Fishing Geelong & the Bellarine Peninsula by Geoff Wilson

Book Review: by Darren Reid

Geoff Wilson has fished around Geelong for over five decades. From his famous snapper captures around the Geelong Grammar School Lagoon in the 1960's to his highly refined techniques for taking big mulloway in the Barwon River. He is somewhat of a local legend in Geelong, although that title would not sit well with Geoff who rarely draws attention to himself despite his extraordinary successes with 'plus size' fish over the years.

Outside his home State of Victoria, Geoff Wilson is probably best known for his book of knots and rigs which ranks as one of the biggest selling fishing books ever in Australia. Geoff has been a regular contributor to a range of national fishing magazines for many years. In fact in December 1999, Modern Fishing magazine celebrated its 30th year with a commemorative replica of the December 1969 issue which incidentally featured an article on catching snapper by Geoff Wilson.

Fishing Geelong & the Bellarine Peninsula in the new A4 format is essentially a complete revamp of his original book Fishing Geelong published more than a decade ago. The book encompasses the full gamut of fishing possibilities around Geelong including both salt and freshwater options, species guide and regulations.

As Geoff details in the book, Geelong has a wide variety of angling environments in which to choose. From shallow water estuarine fishing in Corio Bay chasing snapper, kingfish and whiting to deep sea options beyond the heads of Port Phillip Bay or offshore from Barwon Heads, where shark, snapper and other species are on offer. There are several good freshwater lakes near Geelong, but in particular Modewarre and Murdeduke provide tremendous opportunities for anglers to chase trout. There are also some rivers around Geelong that offer a mixture of freshwater and estuarine species, for example the Barwon River. Finally there is surf fishing from the beaches of Ocean Grove and Torquay where Australian salmon and the occasional big mulloway are caught.

The attention to detail is paramount. By covering such a wide range of locations Geoff has provided 14 maps that illustrate the areas discussed. These maps have details of boat ramps, river mouths, channels, depth variations, major structures both natural and man-made, plus navigation marks. The maps also indicate likely fishing hotspots and hazards.

A considerable amount of Geoff's writing for magazines has gone into the techniques used to catch fish - the "How To". This book is no exception with detailed descriptions of likely species and how to catch them. As a result this book is a useful reference beyond the waters around Geelong. A sample of species covered includes snapper, mulloway, whiting, bream, luderick, trevalla, yellowtail kingfish and snook. Naturally there is a number of knots and rigs diagrams to help you to tackle up for the variety of species in Geelong's waters.

For anyone intending on fishing Geelong, local or tourist alike, they should get themselves a copy of this invaluable resource.

Fishing Geelong & the Bellarine Peninsula is published by Sportsfish Australia Publications Pty Ltd and is available from tackle stores and Kmart.