MASSIVE seas over the last week really slowed down just about everyone along the coast, but the coming days look like they should settle enough to allow us back onto the water.
The offshore fishing was a bit slow thanks to the conditions, but the small windows of fishable weather allowed a few crews on bigger boats the opportunity to head out quickly.
I have seen some lovely shark captures, with both gummy and school shark boated, along with a few nice flathead, nannygai and blue morwong.
The anglers fishing in closer along the coast have found some lovely snapper, with a few nice 60cm plus models being tagged and released and a couple of smaller ones coming home for the table.
The snapper closure started at midday yesterday and runs through until midday on December 15, so just remember to pop back any snapper you catch while targeting other species.
Surf fishos have had a battle on their hands over the past week, with the big swell and strong winds making the going tough.
Those who are not put off by the rough weather have been rewarded for their efforts, with a few nice gummy shark and mulloway hitting the sand.
With such rough weather, weed can be a problem, but often a move of a couple hundred meters can see you overcome that.
The areas on the Victorian side of the Glenelg River mouth have seen some excellent fishing, but the walk is a bit of deterrent for a few.
The land-based guys in Portland have seen some excellent snapper fishing off the Lee Breakwater, with several fish around that 5kg mark landed.
The big seas often bring with them the bigger snapper, so when the weather is too bad to head offshore, the Lee is always a good option.
The whiting fishing in the protected bays has continued to improve.
I am hearing more reports now of anglers catching good numbers of bigger fish.
The Port MacDonnell breakwater is always worth a shot, as it is fishable in just about all weather, where as some of the other hot spots are a bit more exposed and unsafe in big swells.
The land-based guys are finding reasonable fish in the late afternoons and into the evenings off Blackfellows Caves and the Port MacDonnell jetty, so the signs are there for another bumper season.
Mullet numbers have continued to impress again this week, with some nice catches coming from the Red Rock and Lighthouse Bay areas.
There are also plenty of tommy ruff and salmon trout poking around too.
Gar numbers have remained excellent again this week despite the weather and the fishos in Cape Douglas have been catching some lovely fish.
There have been some more reports of plenty of trout coming from Lake Wallace in Edenhope over the past week, which is just in time for the first annual fishing competition happening this weekend.
There are loads of prizes for seniors and juniors and with camping available along the lake, I am sure it will be an excellent weekend.
The Glenelg River has fished extremely well this week, with mulloway reports coming from far and wide.
One crew fished the Wilsons Hall area early in the week and found excellent numbers of big bream and even managed to boat five keeper mulloway.
Sandy Waterholes has been fishing well, with bream and perch quite consistent.
There have been mulloway reports from that area and the guys with good fish finders in their boats have reported some nice schools cruising around.
There have not been many reports from the estuary this week, but the weather has made trolling hard for the guys in the putters.
The Glenelg River Angling Club kicks off their season this weekend with the first competition taking place on Saturday.
If you would like any information on the club or its competitions, pop in and see either Craig or myself at the shop, and we will point you in the right direction.
The forecast for the weekend at the moment has been a bit up and down, but fingers crossed it settles down enough so we can head out for a look.
Until next week, safe fishing.
