It’s been a strange few months at Millbrook Lakes. First, it’s been unusually dry – not bone-dry, but enough for us to grateful for the ‘bank’ of storage and groundwater accumulated over the last few wet years. This ‘credit’ has meant that, while some lakes are low for this time of year, many are full or close to it. And temperatures have been topsy-turvy.

August saw maximums significantly above average for the end of winter, and late in the month, we had big dragonfly numbers – a rarity this early in the season. There were even enough for the trout to be leaping for them, and although dragonfly leapers aren’t easy to catch, it was great fun trying, and some beauties were fooled.

Come September, and the temperature switch flicked. It’s been cool to cold, and we even had snowfalls mid-month.

Through it all, the fishing headline has been midge (chironomid). There have been lots – big, small; daytime as well as evening. Trout love midge (they contain three times the protein of steak after all!) and these little bugs have provided endless sight-fishing opportunities. Cockchafer beetles have made a bit of an appearance too, although rarely enough to out-compete the midge action.
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Regulars will know that we’re also on the cusp of mayfly season. A few early duns have appeared, but so far just short of what we would call a proper hatch. Historically, late September is the earliest we have hatches worthy of the name, and early to mid-October is a more typical start to mayfly season. There are lots of nymphs under the rocks, so it looks promising – although as always, it’s anyone’s guess how big the hatches will be, and how long they will last. Fingers crossed, but meanwhile, the midge are a good backup.                

​After a busy autumn, we’ve now got a chance to take a deep breath, reflect on the last few months, and have a look towards the winter ahead – perhaps surprisingly, one of our favourite times of year to guide.
 
To the last few months first, and guiding got underway in earnest (as usual) from the very start of March. Despite a cool and wet December/ January, by this point, abruptly dry and warm conditions in late summer had left their mark, with a number of lakes having dropped significantly.
 
Low lakes are an interesting proposition for us guides. Over the decades, we’ve come to learn that, providing water quality remains reasonable, lake level has little to do with fishing quality. Aquatic ecology is so complex, some brimming-full lakes can be a bit disappointing, while just down the road, a half empty lake is fishing brilliantly.
 
Many times this autumn, we took guests to one of these half empty lakes, only to find that the sad looks soon evaporated once a 5 pounder was heading to the horizon, towing all their flyline, plus a decent length of backing. Of course, the full lakes (and there are several) can fish well too of course, but there’s no guarantee at all that more water equals better fishing – as a few hundred guests would attest!
 
In terms of detail, while smelters (minnow feeders), mayfly and damsels all played their part, the headline this autumn was probably midge, or more precisely, chironomid. The hatches have been impressive, and not just on evening. And don’t think it’s all about tiny flies either – many of the naturals around here are 10mm right up to 14mm.
 
As we write at the start of winter, the midge action shows no signs of backing off. And with recent rain, some of those low lakes are starting to flood over revegetated ground, with tailers following the rising tide. One definite upside of having a lake drop for a while! Polaroiding shoreline cruisers is big thing too. And on those rough, ‘horrible’ days (well, horrible for humans), pulling a big wet can see the rod just about pulled from your cold hands. As always, time will tell regarding future water levels and conditions, but right here right now is looking good.           

​Since our last update, mother nature has given us a bit of everything. September was warmer and drier than average. That turned out to be something of a false spring however, with October coming in much cooler and wetter. Then November started dry but ended wet. Wind has been a thing too, although the equinox does throw up that atmospheric struggle most years, and so we're used to it (even if we don't necessarily like it).
Wind or not, the fishing has been very good.

​After a few weeks of solid midge and cockchafer beetle action, proper dun hatches started in the last days of September, and have continued ever since. However, we haven't reached the stellar mayfly heights of 2022. While several lakes have been excellent for reliable hatches this spring, some others have been a bit patchy, and a couple of last year's heros have been zeros (or almost).
 
Polaroiding has been very good regardless with lots of clear water, and plenty of actively cruising fish. Another thing which has stood out has been a recent burst of daytime midging fish - not at all typical of this time of year. And the other standout, mayfly or not, has been the extent of the dry fly fishing. We'll cheerfully fish whatever is necessary to get the trout to eat, but it's undeniably a plus when the dry is genuinely as good an option as anything; and sometimes the very best option. 
 
All up, this spring has offered very 'visual' and entertaining fishing - not always easy, but nearly always great fun.

'Water everywhere' would be the two-word summary of Millbrook's winter so far. Despite BOM forecasting a warm, dry autumn and start to winter, so far, it's been anything but. Of course, if BOM keep saying it will be warm and dry, they'll be right... eventually! But meanwhile, one major lake we had to virtually drain in mid-May to replace a leaking valve, subsequently refilled in just six weeks. And Cabin Lake spilled in early July - the earliest it's ever done that. While dry conditions can have their advantages (such as access tracks you can actually drive on) plenty of water is hard to knock back. Trout love it, as do the things they eat - which sort of amounts to the same thing.

Midge hatches have been good, and minnow populations are healthy as breeding conditions are favourable for a third year in a row. Polaroiding the edges when even a bit of light allows, has been very exciting, and on the few lakes which haven't filled yet, rising water is flushing food out of the shallows, thus drawing fish in. It's no surprise that trout size and condition has been excellent, continuing the trend of recent wet months and years.

As guides, we love winter fishing for the many opportunities it provides, and this winter is proving as good as any. BUT remember, you do have to dress for it - especially when the wind gets up, which it has a lot lately.
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At 600m above sea level, our temps are typically 6C colder than Melbourne, and we're roughly 50% wetter. Layers, gloves, good waterproofs and beanies, will mean you can focus on the fish, instead of how to keep warm.    
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​      ​Wow, what an eventful 6 months! When we last reported, Millbrook was coming out of a wet and cold winter. Unbeknownst to us at the time, in common with much of Victoria, we were about to enter the wettest spring on record. Being a lake-based fishery, the actual trout action largely went on as normal. If you dressed for the conditions, there were very good dun hatches (not 2021 standard, still impressive) as well as smelters, worm feeders in the flooded margins, damsel leapers – you name it. The biggest downside, practically speaking, was access. A number of tracks to the lakes which we had previously regarded as all-weather, became impassable for hours or even days at a time. Either we walked in, or fished elsewhere.
 
Fast forward to now (early autumn) and a dry-ish summer has completely altered the landscape. Where there was once wheel-deep mud, there’s now dust. Lake levels and water quality have largely held up very well, no doubt thanks to the enormous stores of groundwater which accumulated during 2022. Still, some lakes are well down on their spring highs – great for fishing and killing back choking weed, but aesthetically, not as pretty.
 
Speaking of the fishing, so far this autumn the headline is undoubtedly smelters (trout hammering baitfish). But we’re seeing pleasing numbers of duns too, and the trout certainly remember what duns are! Terrestrials have also made an appearance on warmer days, with beetle patterns in particular doing nicely in such conditions. So it’s full steam ahead for autumn, and so far, so good.              

As a flyfisher, during the dog days of summer, you can find yourself wishing for winter’s chill and abundant water. That wish has been put to the test at Millbrook this winter! It’s been wet and cold, especially in August. 20 rain days delivered 130mm of rain – our second wettest August in Millbrook’s 27 years of existence. On the plus side, every lake is overflowing, and the springs are pumping. On the downside, it’s been a bit of a mud-bath trying to get to or from a few lakes, meaning walking has been the only option. And although the trout are happy with the cold and big living quarters, fishing in rain and icy gales is not something client or guide is likely to miss. Thankfully, the fishing has been really good in spite of the gloomy weather. Midges have tried their best to hatch (they don’t mind cold but dislike rain.) Floodwater feeders have gorged on worms and other flushed goodies, and the smelters have been really good. No cockchafer beetles yet however – maybe the grubs have drowned?  
 
Anyway, as we enter early September, winter is finally losing the battle. Longer daylight hours and a higher sun mean small breaks in the weather have a big impact. The cold and rain won’t be done with just yet, but milder weather is trying its best to push in. After last year’s best every mayfly spring, we are all waiting eagerly (anxiously?) to see what spring 2022 brings. It will have a hard act to follow, but at least the trout are really big, fat and abundant.        

There aren’t too many certainties in flyfishing, but the transition from mild autumn weather, to wintry, happens with surprising predictability at Millbrook sometime in the first or second week of May. It is when, for example, that gloves and beanies go from being occasionally handy, to something you always want to have in the car at the very least.
 
With the change in seasons, the fishing changes too. Mayfly, mudeyes and terrestrials are all but gone, fortunately replaced by midge, and to a lesser extent, caddis. If the attrition rate of flies is any indication, buzzers and stick caddis are now the patterns  of choice more often than not; supplemented by big wets.
 
It would be reasonable to think that this shift towards cold weather would mark a decline in the fishing which won’t reverse until spring. But in fact, May is more of a reset month at Millbrook. Fish are still caught, and some big ones. Yet ironically, June, July and August often provide more consistent fishing, as the trout settle into their new chilly world. (They are, after all, a cold water species.)
 
The main thing for anglers to do, is stay warm. We often suggest our guests treat a Millbrook winter trip like a trip to the snow, and dress accordingly – minus the bright colours of course! Do that, and winter can provide some of the most enjoyable action of the year. 

After our regular late summer break, the Millbrook bookings have accelerated like a tiger trout hooked in the tail, and already we have a fair bit to tell about autumn 2022. First to the conditions, and it’s been, well… autumnal! Mild days, no extremes of hot or cold, relatively light winds, and about average for rainfall. Lake levels are better than average though, at what is usually a time when we’re approaching minimum heights. The usual suspects are down a couple of vertical metres (a necessary action to keep weed in check) but many others, Cabin Lake included, are only a foot or two from full: very unusual for this time of year.
 
Meanwhile, water clarity is steadily improving and weed growth is continuing to die back. These changes make autumn a particularly dynamic season: some places which were unfishbable a week ago are now rocketing to the top of the charts. As a guide, it can be a bit hard to keep up, although it’s fun trying!  
 
To the trout activity, and after our best-ever mayfly autumn and spring last year, 2022 is (so far) lagging behind. Not to say there hasn’t been some great mayfly fishing on the right days and in the right places, but the consistency of 2021 is missing. On the other hand, the smelting has been about as good as it gets. Although smelters are hard to catch, very few of our guests have complained of boredom while casting to big trout smashing baitfish for literally hours on end. At some point soon, we expect the smelter activity will reduce, and the mayfly activity will ramp up… but as with all predictions (especially fishing ones) that is of course no more than an educated guess.
 
After going missing on many waters in 2021, midge seem to be making a comeback, while mudeye fishing has been about on par. In any case, as the pics show, the trout on most lakes are big and fat, and have clearly been finding plenty to eat. It’s going to be very interesting to see what turns up in the months ahead.        

​The last couple of months of the year at Millbrook have continued the 2021 trend of the weird and the wonderful. The weather (something we’re obsessed with due to its immediate and also longer term effects on the fishing) has continued to be unusual. Incredibly, Millbrook is yet to have a 30C day, and forecasts at the time of writing suggest we won’t get one before the end of the year. Equally amazing, we had five days straight in the middle of November when the maximum temperature didn’t hit double figures – a 50 year plus record.
 
Meanwhile, rainfall has settled down to something like average, although the year as a whole will finish well above average, something reflected in high lake levels for this time of year. We can now expect levels to drop on many lakes through late summer and into autumn – perhaps surprisingly, this is welcome, as long as the drop isn’t too severe. Falling levels help reduce excessive weed growth, and allow exposed shores to revegetate, in turn providing floodwater feeder opportunities when levels rise again in winter and spring.
 
Plenty of water plus cool to mild temperatures have proved a godsend as we’ve attempted to fit in as many Covid-postponed bookings as possible. The mayfly obviously approve – dun hatches and spinner falls have stretched into December with uncharacteristic vigour: perhaps not as set-your-watch reliable as during mid-spring, but still providing exceptional fishing. And the mudeye fishing has been superb on those evenings which have been mild and dry. We’ve even had visits from ‘new’ insects like cinnamon jassids, which it turns out the trout love just as much as their cousins in Tassie.   
 
Ourselves and the fish will now enjoy a bit of a summer break, something we factor in each season to spare the guides, guests and the trout from too much heat. To all our friends and guests, thank you for your fabulous support through another difficult year. Have a fantastic Christmas, and we look forward to helping you bother some more of our Santa-shaped trout in 2022!

At the risk of perpetuating a spring stereotype, the word around Millbrook for the last several weeks has been… mayfly. Dun hatches mostly, although spinner falls have been of increasing value when we get the odd warm day. Mayfly hatches vary in reliability, intensity, timing and duration from year to year. Some mayfly seasons, it can feel as if we’d almost be better off without them – whole guiding days can be planned around when and where the dun hatches will happen (and the sometimes fickle trout response). If things don’t go to plan, you’re left wondering if it would have been better to just fish as if it were outside mayfly season.
 
But since late September this year, the mayfly have justified our obsession. Hatches have been incredibly reliable, long-lasting, and the trout have responded very well. The only problem really, has been some hatches so massive, the trout can’t keep up – at least in terms of finding an artificial fly among the crowd. But that sounds like the flyfishing equivalent of a first-world problem, and justifiably so. Overall, the mayfly fishing has been fantastic.
 
The big question is, how long will it last? Well, history shows that mayfly love lots of water, and we certainly have that, with Millbrook’s wet year showing no signs of abating. Last year (a good mayfly spring, but not in 2021’s league) big hatches persisted until mid-November, and we had less predictable dun action almost until Christmas. As always, nature will decide, but so far, soooo good.
 
For other fishing, the evenings have been okay, though so far not to the standard of the beetle and midge rises from late winter until mid-September. Polaroiding has been great on those quite rare sunny days… but cloud helps the duns, so you can’t have everything. Trout size and condition has been outstanding.
 
All up, it’s been quite an amazing spring, and we look forward to sharing it with more and more guests as Covid restrictions continue to ease.