Fact Sheet for Arthurs Lake

Introduction:

This is Tasmania’s most popular trout fishery, receiving more anglers and more angler effort than any other water in the State. Damming the Upper Lake River and flooding the area that originally contained two lakes, Blue Lake and Sand Lake, and the Morass marsh made the modern day Arthurs Lake. The water in Arthurs Lake is used for hydro electricity generation with the water being pumped into Great Lake to feed the power station at Poatina. Brown trout are the only species of trout recorded at Arthurs as has been the case since the 1960’s. Rainbow trout were present in the early days. Arthurs is known for its good catch rate for its wild stocks of brown trout. There are three road accesses into Arthurs and numerous shacks and camping areas. Numerous boat ramps are available and the lake is popular for boat based fishers.

Fishing Information:

Arthurs Lake brown trout population is totally self-sustaining with ample recruitment coming from the creeks that flow into the northern and western shores. The IFS does not need to stock Arthurs and it is managed as a wild brown trout fishery. Each year the spawning run is monitored to gauge the average size of the fish making up the adult population. In recent years the average weight in the spawning run has been around 850 grams with the size ranging from 200 to 1800 grams. The condition of the fish in the spawning run is of a good standard and this is usually the case in the fish caught by anglers in the lake during throughout the season. Each year fish in excess of the old fashioned benchmark of 10 pounds are caught and fish of up to 16 pounds have been caught in recent years. Arthurs is a productive fishery with the IFS postal questionnaire and creel surveys indicating an average catch rate of 2 fish per day. Experienced anglers catch significantly more than this and during hatches in summer some people attain their bag limit of 12 fish. All angling methods are permitted at Arthurs and each is equally popular and practiced. Whilst having a boat can be an advantage and open up more opportunities there are a number of good fishing spots accessible from the shore with roads (some 4wd) providing access to the majority of the lake’s shoreline. Set rod bait fishing is popular and productive with worms and wattle grubs being the recommended baits. Bait fishing using mudeyes has become popular in recent years and is best practiced near sunken timber and dead trees. Lure casting and trolling are especially worthwhile around the Morass where sunken timber and dead trees provide cover for fish to wait in ambush for passing prey. Early in the season it can be worthwhile trolling deeper lures, using leadcore line or down rigging methods. Springtime also brings spawning galaxias close to the rocky shores where the trout that feed upon them are often brought undone by soft-plastics worked close to shore. Fly-fishing at Arthurs covers the full facets of the sport from polaroiding cruisers to dun feeders, galaxid feeders and loch style fishing from a boat. The Cowpaddock at the northern end of the old Blue Lake is amongst the most popular and productive spot for shore based fly fishers especially during the mayfly season (November to February). Boat based fishers often move according to where the fish are and that will be dictated by what is on the menu for the trout at the time. Anglers are permitted to use boats but should be aware that the lake is exposed to all wind directions and can get quite rough.

Fisheries Management Information:

The brown trout population is maintained through natural recruitment. The spawning run is monitored on an annual basis. As mentioned above the average size in the spawning runs is usually between 800 grams and 1 kilogram. The Angler Postal Survey that has been conducted each year for the last 20 or so years indicates the fishery is quite stable in terms of catch rate that averages near 2 fish per angler per day. The survey also indicates that Arthurs gets more anglers than any other fishery in the state. For these reasons Arthurs is valued one of the mainstays of the Tasmanian trout fishery.

Region:

Central

Other Fish:

Two species of indigenous fish are endemic (only found at) to Arthurs Lake and the nearby Woods Lake, the Saddled galaxias (Galaxias tanycephalus) and Arthurs paragalaxias (Paragalaxias mesotes). Both species are threatened and listed as vulnerable and endangered under the Tasmanian Threatened Species Protection Act 1995.

Facilities:

There are boat launching areas at Arthurs: Jonah Bay, Pumphouse Bay, Tea Tree Bay at Wilburville, Western side of Arthurs Dam and the western end of Morass Bay at Yangeena. Two camp areas can be found at Pumphouse Bay and Jonah Bay. The Parks and Wildlife Service manage these areas. If you wish to use these areas you should contact the Central Plateau Field Centre at Liawenee; phone 03 6259 8148.

How To Get There:

Arthurs can be reached from three turn offs on the B51, which in turn is reached from the A5 either from the south via the Midlands Highway (Hwy 1), or north via the Bass Hwy (Hwy 1). The B51 is also accessible from the B52 via Hwy 1 from north or south.

Regulations and Species