We are now well into winter — half the year has gone.
It is also the end of trout season, when a number of rivers and streams will be closed, not only to the taking of trout but to all hook and line fishing regardless of the species being targeted.
To find out which waters are closed, get a copy of the Victorian Recreational Fishing Guide free of charge at your local tackle shop.
For Shepparton residents, you can find a copy at Trelly’s Outdoors on Corio St, as well as on the Victorian Government app.
The current guide has 100 pages and covers a lot of topics, including regulations and laws governing recreational fishing in Victoria.
It also has some state government plans for fishing in the future, fish identification, boating tips and a whole lot more.
The guide covers both saltwater and freshwater size limits and bag limits, as well as protected species.
It also lists pest species, fin fish, shellfish and crustaceans, as well as those that fit in between, such as octopus, squid and cuttlefish.
It covers all aspects of fishing tackle and lists both legal and banned equipment and where and when you can use it, even the number of lines and hooks that can be used by an angler.
How many hooks per line, what size and how many nets are you allowed, what nets and other gear are banned for taking fish, where you are not allowed to fish and which fish are totally protected.
All this information and more can be found in the Victorian Recreational Fishing Guide, so grab a copy for free.
It’s been a proper winter start to the season: cold, wet, windy and, occasionally, weather suitable for fishing — and that’s just week one.
It is to no-one’s surprise that reports of fishing have been thin on ground.
Having said that, the odd quality fish was taken in the Goulburn River. And would you believe — what could have been the cod I named Moby Dick was hooked in the same spot I usually fish and like his namesake, he managed to escape.
Fishing the Goulburn has been reasonable — a lot of juvenile cod and among them, a keeper or two.
This is the story between Murchison and the Murray, and as winter develops, we are getting closer to the bloom of the wattle trees.
As my old rod-making friend, the late Bob Darley, would say, the time to fish for yellowbelly is when the wattle trees come into bloom, which will be in a couple of months, towards the end of July.
You will also find the end of the trout season listed in the guide, which is from midnight on June 12 until midnight, September 1.
That will mean that the taking of all trout and the various varieties of them will be banned in most rivers and streams in Victoria.
For a list of those affected waterways, check out the guide; in fact, in some waterways, all hook and line fishing will be banned.
The guide also lists those waterways that will remain open for the taking of trout, such as the Dartmouth Dam, Lake Eildon and the Hume Weir, but to be certain, check the guide.
While this week has not been good for fishing, there have been those that have tried, with mixed results.
The weather also had an impact on saltwater fishing, but Rod Lawn from Adamas Fishing Charters at Queenscliff said that on the times he was able to go off shore, they were able to catch snapper from the inshore reefs.
Rod uses a method of berleying in the deeper reefs where he fills a 20 litre drum with scraps of fish and sinks it with a marker. He returns a couple of hours later, hoping the barrel has attracted fish to it.
Rod said he was also catching tuna, kingfish, flathead and salmon, depending on what his clients wanted.
The main snapper run is still three months away, when the big fish return and move up the bay for their breeding season.
Western Port Bay is returning the same results to anglers fishing off Hastings and off Phillip Island.
There are good-sized gummy shark to be had around the deep water off Cowes and San Remo, likewise around the dive wrecks in the Barwon Heads and Ocean Grove waters.
Over the border in NSW, John Liddell at Eden reported good reef fishing from Boyd’s Lookout to Green Cape.
John said the crew from Freedom Charters was bagging snapper, morwong and gurnard.
I must say, a flying gurnard is one of the prettiest fish I have seen, with pectoral fins that resemble the wings of a butterfly.
John said fishing off the shelf was quiet, with yellowfin and bluefin tuna being scarce.
Further north, Narooma is much the same as around Eden, Graham Cowley said.
He also said there was excellent flathead fishing along the sandy bottom between Montague Island and the Barr.
Reef fishing is also worthwhile, with similar fish being caught.
Graham said there was a second string to fishing at Narooma; when it is too rough to go off shore, there are options inside the bay.
Large flathead and bream are found around the oyster leases and other structures.
Once again let me say: stay safe and enjoy your fishing — and remember, trout fishing closes next week.