lurez

As with most Southern Highlands dams and streams there are large populations of small redfin, however the shallow murky waters don't seem to serve trout well, despite ongoing stocking. Most of these streams theoretically might hold trout with stocking however natural reproduction seems limited in those sandy coastal streams. Trout are a cool water species and in NSW are rarely found at altitudes below 700 metres, making Bowral right at the limit of their range. The Southern Highlands have trout, bass and also carp (which are bigger than trout, smarter than trout and they fight harder than trout). The Southern Highlands have special microclimates like rainforests, unique creeks and rivers and although the average is two to three pound fish, there are also big fish found in the highlands. Some of the hotspots for local anglers include Fitzroy Falls lake, the Wollondilly River, and Paddys River, but there are many more bass and trout fisheries within striking distance, including some private dams and lakes where you can pay for a day of quality fishing. Living on the top of the great dividing range, and south of Sydney, puts Southern Highland anglers within striking distance of some of the country's best trout fishing and a pre-dawn start will set you up for a trip to either the east or west of the range. If you head south along the Hume Highway, you reach Tumut and the Tumut river and its tributaries, especially the Goobarragandra River, along with the western slopes' snowy hydro lakes such as Blowering dam, and Jounama pondage. Turn off the Hume for Canberra and you're on the way to the trout fishing capital of Australia, Adaminaby with Lake Eucumbene, the Eucumbene River, Tantangara Dam, and the Murrumbidgee River - and all the Monaro streams and dams. For those who want some fishing closer to home, a lot of Southern Highland properties have dams and one of the best uses for that water is to stock a few rainbows and let nature take its course, whether you want five-pound (2.2kg) fish for sport, or table fish for the freezer. Farm dams are a rich, natural source of insects that trout love and in the right conditions they will grow quickly and live for seven or eight years. I have heard about people catching trout out of the Wingecarribee although redfin and bass out of the river are more common. Another option is Medway Rivulet and streams around there. Please fish carefully when fishing these creeks and streams and remember that if you fish these areas you do so at your at your own risk. Please be careful as there are deep ravines and drop offs through this area. If you want to just have a fish for bass, Bundanoon Dam which is located about forty minutes from Mittagong and about 30 minutes from Mossvale. Bundanoon Dam is stocked with Australian bass which was organised by the Bowral flyfishing club in conjunction with NSW Fisheries. The bass aren't big, as the stocking only began a few years ago, but they do fight really hard. They fight harder than river bass. Please note that the trout closure for many streams is the Tarlo River junction from this point upstream including tributaries it is declared trout water and a seasonal trout closure applies . An exception is Wildes Medows Ck which is listed as a trout water and a seasonal trout closure is also in place. Catching Trout To catch trout try lures 1/12 oz Little Phoebe Spoon, Megabass ito X-55sp, Lucky Craft CRA PEA Daiwa Doctor Minnow and Ecogear MW62F although all bream hard bodies will work. Soft plastics such as Berkley T Tail minnows, power minnows and single tail grubs are also very effective. A common technique is to always fish upstream. In any current, trout will always be facing upstream and expect all of their potential food items to be coming from this direction. Always fish your way upstream and cast in order to bring lures running directly down current through to a 45 degree angle across the current. Both fast running water and deeper slower moving pools will hold fish. When fishing fast moving and particularly shallow water try using the small spoon. A rig that has worked is with a double split ring and a single Decoy troutin' single in either size 6 or 8. Try using a number 8 in really small streams where the fish are smaller as the larger hook increases the chance of a trout loosing an eye. Rigged this way they are amazingly snag resistant, and easier to get them out of trees with a flick of the wrist and as they ride hook point up you can work them through water so shallow they scrape along the rocks. The key is to ensure the hook point is pointing in the same direction as the curve of the lure to ensure the best action. Rig them with a small egg snap to give them a non rigid tow point. On days when the fish are short striking use a 2" grub as a trailer on the single hook. You can rip these lures in really fast when working them down a fast moving rapid or fish them slowly through shallow pools if the pool is only small and you can't be stuffed to change over to the small hard body. When fishing fast water look for several different types of structure. The tail end of a run or rapid is always worth a few casts. The main rapid or run will generally hold a fish or two, particularly in front of any rocks causing pressure waves or any little gutter in the run. The end of the pool before the start of the rapid is another hot spot. In a deeper pool, a strike can come from anywhere in the pool. The edges are always worth a few casts, particularly if the banks are either shaded, under cut or have submerged timber along side them. You can pull a fish from anywhere in a deeper pool. Deeper pools are where you can generally change over to a hard body minnow or if the pool looks good enough try switching to a lightly weighted soft plastic and fish it very slowly and thoroughly. If the bottom of the pool is very prone to snagging, fish a drop shot rig with a slight difference. Rather than tie the weight on, tie a half hitch at the end of the line and lightly crimp a split shot just above it. This way when the weight gets caught on the bottom, it will slide off the line before you line breaks saving you from having to re-rig. All you need to do is to add another split shot to the rig. In small streams that are too small to float the yak, you can wade up the centre of the stream, casting to any likely looking areas before you get too close and spook the fish. You can make as much noise as you like when fishing a rapid as they are a noisy place and all the noise you make will flow downstream. When wading through slower moving water, move slowly and keep noise to a minimum. If you are careful you will be able to present a lure to a trout before you spook them. Some prefer to wade up the middle of the stream rather than bush bash the bank as you are offering the fish a lower profile which makes it harder for them to see you. It is also preferable to wear natural coloured clothing. In water deep enough to float the yak, paddle downstream far enough that it will give a full days fishing to get back to the car. Generally a two hour paddle will take say five or so hours to fish back upstream to the access point. So you can tie the yak to your waist with some rope and it will follow like an obedient dog while you wade up the stream. When you get to a pool too deep to wade, just jump in the yak and fish it from the yak until you are in wading depth water again. Fishing this way gives you access to rarely fished water as a pool too deep to wade with no bank side access is the limit of most trout fisherman's access. Trout are not like a bass or a cod you can piss off enough to get a territorial strike. Your first shot is your best and your window of opportunity narrows with each subsequent cast. If you have a fly rod try that as well or if you don't, you can rig yourself up a fly rig for your spinning rod: just tie on two flies about 50cm apart, split shot at the top with weight to match the current. Fish this rig upstream same as above and let the bottom fly bounce along the bottom. This rig is really only worthwhile though if you have a bit of depth (about 1m or so), reasonable current and the bottom is not so snaggy.