See what's biting across WA in Recfishwest's State-wide Fishing Report 29 April 2022 🎣

Lake Kununurra Barramundi Stocking Group member Paul Cunningham with a brute little barra from the safe East Kimberley fishing gem. Click the photo above to see how Paul targets barra in the lake.

The Broome Fishing Club is set to hold its annual Thready Shootout this Saturday and Sunday. Visit the club's website here for more information. Although much of the local Broome fishers' attention is set to be focused on threadies this weekend, more sailfish are being encountered off Barred Creek, near The Peanut and farther north towards the Dampier Peninsula. Spanish mackerel have been caught in many locations off Broome, as have longtail tuna and mack tuna. Reef fishers are reporting red emperor, saddletail snapper and blue lined emperor in 30m to 50m of water. 


There's plenty of longtail tuna schools to be found at the moment, as shown by Jack Furzer.

Bluenose salmon are taking small metal slices along most of Cable Beach, while the new Broome jetty is fishing well for small queenfish and trevally species. Barramundi are occasionally being caught within Roebuck Bay, as well as within the local creeks and of course the mighty Fitzroy River. Read more about fishing Broome on our I Love Fishing website.

Often found cruising alongside sharks or manta rays, cobia are a formidable opponent for anglers! 😬

Lowlands has been one of the Great Southern hot-spots for salmon this week, with fishers keeping the sand between their toes and chasing the iconic southern sportfish in the Salmon Slam. Likewise, Shelley Beach has also had plenty of salmon schools on offer, while the coast near Bremer Bay has also been delivering the goods. Don't discount Cheynes Beach either, with schools likely to be nearby. The King and Kalgan systems are holding black bream, however, many of the fish reportedly caught this week have not exceeded 32cm. Yellowfin whiting are still dominating most of the land-based catches in the Wilson Inlet.


Jane Ma submitted her catch into the Slam via the app for a chance to win the many prizes on offer.

Australind kayakers and small boat fishers are still reporting plenty of school-sized mulloway between the stretch of the Collie River from Eastwell Boat Ramp to Collie Bridge. Tailor are also schooling in this area, while bream are a chance near the snags. Offshore, Bunbury's 30m to 45m depths are producing the occasional dhufish and breaksea cod. Flathead and whiting are a chance off Bunbury in the sandy areas adjacent to the shipping channel, while Bunbury Artificial Reef is holding Samson fish and skippy. There've been good reports at the southern end off Bouvards Reef with baldchin groper caught. Farther south, decent dhufish to 12kg have been caught off Cape Naturaliste on a variety of jigs this week. Pink snapper have also been caught relatively close to shore off  Gracetown.

South West fishers competing in the 2022 Salmon Slam made the most of the awesome sportfishing last weekend, with schools found at many beaches across the region from Yeagarup to Busselton. Bunker Bay and Eagle Bay were among the better performing locations, while there were murmurings of a small school near Stratham, just south of Bunbury. While the salmon action hasn't seemed to have reached Bunbury and beaches farther north yet, locations to the north and south of the South West capital are producing great fish including mulloway in the evening. Avid fisher Scott "Chooky" Fowler took Frank Fimmano and Joseph Versaci for a night session at one of his secret spots between Binningup and Myalup last Sunday night, putting the lads onto plenty of quality fish. This stretch of coast is fishing very well for bread-and-butter species during the day, with herring and whiting reported, while mulloway and the occasional pink snapper are a chance from the gutters after dark.


Mark from MXT OUT on YouTube scored this pink snapper at Hamelin Bay, measuring in at an impressive 77cm. 

Tims Thicket saw the first salmon catch of the autumn last Sunday, with small schools keeping fishers entertained at the popular fishing beach. Although they've been caught at Tims Thicket and again in metropolitan waters at North Mole, there haven't been reports of big salmon schools along the Rockingham-Mandurah region's beaches yet. Several large salmon have also been caught at the ocean end of The Cut - they have not been huge fish, but respectable catches around the 2 - 3kg mark have been the norm. Anglers fishing at Tims Thicket beaches have also reported a few tailor, herring and good sized whiting. The occasional larger mulloway has also been a feature of Mandurah beaches of late. The beaches to the north have also been producing herring, whiting and tailor, with the evening being the better time to fish for tailor.
 

Cockburn Sound's safe and accesible waters have plenty of squid on offer at the moment. The metro fish aggregating devices (FADs) deployed as part of the State-wide FADs program are fishing well for dolphinfish and yellowfin tuna. Yellowfin tuna are also sometimes being encountered out wide of Rottnest Island. The 20m to 50m depths south-west of Rottnest Island are seeing pink snapper, dhufish, breaksea cod and baldchin groper caught. More baldchin groper have been caught in depths of about 40m off Hillarys and Mindarie, while many have been finding pink snapper inshore at both areas. 

Hillarys Harbour Classic

The Hillarys Yacht Club’s Harbour Classic will be held tomorrow, 30 April, with a score of great fishing prizes up for grabs! Whether you’re chasing dhuies, breaksea cod, pink snapper, Sambos or skippy, there’s plenty of different fishing options to enjoy during the comp. All fishers are welcome to take part, find more info here. This fishing comp showcases the fantastic fishing experiences enjoyed off Hillarys in the Marmion Marine Park, which is truly one of Perth’s best aquatic playgrounds. If you love fishing this north metro location, consider joining Recfishwest’s recreational fishing Sector Advisory Group (SAG) to represent fishers’ views and values throughout Marmion marine park extension process. As many of you will be aware, the McGowan Government has plans to review and extend the Marmion Marine Park on Perth’s doorstep, which has been in place since 1987. That’s why we’re calling on keen fishers to join the SAG. Want to get involved? Click here.