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.
South Esk River at Llewellyn Fishing Report
Updated Fri, 25 Sept 2026 from live weather and tide data
The upper South Esk at Llewellyn: wild browns in the midlands river below Fingal, with the Bureau’s gauge at the bridge.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
1.38 m
Air / High
10 °C / 19 °C
Wind
NW 5 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 150.1, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
South Esk River at Llewellyn has cold water and fish that move for very little; fish the sunniest hours. The gauge reads 1.38 m, holding steady. Today brings cloud cover, wind NW around 5 km/h, rising pressure near 1022 hPa and a high of 19 °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 11 °C. 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 South Esk River at Llewellyn today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:54), sunset (18:09), 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 150.1 (SOUTH ESK - AT LLEWELLYN).
River level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 150.1. Latest reading 2026-09-24 17:45.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp10 °C
High / Low19 °C / 10 °C
WindNW 5 km/h, gusts 12 km/h
Pressure1022.1 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain90% cloud, 100%
Sunrise / Sunset05:54 / 18:09
MoonFull Moon, 99%
Water temp (seasonal)~8 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish South Esk River at Llewellyn
The best day on South Esk River at Llewellyn 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
- 05:54 to 18:09
- Moon
- Full Moon, 99% lit
- Sky and wind
- Showers, 23 km/h
- Rain chance
- 100%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on South Esk River at Llewellyn: 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 31 May 2027. The South Esk from the Storys Creek Road bridge at Avoca to Beams Hollow, the lower Macquarie, Meander and Brumbys Creek and lakes Mackintosh and Rosebery open with most waters on the first Saturday of August and close with the rainbow waters on the Sunday nearest 31 May. Rule as read from Inland Fisheries Service Tasmania on 2026-09-24.
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 31 May 2027. The South Esk from the Storys Creek Road bridge at Avoca to Beams Hollow, the lower Macquarie, Meander and Brumbys Creek and lakes Mackintosh and Rosebery open with most waters on the first Saturday of August and close with the rainbow waters on the Sunday nearest 31 May. Rule as read from Inland Fisheries Service Tasmania on 2026-09-24.
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 South Esk River at Llewellyn 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 South Esk River at Llewellyn 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 18 °C, wind to 14 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 15 °C, wind to 18 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 14 °C, wind to 11 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
The Tasmanian inland angling licence from the Inland Fisheries Service applies from age 14, one rod or two; our Tasmania licence page has the 2026-27 fees.
About this water
South Esk River at Llewellyn is a river in Tasmania, Australia, covered from the Tasmania reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing South Esk River at Llewellyn: the full guide
The reach
The South Esk at Llewellyn is the middle river of the northern midlands, between Fingal and Avoca and above the Macquarie junction, winding through grazing country over gravel runs, pools and willows with the Llewellyn bridge, the road crossings on the Esk Main Road and the reserves along it. It is wild brown trout water of the midlands kind, and the Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge at Llewellyn supplies the river level and the 30-day chart on this page.
Species and seasons
Brown trout are wild and are the fishery, in the runs and the pools on bait, lures and the fly, with the spring mayfly hatches the reach is known for; and the reach, below the Storys Creek Road bridge at Avoca, is inside the Inland Fisheries Service’s extended-season section of the South Esk, open from the first Saturday of August to the Sunday nearest 31 May, computed on the species card. Redfin are in the slower water. The lower South Esk at Perth has its own page.
Where to fish it
The Llewellyn bridge and the crossings give bank access, the reserves along the Esk Main Road give the reaches toward Avoca and Fingal, and the river is a wader’s water in the runs and the pool heads when the level allows; the spring hatches bring the browns up in the slower pools. A kayak covers the pools between the crossings.
Reading the report
The chart shows a midlands river that rises after rain in the eastern tiers and falls slowly through summer, when it can run low and warm; a fresh colours the river and a low summer river fishes at dawn. The water temperature estimate, labelled as one, is cool for most of the season; the open midlands let the wind cross the river; pressure and sky fill the score.
Licence, access and rules
The Tasmanian inland angling licence from the Inland Fisheries Service applies from age 14, one rod or two; our Tasmania licence page has the 2026-27 fees. The bridge, the crossings and the reserves are public; the Inland Fishing Code is in the sources.
Common questions
When is the upper South Esk open?
From the first Saturday of August to the Sunday nearest 31 May, because the South Esk below Avoca is an extended-season water; the species card computes it with the rule linked.
Do I need a licence at Llewellyn?
Yes, from age 14: the Tasmanian inland angling licence, one rod or two.
Is fishing good at South Esk River at Llewellyn 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 150.1 — SOUTH ESK - AT LLEWELLYN
- 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.