This time of year brings cool, crisp mornings and pleasant days that offer anglers a great chance of tangling with a magnificent Murray cod.
Things have started to cool a tad on the Mid Coast but that hasn't slowed the fish.
Reflecting on the great fishing results of the past few months, you just get the feeling that we’re on a gradual slide towards Winter. For the dedicated, however, there are still plenty of game fish to be caught.
June weather should be quite fresh and the temperature will be such that all many of us will think about is snuggling in from of the fire or heater, rather that donning the Winter woollies and having a fish.
June can be a tough month on the water with the weather and the species available often stacked against you, but being an optimist, there is always the chance that there will be a few fish about and the weather will be in your favour.
The Stacer Nomad Elite range can really get your head spinning, there are so many options. Tiller-steer, side console, centre console, it’s so hard to choose! Luckily, the 469 Nomad Elite was already designed with fishing and comfort in mind.
It’s been a funny season with weird ocean currents and inshore temperatures basically staying at a flat 20° all year so far.
Luckily for trout anglers, the long weekend won’t be over until June 11, so the first 11 days of the month offer a last chance to target trout in the creeks and rivers.
This month we are hoping for some mild weather so we can tangle with our typical Winter species – bream, luderick, drummer, nannygai, trevally, leatherjackets, snapper and morwong.
This is the time of year the locals look forward to, with all forms of fishing firing up before things slow down as we head into Winter.
Finally the town has started to quieten down. With all powered sites in the huge caravan park fully occupied since Christmas, this has been one of the busiest seasons, showing the popularity of Mallacoota with visitors.
As we slide into Winter some anglers slow down their activities but if you fish to the conditions and target certain species, you will find that the colder months can be spectacular.
The Autumn rains have certainly done the estuaries the world of good as Merimbula and Pambula lakes have picked up considerably.
Winter brings promise of some exceptional fishing for those anglers who brave the conditions.
Fishing along Pittwater and on Broken Bay has continued to be very patchy, thanks to the amount of freshwater flowing out of the Hawkesbury system.
We’re now feeling the cool starts as we head out across Botany Bay but there is still plenty on offer for the keen angler this month.
With a good flow pushing through the Murray over the past month the fishing has slowed in many areas and the run of cod on lures has taken a back seat to golden perch on bait.
Local waterways have staged a quick recovery since the floods came through earlier in the year.
The past season would have to be the most random and unpredictable we’ve ever experienced. Lots of fish were mysteriously absent for large chunks of the Summer season and fish that we normally expect to catch in the depths of Winter periodically showed up in good numbers.
This month water temperatures start to hit the mid-teens but this season appears to be around six weeks later than normal and we haven’t had too many cold westerlies so far, so the fishing remains still quite good.
A couple of months ago the township of Nathalia was a mass of sandbags as the Broken Creek was in full flood.
It has been a much cooler Autumn than usual and this has impacted on the fish species that normally arrive on this part of the coast from March to May.
For some anglers Winter is a time to scale things back and pursue other passions for a while but for others it’s simply a matter of adjusting to the conditions and the reaping the rewards.
Winter has finally arrived in the Canberra-Monaro district and all the signs are that La Niña has departed, for the time being, at least. Now it's time to take stock of what has happened during the past year.
Most forms of fishing deteriorate over Winter but yellowfin and bluefin tuna can be found out wide.
Winter has fish on the move in this part of the world. Migrating out of the estuaries or offshore, fish follow the conditions they favour in order to feed or breed and anglers who have some knowledge of these patterns will catch fish.
It’s officially beanie weather in this part of the world now and while the Summer crowds are a distant memory, the fishing has remained fairly consistent bar the calm clear days around the full moon, with the usual mix of weather from the south and west followed by some glorious days.
Even though we’ve reached the coldest time of year it doesn’t necessarily mean that fishing will be cold.
Blackfish or luderick are among the most prolific inshore and estuary species along the NSW coast. Although they are as common as fish like bream and accessible to anyone who lives along our coastal fringe, they don’t attract anywhere as much media attention as our other popular inshore fish.
Thank God for all the great Winter clothing options available these days. I know some people just love the cold and others simply don’t feel it but I certainly do.
