat tastes awful.

Remember to freeze your yellowbelly — this makes the fat change colour so you can trim it off more easily.

Some of the more active locations in the region have been on the Goulburn River from Seymour all the way to the Murray.

But you will need to pick your spots — look for backwaters and around snags, etc.

Remember that a good-looking spot is usually a good spot to fish.

Give it a few minutes, and if there’s no action, move on to the next one.

This may sound like a broken record, but the two Brokens both fish well — the Broken River from Benalla to the Goulburn and the Broken Creek from Numurkah all the way to the Murray.

Keep in mind the Murray is in NSW, and you will need a licence from that state if you fish the river.

No such problem with the Brokens — they are both in Victoria.

While it’s getting cooler, the number of redfin still being caught is worth noting.

So, places such as Waranga Basin, Lake Eppalock, Eildon and the Hume are worth a look.

Considered by many to be the best-tasting freshwater fish, redfin are relatively easy to catch, and they can be caught in good numbers.

Also known as English or European perch, they fight well and will take baits such as worms, shrimp and yabbies, as well as lures.

Redfin gather in big schools, and all fish will be about the same size.

Here’s a tip: if you hook up, don’t be over-eager to reel it in.

By leaving your catch in the water, you can turn one fish into several by dropping a baited hook down to the catch zone.

Another top spot for catching redfin is the Hume near Wodonga.

It has been producing good bags of redfin for a number of years — mostly good pan-size fish, mainly on bait, but lures have also worked with good success.

I tend to fish the Hume when I am on my way to or from Dartmouth Dam.

And now it’s saltwater time, with a report from Rod Lawn of Adamas Fishing Charters based at Queenscliff.

Rod has reported plenty of pinky-size snapper.

These are resident fish that haunt the inshore reefs from Point Lonsdale to Barwon Heads.

Rod said he used both bait and soft plastic lures, just for a bit of variety.

Rod said the main snapper run was still two and a half to three months off.

He said the main action had slowed, with the exception of bluefin tuna.

While you can catch tuna off the heads, the real tuna action is around Portland as well as up the coast to the south coast of NSW.

John Liddell at Eden said southern bluefin tuna were starting to join up with their northern cousins, the yellowfin tuna.

John said the boys from Freedom Charters were seeing plenty of tuna further north at Narooma.

Well folks, that’s it for another week.

Stay safe, stay warm — and good fishing.