Weipa’s reputation as a barramundi hotspot is well known, but its offshore waters produce produce many other species, including sailfish and small black marlin.

There is also coastal sight fishing for the now infamous “blue bastards”, plenty of spanish mackerel, and tropical reef fish are easy enough to find on the shallow reefs.

Visiting anglers can catch more than 20 species in a week of fishing if both river and offshore areas are visited.

The installation of offshore FADs (link to Google map) further increased fishing opportunities.

The reason the fishing around Weipa is so good is twofold.

The main waterways – the Embley and Hey to the south, Mission and Pine to the north – are closed to commercial netting.

Secondly, the estuaries are vast expanses of flats and mangroves fed annually by a wet season monsoon.

This ensures a healthy bait cycle, including prawns, mullet, herring and sardines, which support barramundi, mangrove jacks , golden snapper, threadfin salmon, cod, jewfish, queenfish, grunter, pikey bream and more.

Rock patches along the Albatross Bay foreshores and offshore provide habitat for barramundi, mangrove jacks , golden snapper, cod and coral trout, as well as queenfish and trevally.

The shipping channel at the mouth of the Embley River can provide excellent fishing, particularly around Urquhart Point and near the lead posts that extend seawards for 10km.

Bait schools often shelter in the dredged channel, attracting mackerel, tuna, trevally, queenfish and cobia.

Circling and diving birds are good indicators of pelagic activity offshore.

Look out also for manta rays – they often are accompanied by mammoth cobia and golden trevally.

Cast tuna slices or lures trolled around the edge of the bait schools will bring results.

Good reef fishing can be found off Westminster, Pera Head and Duyfken Point.

Use livebait on the drop-offs in about 8m to 15m of water for best results.

Big jewfish are quite common off Weipa, with any structure in deep water around the port usually the best place to find them.

The offshore FADs have billfish, mackerel, dolphin fish and tripletail.

A detailed fishing map of Weipa is available in the North Australian FISH FINDER book.

Most Weipa visitors head straight for the estuary flats, fishing the low-tide gutters for barramundi, salmon and queenfish.

Mud crabs are seasonally abundant and large crabs are the norm.

Keep in mind that crocodiles are abundant around Weipa.

Weipa has open public access via 600km of road via Cairns. Much of the route is now sealed.

Weipa tides
Weipa FADs
QLD fishing regulations
QLD marine parks

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The Bunbury and Dunsborough Artificial Reefs were installed in Geographe Bay in 2013/14.

The two reefs each consist of 30 purpose-built, 10-tonne concrete modules located within 5km of shore and almost directly in line with boat ramps, providing relatively safe fishing spots for boaters in Geographe Bay.

The reefs have pink snapper, dhufish, silver trevally, yellowtail kingfish, samson and more.

The location of the diving wrecks HMAS Swan (A) and Lena (B) are also shown on the map above.

There is good fishing elsewhere in this region. Busselton’s shallow beach has spotted and yellowfin whiting, flathead and flounder.

Boaters chase crabs and squid in the shallows.

Busselton’s long jetty is famous, with bluefin and yellowfin tuna, bonito, samson fish and mulloway all possible, with john dory around the pylons. The end of jetty is a sanctuary.

The Capel River river mouth has mulloway after rain.

The river has small bream, with tailor at the mouth. Peppermint Grove Beach south of Capel River produces tailor, whiting, herring, flathead, flounder and trevally.

Forrest Beach has most surf species, with mulloway after rain opens up the creeks.

Bunbury has The Cut at the mouth of Leschenault Inlet with landbased fishing for small mulloway, tailor, herring and salmon.

The inlet has blue crabs in summer, with spotted whiting, bream, flounder, flathead and herring. Harbour breakwaters have tailor and mulloway, with bream and whiting in the harbour.

Mulloway at night.

The Preston and Collie Rivers have bream.

The Collie has small mulloway.

Back Beach, south of the harbour breakwaters, has herring and tailor, with salmon in autumn.

Bunbury tides
WA fishing regulations
WA marine parks

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Albany is a popular fishing location because it offers safe sea access for boaters, and has beaches facing in different directions, allowing anglers to fish out of prevailing winds.

There is reasonably sheltered water near the town, along with a summer prawn and blue crab run. The annual salmon run occurs on scenic beaches, and the fish will bite until anglers are exhausted.

Sadly, rock fishing off Albany combines big waves and smooth, slippery rocks, a proven fatal recipe.

Boat launching is at the town ramp, Frenchmans Bay, Emu Point, Misery Beach and Lower King.

A few of Albany’s better spots are:
Bornholm Beach – accessible via rough 4WD track, produces salmon and herring.
Shelley Beach – accessible by 2WD, has mostly salmon;
Mutton Bird Island – most species, can be reached by 2WD to the carpark, and 4WD beyond.
Torbay Inlet – black bream.
Salmon Holes – one of the best salmon spots near Albany in late summer and autumn, accessible by 2WD. Avoid the rocks, people have drowned there.
Frenchman Bay – a good spot to take the boat, beach launching.
Princess Royal Harbour – most species for small boat fishos.
Oyster Harbour – bream in the snaggy King and Kalgan Rivers.
Middleton Beach – easy access to salmon fishing from town.
Two Peoples Bay – boat launching in calm weather.
The Sand Patch – landbased reef fishing for most species, a long walk down steep stairs located next to the local prison.
Normans Beach – salmon. Fishermen must park and walk.
Cheyne Beach – one of the best salmon beaches.

Albany also has the HMAS Perth artificial reef for divers, and there are several natural reefs in and near King George Sound.

Albany tides
Albany coastline
WA fishing regulations
WA marine parks

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