Team Tuesday - Scotty X and the Victorian Lakes
This time of year can be frustrating for a lot of anglers. Cold weather, wind and of course the inevitable closure of those favourite rivers. As the Eucumbene spawn run tries to happen this year, it's important not to forget the abundance of opportunity we have here closer to Melbourne. Scott Xanthoulakis tells us his favourite lake spots and some of his more successful tactics.
"As the Australian river season comes to an end there is no need to pack the fly fishing gear away as the lakes around Ballarat will begin to fire. The standout lakes in the area will once be again Lake Wendouree, Newlyn Reservoir and Moorabool Reservoir.
The best techniques to use throughout the cooler months include indicator midge fishing and loch style fishing using a team of wet flies. For your midge fishing size 14 red and green pupa are the most productive, a stick caddis size 14 is also a good fly to use in conjunction with your pupa. When loch style fishing choose a weighted woolly bugger style fly size 10 with a bright coloured bead as your point fly, this will imitate small bait fish when stripped, your top fly should be something dark (black pennell or black and peacock)and small around a size 14, when slowing the retrieve during your hangs this fly will act as a snail which fish gorge themselves on during winter.
When fishing the local lakes I usually like to choose a day with a moderate wind and good cloud cover, a wind coming from the Southwest or the Northwest is ideal, fish the windswept banks as most food will be pushed there bringing the fish closer to the edges. It’s always best to hang around till dusk as you will find midge hatching around this time bringing the fish to the surface.
When heading to the lakes I like to use a 6wt rod medium fast action, it is good to have a range of lines including a weight forward floating, intermediate and a full sinking 3 inches per second line. Leaders are usually long around 16 to 18ft. Have a good range of flies with various weights and sizes.
So this winter don’t pack the rod away, get off the couch chuck some thermals on and head out to the lakes. You never know what you might encounter!"
Want to book a lake day this winter with Scott? Head over to Wilderness Fly Fishing and secure your spot!
