Anglers cast for competition wins

THE New Norfolk Licensed Anglers Association held their seventh trout fishing competition of the 2024-25 season last weekend at Lake Crescent and Lake Sorell.

Members set off to fish Lake Crescent from 7am on Saturday morning in sunny and calm conditions. As the day progressed, a stiff northerly breeze set in. Most members were trolling lures, but a handful started drift spinning. Across the full day of competition, just four trout were landed, with a total weight of 10.321 kg.

Senior member Alan Dixon caught the biggest fish, a female brown trout weighing 3.390 kg (cleaned). He had a fight on his hands after foul-hooking the fish in the tail while trolling. I managed the next best trout, a healthy male brown weighing 2.899 kg, also caught trolling down the bottom end of the lake late in the afternoon. Gerald Russell landed the next best trout, which also came from trolling and weighed 2.436 kg (cleaned). Junior angler Lucy Russell caught the other fish, weighing 1.596 kg (cleaned), also caught while trolling.

After a tough day’s fishing on Crescent, members then hit Lake Sorell on Sunday in decent conditions, with slightly better results. Fifteen trout were caught, with a total weight of 18.542 kg. I caught the best trout—a 61 cm male weighing 1.822 kg (cleaned)—spinning with a Duo Realis 63 mm lure in Prizm Gill from Hatchery Shore at 7:20 a.m. Alan Dixon backed up day one with another nice fish, weighing 1.576 kg (cleaned), which he caught trolling. Shayne Langford also caught a nice fish, weighing 1.563 kg (cleaned).

NNLAA President Laurie Harrison landed one at 1.540 kg, and Craig Waddington rounded out the top five with a fish weighing 1.423 kg. Craig also had another at 1.315 kg, Adrian Slater had one at 1.160 kg, and Katie Russell caught one at 1.127 kg. Junior angler Lucy Russell caught the second biggest fish at Lake Sorell—a cracker female weighing 1.603 kg. Jayden Slater also landed a fish matching Alan Dixon’s at 1.576 kg.

The combined two-day tally saw a total of 19 trout landed, weighing 28.863 kg, with an average weight of 1.519 kg. Laurie Harrison won the average weight award with his 1.540 kg fish. Two mystery weight awards went to junior Jayden Slater (1.576 kg) and Craig Waddington (1.423 kg). Female angler Kirsty Chalmers received a prize for the smallest fish, which weighed 0.350 kg.

Even though fishing was tough for most, it was a great weekend away, and it was fantastic to see some quality trout caught from Lake Sorell, with most in excellent condition. The senior heaviest trout overall winner was Alan Dixon, with his 3.390 kg female from Lake Crescent. Junior Lucy Russell won the overall heaviest trout in that category with her 1.603 kg catch from Lake Sorell.

A big thank you to NNLAA sponsors:

• Williams Outdoors for contributing $200 worth of vouchers and adding to the overall prize pool
• Rod & Range Sports and Tasmanian Devil Lures for their contributions
• ShowRibbonsOnline for donating winning sashes
• Member Adrian Slater for creating awesome trout sculptures for the winners
• T&M Trophies for donating the plaques for the sculptures

The NNLAA's next competition is scheduled for the weekend of April 4th-6th and will be an Open Waters event.

Inland Fisheries Service Update

Last week, the Inland Fisheries Service (IFS) assessed Lake Sorell to check the status of the fishery and recent recruitment success. Decent spawning events in 2023-2024 have allowed the trout population to reproduce, and the results appear positive. Good numbers of trout fry were found in and around the existing spawning creeks, indicating successful spawning in 2024. Additionally, trout fry were found spread out across rocky and weedy areas around the entire lake, another encouraging sign.

Small trout ranging from 90 mm to 140 mm were also found, showing good recruitment and survival from the 2023 spawning season. Fishing reports suggest that anglers casting lures or flies into structure around the lake edges are being rewarded with excellent conditioned fish. Meanwhile, those trolling hard-bodied lures in the middle of the lake may be facing more challenges.

It is expected that fishing will improve toward the end of the season when water temperatures cool and trout become more active. The long-term outlook for Lake Sorell is promising, with plenty of young trout entering the system and an abundance of food available for them to grow into trophy-sized fish.

Woods Lake Survey

In late February, the IFS also surveyed Woods Lake to assess the population of the threatened saddled galaxias (Galaxias tanycephalus). Recent years have seen large blue-green algal blooms in Woods Lake, first appearing in February 2023, raising concerns about their impact on galaxias populations.

The survey results were exciting, with over 1,500 saddled galaxias caught in just one night of trapping—far surpassing the usual 50-70 expected. A wide range of sizes were found, including many juveniles, indicating a successful spawning season. These findings bode well for the conservation of this important native fish, found only in Woods Lake and adjacent Arthurs Lake.

Dulverton Anglers Club Competition

The Dulverton Anglers Club had a successful weekend fishing in their recent Interlaken competition. Nearly 20 members entered, landing some great fish despite tough conditions. Paul Hoare was the winner and second was Chris Lanham. 

This round was sponsored by Dobmac Ag Machinery, and the round winner walked away with a custom Dobmac fire pit.

Tip of the Week

When fishing, trying something different can be a game-changer, especially when conditions are tough. Take the time to experiment with new techniques—you might find ways to catch more fish.

Send in your fishing reports, pics, and tips to valleyfishes@gmail.com and keep track of the Derwent Valley Gazette Fishing column at the Derwent Valley Gazette online.

Tight lines until next week! 🎣