Recfishwest's State-wide Fishing Report 13 October 2023 🎣

Crews did so well on demersals last weekend before the ban came into force again that their main battle was getting away from pink snapper, which were abundant in good sizes and numbers. There were also quite a lot of surface bust-ups on both sides of town, attributed to bonito, but most boaties snubbed them in favour of demersal species. That is sure to change as the water warms up over the coming week or so, with Spanish mackerel and tuna a good chance on the troll. Elsewhere, a few dinghy anglers crossed the river and targeted Oyster Reef for bigger tailor and crayfish catches have also improved. The next few mornings are looking great for a fish so make sure you get out there and make the most of it. Send in your snaps if you have any luck on the troll. 

Gummy sharks were plentiful east of town with Membinup Beach, Alexander Bay and Wharton Beach the pick of the spots. The best results have come from fishing the high tide using squid as bait. At Israelite Bay and Poison Creek mulloway to a metre have been caught, while the first three kilometres of Dunn Bay produced salmon and big skippy. The Town Jetty held squid first thing in the morning and garfish at night, with plenty of herring at dawn and dusk. Taylor Street Jetty produced decent skippy in the afternoons and King George whiting, while big flathead have come from the stretch between the James Street rock wall and the Esperance Jetty. Salmon and tailor were caught from the first carpark at Fourth Beach on the outgoing tide, while Wylie Bay fished well for sand whiting. Bandy Creek Boat Harbour offered King George whiting and flathead, while at Wheatfield Lake bream up to 40cm have been hitting soft plastics. At Cape Le Grand a young angler caught an 8kg blue groper from the rocks, just make sure you wear a lifejacket and correct footwear, fish with a friend and analyse the conditions on arrival if you decide to give this a go. Big thanks to Southern Sport & Tackle for their report as always! 

Despite the run of fine weather, wind and swells have limited opportunities, but on the right days excellent catches of pink snapper, nannygai, breaksea cod and harlequin fish have come from the coral ground and offshore from Cheynes and Hartman’s Beach. Big Samson fish were active at the latter locations. In King George Sound some boaties have been bagging out on King George whiting, while others have had to work hard for a feed. Some of the better KG hauls have come from Frenchman Bay. It’s a similar story with squid, with some days really firing and others being quite slow. If the catches are dull, try mixing up the colours of your squid jigs or try and find clearer areas of water over the broken weed and sand patches. This weekend should be a beauty for the boats all along the south coast, with minimal winds and swell expected. Make the most of it and get out there! 

When the swells have been down rock fishers have caught yellowtail kingfish, Samson fish and pink and queen snapper from the stones towards West Cape Howe and also near Cheynes Beach. Land-based squid chasers managed to find a few when the winds were down with Middleton Beach, the town marina, Frenchman Bay and Emu Point the better spots. The marina offered small skippy and herring and these species along with whiting have also been caught at Emu Point and Frenchman Bay. Bream fishing picked up in the King and Kalgan rivers and mulloway around the 60cm mark have been among the bycatch. Soft plastics and small hard-body lures worked well on both species. In the Wilson Inlet tailor were caught on the high tides, along with flathead and bream, while pink snapper were taken near the mouth of the inlet. Big thanks to the crew from Trailblazers in Albany for their tips!

Big King George whiting in the 55-65cm range came from the 40m depths around Rottnest, while at the Containers at the back of Rottnest there were plenty of Samson fish around 10kg, with some bigger brutes over 20kg among them. Trolling small skirted lures at the West End was also productive for yellowtail kingfish in the 60cm range, while tuna have been caught on the 40m contour line slightly south of the West End. Chunky sand whiting have been mixed in with King George catches at Windmills and sand whiting were also plentiful in the 20m depths of Cottesloe and City Beach. Off South Fremantle kayak fishers did reasonably well on squid over the broken patches of sand and weed. Tailor fishing near the offshore reefs was excellent this week, with fish around 45-60cm hitting trolled lures such as Halco Laser Pros at Stragglers, Mewstones and Rowboat Reef. Tailor were also caught by King George whiting chasers off Ocean Reef. The great tailor fishing has also continued in the Swan River where surface lures such as Atomic K9s have accounted for plenty of choppers up to 38cm around Point Walter and Point Resolution. Saturday through to at least Tuesday should see the flat conditions return on the water, with light to moderate easterly winds and a decreasing swell of 1.5m.