The Victorian township of Nelson played host to the opening round of the 2009/2010 Hobie BREAM Kayak Series, with 29 day one and 32 day two anglers hitting the waters of the Glenelg River to kick start the series.
The first of 13 qualifying rounds in the series saw anglers pitted against a freshwater flushed river system that produced tough fishing.
Claiming first bragging rights for the season was 33-year-old NSW south coast breamer Greg Lewis who waited until day two to make his mark, delivering the only full limit (3/3, 1.82kg) to the scales for the tournament to secure victory.
Fishing upriver of the tournament start line Lewis focused his attention on a section of river located half way along the ski zone.
“My original plan was to fish down the bottom near the mouth, but it was just too crowded so I decided to head upriver and find my own water”, explained Lewis.
The move was spot on with Lewis sounding fishing holding tight to the bottom with his Lowrance HDS 5X sounder then using an aggressive rip, drop, and drag blade presentation to catch his bag.
Landing twenty undersize bream and a 2 kilo estuary perch for the session Lewis was excited about the quality of fishing on offer on the Glenelg.
“For a river that by all reports was fishing tough it produced some great fishing. I had a great weekend and can’t wait to come back”, explained Lewis.
Securing his second Hobie BREAM Kayak round victory, his first being the Gold Coast round in 2008, Lewis has firmed as a contender for the series.
Round 1 winner, Greg Lewis and his two bream bag.
Claiming second place in only his first Hobie BREAM Kayak event was Melbourne based kayaker Robert Greetham (2/3, 1.29kg). Scoring his prize winning bag on day two Greetham fished close to the start line working a current buffeted rockwall to catch his fish.
The battle for the Boss Hog prize each day was a close affair with day one seeing two 0.89kg fish sharing in the $100 prize. David Varney claimed his $50 share of the prize with his blade eating bream that came from seven metres of water in a productive rock lined stretch near The Island.
Falling to a lift n’ drop retrieved black and orange coloured Ecogear VX35 the day one Boss Hog winner came at 10.30am and delivered Varney his only legal fish for the session.
Day two saw smaller fish hit the scales with the $100 Boss Hog going to Josh deGroot for his 0.73kg fish. Close challenges for the day two included Scott Lovig (0.71kg) and Scott Smith (0.69kg).
Twenty three fish hit the scales for the two days of competition with a frugal five fish on day one bettered by a more productive 18 fish on day two.
The next round of the 2009/2010 Hobie BREAM Kayak Series sees the tour travel to Narrabeen Lakes in NSW, Nov 7-8th, with the 2-day event taking place in conjunction with the 2009 Skeeter BREAM Classic Championship being held on the Hawkesbury River.
More at: www.hobiefishing.com.au
