Australian bass
Excellent
Prime. Cast spinnerbaits, small hardbodies and surface lures tight to structure in the rivers; sound up the schools in the dams.
Fitzroy Falls Reservoir Fishing Report
Updated Mon, 9 Nov 2026 from live weather and tide data
A Southern Highlands reservoir above the falls where WaterNSW allows land-based fishing for trout and bass from the eastern foreshore, with no boats and the Bureau reading the level.
2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Water temp
~21 °C est.
Air / High
8 °C / 15 °C
Wind
SSW 7 km/h
Sources: Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Fitzroy Falls Reservoir has the water in the comfortable band where most of its fish feed through the day. Today brings clear skies, wind SSW around 6 km/h, rising pressure near 1021 hPa and a high of 15 °C. Water sits around 21 °C for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:56 PM-1:56 AM and 11:32 AM-1:32 PM: the windows to build the day around.
Golden perch
Excellent
Prime. Hop soft plastics and vibes around the timber, or fish shrimp and worms on the bottom.
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: 11:56 PM-1:56 AM, 11:32 AM-1:32 PM, 4:51 AM-5:51 AM. Warmer at 23 °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 Fitzroy Falls Reservoir today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:49), sunset (19:34), the moon and today's score. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 11:56 PM-1:56 AM and 11:32 AM-1:32 PM; minor 4:51 AM-5:51 AM. New Moon, 0% lit.
Water and weather
Bureau of Meteorology station 215235 (FITZROY FALLS DAM) has sent no reading in the last 30 days, so conditions here are modelled from weather, season and the nearest stations.
No recent gauge reading
Readings come back here when station 215235 reports again. Until then the seasonal curve below is the estimate.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp8 °C
High / Low15 °C / 5 °C
WindSSW 7 km/h, gusts 24 km/h
Pressure1020.7 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain13% cloud, 19%
Sunrise / Sunset05:49 / 19:34
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~21 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Fitzroy Falls Reservoir
The best day on Fitzroy Falls Reservoir this week looks like Friday 13 Nov, at 5 out of 5, against 2 today.
Best day this week: Friday, 13 Nov — excellent at 5/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.
Today, 9 Nov — Tough
Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
- Solunar majors
- 11:56 PM-1:56 AM and 11:32 AM-1:32 PM
- Minor period
- 4:51 AM-5:51 AM
- Sun
- 05:49 to 19:34
- Moon
- New Moon, 0% lit
- Sky and wind
- Overcast, 19 km/h
- Rain chance
- 19%
Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out.
Species guide
The species that matter on Fitzroy Falls Reservoir: 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 1 May to 31 August in NSW rivers, and dams stay open
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. Prime. Cast spinnerbaits, small hardbodies and surface lures tight to structure in the rivers; sound up the schools in the dams.
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 Fitzroy Falls Reservoir 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
Golden perch
SlowPeak
Water temperature through the year
Typical surface temperature for this water type in degrees Celsius; today is around 21 °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 Fitzroy Falls Reservoir today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataSun, Nov 8
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Australian bass led the card at excellent. High of 12 °C, wind to 29 km/h.
Sat, Nov 7
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Australian bass led the card at excellent. High of 23 °C, wind to 24 km/h.
Fri, Nov 6
5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Australian bass led the card at excellent. High of 22 °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, from A$7 for three days; see the New South Wales licence page.
Storage levels
Compare it with every other storage in the state on New South Wales dam levels today.
About this water
Fitzroy Falls Reservoir is a lake in New South Wales, Australia, covered from the New South Wales reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Fitzroy Falls Reservoir: the full guide
The lake
Fitzroy Falls Reservoir lies on Yarrunga Creek upstream of Fitzroy Falls, about 20 kilometres south-east of Bowral. WaterNSW built its four earth and rockfill embankments in 1974 for the Shoalhaven Scheme, which pumps and exchanges water between Lake Yarrunga, Bendeela Pondage and this reservoir for supply and hydro-electric generation. WaterNSW calls it popular for land-based recreational fishing. The Bureau of Meteorology’s station at the dam, 215235, provides the storage level and the 30-day chart on this page.
Species and seasons
WaterNSW invites anglers to try for trout and bass, and those are the two fish to plan around: the species card here rates Australian bass and golden perch by month. There is no closed season for trout in New South Wales lakes and dams, and DPIRD’s winter bass closure applies to rivers below impoundments rather than to the reservoir. Other native fish and crayfish may turn up, and DPIRD’s closures page sets out which of them cannot be taken, so check it before keeping anything unfamiliar.
Where to fish it
The fishing area is separate from the picnic ground: WaterNSW sets it on the eastern foreshore, reached off Myra Vale Road, while the recreation area with barbecues and a playground is off the Nowra to Moss Vale road. From the bank, cover the drop-off with a slowly worked soft plastic or a bait under a float at dawn and dusk when trout move shallow, and switch to surface lures and small spinnerbaits for bass on warm, still evenings. Stay inside the marked zone.
Reading the report
This is cool, high country, so the water temperature line, an estimate for the water type, often sits in the trout bands and only reaches the bass range in the warmer months. The chart shows pumping transfers within the Shoalhaven Scheme as well as rainfall, so a level change can be operational. The escarpment catches the wind; on a bank-only water, the wind row is mostly about casting direction and comfort.
Licence, access and rules
The NSW Recreational Fishing Fee applies, from A$7 for three days; see the New South Wales licence page. WaterNSW does not allow boating, swimming, camping or dogs, and closes the site on total fire ban days. In September 2026 it flagged a potential algal bloom and asked visitors to avoid contact with the water, so check its alerts before you go.
Common questions
Can I fish at Fitzroy Falls Reservoir?
Yes, from the shore in WaterNSW’s designated fishing area on the eastern foreshore, off Myra Vale Road; boating and swimming are not allowed.
What can I catch at Fitzroy Falls Reservoir?
WaterNSW names trout and bass; the species card rates the month for bass and golden perch.
Is fishing good at Fitzroy Falls Reservoir 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
- 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.