Welcome to Recfishwest’s weekly fishing report, brought to you by Recfishwest’s fishing expert Joachim Azzopardi and thanks to John Curtis for his Mandurah & Surrounds report.

Keep your eyes peeled for Recfishwest’s Tip of the week, see below!

Your Fishing Photos

If you want to see yourself or your kids feature in our weekly state-wide Fishing Reports, send your best fishing photos and a description to bronte@recfishwest.org.au

Kununurra Catches

Picture: First time barramundi fisher, Ella with a very well fed saltwater barramundi caught fishing with Northbound Charters.

Cambridge Gulf

With exceptional tides and glassy conditions there was some fantastic fishing being done in the Cambridge Gulf. Loads of good Fingermark were being caught jigging soft plastics down in around 15m of water and there was some solid barramundi fishing being done in the creeks and rivers that run into the Gulf.

Lake Kununurra

With the lake getting back to a normal flow rate and the water starting to creep up the thermometer the barra have started to bite. The best report in recent weeks was one lucky fisher who jagged 10 fish between 65-87cm in an afternoon session flicking hard bodies. Finding the fish lately hasn’t been an issue but convincing them to bite has been a bit challenging…fingers crossed the tide has turned (so to speak).

Broome Catches

Picture: Some nice catches of bluebone have been picked up within Roebuck Bay (Photo courtesy of Mirek Soucek).

Boats

Billfish enthusiasts have been encountering dozens of sailfish and the odd black marlin in waters wide of Barred Creek and out from James Price Point. Spanish mackerel have also been found in good numbers offshore and have been responding well to trolled bibbed minnows and rigged garfish. Some nice catches of bluebone and chinaman cod have been picked up within Roebuck Bay.

Shore based

Good sessions are starting to be had on barramundi in the upper reaches of the Fitzroy River as well as the local creeks. The barra have not been huge fish – averaging 65cm – but are being caught on a variety of lures as well as baits. Bluenose salmon can be caught along Roebuck Bay together with queenfish, trevally and the odd threadfin salmon. Prawn and worm baits are working well on whiting at Coconut Wells.

Exmouth Catches

Picture: Sailfish are starting to appear in bigger numbers offshore so it won’t be long until they turn up in the upper areas of the gulf (Photo courtesy Bluewater Tackle World Exmouth).

Boats

Small black marlin are being encountered in depths starting at 30m off Tantabiddi, wide of Lighthouse Bay and west of the Muiron Islands. Sailfish are also starting to be found in bigger numbers offshore and it should not be long before the majestic sportfish turn up in the upper areas of the gulf in the coming weeks. The 60m to 120m depths are fishing reasonably well for red emperor, rankin cod and spangled emperor.

Shore based

Big poppers and stick baits worked in the evenings at Oysters are enticing strikes from big giant trevally. Queenfish are turning up in numbers during an incoming tide at VLF Bay and Old Bundegi. Some big giant herring have been caught on lure and fly in the lower areas of the gulf including the bay of rest. Try the lighthouse area early morning and evening for spangled emperor and bluebone.

Esperance Catches

Picture: Some nice catches of King George whiting have been coming from Wylie Bay and Bandy Creek (Photo courtesy of Reef Life Survey: Fishes of Australia).

Boats

Lloyd Needham landed an impressive 40kg hapuka and several blue eye trevalla while dropping baits beyond the continental shelf last week. A couple of boats that worked the waters off Cape Le Grande picked up some nice pink snapper, which are also being found in relatively shallow waters in the bay. Nannygai are mostly being found in 50m to 70m of water near the islands. Squid and whiting are the main species being caught by the dinghies and small boats.

Shore based

Salmon continue to be caught along the beaches with Fourth Beach, Salmon Beach, Eleven Mile, Roses and Munglinup among the spots where the 3kg to 7kg fish were caught this past week. Roses also produced a few nice skippy as did the reef at Eleven Mile. Evenings at Fourths have been good for mulloway while Thomas River has gummy sharks and Lucky Bay is fishing well for sand whiting. Storm garfish have been turning up at the Taylor Street Jetty together with herring and squid. Some nice catches of King George whiting have been coming from Wylie Bay and Bandy Creek.

Albany Catches

Picture: A busy day at Shelleys with surf fishers still enjoying some late season fish (Photo courtesy of Tony Tropiano).

Boats

When the boats have managed to head to the coral lumps scattered between the 60m and 90m depths, they have generally done well on queen, red and pink snapper as well as dhufish, skippy, breaksea cod and samson fish. The odd bigger craft that ventured beyond the shelf found bigger red snapper, mixed size hapuka and cod. King George whiting catches have varied through the inshore waters with the clearer areas. Cosy Corner, Two Peoples Bay and the ground near Michaelmas and Breaksea islands were among the areas where the better hauls of Geordies were achieved during the past week. A consistent stream of burley should also bring herring and juvenile salmon around in these parts while squid have required some effort at times.

Shore based

Surf fishers are still enjoying some late season fish at Shelleys, Nanarup, Cheyne Beach and Bluff Creek. Bigger skippy are being plucked from the deeper channels at Bluff and Cheyne while Bornholm and Nanarup had the odd tailor turn up early morning and evening. There is herring right along the coast with some thumpers of more than 30cm mixed in with the common 20cm to 25cm fish. Black bream catches have been improving in the King and Kalgan rivers, which waters have been a little clearer.

Kalbarri Catches

Picture: Reef fishers have been picking up fair catches of red emperor in 30m to 40m of water northwest of town.

Boats

Reef fishers have been picking up fair catches of red emperor, dhufish, pink snapper and big spangled emperor in 30m to 40m of water northwest of town. More spangles have also been coming from the deeper coral areas south of the river mouth. Spanish mackerel numbers seem to have thinned a little, but yellowfin and longtail tuna are starting to show in better numbers out wide. There are still a few cobia being encountered in random depths and areas.

Shore based

Kalbarri Sports and Dive’s Wayne Dewar caught a rare, but stunning, 63cm bonefish at Wagoe last week. Bonefish catches are uncommon south of Exmouth, however increasing numbers of bones have been picked up in the greater Kalbarri area in recent years. More big tailor have been caught on poppers and stick baits at the river mouth, which is also producing a few mulloway in the evenings. Garfish are a little hit and miss at Red Bluff and Jakes. Black bream are common in the lower and middle reaches of the Murchison River.

Geraldton Catches

Picture: The African Reef area is worth a visit for coral trout (Photo courtesy of Dylan Picken).

Boats

Dinghy and small boat fishers have been picking up some nice catches of squid along the seagrass beds out from Pages, Explosives and Point Moore. The ground approximately 10 nautical miles west of the marina has been fishing well for pink snapper. More pinks have also been coming from the 15m to 20m depths out from Drummonds Cove and Coronation. The African Reef area is worth a visit for dhufish and coral trout in less than 10m of water along Pensioners Bank.

Shore based

Surf fishers along the Flat Rocks to Greenough River stretch have been catching up to half a dozen tailor to a respectable 70cm a session. Similar size tailor have also been picked up from the northern side of the new marina together with herring, skippy, yellowtail, and squid. There were a couple of good mulloway between 1m and 1.2m caught at Flat Rocks during the past couple of weeks. Pink snapper have occasionally been caught from Coronation Beach.

South West Catches

Picture: The Busselton Jetty is always a good spot to try and catch some squid (Photo courtesy of @jakesfishstagram).

Boats

Squid enthusiasts are starting to find the tasty cephalopods in shallower waters through Geographe Bay. The Four Mile and Eight Mile are still fishing well for pink snapper. Good catches of quality reef fishing, including dhufish, pink snapper, breaksea cod and queen snapper, have been coming from depths leading up to 50m off Cowaramup Bay and Canal Rocks. Small southern bluefin tuna should begin showing off the west coast soon.

Shore based

Tailor have been turning up some mornings and evenings at Honeycombs, Mitchells, Bunker Bay and Elmore Road. A few salmon have also been caught along the west coast beaches while mostly juvenile salmon have been hitting baits and lures in Geographe Bay. Herring are responding to burley at the headlands and bays along both sides of the cape. Scoop netters are doing well on blue swimmer crabs off Quindalup at night.

Mandurah & Surrounds

Picture: Bream fishing has slowed down a little with not a lot of activity in the upper estuary, however downstream it has been a different story with some fish being taken.

Mandurah

Most of the beaches around Mandurah are producing tailor. The beaches at White Hills and Tim’s Thicket to the south are turning on some good tailor and herring fishing. In the lower estuary, reports indicate that the fishing has been reasonable with catches of herring and tarwhine. Anglers fishing the beaches to the north of Mandurah report occasional catches of big tailor along with whiting, and tarwhine. A few mulloway have been taken from the beaches, either side of Mandurah. Bream fishing has slowed down a little with not a lot of activity in the upper estuary. Downstream it has been a different story with some fish being taken.

Secret Harbour/ Port Kennedy/ Warnbro/ Rockingham/ Safety Bay

Sand whiting and tailor are being taken from Warnbro Beach and Long Point. The Rockingham Jetty is producing herring, robust garfish and a few chopper tailor. Palm Beach is a good spot to try for most species and is also worth a try for squid. Tailor are being taken of an evening from the surf beaches along this section.

Metro Catches

Picture: Check out Brodie’s sambo caught off Hillarys. ‘Was a hell of a fight on the light gear’. Thanks for sharing! (Photo courtesy of @bskibz).

Boats

Pink snapper are responding well to burley between Garden and Carnac islands. Dhufish and samson fish have also been appearing in the burley trails at times. Snapper are also starting to be found in schools in between Garden Island and the mainland. There are plenty of squid still being caught along the seagrass beds off Fremantle and within Cockburn Sound. The Barges located between 90m and 110m west and southwest of Rottnest Island are holding plenty of samson fish, a few amberjack and the odd big skippy.

Shore based

Tailor are starting to turn up in better numbers along the metropolitan beaches with some nice catches coming from South Beach, Cottesloe, Swanbourne Drain, Floreat and Trigg during the past week. Herring have been caught in similar areas, however better numbers of the important bread and butter species seem to be in Cockburn Sound. Squid continue to be caught from South Mole and Capo D’Orlando Drive. The deeper waters downstream of The Narrows would be worth trying for mulloway during the next few months.