EUCUMBENE NOVEMBER 2012 TRIP REPORT
Even before the heyday of Lake Eucumbene, Club trips to the Snowy Mountains area were a regular event, with some great fishing in both the river before it was dammed, and in then in the newly created lake in the 60’s and 70’s. However, it has been over twenty years since the Wangaratta Club has had an official trip to Lake Eucumbene, mainland Australia’s “premier trout fishing” venue (or so it read on the blurb on the website for Anglers Reach). But this was about to change when following reports of good fishing as the lake filled and covered new ground, it was decided to make Lake Eucumbene the venue for the Club’s major trip of 2012.
Greg Wood was charged with finding a venue for the trip and had booked the Lodge at the Anglers Reach Holiday Park on the banks of Lake Eucumbene for the Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. This was to be a fully catered trip, with Chris Beilby volunteering to organise the catering for the trip. Now all we had to do was organise both the weather and the fish to be kind to a bunch of fly fishers from south of the border............
An early start on Friday morning meant that after packing the gear in Chris’s four wheel drive, and picking up Nathan, we were on our way before 8:00 am. Apart from a coffee stop in Corryong (and another “special” fly from the barber shop opposite the bakery went into the fly box), the journey was uneventful and we pulled into Anglers Reach at about 12:30 pm. No other cars were at the Lodge, but Gary and Mike had dropped off their gear and had gone off fishing somewhere. We did likewise, unpacking and having a quick bite to eat, before heading off to the lake. On the way up to the lodge we had noted that there were several cars along the river at Kiandra so the lake looked like a good option. According to the Park owner Fiona, Yens Bay was the place to go for a spot of fly fishing and when we pulled up beside the lake it was obviously also the spot to go for a bit of bait fishing and lure fishing!
There was a surprisingly strong westerly breeze blowing up the bay making spotting fish challenging, and casting even more challenging. Three hours of flogging to apparently empty water was enough and a re-group back at the lodge was called for, with a necessary detour via Adaminiby to pick up a few essential supplies from the Snow Goose. Back at the lodge we caught up with Gary and Mike who had had an equally fruitless session on the Eucumbene River below the bridge. A couple of refreshing cold ales and nibbles, and the batteries were re-charged sufficiently to have an evening session on the lake.
Even before the heyday of Lake Eucumbene, Club trips to the Snowy Mountains area were a regular event, with some great fishing in both the river before it was dammed, and in then in the newly created lake in the 60’s and 70’s. However, it has been over twenty years since the Wangaratta Club has had an official trip to Lake Eucumbene, mainland Australia’s “premier trout fishing” venue (or so it read on the blurb on the website for Anglers Reach). But this was about to change when following reports of good fishing as the lake filled and covered new ground, it was decided to make Lake Eucumbene the venue for the Club’s major trip of 2012.
Greg Wood was charged with finding a venue for the trip and had booked the Lodge at the Anglers Reach Holiday Park on the banks of Lake Eucumbene for the Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. This was to be a fully catered trip, with Chris Beilby volunteering to organise the catering for the trip. Now all we had to do was organise both the weather and the fish to be kind to a bunch of fly fishers from south of the border............
An early start on Friday morning meant that after packing the gear in Chris’s four wheel drive, and picking up Nathan, we were on our way before 8:00 am. Apart from a coffee stop in Corryong (and another “special” fly from the barber shop opposite the bakery went into the fly box), the journey was uneventful and we pulled into Anglers Reach at about 12:30 pm. No other cars were at the Lodge, but Gary and Mike had dropped off their gear and had gone off fishing somewhere. We did likewise, unpacking and having a quick bite to eat, before heading off to the lake. On the way up to the lodge we had noted that there were several cars along the river at Kiandra so the lake looked like a good option. According to the Park owner Fiona, Yens Bay was the place to go for a spot of fly fishing and when we pulled up beside the lake it was obviously also the spot to go for a bit of bait fishing and lure fishing!
There was a surprisingly strong westerly breeze blowing up the bay making spotting fish challenging, and casting even more challenging. Three hours of flogging to apparently empty water was enough and a re-group back at the lodge was called for, with a necessary detour via Adaminiby to pick up a few essential supplies from the Snow Goose. Back at the lodge we caught up with Gary and Mike who had had an equally fruitless session on the Eucumbene River below the bridge. A couple of refreshing cold ales and nibbles, and the batteries were re-charged sufficiently to have an evening session on the lake.
Back at Yens Bay the breeze had dropped and the lake was calming off nicely. Chris and I wandered along the bank looking for signs of movement or rises. Nothing moved and after about 500 metres of walking, at a likely looking shallow bay, I decided to have a cast while we waited for the action to begin. Stripping the line off in preparation for casting, I flicked the fly into the water, right on top of a cruising brown which promptly grabbed the hamills killer and put a nice bend in the 6 wt Helios. A short while later, a well conditioned two and half pound brown was on the bank. Further casting did not repeat the experience, however just on dark a small rise did happen, with all three of us getting hits but the tally was only one small rainbow. As the last light faded, the rises stopped and it was back to the lodge for dinner. By the time we got back the full crew had arrived, Greg who had had a successful day on the river, and Blair, Dave and Steve who had had a less successful day on the river but had landed a few at the Snow Goose on the way back! The lodge was very comfortable accommodation and after a meal of barbequed kebabs and a few glasses of red, all thoughts of a night fishing session quickly dissipated and were replaced with thoughts of tomorrow’s fishing plans...........................
A pre-dawn session by a few of us seemed like a good idea the night before, but -3 degree temperatures had not been anticipated! Down at the lake the water looked good but no fish were moving. In fact nothing moved until the sun hit the water when a few caddis fluttered out onto the lake, prompting a sporadic rise. The lake was proving challenging and by 8:30 am the thought of bacon and eggs on the BBQ was starting to seem like a good idea. After breakfast we buddied up for the day’s fishing, with river fishing on the agenda. Chris and I headed up to the upper ’bigee for some small river fishing. The day had turned out to be fine and sunny, perfect for the dry fly. The river itself had some colour but otherwise looked good (how looks can be deceiving). Walking downstream a couple of kilometres, we started fishing with a nymph under a dry through the runs and holes but not a sign of a fish. No takes, nothing spooked. After an hour of fruitless casting our initial optimism was starting to fade. It was a great location but no fish – water rats and snakes but no fish. We relocated a few kilometres further upstream but with the same result. My conclusion was that the section of river was devoid of fish, but who knows? At about 2:30 pm we gave it away and headed back to the lodge. Mike and Gary were already back and had better luck in a tributary of the Murrumbigee. Dave, Blair and Steve arrived back an hour or so later and had apparently done a fair bit of walking to get to a section of the Murrumbigee that produced some good fish. Greg and Nathan arrived shortly after and had also had a good session on the Eucumbene, with half a dozen fish landed.
A pre-dawn session by a few of us seemed like a good idea the night before, but -3 degree temperatures had not been anticipated! Down at the lake the water looked good but no fish were moving. In fact nothing moved until the sun hit the water when a few caddis fluttered out onto the lake, prompting a sporadic rise. The lake was proving challenging and by 8:30 am the thought of bacon and eggs on the BBQ was starting to seem like a good idea. After breakfast we buddied up for the day’s fishing, with river fishing on the agenda. Chris and I headed up to the upper ’bigee for some small river fishing. The day had turned out to be fine and sunny, perfect for the dry fly. The river itself had some colour but otherwise looked good (how looks can be deceiving). Walking downstream a couple of kilometres, we started fishing with a nymph under a dry through the runs and holes but not a sign of a fish. No takes, nothing spooked. After an hour of fruitless casting our initial optimism was starting to fade. It was a great location but no fish – water rats and snakes but no fish. We relocated a few kilometres further upstream but with the same result. My conclusion was that the section of river was devoid of fish, but who knows? At about 2:30 pm we gave it away and headed back to the lodge. Mike and Gary were already back and had better luck in a tributary of the Murrumbigee. Dave, Blair and Steve arrived back an hour or so later and had apparently done a fair bit of walking to get to a section of the Murrumbigee that produced some good fish. Greg and Nathan arrived shortly after and had also had a good session on the Eucumbene, with half a dozen fish landed.
An early lamb roast dinner left plenty of time for a session on the lake. The bay in front of the lodge was sheltered from the breeze and a nice little rise started as the sun went down behind the hill. Matching the hatch proved difficult and despite several fly changes and fishing on into the dark, no takes resulted and the warmth of the lodge was beckoning. The contents of a few bottles of red and port disappeared as the evening wore on, and the level of certain member’s bottle of single malt seemed to be falling steadily. Some great tales were told and fish were re-caught, but after a 5:30 am start, the number of fisho’s around the table gradually dropped off and when I retired the three stayers were making sure an open bottle of port (or was it muscat) didn’t need to be re-corked.
No early morning fishing session on Sunday morning, and compared with the previous day’s effort, the day got underway at a more civilised time. Freshly brewed coffee and a cooked breakfast got the day underway nicely. Blair and Steve were heading back to Wangaratta after breakfast due to work commitments on Monday, leaving seven of us to plan the days fishing. A change of fishing partners saw myself, Greg and Mike in one party, and Dave, Chris, Gary and Nathan in the other. Our party planned to head up the Eucumbene River, while the other party hit the Yarrangobilly River. It wasn’t far up the road to the spot Greg had picked to try, but it was disappointing to find three cars already parked beside the river, with two fly fishers heading upstream and two already downstream! Initial thoughts were to head somewhere-else, however, on closer inspection the two fishers downstream were actually heading back towards the car and as it was only 9:30 am it meant they couldn’t have gone very far down. We had a chat to them and found they’d only fished 500 metres down, so we tackled up and walked downstream about two kilometres and started fishing back upstream. A hook up to a nice rainbow in the first run on a nymph under the dry boded well for the day (not actually landed but still a good start). Working our way up Greg landed a couple of nice fish and things were looking good. How quickly things can change in fishing, when about half way back, an angler fishing a weighted nymph under an indicator on spinning gear appeared. He and two of his mates were fishing their way down apparently oblivious to the fact that it stuffed our fishing plan. It had been obvious from where our car was parked that there was at someone fishing downstream but I feel that finer points of river etiquette would have been lost on them! We decided to quickly fish our way back to the car and plan what to do for the afternoon (Mike decided to head straight back to the car and find some warm clothes after “testing” the temperature of the river using the immersion method). Of interest, Greg and I caught four fish on the way back, all just below the car.
No early morning fishing session on Sunday morning, and compared with the previous day’s effort, the day got underway at a more civilised time. Freshly brewed coffee and a cooked breakfast got the day underway nicely. Blair and Steve were heading back to Wangaratta after breakfast due to work commitments on Monday, leaving seven of us to plan the days fishing. A change of fishing partners saw myself, Greg and Mike in one party, and Dave, Chris, Gary and Nathan in the other. Our party planned to head up the Eucumbene River, while the other party hit the Yarrangobilly River. It wasn’t far up the road to the spot Greg had picked to try, but it was disappointing to find three cars already parked beside the river, with two fly fishers heading upstream and two already downstream! Initial thoughts were to head somewhere-else, however, on closer inspection the two fishers downstream were actually heading back towards the car and as it was only 9:30 am it meant they couldn’t have gone very far down. We had a chat to them and found they’d only fished 500 metres down, so we tackled up and walked downstream about two kilometres and started fishing back upstream. A hook up to a nice rainbow in the first run on a nymph under the dry boded well for the day (not actually landed but still a good start). Working our way up Greg landed a couple of nice fish and things were looking good. How quickly things can change in fishing, when about half way back, an angler fishing a weighted nymph under an indicator on spinning gear appeared. He and two of his mates were fishing their way down apparently oblivious to the fact that it stuffed our fishing plan. It had been obvious from where our car was parked that there was at someone fishing downstream but I feel that finer points of river etiquette would have been lost on them! We decided to quickly fish our way back to the car and plan what to do for the afternoon (Mike decided to head straight back to the car and find some warm clothes after “testing” the temperature of the river using the immersion method). Of interest, Greg and I caught four fish on the way back, all just below the car.
The weather had been threatening all day and back at the car a black cloud came over the hill with a short flurry of sleet and some rather large hail falling, but it didn’t last long. The other cars by the river had left so it was decided to try fishing upstream despite the fact that it had been fished earlier in the morning. With more black clouds threatening and no other change of clothes, Mike decided to fish up from the car if the weather took up, while Greg and I would hike upstream before starting to fish (with our wet weather gear handy if required, including Greg’s snow storm cammo gear). Despite the weather and wind (or perhaps because of it?), the fishing turned out to be pretty good. Both Greg and I landed some nice fish on nymphs, both rainbows and browns, including a cracker of a rainbow that Greg hooked at the head of a nice pool. Several leaps, followed by a strong fight saw a 3 lb+ rainbow in the net, with the last half of the fight caught on video. A couple of photos and the fish went back into the pool, and we fished on. The afternoon session saw a half dozen fish landed, but by 4:30 pm it was time to head over the hill back to the car (make that several hills!), with the promise of a cold ale waiting in Greg’s Engel to keep us going.
The other crew were already back at the lodge, having fished the lower Yarragobilly River. Dave had dropped a nice fish at the start of their session, and while other fish were caught, the size was smaller than hoped for. The wind had not dropped in strength and there was no enthusiasm for an evening attack on the lake. Instead we settled in for a steak on the BBQ and a vegetable pie side dish (with many thanks to Kath Beilby). A surprise visit by a group of Greenwells Fly Fishers who happened to spot Gary cooking the steaks on the BBQ revealed that Greenwells was also having a weekend at Anglers Reach and were camped just down the road in the caravan park. A few more bottles of red were enjoyed as the evening progressed, with a bottle of port magically appearing in front of Greg later in the evening as talk turned to the final day of the trip. It was the final day for all of us except Greg. Greg was planning to do some adventure fishing in the Snowy Mountains for the rest of the week, with two walks planned, the first into the headwaters of the Tumut River and the second into the headwaters of the Tooma River. All his gear for camping and fishing was to be packed into one backpack, with a final weight of 20+ kg. For the rest of us, the plan was a bit less adventurous, a stop on the Nariel on the way back for a final fish.
With the cars packed and the lodge cleaned, we bid farewell to Greg and wished him luck for his trek into the Tumut and Tooma Rivers, and left the Club’s PLB (personal locating beacon) with him, just in case of an unforeseen event on his trekking. The weather wasn’t the greatest but it would hopefully clear up by the time we got to Corryong. With the Range Rover in “sport mode” the trip back through the Snowy Mountains was reasonably quick, only slowed down by a necessary stop at Ogilvies – not for a fish but for the rear seat passengers who were a bit on the seedy side, to recover. The day cleared nicely by the timed we were descending back into Victoria and the Nariel beckoned, but not before mandatory caffeine fix at the café in Corryong. Chris and Dave dropped Nathan and myself at the third bridge on the Nariel and headed further upstream. The plan was for a coupled of hours fishing, which based on previous experience should be enough time to cover a few fish – nice theory. The reality was that we cast to a couple of fish, with one brief hook up, but the fish were fairly spooky and had obviously been fished over in the past day or so. All too soon it was time to head back to the bridge to meet up with Chris and Dave. They had fared better, each landing a fish of around the 1 lb mark, but also found the fishing challenging. Mike and Gary had fished at the second bridge and had also encountered similar conditions. With the car heading back down the Highway, the trip was drawing to a close, and while the fishing had not been easy (is it ever!), it was agreed that it had been a successful trip and plans for next year were already being discussed (unfortunately the lodge was already booked for 2013 so a different venue will need to be found, maybe a different location). A big part of the success of the trip was venue and the catering, thank you to Greg and Chris, but most important part was the companionship of the Wang crew.
Cheers
RB
The other crew were already back at the lodge, having fished the lower Yarragobilly River. Dave had dropped a nice fish at the start of their session, and while other fish were caught, the size was smaller than hoped for. The wind had not dropped in strength and there was no enthusiasm for an evening attack on the lake. Instead we settled in for a steak on the BBQ and a vegetable pie side dish (with many thanks to Kath Beilby). A surprise visit by a group of Greenwells Fly Fishers who happened to spot Gary cooking the steaks on the BBQ revealed that Greenwells was also having a weekend at Anglers Reach and were camped just down the road in the caravan park. A few more bottles of red were enjoyed as the evening progressed, with a bottle of port magically appearing in front of Greg later in the evening as talk turned to the final day of the trip. It was the final day for all of us except Greg. Greg was planning to do some adventure fishing in the Snowy Mountains for the rest of the week, with two walks planned, the first into the headwaters of the Tumut River and the second into the headwaters of the Tooma River. All his gear for camping and fishing was to be packed into one backpack, with a final weight of 20+ kg. For the rest of us, the plan was a bit less adventurous, a stop on the Nariel on the way back for a final fish.
With the cars packed and the lodge cleaned, we bid farewell to Greg and wished him luck for his trek into the Tumut and Tooma Rivers, and left the Club’s PLB (personal locating beacon) with him, just in case of an unforeseen event on his trekking. The weather wasn’t the greatest but it would hopefully clear up by the time we got to Corryong. With the Range Rover in “sport mode” the trip back through the Snowy Mountains was reasonably quick, only slowed down by a necessary stop at Ogilvies – not for a fish but for the rear seat passengers who were a bit on the seedy side, to recover. The day cleared nicely by the timed we were descending back into Victoria and the Nariel beckoned, but not before mandatory caffeine fix at the café in Corryong. Chris and Dave dropped Nathan and myself at the third bridge on the Nariel and headed further upstream. The plan was for a coupled of hours fishing, which based on previous experience should be enough time to cover a few fish – nice theory. The reality was that we cast to a couple of fish, with one brief hook up, but the fish were fairly spooky and had obviously been fished over in the past day or so. All too soon it was time to head back to the bridge to meet up with Chris and Dave. They had fared better, each landing a fish of around the 1 lb mark, but also found the fishing challenging. Mike and Gary had fished at the second bridge and had also encountered similar conditions. With the car heading back down the Highway, the trip was drawing to a close, and while the fishing had not been easy (is it ever!), it was agreed that it had been a successful trip and plans for next year were already being discussed (unfortunately the lodge was already booked for 2013 so a different venue will need to be found, maybe a different location). A big part of the success of the trip was venue and the catering, thank you to Greg and Chris, but most important part was the companionship of the Wang crew.
Cheers
RB