Kalbarri on the central west coast of Western Australia has always been recognized as a great fishing destination, but being nearly 600km north of Perth many east coast fishermen dismiss the idea due to the immense distance. Surprisingly, it really only takes one full day of travel from Melbourne or Sydney, catch the earliest flight into Perth, grab a hire car and you’ll be fishing for tailor at the river mouth that evening.

For the saltwater enthusiast there are endless possibilities as both tropical game fish and temperate reef species are available for most of the summer. Combine this with warm to hot weather most days and little to no chance of rain it makes for a reliable fishing location with boat, surf and cliff fishing options available to the adventurous angler. The main drawcard to the area are the highly prized sportfish, spanish mackerel. Each summer, schools of these fearsome predators travel south from the tropics following the warm water currents all the way to Kalbarri. At times the mackerel can even be caught from the beach, using a technique called ballooning, near the mouth of the Murchison River. Other species likely to be encountered are yellowfin tuna, spotted mackerel, snapper, dhufish, baldchin groper, samson fish, mulloway and extra large tailor. Even though most of these species are generally an offshore proposition, from time to time there are some extraordinary captures from the surf. One thing I will say about Kalbarri is that the average size of the fish here are big!

The township itself is located on the Murchison River which breaks through the reef into the Indian Ocean; this estuary is home to schools of baitfish, bream, sea birds and a few sunburnt English holidaymakers. Even though there are fishing opportunities in the estuary itself the real action begins as soon as you cross the bar at the entrance of the river. On the northern side of the river begins a huge expansive length of beach that is almost totally inaccessible. Only a handful of locals have the means of getting across the river where they use ATV’s (all terrain vehicles) to negotiate the enormous sand dunes and steep beach at high speed. The most amazing feature of this coast is the rate at which the water depth increases, we spent much of our time trolling the 25 meter depth line less than a kilometer from the shore line and on some mornings we witnessed mackerel spearing through the waves in the surf zone. This is something I have never witnessed anywhere on the east coast.

When it comes to surf fishing, there are a number of great locations with the most accessible being the beach at Red Bluff. You can literally fish within 50 meters of your car, making it the perfect place to get started after a long drive from Perth. This particular beach is very steep and deep, covered in patchy reef that appears and disappears seasonally with the shifting sand. The best place to fish is right in the corner of the beach between the reefs, however if the winds are favorable there are some great spots further up particularly if you have a 4WD as you are allowed to drive on this beach. During our stay we witnessed a number of quality fish caught from this location the best being one 17kg mulloway, a respectable catch on any Australian surf beach. For the more adventurous the next stop is north of the river mouth.

If you’re not a local you will not be able to get very far up the beach unless you make some friends, however by hiring a kayak you can gain easy access to a place named Frustration Point. Personally I have never seen a beach that drops into deep water so fast, there is only a shore break here even when the swell is up, the best conditions however, are on calmer days as it allows for a variety of techniques to be used. At Frustration Point it is possible to catch just about anything. Species such as mulloway and tailor are common but many more unusual captures like samson fish, spanish mackerel and even WA dhufish have been recorded here. On calm days it is possible to catch crayfish in the rock pools either by hand or in recreational Cray pots. Trips on this side of the river take considerable effort. On warmer evenings to make it worth while, you can take a tent and some camping gear and stay overnight on the beach.

On our last visit we were lucky enough to score some great weather. With the help of a Kalbarri local, who not only has an ATV but a purpose built punt with ramps to transport his gear, we were able to explore some of the more remote surf beaches. First stop was Frustration Point and true to its name on this day the swell was big and fishing was made almost impossible as the current and weed limited any chance we had of catching a fish. Instead of packing up for the afternoon and calling it a day we decided to make the journey nearly 12 kilometres north on the beach using the bike to ferry all five anglers and all of our gear up in three trips. Things started slowly but as soon as the burley hit the water unidentified sharks moved in from every direction and busted our tackle up for nearly two hours.

The first breakthrough came when Ashley, our local mate from Kalbarri with the ATV, managed to pull a few medium sized tailor from a gutter down the beach. He explained the technique of filleting the fish and using long thin strips on ganged hooks, I had not come all this way to catch small mulloway so I pinned two 8/0 hooks into the tailor and launched the whole baitfish towards the horizon. The rod had not even been in the rod holder for one minute before it buckled over violently and line peeled off an amazing rate. Leaning back on the rod to set the hook I could feel the weight of this fish and knew it was the one we had been waiting for, and then, nothing, it had dropped the bait. It was going to be a hard night ahead as the sharks kept harassing us relentlessly. At midnight it was time to get some sleep while the others kept fishing.

First light revealed a picture perfect day; the boys had fished all night and lost another mulloway in the early hours of the morning. Moral was low and everyone was tired. With the sun already starting to light up the water there was probably only one hour of worthwhile fishing time left before any chance of catching a mulloway disappeared for the day. Closer inspection of the bait esky revealed only a few mullet and some pilchards remained, the largest mullet was pinned to the hooks and cast out into the gutter, just like the night before the rod went off as soon as I put it into the rod holder. After a nerve racking 20 minute fight our efforts were finally rewarded in the form of a beautiful 20kg mulloway. It is amazing how the success of a trip often depends on one single fish, instead of limping back to the boat exhausted and disappointed we were all pumped and revived after landing a single fish. I suppose the harder the challenge the bigger the triumph.

Now if sleeping on the sand is not your thing and you love the open ocean then swing past the local boat hire and pick up a 5 or 6 meter boat and go chase the game and reef fish that inhabit the offshore waters of this region. The first thing you will notice about the fishing here is that most of the best marks are all fairly close to shore, usually within two kilometres of the surf beach, the trolling runs are not difficult to find, simply follow the cray pot buoys up and down the coast. The professionals do all the hard work in finding the reef; all you need to do is follow the trail of white buoys. Most of this reef will also provide good ground for snapper and dhufish, but don’t anchor too close to these Cray floats though, a big fish will run your line around the rope and cut you off if it gets the chance.

Another popular location is the Three Mile Reef; basically straight out to sea from the Murchison River entrance, if you ask the hire boat operator he can provide the GPS marks for most of these locations. Out there the main target species is Spanish mackerel and trolling is the name of the game with bibbed lures. After a few hours on the water it became clear to us that Halco diving minnows are by far the most popular lures, in particular the 190 Laser Pro in the king brown colour, every local seems to have a collection in their tackle box. The other species likely to be encountered in waters of 35 meters and deeper are small to mid sized yellowfin tuna. The average size is generally between 10 and 20kg but every season a handful of bigger fish are landed. Often the tuna schools can be seen surface feeding, we found this to be more common on days when the wind chop was increasing to about one meter. It seems the tuna may prefer the rougher conditions to aid them in rounding up the bait schools right on the surface. We were lucky enough to have a triple hook-up on school of yellowfin. It’s exhilarating to actually see a school of tuna chasing the lures and all hit simultaneously.

Finally for extreme anglers there are cliff fishing options south of Red Bluff. Huge expanses of limestone cliffs towering high above the ocean dominate this coast with access at a number of lookout points allowing anglers vehicle access to most of this area. This style of angling is dangerous and difficult; most ledges are more than eight meters off the water making a cliff gaff an essential piece of equipment. The best known area is called Pot Alley, which refers to the cray fishing pot buoys that will be visible from the cliff area. The most common species to target are snapper and groper. When an offshore wind is blowing it is also possible to target Spanish mackerel, with the best method for fishing being a garfish under a balloon.

Don’t forget your camera if you decide to explore this area, it is truly spectacular with many unique coastal formations unlike anything else in Australia. If you really want to see this part of the country properly, take a few extra weeks to cover the area between Kalbarri and the Exmouth Gulf. There is enough world class fishing and diving here to keep the most experienced traveler coming back year after year.

Fact Box:

• Boat hire – Murchison Boat Hire

Two boats available          6.1 meter offshore boat

                                          5.3 meter offshore boat

Both boats are fitted with new four stroke motors, other extras available are GPS with fishing marks pre-loaded, fishing tackle and lures.

Accommodation packages are also available in conjunction with boat hire.

Visit www.murchisonboathire.com.au for more info.