Your Fishing Photos
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Metro Catches
Picture: Check out our articles like demersal jigging and other great fishing tips (Photo courtesy of @dan.coughlan).
Some nice catches of dhufish and breaksea cod were picked up off Fremantle and Hillarys following the opening of the demersal season. Marco Orifici, of Anglers Fishing World in Fremantle, reports there to be plenty of King George whiting to a thumping 60cm off the southern side of Rottnest Island in 20m to 27m of water. Big schools of sand whiting are also being found in the sand areas between the mainland and Rottnest. Shark and spotted mackerel are reported to be hanging around Stragglers and Champion Rock.
Expect Spanish mackerel to start appearing in numbers near West End and along the back of Three Mile Reef during the coming weeks. Squid have been caught along the seagrass beds off Fremantle and within Cockburn and Warnbro Sounds. Tailor have started to appear in better numbers along the metropolitan beaches. Catches of up to half a dozen tailor were achieved at South Beach, Leighton, Grant Street and Trigg this past week. The lower reaches of the Swan River are fishing reasonably well for tailor and flathead. There are whispers of mulloway being caught at Mosman Bay, Freshwater Bay and The Narrows. Blue swimmer crabs are being picked up in better numbers in the deeper sections of the Swan and Canning Rivers.
Mandurah & Surrounds
Picture: King George whiting make for a popular inshore target in between bottom bouncing for demersals.
MANDURAH
The Cut is still consistently producing good catches of tailor, herring, whiting and tarwhine. Consider putting in some time after dark along the Cut as there are reports of mulloway coming in on the rising tide. People fishing from the old traffic bridge have been catching skippy to 30 cm. The Murray and Serpentine Rivers are still producing good bream. With the recent warm weather, check out the deeper holes and areas that are in the shade under overhanging branches during the heat of the day for some good fish.
Blue swimmer crabs in the estuary are plentiful but be aware of minimum sizes. Along the southern beaches, Tim’s Thicket and Preston have both been producing good tailor with some fish up to 50cm. Reports indicate some mulloway were taken last week from the beaches north of Mandurah. Golden Bay, San Remo, Singleton and Madora are all worth a closer check. The Golden Bay area has been producing some good catches of tailor, herring and whiting and this would suggest that the mulloway aren’t too far away.
SECRET HARBOUR / PORT KENNEDY / WARNBRO / ROCKINGHAM / SAFETY BAY
Many of the local jetties are producing good catches of herring and tailor. Shoalwater is still producing the occasional King George whiting. There have also been some good catches of tarwhine and skippy taken as well in the incoming tide. Long Point, Kwinana and Warnbro beaches have all been producing good tailor during the last week. There has been some good reports of herring, tailor and plenty of crabs out in the deep water. The jetties are turning on herring early in the morning, along with squid and blue mackerel.
South West Catches
Picture: Rarely seen throughout the colder months, shark mackerel will often travel down to the south west coast in the summer time providing some sporting action.
Dhufish to 20kg, breaksea cod to 2.5kg, as well as pink and queen snapper were among the reef fish caught by the boats that fished the 20m to 40m depths off the west coast and Geographe Bay. Several King George whiting in the 55cm to 65cm range were also picked up off both sides of Cape Naturalise. Schools of small southern bluefin tuna are starting to appear offshore and it should not be long now until spanish and shark mackerel grace the local waters.
Shore-based fishers have been satisfied with the amount of bread and butter fish including herring, tarwhine, skippy and juvenile salmon about. Yellowfin and sand whiting have been more inclined to strike small poppers and stick baits along the shallows during days when the temperature has been hotter. Squid numbers seem to have tapered off along the seagrass beds off Quindalup.
Albany Catches
Picture: Albany Offshore Boating Fishing Club member Andrew with a nice pink snapper (Photo courtesy of Andrew Jarvis).
Reef fishing enthusiasts have been picking up fair catches of red, pink and queen snapper in depths leading up to 90m of water. A few breaksea cod and dhufish were also among the snapper catches. Samson fish, ranging from 10kg and 40kg, have been encountered in some areas while the steeper drop offs may have a few yellowtail kingfish lurking about.
The small contingent of boats that made it out to the edge of the shelf, and beyond, scored hapuka and bigger red snapper. The inshore waters of the harbours and the sound are worth a hunt around with King George whiting, herring, skippy, juvenile salmon, tailor, flathead and squid on offer. Shore-based fishers have also been catching King George whiting at spots that include Frenchmans, Cosy Corner and the Gull Rock end of Ledge Beach. Salmon between 2kg and 5kg have occasionally been turning up along the local beaches as well as those east and west of town. The eastern beaches have been better for the bigger skippy while herring, tarwhine and flathead can be sought at most of the popular local spots.
Tailor have been turning up some mornings at Nanarup. Mulloway to 1m, but mostly between 50cm and 70cm, continue to be caught in the Kalgan River. An assortment of hard-bodied and soft plastic lures as well as baits have been used to entice black bream in both of the local systems.
Esperance Catches
Picture: Samson fish provide mid water sportfishing and test your tackle to the limits with their strong runs (Photo courtesy of Nicholas Drummond).
Southern bluefin tuna in the 4kg to 8kg category are starting to appear in bigger numbers offshore. The bluefin have been responding well to trolled skirted lures and bibbed minnows of about 12cm in length. The smaller boats continue to pick up good catches of sand whiting and squid in areas up to one nautical mile off the coast. Reef fishing enthusiasts who ventured beyond the islands did well on nannygai, queen snapper, samson fish and yellowtail kingfish.
King George whiting, mostly in the 28cm to 38cm range, herring and squid were the main species caught from the Taylor Street Jetty while Bandy Creek Boat Harbour has skippy and small herring. Bigger King George whiting to 48cm have been caught at Port Beach. Salmon were caught at several spots this past week including Salmon Beach, Fourth Beach, Fourteen Mile and Roses. Small tailor and juvenile salmon were also picked up at the local beaches. Thomas River has been fishing well for skippy, salmon and mulloway between 4kg and 6kg.
Geraldton Catches
Picture: Often the most relaxing styles of fishing can be as simple as enjoying some time down at the beach on a summers night. Mulloway are a common reward along the beaches of the mid west. (Photo courtesy of @johnrossreynolds).
Strong winds and moderate swells, which were present for most part of the week, limited the amount of fishing by boat and shore-based fishers. There were a few tailor caught at the first and second points at Greenough early morning and evening together with a few pike and some herring. The reefs at Southgates also produced a few tailor in the mornings while the later afternoons and evenings provided better tailor catches north of Drummonds.
The Flat Rocks to West Bank stretch has been fishing reasonably well for mulloway and gummy sharks. Yellowfin and big school whiting are worth targeting at the beaches that are covered in smaller amounts of seaweed. Expect spanish mackerel to start turning up in numbers along the back of Pensioners Bank. Coral trout ordinarily turn up along the shallower reef areas in numbers during this time of the year. Jigged soft plastics and metals and trolled deep-diving minnows are effective methods for catching coral trout.
Kalbarri Catches
Picture: Rock lobster numbers are fruitful around Kalbarri at the moment (Photo courtesy of Andrew Robertson).
Spanish mackerel have been spotted free jumping off Jakes Point, however the boats are yet to come across the popular blue water species in any great numbers. Yellowfin and longtail tuna are also yet to show in quantities that would make targeting them worthwhile. Some nice catches of pink snapper, baldchin groper and coral trout were picked up following the opening of the demersal season.
Rock lobster catches are starting to increase. Surf fishers have been catching mulloway to 15kg at Frustrations and the beaches north. Tailor are still a little hit and miss, but there have been some 35cm to 55cm fish coming from Wittecarra and Chinamans in the mornings and evenings. Kalbarri Sports and Dive’s Wayne Dewar caught several giant herring to 75cm and small mulloway up river during a recent session. Yellowfin whiting can be found along the sand flats and there are still heaps of blue swimmer and mud crabs being caught in the middle and lower reaches of the system.
Exmouth Catches
Picture: Coral trout make for a safe inshore target for all manner of boat fishers around Exmouth cape and gulf (Photo courtesy of Ben Leeson).
Close to 200 billfish were raised by the 23 boats that competed in the recent Heavy Tackle Tournament. Of the 190 marlin raised, 139 were hooked and 67 were tagged. Blue marlin accounted for 47 of the tagged fish during the three-day competition. In addition to the billfish, there were some big yellowfin tuna caught including Aaron Bailey’s 92.9kg model. Champion boat overall was taken out by Waverider while Pelagic Hooker achieved most tags in one day with its seven successful captures.
The crews who have been targeting reef fish have been picking up some nice catches of red emperor in 30m to 65m of water. Rankin cod have been coming from Helby Bank while coral trout and coronation trout have been caught near the west side reef and within the lagoon. Spanish mackerel have been caught in better numbers south of Tantabiddi. Sailfish are present in the upper areas of the gulf, which is also being frequented by longtail tuna, bludger and golden trevally. Squid have been caught at the marina in the evenings.
Broome Catches
Picture: Spanish mackerel have been plentiful in the north of the state as the warm summer waters fire up (Photo courtesy of Adam Jolly).
Boat and shore-based fishers enjoyed some entertaining sessions before the rough conditions started. Billfish enthusiasts were encountering sailfish and small black marlin offshore together with Spanish mackerel and varieties of tuna. The boats that targeted reef fish off Roebuck Bay caught blue lined emperor, rankin cod and coral trout. More coral trout were also caught off Cable Beach on soft plastic jigs as well as baits.
Threadfin and bluenose salmon were caught in Roebuck Bay and Cable Beach. Shore-based fishers have been catching plenty of whiting along Cable Beach. The local creeks were fishing reasonably well for fingermark bream, estuary cod and barramundi before the influx of fresh water. Expect cherabin stocks to increase in the Fitzroy River following the recent rain.
