32,000 fish stocked in time for school holidays

32,000 fish stocked in time for school holidays

Families and children can catch a new hobby these school holidays with the stocking of more than 32,000 catchable size rainbow trout into almost 80 waters across Victoria.

The stocking bonanza has been made possible by recreational fishing licence fees, the Victorian Government’s $35 million Target One Million plan to get more people fishing more often, and the Snobs Creek fish hatchery.

Rainbow trout are a great species for inexperienced and new fishers as they’re easy to catch with a wide range of baits and lures and taste great.

Most of the stocked lakes have good access to fishing platforms, walking tracks and picnic areas – creating a safe and convenient environment for people to wet a line.

Stocked waters for these school holidays include Albert Park Lake, Lilydale Lake, Emerald Lake, Spavan Lake in Sunbury, Morwell Lake, Victoria Lake in Shepparton and Hyland Lake in Churchill.

Pakenham Lake, St Augustine’s Water Hole in Geelong, Kennington Reservoir in Bendigo, Darlingsford Lake in Melton, Pertobe Lake in Warrnambool and Yarrambat Lake have also been stocked as part of this program.

For the first time, the VFA has also stocked Rockwood Reservoir, near Cressy in southwest Victoria, with 200 rainbow trout.

Creating new fisheries like Rockwood is at the heart of the Target One Million plan to boost participation, ensuring fishing opportunities in urban and regional centres are close to home and easy to visit.

Casey Fields Lake in Cranbourne and Karkarook Lake in Moorabbin were also stocked with rainbow trout for the school holidays, complementing the release of catchable size native fish like Murray cod and golden perch earlier in 2019, which delivered on a Target One Million commitment.

A daily bag limit of 5 trout applies to Family Fishing Lakes, of which only 2 trout can exceed 35cm.

Source: Vic Government