PUBLICATION MAGAZINE VOLUME ONE final magazine siap | Page 26

TROLLING LAKE EILDON FOR TROUT
Trolling for Trout. by Neil Slater
A lot has been written about trolling
lures for trout. But little is penned
about the under utilized shallows
of a lake. Fly fishermen know about
it - so why do so few lure trollers
take advantage of the shallows?
The shallow margin of a lake is of-
ten where all the food is located.
This is because the light penetrates
the water easier in the shallower
water, which is essential for aquat-
ic weed growth. This thriving weed
provides food and shelter for insects
and small forage fish. So it makes
sense for larger fish, such as trout, to
hang about these areas during times
of hunger or opportunity. Of course,
midday on a sunny, dead - calm day
nudging 40oC is not the time to be
24
looking in shallow water for trout
that much prefer water temperatures
below 19 - 20oC. These are the days
of down rigging or deep bait fishing.
You need to pick your times carefully
for shallow water trout fishing. More
often than not, these ‘windows’ of op-
portunity last only a few hours during
first and last light. You must make
the most of your time on the water by
getting in the water before daybreak.
Best times of the year normally
coincide with the cooler months,
but rules are meant to be broken!
During summer, dawn is when
the water temperature is cool-
est, so it makes sense to get
out of bed early - the trout do!
Some of the best fishing can be had af-
ter a warm night when there are mud-
eye shucks all over the tree stumps.
This is a good indication there has
been a mudeye hatch recently and
the trout might still be in the shal-
lows hunting about for an easy feed.
Now many fly fishing enthusiasts
will say the trout will be focussed
totally on mudeye and will never
touch a lure. This is not always the
case. Trout can be just as much op-
portunistic as well as selective as far
as feeding goes and will quite often
slash at a lure that passes close by -
no matter what they are feeding on!
If a hungry fish is in the shallows
searching for mudeye and a small fish
happens by, he will not pass it up!