Fishing - Prime time for game fishing approaching

Game fishing in Tasmania during late Summer and Autumn is always a highlight, and with prime time fast approaching, anglers are excited.

Broadbill Swordfish are the prize catch with the first fish hooked, lost and landed over the last fortnight.

Anglers targeting Blue Eye Trevalla and other deep-sea delights off the Continental Shelf are usually the first to see and hook Swordfish.

Mako shark catches are also improving, with anglers reporting good results over the past few weeks.

March usually sees Striped Marlin also on the radar, and it won't be long before Albacore, Southern Bluefin, Striped, and Yellowfin Tuna start turning up as well.

St Helens is a hot spot, as is Eaglehawk Neck, which has some massive schools of Blue and Jack Mackerel in the area at the moment.

The Australia Day trout fishing competition held over the long weekend at Lake Pedder, run by the Lake Pedder Anglers Club, was a success.

The results:

• Most fish caught by a team- 47 trout - Team Ol Crankas-Laurie & Mandy Harrison, Martin Exel & Matthew Mallinson
• Heaviest Trout Competition & Adult - Dylan Loh - .989 kg
• Best Bag of 6 fish weight-Dylan Loh -5.228 kg.
• Heaviest Trout Junior 14-17 yrs-Ebony Hayes .702 kg.
• Heaviest Trout Small Fry-Charlie Long- .756 kg.
• Heaviest Trout Veteran-Tonie Duffin- .938 kg.
• Heaviest Trout Land Based- Daniel Smith- .642 kg.
• Bill Groves Memorial Award- Tonie Duffin-.938 kg
• Peter Chew Memorial Award -Adrian Long - .740 kg.
• Mystery Trout:
  • Fri-Nigel Heaven- .353 kg
  • Sat- Matthew Mallinson- .790 kg.
  • Sun-Peter Simons-.488 kg
  • Mon-Chloe Duggan-.600 kg.
• President's Award- Charlie Long, Encouragement Award- Chloe Duggan.

The New Norfolk Licensed Anglers Association resumes competition trout fishing this weekend for the Wayatinah Social Clubs Dave Gasson Memorial held at Wayatinah Lagoon.

This event is always popular with the Wayatinah Social Club, which goes above and beyond to host it and source many great prizes from valued sponsors.

Fishing starts Friday at 6 pm with entry fees to be lodged at the caravan park foreshore.

Entry fees are: Adults - $10; social members - $5; children- $2.50; social members; or $15 for non-caravan park customers/tenants.

Weigh-ins will be held on Saturday afternoon from 4 pm to 6 pm and also on Sunday from 9am to 11 am with a presentation and BBQ to follow.

Expressions of interest (EOI) are being sought to fill a member vacancy on the Inland Fisheries Advisory Council (IFAC) for a four-year term.

The IFAC role is to advise the Minister on inland fisheries issues and also provide a forum for consultation and promote understanding and acceptance of the functions of the Director of Inland Fisheries.

The Council also encourages community support for fisheries management activities and reviews management plans for inland fisheries.

The deadline for submitting any interest is 5.00pm on Sunday, the 1st of March, with more information available on the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania website.

Tip Of The Week- When casting for long periods, regularly check that your fishing rods are joined securely.

Long periods of casting can loosen connections, which could lead to losing parts of your rod.

Send in your fishing reports, pics and tips to valleyfishes@gmail.com

Tight Lines until next week.