THE big cyclone has affected our weather. We have lost redfin that have been flushed out of dams and a chap had been driving along the area around Nolans Road, Cambrian Hill.There was trout all over the road and with the heavy flooding the water gets so dirty that nothing can live in it.The greenies had prompted that water be brought into dry areas but what happened was the trees started to make wood sap and this is what killed all the native fish, like the Murray cod and a lot of other fish as well.So we have had the biggest rains since 1954. My brother shot ducks down the back of our house in Smythes Road.On the fishing scene, I checked out the whiting and things have improved. The weather was very wet. I went out on Saturday morning and got up at 6am. It was raining, so back to bed. I finally got out at 9am.I was told the tides were in a dodge tide situation, very weak and the ebb tide was the strongest. So I went out to the mouth of Swan Bay by the big light and got two and I moved with the wind against the tide.I picked up seven fish on mussels. There were not many because of the rain but last week they were getting them. Whiting are so good to catch.I saw Andy Slater and his daughter Ella. I cleaned seven pieces for them and everything turned out okay. We had seven and they had seven, so what could be better?PEDRO'S BASKET
The first photograph this week is of the whiting the Sims boys caught in South Australia. Have a look at the whiting that they got. They were getting them from 36cm to 62cm - now that is what I call a real whiting from Arno Bay in the Spencer Gulf.It makes you wonder whether you should take a trip over there now that South Australia has won the big bash in cricket, their first win in 15 years. The second photograph this week is of Paul Hazlett and his son Mitchell, with a cod they caught at Lock 8 over Christmas. Fish are in Corio Bay and salmon at the Grammar School, snapper big ones and small pinky snapper. The water has cleaned up in this bay very good. Angelo Ronci went out with another angler who was fishing for pinky snapper off Altona and they ended up with six pinky snapper. Angelo managed two of the bunch and called into Peter Farrugia to show him and Peter cleaned them. He has a bench and cleaning gear now thanks to all those knives given to him by Pedro. Dragonflies are in good proportion. These make good trout tucker when we get bug mud eyes and couta mud eyes that look like locusts and the frogs have come back. Snapper are still going at Altona early 2.30am to 3am after you get settled; action in an hour after you get the berley going. Bermagui is real late marlin turned up at Christmas so we are now in February. Wurdiboluc by Winchelsea trout and redfin are going good fish Bermagui trip last weekend - fishing has been good up there. My man, Mark Dwyer, could not get a team together and set out from Ballarat to go to Bermagui. He checked the road. The Princess Highway was blocked. He checked out the Hume Highway. Brown Mountain came into that but with a boat on and being solo if you have trouble you cannot turn around, so going the long way around he got to Bermagui at 10 o'clock the next morning. He was up and at them but no tuna, just some kingfish. Mark managed one which we will show you. Bermagui is a marvellous place. Mark's next trip is coming up at Portland with the Wilsons the fruiters. Maybe at Easter. Things are looking good down this way; southern blue and these are real kings, down this way maybe worth a go. Now there is no striped tuna for bait at Bermagui but there is offshore at Surf Coast. They were catching these fish on a metal slug on a fast retrieve fishing reel. We are looking at a 4-5kg fish. Good bait for marlin and snapper. Thirteen good-size pinky snapper in Corio Bay. This report from Mountain View quarry snapper to 6kg at this area. Most will say that they have fished this area but no bite. Even an eight year-old girl caught a fish. Her brothers caught some too. Plenty of action but weather was bad last weekend because of the big cyclone in Cairns with more bad weather tipped for this weekend. Whiting have been on the go at Swan Bay. We have had a dodge tide but Pedro managed a few on mussels.
