Recfishwest welcomes better Salmon Holes mobile coverage - but warns not a safe rockfishing silver bullet

Recfishwest has welcomed the installation of a new Telstra mobile base station improving coverage across parts of Torndirrup National Park, near Albany - a practical safety upgrade for one of WA’s most spectacular and dangerous fishing coastlines.

Reliable reception, something we have long called for, has long been a concern for fishers and emergency services, highlighted during coronial inquests into the tragic rock fishing deaths at Salmon Holes in 2015 and 2016.

The upgrade now allows emergency calls to be made on the Telstra network at Salmon Holes, improving safety at the location.

While this is a good step, Recfishwest will continue advocating for practical, targeted safety improvements in high-risk fishing locations across Western Australia to help ensure every fisher returns home safely after a day's fishing.

But remember, mobile coverage isn’t a safety silver bullet.

Check the conditions, fish with a mate and keep the sand between your toes where possible. For more on this, check out out web news story here.

This inshore Spaniard fell to the ever-trusty tolled redhead deep diver for Lex Natali on a recent trip up the coast. Lexcellent work, Lex! Don’t worry folks - normal service will be resumed next week with the return of Jarrad to the editor’s seat.

Boats

Offshore activity has held a steady pattern over recent weeks. Bluefin tuna continue to work the deeper water, with most action coming from the 45m line. Closer in, schools of skipjack are sitting along the 25m contour where the inshore warm water meets the cooler offshore current. Spanish mackerel have tapered off following the full moon, but baitfish numbers remain strong along the 20m contour. It would be well worth paying a bit of attention here as the moon wains. Plenty of herring and skippy moving through the bay, trolling small lures has been a good way to find where the schools are holding. Lobster catches have been excellent along the nearshore reefs, and with numbers building, the next few weeks should produce some standout pots.

Shore-Based

Beach casters chasing tailor haven’t found a red-hot bite, but there’s been a consistent trickle of fish through the night for those willing to put in the hours. Small whaler sharks are also making regular appearances and adding a bit of excitement to evening sessions. Drone fishers have had the best of the mornings, with the odd snapper pushing up to 70 cm coming from drops around the 300m mark.

Big 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. Peter knows the best spots around Lancelin like the back of his hand.

Patrick Rutten caught this cracking skippy on the ever reliable Halco twisty off Roses Beach in Esperance while targeting salmon. The smile on his dial says it all - picture courtesy of @olistevensonn

Boats

Samsonfish have been active at Mondrain Island, while Figure of Eight Island has held nannygai and breaksea cod. Queen snapper and snook have been caught at Observatory Island, while big sand whiting have come from Twilight and Fourth beaches. Squid have been keen in 17-20m at Cook Rocks, while Esperance Bay has yielded herring, garfish and squid.

Shore-Based

Gummy sharks, bronze whalers and mulloway have been caught at Israelite Bay, while mulloway and bigger gummy sharks have been landed at Thomas River. Dunns Beach has offered gummy sharks and salmon, while at Roses Beach big schools of salmon have been seen heading west and skippy to 3kg have been caught. Munglinup Beach has produced gummy sharks and bronze whalers, while the town foreshore and Bandy Creek Boat harbour have fished well for King George whiting. Taylor Street and Town Jetty have held squid and herring at night, while bream fishers have been doing well at Lake Quallilup.

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.

@corren.wakelam scored this nice queenie on a squidtrex in 50m off Albany - a good looking fish caught by a good looking bloke on a not-so-good looking day!

Boats

Crews did well in the latter part of the long weekend and into the week with 40-45cm King George whiting active at Michaelmas Reef, Mistaken Island and Seal Island. Squid fishers found their quarry in good sizes at Frenchman Bay, Limestone Head and Michaelmas Island. At Two Peoples Bay sand whiting numbers slowed but squid were still playing the game and King George whiting catches were good. Offshore, nannygai were plentiful in 70m depths, while the coral ground produced dhufish, pink snapper and breaksea cod. The usual reef species were taken off Cheynes as well, while yellowtail kingfish were active on the bommies past the steep drop-offs at Eclipse Island and Maude Reef. Blue swimmer crabs have continued to reward drop-netters in Princess Royal and Oyster harbours and in the Kalgan River. Drop netters have had to work harder in the Wilson Inlet but the Nornalup and Irwin inlets have been going well for them. Fish-wise the Wilson Inlet has offered big garfish, bull herring, King George whiting and the odd flathead.

Shore-Based

Salmon catches have continued to improve east of Albany with Cheynes Beach and Bluff Creek firing at times, while a school was at Nanarup over the weekend. Big herring have been plentiful on most beaches, keeping company with tarwhine at Denmark’s Ocean Beach, while at Gull Rock, Muttonbird Beach and Ledge Beach skippy have been in the mix with a couple of salmon landed at Ledge Beach and a school showing up at Salmon Holes this week. Easterlies have made squid fishing tricky at Frenchman Bay but they have been taken at night and at first light at Emu Point and the town marina, with the latter locations also offering herring, small bream and small skippy. Scoop netters have continued to do well on blue swimmer crabs in Oyster and Princess royal harbours, while the King and Kalgan rivers have had very little freshwater flow of late and the salty conditions have lured in small King George whiting, herring, juvenile salmon and chopper tailor to keep the resident bream company.

Cheers to the Trailblazers Albany crew for their fishing tips this week! Swing by their store if you're after some top gear and advice ahead of your next fishing trip. Remember, Trailblazers Albany have loan lifejackets available if you wish to fish off the rocks, but keeping the sand between your toes is always a safer option.

Boats

Tuna schools have been active straight out from Bunbury and a few yellowtail kingfish have been landed as well. Samsonfish have been in good numbers on the offshore lumps, while the 20m depths have been rewarding divers with crayfish. Tuna schools have been in Geographe Bay, where trollers have also picked up some good tailor. The bay’s staples of squid and King George whiting have been ticking along as well. Bonito have been caught off Dunsborough and tuna have been taken at the artificial reef, the FADs and on Wright Bank. In the Leschenault Estuary blue swimmer crabs have been running well and chopper tailor and herring have been amenable to a small, trolled metal slice.

Shore-Based

Beaches either side of Bunbury have fished steadily for tailor around the 40cm mark while some decent mulloway have popped up but locations have been hard to pin down. Herring have been in reasonable numbers, and in better numbers on the Bunbury beaches and often yellow-eyed mullet have turned up, while up at Preston Beach yellowfin whiting have been mixed in with sand whiting. Pink snapper catches have slowed for drone fishers with Dunsborough now a more consistent location. Along with herring, Bunbury’s Back Beach has held soapy mulloway in good numbers. In the Leschenault Estuary scoop-netters have continued to do well on blue swimmer crabs, while those wading the flats casting lures for yellowfin whiting have been having a good run. In the Collie River soapy mulloway have been the main catch, although bream to 40cm have been landed but not in great numbers. Giant herring have turned up there also. Squid have been the main species caught at the Busselton Jetty, while the drains south of Busselton have held bream, soapy mulloway and the odd herring. Bream have been in good numbers in the Blackwood River around Alexander Bridge. Augusta’s beaches have produced good tailor, school mulloway and herring. Big tailor have also been caught on the west side of the cape, while salmon, many of them juveniles, have turned up intermittently at Jaspers and Yeagerup. A nice yellowtail kingfish was landed at Yallingup late last week.

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.

Redfin perch have again dominated freshwater catches this week, particularly at Harvey, Waroona and Wellington dams. Good numbers of smaller fish in the 20–30cm range are being caught close to the banks at first light and again around dusk, especially around rocky edges, weed beds and other structure. Small soft plastics in chartreuse colours (a vibrant cross between green and yellow) have been working well, along with slow retrieves and short hops along the bottom. Light jig heads and smaller plastics tend to get the most bites when the fish are feeding in the shallows.

Larger redfin are also mixed in, with some better models coming from deeper water around submerged snags and drop-offs. Fishing slightly heavier jig heads and letting your plastic sink deeper before retrieving can help target these bigger fish holding off the banks.

The Pemberton region has also been fishing well, with local streams producing good numbers of small rainbow trout along with a few solid brown trout mixed in. Spinners remain a reliable option in these systems, particularly when cast upstream and retrieved slowly through deeper pools and runs. Fly fishers have also been doing well, with patterns such as Woolly Buggers proving effective when swung through the current or stripped slowly through the deeper sections of the streams.

Boats

Tuna have been teasing crews either side of town in the 20-25m depths and there’s been plenty of bird action but catches have been nothing to write home about.  Bibbed diving lures have drawn a few strikes on the troll, while if there’s been bird action throwing a stickbait has worked at times. Mackerel species, yellowtail kingfish and Samsonfish catches dropped off this week but a few dolphinfish were taken at the FADs but mainly on spear. Crews dropping pots in 8-10m out of Dawesville and pulling them every three days have been getting a good feed of crayfish. Inshore squidding has slowed a little but the Peel-Harvey Estuary has produced at times. James Service Reef and the inside of the Five-Fathom Bank have held good numbers of sand whiting, with small Vexed Micro Meats or Vexed Bottom Worms fished with bits of squid or prawn proving an effective method. Drop netters in the estuary found it harder to get their bag limits of blue swimmer crabs this week, with the early birds doing best, but chopper tailor and herring have remained in good numbers along the drop-offs.

Shore-Based

In the Peel-Harvey estuary yellowfin whiting catches have started to slow and a bit of exploring is often needed to find a school willing to hit lures. Marinas and canals in the estuary have produced herring, tarwhine, small snapper and the odd soapy mulloway, while scooping for crabs has been steady. The Dawesville Cut and the Mandurah bridges have offered chopper tailor and herring, while squid have been worth a crack at night in the cut. On the beaches tailor catches have been good either side of town, with a crew throwing poppers around Silver Sands having a good session on fish up to 50cm. They also sent out a drone and picked up a 70cm pink snapper. Most beaches have offered herring and sand whiting, while Tims Thicket and White Hills have yielded soapy mulloway as well as tailor.

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!

Boats

Midweek missions to the FADs have yielded dolphinfish, while quite a few tuna have been sighted behind Garden Island and towards the Five-Fathom Bank. Yellowtail kingfish and small Samsonfish have also turned up at times. Bonito numbers have dropped but Mangles Bay, Woodman Point and the inside of Garden Island have fished well for herring, skippy, sand whiting and King George whiting. Squid have been holding in deeper water with 6-8m a good starting point. Blue swimmer crabs have been going well for drop-netters with the deeper drop-offs near Garden Island among the better spots for them.

Shore-Based

The good run of summer tailor has extended into autumn with Secret Harbour, Port Kennedy, Warnbro Beach and Long Point all producing. A few mulloway have been caught at these locations but drone fishers have found pink snapper scarce. Yellowfin whiting have been in the shallows at sheltered beaches such as Safety Bay and near the grain terminal, while herring and sand whiting numbers have been consistent at most beaches. These species, along with flathead and flounder are a chance at the Penguin Island spit. Woodman Point and the Ammo Jetty have been popular for bonito chasers, while Palm Beach Jetty and Rockingham Jetty have been quieter than usual. A few squid have been around the jetties at night and also at Point Peron in the early mornings, along with a few sand whiting and herring. Swimming out from the Rockingham foreshore has been productive for those after a feed of blue swimmer crabs.

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!

It seems right somehow, a young lady called Ocean should boat a big blue of this calibre recently from the Swan River. To be fair she has a pretty good guide in her dad, Shaun Wieffering, of @fishinwishinlife_official fame. We’re sure Ocean frothed on getting her claws into that cracker of a crab! We look forward to following her angling career no doubt emulating her dad in the future!

Boats

Lousy weather ruled out a lot of fishing over the long weekend and led to the postponement of the Bue Marlin Classic. Before that came into effect two blue marlin were caught out wide along with a couple of yellowfin tuna and the FADs were offering dolphinfish. Small tuna have been caught off Rottnest Island’s West End along with yellowtail kingfish but the big schools of inshore bonito have dispersed and catches have waned. Sand whiting have been in good numbers in 10-15m from South Fremantle up to Hillarys, while King George whiting have been in better numbers off Fremantle and inshore at Rottnest. Tailor have been targeted at Mewstones and Stragglers, while squid catches have been reasonable in 10-14m, mainly off Fremantle and Cottesloe. In the Swan River drop-netters have been finding fewer crabs but in better sizes, while trolling for chopper tailor has become less productive.

Shore-Based

A few good mulloway have been landed from the northern beaches, with just the odd pink snapper catch reported by drone fishers. Tailor catches have been steady on these beaches while Cottesloe, Floreat, Scarborough and North Beach have held mainly herring. The odd bonito has been caught from the moles, while most of the metro groynes have held reasonable numbers of herring and a few skippy and tarwhine. In the Swan River tailor and mulloway catches have waned and flathead and flounder have been the main species targeted in the lower and middle reaches but catches have been modest. The odd decent tailor has been taken in the river’s middle reaches at night. Bream fishing has slowed, even up river, while giant herring catches have been sporadic. Just-sized pink snapper were landed near the Fremantle bridges late last week and before the Blood Moon reports of decent mulloway catches came from the Narrows, Canning Bridge, Mt Henry Bridge and the Causeway.

A big thanks to Compleat Angler Nedlands for their great metro tips! These guys are all avid fishers, know the best spots for every particular species and have provided great support to Recfishwest and metro fishers for many years. Make sure you ask their super friendly team for advice at their store just off Stirling Highway and stock up before wetting a line off the land or boat!