Rainbow trout
Slow
Winter lakes: bait on the bottom in the deeper bays through the middle of the day, or polaroiding the shallows on the bright days in Tasmania.
Laughing Jack Lagoon Fishing Report
Updated Fri, 25 Sept 2026 from live weather and tide data
A Central Highlands hydro lagoon the Inland Fishing Code names as a general-rules water: wild browns on the fly, lure and bait, with a Bureau gauge at the dam.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
757.94 m10,736 ML
Air / High
6 °C / 15 °C
Wind
W 10 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 211.1, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Laughing Jack Lagoon is a cold-water proposition today: bait on the bottom and a long soak. The gauge reads 757.94 m, up 0.11 over the week. Today brings cloud cover, wind W around 10 km/h, rising pressure near 1025 hPa and a high of 14 °C. Water sits around 8 °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.
Brown trout
Slow
The lake fishery: bait or slow lures in the deeper bays; the rivers are closed in NSW and Victoria.
Tie on: Bait on the bottom, running sinker · Heavy blade, deep · Slow-rolled swimbait · Live bait, deepest hole. Prime windows: 10:25 AM-12:25 PM, 10:25 PM-12:25 AM, 4:55 AM-5:55 AM. Cooler at 6 °C with likely rain: fish ahead of the front. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.
Before you go
Tasmania requires a fishing licence for most fishing, from A$29.00. Tasmania fishing licence: cost, rules and where to buy →
Chasing rainbow trout here? Check the size and bag limits with IFS Tasmania before you keep anything; the Rainbow trout page has the seasons and the tactics.
Fishing times for Laughing Jack Lagoon today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:59), sunset (18:14), 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 211.1 (LAUGHING JACK LAGOON - AT DAM).
Storage level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 211.1. Latest reading 2026-09-24 17:45.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp6 °C
High / Low15 °C / 5 °C
WindW 10 km/h, gusts 26 km/h
Pressure1024.6 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain100% cloud, 100%
Sunrise / Sunset05:59 / 18:14
MoonFull Moon, 99%
Water temp (seasonal)~8 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Laughing Jack Lagoon
The best day on Laughing Jack Lagoon 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, 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
- 05:59 to 18:14
- Moon
- Full Moon, 99% lit
- Sky and wind
- Showers, 21 km/h
- Rain chance
- 100%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Laughing Jack Lagoon: seasons written for the southern year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
Rainbow trout
Open season from October to June in NSW and Victoria; Tasmania from August
Open now Closes 3 May 2027. Most waters open from the first Saturday of August to the Sunday nearest 30 April; designated rainbow trout waters run from the Saturday nearest 1 October to the Sunday nearest 31 May. Rule as read from Inland Fisheries Service Tasmania on 2026-09-23.
The stocked lakes of the Snowy Mountains, the Victorian highlands and the Tasmanian central plateau. Closed seasons apply on the rivers: check the state rules. Winter lakes: bait on the bottom in the deeper bays through the middle of the day, or polaroiding the shallows on the bright days in Tasmania.
Brown trout
Open season from October to June in NSW and Victoria; Tasmania from August
Open now Closes 3 May 2027. Most waters open from the first Saturday of August to the Sunday nearest 30 April; designated rainbow trout waters run from the Saturday nearest 1 October to the Sunday nearest 31 May. Rule as read from Inland Fisheries Service Tasmania on 2026-09-23.
The wild trout of the highland rivers and Tasmania's lakes. Spawns in autumn, hence the closed rivers through winter in NSW and Victoria. The lake fishery: bait or slow lures in the deeper bays; the rivers are closed in NSW and Victoria.
When to come: the Laughing Jack Lagoon 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
Rainbow trout
Brown trout
SlowPeak
Water temperature through the year
Typical surface temperature for this water type in degrees Celsius; today is around 8 °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 Laughing Jack Lagoon today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataThu, Sep 24
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at slow. High of 17 °C, wind to 23 km/h.
Wed, Sep 23
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Rainbow trout led the card at fair. High of 13 °C, wind to 10 km/h.
Tue, Sep 22
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Rainbow trout led the card at fair. High of 10 °C, wind to 16 km/h.
Before you go
Licence
Tasmanian Inland Angling Licence, from A$29.00, 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 IFS Tasmania and change: confirm the current rules on the agency page linked from the Tasmania licence page before you keep anything.
Access
Laughing Jack Lagoon is inland water, so the Tasmanian inland angling licence is needed from age 14; our Tasmania licence page has the fees.
About this water
Laughing Jack Lagoon is a lake in Tasmania, Australia, covered from the Tasmania reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Laughing Jack Lagoon: the full guide
Laughing Jack Lagoon
Laughing Jack Lagoon is a hydro storage in the upper Derwent scheme of the Central Highlands, reached on gravel roads off the Lyell Highway country west of Bronte Park, a shallow, tea-coloured lagoon among button grass, snow gums and rocky points. The Inland Fishing Code uses it as one of its examples of a lake under the general lake rules, and the Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge at the dam supplies the level and the 30-day chart on this page. Bronte Lagoon and Dee Lagoon have their own pages.
Species and seasons
Wild brown trout are the fish of Laughing Jack Lagoon, cruising the shallows and the flooded margins in spring and rising to hatches in summer, and taken on the fly, on lures and on bait under the general lake rules. The lagoon follows the general lake season, 1 August 2026 to 2 May 2027 this year, which is the first Saturday of August to the Sunday nearest 30 April, computed on the species card; the general lake bag is 12 fish over 300 mm.
Where to fish it
The dam and the rocky points near the access road are where most anglers fish Laughing Jack, casting lures along the drop-offs or wading the shallow margins with a fly on a still morning. A kayak or a small boat under Hydro Tasmania’s rules reaches the far shore, where the flooded grass fishes when the lagoon is high.
Planning a visit
Laughing Jack Lagoon is reached on gravel roads from the Lyell Highway country near Bronte Park; carry fuel and food, because the highlands have few services. Warm and waterproof clothing, polarised glasses for the shallows and a flexible plan for the weather make the difference on the plateau.
Reading this report here
The highlands make their own weather and the wind row is the first number to read; a light breeze makes a wind lane and a gale makes the lagoon unfishable. Snow can fall in any month. The chart shows the hydro level, which decides whether the margins are flooded; the water temperature estimate, labelled as one, is cold for most of the season. Pressure and sky build the score at Laughing Jack Lagoon.
Licence, access and rules
Laughing Jack Lagoon is inland water, so the Tasmanian inland angling licence is needed from age 14; our Tasmania licence page has the fees. The roads and the shore are open under Hydro Tasmania’s rules, and the Inland Fishing Code, with the general lake rules and the season, is in the sources.
Common questions
What rules apply at Laughing Jack Lagoon?
The general lake rules of the Inland Fishing Code, which names Laughing Jack Lagoon as an example: all methods, 12 fish over 300 mm, and the general season.
When is Laughing Jack Lagoon open?
From the first Saturday of August to the Sunday nearest 30 April; this season, 1 August 2026 to 2 May 2027.
Do I need a licence at Laughing Jack Lagoon?
Yes: the Tasmanian inland angling licence, from age 14.
Is fishing good at Laughing Jack Lagoon 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 211.1 — LAUGHING JACK LAGOON - AT 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.