Barramundi
Closed today
Reopens 1 Feb 2027. Closed 1 November to 31 January on the east coast, tidal and fresh, except in the stocked dams the Queensland Government lists. No catch and release in the closure.
Cooktown Fishing Report
Updated Mon, 9 Nov 2026 from live weather and tide data
The Endeavour River and the Cape York coast: barramundi in the river, the reef offshore, and a modelled tide for the river mouth.
3/5
Fair. Fish early or late.Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.
Next tide
Low 2:34 pm model
Air / High
27 °C / 31 °C
Wind
ESE 12 km/h
Sources: modelled tide curve, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Cooktown is a dawn-and-dusk fishery today, with the middle of the day for moving spots. Today brings a mixed sky, wind ESE around 13 km/h, steady pressure near 1014 hPa and a high of 31 °C. Tides: high 8:30 am and 7:42 pm, low 1:46 am and 2:34 pm: the moving water either side of each change is when this place feeds. Water sits around 29 °C for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:17 PM-1:17 AM and 10:53 AM-12:53 PM: plan around them and beat the heat.
Spanish mackerel
Closed today
Reopens 28 Nov 2026. East coast waters north of 22°S (just north of Stanage Bay) close to Spanish mackerel for two three-week periods set by the October and November new moons; do not target them then.
Coral trout
Closed today
Reopens 11 Nov 2026. All coral reef fin fish (coral trout, cods and groupers, emperors and the other listed reef species) are closed for two 5-day periods around the October and November new moons, in tidal waters from Cape York south to 24°50′S.
Tie on: Soft plastic, 3 to 5 inch paddle tail · Pilchard on ganged hooks · Metal slug, 20 to 40 g · Surface walker at first light. Prime windows: 11:17 PM-1:17 AM, 10:53 AM-12:53 PM, 4:48 AM-5:48 AM. Similar at 31 °C with likely rain: fish ahead of the front. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.
Before you go
Queensland has no general fishing licence, but rules and permits apply. Queensland fishing licence: cost, rules and where to buy →
Chasing barramundi here? Check the size and bag limits with Queensland DPI before you keep anything; the Barramundi page has the seasons and the tactics.
Fishing times for Cooktown today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:40), sunset (18:25), the moon and today's score, with the modelled tide changes in the panel below. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 11:17 PM-1:17 AM and 10:53 AM-12:53 PM; minor 4:48 AM-5:48 AM. New Moon, 0% lit.
Water and weather
A modelled tide curve for these coordinates and the forecast for the day.
Tides (modelled)
Modelled sea level curve from Open-Meteo Marine for these coordinates, datum mean sea level. Fish the moving water either side of each change.
A model, not the official prediction: times can drift by tens of minutes inside bays and estuaries. Check the Bureau of Meteorology tide predictions for the exact times before you rely on them.
Mon
LOW1:46 am-0.38 m
HIGH8:30 am1.46 m
LOW2:34 pm0.29 m
HIGH7:42 pm1.01 m
Tue
LOW2:09 am-0.29 m
HIGH9:05 am1.45 m
LOW3:16 pm0.41 m
HIGH8:00 pm0.88 m
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp27 °C
High / Low31 °C / 25 °C
WindESE 12 km/h, gusts 24 km/h
Pressure1013.8 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain48% cloud, 37%
Sunrise / Sunset05:40 / 18:25
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~29 °C est.
Why the tide matters here: tides and fishing in Australia.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Cooktown
Today is the pick of the week on Cooktown, at 3 out of 5.
Best day this week: today, 9 Nov — fair at 3/5, steady pressure, neither help nor hindrance.
Today, 9 Nov — Fair
Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.
- Solunar majors
- 11:17 PM-1:17 AM and 10:53 AM-12:53 PM
- Minor period
- 4:48 AM-5:48 AM
- Sun
- 05:40 to 18:25
- Moon
- New Moon, 0% lit
- Sky and wind
- Showers, 16 km/h
- Rain chance
- 37%
Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out.
Species guide
The species that matter on Cooktown: seasons written for the southern year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
Barramundi
Run-off (March to May) and build-up (October to November) in the north; check the closed season on the Queensland east coast
Closed now Reopens 1 Feb 2027. Closed 1 November to 31 January on the east coast, tidal and fresh, except in the stocked dams the Queensland Government lists. No catch and release in the closure. Rule as read from Queensland Department of Primary Industries on 2026-09-23.
The north's fish. Tidal rivers, run-off creeks, rock bars and the stocked impoundments. Warm water, moving water and a barometer on the way down.
Spanish mackerel
Winter and spring in the north; summer in NSW
Closed now Reopens 28 Nov 2026. East coast waters north of 22°S (just north of Stanage Bay) close to Spanish mackerel for two three-week periods set by the October and November new moons; do not target them then. Rule as read from Queensland Department of Primary Industries on 2026-09-27.
The narrow-barred Spanish mackerel: a speedster of the headlands, reefs and shoals from Queensland around to northern WA, and a summer visitor to NSW.
Coral trout
Year-round on the reef; in Queensland two 5-day closures around the October and November new moons cover all coral reef fin fish
Closed now Reopens 11 Nov 2026. All coral reef fin fish (coral trout, cods and groupers, emperors and the other listed reef species) are closed for two 5-day periods around the October and November new moons, in tidal waters from Cape York south to 24°50′S. Rule as read from Queensland Department of Primary Industries on 2026-09-29.
The main line-caught reef fish of the Great Barrier Reef, holding on coral outcrops and reef edges from a few metres to 100 metres, and gathering to spawn around the new moons of spring and summer. Queensland sets a 38 cm minimum and a combined limit of 7 coral trout, and closes all coral reef fin fish for two 5-day periods in October and November.
When to come: the Cooktown 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
Barramundi
Spanish mackerel
Coral trout
SlowPeak
Water temperature through the year
Typical surface temperature for this water type in degrees Celsius; today is around 29 °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 Cooktown today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataSun, Nov 8
3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Barramundi led the card at excellent. High of 32 °C, wind to 16 km/h.
Sat, Nov 7
3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Barramundi led the card at excellent. High of 31 °C, wind to 16 km/h.
Fri, Nov 6
3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Barramundi led the card at excellent. High of 31 °C, wind to 16 km/h.
Before you go
Licence
Queensland has no general recreational fishing licence; permits apply on some waters and the limits and closures do. Details and where to buy →
Regulations
Size and bag limits, closed seasons and marine park zones are set by Queensland DPI and change: confirm the current rules on the agency page linked from the Queensland licence page before you keep anything.
Access
Queensland has no general fishing licence; the barramundi, black jewfish, Spanish mackerel and coral reef fin fish closures, the size and bag limits and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park zoning apply, on the pages linked below.
About this water
Cooktown is a coastal town in Queensland, Australia, covered from the Queensland reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Cooktown: the full guide
Cooktown and the Endeavour
Cooktown sits at the mouth of the Endeavour River on the east coast of Cape York, north of Cairns, with the river and its mangrove creeks behind the town, the wharf and the rock walls on the river’s southern bank, Finch Bay and the headlands to the east, and the reef and the Lizard Island grounds offshore. It is a wet-tropics town at the edge of the dry cape, with a wet season that floods the river and a dry season that brings the boats and the trade wind. The page shows a tide for the town: a modelled curve for these coordinates, labelled as a model, with the Bureau of Meteorology’s official prediction linked. North of Cape Bedford the coast is part of Queensland’s net free north area, closed to commercial mesh and seine netting.
Species and seasons
Barramundi fish the river, the creeks and the mouth on the run-off and the build-up, closed from 1 November to 31 January; mangrove jack, grunter and fingermark fish the snags, the rocks and the wharf; queenfish and trevally fish the river mouth and the bay on the tide; and Spanish mackerel run the headlands and the reef, closed north of latitude 22°S around the October and November new moons. Mud crabs are a pot fishery in the creeks, and the reef gives coral trout, nannygai and the other reef species for the boats when the trade wind allows, outside the two five-day reef closures each spring. Black jewfish are closed on the east coast from 1 November to 31 January as well.
Reading this report here
The tide runs hard here through the river mouth; the curve on this page is for its direction and size, and the Bureau of Meteorology has the minute. The south-easterly trade wind decides whether the reef is reachable and pushes the fishing into the river when it is up, and in the dry the calm hours before the breeze builds are the window for small boats outside the river. Barramundi respond to a falling barometer before a storm, and the rain row shows the wet. Estuarine crocodiles live in the river, the creeks and the bay.
Rules and access
Queensland has no general fishing licence; the barramundi, black jewfish, Spanish mackerel and coral reef fin fish closures, the size and bag limits and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park zoning apply, on the pages linked below. The wharf, the river walls and Finch Bay are public; much of the country beyond the town is Aboriginal land with its own access rules, so check before heading up the cape.
Common questions
Do I need a fishing licence in Cooktown?
No. Like the rest of Queensland, Cooktown has no recreational fishing licence; closed seasons, limits and marine park zones apply.
Is fishing good at Cooktown 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 early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.
Nearby waters
Where this page's numbers come from
- Tide curve (modelled)
- Open-Meteo Marine, sea level height including tides
- 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.