A small, forest-sheltered water-supply lake near Daylesford in central Victoria, stocked with brown and rainbow trout, with midge hatches on calm days and walking tracks right round the shore.
Wombat Creek Dam, also called Wombat Reservoir, is a small forest lake near Daylesford in central Victoria. It is a water-supply storage with good water quality and a good head of brown trout, and it suits an angler who wants a quiet, intimate day on the water rather than a big-lake expedition.
The lake is held back by a dam wall, and the tracks that run along the shore take you round the rest of it. Two of its bays are weedy with gently sloping margins, and those are where the fishing is typically good.
Start with a calm day and the midge. Wombat has very good midge hatches when the surface is flat, and the fish that mooch along under those conditions are usually best taken on a nymph, though a dry can still work. Park at the wall, walk to one of the weedy bays and watch the water for a few minutes before you tie anything on.
If the wind is up, stay. The forest around the lake shelters it from weather, which makes Wombat a useful option when more open waters are blown out.
When nothing is rising, fish small wets, nymphs or streamers slowly along the weed edges. FlyLife’s writers say that approach works in spring and autumn, and that winter can go quiet but the trout stay catchable on streamers and wets. They also describe summer as busy, with plenty of insect activity and rising fish.
Brown and rainbow trout are both stocked here. Set your expectations by FlyLife’s writers, who say Wombat trout do not usually grow large: think small flies and light tippet rather than big streamers.
Wombat Dam Road takes you to the wall and the parking. Pack a nymph box, pick your bay and fish it properly.