Macquarie River at Wellington Fishing Report
Updated Sat, 26 Sept 2026 from live weather and tide data
The Macquarie below Burrendong at Wellington: cod, golden perch and the trout of the cold releases at the Bell junction, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
2.46 m
Air / High
17 °C / 27 °C
Wind
NNE 5 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 421003, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Macquarie River at Wellington is in its cool-water rhythm: slower presentations and the warmest hours of the day. The gauge reads 2.46 m, holding steady. Today brings clear skies, wind NNE around 5 km/h, steady pressure near 1027 hPa and a high of 27 °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 26 °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 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 Macquarie River at Wellington today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:49), sunset (18:03), 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 421003 (MACQ @ WELLINGTON FW).
River level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 421003. Latest reading 2026-09-23 22:00.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp17 °C
High / Low27 °C / 14 °C
WindNNE 5 km/h, gusts 14 km/h
Pressure1026.5 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain2% cloud, 2%
Sunrise / Sunset05:49 / 18:03
MoonFull Moon, 100%
Water temp (seasonal)~13 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Macquarie River at Wellington
The best day on Macquarie River at Wellington 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
- 05:49 to 18:03
- Moon
- Full Moon, 100% lit
- Sky and wind
- Partly cloudy, 13 km/h
- Rain chance
- 2%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Macquarie River at Wellington: 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 Macquarie River at Wellington 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 Macquarie River at Wellington 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 27 °C, wind to 13 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 27 °C, wind to 19 km/h.
Wed, Sep 23
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Golden perch led the card at good. High of 24 °C, wind to 19 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, from A$7 for three days, applies; our New South Wales licence page has the fees.
About this water
Macquarie River at Wellington is a river in New South Wales, Australia, covered from the New South Wales reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Macquarie River at Wellington: the full guide
The reach
The Macquarie at Wellington is the river a few kilometres below Burrendong Dam, cold and regulated as it meets the Bell River at the town of the caves, running between willows and river flats under the town bridge with river parks, a caravan park and the Bell junction in the middle of it. It is cod and perch water with trout in the cold releases, and the Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge at Wellington supplies the river level and the 30-day chart on this page.
Species and seasons
Murray cod fish the snags, the junction and the deep bends through summer and autumn on lures and bait, closed from 1 September to 30 November under the New South Wales rule computed on the species card; golden perch are the everyday fish from spring to autumn; rainbow and brown trout come down from Burrendong’s cold release and hold below the dam and at the junction in the cool months; silver perch are protected; and carp are present under the DPIRD rules.
Where to fish it
The river parks and the caravan park give bank access at the town and the Bell junction, the reach below the Burrendong wall, reached from the dam road, is the trout and cod water in the cold release, and a kayak covers the reach between; the Bell River itself is a smaller cod and perch stream. Lake Burrendong has its own page.
Reading the report
The chart is the Burrendong release, high and cold through the irrigation season, and a big release keeps the cod in the slack water and the trout active; a low autumn river shows its gravel. The water temperature estimate, labelled as one, runs cooler than an inland river because of the dam release and the page says so; the valley shelters the water; pressure counts before a summer storm.
Licence, access and rules
The NSW Recreational Fishing Fee, from A$7 for three days, applies; our New South Wales licence page has the fees. The parks, the caravan park and the dam road are public or commercial and open; DPIRD’s limits, the cod closure and the trout rules are in the sources.
Common questions
Are there trout in the Macquarie at Wellington?
In the cold water released from Burrendong, below the dam and at the Bell junction, in the cool months; the cod and the perch take over in the warm ones.
Do I need a licence at Wellington?
Yes: the NSW Recreational Fishing Fee, from A$7 for three days.
Is fishing good at Macquarie River at Wellington 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 421003 — MACQ @ WELLINGTON FW
- 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.