I Headed over to the Mersey River and walked down through several paddocks for a good kilometre or so below the Union Bridge then started fishing my way back upstream. I haven't fished here for quite some time due to the lack of trout being in the river, today I mainly wanted to see if it has improved with trout stocks. The river was running at a nice wading height and a dark tanning colour. I started off with a Mepps #1 gold black fury working it in several fast water and medium flowing runs without a sign of a trout over the first two hundred meters of river. I changed over to the #1 Aglia Furia and the first stretch of water I used it in I had a couple of follows from brown trout that were mainly out of interest, not a sign of aggression from either fish. Then decided to try hard body lures in that same stretch of water, all to no avail as I never had a follow on any of the five different hard body lures I tried.
I went back to the Mepps Aglia Furia and kept fishing my way upstream without any signs of a trout for the next three hundred meters of river. It is a beautiful looking stretch of river too, one that used to fish so well each time I fished this area on previous trips. I can remember catching 15 to 20 trout each time I fished in and around this area but the trout just aren't here now days. It wasn't until I reached a small narrow back water run when I caught a small well conditioned medium size brown in it. This small back water run was the only area I caught a trout the last time I fished here & that was on the one and only trip during the 2017/18 trout season. Thankfully the little back water saved the day for me once again, another reason to never bypass them. I haven't bothered fishing above the Union Bridge for well over two seasons either for the same reason, it's fished so poorly it's not worth the time, travel & effort fishing a slippery, rocky area that is scarce of fish. The river above the Union Bridge was one I used to fish on a regular basis too and it always fished well giving up some beautiful solid browns & rainbows. The river here has certainly gone downhill over the years that's for sure & it needs to be looked into by the Inland Fisheries Service.
Adrian Webb (meppstas)
Downstream view of the river from the paddocks
Meppstas fishing Mersey River below Union Bridge. (courtesy of grandson)
Mersey River below Union Bridge
Mersey River brown trout caught in back water
Nice a scenic little back water
