FLYLIFE^47rainbow just behind that log on Fri-
day and I caught a lovely brown out
of this next pool,” says Judy with
such energy that you would swear it
was the first time she had ever fished
here. I ask Judy how often they fish
the river and she reflects that when
their girls were younger, they used
to hire a babysitter so she and Ross
could go fishing. “Most people go to
the movies, but Ross and I just love
being up here. Catching a fish is just
a bonus really.”
After a couple of sulky fish and a
missed take (we won’t say who), Ross
gets first strike and lands a lovely,
buttery King River brown. The boyish
delight shines through as he brings
the fish to Judy with the net. Judy is
delighted for Ross, but it’s clear after
a slow start to the afternoon that Judy
is keen to level the score.It doesn’t take long before she finess-
es a cast into a run under an overhang-
ing bush and cracks a nice little rain-
bow, leaving her more than satisfied.
In the car ride on the way back to
the winery, Judy, still keen to talk fish-
ing, asks about Murray cod, having
seen my recent article on Lake Mul-
wala (FL#86) and we talk flies, rods
and reels for a while. Knowing them
as I do now, I suspect that by the time
you read this article, the Browns will
be as well acquainted with the cod of
the King River as I intend to be with
its wines. FLThe King River flows out of the
Alpine National Park between Mt
Buggery and Mt Stirling and runs
for 126 km to its junction with the
Ovens River at Wangaratta.
Above Lake William Hovell the
river is classic northeast freestone
trout water and a beautiful collection
of runs, ripples and pools flowing
through wild and lush alpine forest.
The brown trout here are not large
but are abundant and have a unique
appearance with silvery bodies,
golden heads and lots of small black
spots without any red. There’s a
good head of rainbows as well.
On a good day the fishing in the
upper King can be brilliant and you
might be hard pressed to find better
in the region. Access to this section
is via the 4x4 Sandy Flat track that
starts at the head of the lake and
runs up to the top crossing hut.
Access to the very top sections of
the river at Pineapple Flat is via
the King Basin Road off the Mt
Stirling Road south of Mt Buller.
This water has been described to me
as ‘reliable’ in terms of its fishing
and its summer flows. There’s a lot
of hard-to-access water and many
tracks in this area so a map would
be a must.
Below the lake there are fewer
trout, but a much better chance of
a big one according to reports. The
water is more subject to temperature
rises that can slow down the trout
in high summer but in spring it’s
excellent water with access along
the Upper King River road between
Cheshunt and the dam.
The cod water proper starts
below the dam and there’s the
possibility of a cod and trout grand
slam anywhere above the village of
Cheshunt. Fred Pizzini described a
session to me where he caught cod,
trout and carp in one pool, one right
after the other, on trout gear.
Cod season opens the first day of
December and runs until the first
day of September.FISHING THE KING
Likely holding water, not far above Lake William Hovell.