Tailor
Excellent
The main run. Fish the gutters and headlands into the evening; ganged pilchards, metals, and a wire-free trace only if you accept the bite-offs.
Byron Bay Fishing Report
Updated Sat, 26 Sept 2026 from live weather and tide data
The easternmost point of the mainland: Cape Byron’s rocks, the beaches either side, the Brunswick River to the north and a tide that people search for every day.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Next tide
High 7:07 pm model
Air / High
17 °C / 22 °C
Wind
NNW 14 km/h
Sources: modelled tide curve, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Byron Bay is in its cool-water rhythm: slower presentations and the warmest hours of the day. Today brings clear skies, wind NNW around 14 km/h, steady pressure near 1028 hPa and a high of 22 °C. Tides: high 6:56 am and 7:07 pm, low 12:54 am and 12:55 pm: the moving water either side of each change is when this place feeds. Water sits around 17 °C for the season (estimated). With the full moon, the solunar majors run 11:16 PM-1:16 AM and 11:16 AM-1:16 PM: the windows to build the day around.
Australian salmon
Good
The main season. Beach gutters, rock platforms and bay edges on the rising tide; metals, surf poppers and bait all work.
Mulloway
Fair
The estuary fish move to the deeper reaches. Long, quiet sessions on the bottom with fresh bait across the top of the tide.
Yellowtail kingfish
Slow
The fish thin out as the current cools; jig the deeper offshore marks and work the harbours on the warmer afternoons.
Tie on: Blade or vibe, slow hops · Lightly weighted plastic · Whole pilchard or squid on the bottom · Suspending hardbody. Prime windows: 11:16 PM-1:16 AM, 11:16 AM-1:16 PM, 5:46 AM-6:46 AM. Similar at 23 °C with a rain chance. 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 tailor here? Check the size and bag limits with DPIRD NSW before you keep anything; the Tailor page has the seasons and the tactics.
Fishing times for Byron Bay today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:31), sunset (17:43), the moon and today's score, with the modelled tide changes in the panel below. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 11:16 PM-1:16 AM and 11:16 AM-1:16 PM; minor 5:46 AM-6:46 AM. Full Moon, 100% lit.
Water and weather
A modelled tide curve for these coordinates and the forecast for the day.
Tides (modelled)
Modelled sea level curve from Open-Meteo Marine for these coordinates, datum mean sea level. Fish the moving water either side of each change.
A model, not the official prediction: times can drift by tens of minutes inside bays and estuaries. Check the Bureau of Meteorology tide predictions for the exact times before you rely on them.
Sat
LOW12:54 am-0.60 m
HIGH6:56 am0.73 m
LOW12:55 pm-0.55 m
HIGH7:07 pm0.90 m
Sun
LOW1:21 am-0.63 m
HIGH7:33 am0.83 m
LOW1:37 pm-0.53 m
HIGH7:44 pm0.87 m
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp17 °C
High / Low22 °C / 16 °C
WindNNW 14 km/h, gusts 30 km/h
Pressure1027.6 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 73%
Sunrise / Sunset05:31 / 17:43
MoonFull Moon, 100%
Water temp (seasonal)~17 °C est.
Why the tide matters here: tides and fishing in Australia.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Byron Bay
The best day on Byron Bay this week looks like Sunday 27 Sept, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today. Every day is scored by the same engine as the report above: pressure trend first, then wind, sky and season. Pick a species and the plan for that day changes with it.
Best day this week: Sunday, 27 Sept — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.
Today, 26 Sept — Fair
A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
- Solunar majors
- 11:16 PM-1:16 AM and 11:16 AM-1:16 PM
- Minor period
- 5:46 AM-6:46 AM
- Sun
- 05:31 to 17:43
- Moon
- Full Moon, 100% lit
- Sky and wind
- Showers, 18 km/h
- Rain chance
- 73%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Byron Bay: seasons written for the southern year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
Tailor
Autumn and winter on the east coast; August to September on Fraser Island
The surf and rock fish of the east coast, running north in autumn and winter. Fast, toothy and best at dawn, dusk and into the dark. The main run. Fish the gutters and headlands into the evening; ganged pilchards, metals, and a wire-free trace only if you accept the bite-offs.
Mulloway
Best: summer and autumn, especially after rain
Jewfish. The big silver prize of the estuaries, breakwalls and surf beaches: nocturnal, tide-driven and unforgiving of noise. The estuary fish move to the deeper reaches. Long, quiet sessions on the bottom with fresh bait across the top of the tide.
Yellowtail kingfish
Best: December to April
The hardest-pulling fish within reach of the shore. Headlands, harbour markers, offshore reefs and the warm current in summer. The fish thin out as the current cools; jig the deeper offshore marks and work the harbours on the warmer afternoons.
Australian salmon
Winter and spring on the southern beaches
Not a salmon at all: a hard-fighting schooling fish of the surf and the bays, from WA around to NSW. Great on light gear, poor on the plate. The main season. Beach gutters, rock platforms and bay edges on the rising tide; metals, surf poppers and bait all work.
When to come: the Byron Bay 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
Tailor
Mulloway
Yellowtail kingfish
Australian salmon
SlowPeak
Water temperature through the year
Typical surface temperature for this water type in degrees Celsius; today is around 17 °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 Byron Bay today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataFri, Sep 25
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Tailor led the card at excellent. High of 22 °C, wind to 14 km/h.
Thu, Sep 24
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Tailor led the card at excellent. High of 22 °C, wind to 18 km/h.
Wed, Sep 23
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Tailor led the card at excellent. High of 22 °C, wind to 18 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, from A$7 for three days; our New South Wales licence page has the fees.
About this water
Byron Bay is a coastal town in New South Wales, Australia, covered from the New South Wales reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Byron Bay: the full guide
Byron Bay and the cape
Byron Bay is the town at Cape Byron, the easternmost point of the Australian mainland, on the New South Wales far north coast, with the lighthouse headland and its rock platforms, the long beaches of the bay to the west and Tallow Beach to the south, Belongil Creek and the Brunswick River to the north, and the Julian Rocks marine sanctuary a short run offshore. It is a surf and swimming town first and a fishing town on its beaches, its rocks and its creeks, inside the Cape Byron Marine Park, which has sanctuary zones around the cape and the rocks that are the first map to read. Most searches for Byron are for the tide, and this page shows one: a modelled curve for these coordinates, labelled as a model, with the Bureau of Meteorology’s prediction linked.
Species and seasons
Tailor and dart fish the beaches, the tailor in the cooler months at dawn and dusk and the dart in summer; whiting fish the beaches and the creek mouths in summer; bream fish the rocks and the creeks all year; and mulloway are the night fish of the beach gutters and the Brunswick breakwalls. The cape’s rock platforms, where fishing is allowed, give tailor, trevally and, in summer, kingfish and the pelagics of the warm current; the Brunswick River gives bream, flathead and jack; and the reefs outside give snapper in winter and mackerel in summer for the boats.
Reading this report here
The wind row decides the beaches and the cape: a south-easterly builds the surf and closes the rocks, a westerly flattens the coast. Pressure and sky build the score and the planner shows the day; the tide panel is a modelled curve for these coordinates, labelled as a model, and the beaches fish on the falling tide while the creeks and the Brunswick run on it, with the Bureau of Meteorology for the exact times.
Licence, access and rules
The NSW Recreational Fishing Fee applies, from A$7 for three days; our New South Wales licence page has the fees. The beaches, the cape walking track and the creek mouths are public, with ramps at Brunswick Heads; the Cape Byron Marine Park zoning, with sanctuary zones around the cape and Julian Rocks, and the DPIRD limits are on the pages in the sources.
Common questions
Can I fish at Cape Byron?
On parts of the cape; the Cape Byron Marine Park has sanctuary zones around the headland and Julian Rocks where fishing is not allowed, and the zoning map is linked in the sources.
Do I need a fishing licence in Byron Bay?
Yes. The NSW Recreational Fishing Fee applies, from A$7 for three days.
Is fishing good at Byron Bay right now?
Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Nearby waters
Where this page's numbers come from
- Tide curve (modelled)
- Open-Meteo Marine, sea level height including tides
- Open-Meteo forecast model
- https://open-meteo.com/
- Moon and solunar windows
- Calculated on this site
- 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.