May 29, 2026

Trellys Fishing Report 29th May 2026

This coming Monday marks the start of the 2026 Murray crayfishing season. Crayfishing season starts on 1st of June each year and runs through until 31st August. In a nutshell, it is open every day of winter only.
Murray crayfish are the second largest freshwater crustacean in the world, second only to the Giant Tasmanian crayfish.
Murray crays are a very slow growing species taking around 10 years, often longer to reach the minimum legal size. For this reason, they are subject to some of the strictest rules and regulations of any freshwater fish species in Victoria.
Also due to that, they are heavily patrolled by fisheries compliance officers each year. I have been checked 4 times in the last 2 years.
So if you are going crayfishing this season, make sure you have a copy of the Vic Fishing App downloaded onto your phone so that you can keep up to date with the rules.
You can also find the rules at the VFA website: https://vfa.vic.gov.au/
As a fishing journalist I get feedback from both sides every season. Many people comment on my social media posts saying things like “It’s ridiculous that you only keep 2” while many others say “These things should be totally protected”.
I think the current laws are working great, and as long as we all do the right thing there will be crayfishing for our kids and their kids after that.
Go crayfishing for enjoyment, not the feed. If it’s all about the feed, go to the supermarket and buy a lobster, it will work out much cheaper for you in the long run!
Now how are the fish biting?

Ovens River
My friend Sonny and I fished the Ovens River in Wangaratta with bait a few nights ago. We managed to catch a couple of Murray cod including one legal sized one which we released.

We also caught a tiny trout cod and Sonny caught a crayfish on his fishing rod using chicken as bait for Murray cod.
This bodes very well for the opening of the crayfishing season next week.
Sonny also spent an afternoon on his kayak in the ovens River where he caught 3 lovely sized Murray cod and a decent Yellowbelly on a Blue Number 1 Stumpjumper lure.
These cheap but deadly lures can be found here: https://www.trellys.com.au/products/stumpjumper-size-1-fishing-lure?_pos=1&_sid=54570f9d9&_ss=r&ref=i68jzcdpol2e

The ovens River has been fishing unseasonably well recently, but how much longer this will last I have no idea. There is a big weather change coming next week which could change a few things.

Waranga Basin
I fished the Waranga Basin from the bank on Friday afternoon last week. The good news is that it wasn’t a fishless trip. The bad news is that I only caught 1 tiny redfin.
I was fishing at Sapling Point, casting small lures from the bank. I lost 1 small redfin on a yellow soft plastic and caught one tiny redfin on a silver 3cm Bullet minnow and that was it.

I did see a few small redfin bust-ups with fish chasing minnows around the surface. These were happening at sunset but were few and far between.
I think the lake would be worth fishing for redfin at the moment, however I suspect a boat to get out deeper would be a huge advantage as deeper water is often warmer at this time of the year.

Lake Eildon
As always, Lake Eildon has seen some monster Murray cod caught this week by those dedicated big cod anglers that get out and do the hard yards. Many with livescope technology, and some without.
This sort of fishing requires a high level of commitment and dedication, but the rewards are there.
Lake Eildon is probably the most consistent fishery in the state during the winter months. Well it is for anglers chasing giant Murray cod anyway. But remember, these big fish don’t come easy.

Dartmouth
I spoke to Debbie from the Dartmouth Motor Inn during the week who told me that guests have been regularly bringing trout back to their accommodation from both lake Dartmouth and the Dartmouth Pondage.
Next weekend (Kings Birthday Weekend) is the annual Dartmouth Fishing Classic. Registrations are still open and can be found at the Dartmouth Cup Fishing Classic Facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100071345207507
Or via the Dartmouth website:
https://dartmouth.net.au/

Trout Fishing
Trout fishing in North East Victoria has really picked up in recent weeks which bodes well for next seasons.
Don’t forget that the trout season closes at midnight on the King's Birthday weekend, so if you want to catch a trout you have just over a week left to do it.