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Presented from Issue 103, April 2013
The months of April and May can offer very good trout fishing opportunities. Brown trout are well aware of the need to put on weight leading up to their annual spawning cycle. Now that many of the hatches are coming to an end, they are becoming more opportunistic feeders, once again.

As the brown trout season nears its end on the Sunday nearest to the 30th of April, male brown trout become very aggressive as they begin to pair up with potential females. Big wet flies, plastics and lures are often hit, just to get them out of their territory. Rainbows on the other hand, usually spawn later in the year with their closing season reflecting this by finishing one month later on the Sunday closest to the 31 st of May. So rainbows are mostly unaffected by the urge to spawn and continue to feed as normal right through to May.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Trout Fishing; Published: 05 May 2017; Hits: 5208

Trout Fishing

Presented from Issue 103, April 2013

There’s lots of different anglers out there, lure bait and fly. There’s those who like to put a fish on the table, those who only catch and release. We all catch fish and we all need to be able to release a few or a lot of fish with as little harm as possible, so we can hopefully return and meet again one day.

As a group we are more aware of the need to conserve fish stocks and responsively harvest according to bag limits. Being a competition fly fishing angler, over the past decade I have seen catch rates amongst my peers soar, where once 3 fish would win a 3 hour session and a single fish in each of the 4 sessions would see you finish in the top 5. Now 6 fish a session is the norm and you need between 20 and 30 trout to win a competition.

Catching the bag limit is often reached and releasing fish is an every outing occurrence.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Tackle, Boats and other Equipment; Published: 05 May 2017; Hits: 5914

2017 04 28 Brown Daiwa ghost brown lure Not having fished the Meander River since the 31st March I thought it's time I went back there and give it a go. By the time a got there then walked for some 1.5 kms before I hopped in the river it was 10:35 am, not that it really matters at this time of year any way. The river was the lowest I have seen it since the Hyrdo turbine broke down back in 2012, not only that, there was still plenty of the cotton like green algae covering most of the river bottom. Any way I started the session off using a gold black fury and fished a couple of sections of river for just the one hit and miss.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Meander River; Published: 04 May 2017; Hits: 4301

Presented from Issue 103, April 2013

The 2013 Tuna season has opened with a tremendous head of steam. The west coast was treated to spectacular a sighting of Bluefin Tuna smashing bait from Macquarie Harbour all the way to Point Hibbs. These fish have fed well and are turning up in good numbers and good size. In this month’s issue we look at a few hints and tips that should have a few of those 30 plus kilo Bluefin with one of your lures in its mouth. The rest is up to you and your crew.

Team PENN – DOUBLE BLACK has started the year well and loves fishing off the East and South coasts of Tasmania for Tuna. We have many years’ experience on board and would love to share some advice that may have you catch a few as well.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Tuna Fishing and other Game Fishing; Published: 03 May 2017; Hits: 5245

Tuna Fishing and other Game Fishing

2017 04 26 Brown trout falls the the Aglia Mouche Noire Still needing three more trout before the 2016/17 season closes this coming Sunday I thought I'd better go and hop in a river to see if I can pick up the three trout required to reach my seasons target. We had some very good rains a few days ago so the rivers should be flowing really well now and the trout will certainly be out and about as well. This time of year they are quite aggressive and will take just about any type of spinner or lure thrown at them. Once at the river and having a thirty minute chat with a landowner I was soon in the river flicking the little spinner around. Today I started off with a Mepps #00 gold Aglia Mouche Noire as I feel this will do well in the tannin coloured water that I'm fishing. It only took two casts before I had my first fish on, like I have been doing lately I lost it once it leapt from the river.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Other Rivers; Published: 02 May 2017; Hits: 5330

Adrian

2017 04 29 First trout of the day

Finally a day I've been longing for with misty rain, humid and no wind which is the perfect conditions for trout fishing. Well they are for me because they're the conditions I love fishing in and not only that, the trout are usually on the take. After parking the car then having a thirty five minute walk through the paddocks I was soon in the river.

The light misty rain wasn't enough to bother me, all it did was to make me a little damp & the sunglasses fogged up so I had to fish without them. The river I'm fishing is small and has very low water level too but it still is good enough to fish today. Starting off with the usual gold aglia as I normally do it wasn't long before I had my first trout on the river bank seeing as I didn't take the landing net.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Other Rivers; Published: 01 May 2017; Hits: 5613

Adrian

Presented from Issue 103, April 2013

The fish

Tasmania’s coastal waters are fast gaining a reputation of having some of the best variety and quality of fishing in the southern half of Australia. Every season for the last decade or so we seem to be experiencing new and unusual species migrating into our waters and revised management strategies are ensuring that fisheries are protected for future generations. There is one particular species though that has stood the test of time and has the potential to really put us on the map and that is Latris lineata or the striped trumpeter.

Quite often classed by Tasmanians as “one of the best eating fish in the sea”, the striped trumpeter, or sometimes known as the Tasmanian trumpeter, are mainly caught off the coast of Tasmania, but can be caught in South Australia and Victoria and are also found in New Zealand and South American waters. They are reported to grow up to 1.2m in length and about 25kg in weight and live for up to 30 years.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Saltwater and Estuary Fishing; Published: 01 May 2017; Hits: 13344

Saltwater and Estuary Fishing

Presented from Issue 102, February 2013

Around the state at the moment there is a multitude of insects of every size and description from tiny midge to large grasshoppers. On a recent trip to my favourite remote western lake I noticed the abundance of craneflies. Walking in scrubby areas and brushing past the bushes would put out dozens of these insects. Most days in this area there is wind and even though craneflies are quite large they are delicate. It does not take much wind to push them onto the water and trout certainly have them on the menu.