Golden perch
Excellent
Prime. Hop soft plastics and vibes around the timber, or fish shrimp and worms on the bottom.
Barwon River at Walgett Fishing Report
Updated Mon, 9 Nov 2026 from live weather and tide data
The Barwon at Walgett where the Namoi joins: Murray cod and golden perch in the north-west’s big river, with a Bureau gauge at Dangar Bridge.
2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Level
3.62 m
Air / High
21 °C / 28 °C
Wind
ESE 7 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 422001, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Barwon River at Walgett is fishing in its best temperature window, with the bite spread across the day. The gauge reads 3.62 m, up 0.64 over the week. Today brings clear skies, wind ESE around 8 km/h, rising pressure near 1016 hPa and a high of 28 °C. Water sits around 19 °C for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:15 PM-1:15 AM and 11:42 AM-1:42 PM: the windows to build the day around.
Murray cod
Closed today
Reopens 1 Dec 2026. Closed 1 September to 30 November in all waters except Blowering and Copeton dams.
Tie on: Soft plastic on a 1/4 oz jighead · Small hardbody, shallow diver · Squid jig, size 3.0 · Fresh pipi or worm on a small hook. Prime windows: 11:15 PM-1:15 AM, 11:42 AM-1:42 PM, 5:10 AM-6:10 AM. Warmer at 33 °C. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.
Before you go
New South Wales requires a fishing licence for most fishing, from A$7.00. New South Wales fishing licence: cost, rules and where to buy →
Chasing murray cod here? Check the size and bag limits with DPIRD NSW before you keep anything; the Murray cod page has the seasons and the tactics.
Fishing times for Barwon River at Walgett today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (06:07), sunset (19:36), the moon and today's score. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 11:15 PM-1:15 AM and 11:42 AM-1:42 PM; minor 5:10 AM-6:10 AM. New Moon, 0% lit.
Water and weather
Live readings from Bureau of Meteorology station 422001 (BARWON @ DANGAR BDGE).
River level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 422001. Latest reading 2026-11-07 23:45.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp21 °C
High / Low28 °C / 13 °C
WindESE 7 km/h, gusts 14 km/h
Pressure1015.9 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset06:07 / 19:36
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~19 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Barwon River at Walgett
The best day on Barwon River at Walgett this week looks like Tuesday 10 Nov, at 4 out of 5, against 2 today.
Best day this week: Tuesday, 10 Nov — good at 4/5, rising pressure behind a front, typically the slowest.
Today, 9 Nov — Tough
Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
- Solunar majors
- 11:15 PM-1:15 AM and 11:42 AM-1:42 PM
- Minor period
- 5:10 AM-6:10 AM
- Sun
- 06:07 to 19:36
- Moon
- New Moon, 0% lit
- Sky and wind
- Partly cloudy, 19 km/h
- Rain chance
- 0%
Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out.
Species guide
The species that matter on Barwon River at Walgett: seasons written for the southern year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
Murray cod
Closed 1 September to 30 November in NSW, Victoria and the ACT, and 1 August to 31 October in Queensland; check the exempt lakes
Closed now Reopens 1 Dec 2026. Closed 1 September to 30 November in all waters except Blowering and Copeton dams. Rule as read from DPIRD NSW on 2026-09-23.
The giant of the inland rivers and the big lakes (Hume, Mulwala, Eildon). A snag fish that eats big lures, and a species with a closed season across the Murray-Darling.
Golden perch
Best: November to April
Yellowbelly. The bread-and-butter native of the Murray-Darling lakes and rivers; loves warm water, structure and a lure worked slowly past its nose. Prime. Hop soft plastics and vibes around the timber, or fish shrimp and worms on the bottom.
When to come: the Barwon River at Walgett calendar
Activity by species and month for the southern year, and how the water warms and cools. Tap any cell.
Species activity by month
1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted. January is midsummer here.
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Murray cod
Golden perch
SlowPeak
Water temperature through the year
Typical surface temperature for this water type in degrees Celsius; today is around 19 °C (estimated, not a reading).
Angler reports
Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. Nothing here is copied from a shop or a charter. The water log below tracks each day automatically.
No angler reports yetBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Barwon River at Walgett today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataSun, Nov 8
2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Golden perch led the card at excellent. High of 26 °C, wind to 32 km/h.
Sat, Nov 7
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Golden perch led the card at excellent. High of 32 °C, wind to 32 km/h.
Fri, Nov 6
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Golden perch led the card at excellent. High of 29 °C, wind to 13 km/h.
Before you go
Licence
NSW Recreational Fishing Fee, from A$7.00, the same for residents and visitors. Details and where to buy →
Regulations
Size and bag limits, closed seasons and marine park zones are set by DPIRD NSW and change: confirm the current rules on the agency page linked from the New South Wales licence page before you keep anything.
Access
The NSW Recreational Fishing Fee applies on the Barwon at Walgett, from A$7 for three days; our New South Wales licence page has the fees.
About this water
Barwon River at Walgett is a river in New South Wales, Australia, covered from the New South Wales reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Barwon River at Walgett: the full guide
The Barwon at Walgett
Walgett stands at the junction of the Barwon and the Namoi in north-western New South Wales, a river town on the black-soil plains where the Barwon, the upper Darling, winds between coolibah and river red gum. The Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge at Dangar Bridge, the town’s crossing, supplies the river level and the 30-day chart on this page. The Barwon at Mungindi, upstream, and the Darling have their own pages.
Species and seasons
Murray cod are the prize of the Barwon at Walgett, holding in the log jams and the deep holes and taken on lures and bait, and DPIRD’s limits allow two a day between 55 and 75 cm; golden perch, yellowbelly, are the everyday fish on shrimp and worms, kept from 30 cm with a bag of five. Freshwater catfish are protected in all rivers and dams west of the Great Dividing Range except the backed-up waters of nine listed dams, so any caught here must go back. Murray cod are closed from 1 September to 30 November in New South Wales waters; the species card computes it.
Where to fish it
The riverbank reserves around Walgett and the crossings upstream and downstream give access to the Barwon’s snags and holes, and the Namoi junction below the town is where the two rivers’ water meets. The banks are steep and slippery when the river has been up, so pick a firm spot before casting to the timber.
Planning a visit
Walgett is on the Castlereagh and Kamilaroi highways in north-western New South Wales, with a caravan park, a pub and supplies, and Lightning Ridge a short drive north. Bring cod lures, bait for yellowbelly and plenty of water; the summer heat on the plains is fierce, and the river bite is early and late.
Reading this report here
The chart matters on the Barwon: a rise after rain in Queensland or the New England arrives days later and colours the river, and a falling river after a fresh often fishes best. The water temperature estimate, labelled as one, is hot in summer, when the cod bite early and late. Pressure and sky build the score at Walgett.
Licence, access and rules
The NSW Recreational Fishing Fee applies on the Barwon at Walgett, from A$7 for three days; our New South Wales licence page has the fees. The riverbank reserves are public, and the DPIRD freshwater rules, with the cod closure and the catfish protection, are in the sources.
Common questions
Is Murray cod closed on the Barwon in spring?
Yes, from 1 September to 30 November in New South Wales.
Can I keep freshwater catfish at Walgett?
No. Freshwater catfish are protected in rivers west of the Great Dividing Range; only certain dams are excepted.
Do I need a licence at Walgett?
Yes: the NSW Recreational Fishing Fee, from A$7 for three days, covers the Barwon at Walgett.
Is fishing good at Barwon River at Walgett right now?
Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Nearby waters
Where this page's numbers come from
- Storage and river readings
- Bureau of Meteorology, Water Data Online, station 422001 — BARWON @ DANGAR BDGE
- Open-Meteo forecast model
- https://open-meteo.com/
- Moon and solunar windows
- Calculated on this site
- Pages checked
- The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on How our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.