Barramundi
Fair
Work the colour changes and the snags on the run-out; larger swimbaits and slow-rolled plastics in the impoundments.
Haughton River near Giru Fishing Report
Updated Sat, 26 Sept 2026 from live weather and tide data
The Haughton River near Giru south of Townsville: barramundi and sooty grunter in the sugar country, with a Bureau gauge on the river.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
0.92 m
Air / High
21 °C / 29 °C
Wind
ESE 9 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 119003A, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Haughton River near Giru is fishing in its best temperature window, with the bite spread across the day. The gauge reads 0.92 m, holding steady. Today brings clear skies, wind ESE around 8 km/h, steady pressure near 1023 hPa and a high of 29 °C. Water sits around 26 °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: 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: 11:16 PM-1:16 AM, 11:16 AM-1:16 PM, 5:46 AM-6:46 AM. Similar at 28 °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 Haughton River near Giru today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:57), sunset (18:08), 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 119003A (Haughton_R Powerline).
River level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 119003A. Latest reading 2026-09-25 18:00.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp21 °C
High / Low29 °C / 17 °C
WindESE 9 km/h, gusts 16 km/h
Pressure1023.0 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain7% cloud, 55%
Sunrise / Sunset05:57 / 18:08
MoonFull Moon, 100%
Water temp (seasonal)~26 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Haughton River near Giru
The best day on Haughton River near Giru 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, steady pressure, neither help nor hindrance.
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
- 05:57 to 18:08
- Moon
- Full Moon, 100% lit
- Sky and wind
- Showers, 21 km/h
- Rain chance
- 55%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Haughton River near Giru: 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
Open now Closes 1 Nov 2026. 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. Work the colour changes and the snags on the run-out; larger swimbaits and slow-rolled plastics in the impoundments.
When to come: the Haughton River near Giru 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 26 °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 Haughton River near Giru today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataFri, Sep 25
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Barramundi led the card at good. High of 27 °C, wind to 21 km/h.
Thu, Sep 24
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Barramundi led the card at good. 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. Barramundi led the card at good. High of 25 °C, wind to 21 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 for the Haughton; the barramundi closed season, the size and bag limits, the rules at the weirs and the crocodile advice are on the pages linked below..
About this water
Haughton River near Giru is a river in Queensland, Australia, covered from the Queensland reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Haughton River near Giru: the full guide
The Haughton near Giru
The Haughton River runs through the sugar cane country south of Townsville past the small town of Giru, held by weirs in its lower reaches before it meets the tide and the sea at Cape Cleveland. The Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge on the Haughton near Giru supplies the river level and the 30-day chart on this page. Townsville and Ross River Dam have their own pages.
Species and seasons
Barramundi are the fish of the Haughton, in the weir pools and the tidal reaches below, on hardbodies and soft plastics; sooty grunter hold in the fresh water; mangrove jack in the tidal snags. The east coast barramundi closed season, 1 November to 31 January, applies to the river, tidal and fresh; the species card computes it.
Where to fish it
The weirs and the reserves near Giru give bank access to the Haughton’s fresh water, and the tidal reaches below are fished from boats. Estuarine crocodiles live in the river: keep well back from the water. The water just below the weirs, fished from safe ground well back from the edge, is where barramundi gather after the wet, and the snags upstream of the weirs hold sooty grunter.
Planning a visit
Giru is a short drive south of Townsville through the cane country off the Bruce Highway, and Townsville has tackle and supplies. Bring barramundi lures and a landing net, fish the weirs from safe ground well back from the edge, and plan barramundi trips outside the November to January closure.
Reading this report here
The chart shows the Haughton rising in the wet season; the run-off after the wet brings the barramundi through the weirs and onto the feed. The water temperature estimate, labelled as one, is warm all year; pressure and sky build the score at Giru.
Licence, access and rules
Queensland has no general fishing licence for the Haughton; the barramundi closed season, the size and bag limits, the rules at the weirs and the crocodile advice are on the pages linked below.
Common questions
When is barramundi closed on the Haughton?
From 1 November to 31 January, as on the whole east coast.
Are there crocodiles in the Haughton River?
Yes. Keep back from the water’s edge.
Do I need a licence at Giru?
No. Queensland has no general recreational fishing licence.
Is fishing good at Haughton River near Giru 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 119003A — Haughton_R Powerline
- 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.