Tarwin River (Tarwin Lower)

The Tarwin River is the estuary that feeds the head of Anderson Inlet, and at Tarwin Lower it runs right past the township along River Drive. What makes it a land-based spot rather than a boat spot is the fishing platforms: a series of timber platforms built along the lower river with Victorian fishing licence money through the Recreational Fishing Grants Program, several of them reached straight off River Drive and another on a bend beside the road between Tarwin Lower and Venus Bay. It is a family spot, and it fishes like one — calm water, bream and estuary perch in the snags, mullet and trevally for the kids. Closer to the mouth the river picks up salmon, flathead and the odd pinkie from the inlet. It is the rare estuary where the fishing platform is easier to find than the fish.

This is classic Victorian estuary bream fishing. Fish a lightly weighted bait — a small running ball sinker or no sinker at all — down to a size 6–2 hook, and let it drift into the edges of snags and drop-offs on a moving tide. Sandworm, scrub worm, mussel and yabbies are the go-to bream baits. Estuary perch respond to the same approach with yabbies or tube worms, or to small soft plastics and hardbodies cast tight to timber at dawn and dusk; the action can be frantic on warm, still evenings. Mullet and trevally take small baits under a float or on a light paternoster. Keep noise down on the platforms — bream in clear, shallow estuary water spook easily.

Black bream are the river's bread and butter and the fish most locals are after, with estuary perch the prized second species. Yelloweye mullet and silver trevally fill the bucket on light rigs, and luderick turn up around the weedier edges. Down toward the mouth, where the river meets Anderson Inlet, salmon move in during winter and flathead are around year-round. Further upstream the river turns fresh and the species change to redfin and eels. Victorian limits: bream 28 cm with a bag of 10; estuary perch 27 cm with a combined bag of 5 (no more than two of them Australian bass); flathead 27 cm; luderick 23 cm. Black bream and estuary perch must be kept whole until you are off the water, and many locals release their perch anyway.

Low light and a moving tide are the combination — dawn or dusk on the run-in is when the bream come up onto the edges. Fine leaders matter in this water; drop to 4–6 lb fluorocarbon if the bites stop. Berley lightly with bread and a little tuna oil to hold fish in front of a platform — the berley limit in inlets is 10 litres. The river mouth is shoaled and only navigable by shallow boats at high tide, so the lower river's depth swings with the tide — fish the deeper bends.

Platforms sit along River Drive in Tarwin Lower and beside the Tarwin Lower–Venus Bay road, with roadside parking close by. There are picnic facilities and a rotunda near the river. Access from the car to the platforms is short, making this one of the more manageable spots in the region for older anglers and families, though individual platforms vary. The Tarwin Lower boat ramp and jetty are also on the river. The township has a general store, and the Venus Bay shops are ten minutes away. There are no fees.

Being a sheltered river, the Tarwin fishes when the coast is blown out, which is exactly when locals head here. Strong winds still ruffle the open reaches; a light breeze and a little cloud are ideal. After heavy rain in the catchment the river runs brown and fresh, which can push bream down toward the mouth and slow the fishing on the upper platforms for a few days. Tide is the main driver: the run-in brings cleaner inlet water and moving fish, while the bottom of the tide can leave the shallower edges dead.

Platform edges and riverbanks can be slippery after rain; watch children near the water and around the road, as some platforms sit close to traffic. Riverbanks are muddy and soft in places — stay on the paths. Snags are part of the appeal but do not climb out on fallen timber to retrieve rigs. Mosquitoes are fierce on still evenings, and snakes are about in warm weather in the long grass along the banks. Do not eat fish from the river after a major flood without checking current health advice.

A series of timber fishing platforms built with fishing licence funds line the lower Tarwin River, several reached directly from River Drive in Tarwin Lower and one on a bend beside the road to Venus Bay. They are popular with families and suit land-based anglers who want calm water.

The lower Tarwin is an estuary holding black bream, estuary perch, yelloweye mullet, silver trevally and luderick, with salmon and flathead closer to the mouth in Anderson Inlet. Higher up, the river becomes freshwater and holds redfin and eels.

Sandworm, scrub worm, mussel and yabbies are the local bream baits, fished lightly weighted into snags on a moving tide. Yabbies and tube worms also work for estuary perch, as do small soft plastics cast at dawn and dusk.