The site has been up for only two weeks and already has 4230 fishing markers, with more on the way.
Comment functionality will be added to markers in due course, along with forum links for important marker discussion.
And then regular fishing articles, from a top team of fishing writers.
Wikifishingspots.com.au is still bare bones, but it is growing fast.
The site has kicked off with the important map items – boat ramps, shipwrecks and stocked waters. We’ll zoom into various spots with more detail once the basics are done.
Please don’t be shy. Sign up and add markers of your own, including your commercial fishing lodge or charter operation. We want it all on Australia’s fishing map.
NSW has gone down the road of installing purpose-designed reef systems.
One of the new reefs is off Port Macquarie.
Here’s the link to NSW Government’s page about the reef.
It was installed in February 2016, with 20 concrete modules each weighing 23 tonnes, each more than 5m tall.
The modules were constructed in Newcastle and loaded onto a barge, which was towed to the artificial reef site.
Each module was “expertly placed” on the ocean floor at a depth of approximately 46m, 6.3km off the coast.
Custom-built systems are possibly the best approach to reef-making, but it is also the top-dollar approach.
While NSW is doing a great job, I don’t agree with their departmental knocking of “junk” reefs.
Junk reefs have been hugely successful.
Steel boat hulls such as scuttled trawlers, oil rig tenders, unwanted concrete culverts and yacht hulls and the like, have been a great success around the world.
In Australia, nowhere have junk reefs done better than in the Northern Territory.
The NT has used scuttled hulls, mooring anchors, concrete culverts, bus stops, concrete pipes, and old mining gear.
One of the best NT reefs is an old bottlewashing machine.
History has shown that some types of junk are unsuitable for reefs, eg tyres. And some items – eg car bodies – don’t last long.
Otherwise, junk reefs can be cheap and effective.
The junk needs a clean-up, and then must be installed in a suitable area.
It’s not that hard to do.
In some cases NT reefs have been sunk by volunteers, working with government approvals.
Obsolete warships sunk around Australia for divers are, by definition, junk reefs. They have worked well.
The maps and GPS data are provided to illustrate fishing and diving spots. Basic chart information is provided only to illustrate fishing areas.
This website is not be used for land or sea navigation. Complete nautical charts and maps must be used when navigating.
Ongoing negotiations from recent Aboriginal land and sea rights court cases, as well as changing legislation, changing land holdings and creation and management of marine parks, means land/sea access and fishing regulations in some areas are changing constantly and may differ from what is published here.
Visit government and Aboriginal land council web sites for the latest information before fishing.
No responsibility will be taken for misadventure arising from use of information in this guide. No warranty is provided in relation to the information (including accuracy, reliability, completeness or suitability) and no liability is accepted (including without limitation, liability in negligence) for any loss, damage or costs (including consequential damage) relating to any use of this guide.
GPS co-ordinates provided may be subject to typographical or other error. GPS co-ordinates may mark hazardous reefs and as such should only be approached during good conditions.
Waves may break unexpectedly over submerged reefs.
Unmarked hazards, INCLUDING ROCKS, SHIFTING SANDBANKS, SUBMERGED TREES AND MORE, may exist in ALL WATERWAYS.
Crocodiles inhabit northern waters, including beaches, offshore islands, harbours, inland waterholes, creeks and rivers … sometimes they are even on roads … do not take risks.
Marine park zones will be illustrated where possible on this website with approximate boundaries, but refer to the relevant state or federal authorities’ maps for detailed boundaries and their conditions before fishing.
GPS data for wrecks and other features in no-fishing sanctuaries are provided for divers. Be sure to know marine park zone boundaries and rules before fishing.
Some wharves are subject to security zones. These zones may change at short notice. Check with local port authorities before fishing near wharves.
