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We recorded this one on the banks of Wyangala Dam, halfway through our 2026 team trip. Dane Hegvold has been writing reports for us for three years now, and we probably should have sat him down for a podcast a lot sooner. He runs us through the Bathurst region, which is a genuinely good place to be based – trout country up around Lithgow and Oberon, the Macquarie River, Ben Chifley Dam fifteen minutes from town, and Wyangala, Burrendong and Carcoar all inside an hour and a half. Dane's own story is worth the listen too. Years of trolling the same lures in the same spots without ever asking why, then a stretch chasing marlin and tuna out of Botany Bay, then three kids and a move back to freshwater. He talks about what changed when he joined the membership, and it comes down to something simple: pick a species first, then work back through the season, the conditions and where the fish will be holding. He also shares his two best sessions – a 93cm PB on the Macquarie with his son in the net, and a 112cm fish here at Wyangala on this trip. The part I could not stop thinking about was a two-day drift Dane did on the Macquarie where the water was filthy the whole way, with no rain and a falling river. He found a gauge with a turbidity reading on it, saw it had spiked from around 10 NTU up to 95, and rang me to ask why. What we landed on after an hour on the phone was a rollover – the same stratification event we have talked about in lakes, happening in a river. Worth a listen alongside episode 99. We finish on the app Dane has quietly been building for two years. PrimeTime brings session planning and catch logging into the one place, then maps your catches against the pressure, the moon phase and the time of day so you can see the patterns for yourself. It is free while it is in beta, and the story of how his daughter named it is the best moment in the episode. Enjoy the chat!   In this episode: 0:30 – Introduction and Recording on the Banks of Wyangala Dam 2:10 – The Waterways Around Bathurst: Lithgow, Oberon and the Macquarie 6:40 – Ben Chifley Dam, the Redfin Virus and the Cod That Are Left 8:30 – Dane's First Metre Cod Out of His Home Water 11:40 – The Saltwater Years: Botany Bay, Marlin and Tuna 21:00 – Picking a Species First – The Fundamentals That Changed Everything 24:50 – A 93cm PB on the Macquarie With His Son in the Net 26:20 – A New PB – 112cm at Wyangala on This Trip 29:30 – How to Fish Ben Chifley: Species, Seasons and Weed Edges 34:00 – The Macquarie Drift Where the Water Went Filthy Without Rain 39:20 – The Turbidity Spike and Working Out a River Rollover 43:10 – The PrimeTime App and Two Years of a Pet Project 52:50 – How Dane's Daughter Named the App

Nate Archer is back on the podcast, and this time we're deep into winter barramundi in the impoundments – genuinely one of Nate's favourite times of year to chase them, even though most anglers write the season off as too cold and push it to the bottom of their list. We go right through how the fish behave once the water cools down. Nate breaks down how to read wind direction and water temperature to find the warm pockets barra push into on a sunny bluebird day, why keeping your lure high in the water column and your retrieve dead slow matters so much more in winter, and how to fish weed-choked bays (or “broccoli towers”, as Nate calls them) without spooking easily-stressed fish. We also get into the difference between chasing them without live sonar – casting the edges and staying stealthy – and using it to find bigger fish holding out in deeper, more stable water on a miserable overcast day. There's a great analogy in here too: why a small, shallow bay swings in temperature all day like a cup of water left in the sun, while a big, deep bay stays stable like a swimming pool – and why that's the key to finding winter barra. Nate also shares the story of a client's barra from his very first week guiding, a 120cm fish so solid it pushed 42kg on the scales. We finish up talking about the massive change in Nate's own life since we last spoke. After eighteen years as a carpenter, he's hung up the nail bag for good and gone full-time as a fishing guide, chasing barra and Murray cod across southern Queensland and northern New South Wales. He talks us through the moment he decided to make the jump, where he guides now, and the numbers from his most recent trip. If you've been putting winter barra fishing in the too-hard basket, this one will change your mind. In this episode: 0:35 – Nate Archer Returns to Talk Winter Barra and His New Guiding Career 3:50 – Why Winter Is Nate's Favourite Time to Chase Impoundment Barra 6:40 – Reading Wind and Water Temperature to Find Warm Winter Bays 12:30 – Lure Choice and Retrieve Speed for Shallow Bay Casting 14:30 – The Exception to the Rule: Fishing Faster in a Clear-Water System 17:25 – Approaching a Bay Stealthily and Casting to One Spot as Fish Move Through 22:30 – Reducing Splash to Avoid Spooking Winter Barra 25:00 – Fishing Weed Structure and “Broccoli Towers” in the Bays 37:50 – Live Sonar on an Overcast Day: Fishing Deep and High in the Water Column 40:25 – The Cup v Swimming Pool Analogy for Water Temperature Stability 43:10 – The 120cm, 42kg Barra From Nate's First Week Guiding 46:30 – Presentation Choices on Live Sonar: Subtle by Day, Bigger Baits After Dark 51:10 – Planning a Full Day's Session Around a Sunny Bluebird Day 56:40 – From Eighteen Years as a Carpenter to Full-Time Fishing Guide 1:03:10 – Where Nate Guides and How to Book a Trip 1:06:30 – Nate's Latest Trip Numbers: 38 Fish in Ten Days and 68 Cod at Glenlyon and Leslie

We're back on the river for our annual river drift – the trip we do every single year, three boats deep on the Murrumbidgee for three days chasing Murray Cod. This time the podcast looks a little different. We normally sit down around the campfire on the last night to record, but this year we ran out of time, so Dan and I recorded this one on the water instead, kicking off with our first cast on the third and final morning.   We talk through the whole float: the lowest we've ever fished the river, the stitch-up we pulled on the other four blokes to shift camp, and the lessons that came out of three days on the water. Dan tells the story of a big fish, and why hook sharpness made the difference on this trip. Then there's Alex's fish of the trip – a genuine 114cm river cod that had the whole group buzzing.   We also get into the stuff that helps your own fishing: the three time windows of a surface bite session and why the last fifteen minutes of light matters so much, the difference between a big-fish approach and a small-fish approach with your lure choice, and the boat control lesson that took one of our members from two fish to ten in a single session.   If you love chasing Murray Cod on rivers, especially through that prime autumn window, this is the episode for you.   In this episode: 0:30 – Kicking Off the Final Morning of Our Annual River Drift 1:30 – First Cast and the History of Our Yearly Float 3:30 – The Biggest Float We've Done as a Team 6:30 – The Stitch-Up on the Boys (and the Lowest Water We've Ever Fished) 9:30 – Day One Build-Up and Why River Floats Feel Different to Lakes 15:20 – Dan's Big Fish 23:00 – Planning a Float: How Far to Travel Each Day 27:10 – Alex's 114cm Cod – Fish of the Trip 32:30 – The Three Time Windows of a Surface Bite Session 38:10 – Camp Gear: Sleeping Mats and the Cooking Grill 42:20 – Big Fish Approach v Small Fish Approach for Lure Choice 47:40 – Behind the Scenes: Filming and the Chasing a Dream Film 48:20 – Boat Control: How Member Shiv Went from Two Fish to Ten 1:01:20 – Fishing Goals and Achieving One on a Lure He Was About to Retire 1:04:50 – Do Cod Live on One Log, or Move Around to Feed? 1:07:30 – Wrapping Up the Float

We hosted our third annual members event in March 2026. This year we went back to Burrinjuck Dam, and it was our biggest edition yet. New and improved clinics and games, over $16K worth of giveaways and more importantly a priceless opportunity for members to connect. Enjoy this chat with Rhys, Dan and Nate as they discuss the event, the funny times and what it’s all about. It’s an event unlike no other and you don’t want to miss out next year!   In this episode: 1:00 – Introduction and the 2026 Burrinjuck Members Event 3:00 – Filming, Packing the Prize Haul and Travelling to Burrinjuck 6:00 – Arriving at Burrinjuck and First Impressions of the Lake 9:00 – Yellowbelly Fishing, the Cold Change and Preparing for the Event 14:00 – Fishing with Forward-Facing Sonar and Catching Two Cod Over a Metre 24:00 – Setting Up the Lowrance Treasure Hunt in the Storm 28:00 – Friday Clinics and What Makes the Members Event Unique 40:00 – Continuing the Event Recap with Dan Webber 45:00 – Saturday On-Water Clinics and Ken’s First Metre Murray Cod 54:00 – Hub Clinics, the Casting Competition and Major Prize Giveaways 68:00 – Member Stories, Community and Why the Event Is So Special 74:00 – The Future of the Members Event and Plans for 2027

Welcome to another member’s podcast! In this episode we are heading up to the Gladstone region chatting with local guide running Gladstone Fly & Sportfishing, Cory Gooch. Cory loves chasing freshwater Barramundi and spends a lot of time fishing and guiding on Awoonga Dam. In this chat we talk all about impoundment Barramundi, the basics of catching Barramundi and casting to the weeds, along with plenty of chat on fishing Lake Awoonga. We then move on to talk about Cory’s ABT win, how it all went down and the tactics he used to win the competition. Book a guided trip with cory: Gladstone Fly & Sportfishing   In this Episode: 2:45 – Introduction to Cory and His Passion for Chasing Barramundi 24:20 – Fishing Lake Awoonga – Tips, Techniques and Fishing 38:48 – What’s a successful session and key lures for Awoonga? 46:35 – Chasing Awoonga Barra with Live Tech 51:35 – Cory’s ABT Win

THE 100TH PODCAST EPISODE! We made it to the 100th episode and this this one we wanted to do something special. Rhys looks back at where everything all began and chats with the crew who started Social Fishing. Stumpy, Tallis, Chris and Jack helped in the early days and Rhys sits down to have a chat with all four of these guys. Talking about the past, but also about where they are now. What are they up to 10 years down the track. Many have moved away, built careers and families. Enjoy this chat with the original SF crew!   In this episode: 0:31 - Introduction 7:50 – Chat with Stumpy 44:00 – Chat with Tallis 1:52:17 – Chat with Chris 2:28:32 – Chat with Jack

Fish kills are disappointing and heart breaking, no matter where we see them or how devastating they are. Recently Murray Cod have shown up dead at Burrinjuck Dam. Fishing this lake often we wanted to know why! After witnessing a similar fish kill at Blowering back in 2019 we have already had some experience witnessing similar fish deaths with a similar pattern. In this chat we dive deep into what a ‘roll over’ event is, how it happens and why we believe this is the cause of this fish kill. In this episode we discuss how the water behaves, stratifies and reacts to the environment around it. This also affects fish activity and can be a reason as to why fishing is so tough at times…   In this episode: 00:30 – Introduction to the Episode 10:00 – Theory – Fish Dying from Fighting and Bacteria 19:00 – Theory – Roll Over

You’ve probably heard the saying, “1020 the fish are plenty”? This is in reference to the Barometric Pressure and when it’s over 1020hPa… the fishing is good. But how does the barometric pressure affect the fish? The most common theory that been around for many years is the direct impact on the swim bladder on the fish… but this theory had its flaws. So I decided to do a deep dive into barometric pressure and explored other avenues as to how it directly impacts fish, especially freshwater fish. In this episode I look at swim bladders, and how they work. As well as exploring dissolved oxygen to see if this has a direct correlation to pressure changes. What I find in this episode is fascinating… and well worth a listen for any angler – fresh or salt. Enjoy!   In this episode: 1:00 – Introduction into Barometric Pressure and Old Theories 10:00 – Does Dissolved Oxygen Change During Barometric Pressure Shifts? 19:00 – Fluctuations of Dissolved Oxygen in Freshwater Impoundments  25:00 – How Do Fish Swim Bladders Work 45:00 – How Does Barometric Pressure Effect Fish?

That's right! We launched another podcast that talks about key topics, techniques, locations and also discusses theories, those 1% extra things that will make a big difference on your sessions. Join us on our other podcast channel! Head to our website to learn more: https://socialfishing.com.au/

Welcome to this episode where we chat about our 2025 team trip to Copeton Dam! Every year the SF Team heads off to cod waterway in the winter, to chase big cod. This year Copeton was the choice, and wow was it one insane trip! A trip we will never forget, and a trip where we learnt some incredible new lessons – which will change the way we target cod in the next few years. This is an episode you don’t want to miss! Enjoy.   In this episode: 3:00 – Intro to the Trip 4:30 – Figuring out the Bite at Copeton: Tricky to Work Out 11:00 – Fish Behaviour and Last Light Bite 13:00 – Stories of Fish from the Trip

Welcome to the episode where I share my first experience chasing and catching Barramundi! What a special fish and I feel very privileged to have experienced some monster Barra from Lake Monduran with Nate Archer. This podcast shares the story of how this trip came to be, my family holiday but more importantly the experience over the three days of chasing these insane Barramundi. Keen for a great chat, some laughs and plenty of discussion around Barra – listen up!   In this episode: 4:00 – Introduction to our Monduran Trip 11:00 – How Nate plans his trips 14:00 – Start of Day 1 Session 48:00 – Jerkabits & Glidebaits for Barra 54:00 – Filming and Mapping on Day 2 & 3

Welcome back to another episode on location from the Murrumbidgee River! Another float with good mates, telling stories and sharing lessons. This is a phenomenal river to fish during Autumn, and we had great success floating in out Takacat Inflatables. We filmed a VLOG session for our membership which will be available soon, but we also sat down for a podcast on the last night. Enjoy the banter in this latest episode.   In this episode: 3:30 – Introduction to the Team and Trip 14:00 – The Bite on this Trip 24:00 – The Flamingo Story 38:00 – Fish of the Trip 43:00 – Insane Day Time Surface Bite 48:00 – First cast into the key zone 53:00 – More Stories and Chats

Ep93 - Billy Westerveld: Surface at Lake Mulwala & Lake Eildon for Big Cod   Billy Westerveld looks at Murray Cod in a different way to most, he is very in tune to their behaviours and makes small changes to his fishing with big results. A top guy who is willing to share and help others – which lead him to become one of the SF Team and writing the reports for Lake Eildon. In this episode Billy talks about surface fishing at Lake Mulwala and also how he targets big cod at Lake Eildon. We get into details about cod behaviour, having the correct hooks and a basic rule for getting started with live tech. Well worth a listen and I’ll have more episodes to come with Billy. If you want to ask him any questions – join the SF Membership.   In this episode: 1:20 – Billys Fishing Story – First Experience with Big Surface Cod at Mulwala 10:00 – More tips for Surface Fishing for Cod (Hooks, Lure Types, Trolling) 15:30 – Surface at Lake Mulwala – Key Areas & Structure 19:40 – Weed and the Drawdown at Mulwala: How it works? 24:30 – How to get more info on fishing Lake Mulwala 25:10 – Fishing Lake Eildon for Murray Cod 34:00 – Growth rates for Eildon Cod & their behaviour 36:00 – How to find success using Live Tech for the first time 45:00 – Billy’s Go-To Lures for Cod 54:50 – Billy’s Most Memorable Catch

Alex Ross loves his freshwater fishing, especially land-based fishing for Murray Cod on creek and river systems. Based in the Wagga region and growing up on the Murray River, he has been surrounded by premier cod rivers. In this episode Alex shares a wealth of knowledge on his experience bank walking, and what he has learnt along the way, including how to avoid snags, gear to pack and the approach for fishing land based in rivers. He has also kitted out a Stand-Up Paddle Board for fishing along these rivers, and has had some good success. He shares his journey of purchasing the board, and what he has learnt along the way. You won’t meet a nicer guy, who is happy to help and do anything for anyone! Enjoy this episode with Alex Ross!   In this episode: 03:30 – Previous podcasts with Alex from our river drifts 13:20 – Alex’s fishing story and where it all started 26:20 – Gear for Fishing Landbased for Murray Cod   36:30 – Technique & Approach from the Bank 52:00 – Fishing from a Stand-Up Paddle Board (SUP) in the Freshwater 1:18:00 – Using the Correct Rod for the Situation – Understanding Rod Action 1:26:30 – Fishing in Your Comfort Zone V Pushing to Try Something New 1:39:10 – Final Lesson from Alex 1:45:30 – Alex’s Top Fishing Moment

Nate Archer has a passion for fishing, and specifically targeting Barramundi. I was lucky enough to catch up with Nate to talk about Barra, fishing at Lake Monduran and how fishing started for him. If you are new to chasing Barra or want to learn a few new tricks… this is a podcast you don’t want to miss. Towards the end of the episode Nate talks about his 1st place win in this years ABT Barra Tour at the Lake Monduran leg. His attention to detail when it comes to chasing Barra, Murray Cod or any species is incredible. Nate also writes reports within the SF Membership, where he shares what he learns on his trips to Monduran, Hinze, Glenlyon, Lesie and more. Nate loves sharing and helping others. A top fella and was a privilege to have him on an episode of the podcast.   In this episode: 3:00 – Why Nate loves sharing and helping others with fishing 9:00 – How Nate started fishing chasing Catfish 19:40 – Monduran and Awoonga floods & the Barra comeback 37:30 – Fishing for Barramundi in Impoundments 51:25 - Fishing at Lake Monduran 1:20:45 – ABT Barra Tour Win on the Monduran Leg 2024