Australian bass
Fair
Dam fish school deep; vertical jig plastics and blades over them. Rivers slow, and closed in NSW from June.
Wilsons River at Eltham Fishing Report
Updated Sat, 26 Sept 2026 from live weather and tide data
The Wilsons River at Eltham above Lismore: bass in a Northern Rivers creek-river, with a Bureau gauge at the village.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
0.84 m
Air / High
15 °C / 23 °C
Wind
N 11 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 203014, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Wilsons River at Eltham has cool water and fish holding a little deeper and slower. The gauge reads 0.84 m, holding steady. Today brings clear skies, wind N around 11 km/h, steady pressure near 1028 hPa and a high of 23 °C. Water sits around 16 °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.
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 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 Wilsons River at Eltham today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:31), sunset (17:44), 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 203014 (WILSONS @ ELTHAM).
River level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 203014. Latest reading 2026-09-25 22:15.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp15 °C
High / Low23 °C / 12 °C
WindN 11 km/h, gusts 23 km/h
Pressure1027.6 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 73%
Sunrise / Sunset05:31 / 17:44
MoonFull Moon, 100%
Water temp (seasonal)~16 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Wilsons River at Eltham
The best day on Wilsons River at Eltham 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 17:44
- Moon
- Full Moon, 100% lit
- Sky and wind
- Showers, 16 km/h
- Rain chance
- 73%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Wilsons River at Eltham: 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 Wilsons River at Eltham 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 Wilsons River at Eltham 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. Australian bass led the card at fair. 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. Australian bass led the card at fair. High of 22 °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 22 °C, wind to 14 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 is required on the Wilsons, from A$7 for three days; see our New South Wales licence page.
About this water
Wilsons River at Eltham is a river in New South Wales, Australia, covered from the New South Wales reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Wilsons River at Eltham: the full guide
The Wilsons at Eltham
Eltham is the village on the Wilsons River in the hills above Lismore, where the river runs through farmland and rainforest remnants on its way to Lismore and its junction with the Richmond. The Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge at Eltham supplies the river level and the 30-day chart on this page. The Richmond River at Casino and the tidal Richmond have their own pages.
Species and seasons
Australian bass are the fish of the Wilsons River, taken on small surface lures and spinners along the shaded banks and the snags from spring to autumn. The New South Wales river closure for bass, 1 May to 31 August, applies; the species card computes it.
Where to fish it
The crossings and reserves around Eltham and down toward Lismore give access to the river, and a kayak covers the longer pools.
Planning a visit
Lismore, downstream, has supplies and tackle, and Eltham has a pub. Bring light bass gear, and check the river after rain: the Wilsons floods Lismore regularly.
The river through the year
The Wilsons River drains the high-rainfall hills of the Northern Rivers, and it rises quickly and hard after heavy rain: it is the river that floods Lismore downstream, as it did in 2017 and in the record flood of 2022. Between floods it is a small, clear river at Eltham, with pools and runs under rainforest remnants. Bass live here most of the year and move down to the Richmond estuary to spawn in winter, the reason for the New South Wales closure from 1 May to 31 August; they return in spring and feed along the shaded banks through summer and autumn. The chart shows the rises, and the fishing is best as a fresh drops and clears.
Reading this report here
The chart shows how quickly the Wilsons rises after heavy rain; a flooded river is dangerous and unfishable. The water temperature estimate, labelled as one, is warm for most of the year; pressure and sky build the score at Eltham.
Licence, access and rules
The NSW Recreational Fishing Fee is required on the Wilsons, from A$7 for three days; see our New South Wales licence page. The DPIRD rules are in the sources.
Common questions
What can I catch in the Wilsons River?
Australian bass.
When is bass closed here?
From 1 May to 31 August.
Do I need a licence at Eltham?
Yes: the NSW Recreational Fishing Fee, from A$7 for three days.
Is fishing good at Wilsons River at Eltham 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 203014 — WILSONS @ ELTHAM
- 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.