'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. 

As for at least half the country, the last couple of months at Millbrook have been interrupted by Covid restrictions of varying severity. The upside?
Mark and Kiel have had time away from guiding to do some amazing work with the accommodation. The main cabin now has a new kitchen equipped with an oven and four burner cooktop.
 
The other upside is that trout and nature don't really understand lockdowns, and go about their business in blissful ignorance. With every lake full, it's all been happening. Midging trout of course, but also tailers and some fantastic polaroiding. In the district as a whole, the mythical cockchafer beetles https://flystream.com/cockchafer-time/ have appeared in the last week, providing champagne dry fly fishing. It seems downright sinful to be using size 10 dry flies at the end of winter! If only we had a few more guests to share the experience...
 
We have managed some guiding in the brief periods when eased restrictions have allowed, and we're looking ahead with everything crossed for more. The last couple of days have offered our first sniff of genuine spring warmth, with damsels and even dragonflies on the wing. Although it's something of an illusion and wintery weather is about to return, the fight between warm and cold will gradually be won as the days lengthen, and it shouldn't be too many more weeks before the first proper mayfly hatches. Hope we'll see at least some of our guests in time for those.    

June up here is always cold, sometimes wet, and occasionally windy. It’s the last feature though for which June 2021 will be remembered. On the 9th and 10th, an unusually deep low pressure brought destructive winds to many elevated parts of Victoria, and the Millbrook area wasn’t spared. The old timers say it was the worst wind they’ve experienced. Trees blocked roads and tracks for days, but fortunately, our cabin and homes were spared. And with more rain at the same time, the lakes just kept filling – with most now spilling.
 
The fishing has mainly been about polaroiding the edges for finicky fish; tailers (though these are patchy so far), and increasing midge action. As all the flooded vegetation starts to rot, the resulting midge food should see their numbers boom further – fingers crossed!
 
Meanwhile, our stocking for 2021 has commenced, and after their success since our first stocking last year, quite a few tiger trout have gone in this month. Hope we’ll be seeing them as big, pretty catches this time next year.         

Fishing is rarely predictable, and the last part of this autumn has proved the point. Following a deluge at the start of May, the month moved into a period of mild, settled weather. There were even trout caught on mudeye patterns! Then the weather flipped again, and suddenly we were back to rugging up in full foul weather gear. Fortunately however, midge don’t care about cold, and they’ve been out in droves, providing reliable evening action, and sometimes, A-grade daytime action too. The photos below include Cam with a matching pair of male and female monsters, both caught on Milly Midge during a massive early afternoon hatch.       
 
But what was that about unpredictability? The midge are pouring off on a couple of lakes where they’re normally not a feature, yet they’re sparse (so far) on a couple of lakes where we’d expect a lot more by now. And although the May fishing has been mostly consistent, there was a run of a few days in the back half of the month when it was tough. The guests were still catching fish, but it took more effort than usual. Then just like that, the trout are back again, in the usual cusp-of-winter spots, and behaving pretty much as we would expect them to.
 
In the background to all this, May rainfall has been well above average; temps for the month as a whole have evened out to bang on average – warmer at the start and colder at the end. The springs are all flowing now and the lakes are rising. Winter is looking promising.