the “bite windows” can be very short. In most
places Murray cod become a lot more active
after dark and fishing the pre-dawn hours is
often more productive than after sun rise.
Most cod fishing is done with
spinnerbaits, deep diving hard-bodies and
surface lures. Soft plastics probably have a
role in this fishery that is not fully explored
yet. All of the lures that cod like to bite
either spin, f lash or wobble in a wide sway.
The key is to have a lure that generates a lot
of water movement as it travels through the
water column. This creates underwater noise.
Like most fish, success comes from putting
the lure in front of a feeding fish. Cod are
ambush predators and don’t often “free
roam”, so the key is to keep the lure
bouncing and bumping through the
boulders, logs and structure where the cod
hide in ambush. Many anglers miss out
because their lure is running too
shallow and isn’t in the face of the
fish. You have to take a large and
delicious looking lure to the cod.
They are way too fat and lazy to
zoom around and chase a lure forhink of a cod as a
motivated mouth attached
to a morbidly obese body.
He’s the big bloke at the
truck stop parked up in
the chair waiting for the
burger with the lot to
come to him.”
T
56 | fishingworld.com.au | March 2015
INLAND NATIVES
ABOVE: Check out the
gut on this well-fed
impoundment cod.
RIGHT: Cod love
big spinnerbaits!
OPPOSITE PAGE:
Perfect weather,
although cod may
prove timid in these
calm conditions.