Eildon Fishing Report - 7TH OCTOBER 2006

The river is still flowing like a banker; it is very green and very little is happening. The truth is not much has changed from last week.

After I sent out last week's report I got some feedback from Yarra Valley Flyfishers who were up here for the weekend prior. To confirm what I have been saying all along, not one fish was taken from the Goulburn but they did catch a very nice Brown from the lower reaches of the Rubicon.

I have been down the river a couple of times this week looking for signs of any hatches. I did find a couple of Baetids and a ladybird beetle but that was all. We are hearing evidence of hatches but apart from midge we have found very little to get excited about. The big hatches that bring old speckles on have not started to occur as yet. I would give it a couple of weeks and we should start to see more action.

Again this week, NO RAIN, and our little rivers are really starting to show the strain. I was up on a small, nameless mountain creek this week and we caught one fish and found two dead ones.

I am also hearing that the Big River is producing a fair number of small trout and they are being caught on Royal Wulffs, Humpies and that sort of bug. Good fun fishing.

So the recommendations are simply this, forget the Goulburn and hit the smaller rivers, as they are your best chance of catching a trout this weekend.

Hi Mick,

I snuck out this morning for a couple of hours up the Yarra - around Launching Place/Wesburn again. It was hot and windy, but I knew that before I went out, so won't complain. The Yarra is hard to fish in lots of ways - very overgrown in many areas, soft muddy (read boggy) bottom in lots of places, and lots of long still pools, which are tricky to fish.

Anyway, it's my closest river so I'll put up with it. I fished two places. The first was one of your suggestions and I found a nice deep run at the top of a long pool where that little brown gold beadhead nymph of yours did the damage. Two fish in about 10 casts and a couple missed as well. And the two I got were quite reasonable for a change - the second was a strong deep-bodied brown of about 14 inches that pulled like a tractor. Great fun (I put them both back).

I then moved upstream to a section along Dee Road in (I think) Wesburn. I picked up another little brown soon after starting, but he was lucky to stretch to 10 inches. Then I started hooking trees and had to spend time rebuilding leaders. Then I got myself hopelessly bogged in some treacherous soft gooey mud. Then I waded too deep and filled my left thigh boot.

By this time I was almost back at the point where I had parked the car, and in a long pool two or three smallish trout were rising vigorously. They knocked back a nicely tied Adams (no taste these Yarra fish) but one of them accepted a little 'full stop' first throw. He tore around the pool, putting the rest off their afternoon tea, then spat the clip. It was late enough so I packed up and went home. But a pleasant day out.

Cheers and very best wishes. Lyndon

If you want an update on lure or bait fishing, contact Gazza on 5774 2348 or Vicki on 5772 2662. Also, if you want to know the lake level or flow release into the Goulburn, ring Goulburn-Murray Water's info line, 5770 8128, which is updated daily.

Mick & Alaine Hall
Blackridge Flyfishing School
EILDON (03) 5774 2825
www.flyflickers.com (www.flyflickers.com)

Updates of this report by Mick Hall can be heard on Sports927AM Saturday morning, SEN1116 with Glenn Knight 7:30am Saturday morning, 3SER 97.7FM Friday morning between 7am and 9am and on UGFM 106.9FM Wednesday morning at 7:30am.