We copped a hammering from wind and rain late last week and into the weekend, which made fishing opportunities hard to come by. Still, there are always a few diehards who head out no matter what the weather is doing.
Estuaries
The Hopkins River continues to produce quality bream and small perch in the deeper sections. Earlier in the week, during a Garmin handover, we marked some huge schools of fish at the end of the ski run. Most were holding tight at 3–4m, with some schools numbering well over 100 fish.
At this time of year, your sounder’s SideVu feature is invaluable. It dramatically cuts down search time by allowing you to scan 30m or more on each side of the boat, as well as directly beneath. On this day, we were marking fish both wide and directly under us.
Casting blades with short, sharp hops can tempt the occasional bite, but spawning is the main focus for these fish right now. Further upriver, however, feeding fish are still active—and this is where the bigger models have been caught. Soft plastics worked along the edges on light jig heads have been effective, particularly when retrieved with a slow roll along the bottom. Keep it in their face—if it’s moving too fast, they’ll simply turn away.
For bait anglers, subtle offerings such as scrub worms, peeled prawns, or pod worms work best. Think of it like being at a party after dinner—you might turn down a burger, but if someone offers you a spring roll, it’s hard to resist.
Over at the Glenelg River, fishing has been excellent in recent weeks. Local and visiting anglers joined a “Perch Search” at Nelson, supporting the Victorian Fisheries Authority’s breeding program. Organised by Dan Mackrell, the initiative saw a group of skilled tournament anglers target perch using hardbodies, plastics, and the occasional blade. Plenty were caught and later transported to NSW hatcheries, where they will be bred before restocking systems locally and beyond—helping secure the species’ future.
While chasing perch, anglers also picked up quality bream and a handful of mulloway. Bream over a kilo were taken above Dry Creek, pushed upriver by saltwater intrusion during the storms. Small mulloway under 40cm were also caught, a positive sign for the system’s health. One angler hooked a larger fish but couldn’t bring it in. Years ago, a similar run of small mulloway frustrated locals, but it was soon followed by a boom of trophy-sized fish over 50lb. With any luck, history will repeat itself, restoring the Glenelg’s reputation as an iconic mulloway fishery. In the meantime, the bream and perch fishing remains excellent.
Andy and Anna Cumming also fished the lower Glenelg, with the duo reporting the fish are "going nuts" - with the freshwater flows running against the salt pushing the perch downstream into Taylors Strait. The pair stocked up big time at our Marine Expo with some new rods, reels and lures and certainly put them all to good use quickly, with lots of 40cm fish landed. The best lures were the Nomad Switcher Shrimp, Z-Man soft plastics and Daiwa Wave Minnows.
Freshwater
Some exceptional perch fishing has been reported in the upper Hopkins. Lewis Holland has been putting in serious hours in cold, windy conditions—and it has paid off. His best three perch last week weighed 1.65, 1.73, and 1.91kg, an outstanding bag.
These fish aren’t easy to catch, especially in cold and often murky water. Rigging plastics weedless helps avoid snags and allows you to cast tight into structure. When targeting larger fish, don’t skimp on leader strength—better safe than sorry.
Trout anglers should look to the Merri, particularly around Woodford. Slim-profile hardbodies and paddle-tail soft plastics are working well. This time of year, the classic Rapala spotted dog F7 and F9 really come into their own. Tim Vincent and Max Fry both scored some good fish this week. The action should continue at least through October whilst the water stays cool and flowing.
Final Notes
A big thank you to everyone who braved the weather to attend our Marine Expo last weekend. Despite the conditions, it was a fantastic success with plenty of takeaways for anglers and boating enthusiasts alike.
Looking ahead, the forecast for this weekend is again challenging, with Sunday tipped to bring strong winds. Hopefully, clearer weather isn’t far away, so we can all get back out on the water and into some great fishing.
Until next week—tight lines and best of luck!