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.
Daintree River Fishing Report
Updated Mon, 9 Nov 2026 from live weather and tide data
The Daintree: barramundi, mangrove jack and jungle perch in the rainforest river of the far north, with the Bureau’s gauge at Bairds.
3/5
Fair. Fish early or late.Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.
Level
3.03 m
Air / High
24 °C / 31 °C
Wind
SE 3 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 108002A, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Daintree River is a dawn-and-dusk fishery today, with the middle of the day for moving spots. The gauge reads 3.03 m, holding steady. Today brings a mixed sky, wind SE around 3 km/h, steady pressure near 1014 hPa and a high of 31 °C. 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.
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, 4:47 AM-5:47 AM. Similar at 29 °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 Daintree River today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:38), sunset (18:26), the moon and today's score. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 11:17 PM-1:17 AM and 10:53 AM-12:53 PM; minor 4:47 AM-5:47 AM. New Moon, 0% lit.
Water and weather
Live readings from Bureau of Meteorology station 108002A (Daintree_R Bairds).
River level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 108002A. Latest reading 2026-11-08 19:00.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp24 °C
High / Low31 °C / 21 °C
WindSE 3 km/h, gusts 8 km/h
Pressure1014.1 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain41% cloud, 51%
Sunrise / Sunset05:38 / 18:26
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~29 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Daintree River
Today is the pick of the week on Daintree River, 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
- 4:47 AM-5:47 AM
- Sun
- 05:38 to 18:26
- Moon
- New Moon, 0% lit
- Sky and wind
- Showers, 11 km/h
- Rain chance
- 51%
Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out.
Species guide
The species that matter on Daintree River: 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.
When to come: the Daintree River 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
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 Daintree River 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 13 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 32 °C, wind to 11 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 32 °C, wind to 11 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 recreational fishing licence; size and possession limits, the barramundi closure and the jungle perch limit are on the Queensland Government pages linked below.
About this water
Daintree River is a river in Queensland, Australia, covered from the Queensland reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Daintree River: the full guide
The reach
The Daintree runs out of the ranges north of Mossman, past Daintree village and the cane and cattle country of the valley, to the vehicle ferry on the road to Cape Tribulation and on to the sea. The lower river is estuary lined with mangroves; the upper reaches are clear, fast rainforest water. Bureau of Meteorology station 108002A, Daintree_R Bairds, upstream of the village, supplies the river level and the 30-day chart on this page.
Species and seasons
Barramundi hold on snags, rock and deep bends from the lower estuary up into the fresh, and the Queensland east coast closure from 1 November to 31 January applies to the whole river, tidal and fresh, with no targeting during it. Mangrove jack live in the snags of the tidal reaches; jungle perch, limited to one in possession with a 35 cm maximum, belong to the clear upper water and the creeks; and sooty grunter, 28 cm minimum, sit on the rock. The estuary near the mouth adds the usual tropical estuary mix.
Where to fish it
This is saltwater crocodile country, and the Queensland Government’s Crocwise advice for anglers is to stay at least five metres back from the water’s edge, never stand on logs or branches over the water and keep arms and legs inside the boat. That makes the Daintree mostly a boat river: work snags on the last of the run-out and the first of the flood, and cast to timber in the deeper bends upstream. Bank anglers should choose open, high ground with a clear view of the water.
Reading the report
The Bairds gauge shows a river that rises quickly after heavy rain in the ranges and drops back over the following days; a fresh push of coloured water often fires the barramundi at creek mouths once it starts to clear. The water temperature estimate, labelled as one, stays warm for much of the year here, and pressure dropping ahead of an afternoon storm is worth noting on the score.
Rules and access
Queensland has no general recreational fishing licence; size and possession limits, the barramundi closure and the jungle perch limit are on the Queensland Government pages linked below. Parts of the valley are Daintree National Park, where the park’s access and camping rules apply; outside the park, check who owns a bank before you cross it.
Common questions
Is it safe to fish the Daintree from the bank?
Only with care: saltwater crocodiles live in the river, and Queensland’s Crocwise advice is to stand at least five metres back from the edge. Most anglers fish it from a boat.
When is barramundi closed on the Daintree?
From 1 November to 31 January, in both the tidal and the fresh reaches, with no catch and release allowed during the closure.
Is fishing good at Daintree River 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
- Storage and river readings
- Bureau of Meteorology, Water Data Online, station 108002A — Daintree_R Bairds
- 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.