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THIS WEEK'S FISHING HOTSPOTS:
GET GREG'S FISHREPS ON ABC RADIO - EVERY THURSDAY NIGHT (891 @ 8.40PM) WITH THE ONE & ONLY SPENCE DENNY! THEN EVERY SATURDAY MORNING (639 @ 6.30AM) WITH THE FAB IAN (CHOOK) HARSLETT!
OCT 27-31, 2025
TOP END/NORTHERN TERRITORY From Jason Deigan at Compleat Angler Darwin! ABC891 @ 8.30pm every Thursday night has a Top End (NT) element: #Good sized barramundi are in the warmer waters of the South & East Alligator rivers #Shady Camp has mud crabs & barra to 92cm #Offshore from Dundee Bch there are nice tuna & mackeral #Season 11 of the Million Dollar Fishing Comp is well underway!
METRO WATERS: Not sure on the accuracy nor their quality but I did receive a report this week of garfish at the back of the Christies Bch Horseshoe Reef. Blue crabs have made an appearance in parts of Pt Lincoln & Upper Spencer Gulf (Whyalla, Wallaroo, Port Davis) in the past week - we are yet to see them in Upper Gulf St Vincent. Shore-based fishers are picking up isolated salmon to 1 kilo from Southport, Seaford, Moana, Aldinga & Sellicks beaches, but it is very hit & miss. The repaired jetty at Pt Noarlunga has salmon trout & green mackerals but the HAB is omnipresent. KG whiting are in isolated numbers from the deep, clear waters off St Kilda & Outer Harbour. Black bream & overnight soapie mulloway are in & along the banks of the Onkaparinga river.
FLEURIEU/RIVERLAND/RESERVOIR: Strong winds lashed the Upper Coorong in the early part of the week, followed by slightly milder weather and then a weekend rounded off by gusty northerlies and even some rain! The Coorong in general has been producing salmon ranging from trouts to 2 kilos, just depending on location of the schools and the ability of shore-based fishers to set themselves around spots like the Goolwa river mouth, the 42 Mile Crossing and Salt Creek. Soapie mulloway are hit and miss with a few hardy souls managing a catch inside the river and lakes system at Tauwitchere Barrage and the Scab channel. Carp are everywhere and hungry after their recent breeding cycles. Upstream fishers are reporting carp, redfin perch, callop and yabbies from Renmark to Kingston-on-Murray. High tides to well over 3 metres hit the shoreline last week as big boat crews managed a launch from Victor Harbor to run out far and wide for kingfish, red nannygai, small to medium (pan-sized) snapper and a couple of nice dusky flathead. The Broady's Patch grounds have been quiet and I am yet to sight squid and garfish from Yilki and Encounter Bays respectively. Waitpinga and Parson's beaches have the odd salmon trout, as does Morgan's and King's beaches. Last week's big piece of news was of course, the new and wide-ranging changes to fishing rules (as at Nov 1, 2025) for both the recreational and commercial sectors, due to the effects of the Algal Bloom - or so we are led to believe. I, for one, am not so sure. I have seen the damage from a first-hand perspective and the appalling lack of a hazardous chemical clean-up of the beached foam just drags on and on. Thank you to all the local Fleurieu Sun readers who continue to make contact with me during my weekly ABC radio segments to discuss their concerns - I am always grateful. Speaking of the Algal Bloom, there were two further outbreaks at the top of The Fleurieu over last weekend, being Christies Creek and the Port Noarlunga jetty. Boat ramps are virtually empty along this part of the coastline and the fishing continues to disappoint. There are a few KG whiting offshore from Cape Jervis and the deep water drops at Wirrina, but it is clean, clear water where rips and currents rule the waves. Myponga red has redfin and callop.
SOUTH EAST/COORONG: Boat crews have caught big KG whiting, snapper & sweep from Kingston, Robe, Beachport & Port MacDonnell, but several local jetties remain closed UFN. Shore-based fishers are reporting that Pannie (pan-sized) snapper have returned to the southern coastline around Picanninie Ponds, making for some great Spring fishing - ganged pilchards are working well as bait. Across the Mexican border at the Glenelg river there are bream, soapie mulloway & salmon to 2 kilos. Canunda, Salt Creek & Lurline Point all have salmon ranging from trouts to 2 kilos as well. Boat crews launching from Port Mac & Beachport/South End are catching snapper, whiting, squid & red nannygai with the cray (rock lobster) season now underway. Garfish are in the sheltered waters of Nora Creina, Little Dip & South End. Salmon to 1 kilo are in the surges at the 32 Mile Crossing & Salt Creek & there are overnight soapie mulloway at The Granites but watch the soft sand if you are 4WD - always park high on the beach, drop the tyre pressure by 10psi & face the car towards the water!
YORKE PENINSULA: Wallaroo: This week's report should start with the mention of the changes to recreational and commercial fishing rules as at Nov 1, 2025. Here's the recreational fishing link: www.pir.sa.gov.au/recreational_fishing/rules/species_limits Very high tides (over 3 metres) were a feature of the marine weather last week as boat crews made the most of the early good conditions to run out for garfish, blue crabs, KG whiting and big squid. The jetty was busy with anglers catching flathead & small squid, while there are big bream in the marina and gar from the rocky bays just north of the old Point Riley beach shacks. The upcoming ban on commercial fishing in Gulf St Vincent will provide for an interesting next few months! Moonta Bay/Port Hughes: A rellie of mine from this part of the coast has been fishing Steamer channel and West Light grounds after a long lay-off for whiting, squid, small kingies and blue crabs. Local jetties have small squid at dusk and there are garfish in Moonta Bay. Flathead were in close to shore at local sandy beaches during the high tides last Wednesday. Port Victoria: Boat crews enjoyed catches of whiting to 39cm off Wardang Island last week, with slightly smaller fish coming from the grounds around the Songvar wreck. The jetty has a few blue crabs and garfish. Point Turton: The cuts to fishing quotas has also been set for passengers on Charter Boats and this is likely to affect those business operating on the Spencer Gulf side of The Leg. Time will tell. Recreational boat fishers reported whiting, garfish and squid with a few garfish off the jetty. Stenhouse/Marion Bays: Tommy ruffs finally made a welcome appearance at the SB jetty last week with a steady run of fish coming on to the bite in the late afternoons. Shore-based anglers tried for mullet, flathead and salmon trout from local beaches and the Pondalowie Bay rock ledge. Boat crews launched from MB for red nannygai, sweep, small kingfish and flathead.
KANGAROO ISLAND Kingscote jetty underwater views are not good, with dead marine vegetation & shellfish everywhere. North KI coast has KG whiting, flathead, garfish & nice tommies from Emu Bay, Smith's Bch & then across the scrub to Vivonne Bay & American River. Some big salmon (4 kilos) are migrating across from the Far West Coast beaches (Talia, Sheringa etc) & these should start showing up along much of the rocky points & sandy bays in the next weeks. Penneshaw jetty has weedy whiting, salmon & a few squid, while offshore from the Bay of Shoals has gar, whiting, salmon trout & flathead also on the southern side of the spit.
OCTOBER SEAFOOD RECIPE: Pan-fried mulloway with lemongrass and chilli. Ingredients: 4 fillets Mulloway, lemongrass, chopped chillies, oil, coconut milk. Preparation: coat fish fillets in a paste prepared from ground lemongrass, chillies and oil. Heat a pan to high and cook each fillet for 2-3mins each side. When turning fillet, pour in a drizzle of the coconut oil for final stages of cooking. Kia Makona! Maori for Bon Appetit!
SPENCER GULF/WEST COAST: Flathead & salmon are off both the rocks and sand at Point Lowly & Black Point (Whyalla). Sorry to report of large numbers of dead bluefin leather jackets washing up on the beaches around Tumby Bay in the past week - & the State Govt reckons things are improving. What a bunch of Leo Wankers. A few small blue swimmer crabs have been reported from Cowled's Landing, Whyalla (jetty & foreshore), Black Point & then at several locations north of Weeroona Bay (Miranda, Back Bch) & then also north of the Point Lowly boatramp. The Pneumatic Barrier remains in place, oestensibly to protect the Giant Cuttlefish but I don't think anyone has thought to switch it on! The dreaded "Poisson de Shite" - aka Trumpeter - has arrived & will only increase in numbers as the year rolls on. Trumpeters make good crab bait but are spiky little buggers when caught - I used to catch them just on the silver whiting hook (no bait) when I fished out of Whyalla many years back! Kingfish are also about atm, with nice fish in The Rip at Point Lowly, off the old Pt Augusta Power Station grounds & just south of the Leeton Tug drop. The Kingies are soft on the bite, which is strange, so patience & a moving rig should help - maybe drop back on the berley as well. KG whiting reports are for fish to 39cm off Tumby Bay, Spilsby Islands, Coffin Bay (smaller fish), Streaky & Smoky Bays deep water drops, plus squid, snook & garfish in water depths of less then 10m. Gar are also inside Baird Bay & off the jetties at Streaky, Elliston, Pt Lincoln & Tumby Bay. Cowell & Murninnie Point fishers are waiting for their blue crab season to kick off, but it has been quiet so far (Oct). TIGHT LINES!
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