Recfishwest's State-wide Fishing Report 01 December 2023 🎣

After a lengthy absence, the pelagics have finally shown up. Tuna and bonito have been caught on trolled deep-diving minnows around Sandpatch and off Jakes Point and Red Bluff. Closer in, schools of tailor to 50cm have been patrolling the same locations, as well as Wittecarra. Elsewhere, divers in 10-15m have been getting crayfish but quite a few have had soft shells. It’s a different story at Horrocks where crayfish quality and quantity has been much better. Unfortunately the strong southerlies and swells return from Monday onwards but there may be a weather window on Sunday morning for those looking to head offshore – otherwise the river remains a good option.

The Town Jetty has offered plenty of herring, small skippy and a few squid, while Bandy Creek Boat Harbour has held small King George whiting, a few bream, small flathead and flounder. The bream lakes have 35-40cm bream and choosing a lake to fish depends mainly on the wind. At the yacht club groyne small King George whiting, herring and skippy have been caught. Salmon and Fourth beaches have fished well for salmon and herring, while the 14-Mile Beach has salmon, skippy around the kilo mark and 80-90cm mulloway. Salmon have been caught at Roses Beach, along with tailor and skippy to 1.5kg. Thomas River has produced salmon, small mulloway and the odd gummy shark. Strong offshore winds on Saturday will make casting from most beaches relatively easy, though from Monday onwards the prevailing easterlies will limit shore-based fishers to westerly facing areas.

Not a great deal of land-based activity this week but decent squid were caught in the Town Marina and at Emu Point. These locations have also offered herring and the odd small skippy. Bream and mulloway shut down for most of the week in the King and Kalgan rivers but both species became more active on Wednesday and Thursday. A few juvenile salmon and herring were caught at the mouth of the Kalgan River. Rising swell on Sunday is likely to limit the shore-based activity to protected areas, though offshore winds on Saturday morning should be conducive for targeting salmon, skippy and herring from the beaches.

Hordes of herring are frustrating whiting chasers out from South Fremantle and around Windmills. King George whiting catches have tapered off but there are still plenty of chunky sand whiting among the big numbers of herring. Better spots for sand whiting have included the shipping channel, the 10-15m depths of Cottesloe and City Beach and Windmills. Squid fishers are doing well off South Fremantle in the 3m depths with 2-4-sized jigs working very well. There has been some big King George whiting at Rottnest, while anglers drifting mulies for Samson fish, tuna and yellowtail kingfish around the reefs at the island’s West End have instead caught big tailor. Good tailor have also been caught at Mewstones and Stragglers. At the Three-Mile Reef boaties have done well on King George whiting, while school mackerel have been caught on the troll not far offshore from Mindarie northwards. A Spanish mackerel was reportedly landed in metro waters last week and there have also been reports of mackerel jumping as far south as Secret Harbour.  In the Swan River tailor chasers are encountering plenty of choppers, either by trolling or drifting near working seabirds. The choppers have not been fussy, taking mulies and whitebait, as well as metal lures such as Ocean’s Legacy Slingshots and 10-15g Halco Twistys. Winds swinging onshore over the weekend and rising swells will break the run of glorious boating weather, but the protected areas off the coast and in the river should still provide plenty of fishing opportunities.