Taylors Lakes

Welcome to the Taylors Lakes Fishing Guide. Taylor’s Lakes is a shallow man-made lake located in the western suburbs, 23 kilometres northwest of Melbourne. It stretches behind the Taylor’s Lakes main reception centre and passes the Water Gardens shopping centre. It’s not much to look at, and its water quality is relatively poor, noticeable by its brownish colour and foul smell. However, Taylor’s lakes do hold good numbers of carp and eels. I have seen Carp as big as 12 kilos caught from this system using simple baits that you can access from your pantry or cupboard.

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Fishing at Taylors Lakes

At Taylors Lakes, you can catch carp & eels. Standard baits such as corn, bread, and maggots work great for carp. It’s a very shallow water system, only 1 meter deep; therefore, using a simple running sinker rig with a pea-size sinker works great in this area. So, do suspend baits using a float. We have also fished well using unweighted baits. You can also target carp with hard body lures and soft plastics. This is a complex technique that generally requires sight casting. This means spotting a nearby carp and casting right in there and working the lure of plastic slowly, hoping they will strike. It’s tough but very rewarding when you catch a carp using this method. Most, however, will stick to targeting them with bait.

You’re mainly targeting carp, and they can grow very large. Therefore, a 3-6 kilo rod coupled with a 4000 size reel is very appropriate. You could even fish a little heavier with rods designed for snapper that are generally 4-7 kilo 7 foot in length. We recommend a 10 pound line and a strong leader. Again you can go heavier if you wish, for fun I have caught some monster size carp using a 2-4 kilo rod and 6-pound braid. But I am prepared to lose some good fish in the process. Most freshwater species tend to feed more aggressively at Dawn and Dusk. We like to target carp at sundown, particularly in the warmer months. This is often when you see Carp swimming along the edges or jumping out of the water around September-November, which is their spawning season.

Recommended baits Taylors Lakes

European Carp must not be returned to the water.

A simple yet effective fishing rig involves threading a small running sinker through the mainline, typically around 8 pounds, as shown in blue. Then tie a medium swivel to the end, allowing the sinker to run up the mainline freely. Then tie on the other end of the swivel 50cm of 8-pound fluorocarbon leader (the leader is shown in grey ). Finished with a hook. I generally use a size 6 bait keeper hook or size 10 long shank, which is perfect for corn kernels or scrub worms; however, you can also use small treble style hooks, which is a better setup if you’re using bread.

If you get snagged up then you can also use a float rig. Attach a quill or bubble float to your mainline. Thread the line through and adjust the length using a size 6 bait keeper hook or size 10 long shank to keep your bait suspended at a good depth. Ideally cast down breeze which will stop the float from coming back to you. If you’re not getting bites, adjust the line depth and, if necessary, add a splint shot to increase weight.

Images of fish supplied VFA and DEPI. All photos and videos shown on the Taylors Lakes Fishing Guide are Fishing Mad originals. Thank you for visiting the Taylors Lakes Fishing Guide. If you believe this location guide is missing any key information or requires corrections, please email our team at enquiries@fishingmad.com.au with specific details. Thank you