Episode 31: Eildon Area Trout With Jarrod Day

Jarrod’s Top Tips For Targeting River Trout

• Switching the treble hooks on your hard body lures for single hooks is a great strategy for hooking more fish and keeping them hooked. It also reduces the risk of getting snagged.
• Use Google Maps satellite view to identify bridges that give access to rivers and structures or stream features that might hold trout. Wading upstream and casting ahead reduces the chances of spooking trout, which are always facing into the current. Be sure and focus on logs, boulders and other features that trout might be holding near.
• Many streams in this area are wadable under normal conditions, but rainfall or irrigation release can make the water too deep or fast flowing at times and you may need to walk the banks instead. Be safe when wading deep water, wear a wader belt.
• Brown trout are lazy and tend to hold in slower flowing parts of the stream. Rainbow trout will often hold position in faster flowing water.
• Using a long leader (3-4m of fluorocarbon) allows for plenty of lure changes without having to re-tie a new leader, Use a good loop knot to attach lures to the line, as it maximises the action of the lure.
• Summer is a great time of year for fish for smaller sized trout in gin clear water. May to Jun/July (before the season closes) sees large spawning fish move upstream and these can be targeted using the techniques Jarrod describes in the shallow creeks

Jarrod’s Trout Fishing Outfit

• Jarrod uses a 1000 size Shimano Stradic CI4 because it’s very light and there is zero chance of getting spooled in a small stream. A Wilson Venom 1-3kg rod is ideal and super lightweight. Mustad hi-vis orange braid (1-3 kg) is great for visibility and a 3kg fluorocarbon leader complete the outfit

Jarrod’s Best Trout Lures For Streams In The Eildon Area

• For early morning or late evening when trout are feeding on the surface a MegaBass tiny cicada is the goods. Cast the lure well ahead and simply wind it quickly enough for the wings to create a surface commotion. The line needs to be tight and the retrieve must be fast enough that it works.
• For shallow riffle fishing in water from ankle deep to around 80cm of water depth a shallow diving minnow is a good choice. Jarrod nominated a 60mm Yakamito Slim Minnow. This can be worked slowly and will be effective, but Jarrod prefers to work them quickly and aggressively with lots of rod tip action.
• For deeper water at the head of a pool, perhaps 1-2m depth Jarrod recommends a Zerek Tango, fitted with single hooks to enhance snag resistance.

Jarrod’s Thoughts On Fishing Sponsorships

• The proliferation of social media has resulted in an illusion that anyone can get a free handout by posting a few pictures or videos on Facebook, Instagram or other platforms and hashtagging a bunch of companies.
• The reality is that sponsorship generally goes to those who give companies value. If your aim is to build a career in the fishing sector it’s best to focus on producing plenty of good quality information and content, focusing on helping others and adding value to the fishing industry. Building an audience is vital and superficial approaches rarely work.