Barramundi
Fair
Work the colour changes and the snags on the run-out; larger swimbaits and slow-rolled plastics in the impoundments.
Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam) Fishing Report
Updated Fri, 25 Sept 2026 from live weather and tide data
Cairns’ water supply in the hills above the city: Lake Morris at the Copperlode Falls Dam, barramundi and sooty grunter from the shore, exempt from the closure, with a Bureau gauge.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
-0.22 m37,694 ML
Air / High
17 °C / 22 °C
Wind
SE 12 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 1392, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam) sits in the warm band: moving baits, moving tides and fish on the edges. The gauge reads -0.22 m, easing 0.07 over the week. Today brings a mixed sky, wind SE around 13 km/h, steady pressure near 1023 hPa and a high of 22 °C. Water sits around 26 °C for the season (estimated). With the full moon, the solunar majors run 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM: 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: 10:25 AM-12:25 PM, 10:25 PM-12:25 AM, 4:55 AM-5:55 AM. Similar at 22 °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 Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam) today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (06:04), sunset (18:13), the moon and today's score. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM; minor 4:55 AM-5:55 AM. Full Moon, 99% lit.
Water and weather
Live readings from Bureau of Meteorology station 1392 (Water Copperlode Dam).
Storage level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 1392. Latest reading 2026-09-24 10:00.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp17 °C
High / Low22 °C / 16 °C
WindSE 12 km/h, gusts 30 km/h
Pressure1022.7 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain28% cloud, 82%
Sunrise / Sunset06:04 / 18:13
MoonFull Moon, 99%
Water temp (seasonal)~26 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam)
The best day on Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam) this week looks like Saturday 26 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: Saturday, 26 Sept — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.
Today, 25 Sept — Fair
A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
- Solunar majors
- 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM
- Minor period
- 4:55 AM-5:55 AM
- Sun
- 06:04 to 18:13
- Moon
- Full Moon, 99% lit
- Sky and wind
- Showers, 19 km/h
- Rain chance
- 82%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam): 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 all year Copperlode Falls Dam (Lake Morris) is exempt from the closed season 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 Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam) 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 Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam) today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataThu, 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 21 °C, wind to 16 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 23 °C, wind to 16 km/h.
Tue, Sep 22
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Barramundi led the card at good. High of 23 °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 Stocked Impoundment Permit applies only on the listed dams, and this site has not confirmed whether Lake Morris is one, so the Queensland Government page linked in the sources is the one to check.
About this water
Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam) is a lake in Queensland, Australia, covered from the Queensland reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam): the full guide
The lake
Lake Morris is the Copperlode Falls Dam on Freshwater Creek in the rainforest hills above Cairns, the city’s water supply, reached by a winding road from Redlynch with a picnic area, a kiosk and shore access at the wall and a lake that fills the valley behind it under the range. Boating is not allowed on the supply lake and it fishes from the bank; the Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge at the dam supplies the level and the 30-day chart on this page.
Species and seasons
Barramundi are stocked and fish the edges near the wall and the creek inflows in the warm months, and Copperlode Falls is on the Queensland Government’s exempt list, so the closure does not apply and the species card shows open all year with the rule linked; sooty grunter are the everyday fish on the rocky edges; jungle perch and the rainforest species are in the creeks above and are protected or limited under the Queensland rules. Whether the lake is on the Stocked Impoundment Permit list is not something this site has confirmed; check the Queensland Government page before fishing.
Where to fish it
The picnic area and the shore near the wall are the access, on foot, with no boats and no swimming on the supply lake; the rocky edges near the wall and the inflow of Freshwater Creek at the far end, reached by the walking track, are the spots. The council sets the hours and the rules at the gate.
Reading the report
The wet tropics keep the water warm and the water temperature estimate, labelled as one, gives a long barramundi band; the rain row is the number to read, because the range gets metres of rain and the lake and the road change after a storm. The hills shelter the water from the wind; pressure counts before a storm.
Rules and access
Queensland has no general fishing licence; the Stocked Impoundment Permit applies only on the listed dams, and this site has not confirmed whether Lake Morris is one, so the Queensland Government page linked in the sources is the one to check. Shore fishing under the council’s supply-lake rules, with no boats; the Queensland size and bag rules apply.
Common questions
Can I fish Lake Morris?
From the shore near the wall and the inflow, under the council’s supply-lake rules; no boats or swimming.
Is barramundi open all year at Lake Morris?
Yes: Copperlode Falls is on the Queensland Government’s list of dams exempt from the closure, and the species card shows it with the rule.
Do I need a permit at Lake Morris?
This site has not confirmed whether Lake Morris is on the Stocked Impoundment Permit list; check the Queensland Government page linked in the sources before fishing.
Is fishing good at Lake Morris (Copperlode Dam) 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 1392 — Water Copperlode Dam
- 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.