The Kybeyan River is a small Monaro trout stream with its fishing method settled by rule: from its junction with the Numeralla River upward, the whole river and every creek that feeds it is artificial fly and lure water under NSW's trout rules. Brown trout have been recorded in it, and they are the reason to go.
Think of the Kybeyan as a tributary rather than a destination river. Its water gathers in a network of creeks, runs down the main stem and ends where it meets the Numeralla, the larger Monaro stream it feeds. That junction is the one line on the map you need to know, because everything above it, main river and side creeks alike, sits under the same fly and lure listing. The gradient chart shows where the fall steepens and where it eases, which is the best guide you have to where the slower pools give way to quicker pocket water.
The first trip is the main stem for browns in spring and early summer. Choose an access point from the access card and walk upstream from it, fishing a small dry with a nymph beneath it into every run and pool head you reach. The river is a fly and lure water, which in practice means the bait stays at home and nobody should be soaking it beside you; take the open season, bag and size limits from the current NSW guide before you set out.
The second trip is for later in summer, when hoppers are about: the same water fished early and late with a grasshopper pattern along the grassy edges. It is a slower, more selective day, and in our experience it is where a better brown gives itself away.
If the main stem is quiet, the side creeks are worth an hour with a single dry. The fly and lure rule follows you up them, so the same box does the job. Start on the main stem, though; do not drive out just for the headwaters.
Pack a 3 or 4 weight, a box of small dries and nymphs, and open the current NSW freshwater fishing guide before you leave home.
Water and habitat
A small stream running down to a bigger one. The gradient chart shows the profile along its length and the bank cover chart shows how much of the edge carries trees and shrubs. Use both to decide where to walk: steeper sections tend to mean pocket water and short plunge pools, flatter sections longer runs and glides.
In our experience a brown trout in water this size holds where it can feed without working hard. Look for the head of each pool where the current spills in, the seam along an undercut or grassy bank, the pocket behind a rock, and any timber lying in the flow. The shallow, featureless middle of a pool is rarely worth your first cast.
Fish and forage
Brown trout have been recorded in the Kybeyan, and they are the fish to plan around. The survey chart shows how much sampling sits behind the fish records, so read it before you decide how much to expect.
Mountain galaxias have also been recorded here. They are a small native fish and a food item for a larger trout rather than a target in their own right. Beyond that, in our experience a small Monaro stream feeds its trout on what falls in and what hatches: caddis and mayflies through the warmer months, beetles and ants off the banks, and grasshoppers when late summer brings them out. A fly box that covers those four, plus a small streamer, covers the river.
When to fish it
Take the open season from the current NSW guide first. Within it, in our experience small Monaro streams fish best from spring into early summer, when the water is warming and the insects are hatching, and again in autumn as it cools. In the height of summer, fish the first and last hours of the day and let the trout rest through the heat. After heavy rain, give the river a day or two to drop and clear before you fish it.
How to fish it
A 3 or 4 weight rod around eight feet with a floating line suits most of the water. Use a leader of about nine feet, finishing in 5X or 6X tippet.
Start with a dry-dropper: a size 14 to 16 Adams or Elk Hair Caddis on top and a size 16 to 18 Pheasant Tail a short way below it. Fish upstream, keep low and back from the edge, and put the first cast into the seam at the head of each pool before you work up the tail. In late summer swap the dry for a hopper and drop it tight to the grass. In deeper, slower water a small olive or black Woolly Bugger around size 10 or 12, stripped past cover, is a good bet, and the rule allows a small lure as well if you prefer one.
On a bright day, move slowly and look into the water before you cast; polaroiding a brown on the edge of a run and putting one fly in front of it beats blind casting on a small stream.
Access and safety
The access card names the access points. Treat them as locations, not a statement of permission, and respect any fence, gate or sign you meet on the ground.
As on any bush stream, tell someone where you are going and when you expect back, carry water and sun protection, and watch your footing on slick rock and undercut banks. Streams can rise quickly after storms upstream, so never wade a crossing you are unsure of.
Regulations
NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development classifies the Kybeyan River, in the Monaro district, as an artificial fly and lure trout water. The listing covers the whole of the Kybeyan River and its creeks and tributaries upstream from its junction with the Numeralla River; the Numeralla itself is not part of this listing. In practice that means flies and artificial lures only, anywhere on the river or its feeder creeks above the junction.
For everything else, including the open season, bag and size limits, the licence requirement and the closed-waters list, read the current NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development freshwater fishing guide before you fish.
