Fishing Report 8th April 2021

Apr 08 20210 comments

Photo: Malcolm Lang with a great example of a Leslie Murray Cod

Lure Of The Week - X Zone Mini Swammer 3.5''

The X Zone Pro Series Mini Swammer has been over 5 years in the making to create the most versatile finesse swimbait on the market today. The Pro Series Mini Swammer has soft curved ribbed sides, a unique three-dimensional paddle tail with a compact keel shaped body that creates lifelike movement and enticing action. Coming into winter this plastic will come into its own.

Find them here: X Zone Mini Swammer 3.5''

Fishing Our Region

Dam levels for this week. Please note while the levels are current at time of the report, levels will still be rising and falling depending on weather activity & these percentages will change on a daily basis:

Cooby - 17.9%

Cressbrook - 36.7%

Leslie - 28.56%

Coolmunda - 103.16%

Glenlyon - 51.91%

Copeton - 40.3%

Pindari - 48.7%

Moogerah - 42.5%

Maroon - 95.0%

Boondooma - 27.29%

Cooby Dam - Lake Cooby remains CLOSED for all boating and fishing activities due to Cylindrospermopsin levels exceeding the recreational water guidelines. Each week water is tested to ensure it meets safety standards for recreational activity (direct contact without water treatment). Cylindrospermopsin toxins have decreased to 0.5 g/L and this needs to be under 0.5. Enterococci levels have once again risen and are currently measuring 40 cfu/100ml (colony-forming units per millilitre) and must reduce to 35 cfu/100ml before we open the lake. Hopefully once the recent rain is settled we see this lake re open.

Cressbrook Dam finally OPEN - Please be aware that the Cressbrook Dam campground will be closed to the public from the 19th of April to around the middle of June. This closure will enable Council to complete capital works involving the replacement of the existing communal camp kitchen area and to undertake preventative maintenance of many other elements within the campground.

The Easter weekend the lake finally reopened after months and months of closure, we did see some very good fish being caught. The bass are quite spread out through out the main basin and not very far from the ramp. Spoons and Hot Bite Spectre vibration jigs were the go too for the local anglers. Also trolling along the edge of the broken weed accounted for some very good action as well. As the weather cools off well see another good edge bite like we did last year at this same time, throwing suspending jerkbaits like the Jackall squirrel is a great way to fish the weeded areas.

Leslie Dam - Few good reports over the long weekend, with the lake being on the dirty side it was a little hard to tempt those fish into biting. the bait fisherman having the most success. Saltwater Yabbies and live worms were the go too. While other anglers targeting the larger cod there was some good ones caught. Trolling/casting the deeper banks was the best technique, heavy Spinnerbaits and Chatterbaits being the standout lure, both these baits have a strong action and a lot of vibration and will be your best bet when the water colour is a little off.

Somerset Dam - A very tough weekend on the water at Somerset, with the lake filled with ski boats it can be a little harder to tempt the fish. Keeping your lure tight to the bottom was key, targeting the fish tight to the bottom with Hot Bite Spectres or Jigs was the best standout, these baits are the perfect way to imitate a Red claw. The southern end of Pelican Point and Queen street have been the go to areas, targeting these fish trolling has been consistent as you are covering ground and find those active fish.

Glenlyon Dam - After the recent rain and still heavy rainfall hanging around the lake, the water is still slowly on the rise. With the water running in this is the perfect time to target yellow belly as this where they will push to find an easy feed, casting TN60's into the running water will be your best. The Cod fishing will only get better as the water clear up, this lake will be one to watch over the next few weeks, Topwater and Big swimbaits won't be far away as the weather begins to cool.

Lake Monduran - Producing some amazing fish in the past few weeks and still continues to do so, with the weather cooling and after the recent rain we have seen the fish move a lot shallower than the recent few weeks. Targeting the wind blown shallow points and bays with Plastics like the Castaic Jerky J or Squidgy Slick rig accounted for the majority of the bites. The trolling anglers are still getting results, running your lures amongst the suspended fish in deeper water has been productive. Main Lake Points in the basin will be your best bet for this technique.