Kangaroo Lake is a Victorian stocked native fishery: Murray cod and golden perch have gone in here year after year, and redfin fill in the days between.

You fish it as one piece of open water. Nothing in the lake itself divides it into separate fisheries, so what splits it for you is the edge against the open water, and the time of year. The persistence chart shows how much of the basin has held water over time, which is the best guide to how steady that edge is.

The easiest trip is for redfin, from the bank or the jetty in the warmer months. The Victorian Fisheries Authority’s fishing guide records a jetty upgrade at the lake. Redfin are well recorded here and they school, so once you find one you usually find several. No water-specific rule was found for the lake, which in practice means you take your licence and limits from the current Victorian guide before you leave home.

The second trip is golden perch, once the water warms. They have been stocked heavily and steadily, so there should be fish of several sizes about. A dark streamer fished slow and deep is how to meet them, and a boat lets you cover more water.

The third trip is Murray cod, at first and last light in summer and early autumn. They are stocked as regularly as the perch, and they are firmly recorded. Take an eight to ten weight and a big fly, and read the current Victorian guide on cod size and bag limits before the trip, not at the water.

Start with redfin on a warm evening, and have the heavy rod rigged in the car.