Castlereagh River at Gungalman Fishing Report
Updated Sat, 26 Sept 2026 from live weather and tide data
The lower Castlereagh at Gungalman near Walgett: yellowbelly and cod in the plains river, with a Bureau gauge.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
0.16 m
Air / High
21 °C / 31 °C
Wind
NNE 8 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 420020, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Castlereagh River at Gungalman rewards patience today, with cool water and short feeding windows. The gauge reads 0.16 m, holding steady. Today brings clear skies, wind NNE around 8 km/h, steady pressure near 1027 hPa and a high of 31 °C. Water sits around 13 °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.
Murray cod
Slow
Slow it down: heavier spinnerbaits, slow-rolled swimbaits and bait on the bottom next to the deep snags.
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 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 Castlereagh River at Gungalman today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:53), sunset (18:06), the moon and today's score. 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
Live readings from Bureau of Meteorology station 420020 (CASTLEREAGH@GUNGALMN).
River level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 420020. Latest reading 2026-09-23 22:15.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp21 °C
High / Low31 °C / 18 °C
WindNNE 8 km/h, gusts 14 km/h
Pressure1026.7 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset05:53 / 18:06
MoonFull Moon, 100%
Water temp (seasonal)~13 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Castlereagh River at Gungalman
The best day on Castlereagh River at Gungalman this week looks like Monday 28 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: Monday, 28 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
- 05:53 to 18:06
- Moon
- Full Moon, 100% lit
- Sky and wind
- Partly cloudy, 16 km/h
- Rain chance
- 0%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Castlereagh River at Gungalman: seasons written for the southern year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
Murray cod
December to August; closed September to November
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. Slow it down: heavier spinnerbaits, slow-rolled swimbaits and bait on the bottom next to the deep snags.
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. Slower. Work the deeper timber and the drop-offs with vibes and bait.
When to come: the Castlereagh River at Gungalman 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 13 °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 Castlereagh River at Gungalman 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. Golden perch led the card at fair. High of 31 °C, wind to 19 km/h.
Thu, Sep 24
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Golden perch led the card at fair. High of 31 °C, wind to 19 km/h.
Wed, Sep 23
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Golden perch led the card at fair. High of 32 °C, wind to 24 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
At Gungalman the NSW Recreational Fishing Fee applies, from A$7 for three days; see our New South Wales licence page.
About this water
Castlereagh River at Gungalman is a river in New South Wales, Australia, covered from the New South Wales reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Castlereagh River at Gungalman: the full guide
The Castlereagh at Gungalman
Gungalman is a gauging site on the lower Castlereagh River north of Coonamble, in the grazing country toward Walgett, where the river’s sandy bed winds under coolibah and red gum on its way to the Macquarie and the Barwon. The Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge at Gungalman supplies the river level and the 30-day chart on this page. The Castlereagh at Coonamble has its own page.
Species and seasons
Golden perch are the main catch of the lower Castlereagh when it runs, with Murray cod in the deeper holes; freshwater catfish are protected west of the Divide, and carp are common. The New South Wales Murray cod closure, 1 September to 30 November, applies; the species card computes it.
Where to fish it
Access to the river around Gungalman is from the public road crossings and stock routes; much of the frontage is station land. The deeper holes hold fish when the river stops running.
Planning a visit
Walgett and Coonamble are the nearest towns with supplies. Carry water and fuel, bring bait for yellowbelly, and check the roads after rain.
The river through the year
The lower Castlereagh has a sandy bed and no large dam, so it runs only after good rain in the Warrumbungles and the central west, and in long dry spells the reach at Gungalman can stop flowing and shrink to waterholes. When a flow comes down it rises, spreads and eventually joins the Macquarie on the way to the Barwon. Golden perch feed on the fresh water in the warm months, the best time to fish, and cod hold in the deeper holes. The chart shows whether the river is running; a flow arriving after a long dry is the moment to go. The country around it is remote grazing land, and the roads close after rain.
Reading this report here
The chart shows whether the lower Castlereagh is flowing; it often is not, and a flow after rain is the time to fish. The water temperature estimate, labelled as one, is hot in summer; pressure and sky build the score at Gungalman.
Licence, access and rules
At Gungalman the NSW Recreational Fishing Fee applies, from A$7 for three days; see our New South Wales licence page. The DPIRD rules are in the sources.
Common questions
Where is Gungalman?
On the lower Castlereagh north of Coonamble, toward Walgett.
What can I catch there?
Golden perch, with Murray cod in the deeper holes.
Do I need a licence there?
Yes: the NSW Recreational Fishing Fee, from A$7 for three days.
Is fishing good at Castlereagh River at Gungalman 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
- Storage and river readings
- Bureau of Meteorology, Water Data Online, station 420020 — CASTLEREAGH@GUNGALMN
- 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.