As I sit here on a Sunday afternoon in late Winter, the good folk down in Tasmania are already out on the water chasing trout for the first weekend of their 2019/2020 trout season. It has to be noted that the cherry blossoms are already starting to appear out in the front yard, which is my annual signal to start getting excited. I don’t even need to look at the calander to know that we’re only 34 days away from getting back to the rivers and streams and there is plenty to look forward to.
Last season I heard a lot of conversation from local flyfishers about the quality of fishing and the expectations of the season. Plenty of good fish were gotten on to, with many days that far exceeded expectations. Yet, other days really did make it tough to not only find fish, but then fool them to the net. This is not just from my personal experiences of the season gone, but from those that I have spoken to as well. Big hopes were met and missed time and time again. That’s what makes it so interesting out on the water. And that’s exactly what I’m hoping for in this coming season.
With good rains falling late last season and well into the winter, there’s no doubt that the fish got moving withthe flush of fresh water through the streams. These big falls and continued rain certainly will have cleared out the streams, freshened them up and given the trout plenty of water in the upper reaches of their home streams for spawning. It also means there will be plenty of water still in the system for the early weeks of the season. So, tactics need to be adjusted to deal with this.
Expect high, dirty water on most of your favourite streams. Rivers like the Goulburn, being tailrace rivers and having controlled flows will be the exception, and will be the busiest waters in the opening weeks. Outside of these, the smaller feeder streamas will be running hard. Old favourites like the Mugumby River, Boogly Creek and Greyhorn Creek are sure to offer excellent nymphing potential in the early weeks. Fishing the drop-offs and deep pools will certainly deliver results if you can get your fly down fast and keep it down for the entirety of the drift. Remember the fish are sitting low, out of the faster currents to conserve energy, and they aren’t likely to move far for a feed. SO you need to get those nymphs down to where they are holding.
If you’re heading west and feel like wandering up streams like Brushcutters Creek or the Johnson River, you’ll find some good fish lurking in the undercuts and holding in the slower moving pools. In this water, a dark Woolly Bugger, like black or dark brown, in a size #10 or #12 is always a good tactic to draw the fish out from hiding.
Of course, it doesn’t matter if you’re wading on the Jefferson River, or if you’re hopping the banks of a tiny trickle, like Wickers Creek, the important this ins to ensure your fly gets to where the fish are. If one tactic doesn’t work, switch it up to see what the fish will respond to. There’s no point just throwing hopper droppers all day and wondering why the fish aren’t biting. Mix it up, present something that it in line with the weather conditions at that time of year and have fun. And if we run into you out on the water, stop and say “Hi”. It never hurts to share ideas on what the fish are doing on any particular day that you’re out on the water.
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