St Helens - What does the future hold?

Jamie Henderson
For the last few years now the dooms dayers have been warning us that our oceans will rise and our way of life will change with the ever increasing global warming phenomenon. Our fishing practices and the availability of species will obviously change with it but how? All around our country the everyday angler is losing quality fishing grounds to marine zones closed to all fishing, fish numbers are dwindling due to commercial over fishing and environment is being lost to pollution and development.

Jan's Flies

Jan Spencer
Flash, flash and more flash is the point this issue. I have often said flies for fly fishing, especially for trout, have fashion run-just like the clothing industry. Fashion in flies changes every few years and it seems flash is "big" at the moment.
I think people like Dick Wigram, Max Christensen and Stuart Napier would be taken aback to see the amount of flash we are using on flies today, even though there was a little used when those fly tiers were tying. Flies like Miss Tasmania and the Yeti had a small amount of flash material for eyes. I am really not sure what caused the flash fashion to start in fly fishing, certainly the lure trade has encompassed very bright flashy bodies made out of all sorts of flash papers even chocolate wrappers around for many years.

The ART of bait fishing

Thomas Crawford
In Tasmania Art is not commonly used when referring to bait fishing, but this form of fishing really is an artform. Recently I was lucky enough to spend some time in the England in a district called Worchester. Here I was privileged to fish with one of England's leading tournament fisherman, Graham Clarke. I was to learn about and appreciate a style of fishing that has unfortunately been seemingly forgotten in this state. Bait fishing is the way many of "us" start out on our fishing journey, so it was exciting to revisit this style.

 

The season that was

Todd Lambert, President of the Longford Anglers Club, takes a look at the past trout season for both himself and his club members.

Monster Arthurs Lake fish

Arthurs big fish

Highly skilled, well lucky really, Devonport angler and international celebrity John Lyons nearly had heart failure when he caught the first glimpse of this fish. Stripping a Black Woolly Bugger at Arthurs Lake on Saturday 16 October John thought he had just hooked another nice Arthurs Lake brownie. How wrong he was though as he spent a very tense and nervous time getting this 11.5 pound fish to the net.

Although John rarely goes fishing without a camera, but this time he did. A quick call to some mates had the cameras rolling and after an hour at the boat ramp showing off it was back to his shack for a few celebratory bevies.

Although big fish are uncommon at Arthurs a few are caught each year. Fish of four pounds are at the top end of what can be expected at Arthurs, six pounds is a very large fish, so 11.5 pounds is a fish of a lifetime. It is most likely the biggest Arthurs fish on fly for many years if not ever.      

Bream from a kayak

Craig Vertigan loves chasing all sorts from his "yak, but one of his favourites is Tassie's bream. Take some tips from him, get your "yak and go looking.

Yak Fishing Kit - How to keep safe and warm on a Tassie Yak

John Pollard
Kayaks have boomed in Tasmania-especially over the last year, but with our fickle weather we do need to keep comfortable in a variety of conditions. John Pollard looks at what you need.

Autumn on the Lakes

Joe Riley looks at the tail end of the trout season and encourages anglers to make the best of it. You can be sure he will.

As daylight savings comes to pass and the days grow cooler through autumn, winter approaches and the brown trout season draws to a close. All is not despair though as there are still fish to be caught, even the prospect of specimen dry fly fishing in the highland lakes on the warmer days. It's the last surge to make the most out of a season which has been challenged by water draw downs, blustery weather and controversy over one of the world's finest brown trout lakes coming under threat from irrigation schemes.

Cherry Popping Mega fontinalis

Chris Reygaert on capturing one of the world's most beautiful trout. The world record for a brook trout is just over 10 pounds and anything from the wild at three pound or more is a real trophy. So maybe you should take a trip and try for one of these fabulous fish.

Jan's Flies

Jan Spencer
Nearly every fly fisher has to, at some time, use a heavy line and large sinking flies. Nobody more than I likes to fish dry fly or semi dry, but this does not always catch fish and when it's all said and done that's what we fish for-to catch fish.

Trout Bums Tassie Style

Gavin Hicks turns Trout Bum, film extra, and assistant in producing The Source - a film by Gin Clear.

I never thought one of my regular visits to Big Fin in East Devonport for a chat with Leroy would end in such a great week's fishing. But that is exactly what happened towards the end of 2008.

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