I cast my big jointed surface lure to edge of the river and it landed with a distinct SPLOOSH. Within a couple of seconds there was a second SPLOOSH. A water dragon had left its sunny rock and plunged into the water nearby. It raced over to the lure and started to give chase as the lure blipped and blooped…
Category: Freshwater
Appreciating the little things: A couple of hours fishing in New Zealand
It will come as no surprise to anybody that since the arrival of my son three months ago I’ve been spending far less time on the water. On a positive note, things are not as dire as many predicted, the talk of “you’ll never go fishing again” were a wild exaggeration. So while I am not fishing as much I…
Why Mulloway fishermen should care about freshwater inflows.
I’ve written before about how important great habitat is if we want great fisheries. I strongly believe that as fishers, being custodians for the environments we spend so much time enjoying is vital. One area that is sometimes overlooked is the importance of freshwater inflows for the health and vitality of our estuary fisheries. This is especially important on regulated…
Catch and release is great but… its means nothing if we don’t have habitat
It is truly great to see large portions of the recreational fishing community really getting behind catch and release… From the early days of Rex Hunt kissing fish and letting them go while chanting yibbida-yibbida to the continued support of the movement by fishing personalities since, guys like Steve Starling, Bushy, Rod Paxevanous and the like, the catch and release…
Kayak fishing spots in south east NSW – 3 of the best (in one long weekend)
The poor kayak has been neglected of late. In fact since we purchased Tudo (our 4m estuary boat) last year I can probably count the number of kayak trips on two fingers. Unlike the kayak, Tudo allows me to fish with someone else (more social), to control the drift around snags and structure with the electric (more effective) and to…
Bidgee Cod on surface lures – video
We were lucky enough to sneak in a Murray Cod session just before Christmas. Lee, Curto and I made our way down to the Murrumbidgee River armed with half a dozen spinnerbaits and crankbaits. But it was the prospect of throwing the big surface lures in the bottom of the tackle box that had us really excited. The 110mm jointed…
Totally addicted to bass
I need to start this post by admitting that until last Friday, I’d never caught an Australian bass. I’ve only had two sessions previously and came up blank both times. After a cracking little weekend at the south coast with Graz, I’m regretting all those times I’ve driven straight over bass rivers en route to the ‘greener’ pastures of the…
Off the beaten track
A guest post by Jack van Delft of adventurestarts.com, who has just moved back to Canada after 16 years in Aus. You can follow Jack’s adventures over at his facebook and instagram pages. I’ve been away from Canada for 16yrs. Australia has been good to me from 10lb. brown trout on the Eucumbene river to Mac tuna on Fraser Island. Our…
Murray cod closed season: let them breed in peace
Its the murray cod closed season at the moment. It also happens to be prime golden perch season. These two can often conflict given that unlike the trout season where rivers are totally closed to fishing, cod rivers are still open to other forms of fishing. While most people try to do the right thing, various aspects of murray cod…
One fish does not a fly fisherman make
I might be many things; a passionate lure fisherman, an aspiring photographer, a lover of the outdoors, a conservationist, but I’m not a fly fisherman. Before the opening of this year’s trout season I can name you exactly 3 times I have been fly fishing. 1) When I strayed into a privately owned trout farm in Tasmania about 10 years…
It’s not all about the fish
Hamish wrote a great little blog about our trout opening weekend here, so I don’t want to repeat anything he said. But the sentimentality might be similar. I had a magic weekend, yet I didn’t catch a fish. In the past, I would have found this somewhat disappointing. I can remember a trip to Nariel and another to Bright for…
New seasons.
We arrived in dribs and drabs from all over the south east of Australia. Canberra, Woolongong, Melbourne. Myself, Nick and Brett arrived first. Lee arrived not long after and we set up camp. Soon we were sipping on mid strength beers, soaking in the anticipation of what was to come. As dark arrived we set in by the campfire, revelling…