Australian bass
Fair
Dam fish school deep; vertical jig plastics and blades over them. Rivers slow, and closed in NSW from June.
Clarence River at Tabulam Fishing Report
Updated Fri, 25 Sept 2026 from live weather and tide data
The upper Clarence at Tabulam: Australian bass in the clear river of the Northern Rivers, with protected eastern cod and a Bureau gauge.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
0.24 m
Air / High
14 °C / 23 °C
Wind
SSE 5 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 204002, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Clarence River at Tabulam rewards patience today, with cool water and short feeding windows. The gauge reads 0.24 m, holding steady. Today brings cloud cover, wind SSE around 5 km/h, steady pressure near 1031 hPa and a high of 23 °C. Water sits around 16 °C for the season (estimated). With the full moon, the solunar majors run 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM: the windows to build the day around.
Tie on: Blade or vibe, slow hops · Lightly weighted plastic · Whole pilchard or squid on the bottom · Suspending hardbody. Prime windows: 10:25 AM-12:25 PM, 10:25 PM-12:25 AM, 4:55 AM-5:55 AM. Similar at 24 °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 australian bass here? Check the size and bag limits with DPIRD NSW before you keep anything; the Australian bass page has the seasons and the tactics.
Fishing times for Clarence River at Tabulam today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:36), sunset (17:47), the moon and today's score. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM; minor 4:55 AM-5:55 AM. Full Moon, 99% lit.
Water and weather
Live readings from Bureau of Meteorology station 204002 (CLARENCE @ TABULAM).
River level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 204002. Latest reading 2026-09-24 22:30.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp14 °C
High / Low23 °C / 12 °C
WindSSE 5 km/h, gusts 9 km/h
Pressure1031.0 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain65% cloud, 33%
Sunrise / Sunset05:36 / 17:47
MoonFull Moon, 99%
Water temp (seasonal)~16 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Clarence River at Tabulam
The best day on Clarence River at Tabulam this week looks like Wednesday 30 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: Wednesday, 30 Sept — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.
Today, 25 Sept — Fair
A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
- Solunar majors
- 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM
- Minor period
- 4:55 AM-5:55 AM
- Sun
- 05:36 to 17:47
- Moon
- Full Moon, 99% lit
- Sky and wind
- Showers, 11 km/h
- Rain chance
- 33%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Clarence River at Tabulam: seasons written for the southern year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
Australian bass
September to April in the rivers; closed June to August in NSW rivers
Open now Closes 1 May 2027. Closed 1 May to 31 August in all rivers except rivers above impoundments; dams are not closed. Rule as read from DPIRD NSW on 2026-09-23.
The native sportfish of the east-coast rivers and the stocked dams. Surface lures in summer, deep in winter, and a river closed season for spawning. Dam fish school deep; vertical jig plastics and blades over them. Rivers slow, and closed in NSW from June.
When to come: the Clarence River at Tabulam 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
Australian bass
SlowPeak
Water temperature through the year
Typical surface temperature for this water type in degrees Celsius; today is around 16 °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 Clarence River at Tabulam today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataThu, Sep 24
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Australian bass led the card at fair. High of 25 °C, wind to 14 km/h.
Wed, Sep 23
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Australian bass led the card at fair. High of 21 °C, wind to 10 km/h.
Tue, Sep 22
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Australian bass led the card at good. High of 26 °C, wind to 16 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 at Tabulam, from A$7 for three days; our New South Wales page has the fees.
About this water
Clarence River at Tabulam is a river in New South Wales, Australia, covered from the New South Wales reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Clarence River at Tabulam: the full guide
The Clarence at Tabulam
Tabulam is the small village where the Bruxner Highway crosses the upper Clarence River, a clear river of rock bars, casuarina banks and deep pools in the hills between Casino and Tenterfield. The upper Clarence is home to the eastern freshwater cod, one of Australia’s rarest fish. The Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge at Tabulam supplies the river level and the 30-day chart on this page. The Clarence River has its own page.
Species and seasons
Australian bass are the sport fish of the upper Clarence, taken on surface lures, spinnerbaits and small hardbodies along the casuarinas and the rock bars from spring to autumn. Eastern freshwater cod are protected in all waters and must be released straight away. The New South Wales closure for bass in rivers, 1 May to 31 August, applies; the species card computes it.
Where to fish it
The reserve by the Tabulam bridge gives access to the river, and paddling the pools and rock bars upstream and down is how the upper Clarence is fished. The river is popular with canoeists in summer.
Planning a visit
Tabulam has a pub and camping, and Casino is the nearest larger town. Bring a canoe or kayak, light bass gear and a plan to release any cod quickly and carefully.
The river through the year
The upper Clarence rises quickly after heavy rain on the ranges and clears within days of a fresh; the clearing water is the time to fish for bass, and summer evenings are the best of it.
Reading this report here
The chart shows the Clarence rising after rain in the ranges; a high, brown river is not safe to paddle, and a clearing river brings the bass on. The water temperature estimate, labelled as one, is warm through the bass season; pressure and sky build the score at Tabulam.
Licence, access and rules
The NSW Recreational Fishing Fee applies at Tabulam, from A$7 for three days; our New South Wales page has the fees. The bass closure and the eastern cod protection are in the DPIRD rules in the sources.
Common questions
Can I keep an eastern freshwater cod?
No. Eastern freshwater cod are protected in all waters and must be released.
When is bass closed on the Clarence?
From 1 May to 31 August in rivers.
Do I need a licence at Tabulam?
Yes: the NSW Recreational Fishing Fee, from A$7 for three days.
Is fishing good at Clarence River at Tabulam 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 204002 — CLARENCE @ TABULAM
- 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.