Fishing for Squid in Victoria with Chris Hubner

Squid jigs or EGI as the Japanese call them have come a long way in Australia over the last 10 years or so. Here is a quick rundown on what I find to work for me in Westernport Bay and port Phillip Bay…

 In Japan squid fishing is mainly land based with some fishing done in boats and in quite deep water too, the Japanese have a very aggressive retrieve style when squid fishing and we here in Australia have only just recently adapted to it over the 10 years. Squid jigs are designed to imitate bait fish and prawns as you will see by their shape. There sink rates all vary also depending on size. 

Choosing the right size and colour can be hard at first but a good rule of thumb is picking the size that best matches the bait in the area or the sink rate you want slower or faster. Squid jigs come in 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, and 4.0 and a range of colours.

The size of the jig refers to the length of the jigs not the weight. So, if I am fishing in a shallow bay or shallow spot near Mornington pier, I will have 2.0 and 2.5 jigs ready to go whereas if I am deeper, I will have 3.0 3.5 and 4.0 for the deep water and fast currents like in Westernport. 

Choosing the colour of the jig with vary from day to day where weather conditions and water clarity playing a big part in your choice, clear day and clear water bright jigs that stand out will work wonders along with natural patterns and white jigs, overcast days you will find red under foil jigs to work better as well as at dawn and dusk this will work well. Dirty murky water dark jigs will be the choice as it will make a perfect silhouette in the water for the squid to see.

Here at Bait & Tackle Direct we have a range of Egi rods for all squid fishing needs ranging from 7ft to 12ft in length rods with all the sizes between to help you get the right setup for land based or boat squid fishing along with a awesome range of squid jigs to help you catch squid from the boat, pier and beach great reels to match each rod and style of fishing so be sure to come in store and see the guys to see the range and have one of us help you setup a combo and choose the jigs to suit you and your squid fishing 

Some location I would recommend for squid would be areas that have patchy grounds such as reef and sand, weed and sand holes and places for the squid to hide and find food.

Main areas you are likely to find squid is in patchy weed areas where they can hide from predators and also ambush pray. Tidal flows will play a part in how active the squid will be especially if the tidal flow is fast, they won’t want to use a heap of energy for a small feed so fishing slower moving tides or tide changes is a great way to get yourself on a good session with the squid. 

Best way to get squid in a boat is drifting setting your drift to either go along the same depth line or go from shallow to deeper waters restarting the drift once you feel you are too deep or to shallow depending on the tide and direction of the drift.

Repeat successful drifts to as squid do hang around in schools and big ones will sit on their eggs when the breeding season happens usually April and May and September and October being the best times to look for bigger model’s, squid only live for 300 days they are a fast-growing species and very aggressive feeders when hungry.