The Social Fishing Podcast

We recorded this one on the banks of Wyangala Dam, halfway through our 2026 team trip. Dane Hegvold has been writing reports for us for three years now, and we probably should have sat him down for a podcast a lot sooner. He runs us through the Bathurst region, which is a genuinely good place to be based – trout country up around Lithgow and Oberon, the Macquarie River, Ben Chifley Dam fifteen minutes from town, and Wyangala, Burrendong and Carcoar all inside an hour and a half.

Dane's own story is worth the listen too. Years of trolling the same lures in the same spots without ever asking why, then a stretch chasing marlin and tuna out of Botany Bay, then three kids and a move back to freshwater. He talks about what changed when he joined the membership, and it comes down to something simple: pick a species first, then work back through the season, the conditions and where the fish will be holding. He also shares his two best sessions – a 93cm PB on the Macquarie with his son in the net, and a 112cm fish here at Wyangala on this trip.

The part I could not stop thinking about was a two-day drift Dane did on the Macquarie where the water was filthy the whole way, with no rain and a falling river. He found a gauge with a turbidity reading on it, saw it had spiked from around 10 NTU up to 95, and rang me to ask why. What we landed on after an hour on the phone was a rollover – the same stratification event we have talked about in lakes, happening in a river. Worth a listen alongside episode 99.

We finish on the app Dane has quietly been building for two years. PrimeTime brings session planning and catch logging into the one place, then maps your catches against the pressure, the moon phase and the time of day so you can see the patterns for yourself. It is free while it is in beta, and the story of how his daughter named it is the best moment in the episode.

Enjoy the chat!

In this episode:

0:30 – Introduction and Recording on the Banks of Wyangala Dam

2:10 – The Waterways Around Bathurst: Lithgow, Oberon and the Macquarie

6:40 – Ben Chifley Dam, the Redfin Virus and the Cod That Are Left

8:30 – Dane's First Metre Cod Out of His Home Water

11:40 – The Saltwater Years: Botany Bay, Marlin and Tuna

21:00 – Picking a Species First – The Fundamentals That Changed Everything

24:50 – A 93cm PB on the Macquarie With His Son in the Net

26:20 – A New PB – 112cm at Wyangala on This Trip

29:30 – How to Fish Ben Chifley: Species, Seasons and Weed Edges

34:00 – The Macquarie Drift Where the Water Went Filthy Without Rain

39:20 – The Turbidity Spike and Working Out a River Rollover

43:10 – The PrimeTime App and Two Years of a Pet Project

52:50 – How Dane's Daughter Named the App

Nate Archer is back on the podcast, and this time we're deep into winter barramundi in the impoundments – genuinely one of Nate's favourite times of year to chase them, even though most anglers write the season off as too cold and push it to the bottom of their list.

We go right through how the fish behave once the water cools down. Nate breaks down how to read wind direction and water temperature to find the warm pockets barra push into on a sunny bluebird day, why keeping your lure high in the water column and your retrieve dead slow matters so much more in winter, and how to fish weed-choked bays (or “broccoli towers”, as Nate calls them) without spooking easily-stressed fish. We also get into the difference between chasing them without live sonar – casting the edges and staying stealthy – and using it to find bigger fish holding out in deeper, more stable water on a miserable overcast day.

There's a great analogy in here too: why a small, shallow bay swings in temperature all day like a cup of water left in the sun, while a big, deep bay stays stable like a swimming pool – and why that's the key to finding winter barra. Nate also shares the story of a client's barra from his very first week guiding, a 120cm fish so solid it pushed 42kg on the scales.

We finish up talking about the massive change in Nate's own life since we last spoke. After eighteen years as a carpenter, he's hung up the nail bag for good and gone full-time as a fishing guide, chasing barra and Murray cod across southern Queensland and northern New South Wales. He talks us through the moment he decided to make the jump, where he guides now, and the numbers from his most recent trip. If you've been putting winter barra fishing in the too-hard basket, this one will change your mind.

In this episode:

0:35 – Nate Archer Returns to Talk Winter Barra and His New Guiding Career

3:50 – Why Winter Is Nate's Favourite Time to Chase Impoundment Barra

6:40 – Reading Wind and Water Temperature to Find Warm Winter Bays

12:30 – Lure Choice and Retrieve Speed for Shallow Bay Casting

14:30 – The Exception to the Rule: Fishing Faster in a Clear-Water System

17:25 – Approaching a Bay Stealthily and Casting to One Spot as Fish Move Through

22:30 – Reducing Splash to Avoid Spooking Winter Barra

25:00 – Fishing Weed Structure and “Broccoli Towers” in the Bays

37:50 – Live Sonar on an Overcast Day: Fishing Deep and High in the Water Column

40:25 – The Cup v Swimming Pool Analogy for Water Temperature Stability

43:10 – The 120cm, 42kg Barra From Nate's First Week Guiding

46:30 – Presentation Choices on Live Sonar: Subtle by Day, Bigger Baits After Dark

51:10 – Planning a Full Day's Session Around a Sunny Bluebird Day

56:40 – From Eighteen Years as a Carpenter to Full-Time Fishing Guide

1:03:10 – Where Nate Guides and How to Book a Trip

1:06:30 – Nate's Latest Trip Numbers: 38 Fish in Ten Days and 68 Cod at Glenlyon and Leslie

We're back on the river for our annual river drift – the trip we do every single year, three boats deep on the Murrumbidgee for three days chasing Murray Cod. This time the podcast looks a little different. We normally sit down around the campfire on the last night to record, but this year we ran out of time, so Dan and I recorded this one on the water instead, kicking off with our first cast on the third and final morning.

We talk through the whole float: the lowest we've ever fished the river, the stitch-up we pulled on the other four blokes to shift camp, and the lessons that came out of three days on the water. Dan tells the story of a big fish, and why hook sharpness made the difference on this trip. Then there's Alex's fish of the trip – a genuine 114cm river cod that had the whole group buzzing.

We also get into the stuff that helps your own fishing: the three time windows of a surface bite session and why the last fifteen minutes of light matters so much, the difference between a big-fish approach and a small-fish approach with your lure choice, and the boat control lesson that took one of our members from two fish to ten in a single session.

If you love chasing Murray Cod on rivers, especially through that prime autumn window, this is the episode for you.

In this episode:

0:30 – Kicking Off the Final Morning of Our Annual River Drift

1:30 – First Cast and the History of Our Yearly Float

3:30 – The Biggest Float We've Done as a Team

6:30 – The Stitch-Up on the Boys (and the Lowest Water We've Ever Fished)

9:30 – Day One Build-Up and Why River Floats Feel Different to Lakes

15:20 – Dan's Big Fish

23:00 – Planning a Float: How Far to Travel Each Day

27:10 – Alex's 114cm Cod – Fish of the Trip

32:30 – The Three Time Windows of a Surface Bite Session

38:10 – Camp Gear: Sleeping Mats and the Cooking Grill

42:20 – Big Fish Approach v Small Fish Approach for Lure Choice

47:40 – Behind the Scenes: Filming and the Chasing a Dream Film

48:20 – Boat Control: How Member Shiv Went from Two Fish to Ten

1:01:20 – Fishing Goals and Achieving One on a Lure He Was About to Retire

1:04:50 – Do Cod Live on One Log, or Move Around to Feed?

1:07:30 – Wrapping Up the Float

We hosted our third annual members event in March 2026. This year we went back to Burrinjuck Dam, and it was our biggest edition yet. New and improved clinics and games, over $16K worth of giveaways and more importantly a priceless opportunity for members to connect.

Enjoy this chat with Rhys, Dan and Nate as they discuss the event, the funny times and what it’s all about. It’s an event unlike no other and you don’t want to miss out next year!

In this episode:

1:00 – Introduction and the 2026 Burrinjuck Members Event

3:00 – Filming, Packing the Prize Haul and Travelling to Burrinjuck

6:00 – Arriving at Burrinjuck and First Impressions of the Lake

9:00 – Yellowbelly Fishing, the Cold Change and Preparing for the Event

14:00 – Fishing with Forward-Facing Sonar and Catching Two Cod Over a Metre

24:00 – Setting Up the Lowrance Treasure Hunt in the Storm

28:00 – Friday Clinics and What Makes the Members Event Unique

40:00 – Continuing the Event Recap with Dan Webber

45:00 – Saturday On-Water Clinics and Ken’s First Metre Murray Cod

54:00 – Hub Clinics, the Casting Competition and Major Prize Giveaways

68:00 – Member Stories, Community and Why the Event Is So Special

74:00 – The Future of the Members Event and Plans for 2027

Welcome to another member’s podcast! In this episode we are heading up to the Gladstone region chatting with local guide running Gladstone Fly & Sportfishing, Cory Gooch. Cory loves chasing freshwater Barramundi and spends a lot of time fishing and guiding on Awoonga Dam.

In this chat we talk all about impoundment Barramundi, the basics of catching Barramundi and casting to the weeds, along with plenty of chat on fishing Lake Awoonga.

We then move on to talk about Cory’s ABT win, how it all went down and the tactics he used to win the competition.

Book a guided trip with cory: Gladstone Fly & Sportfishing

In this Episode:

2:45 – Introduction to Cory and His Passion for Chasing Barramundi

24:20 – Fishing Lake Awoonga – Tips, Techniques and Fishing

38:48 – What’s a successful session and key lures for Awoonga?

46:35 – Chasing Awoonga Barra with Live Tech

51:35 – Cory’s ABT Win

THE 100TH PODCAST EPISODE! We made it to the 100th episode and this this one we wanted to do something special. Rhys looks back at where everything all began and chats with the crew who started Social Fishing. Stumpy, Tallis, Chris and Jack helped in the early days and Rhys sits down to have a chat with all four of these guys.

Talking about the past, but also about where they are now. What are they up to 10 years down the track. Many have moved away, built careers and families.

Enjoy this chat with the original SF crew!

In this episode:

0:31 - Introduction

7:50 – Chat with Stumpy

44:00 – Chat with Tallis

1:52:17 – Chat with Chris

2:28:32 – Chat with Jack

Fish kills are disappointing and heart breaking, no matter where we see them or how devastating they are. Recently Murray Cod have shown up dead at Burrinjuck Dam. Fishing this lake often we wanted to know why!

After witnessing a similar fish kill at Blowering back in 2019 we have already had some experience witnessing similar fish deaths with a similar pattern.

In this chat we dive deep into what a ‘roll over’ event is, how it happens and why we believe this is the cause of this fish kill. In this episode we discuss how the water behaves, stratifies and reacts to the environment around it. This also affects fish activity and can be a reason as to why fishing is so tough at times…

In this episode:

00:30 – Introduction to the Episode

10:00 – Theory – Fish Dying from Fighting and Bacteria

19:00 – Theory – Roll Over

You’ve probably heard the saying, “1020 the fish are plenty”? This is in reference to the Barometric Pressure and when it’s over 1020hPa… the fishing is good.

But how does the barometric pressure affect the fish? The most common theory that been around for many years is the direct impact on the swim bladder on the fish… but this theory had its flaws.

So I decided to do a deep dive into barometric pressure and explored other avenues as to how it directly impacts fish, especially freshwater fish. In this episode I look at swim bladders, and how they work. As well as exploring dissolved oxygen to see if this has a direct correlation to pressure changes.

What I find in this episode is fascinating… and well worth a listen for any angler – fresh or salt. Enjoy!

In this episode:

1:00 – Introduction into Barometric Pressure and Old Theories

10:00 – Does Dissolved Oxygen Change During Barometric Pressure Shifts?

19:00 – Fluctuations of Dissolved Oxygen in Freshwater Impoundments

 25:00 – How Do Fish Swim Bladders Work

45:00 – How Does Barometric Pressure Effect Fish?

That's right! We launched another podcast that talks about key topics, techniques, locations and also discusses theories, those 1% extra things that will make a big difference on your sessions.

Join us on our other podcast channel!

Head to our website to learn more: https://socialfishing.com.au/

Welcome to this episode where we chat about our 2025 team trip to Copeton Dam! Every year the SF Team heads off to cod waterway in the winter, to chase big cod. This year Copeton was the choice, and wow was it one insane trip!

A trip we will never forget, and a trip where we learnt some incredible new lessons – which will change the way we target cod in the next few years.

This is an episode you don’t want to miss! Enjoy.

In this episode:

3:00 – Intro to the Trip

4:30 – Figuring out the Bite at Copeton: Tricky to Work Out

11:00 – Fish Behaviour and Last Light Bite

13:00 – Stories of Fish from the Trip