Welcome to the Jack Roper Reserve Fishing Guide. Jack Roper Reserve is located in the Nothern suburbs 217 Camp Road, Broadmeadows 3047. It’s an interesting fishing location that is easily seen when driving on the metropolitan ring rod near Broadmeadows. It’s a shallow system that was historically stocked with rainbow trout on school holidays but is more notorious for the large carp.
**BECOME A FISHINGMAD MEMBER** Exclusive Fishing Workshops, Exciting Monthly Giveaways, In-Depth Fishing Reports with GPS Coordinates, Members Podcast, Interactive Maps, Catch of the Month Competitions, Kayak Club, Gear Guides, Rigging Tutorials, Tackle Talks, Sounder School, Fishing Tips, Fish Cleaning tutorials, Behind the scenes content & more.
Things to do at Jack Roper Reserve
A great location to take the kids only 25 minutes from Melbourne. There is ample parking, toilet facilities, and a great wooden adventure playground. The playground is a good size has a flying fox, tunnels, and wall climbs and has generally been well maintained. There are also scenic gardens and swans feeding near the reserve. There have been recent fires in the areas which have seen many carp rising to the surface.
Fishing at Jack Roper Reserve
At Jack Roper reserve you will mainly be catching carp and eels. You can also catch trout, redfin and roach but they have become uncommon with such a high population of carp. When targeting carp standard baits such as corn, bread, and maggots work great here. It’s a shallow system and a simple running sinker rig with a pea-size sinker works great in this area. So, does suspend the same baits with a float. We have also fished well using unweighted baits. This lake was once regularly stocked with rainbow trout prior to school holidays. Use this link to follow Victorian trout stocking programs.
As you are mainly targeting carp, 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 2-4 kilo rod and 6-pound braid. But I am prepared to lose some good fish in the process. Most freshwater species have a tendency to feed more aggressively at Dawn and Dusk. We like to target carp on 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.
European Carp must not be returned to the water and always carry your Victorian fishing license.
A simple yet effective fishing rig here is to thread a small running sinker through the mainline shown in blue, which is usually around 8 pounds. 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 use bread.
If you are getting 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 then adjust the line depth and If necessary add a splint shot to add weight.
When targeting freshwater species such as trout and redfin we recommend fishing with a light spinning rod. This will make the experience more enjoyable and improve your catch rates. We suggest a 1-3 or 2-4 kilo fishing rod. Coupled with a 2000, 2500 or 3000 size reel that’s been spooled with a decent quality braid between 4-8 pound. Then finished with roughly a rod length of a quality fluorocarbon leader. If you plan to fish with bait from the banks then good options include powerbait in bright colours, worms, maggots, live minnows and mudeye. Either on a light running sinker rig, paternoster rig or suspended from a float. We have seen many trout and perch caught using these baits and methods.
We conducted a test to see which would perform better for stocked trout power bait or lures. Watch the video below to find out the results which were interesting.
Best baits at Jack Roper Reserve
- Corn
- scrub worms
- earthworms
- bread
- maggots
- boilies
Targeting Carp at Jack Roper Reserve
There is a large volume of carp in local lakes however they are fun to catch and you can learn more about catching carp have a read our detailed guide to carp fishing around Victoria. When targeting carp standard baits such as corn, bread, and maggots work great for carp here. Using a simple running sinker rig with a pea-size sinker works great in this area. So, does suspending 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 difficult technique that generally requires sight casting. This means spotting a nearby carp and casting right in there are 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.
For rod selection, a 3-5 kilo rod coupled with a 4000 size reel is very suitable. You could even fish a little heavier with rods designed for snapper that are generally 4-7 kilo 7 foot in length. For fun, I have caught some monster size carp using 2-4 kilo rod and 6-pound braid. But I am prepared to lose some good fish in the process. We like to target carp on 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. European carp must not be returned to the water. Always carry your Victorian fishing license.
A simple yet effective fishing rig here is to thread a small running sinker through the mainline shown in blue, which is usually around 8 pounds. 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 use bread.
Images of fish supplied VFA and DEPI. All images and videos shown on the Jack Roper Reserve Fishing Guide are Fishing Mad originals.
Thank you for visiting the Jack Roper Reserve Fishing Guide. If you feel this location guide is missing any key information or needs any corrections made, then please let us know by emailing our team at enquiries@fishingmad.com.au with specific details in the email. Thank you