August in the Snowy Mountains is notorious for cold, windy and down right uncomfortable days on the water for the humble Trout fisherman. Although these conditions will have you searching for your favourite soft shell and a warm pair of gloves. There is no doubt the more uncomfortable the conditions are for the fisherman the better the fishing.
As we departed Canberra at a ridiculous hour of the morning, our anticipation ran high after some recent rainfall and inclement weather had occurred leading into the weekend, which can often increase the chances of running into a few trout. After a quick stop off in Cooma on the way, We were buzzing to get to our launching point at Kalkite, Jindabyne. We arrived just after sun up and were greeted by a glassed out lake, not a breath of wind and crystal clear water.
Arriving at our first location we quickly tied on some soft plastics and began patrolling the bank. It wasn’t long before I had my first inquisitive follow from a perfectly marked brown trout. Although a positive sign, the caution with which the fish had followed my lure didn’t exactly fill me with any real confidence that the fish were going to be keen to play the game. A wily Trout’s weariness of these shallow sunburnt lake margins are increased ten fold when there is little surface ripple and bright blue skies.
The following few hours played out in a very similar fashion with the occasional trout following wearily but not really showing interest in taking the offering. It seemed as though these perfect conditions were not working for us in any other way than a good hit of Vitamin D. Not one to flog a dead horse, we decided to try trolling a few deeper channels, casting suspending minnows at rocky points and hopping and dropping soft plastics down step banks, all for no reward..
At about 11.30am we decided to make a trolling run towards a shaded bank for some lunch. By this stage the early start and two hour drive was taking its toll on me, so I decided that resting my weary joints across the front of the boat to absorb some sun and recharge my batteries was a good option.
I was Awoken from my daze about 40 minutes later by strong gusts of wind and white caps pounding the side of the boat. In true Snowy Mountain fashion, someone had flicked the switch and the conditions had finally changed in our favour. When the winds pick up like this, there seems to be only one logical thing to do; Throw the waders back on, find a wind affected bank and stand right in the teeth of it whilst working the murky margins with slow calculated retrieves so we quickly made a B line to the nearest bank and docked the boat. The second I knocked my reel into gear I felt like we were back in the game. It didn’t take long to realise that we made the right choice as a belting 55cm+ rainbow trout followed my SP from the depths into the cloudy water churning up at my feet, breaching the water as it tried to figure out where the easy meal it was following had disappeared to. Looking around the lake it seemed as though the wind was already starting to ease off and this bite window was closing in as quickly as it had opened. We made the decision to cover the water quickly and throw a few cast each at the points we felt had the best chance of holding fish.
At only the second rocky point of our run I finally felt the classic BUMP of a fish as my long cast reached the edge of the discoloured water. I placed another cast past the spot and my Nitro 7ft Vapor was finally under the stress of a feisty mountain brown. Finally the duck egg was cracked and it was time to beat it. After a short display of aerobatics, she was in the net before a few quick pics and released to fight another day..
Still pumped from my drought breaker we quickly continued to work along the bank as the wind was well and truly dying off and the water was clearing up before our eyes. We came across a protruding rock bar and and I urged John to place a cast where the drop off steeply descended into what looked to be 2 meters of water..
His cast landed well past the point and as he worked his SP up along the gradient of the decent he was met violently by another snowy mountain brown, instantly taking to the air. At one stage, i felt as though the easiest way to get him in the net would be a tennis style backhand swipe as he leaped through the air at our feet. Finally, after his best effort he calmed down and swam slowly into the net for a quick pic to capture the moment. No release for this bad boy as he was coming home for dinner..
The last half and hour of the day saw a few half hearted follows and we watched as the water returned to its state of crystal clear perfection.. After a quick patrol of a few banks for no more love, we decided to hedge our bets and hit the road back to the nations capital to hopefully beat the hectic snow traffic. Although a tough day on the water, the beautiful conditions and small window of action was exceptionally rewarding.
Sticking to our plans and finally coming up with the goods in less then ideal conditions (for fishing not the fisherman) was enough to find myself booking in another trip in the coming weeks, stay tuned to the website and facebook for more updates.