By Jamie Coates
ARGUABLY our worst weekend of weather this year lashed the Limestone Coast in what was deemed by most as virtually unfishable.
But you know what us fishos are like, we just can not help ourselves.
A handful of anglers still hit the water and there were even a few fish caught.
The offshore fishing was non-existent over the weekend, although before the blow we did see a plenty of tuna.
Jason from Port MacDonnell Fishing Charters found a couple of barrels late last week on the lures, which is encouraging to see.
No doubt there are still plenty through here, we just need to get the weather to get out there again.
The school tuna are definitely in good supply and are spread out nicely from 20 metres of water and beyond.
The bottom fishing has been excellent when we can get there and it does not seem to matter if you want hapuka and blue eye over the shelf, flathead and nannygai in 80-100m or sharks throughout all depths, the fishing has been excellent.
After the big stir, things usually fire up for a couple of days and I am not expecting this to be any different.
The South East Amateur Surf Fishing Club held its Canunda surf competition over the weekend and it took a brave angler to hit the beach.
The wind and swell was next level, but hats off to the boys, they still fished and found a few to weigh in.
Sawmill was the winner with his salmon of 735g and the other winners included Craig Schmitt, Mark Hunter and Grady Janeway.
I did see a few pictures from the presentation and wind up and it looks like the crew had a pretty good night.
In regular surf fishing news, we have had a cracking start to the salmon season and after the last few years being pretty quiet compared to what were used to, I know there are lots of anglers who are chomping at the bit for this year.
When the weather has allowed, the gar fishing has been exceptional.
Big fish and good numbers have been a delight to anglers right along the southern coast.
Waders have probably had the most success, but as the weather settles, we will see the boaties back in on the action.
Areas such as the Petrified Forrest, Cape Douglas and Nene Valley have been great, but the fish are not limited to those areas.
There have also been a few tommy ruff and mullet cruising around too.
The fishing in the Glenelg River has been pretty good considering the conditions.
It looks a bit like a chocolate milkshake at the moment, but the bottom of the river is still in good condition and the fish are still feeding.
Sinkers are definitely the way to go at the moment, but bait is definitely the key.
Cut pilchard, whitebait and prawn are all effective, or if you have the means and know-how, scrub worm, spew worm and pod worm are all top live baits too.
Do not be discouraged by the water colour, it looks horrible and it is flowing hard, but the fish are still there.
They are down the bottom, still feeding and moving around and the only way to catch them is to go fishing.
We will do our best to keep everyone updated with the latest info as we hear it, so keep into it.
The coming weekend is unfortunately not all that better than the last one.
While the swell and wind are not extreme, they are still uncomfortable and might make for a river or inland weekend.
Here’s hoping we see some better weather real soon.
Until next week, safe fishing.
