A summary of 2018/2019 season

We had three trips to Harrietville this season, Melbourne cup weekend in November for 4 days, Australia Day weekend in January and when Easter Monday lead into Anzac Day ( Thursday 25 April)  this year we had another four days in the north east. River height was great in November at about 1.30 but dropped to 1.20 in January and even lower in April at 1.16.  The fishing was great in November but really tough on both other occasions with trout being very hard to coax out into the feeding lanes. Low water levels mean that trout are wary and stay pretty close to safety. Took some nice fish each trip, but never really found the best fly in the last trip in Autumn. Most fish were taken on a nymph of some sort. Early season fishing when the river was fuller, meant better quality of trout were out and about. I'm really hoping we get a lot of rain over the winter break because the ovens river system really needs it.

Return to Alpine Arnica #1 - January 25-28 2018

Our favourite accommodation in Harrietville was available again after 2 years and we were very happy to use it. The weather was perfect, low 30s with a few thunderstorms over the evenings. River height was 1.29 which is perfect for fishing and about 9 cm deeper than the normal Summer flows I have experienced previous years. Arrived Wednesday afternoon and took a walk up through Grannies to School Bridge. Took 9 trout on a range of flies including a red tag beetle and a Glenn Innes hopper. I was surprised by the size and condition of the fish. Most were 30-35 cm and really eager to take the fly. Thursday morning I fished Frosty corner. Took a small rainbow in the first section up to the corner. Don't know why i can't get a fish out of that section , it looks really good. Made many fly changes and as I moved around the bend i was running out of options. Put on an Adams #12 and then the fun began. I took 25 trout in the next section. All rainbows and most were 30 plus with 4 in the 35-38 zone. I dropped the 2 best fish in successive casts and both did the same thing after being hooked. Leapt straight out of the water made a big splash and threw the hook. I wasn't happy. I returned each day to the second half of Frosty Corner and cleaned up each day. I took another 17 the following morning and all fish were very large in comparison to previous years. Tumblegum was quite reasonable with fish the same quality. The Howards bridge wade has really deteriorated over the last sea on or two. Not much definition in the river and theres a lot of walking between great places to fish, although their are a dozen massive trout in the Theatre Pool. I could see them all swimming about on the first day as I walked through. The next walk in from Grannies was promising until i got to the Theatre Pool. !2 people swimming in the water, just kept walking and will try for one of those trout next trip. All up, this was the best fishing Ive encountered up here. Plenty of fish as always, but the quality was magnificent. Hardly took a small trout, most above 32 cm with the largest , a brown trout at 40.5 cm from below the little logjam in the photo below. I took about 73 fish over the 4 days, an amazing trip.

First trip season 2017/18

I'd been waiting a while for this trip and when it finally arrived I found the river to be at 1.50m running clear and fast. It took me a while to get used to the high and fast water. It created too many drifts which were dragging in the current. Line mending was much more important and casting directly above me helped a lot. Caught some nice fish for the week, many about 30cm ,but nothing of any size above that. Got em on nymphs which were heavy, some took the large stimmy I used as  an indicator and I also got a few on a range of dry flies later in the week. The highlight of this trip was searching for and finding a nice open part of the West Branch. Only about 5km from Harrietville, 3.5 km on the dirt road. A great walk, some nice trout, but really only an option when the main river is flowing quickly. The first section of Tumblegum was also a great section of water at this level , but the second section was running quickly and hard to fish. Took about 45 trout for the four days. Temp was about 15-18 degrees with some sun, a few showers one morning and a couple of overcast days. This was also our last trip to Alpine Arnica No. 2 as its all been sold. Hopefully, next trip is back to Number 1 unit.

Harrietville with Glenn, Tony and Denis.

Getting all the blokes available was difficult enough but having them all fit was too much to expect and alas, it was the maestro, with a crook achilles, who couldn't fish with us. Anzac day fell on a Tuesday and this gave us a chance to get together for 4 days at Harrietville. Leading up to our trip, we'd had about 30 mm of rain which freshened up the river. On the Sunday morning the sun was out and the men were keen. First trip was to Frosty corner where another angler had already entered the river, bastard, that never happens in Harrietville. Drove down to Tumblegum where we fished for the morning. We worked away with dries and nymphs and although the fish were a bit difficult to find we managed to get amongst a few smaller ones. Both blokes enjoyed the river and its little pockets full of fish, the runs and riffles that all carry rainbows and the soft little pockets that sometimes hold browns and occasionally produce a surprise for the angler. In the afternoon we returned to Frosty Corner and managed to find a few more fish, nothing spectacular, but enough to keep us all interested. A few beers around the campfire and we hatched a plan for day 2. Weather was stable and we began the day at Granny's Pantry.We wandered up the river and tripped up a few more trout. Took the fellas up past Archies Pool and shared a few stories of Denis and the massive escapee he caught a few years ago. The afternoon was a trip to Bon Accord track. The river was beautiful up there. Plenty of fish and magnificent scenery, just perfect for a finale. We kept a running total of trout numbers and we managed 45 between us for the journey. Glenn and Tony returned to Melbourne on Tuesday morning because the rain began the previous night. Michele and I stayed the day and watched the rain tumble. 100mm of rain  at Mt Hotham that night. We returned to Melbourne with plans to do it again next season.

Harrietville March 2017

The weather was warm and stable for the 4 days, the river was at Summer height of 1.24 and I was keen to fish. I took a lot of trout over the  four days, 66 in total. Many of these were juvenile and keen to have a slash at anything that looked like food. The larger trout were very careful and much more selective and it took a while to work out what would constantly take a fish. I used a Glenn Innes hopper , elk hair caddis, yellow and red humpy and a couple of different Wulffs. Finally I started to get better fish on a green Humpy # 14 . that was a nice change because I tied it years ago but never sent it down the river. When I found some deeper water near Smoko I began with a larger red and yellow stimmy. My thoughts were that the larger fly might dissuade the little fish from having a crack. In a particularly nice gutter which ran at the rivers edge for 40 metres I took a beautiful brown trout of 43 cm. Great fish who'd been sitting at the food conveyer belt gobbling anything that came its way. I took some photos, put the tape measure on him and released him back to his home. Over the next few sessions i fished that water 3 more times and on one afternoon found a few more nice browns which were all over 35cm. The trailing Copper John worked well on those trout. We had a great trip to the North East and have another planned for April 22-25 with Denis, Glenn and Tony.

A trip to the KP

Weather had been fine, the river was holding a moderate flow and Summer was coming. Before the Parrot gets too low and heats up, we thought a trip over for a look was warranted. Glenn and I drove over in cloud and cool conditions and as we arrived at Kinglake the rain started and the weather was cool. We drove into Pheasant Creek and had a coffee while the weather cleared. We fished the Golden Mile and Glenn took a couple early, both on a dry. River looked beautiful and we were hopeful of more trout. The sun was trying to shine and we changed flies often trying to unlock todays secret fly. I managed a small trout with a nymph and also lost another small fish on a dry. A great day on the Parrot but I fear it might be the last for a while until we have a bit of cooler weather in March /April.

Season 2016-17 A trip to Owen River Lodge

If you have the best wife and family in the world, you'll know what this means. My surprise 60th birthday present was a trip to Owen River Lodge, the best large wild brown fishing lodge in the world. We made a two week trip out of this excursion but the fishing is what this blog is about.
I was told by my guide Pete, that modest returns of large fish was what I could expect. Modest, means 3-5 fish about 6lb is considered a good days fishing. I had three guided fishing days and was very excited. We fished the Wairou river on day 1. We lucked out with the weather and had the first sunny , windless day of the season. Pete tells me to go down and cast to the fish that he's spotted. I can't see it and ask for an exact position. He explains its lying behind the large rock about 2 metres out from the bank. I look closely and ask him where it is in relation to the large rock at the end of the shaley sand. He looks again and says to me " that's the bloody fish you donkey, cast at it" i cast a small fly, size 14 Para adams, the fish rises and I strike. What happens next was unbelievable. The fish rips up the river and takes about 30 metres of line. I can hardly hang on and after a long 10 minute fight i manage to get him in. A couple of quick snaps and I'm on the board with my first fish and plenty of photos. That fish was a modest 6 lb. We fish all day and managed 10 trout , a remarkable effort, for day 1. I missed plenty due to poor casting but over the next 2 days managed to land 18 trout. The two largest were 7lb and the remainder ranged between 3-6 lb. A combination of dry and wet flies were used . Lots of fly changes, thanks to Pete and Adam. They must have changed flies about 100 times each day. No more than 2 casts over any fish before a change of fly. The windy conditions were challenging on the morning of day 2 and I was only average to say the least. Need more practice at home before I fish in the wind again. It was an amazing experience, I'll never forget nearly being spooled by a fish. That big brown trout took my dry fly, charged upstream 50 metres, came charging back downstream with me following as fast as I could. Once the fish got below me, I had to run across the rocks and get below him. After a few leaps from the water, a couple of rapids and many attempts to bust me off I finally landed him 110 metres from where he was hooked, what a fish.
Sight fishing in NZ is fantastic but you need a guide to ensure success. Pete was sensational and found fish each day. I couldn't see them but he was great. Fishing a nymph blindly along those rivers could mean you might get a couple but the guides are worth their money and should be used if possible.

A visit to the McKenzie river at Zumsteins March 2016

We had an extra day at the Stawell Gift planned this year as Michele had some VAL work to do setting up photo finish cameras. I decided to take my fishing gear and wander up the creek from the picnic area to see if I could take a few fish. River was low and clear, as expected. I walked up the creek and fished the pocket water as best I could. Used a small red Humpy and managed to entice 4 small brown trout to the surface. They were very slow with the take and as they swam off just held the fly in their mouth. I only lipped the first 3 after waiting a long time to lift the rod but finally landed a fish about 25cm. I waited a ridiculous amount of time before lifting and I could see the fish 5 metres away with the fly in its mouth. A great 2 hour session on a fine sunny day.

Return to Harrietville, February 2016

I waited patiently for a return to my favourite river and the season was slipping away. Four days in February and another four in April built the anticipation of a great end to the season. Water levels were low but I was anxious to get onto the river. The afternoon we arrived was warm and sunny and I walked the traditional Howards Bridge wade. Glorious to finally be there. The trout were keen to have a crack at anything resembling food and I took about a dozen even though they were pretty spooky. Frosty Corner the next morning and although the weather was perfect the trout weren't keen at all. I managed about 5 and never felt as though I had the correct fly.  Water level was too low for a nymph so i ditched them and concentrated on the usual range of dry flies. Nothing really helped and I only managed a handful of trout for the next couple of days. The top section of Frosty Corner accounted for a dozen trout on day three when i used my Glenn Innes hopper. Took a couple of great browns there when the sun was on the water. I remember the Maestro told me one of the fish he ate was full of black beetles when he gutted it a couple of weeks earlier so the next day I waited for midday and used a black beetle. Very difficult to see, but as soon as it hit the water trout came from everywhere. Had a stellar afternoon taking great fish from very shallow water. Sensational angling and quiet stalking in tough conditions. Hooked a massive brown from amongst a log jam in Frosty Corner after a great cast. he took my beetle and after  10 seconds of being hooked shook his head and escaped to safety. I know where he lives and I'll be back in April.

We visit the King Parrot - November 2015

Introducing Glenn and Tony, my golfing mates, to the KP was a great opportunity to have a closer look at the creek after not visiting during last year.  The water level was very low, about 39cm, and I doubt if the creek will be running if we don't get some rain soon. Ventured to the creek about 10am and walked one of the more popular access points. Glenn walked downstream and was fishing with a nymph trailing a dry. Tony was fishing a small black nymph and I had an elk hair caddis with a small brown nymph. The sun was out and temperature about 20 degrees. We picked our way along the creek and I hooked a nice fish in an early deep pool with many log jams. Held the fish for a while but he was too good for me and shook himself off the hook after diving down into the logs. Second trout took the nymph and it also escaped without too much trouble. Glenn hadn't had much action and Tony hadn't fared any better. The creek looked very fishy and that kept us enthused. We all changed flies a number of times trying to find the right combination. I took two browns on a Glenn Innes Hopper while Glenn caught the fish of the day after working his magic at a nice run along the left bank of the creek. It was a beautiful brown about 32cm long and maybe 500-600grams. Great fish for this creek. Unfortunately, poor Tony went fish less for this trip but will be keen to make amends next time we fish together. If we get some regular rain the KP will be OK. without it, a poor season lies ahead.

A New Season Begins - October 5-7 2015

Denis and I planned a trip to Harrietville to coincide with a weeks leave he took. The weather was hot, a temperature of 32 degrees for much of the trip. Arrived, unpacked and decided to walk Frosty corner to begin with. As we walked to the river we both developed blisters on our feet which troubled us for the whole trip. We both began with nymphs and continued this way for the whole three days. I also used an elk hair caddis as an indicator. Unfortunately it never took a fish for the whole trip. All trout were caught on nymphs and the fish were generally around the 30-32 cm length and in top condition. A combination of browns and rainbows were taken. River height was 140cm.
The trophy was up for grabs and we took many fish along the way. Tuesday morning we waded
Howards bridge and at one stage stood shoulder to shoulder while taking 8 fish from the one run, all around the 30cm mark, fantastic angling. In the afternoon we went for a look at Smoko. It was just beautiful and we managed many fish during that session as well. As a cooler weather change came through the fishing started to die off a bit and Wednesday morning, before leaving for home we only took 8 trout. That gave us a total of 92 fish for the three days. All trout returned safely to the river. Denis took out the trophy with the best trout being 35cm rainbow taken from in the caravan park boundary.
I have seen the error of my ways and am really liking fishing with the nymph. I even got rid of the caddis indicator and used a small foam indicator on the final morning. This made my fly very easy to see and much more enjoyable. I  even made plans to make a nymph box for myself, wow, things have really changed.

Two final trips for 2015 - Harrietville

Denis and I found an empty weekend and decided at short notice to go fishing for the weekend. Left home Friday morning and were fishing at Smoko by 3.00pm. Water was low at 1.23 and weather was perfect. We waded that section of difficult water and caught 40 trout. A few good ones amongst them and we had a great afternoon struggling through the overgrown river. Midway through Denis added a nymph to his dry fly and out fished me 5 to 1. The nymph was taking plenty, with great reluctance I added one to my dry as well and joined the fun. A great start to the trip. Next day we fished Howards bridge and Frosty corner and ended the day at Tom Bibby bridge. The Keenan Taylor trophy was up for grabs and I finally nailed the winning fish in the last pool at Tom Bibby, a 37 cm Brown. We took 114 trout for the weekend including a number of fish around 34 cm which were in beautiful condition.
20-24 April
Michele and I had a week to remember. Arrived on Monday departed Friday. Rain had fallen the previous weekend and the river was back to 1.30cm, a perfect height. Tuesday morning i took 3 good fish at school bridge as I walked past on my way to Grannies pantry.  Took another 13 as I walked back home. After lunch I quickly waded Frosty corner . Caught plenty but it was very windy and I was pressed for time. Michele picked me up and I had about 25 for the day. In the morning I managed about 10 about 34cm which is a good stream fish for the Ovens.
Wednesday morning I waded Smoko. Had a tandem rig including an Elk hair caddis and a trailing nymph. Couple of fish in the first couple of runs and fished the deeper pools up river. At the top of the run a magnificent brown trout appeared from 40cm of water. She turned, her big white mouth opened and engulfed my caddis. I waited for her to turn and lifted my rod. Got her, worked her carefully down stream through the pool to a small island of stones where I landed her gently and kept her in a small pool of water. She was a monster, beautifully marked and recovering in the shallow water. I took photos, measured her carefully and just looked at how fat she was. After taking the caddis out of her mouth I held her in two hands and walked her up to the pool where she lived. As she entered the water her mouth opened a few times and she flicked her tail and gently swam away. An amazing moment for me.

Harrietville 2015

A couple of trips early in the New Year seemed like a great way to begin our retirement. Jan 27 and 28, as teachers returned to school, Mich and I headed up the highway. The usual occurred once we arrived at Alpine Arnica. The weather was perfect, the river height was good and the fish were on the chew. Managed to nail a few nice fish and we finally jumped into the car Friday morning and head up the Kiewa Valley Highway to Albury for the Gift.
The second trip was a spur of the moment one and again everything worked well. The 4 days accounted for nearly 50 trout, including a couple of very nice fish. The largest was a brown of 38cm. There were a few other good fish and plenty of smaller rainbows that were eager to smash the small elk hair caddis I was using. I took a nice brown trout from next to the ice cream shop and saw a beautiful big brown trout mooching around on dusk in the same spot. Went back each night to try again but only saw him the one night. The trout I caught from that pool finally took a small black ant I used after many changes of my fly. That was great angling and I enjoyed the challenge, with success in the end. Also had a visit from Huddo for a Saturday matinee at the Smoko section of the river. We took 16 fish between us and walked all the way through to the bridge. The next section leading up to Tom Bibby bridge will be something to try on my next visit.

Day 3- Harrietville trip 2014

I was pretty keen to have an enjoyable final day and particularly anxious to have a look at the area around Freeburgh. Beautiful skies, clear and warm.  The river was magic but after a beautiful walk up the river ended up with 2 marginal trout. Not much to speak of really. Used nymphs, hoppers, mayflies and wulffs, with the small mayfly doing the job. The afternoon was my last walk on the Ovens for this trip. Waded from Grannies to School bridge. Not a lot of fishing involved after I had a companion follow me for about a km of river. Every time I cast he thought it was a game and jumped into the water. I saw the monster Denis caught a couple of weeks ago have a look at my Humpy but as he was moving through the water the dog jumped in and the trout swam back to safety. Beautiful fish, I'm glad I saw him after all.

Day 2 Harrietville trip

The morning dawned with clear sky and mild weather, perfect conditions for me. I walked down to Archie's bridge and began with a nymph. Got a few nice trout early and once i arrived at the deep hole where they measure the river depth I tied on a very heavy nymph to get down deep. No action for quite a while but its far to good not to hold fish. I had a massive hit on the fly and of course missed the take. Got a couple more on the way and decided to fish up to school bridge. Had a couple hit my indicator and one fish in particular displaced a lot of water. I cleared up the access to that hole as I walked past. I'll try for him again tomorrow. Got up near the road and took two more fish from the run below the bridge. Another cast and a big take saw me hook into the biggest fish I've had on a hook. A big brown trout, very very dark on top and a deep golden colour. I couldn't control him at all. He took me to the top of the pool many times and then back to his rocks. I fought him and kept him out. He took me into the reeds but I kept him out as well. I had big pressure on him for a long time between the rock, the reeds and the current that ran between both snags. Couldn't get him to come down stream into quieter water. I could see how big he was and I desperately wanted to put a tape on him, but the pressure was too much and one more time between snags and as he went across the current he flipped off and skulked away under the reeds. My heart was racing and I couldn't believe what I nearly managed to do. I know where he lives and I'll get him again one day. Gotta love nymphing. I walked up under the bridge and caught a couple of other trout but couldn't concentrate so walked back home for lunch. Lunch in Bright and a walk around is always nice. Decided to just fish the East branch from the junction up under school bridge in the afternoon. Tried hard to catch the two fish I missed but they were both sooking from this morning I think. Caught a beautiful rainbow above the bridge and had an audience while doing so. He was difficult to manage as bigger fish can be. After landing him and getting a couple of photos I released him and the lady that was watching gave me a clap.

Harrietville trip 24-28 November

Michele and I have regular trips to the North East. While I fish, Michele normally works on a scrapbooking project. This week was no exception. We arrived Monday afternoon and I prepared myself for a quick trip along the river before dark. As I walked to the door I heard a massive clap of thunder and down came the rain. No fishing Monday evening but 28 mm of rain to freshen things up. Up early Tuesday and a walk up from Howards Bridge to Archies bridge. Took 7 in that trip using a nymph and another 4 in the West branch on a red Humpy in the afternoon. Managed to foul hook 3 trout, one in the eye and 2 in the bum. a great start to the week. Photos are of the brown from west branch and Michele's Christmas boxes for this years guests.

Harrietville October 2014

A new season starts with a trip to the North East with Denis and Rod. Left Melbourne early Friday morning and were wading the river about 3.30. Decided on the Howards bridge wade. I managed a few early on a Red Wulf while the others decided to use a nymph. I couldn't believe it, sun's out still day and they wanted to cheat with a nymph. I was trying to find them both a worm. Denis got a good fish late in the arvo and Rod also managed 2 for the day. The first hooked itself but he genuinely hooked the second. We were tired but looking forward to another full day on our favourite river.

An early morning and on the river at 7.00 Rod and I fished Howards again while Denis fished from Archie's bridge back to the caravan park. Enough trout for us all and we continued to be interested. Mid morning, a journey to Freeburgh.  River looked fantastic but we couldn't get a fish so bailed out and went back to the caravan for a short rest and a plan for the afternoon.

Rod and I walked up the Bon Accord section for one small trout and Denis fished Archie's bridge back to the caravan park.  A few fish for the Maestro but he also missed 6.  They're hard to catch with worms, sorry nymphs. Once we returned I took Rod to the back of the oval for an hours fishing before dark. Showed him the Honey hole and bingo, 3 trout from the hole and missed 2 as well. Amazing.  I got another up further and we returned to the van for a BBQ, bundy and a sit by the fire. Another great day.

Sunday morning saw us wake and move to different sections of the river. Denis had a crack at Frosty corner, and then Howards bridge, while Rod and I walked the section from Archies bridge to the caravan park. Denis got a couple and was holding the trophy with a best fish of 34 cm. We decided to count it even though it was caught on a nymph. Creeping along the West branch was magic and Rod had finally crossed from the darkside and was using a 14 red humpy. A crisp cast to the little gutter on the right and a slow soft slurp saw his Humpy disappear. He hooked and played out a beautiful brown trout. After putting the tape on it a number of times it measured 34.4 cm. The winning fish for the weekend. I continued up the west branch and in the last 400 meters , including the section in the caravan park took 6 trout and missed 1. A great way to finish off a sensational weekend chasing trout in our favourite river.

A trip to the Rubicon

Was keen to explore this part of the fishing world. All the planets aligned and I headed off early in the morning. A 2 hour trip was what I expected and after a quick look at the Kendall camp area, up past Rubicon, I returned to Tumbling Waters and hopped into the river. Never been there before and I had a very enjoyable day. The river was amazing and I expected fish to be all over my hopper, but no joy. The first fish was caught at Kendall on a Wulff and the second took a small olive dun. I look forward to returning soon.

The old favourite...again.

After getting a few yesterday I didn't need to venture over the Gap to Mountain Creek. Decided to walk from Howard's bridge again this morning. It's just a great wade. Water is beautiful, the banks are pretty clear and it's about as easy as it gets on a river. Had a couple of small fish slash at the elk hair caddis but no luck. I took a medium sized brown on a small mayfly. Nice fish sitting in the river where you would expect him to be. Always great to put a bend in the rod. In the afternoon I waded Frosty corner. Only a few hundred meters and I saw a couple of small trout slash at my hopper. On the final bend I took another medium rainbow and saw one other. This was also the day of Archie Wilson funeral. He would have been pleased with the turnout. All of Harrietville must have been at his place for the funeral.