Presented from Issue 105, August 2013
Christopher Bassano fishes over 250 days a year. This interview was recorded just before he headed off to fish for Australia in the World Fly Fishing Championships in Norway 14-17 August 2013.
I live on a small stream and at the start of the season I like to go off on a bit of a discovery mission and fish the headwaters of the creeks and rivers I feel an affinity with.
These small rivers include the St Pats, Meander, Forester, Little Forester and others. The further up you go on these rivers the clearer and lower the levels. They are often less affected by the rain and runoff and you get some good opportunities. Get as close to the source as you can and you will find some good dry fly fishing. Don’t limit yourself to those I have mentioned. Most headwaters will hold trout.
Read more ...Please check all relevant authorities before fishing - www.ifs.tas.gov.au and dpipwe.tas.gov.au . Don't forget issuu.com/stevenspublishing for years of back issues !
Craig Rist
Don't scoff and think this story is a bit lightweight and simple. Craig Rist is a skilful and diverse angler and he revisits his fishing with this delightful piece.
The important lesson here is the importance of catching fish when you are young. Many beginning anglers lose interest because they don't catch fish. Enjoy this story for what it is - a lesson in diversity.
You might remember Craig's last story was about fishing Weipa - the next might be mako shark on fly. (Ed)
Joe Riley
Competition fly fishing has been one of the driving forces in the advancement of fly fishing techniques in Australia over the past couple of decades. Loch Style fly fishing was largely brought to Tasmania by visiting competition anglers and has been widely accepted as a deadly way to fish by locals keen to improve their catch rates. Changes of fishing regulations in Tasmania to allow the use of 3 flies on a leader came about largely as a result of the international competitions also allowing the use of 3 flies.
An interesting discussion took place in my shop a couple of weeks ago between a group of anglers trying to determine what are Tasmania's most used and most popular trout lures.
This had obviously been spurred on by something they had read somewhere, and a healthy debate now ensued as different opinions were expressed. Listening to these anglers it had me thinking what are the most popular lures used in Tasmania? As we all have our own differing opinions I decided to speak directly to the people that know. I spoke to tackle store owners and staff from around the state to find what their biggest sellers are for trout fishing. After all I thought if we based this argument on actual sales the facts couldn't be argued. I decided when asking the question I would lump all lures of all forms, shapes and sizes into the equation so we could get the bigger picture.
Most of these lures have been around for a while now, but it was interesting to note how soft plastics are now playing a major role in our fishing practices. These are some of the results.
Read more: Tasmanias Most Popular Lures An unbiased and truthful analysis
Angela Woods
All this talk about soft plastics. "I would like to try them, but they all say I need a 2-5 kg fast tapered rod, special and expensive 2500 size reels, braided line, fluorocarbon leader material and jig heads in 10 different weights. It sounds all to hard and expensive, and what happens if I don't like it".
Well, you don't need all that stuff just to try it. It can cost under ten bucks for a packet or two of pre-rigged plastics. If you are keen check out how you can give it a try. And hey! A packet of plastics costs about the same as bait and most don't smell at all. You've gotta love that.
Peter Hayes
Muz Wilson is perhaps Australia's best know fly tier and more importantly he is one of the most innovative fly designers on the planet.
Recently while Muz was visiting Tasmania and participating at a fly fishing workshop at our Cressy facility Mike Stevens was able to identify the importance of this man and his contribution to fly fishing. Mike has asked me to pen a few words about this remarkable individual.
Dan Clifton
As the open season on trout waters arrives there will many keen anglers heading to the highlands to catch the first of the hungry, post spawn, browns.
With the winter well underway and some heavy frosts often covering the ground, I find myself keeping my trout fishing close to home. It is great to get home to a warm house, shower, warm meal and I really like my own bed.
Do not eat any bream and- limit consumption of flathead and other Derwent-caught fish
- Pregnant women and young children should limit consumption of flathead or other Derwent caught fish to no more than ONE meal per week, and avoid eating other fish in the same week.
With rising Winter and Spring rains Lake Echo has really hit its mark.
Shane Flude has fished Lake Echo extensively for many years with excellent catches. Here are his tips from Issue 70 Tasmanian Fishing and Boating News.
Tasmanians can again take up the much-loved pastime of whitebaiting with the annual opening of the whitebait fishing season at the start of October. The season runs for six weeks from 1 October to 11 November in selected rivers around the State. Reports from the South and North of the State are that the whitebait runs are just beginning, with only a small number of fish being sighted making their way up some rivers. Hopefully, the high flow rates will subside enabling a solid run of whitebait and good numbers of fish available to fishers.
by Sarah Graham IFS
Inland Fisheries Service inspectors recovered a number of yabbies believed to be the mainland Cherax species, along with some mussels and foreign weed, from the edge of Great Lake on Thursday 27 August.
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Presented from Issue 105, August 2013
We did a bit of a runaround Tasmania’s tackle stores to see what their tips for the first month or so of the tackle season were. We asked what the top three places to fish were, plus lures, flies, baits and a few other things.
Here is a rundown on their answers Whenever, and wherever you fish - anywhere, or for any fish in the world - ask the locals and especially ask at the local tackle store. They know what was caught today, yesterday and on what.