Derwent River for Trout Opening by Justin Causby

It's August once again and that pretty much means just one thing to us Tasmanian anglers. It's time to chase the trout once again!

And in Tassie there is no better place to be on the first Saturday in August than the magnificent Derwent River. In my opinion the Derwent is the best trout fishery in the state for the first three months of the season. Luckily for me I live a one minute from my nearest boat ramp, on my drive to work each day I spend 50% of the time along the river bank and once I get there, the water is literally just a cast away.

Having this at my doorstep I've been lucky enough to get to know the tidal reaches pretty well over the last few years. In the past in my very keen high school angling days I'd be at Lake Sorell without fail. When that option all but disappeared with the discovery of European carp in lakes Sorell and Crescent I was soon looking for a new early season destination. Independence had arrived in the form of a drivers licence and soon followed my first boat. With the boat, car and fuel costs, funds were at a premium, which lessened the travel options. Why not try this river on my doorstep. And so was my love affair with the Derwent to begin.

My first year on the river I had ironically fished Sorell on opening weekend for not much return. The next weekend we hit up the Derwent. Trolling at that time and low and behold got five lovely trout including a few silvery sea runners in an hour on dusk. The next season we were not going any further afield and the two days of opening weekend returned my mate and I some 36 trout all caught almost exclusively on the now discontinued #30 'Herbie' Tassie Devil.

My fishing style has evolved somewhat since that weekend and I now solely drift spin the river with lures and soft plastics, occasionally fishing the fly but prefer to save that for sight casting dries in the warmer months in the highlands.