Stanley is a fishing village on Tasmania’s north-west coast about 90 minutes from where the mainland ferry berths in Tasmania at Devonport.
Stanley is almost three hours by road from Launceston and five hours from Hobart.
Stanley’s wharf is a somewhat famous spot, with big summer runs of snotty trevally being the main attraction.
There are also Australian salmon, pike, flathead, flounder, tailor, leatherjackets, jackass morwong, sweep, drummer, boarfish, barracouta, elephant fish, yelloweye mullet, wrasse and large squid.
Yellowtail kingfish, skate, stingrays and sharks have also been caught from the wharf, along with occasional snapper and silver trevally.
The snotty (blue warehou) run has been historically popular, with the fish usually in biggest numbers from December to April.
Warm water brings the fish on, and they leave when it cools down as the year progresses, so the action can be hot and cold.
When the fish are on there can be many people fishing the wharf, with multiple hookups.
Given the crowds and hot bites, don’t mess around with excessively light tackle, as you want to get fish in quick.
Snotties take most baits, with peeled prawn, bluebait, whitebait all working well, as does fresh chicken meat.
Nearby Godfreys Beach and its rocks produce mostly salmon, mullet and flathead.
Stanley is famous for its large headland, the 152m high “Nut”, and the East and Western Inlets either side of the headland are good boating areas to target much the same species as caught off the wharf.
The shallow parts of the inlets can be speared for flounder at night.
Crayfish are caught around Stanley in season.
In recent years northern Tasmania’s shallow coastal grounds have produced big king george whiting in growing numbers, any patchy seagrass and broken ground is worth trying.
Here is a list of recommended tackle for Tasmanian waters.
Stanley tides
Tasmanian FADs
Tasmanian fishing regulations
Tasmanian marine reserves
Tasmanian saltwater fishing seasons
Trout fishing spot access programs
Fisheries assessment reports
Buy a freshwater fishing licence
Tasmanian lake levels (hydro)
Tasmanian river flows (govt)
Bag and size limits
Private Tasmanian trout fisheries
Return to the Tasmanian Fishing Map
