The Wollongong region has surf beaches, headlands, the Port Kembla harbour rock walls, inshore reefs and islands, the Lake Illawarra estuary, and deep reef fishing from just 13km out.
The harbour rock walls produce quality tailor, salmon, bonito and kingfish.
Luderick are caught inside the walls, along with bream, silver trevally and school mulloway.
Windang Beach is one of the better beaches and has tailor, salmon, flathead, whiting and mulloway.
Red Point off Hill 60 is one of the better rock fishing spots and has salmon, tailor, bonito, kingfish and snapper.
People have lost their lives fishing from rocks around the ‘Gong, so take care.
The northern beaches have mostly salmon, tailor, bream and mulloway.
The best local whiting beaches are Thirroul, Bulli, Port Kembla, Windang and Warilla, but others can fish well.
There is an annual cuttlefish spawning run between Stanwell Park and Kiama at the start of winter, which attracts predatory fish.
Birds give away the location of dead cuttlefish. Cast a bait into the action for snapper, trevally, kingfish and more.
Salmon are caught on Wollongong beaches in winter, with usually smaller fish in summer.
Tailor are a regular catch in the surf and off the rocks.
Summer offshore gamefish include striped and black marlin and dolphin fish, with bonito off the rocks from late January.
Popular reef fishing grounds are Bandit, Wollongong Reef, Five Islands and The Trap Reef, with bigger boats fishing out to the shelf for hapuku and morwong.
To the south, Minamurra Creek has flathead, bream and whiting but the Shoalhaven River further afield is a more productive waterway.
Lake Illawarra is a large shallow system with mainly bream, flathead, whiting and luderick. There are also blue swimmer crabs, prawns, squid, flounder and garfish.
The lake’s entrance fishes well for mulloway and big bream at times.
For boaters, the islands off Port Kembla produce kingfish and yellowfin tuna.
Boaters can catch snapper all year, with a good run in winter. There are tiger and bluespot flathead on offshore grounds, leatherjackets and morwong.
A steel tower artificial reef is another local feature, along with an offshore FAD.
Wollongong Artificial Reef
This reef was installed in 2019 just 2.4km off Perkins Beach, 2.5km south of Five Islands Nature Reserve.
It is a steel pinnacle reef in 32m of water, with a profile of 12m.
Species caught include kingfish, snapper, trevally, mulloway, tailor, yakkas and blue mackerel.
Wollongong Artificial Reef GPS marks
34 31.081S 150.54.883E
34 31.182S 150 54.795E
Wollongong regional fishing GPS marks
Stanwell Park region … 30km north of the ‘Gong
Garie Beach wide ground 34.10.594S 151.06.875E
Burning Palms 34.12.530S 151.04.660E
The Hump 34.13.851S 151.04.369E
Tunnel 34.13.851S 151.04.459E
The Reef 34.13.852S 151.04.401E
Wollongong fishing seasons
Bream, yellowfin – summer, autumn and winter.
Bream, black – summer, autumn and winter.
Bonito – summer.
Crabs, blue – summer.
Flathead, dusky – spring, summer and autumn.
Flathead, tiger and bluespot – autumn.
Flounder – spring, summer and autumn.
Garfish – summer.
Luderick – winter inside estuaries, all year along coast.
Marlin, black, blue and striped – summer and autumn with the blue and striped marlin also in spring.
Mulloway – all year, arguably more fish about in spring and summer.
Prawns – summer
Tailor – summer, autumn and winter.
Trevally, silver – summer and spring. Offshore in autumn.
Tuna, yellowfin, mackerel and striped – autumn, summer and spring.
Salmon – spring, summer and autumn.
Snapper – all year.
Whiting – spring, summer and autumn.
Yellowtail kingfish – spring, summer and autumn.
Wollongong tides
Wollongong coastline on Beachsafe
NSW fishing regulations
NSW marine parks
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