kyuss

Southern Highlands - so roughly the area bordered by (the plateau above) Kangaroo Valley, Bundanoon, Wombeyan Caves, Robertson.

Ah - I know that area well after a fair bit of exploration myself several years ago. The trout populations are very slim in the little creeks that host them. The catchment of each is also very limited so it doesn't take much to dent the populations. Only one of the streams sees any stocking (not regularly) and the others are self sustaining which has always surprised me. Definitely a catch and release area to be protected.

Definitely looks like Euastacus Spinifer. I spent a good few years in high school exploring every likely habitat looking for different species between Wollongong and Sydney. What I tended to find was a distinction between the streams draining west and those draining to the coast. I never found Euastacus Spinifer in a coastal draining stream north of Wollongong - these tended to have a smaller and greener species (I cant remember the name). The ones draining west were normally dominated by Euastacus Spinifer (which grew to large sizes) and the smaller but very impressive black and red coloured Euastacus Australasiensis. South of the Illawarra I did find Spinifer very close to the coast so it's not a hard and fast rule - that was just my experience from many years ago. I'd love to revisit some of those streams but most were Water Board and the fines aren't worth it.

That's awesome - thanks Nik.

Has anybody been down to the Cox (below Jenolan) or any of the tributaries this winter? I went in a couple of years ago and the winter fishing was good (not as good as I've seen it but still worth the walk). Reports have been fairly negative over the last couple of years despite decent rain. Worth checking out again??

I fished there up until 4-5 years ago and could normally pull a decent Bass (up to 42/43cm) but always had to work for it. Rattling Jackal type lures seemed to work best. Every now and then managed a rainbow (typically 40cm and healthy) but they were very few and far between. The consistent size of the fish and tough fishing had me thinking that the water probably wasn't well stocked - so the fish that were in it did well. Those fish have probably had their day and I doubt there would be any natural recruitment (certainly not for the Bass and unlikely for the trout looking at the quality of the small feeder streams). Best to check with fisheries and the local club to see if there has been any stocking in the last 5 years. There are several highlands streams to fish for trout (other than the Wollondilly) but you need to do the work to find them. That's half the fun so I wont spoil it for you by sharing those spots .

Looks a little like a southern highlands stream I know but too much water to be it. I've fished Moffat Falls, it's not that. Yeh, not helpful at all!

Warning - The place is very 'snakey' and has a reputation for browns. Having said that, I didnt see one last time I was there but worth being aware of with the kids.

Thanks for the report. The Cotter is one of my favs. Well worth the effort to treck in to the more inaccessible places (or MTB). Nice to hear of 40cm fish, I was convinced that 35 was about the limit for the stream.

Thanks all.

Nice work - glad you're getting amongst it. Are there any camping options on the Fish or does it just run through private properties? I dont mind if a walk is involved.

Love it, keep them coming. The stream looks like one of my little favourites (although it's hard to pick)... does it happen to run into a river starting with W? Very solid brown for the area if it's the one I'm thinking of.

Hey Dean, Yeh easy enough. It's not much of a track but there are no junctions. Once you hit Breakfast creek you can't go wrong as the track pretty much follows this the rest of the way apart from a couple of shortcuts over little ridges to cut out a bend or two of the creek. If you cant find good track notes on the net PM me and ill send through some notes. Jenolan - I only fished up 1km or so, nice area. Good Luck.

There were two groups of campers on the Cox (both packing up when I got in at 9:30). I didnt see anyone else as I fished upstream. I reckon there would normally be a couple of fisherman about most weekends but plenty of river to share (downstream / upstream and Jenolan... lots of options).

More pics...