As I slipped the net under another fiesty Bass, and released him at the side of the boat, I couldn't help admiring the scenery of this beautiful little dam. I could just make out a group of Deer drinking from the shallows, and the reflection of the surrounding mountains on the still water gave the effect of an upside-down environment.

Cressbrook Dam is located a little over 100 kilometres from Brisbane, on the scenic rim of the Darling Downs. With a very comfortable camping ground with clean amenities, it is perfect for a quiet weekend. The healthy population of Bass can be difficult to find, but with the help of a good depthsounder, and a downrigger, you are almost assured of a quality catch.

I first fished Cressbrook soon after its opening in 1995, and although the catch rates have declined since those early days, there are still plenty of bass to be found.

Fishing at dawn or dusk, surface lures and flies can account for quite a few fish, however if you are not camping overnight, the ramp is not accessible before dawn.

This trip was to be a short one, as I didn't leave Brisbane until 6.00am. The weather was perfect on the drive through Esk, with the fog just lifting off the top of the range as I reached the turnoff to Cressbrook at the summit.

With the boat launched, and gear readied, I had my first hookup within 5 minutes of starting. The water depth was 85 feet, and the fish hit the lure at 40 feet. The Lowrance was showing a distinct thermocline at about 60 feet, and the fish could be seen rising to the lure. While this may sound far fetched to some of you, those who have fished thermoclines will know how easy it is to sight fish at a depth of 40 feet. The photo here shows the sounder screen, and the image that was quite common on that morning at Cressbrook.

The first fish took my favorite downrigging lure, a Pink and Silver Lively Lures Micro Mullet. As this trip had been planned as an experimental experience, I had decided that I would change lure colour after landing every fish. The Pink Micro was removed, and a Rainbow Trout coloured Micro was attached to the Bill Norman Speed Clip. With the line twisted through the release clip, the bomb was lowered to 40 feet again. With one eye glued to the sounder screen, I set the electric motor speed to 6 and started my next run.

Soon, a telltale line appeared on the sounder, and changed to an arch as the fish homed in on the brightly coloured bomb. It obviously couldn't resist the temptation of the little Micro Mullet following closely behind the bomb, as line started peeling off the spool of the little Abu before I could take a photograph of the screen image. I slowly brought the fish to the surface, and again netted a Bass of approximately 35cm.

As I released him, he kicked strongly away from the surface, obviously heading back to the comfortable water conditions in the Thermocline.

Another lure change saw a Bleeding Mullet coloured Micro attached and despatched to the deep. After another 3 fish, I had reached an area which has proved productive with fly, and with an experimental pattern on board I decided on a break from trolling. The downrigger bomb was cranked to the surface, and the flat line I had been trolling was wound in.

I moved the boat into 16 feet of water, within what should have been an easy casting distance to the bank. Those who have seen me fly fish will probably tell you that the only way I can cast to the bank is by parking the boat on the ground, however this morning proved to be a surprise to even myself. With no audience, I was casting like a true expert, and while the spinner bait fly pattern I was using was probably too bulky for the little 5 weight rod, some quite acceptable casts were made. OK, I'll admit that I still successfully wrapped the fly line around the lean seat, depth sounder, electric foot control and my own feet.

Watching guys like Lefty Kreh, and our own Rod (Harro) Harrison, cast a fly rod always gives me a sense of awe. I never see them standing on the coils of line at their feet, or smacking themselves in the back of the head with a fly.

I keep promising that I'll call Harro, and arrange for some lessons up at Bribie, but I'm sure by the time I learn to cast like him, I won't be able to load my walking frame into the boat.
After 15 minutes of ungraceful flailing of the fly rod, I finally had a strike, and managed to land a small Bass on the prototype spinnerbait fly. Having fulfilled my obligation to Des Welch at Scotties Flies, by catching and photographing a fish on his fly, I gratefully packed up the devil's weapon and returned to the comfort of trolling.

Continued...

Dean Patchett took this 58cm Golden Perch at Somerset Dam on a Micro Mullet at 40 feet.

As I reached the 30' depth mark, I cast out the flat troll line with a Black Whitmore Cray. On 6lb Fireline, this lure runs to about 27 feet, and has been very productive in most of the South East Queensland impoundments that I fish. As the depth increased to 60 feet over the old riverbed, I lowered the downrigger bomb to about 40 feet. As I set the drag on the Threadline, and took up the slack line, the Cray was hit by the best fish of the day. This fish was netted, and before the hooks could be removed the Micro Mullet behind the downrigger took another strike.

This pattern continued, until the battery on the bowmount started to get low, and I headed back to the ramp. In approximately 5 hours of fishing, I had landed 28 bass. 24 of these fell to Micro Mullets or Mini Micro Mullets trolled behind the downrigger at between 20 and 50 feet depth, three fish took the Whitmore Cray, which was running at 27 feet, and one fish took the Spinner Bait Fly at about 12 feet. If I did not have the downrigger that day, I would have gone home disappointed with only 4 fish.

 

Techniques and Equipment:

The Downrigger:

The downrigger I use is a home made device, which utilises a 7" alloy V belt pulley. The important thing the downrigger bomb. This bomb weighs in at 5 ½ pounds and is a streamlined shape to cut down on water drag. The bight colour and prismatic tape act as an attractor, and it is not unusual to have bass travel 15 feet to get a closer look at it. The release clip is a modified Black's clip, which is ideal for releasing light line. Rather than use the normal downrigger wire, I prefer to use 130lb nylon monofilament. While this does create more water drag, the benefit of having some stretch in the line means less bombs donated to the trees, and the bottom when that sudden uprising of the lake occurs. The mono is also quieter for those who prefer to drift off to sleep while trolling.

The Depthsounder:

My personal preference for a sounder is a Lowrance X85, which has the ability to track a bomb, and fish, at the depths thermoclines are normally found, and to distinguish between a thermocline and standard noise clutter. With the unit set to "Split Screen" and zoomed in on the bomb, the left hand screen gives brilliant detail of what is happening around the bomb and the lure.

This shot shows fish holding at about 35 feet, and moving down to investigate the bomb (Thicker Line) at 42 feet. The lighter line above the bomb is the release clip. The heavy clutter between 55 and 65 feet is the thermocline. (A minor Thermocline is also showing at approximately 20 feet, which is the depth my deep diving lure was working).

To achieve this reading, the transducer was angled slightly to the rear to keep the bomb in the transducer cone, and "Sensitivity" was set to 94%. The actual water depth was 80 feet. As this photograph was taken, a 36cm Bass took the Micro Mullet that was following closely behind the bomb.

Tackle:

The Bass encountered at Cressbrook, are typically much smaller than those to found at Glenbawn Dam. Light threadline outfits like the Ian Miller Bream Buster coupled to a quality reel are ideal for this style of fishing. The reason I prefer threadlines is because it is easier to back off the drag on a threadline to lower the bomb. You can also wind the reel easily while it is in the rod holder, if you need to raise the bomb.

My reel is a reasonably priced Abu T500F loaded with 125 yards of 4lb Fireline. As it is unusual to encounter any structure in the impoundments I fish, and very rare to have a fish of a size that cannot be handled on 4 lb line, I enjoy the lighter equipment. A 40+ cm fish can give an excellent fight on this gear.

For leader material, I use Knotted Dogs, in the Bream size, which have an excellent stretch capability, and are very forgiving when twisted around a downrigger release clip.

Continued...

Lures:

A peek in my downrigging tacklebox shows an assortment of lures and colours, predominately Lively Lure's Micro Mullets, and Mini Micro Mullets. Fortunately, these are also very productive lures for trolling Flathead and Bream in shallow water.

An interesting note, is that during the day I fished Cressbrook, I changed lure colour after every fish. If the new lure colour had not caught a fish within 10 minutes, it was to be changed.

Only one colour did not land a fish on this day. Surprisingly, the Astro, black with pink spots, which is normally successful at Cressbrook, failed to connect this trip.

Tips:

When setting up your downrigger, make sure it is easily accessible as you will be cranking the handle fairly regularly. As my boat is a tiller steer model, I have set up everything just in front of the driving position. Within easy reach, I have the Sounder, Downrigger and Rod.

Trolling speed should be about the same as you normally troll deep diving lures. I prefer to troll with my Bow Mount Minn Kota, as I can utilize the Autopilot feature, and have both hands to handle the rigger and sounder.

Set-back from the bomb to the lure can be a contentious issue. I have had the greatest success running my lures about one metre behind the bomb. Increased strike rates have also been noticed when using a bright bomb with reflective tape added compared to a plain lead bomb. I have a chrome plated brass bomb which has also proved better than plain lead.

To cover more depth range, and increase your chances of a fish, you can fish 2 lures from the one rig. The method I use does not require the use of stacker clips, or a second rod. Simply deploy the bomb with the lure in the normal manner. Once it is set, make a leader of approximately one metre with a clip on one end and the lure at the other. Clip the lure over your line and allow it to run down. This lure will normally centralize at half the depth of the first lure.

You can now cover two distinct depths, and double your chances of a hookup. When a fish takes the second lure, it may not release the line from the release clip. Once you have a tight line, a gentle jerk on the line will release the clip. When you get the fish to the boat, remember that you will have one metre of line behind the first lure, so be careful with the net.

Rio Ricatti landed this 47cm Bass on a yellow C Lure from 50 feet at Somerset Dam.

Some people like to release the air bladder of a fish that is taken from the depth that I fish. I prefer to bring them to the surface slowly, and if they seem to be affected by the pressure change, I place them in the live well until they are swimming upright.

Remember if you are in Queensland, you are only permitted to have two Bass in your posession. If you catch a third fish, you must release one immediately.

These fish are examples of what can be caught around South East Queensland by using the methods I've described.