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This is an popular recreational lake and is shared by fishers, water skiers and other users. Even with all this activity the lake fishes well throughout the season. Do take care on the lake however because some of the ski boats do create considerable wakes and of course being a relatively shallow lake it can become quite rough on windy days.

Materials

How to get there

Lake Fyans is located near Halls Gap and Stawell  roughly circular in shape and roughly 4 kilometres east to west and 4.5 kilometres north to south giving it an area of around 1400 hectares and is located in the shadow of the Grampians in the western district of Victoria.

For detailed maps search Lake Fyans on Google Earth.

Open season

Lakes in Victoria are open all year and have a bag limit of 5 fish in possession .

Services & facilities available

There is a boat ramp at the caravan park and the lake is popular for swimming, skiing and yachting with plenty of room for anglers. The only accommodation option is the Lake Fyans Holiday Park. It's a bit xy for fisherman coming in at something like $35 to $40 a night for four to six people staying in a cabin. The cabins are however quite nice and well appointed. The park reception stocks some bread and milk but for further supplies or fuel the closet option is about 30km away at Pomonal.

Lake Fyans Holiday Park – Grampians & Halls Gap | Lakefront Accomodation

Target species

Lake Fyans is susceptible to changes in water depth and over the last couple of years whilst the area was still in drought was only 30% full but of course after the late 2011 rains it returned to 100% capacity. At any level it can fish well. It is regularly stocked with both browns and rainbows and there is also some natural recruitment all of which ensures a good head across a range of sizes right through to 2.5kg. The lake also boasts some thumper red fin as well as small populations of small blackfish and schools of small redfin.

Food chain

The shore and the bottom of the lake are largely sand / mud composite and supports prolific weed coverage. Mudeyes and damsels dominate the nymph population and there are also mayfly and caddis nymphs as well as a lot of midge activity. Add to that resident populations of yabbies and gudgeons Lake Fyans has most of the food sources covered. Located in scrubby bush for the most part there is also a good stand of forest off the north east bank which is often the source of terrestrials concentrations that finish up on the water in north easterly winds.

	What trout eat - Victoria excl Snowy Mountains - trout activity What trout eat - Victoria excl Snowy Mountains - food sources

Techniques

Most of the lake is populated by weed of various concentrations and the best fishing is in the deeper pockets throughout the lake or along the margins of the lake paying particular attention to the edge of weed beds and drop off's. Having said that it's often important to move around to avoid small red fin which can become a nuisance. There is good emerger activity as mudeyes, damsels and nymphs hatch as well as terrestrial activity in summer. Trout in particular become more upward looking during the warmer months and comfortably take flies on and just below the surface. At other times it's important to fish deeper where the fish are holding.

The moods can change quickly with the weather and unless there is obvious surface activity a popular starting choice for this fishery is an intermediate to type three sinking fly line and to work through the various retrieves from very slow to roly poly until you start getting hits. The most popular retrieve seems to be a jerky medium action with a few pauses but some days its hard to go past fast retrieves particularly if you have a bright fly in your team. In either case don't forget to fish the hang as Lake Fyans fish often follow the fly and only hit if given the chance on the hang. Having said all that if you have a technique that is a particular strength for you that is a great place to start.

	Loch style fishing tips

Flies

My default team of flies

I have a lot of confidence in this team of flies and have no hesitation reverting to it if my Lake Fyans specific teams of flies were not working or I have limited knowledge about the fishery. The bibio appeals to midge and damsel feeders, the dunkeld is just a great non representational attractor fly and of course the woolly bugger is very fluid in the water with its marabou tail and suggest of a whole range of items on the trouts menu including, yabbies, bigger nymphs including mudeyes and of course small fish. This team has the right balance to turn over cleanly when cart and depending on the line used can be fished ata range of depths and retrieve styles.

General prospecting

If you can identify deeper gaps between weed banks fish this team on a type III to type V fly line and experiment with retrieves that will swim the flies just above the reach of the weed.

General prospecting when the water is a little off colour or the wind is up above 10 kph

If you can identify deeper gaps between weed banks fish this team on a type III to type V fly line and experiment with retrieves that will swim the flies just above the reach of the weed.

General prospecting in clear relatively calm water

Fish this team on an intermediate line or a type III sinking line and work through a range of retrieves from fast twitching to roly poly.

Midge feeders

From November through to end of January you often get hatches of midge. Accompanying those midge you can expect increased numbers of damsels feeding on the midge and of course rainbows in particular feeding on both. The following team of olive flies retrieved fast on a sub surface line can be very effective.

Static fishing to damsel and midge feeders

If you do get becalmed this is a good stealthy team to tie on. Fish it on a floating line with a standard 16 foot leader and cast between the weed banks and along the weed edges. Let the team sink slowly only retrieving to keep in touch with the flies. Lift the flies slowly and dont forget to fish the hang.

Small splashy fish on the surface

You will often come across what seems to be small fish making splash rises particularly close into the shore. Do not ignore those rises as there are often some quite good fish are often also present. Small flies fished relatively close to the surface do however seem to be called for to convert the splashy rises to hook ups. I often also substitute a small diawl back into the above teams, as my middle dropper fly when fish are shy or the water is very clear.

Target fish breaking up on red fin fry or smelt

Out of the blue you may find target fish breaking up on schools red fin fry or small smelt. If you get this opportunity try ripping this team through the mella.

Hot spots

Edges, deep pockets in weed beds, drop offs and any structure. Whilst most of the lake is surrounded by thinned out bush there is a good forested section at the north east corner of the lake which in north east winds often releases beetles and other terrestrials and just to the east of that the pump station bank is always worth a drift. There is also good holding water and a drain running into the south west corner of the lake which often produce bigger fish. The bar on the southern shore, which becomes an island or spit at lower levels, has good holding water on its outside and offers good drifts when westerly winds are blowing.

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