No bream were caught while making this report

[ChrisD]

Spent some hours on the Nong this morning using worms, chicken and lures. After half and hour and many casts I snagged and lost my cranka crab, changed to a vibe and promptly lost that as well. After many four letter words to describe my lure fishing skills I switched both rods to bait.
Although I could see many good sized bream - all I could catch were these little bloody bait stealers.
Towards the end I tried throwing some lures again.....grrrr another two lost for no fish...........many more four letter words said......
I have concluded I am most definitely a bait fisho.....
End of the morning saw no bream caught and four lures lost......those nong bream are still eluding me.....

Think I will chase up some redfin in the Yarra tonight to make up for this morning......

[benders]

I know the feeling. I took the kids for a picnic about 300 metres downstream of where you were at about 11 o'clock. I could see a whole bunch of little bream and toadies. Dropped bait down by itself, it was smashed. Put a hook in it and they leave it alone. Methinks they have seen it before. Might try again tonight without little helpers.

[Fish-cador]

they are hard to catch lately. They are plucking stuff off Mordi pier pylons but they are frustratingly difficult to catch. I was dropping lures, cranka, live crabs and live shrimp under their noses and wont hit them. They wont eat freshly pumped tube worms either. Switched to live glass shrimps and after a few hundreds of dead glass shrimps (killed by toadies) I finally got 2 undersize and 2 good size on glass shrimp yesterday.

Armed with live nippers (bass yabbies), I will target them again this afternoon.

[bilby]

I was up at Poyntons nursery in Essendon recently - after looking at the plants I had a spare 15mins, so took the spinning rod out of the car and flicked a sp for a bit. I had no follows, so collected a few tiny crabs (it was near low tide). Pretty soon I managed to hook and land a 32cm bream and missed a few other bites. Crabs are a really effective bait in the Maribyrnong.

[ChrisD]

I know the feeling. I took the kids for a picnic about 300 metres downstream of where you were at about 11 o'clock. I could see a whole bunch of little bream and toadies. Dropped bait down by itself, it was smashed. Put a hook in it and they leave it alone. Methinks they have seen it before. Might try again tonight without little helpers.

Were you on the show grounds side of the river?

[ChrisD]

Spoke to a few guys, no one seemed to be having any luck.
Hopefully the Yarra will produce some redfin for me tonight

[sloth]

I feel your frustration Chris but stick in there.

A bibbed shad/Minnow like an atomic hardz shad 40 or strike pro Pygmy rolled and twitched close to the bank around the high tide should get you a few fish. I prefer floating lures over suspending. Quite often with a floater if you get into rocks or snag just pausing is enough to let it float up and off of the snag.

Easiest retrieve to start with is just to slow roll for a few reel revolutions and then stop for 3 or 4 seconds and then repeat ... they usually smack it on the pause. Just nice and slow on the roll .. two to three seconds for a revolution of the handle. Just cast along the bank so you land about 1m or so out from the bank and just bring it back parallel to the bank - if its hitting the rocks and deflecting as you retrieve you're in the zone. 3 or 4 casts them move up 15m or so and repeat... sooner or later you'll find a bream which wants to play.

With this approach there is a much smaller chance of snagging as you're not fishing the bottom. I find the sections with the steeper rock walls/banks work the best for this.

You'll lose a lot of lures fishing the bottom in new spots until you learn and memorise where the snags are. I only really blade and use crabs these days where I know what the bottom composition is like - and I generally learn that by fishing cheaper soft plastics in new areas.

[benders]

I know the feeling. I took the kids for a picnic about 300 metres downstream of where you were at about 11 o'clock. I could see a whole bunch of little bream and toadies. Dropped bait down by itself, it was smashed. Put a hook in it and they leave it alone. Methinks they have seen it before. Might try again tonight without little helpers.

Were you on the show grounds side of the river?

Yup we were on the Showgrounds side. Just where Edgewater empties into the river. It's a little park, not sure of the name though.

[ChrisD]

I know the feeling. I took the kids for a picnic about 300 metres downstream of where you were at about 11 o'clock. I could see a whole bunch of little bream and toadies. Dropped bait down by itself, it was smashed. Put a hook in it and they leave it alone. Methinks they have seen it before. Might try again tonight without little helpers.

Were you on the show grounds side of the river?

Yup we were on the Showgrounds side. Just where Edgewater empties into the river. It's a little park, not sure of the name though.

98% sure I saw the kids and you there while I was working the opposite bank.
I had worked my way up from the Farnsworth Ave bridge and was working my way back again.
It was that section where I saw the biggest Bream lurking.

[ChrisD]

Thanks Sloth and All- I guess you are right about knowing the river and where the snags are. I will probably be better hitting the Yarra more so as I get there a lot more often.
When i can afford to restock the lures I may try again......
But tonight will be bait fishing for redfin in the Yarra...no lures....