Illawarra
Flyfishers Club
SUMMER
2005 Reports
May
2005
Souther
Zone championaships of Fly
Fish Australia were held at Dixiland just outside of
Adaminaby
over the weekend of 14/15th May 2005. The event consisted of two boat
sessions and two bank sessions for each angler. Five lakes in
Dixiland were fished the largest being something like 50 acres in size
and the smallest being probably just two or three acres. Twenty five
anglers compeated from around NSW. The fishing was togh with the best
session yielding 9 fish and the worst session yielding just 1
fish (that's equivilent to one angler fishing for three days non stop
for just one hit). Stephen Chatterton won the competition
with only 15 penalty points and 6360 fish points, Phil
Ravanello
was second with 21 penelty points and 4160 fish points and Geoff Naylor
third with 29 penalty points and 4080 fish points.
May
2005
Ray Ellis and Stephen Chatterton fish Lake Wollumboola near Culburra
just outside of
Nowra. It was an early start with Ray picking Stephen up at
4am.
The
idea was to be on the water at sunrise. We were and each caught 30
bream to 26cm. Great fun on fly. Stephen pointed out that as many fish
wre caught in gentlemens hours as at sparro %&#@ and perhaps he
could have slept a little longer and fished a little later for the same
results. Stephen fished the mud prawn with slow retrieves and ray
fished
his epoxy shrimp with fast strips.
LAKE
JINDABYNE AND EUCUMBEEN -
SUMMER 2004/5
Throughout the spawning season Lake Jindabyne and Lake
Eucumbene have fish well as both
pre and post spawning fish feed on juvenile yabbies. That's all settled
down now and whilst the fish are still moving into the yabby grounds to
feed they are also turning their attention to other fare. You will find
a lot of fish showing up on sounders at depth and probably feeding on
daphnia but at the same time you will see spasmodic surface activity.
Around rainy days there is a lot of ant activity and many find
themselves on the trouts menu - so if its a bit overcast and there are
rising fish consider the humble ant pattern. In the evenings trout are
starting to move into the protected bays to feed on emergers and midges
and that can be a lot of fun. Also with stable and increasing water
levels we are already seeing some tadpole eggs and that augers well for
great tadpole fishing as the weather warms up. Best prospecting fly at
this time of year (or almost at any time) remains the woolly bugger.
TECHNIQUES
EMPLOYED INCLUDE:
- If
its
overcast give
general prospecting from the bank or loch style fly fishing a go. If
you can handle it fish either head on or partially into the wind from
the bank or lock style fish
the shoreline and structure with the wind at your back. (See articles
on Loch
Style Fly Fishing and Yabby
Feeders). The wind is your friend and is bringing food
and consequently fish to you. If the wind is too strong move into the
protected bays and start off by fishing deep with a range of flies and
retrieves.
- If
its clear
and
sunny consider polaroiding the higher banks and bays. Keep in mind
that whilst you will see more trout when the lake is like a mill pond
they will be easier to approach and catch with a little to moderate
wind and water surface movement. Its all a compromise. (See article on Polaroiding
Tips) The trout are
moving around the edges
looking for food and are suckers for a range of flies. I don't like
really big flies like woolly buggers or horrors for polaroiding and
favour #10 nymphs, sand caddis, spider patterns like the black and
peacock and snails at this time of year.
- I
reckon that
the
best fishing is had the hour either side of dusk and dawn with dusk
being better (See article on Lake
Tips). If fish are moving around fish larger nymphs or woolly
buggers on floating or intermediate lines. If there is no movement fish
deeper areas by "pumping" boobies or my floating yabby on a sinking
line.
- If
wind has
been
blowing steadily for a sustained period and lets up have a
look
for
wind lanes (See article on Reading
Lakes). You can fish them where they meet the shore or can
fish
along the wind lane edge from a boat. If you can see fish obviously
fish to them otherwise try deep water nymphing and other prospecting
techniques.
Whilst
places like
Wollondibby Inlet, Hatchery Bay, Hayshed Bay, Sid's Bay, Creel Bay,
Kangaroo Bay, the top of the Snowy and Thredbo river arms and the area
around Kalkite all are all fishing well they are also more heavily
patronized than some other areas of the lake and that certainly self
propagates their reputations. Areas away from those listed hold as many
if not more fish (because they haven't been fished as much) and are
well
worth a little extra search effort.
January
- May 2005
Stephen Chatterton has reported one of the best poleroiding
seasons on Lake Jindabyne for many years. Seeing 10 plus fishon a trip
has been the norm rather than the exception as in recent years. Best
dry flies have been hopper patterns, tags and para dun emergers and
best wet flies have been brown and black nymphs. Dawn and
dusk
fishing have also been good and the best fly remains the humble balck
woolly bugger.
Stephen Chatterton.
LAKE ILLAWARRA - SUMMER
2004/5
The
entrance to the lake was opened in late October and that coupled with
the higher than recent rain falls and big seas has certainly worked to
our fishing advantage. Large numbers of flathead have moved into the
entrance of the lake as well as some whiting and bream. Also you could
expect to find some jew fish just outside the entrance working over the
food that being washed out. Fishing around the entrance has been so
good and the winds been up so I haven't been fishing the lake proper
much but there are good reports of bigger flathead along the back of
the lake and you would also expect to find them up the Harvey Norman
end of the lake.
GENERAL
INFORMATION ON FLY FISHING LAKE ILLAWARRA
If
your going to fish the lake remember that the fish seem to move around
the lake in response to, wind, moon phase
etc. and you'll have to do a little searching to find the
concentrations. My favourite locations in the lake are around the
entrance, around the islands, the Harvey Norman end of the lake, the
shoreline at Talawarra and outside McQuades, the two reefs, the
feeder streams and the drop off near the channel markers.
Try to pick a day when the barometric pressure is fairly
stable and
better still fairly
stable and high and you'll find that early morning and evenings are the
best times.
Interestingly whilst there is little tidal movement in the lake the
best fishing times still seems to be either side of change of tides
with my preference being the run out tide.
Flies to use include my estuary fly and whiting fly, Ray's epoxy
charlie, bread flies,
crazy charlies, wiggle minnows and baited breaths.
- One
option is
to berly fish up with a trail of bread. A lot of people think this will
only attract mullet but in fact it attracts most lake species
including, whiting, bream, flathead, blackfish, chopper tailor etc.
- If
its
particularly windy you can generally find a protected area around the
islands, up the feeder creeks or in some of the protected bays.
- For
bream cast
a sinking fly into structure and retrieve with short twitching action.
- The
best
technique for flathead is a slow constant retrieve across areas with
muddy bottoms.
- Fish
for
whiting with a sinking line over sand using a ten centimetre fast strip
followed by a
momentary pause.
Stephen
Chatterton
April
May 2005
We had a few canoe trips down to Lake Dangera just south of Nowra
fishing for bass. This lake has fished well all year and on each
occasion we had good returns. Best fly was Stev's booby bugger closley
followed by the humble booby fished as a dry and Rays Beetle. Larges
fish was 39 CM with other fish averaging around 30cm.
Stephen Chatterton
Summer
2005
Lake Illawarra has fish well again this summer. Fishing the drop offs
around the entrance using Rays Epoxy Shrimp or Steves Mud Prawn have
yielded good catches of Whiting and Flathead. The base material for
both flies is olive super hair and the fly sucess is attributed to the
flies being translucent like the shrim and prawns that the fish eat.
Rays fly is fished fast witha jerky action whereas the Mud Prawn can be
fished much slower.