Get the Knowledge - Get the Fish - with TasFish.com

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 !

The Guide Dam is a beautiful place

Presented from Issue 111, August 2014
The Pet and Guide dams are both great waters on the North West Coast, often people over look these great waters. They yield good numbers of fish all year round but they fish exceptionally well for the first month to two months of the trout season.

To use the correct nomenclature they are reservoirs, but anglers refer to them as dams, so that is what I have done.

The Pet Dam is especially great for family fishing trips and the beginner angler. With access being suitable for the young, elderly and close flat areas are available for the physically impaired. It’s a large open area with plenty of room for the kids to run about with a great opportunity to land a rainbow trout or brown trout.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Trout Fishing; Published: 02 March 2018; Hits: 8396

Trout Fishing

Presented from Issue 111, August 2014

Tackling early season trout is a totally different proposition to fishing during the mild, calm conditions we had at the end of April. Fish have now spawned and are looking to put condition on, while the cooler weather of Spring is not conducive to insect hatches. Water temperatures are very low and levels are high. All of these things require different tactics. I will not discuss sea trout as they run and feed off a totally different set of circumstances. I will concentrate instead on inland lakes and rivers.

Trout seem to feed best in water temperatures of around 16 degrees, but you are not going to find much warm water in August and September. Having said that, I don’t believe that there is such a things as being ‘too cold to catch a fish’ as long as the water isn’t frozen over. Although water temperatures are far from ideal, a change of tactics will still bring results. Don’t expect enormous bags of fish but certainly enough to make it worthwhile.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Trout Fishing; Published: 02 March 2018; Hits: 2798

Trout Fishing

Presented from Issue 111, August 2014
Anti-kinks are a unique piece of inexpensive tackle. They can be very useful used correctly. By definition they are design to stop your line twisting and developing ‘kinks’ which are the result of line twist.

As a rule I tend to go by the KISS principal. Keep It Simple Stupid. That is to have as little clutter as possible on my line at all times. Line tied directly to the lure or snap and that’s it. But there are times when it is necessary to use an anti-kink.

There are several different types, mostly plastic for want of a better word, although there are weighted lead, aluminium and brass version floating around but these tend to be older styles. All are designed to act as a keel and track straight through the water. All are shaped like a semi-circle or half-moon probably the best description.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Tackle, Boats and other Equipment; Published: 02 March 2018; Hits: 9048

Tackle, Boats and other Equipment

2018 02 21 Meander River 5685

Woke up to see the sky heavy with cloud cover so I headed off to the Meander River for a spin session in the fast water stretches. The river was up by some four inches which was good to see as it meant there could be some trout for the taking so to speak as I catch and release mine any way. I'm fishing a 1.5km stretch of river that can make or break most trout fishers but I've fished it plenty of time so I know where the easiest areas are. It's still tough and with the water being up it will be even tougher going & there's no room for mistakes, once you slip and fall in then you're going for a bumpy ride downstream. I've been lucky in all my years of river fishing I'm yet to fall in a fast water run and I don't intend too on this trip either.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Meander River; Published: 01 March 2018; Hits: 2813

IMAS are looking for keen fishers to participate in their research angler logbook program. The logbook collects information on recreational catch including species caught, fish size and how many fish are kept or released. If you're interested please email Sean Tracey at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The logbook information provides important size and weight data that feeds into the Survey of Tasmanian Recreational Fishers to provide total catch estimates by weight.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies; Published: 27 February 2018; Hits: 2426

IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies

New to fishing in Tassie? Eleven different regional fishing maps are now available to download.

Features include: Where to Fish, What will I Catch and Local Fishing Facts. Plus a quick guide to Tassie fishing rules. Great for beginner fishers, tourists and families. Regions covered are:

East Coast, St Helens, the North East and Flinders Island;
Tamar Estuary, Devonport and Port Sorell, and the North West Coast;
Macquarie Harbour and King Island; and
Bruny D'Entrecasteaux Region, Derwent Estuary and the Tasman Peninsula

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies; Published: 27 February 2018; Hits: 3187

IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies

Hobart - Recreational Fishing in Tasmania for International Visitors and New Migrants
Fishers from culturally diverse backgrounds including Mandarin speakers are invited to an information session to learn more about fishing in Tasmania. Listen to talks from DPIPWE Fisheries, Fishcare Volunteers and Tasmania Marine Police officers and participate in practical workshops about identifying and measuring fish. English/Mandarin interpreters will be present.

Topics include:

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies; Published: 27 February 2018; Hits: 3830

IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies

2018 02 8 Bleeding Tiger and Meander Brown Another warm day was forecast so I had an early start this morning and was in the Meander River just as the sun was on the rise at 6:10 am. I'm fishing a stretch of river that hasn't fished all that well lately, today I'm hoping it will all turn around for the better. The weather conditions were perfect as it was quite overcast and very muggy, but the small flies were an absolute pain in the butt.

No amount of swearing and cursing them sent them on their way either, each cast into the clear cool water still had them crawling over my face. I started the session off with a small gold Aglia spinner to see if it may do the job early in picking up a trout for me. It did attract several browns but no takers, they just followed it. After fifteen minutes I changed to the ghost brown lure, same result follow after follow. I then tried a F3 rainbow Rapala and that didn't even draw the attention of a trout at all and after ten minutes it was time for another change. This time I went for the Mepps black Aglia Mouche Noire spinner and managed to have three light hit and misses, still the trout weren't aggressive.. A light breeze had popped up and those small flies had finally disappeared which was a relief, now all I needed was for the trout to come on the take.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Meander River; Published: 25 February 2018; Hits: 3228

Presented from Issue 111, August 2014

Three effective river techniques for early season success

The trout season opening is upon us again. This time of year nowadays is, for me, a real quandary. I know that the really reliable fishing of spring is still weeks if not months away, but ever since I started trout fishing all those years ago I have looked forward to the first Saturday in August with a real hunger. The night before for me was always like Christmas Eve, I couldn’t wait to see what ‘gifts’ the river would bring each year.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Rivers; Published: 25 February 2018; Hits: 4115

Presented from Issue 111, August 2014
If you’re anything like me, your tackle box is overflowing with various trout lures that you have hardly used. I insist on keeping them however, just in case ‘the right time’ happens. However, realistically it is pretty much the same six lures that get tied on every trout season, simply because I have the most confidence in them. This confidence has come from years of these lures constantly producing good results; it is not easy for a lure to make the cut at being one of the six. There are so many good trout lures on the market today, lures that grab your eye as soon as you walk along the lure wall, however these six lures don’t just catch fisherman, they catch trout.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Tackle, Boats and other Equipment; Published: 24 February 2018; Hits: 34100