FlyLife’s writers describe the Delatite as a classic high-country stream, running from Mount Buller to Lake Eildon. The steep, tumbling headwaters give way to slower, slightly murky tail waters. Upstream of Merrijig the river is well shaded, and the cool, clear water keeps the fishing productive through the season.

The river is small and twisting, so you rarely have room to cast far. That shapes everything else about how you fish it.

Rainbow and brown trout are the fish to plan for; FlyLife calls the Delatite a smaller, lively cousin of the Howqua with a healthy, self-sustaining population of both. Rainbows have been stocked recently, and the stocking chart shows when.

Other species turn up in the river too, carp among them.

For the fly box, attractor and terrestrial dries work well, as do smaller mayfly and caddis nymphs. A Hopper and a Stimulator in sizes 10 to 14 are both listed for brown and rainbow trout.

Summer dry-fly fishing is a listed highlight of the river. FlyLife’s writers describe early-season flows as often high with snowmelt, settling by November to suit a dry-dropper and then a straight dry fly as summer warms up.

Keep it short. Long casts are unnecessary and rarely possible, and backcast room is limited, so short, careful drifts are the way to work a run.

Start with an attractor or terrestrial dry. A Stimulator or Hopper in sizes 10 to 14 is a fair place to begin. When nothing is rising, in our experience a small mayfly or caddis nymph is a sound fallback.

The Mansfield to Mount Buller road crosses the Delatite at Merrijig, and there is fishable water from there up into the headwaters at the base of Mount Buller. FlyLife lists the road access as a highlight. A walking trail follows the river from the Carters Mill picnic area through the Mount Buller resort entry and on into the headwaters.

FlyLife’s writers say reaching some of the better water means pushing through a grove of invasive sycamores or picking a careful line through blackberries. As on any bush river, take care with your footing, and read the signs and fences on the ground before you cross land.

Take the season, bag and size limits, and any trout-water or closed-waters listing, from the current Victorian Fisheries Authority guide before you fish.