From the Archives ...
Trout tips - from tackle shops
Presented from Issue 105, August 2013
We did a bit of a runaround Tasmania’s tackle stores to see what their tips for the first month or so of the tackle season were. We asked what the top three places to fish were, plus lures, flies, baits and a few other things.
Here is a rundown on their answers Whenever, and wherever you fish - anywhere, or for any fish in the world - ask the locals and especially ask at the local tackle store. They know what was caught today, yesterday and on what.
Coming to the 2019 World Fly Fishing Championships?
Why not send Mike a small donation for this incredible resource !
Contact Mike via this link for a paypal donation.
Or subscribe to his email newsletter.
Dull overcast conditions and a gusty South Westerly helped me make the easy decision to fish the lower Mersey River this morning mainly because I knew it would be reasonably sheltered from the winds. It wasn't an early start either because the air temp was only eight degrees when I left home, so there was no rush to get in the river. I was on the river bank by 9:05 am and spotted several trout on the rise plus a few small jumpers as well. As always the first lure of choice was a Mepps spinner, the #0 Stone Fly Bug was what went for starters as it's the lure that's done a great job on several trips lately. I spotted a trout on the rise close to the opposite river bank so that's where the first cast headed.
- Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training
- Category: Mersey River
- Hits: 216
With the lower back and hips not feeling all that good this morning I thought I'd have a break from river fishing for a few days to give the body time to recover from a couple of tough river trips two days ago. Then seeing how good the weather was and with some windy conditions forecast again I decided not to rest up but to go a chase a few trout in the upper Mersey River again.
After placing eight heat pads on the lower back & hips and taking a few pain killers I was on my way, this trip wasn't in the same area where I caught ten trout from eighteen hook ups a few days ago, it was further downstream from there.
The weather this morning was absolutely beautiful, probably the best day for some time with no wind, clear skies, it couldn't have been better. It was around 7:05 am when I hit the dead flat glassy crystal clear waters on the Mersey, the first thing I noticed was trout surface feeding on small Mayfly duns and midges.
- Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training
- Category: Mersey River
- Hits: 205
Feeling the effects this morning of the long stint in the upper Mersey River yesterday I was going to have a rest day then when I saw how overcast it was I just had to go chasing trout. Trout fishing in these conditions is what I like best and I couldn't sit home and let it pass me by. After taking a couple of pain killers and placing several heat patches on the lower back and left hip I was on my way to the lower reaches of the Mersey River.
I did think of heading to another area in the upper reaches but with the body being on the sore side I thought it best to go closer to home. As I approached the river I spotted several trout surface feeding in a wide slow flowing stretch of water, perfect for a fly fisher, not so good for the spin fisher such as me.
- Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training
- Category: Mersey River
- Hits: 161
Fine warm weather was forecast for today but when I looked out the window this morning it was windy, very overcast and quite cool. I had intended to fish the upper reaches of the Mersey River then changed the trip to a small tannin stream. I was hoping it may still be at a reasonable wading height after the 6mms of rain we had a few days ago but I wasn't expecting too much. No sooner had I arrived the cloud started to break up something I didn't want to happen after seeing how low the water level was.
- Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training
- Category: Mersey River
- Hits: 225
With another change due plus not having wet a line for a week I headed back to give the Mersey River another crack, this time I was there much earlier too. Still a little later than I would have liked given the conditions were nice and cool as well as being heavily overcast it was the perfect morning to be chasing trout in a river. The river level was around the same height as the last trip and it was still running nice and clear, I felt the fast water runs would be the ones that would give up the trout again today.
- Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training
- Category: Mersey River
- Hits: 263
After checking out the rivers levels on the BOM site I noticed the Mersey River had dropped to a lower level that made it ideal for wading in the area I like to cross over and fish. When I arrived to where I cross the river I noticed that the river bottom wasn't looking all that good, I'd have to make sure to take it slow & steady as I crossed over. The water was nice a clear, but the rocky river bottom was covered in a brown slimy algae and heavily silted.
- Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training
- Category: Mersey River
- Hits: 342
The morning was a low three degrees as I was heading to the upper reaches of the Mersey River, then I had a change of mind and decided to head to the small tannin stream I fished several days go. On my arrival I found the water level was the same as the last trip (a little on the low side) so I thought I would be in for another tough time fishing here. This trip I thought I'd start the session using a copper blade #00 Mepps Aglia Mouche Noire to see how it would go on the trout in the tannin water, not that the copper colour would be a problem as it's worked well before in tannin waters.
- Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training
- Category: Mersey River
- Hits: 502
With poor weather forecast later on this afternoon & with the conditions being overcast & cool this morning I thought a trip to the upper Mersey River may be worth the trip. Half way to where I was heading I came across some light fog which I didn't mind as it meant there wouldn't be any sun on the water for an hour or two. I hit the river at 7:10 am and the first thing I came across was water weeds & plenty of it. Not the ideal thing one wants to see when lure fishing that's for sure as it restricts the fishing quite a lot.
I was starting the session of with the Mepps #1 March Brown bug spinner to see if it may attract a trout or two, it did the job in the Meander two days ago so why not try it here. The water was clear and glassy, there were plenty trout feeding on a massive hatch of midges that covered the wide slow flowing water ahead of me. With thousands of these small midges floating on the surface as well as in the air, the trout were going to be hard to catch this morning.
- Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training
- Category: Mersey River
- Hits: 666
Read more: Surface feeding trout, not ideal for spin fishing
With some light cloud around this morning I thought I would head over to the Mersey River and have a short spin session before the sun burnt the cloud off. Conditions were quite nice with hardly a breath of wind and the river was at the perfect wading height. As I entered the river (7:40am) I noticed a few trout on the rise just ahead of me so I flicked the Aglia Furia well past the fish and retrieved the spinner back a little faster that the flow.
- Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training
- Category: Mersey River
- Hits: 685
Hit the Mersey River just on 7:00 am in what was cool foggy conditions to start with, but a good mild 19 degree day was forecast. My last trip here was back on the 5th December when I had a tough spin session chasing trout in similar conditions. As soon as I hit the water I could see plenty of trout on the rise in a wide long slow flowing flat water which meant I was in for another tough spin session. I fished a short fast water to start with just like I did on the last trip with the same result, no fish. As I headed into the wide long stretch of river with the fog slowly lifting there was a line of trout rising ahead of me which was quite good to watch. Trout were rising everywhere,
- Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training
- Category: Mersey River
- Hits: 828
Read more: Another tough day chasing wild brown trout 2/2/2019
Current TFBN
Click above for current issue content. The current issue of TFBN is extensive and topical. In Tackle Stores, Newsagents and by subscription.
Delivered to your door for $60 for 2 years (10 issues). To subscribe, send Mike $60 via www.paypal.com.au . (Basic instructions are here) The email is at Contact Us. Your address will be included from PayPal. Please ensure your details are correct, for Mike to organise delivery.
TFBN Newsletter Sign up Form
Why not submit an article ?
When you have finished for the day, why not have a brag about the ones that didn't get away! Send Mike an article on your fishing (Click here for contact details), and we'll get it published here. Have fun fishing - tasfish.com
Category Descriptions
Here is a list of all of the Article Categories. The number in Brackets, eg (13) is the number of articles. Click on Derwent River and all articles relating to the Derwent will be displayed in the central area.
Articles by Category
-
Rivers (3)
-
Saltwater and Estuary Fishing (149)
-
Kayak Fishing (34)
-
Lakes (1)
-
Great Lake (62)
-
Lake Leake (52)
-
Woods Lake (16)
-
Lake Augusta (11)
-
Huntsman Lake (13)
-
Lake Pedder and Gordon (9)
-
Lake Dulverton (5)
-
Lake Crescent (6)
-
Tooms Lake (10)
-
Lake Mackintosh (2)
-
Lake Barrington (5)
-
Little Lake (8)
-
Meadowbank Lake (5)
-
Lake King William (7)
-
Lake St Clair (2)
-
Western Lakes (12)
-
Arthurs Lake (34)
-
Lake Echo (7)
-
Four Springs (54)
-
Lake Sorell (6)
-
Lake Burbury (6)
-
Other Lakes (57)
-
Brushy Lagoon (18)
-
Little Pine Lagoon (5)
-
Penstock Lagoon (16)
-
Brumbys Creek (7)
-
-
Events (43)
-
Estuary Fishing (0)
-
Coastal Catches (46)
-
Super Trawler (46)
-
IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies (331)
-
Commercial Interests (98)
-
Other (24)
-
TFBN Back Issues (8)
-
Fly Fishing (67)
-
Trout Fishing (223)
-
Meteorology and Weather (8)
-
Jan’s Flies (50)
-
Tuna Fishing and other Game Fishing (86)
-
Cooking Fish (19)
-
Fishing Information (1)
-
Fishing Books (8)
-
Videos (5)
-
Tackle, Boats and other Equipment (146)
-
World Fly Fishing Championship 2019 (2)
Get a Drogue
Catch more fish - use a Tasmanian Made Drogue
Current River Heights for the Northern Rivers
Popular Tags
windyty.com
Visit https://www.windyty.com/
Rubicon Web and Technology Training
Hello everyone, I thought it would be a good time to introduce myself.
My name is Stephen Smith and I have been managing the website tasfish.com since May 2009.
It has been an epic journey of learning and discovery and I am indebted to Mike Stevens for his help, support and patience.
I am developing a new venture Rubicon Web and Technology Training ( www.rwtt.com.au ). The focus is two part, to develop websites for individuals and small business and to train people to effectively use technology in their everyday lives.
Please contact me via www.rwtt.com.au/contact-me/ for further information - Stephen Smith.
From the Archives ... (last chance)
Early season - Bob McKinley
Presented from Issue 105, August 2013
Bob is a professional fishing guide and guides for trout and estuary species. Check him out at www.fishwildtasmania.com
There are several things we look for in our early season trout waters. It is still winter and cold, so some of the things to consider are: Altitude as this dictates the water temperature and therefore feeding activity. Food for the fish. Availability of trout food is generally dictated by the quantity and quality of weed beds.
Quantity of fish.
Three waters which I believe fit all three requirements are:
Read more ...