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Recfishwest
Fishing Report

21/06/24

Now that our South-West regions have copped a bit of rain, the redfin perch have taken a good spike in catches with some hefty catches turning up from deeper pools and around structure following their spawning period. Brown and rainbow trout are also starting to appear near flowing water and now is a good time to start targeting them before more rain arrives.

Our contributors

Sam Bock

Sam Russell

Jarrad Lawford

Sedin Hasanovic

Want to know the best tips for taking great fish photos and also on how to handle fish out of the water? We've got you covered with our r esponsible fish handling and photography tips page. The page gives a perfect explanation on the types of images we love to use in our weekly Fishing Report and why.

If you've got a cracking fish photo you want to send in, remember to keep sending us your catches by tagging #recfishwest in your online posts! You can also follow and private message your catches to our Instagram page @recfishwest and make sure you let us know where and how you caught it!

Keep up to date with events, clinics, news and amazing catches across WA by following our Instagram page @recfishwest and give our Recfishwest Facebook page a like!

For your photos to appear in the weekly fishing report, please make sure they reflect our responsible fish handling practices (so fish held horizontally, no blood, hand under the belly, no fingers in gills, etc), just like the images below.

If you're planning to head out this week, stay safe, take plenty of photos and have fun!

William Bennett

RECFISHWEST FISHING REPORT WRITER

Pic of the Week!

A happy daughter with her first muddy! Ryno Johnston @noslacklines experienced a proud dad moment when his youngster got the upper hand on this big buck. She had some casting practice too and can flick lures into the sticks like a pro too!

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REMINDER TO ALWAYS PUT SAFETY FIRST WHEN ROCK FISHING AFTER ANGEL RING SAVES FISHER'S LIFE AT QUOBBA

An angel ring flotation device – part of Recfishwest’s Statewide safe fishing program – helped save a fisher’s life who wasn't wearing a lifejacket who got washed into the ocean at Quobba, according to a Carnarvon Senior Police Sergeant.

It's another stark reminder that no fish is worth risking your life over and we strongly recommend avoiding fishing from the rocks when there is heavy swell.

If you are considering going rock fishing

- Keep the sand between your toes or don’t fish at all when there’s heavy swell;
- Let family or friends know where you will be fishing;
- Always fish with a friend and observe the conditions for a while before fishing;
- Wear a lifejacket at all times and tether yourself to the rocks;
- Wear appropriate footwear and avoid baggy clothes.

Read the full story on this latest rescue here

Don't forget - there are 174 free loan lifejackets found all across WA that can save your life if you end up in the water. You can find the loan lifejacket locations here.

Broome catches

One of the tastiest and prettiest fish in the sea. Good to see @max_out_fishing back out fishing and landing this cracker of a tusky.

Boats

Billfish have been one of the few highlights in an otherwise tough week. Inshore waters saw plenty of sailfish and good numbers of black marlin have been taken 5-7km out on rigged garfish baits. Further out it’s been a case of broken rods and lost gear as sharks have been running rampant. They’ve certainly been getting their tax take on the inshore billfish but out wide fishing has been nigh impossible, so maybe consider staying in close if you decide to fish this week. Sharks have also been feasting on the many Spanish mackerel hooked offshore and on the bottom the carnage has been worse, with those targeting reef species travelling 70-100km to avoid the men in grey suits. Sharks have even been in Crab and Dampier creeks, making it hard for those chasing threadfin salmon. If you want to have the best chances of avoiding sharks on your trips, check out our how to avoid shark bite-off webpage. On a brighter note, both creeks have been full of mud crabs, while the Fingers has held mud crabs as well, along with a few threadfin salmon. Around the moorings in Roebuck Bay tripletail have been active when conditions have been calm. The evenings are looking best this week as that's when the strong easterly winds are expected to drop right off along with the swell. Wednesday onwards should be more glassy on the water.

Shore-based

Gotta love a red hot barramundi session in the dry season! @salty_sessions had an awesome weekend camping out in great conditions and this Kimberley barra was the icing on the cake.

Trevally and queenfish have been the dominant catches around town and have been caught at Port Jetty, Entrance Point and Town Beach Jetty as well as in Willie and Barred Creek, with soft plastics, stickbaits and Halco Twisty's getting the job done. In the Fitzroy River barramundi have been taking live baits around Telegraph Pool, which saw some decent sizes rolling through.

Big thanks to the crew from Tackle World Broome for their tips! Make sure you pay them a visit for the best gear and advice for your next fishing trip.

Exmouth catches

What a way to celebrate your 10th birthday! Young Max had an awesome day out with @maccydave off Exmouth over the weekend with this chunky tuna coming in off the yak.

Boats

Murky water has slowed things down in Exmouth Gulf. A few tuna have been about, but their numbers have dropped off considerably, while blue-lined emperor were the main bottom species on the Shoals. Despite the poor water clarity, squidding has been good with most people picking up a dozen or so in 4-6m depths. The Muirons have fished better though, offering coral trout and some hot sessions on red emperor in 40-50m depths, as well as wahoo and Spanish mackerel. On the west side of the Cape billfishing has really fired up, with sailfish and black marlin in close, while in 400m-plus depths blue marlin and striped marlin have been active. Dolphinfish have been fishing well on the FADs, while those deep-dropping have caught goldband snapper, ruby snapper and decent cod. Closer in along the reefs Spanish mackerel catches have been good in 20-30m, while spangled emperor, red-throat emperor and blue-lined emperor have been plucked from the near-shore reefs. It should be nice and flat on the water from Saturday right through to at least Wednesday so pick your day and get out there.

There are some epic prizes up for grabs in this competition which runs for four months! Get your entries in now by clicking here!

Shore-based

Learmonth Jetty has offered mixed bags of trevally, queenfish, squid, bream and mangrove jack, with some of the bigger jacks nudging 55cm. At Bundegi, school mackerel have been in good numbers and trevally and queenfish have been keeping them company. In the town marina, dirty water from dredging has stirred up nutrients and brought in schools of hardyheads, which have been getting smashed throughout the mornings and evenings by mangrove jack and queenfish, while the marina’s outer wall has fished well for squid. Oyster Reef, the Lighthouse and Mildura Wreck have been hotspots for spangled emperor and fishers at times enjoyed some fun sessions on golden trevally. Wapet Creek has been holding mangrove jack and flathead have been active at the mouth of the creek. Tantabiddi has been quiet, while dirty water in the Gulf has made whiting much harder to catch.

These great tips were courtesy of the friendly team at Tackle World Exmouth. Swing by their store for the best advice and gear ahead of your next trip!

Kalbarri catches

Chris Dixon @dixonsfishing has been getting stuck into some quality fishing north of Kalbarri in shallow water and this blue-lined emperor couldn't resist the @nomadtackle_aus Squidtrex.

Boats

There has been plenty of pink snapper action north and south of town. At the Sand Patch pink snapper and Rankin cod have been landed, while south of town the pinkies have been swimming with some big estuary cod. A few Spanish mackerel have been about in 15-30m depths, especially around Bald Head, and they have also been caught at Wagoe. Saturday morning is looking nice on the forecast for the boaties. Sunday is expecting a 2m swell with moderate easterly winds but Tuesday is also looking like a great day out on the water.

Shore-based

Pink snapper to 75cm have been hauled up the cliffs but make sure you wear a lifejacket and fish with a friend if attempting this. No fish is worth your life, so make sure you check the weather forecast and don't turn your back on the ocean. Tailor and dart have been in good numbers at Red Bluff. The same two species were also landed at Wittecarra, but the Bluff fished best this week. The hotspots for big greenback winter tailor have been the river mouth and across at Oyster Reef, with surface poppers and rigged garfish baits accounting for some great fish. The predicted mulloway run has begun quietly, but good fish have been landed at the Sand Spit and the river mouth. In the Murchison River big bream have been in good numbers up river from the marina. Some nice cod have been caught around the marina as well, while mud crabs have been active in the system. At Wagoe a few Spanish mackerel have been caught from the shore with the right winds.

Shout out to Dean from Kalbarri Sports and Dive for his tips! Feel free to venture into his store to ask for advice if you're wetting a line around Kalbarri!

Geraldton catches

Boats

Crews who took advantage of the good conditions earlier in the week were rewarded with nice dhufish catches. The 20-40m depths between 6-10km south-west to north-west of town produced plenty of dhufish in the 4-7kg range, while those fishing closer to African Reef caught baldchin groper as well as dhufish. Those who went out wide encountered fewer dhufish, but plenty of pink snapper were running rampant. In close there were good squid catches reported from Pages Beach and Point Moore. It's looking a bit precarious on the water over the coming days but Tuesday morning on the forecast looks decent.

Shore-based

It has been harder going from the shore with weed making things tricky. At Southgates some good mulloway in the 10-13kg range were landed, while the stretch from Drummond Cove to Coronation Beach has produced tailor in the 30-45cm range. The rock groynes in town have held school whiting and sand whiting both up to 30cm, with the best catches coming in the late evenings. A few tailor have been hanging around the town breakwater. Squid have been caught on the north side of the Batavia Coast Marina.

Thanks to the team at Geraldton Sports Centre for their tips! They will happily provide you with great gear and the solid advice for your next fishing trip.

Lancelin catches

The @impact_zone_spearfishing crew managed to spear the perfect bag of demersals recently off Lancelin despite the 2m+ swell and challenging visibility!

Boats

The weather finally made for a great weekend on the water, but nobody told the fish! Anglers fishing the Lancelin Angling Club competition were reporting slow fishing with only a few larger specimens at the weigh in, although everyone managed a decent feed by the end of the day. Boats that headed out wide for the deep drop were surprised to find it difficult to get past pink snapper in around 200-300m depths, which just shows how widespread they are at the moment! While inshore reefs did not produce as many snapper as the deeper areas, there were whopper skippy schooling in big numbers with fish to 50cm taking whole pilchards. Skippy this size certainly makes for an exciting session on the lighter line classes. Sand patches north and south of town in 5-6m depths have been an excellent source for sand whiting which were in abundance. Within the bay there were plenty of snook, herring and skippy. A spike in wind and swell is not looking great for a weekend trip to sea, with a short window opening early next week. Monday afternoon could bode well on the forecast.

Shore-based

Seaweed has been thick in specific areas mostly closer to town, although further north there have been clean patches that are easy to fish which have produced very plump sand whiting by day. Some good tailor were caught late last week and over the weekend, but the bite has tailed off throughout this week. The jetty has been typical for this time of year with plenty of herring schooling under the lights at night and the average size is very good, with herring over 30cm making an appearance. By day it’s been very easy to gather a few plump sand whiting by casting towards the shore or from the bay's beaches.

A big Recfishwest thanks to Peter Fullarton for his tips on what's biting around Lancelin each week! If you want Peter to put you on to the fish directly, make sure you check out his Tailored Treks Tours page. Always a great time and Peter knows the best spots around Lancelin like the back of his hand.

Esperance catches

We reckon this horse of a squid landed by @tnttietjens on Sunday will be up there in the lead of Southern Sports & Tackle's Chase the Kraken comp! Entry details are below and there are some solid prizes up for grabs for a species that is very easy and fun to catch.

Boats

Good numbers of nannygai have been caught at Giants Rocks and Waterwitch, while big Samsonfish have been taken at Smith Island. Harlequin fish and nannygai have been caught at Leg of Lamb, while big queen snapper and blue groper have been landed at Lion and Black Island. Inshore, big sand whiting and King George whiting to 45cm been caught off the Dempster headland, while Cooks Rocks has fished well for squid in 12-15m depths. In Esperance Bay the 3-10m depths have produced good numbers of squid as well, which is a good option if you're hunting some good prize money in the Chase the Kraken comp (details below). The winds and swell are looking pretty ugly this weekend and won't back off until at least Tuesday.

Shore-based

Salmon and gummy sharks have been landed at Dunns Beach in good numbers, while some nice mulloway have been taken at Thomas River. Roses Beach has held skippy to 5kg and good numbers of salmon, while tailor to 70cm have been caught towards Munglinup. Flathead and salmon have been caught on the high tide at 10-Mile Lagoon, while 11-Mile and 14-Mile beaches have been hotspots for skippy to 3kg. The Town Jetty has offered herring and squid, while Taylor Street Jetty has fished well for garfish and squid. Bandy Creek Boat Harbour and the town foreshore have produced nice King George whiting, while big squid have been taken from the headland at Lucky Bay. Stokes Inlet has held bream to 35cm.

Hats off to the very knowledgeable team at Southern Sports & Tackle for their tips! These guys love their fishing as well, so make sure you swing by their store for the best gear and advice before wetting a line around Esperance.

Great Southern catches

There haven't been too many weather windows to duck out on the south coast lately but Tristin Alex Damo @tad_bit_of_fishin took advantage earlier this week during nice conditions to flex the forearms on this chunky Sambo!

Boats

The weather thankfully behaved itself for the Albany Boating and Fishing Club’s Southern Squid Spectacular and good catches were widespread in King George Sound, with the competition’s biggest squid weighing a whopping 1.99kg. The Sound’s namesake fish species has been hard to find this week, but some shallow-water Samsonfish have been landed. Earlier this week a few of the bigger boats reached the coral ground and crews were rewarded with good catches of dhufish, along with a few pink snapper. Don't bother taking the boat out until at least Tuesday, with some very ugly Winter-ish weather rolling through until then.

Shore-based

The Southern Squid Spectacular’s shore catches were more modest in size but numbers were still pretty good, especially around Frenchman Bay, Fisheries Beach and Whalers Cove. Reliable locations such as the town marina and Emu Point also held a few, along with herring and small whiting and skippy. Small King George whiting have been caught at Frenchman Bay. Colder weather seems to have slowed bream activity in the King and Kalgan rivers. Salmon catches from the beaches have been down, although resident fish have been landed at Sand Patch, Nanarup, Two Peoples Bay and Cheynes. These beaches have also held herring and tarwhine.

Cheers to the Trailblazers Albany crew for their tips this week! Swing by their store if you're after some top gear and advice ahead of your next fishing trip. Remember, you'll also catch just as many fish off the beaches than the rocks and it is always much safer to go with this option on the south coast.

South-West catches

Boats

When the swells have been down crews have caught good numbers of dhufish in shallow depths from 4-10m out from Bunbury where they have been kept company by pink snapper. Kayak anglers have landed pink snapper off Forrest Beach and in Geographe Bay, which has fished well for squid. A few tuna were taken in the bay as well this week, so it pays to be trolling every time you move around. Squid catches have been modest out from Bunbury, but big cuttlefish have been caught in 10-30m depths. Some nice skippy have been among the bycatch for those targeting pink snapper on Bunbury’s inshore lumps. It's looking windy and wild for the boats until the rough conditions are forecast to back right off on Sunday afternoon, so that could be a good window to target pink snapper in close.

Shore-based

Our South-West has easily been the best land-based pink snapper fishing location in the world over the past few weeks and even we are quite staggered at the number of catches rolling in off the jetties, rockwalls and beaches. This cracker was landed by @kristy_diable last weekend on her new Assassin rod!

Busselton Jetty has fished very well for pink snapper and it also produced a couple of mulloway this week, while a decent salmon was landed on a handline there a few nights ago. The jetty has held herring and squid as well. Nearer to Bunbury, pink snapper have been caught at Preston, Buffalo and Belvedere beaches and herring have been at these locations in reasonable numbers. Bream catches have been good in the Collie and Capel rivers, while at the Bunbury Cut there has been little else but herring.

Big cheers to Whitey's Tackle & Camping for their top fishing tips as always! If you're in Australind or Bunbury and are keen to wet a line throughout our South-West make sure you ask their very friendly team who love their fishing for advice and stock up on gear at their store. If you're in Busselton, the 2 Oceans Tackle team are also incredibly helpful.

Now that the rains have returned, so have the trout, with @luke_latty successfully wading the shallows to find this stonker broody in the faster flowing water in the Pemberton region.

Plenty of ravenous redfin perch have been smashing a wide range of lures at Wellington Dam, Harvey Dam, Glen Mervyn Dam and in the Collie and Capel rivers, with green the standout soft plastic colour and red best for hard-bodied lures, although this week they have been taking just about anything. Trout have been harder to find, with those seen at Honeymoon Pool this week reluctant to strike. Around Harvey the smaller streams appear the better bet for trout because the bigger waterways are flowing strongly with dirty water.

Mandurah and surrounds

Breaksea cod are easily one of the best eating demersals out there and they are usually found on the same ground as dhuies, baldies and pinkies. This species is highly susceptible to barotrauma and have a high post-release mortality rate in depths greater than 15m. So avoid trying to release them past those depths and look at switching up your target species to pelagics once you've got one in the boat. Image from @tackle_world_miami.

Mandurah

Boats: Pink snapper catches have been a little hit or miss, but quite a few have been caught on the 30m depth line. Inshore snapper chasers have found plenty of chunky skippy. Dhufish catches have been good off Dawesville in 26m depths and the odd big King George whiting has been among them. Even closer in saw the odd dhufish engulf a floating scaly mackerel bait meant for pink snapper. There have been heaps of baitfish on the 30m line and plenty of good signs on sounders that tuna schools were holding in the deeper depths. Several were picked up on trolled hard-bodied lures earlier this week. Inshore waters south of town have offered a few squid, while the estuary has held lots of herring and the odd juvenile salmon. Sunday afternoon looks like the calmest window this weekend but Monday should be nicer on the water.

Land-based: A few juvenile salmon have been taken from rockwalls in the estuary and King George whiting have entered the system and appear to be widespread. They could be worth targeting on the flats using vibes. Some excellent bream have been caught in the Murray River, with sizes frequently crossing 40cm. Beaches south of town have produced plenty of herring along with a couple of school mulloway that were caught in the middle of the day. Drone fishers have been catching pink snapper at White Hills and a few decent pinkies turned up at Silver Sands. There has been little action at the Mandurah traffic bridges and the Dawesville Cut.

Thinking of wetting a line around Mandurah? These great tips were courtesy of the super friendly and helpful team at Tackle World Miami so make sure you swing by their store for the best tips and gear before your next fishing trip!

SECRET HARBOUR / PORT KENNEDY / ROCKINGHAM / SAFETY BAY / WARNBRO SOUND

Boats: Cockburn Sound continues to fish well for pink snapper with the fish widespread and in a range of depths starting from 4m. Better spots have been along the Garden Island causeway, inside of the island itself and out from the grain terminal. As usual, the best results have come from very slow drifts with a burley bucket off the stern, or anchoring and using plenty of burley. Chunky skippy and the odd big King George whiting have been caught alongside the snapper. Squid are also about in big numbers also on the inside of Garden Island, and throughout Mangles Bay and Safety Bay. Sand whiting catches have improved as well with some fat and healthy fish around the squid grounds. Sunday is looking like the better option for the boaties this weekend.

Land-based: With the calmer conditions this week shore-based pink snapper catches have dwindled, although a good fish was landed at Kwinana Beach last weekend. Secret Harbour, Port Kennedy and Long Point have produced reasonable chopper tailor and the odd school mulloway has turned up as well. Herring can be taken from most beaches especially when burley is used, while whiting have been the main catches at the Penguin Island sand spit. At Rockingham and Palm Beach jetties herring and chopper tailor have been the main fare but squid have been hard to find at these usually reliable spots. Squidding has however been very good at the Ammo Jetty, along with Woodman Point and Point Peron. These locations have also fished well for herring but again, make sure you use burley to increase your chances.

These great fishing tips were provided by the friendly team at Compleat Angler & Camping World in Rockingham, so make sure you chat to their experienced crew in store and stock up before heading out!

Perth catches

The sheltered waters of Cockburn Sound have been fantastic over the past few weeks for big pinkies following the rougher conditions and 10-year-old Kai Dabala landed this impressive 73cm brute while out with his dad. It's great fishing experiences like this that need to be protected from future industrialisation of Cockburn Sound.

Boats

Pink snapper continue to fish well both close in out to 100m. Good fish have been caught inshore from Mindarie, Ocean Reef and the Three-Mile Reef with snapper catches often enhanced by good numbers of skippy, the odd dhufish and big King George whiting. Pink snapper have also been landed at Stragglers but catches have been a bit inconsistent, although tailor, skippy and at times yellowtail kingfish in the 60-70cm range have made up the shortfall. Sand whiting catches greatly improved this week. Nice 25-35cm sandies were landed at the Windmills, near Stragglers, inshore from South Fremantle and in 12-15m depths south of Rottnest. Boats fishing around Rottnest have found medium-sized dhufish, big baldchin groper, breaksea cod, good King George whiting and pink snapper, along with some big cuttlefish in 50m. Heaps of squid have been caught out from South Fremantle in 8-10m and kayakers have done well on them in 5m depths. This weekend is looking rather rough for the boaties but Monday is looking decent on the forecast, which could see the great pink snapper fishing continue following the big swells and winds.

Shore-based

If you love pink snapper like we do, join us for a Snapper Guardians fishing community clean-up at Fremantle’s North Mole this Sunday, 23 June between 2-4pm.

Just as we care about pink snapper, it’s really important we care about the places we fish for them. So help show some TLC for an iconic pinkie spot by donning some gloves and help give the Mole a good tidy-up!

Gloves, rubbish bags and a grabber can be grabbed from the Recfishwest stand at the eastern end of the Mole.

Bring your kids, family and friends down and your rod too if you fancy joining us in wetting a line afterwards!

A shout out to Fremantle Port for their support in taking away the rubbish bags at the end of the clean-up.

Pink snapper have still been the main event this week and although numbers have dipped, good fish have been caught at North and South moles, Cottesloe Groyne, Hillarys rockwall, Ocean Reef's northern groynes and at Mindarie, where a few mulloway were also landed along with a decent Samsonfish. Pink snapper and good tailor have also been caught from the northern beaches and with a cold front expected this weekend, snapper catches should fire up again. Herring have been thick right along the coast with plenty at North Mole, which has continued to fish slightly better for squid than South Mole but both locations have held good numbers early in the mornings. Garfish have also been caught at both Moles. The rock walls in South Fremantle held good numbers of squid and herring, while good mixed bags of bream, tarwhine, skippy and herring have been taken inside the marinas. Tailor and herring have been the main catches between Port Beach and City Beach. In the Swan River good-sized bream have been caught at Ascot and Burswood and also around Belmont and Rivervale. A nice school mulloway was landed at Canning Bridge this week, while down East Fremantle way some big flounder have been caught on soft plastics. A few size tailor are still in the lower Swan.

A big thanks to Anglers Fishing World in Fremantle for their great tips! These guys love their fishing just as much as we all do, so make sure you ask their super friendly team for advice and stock up before wetting a line off the land or boat!

Recfishwest

3/45 Northside Drive Hillarys

Perth, WA 6025

Australia

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Recfishwest · 3/45 Northside Drive Hillarys · Perth, WA 6025 · Australia

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