Victoria fishes two bays, a long southern coast and an inland of big storages. Port Phillip and Western Port sit either side of the Mornington Peninsula and give Melbourne its snapper run and its whiting; the Gippsland Lakes in the east are the bream water of the state; the Great Ocean Road coast faces the Southern Ocean; and Eildon, Eppalock and Hume hold cod, golden perch and trout. One licence covers all of it, with more exemptions than any other state.
Reports current for Friday 25 September
Every one of the 125 Victoria waters we cover has a live read this morning. None reaches 4 out of 5 and 22 are slow. Water runs 8 °C to 18 °C. Pressure is rising on most of them, which costs a point in our model when the sky is clear. 78 have a better-than-even chance of rain.
Best right now: Anglesea 3/5, Apollo Bay 3/5, Barwon Heads 3/5
Live verdicts from this morning's reports.
Melbourne’s bay, where the spring snapper run, the whiting grounds and the pier fishing of a whole city share one shallow, tidal basin.
Corio Bay and the western shore of Port Phillip: piers, the Bellarine, snapper in spring and whiting when the weather settles.
Where the Gippsland Lakes meet the sea: the entrance, the lakes behind it, the Ninety Mile Beach in front and a fishing town built around all three.
A city that fishes its bay from the piers, its rivers from the banks and the Yarra from the CBD: Melbourne is a Port Phillip fishing report with a skyline.
The gateway to Corner Inlet and Wilsons Promontory: whiting over the seagrass, snapper in the channels and a long jetty into the tide.
Victoria’s deep-water port on the far west coast: tuna season off the shelf, snapper and whiting in the bay, salmon on the beaches.
Port Phillip’s wilder neighbour: tidal channels, mudflats, mangroves and the whiting, snapper and gummy shark fishery of Victoria’s second bay.
The last town before the border: an inlet of two lakes, a bar to the sea and a coast of empty beaches and rock at the far east of Victoria.
The pier, the harbour and the eastern shore of Port Phillip: Mornington’s snapper, squid and garfish an hour from Melbourne.
The Hopkins River, Lady Bay and the breakwater: Warrnambool fishes an estuary, a sheltered bay and the Shipwreck Coast beaches in one town.
A quiet, forested estuary east of Lakes Entrance: bream in the arms, flathead on the sand and an entrance that opens and closes with the seasons.
Lakes Victoria, King and Wellington and the rivers that feed them: the largest inland waterway in the country and Victoria’s bream water without equal.
Victoria’s big lake in the foothills: Murray cod and golden perch in the timber, trout in the cold arms, and a level that moves the fishing every season.
A harbour on the Great Ocean Road: salmon on the beaches, snapper and gummies in the bay, and the Otways behind it.
Between Western Port and Bass Strait: the Cowes and Rhyll piers on the calm side, San Remo and the surf beaches on the wild side, and the channels in between.
The Campaspe storage near Bendigo: golden perch and Murray cod in the timber, redfin in the bays, and a level that swings with the irrigation year.
A Gippsland river of bream and bass, from the mountains down to Lake King: the Tambo fishes its lower reaches on the tide and its upper ones on the snags.
At the heads of Port Phillip: the harbour, the pier, the Rip and the Bellarine whiting grounds, where the bay meets Bass Strait.
Western Port’s working port: the jetty and the marina, the channels off Long Island and the mangrove creeks of the northern shore.
The estuary at Nelson: a long, deep, tidal reach of bream and mulloway between limestone cliffs, from the Princess Margaret Rose Caves to the sea.
The Tanjil storage in the Latrobe Valley: bass, trout and redfin in a small, deep lake that reads its level from the Bureau every day.
The start of the Great Ocean Road: surf beaches, the Point Danger and Bells rock platforms, and the Anglesea and Spring Creek estuaries, on a coast that lives by the swell.
Ballarat’s lake in the middle of town: stocked trout and redfin in a shallow, weedy water that fishes from the footpath.
The Loddon storage near Maldon: golden perch, Murray cod, redfin and trout in a central Victorian reservoir that reads its level from the Bureau every day.
The estuary west of Portland: a small, quiet river of bream and estuary perch that opens to the Southern Ocean beaches when it fills.
The river of the silt jetties: from Bairnsdale down to Lake King through the longest river delta of its kind, bream water from end to end.
The tip of the Mornington Peninsula: the Sorrento and Portsea piers on the bay, the Rip and Point Nepean, and the back beaches on Bass Strait.
Victoria’s deepest lake in the Mitta Mitta valley: wild trout, a Macquarie perch fishery under its own rules, and a level the Bureau reads at the dam.
The small storage on the Buffalo River near Myrtleford: trout and redfin with stocked natives, a quiet valley lake with a Bureau gauge.
The Broken River storage south of Benalla: a year-round Murray cod fishery by VFA rule, golden perch and trout, with the level read by the Bureau.
The King River storage above Cheshunt: a small, cold alpine-fringe lake of trout and redfin in the King Valley, with a Bureau gauge at the dam.
The Loddon River weir below Cairn Curran: a warm, shallow cod and golden perch lake near Maldon with foreshore camping and a Bureau gauge.
The Tullaroop Creek storage near Maryborough: one of Victoria’s best big-trout lakes, with redfin for the numbers and a Bureau gauge on the level.
The small reservoir north of Ballarat: a stocked trout and redfin lake on the tableland with shore access and a Bureau gauge.
The huge, shallow irrigation basin near Rushworth: cod, golden perch and redfin in an off-river storage the Goulburn fills, with a Bureau gauge.
The Goulburn Weir pool at Nagambie: cod and golden perch in the drowned timber of a river lake, with a town on its shore and a Bureau gauge at the weir.
The Glenelg River storage in the southern Grampians: a Wimmera-basin lake where cod are open all year by VFA rule, with golden perch, redfin and trout, and a Bureau gauge.
The Wimmera’s trophy trout lake south of Horsham: big browns under their own minimum size, redfin and cod, with a Bureau gauge on a level that decides everything.
The Grampians lake near Stawell: trout, redfin and stocked natives in a shallow off-river storage beside a caravan park, with a Bureau gauge.
The Fyans Creek storage above Halls Gap: a deep mountain lake in the Grampians where cod and trout share the water and the Bureau reads the level.
The oldest Grampians reservoir, high on the MacKenzie River: a cold, shallow trout and redfin lake in the ranges with a Bureau gauge.
The Coliban River storage near Kyneton: a trout and redfin lake with cod on the VFA’s lake list, shore access, and the level read by the Bureau.
The Coliban reservoir at Malmsbury: golden perch, redfin and stocked trout in a shallow lake beside the old railway viaduct, with a Bureau gauge.
The highest of the Coliban reservoirs near Trentham: a cold trout and redfin lake on the VFA’s year-round cod list, with a Bureau gauge on the level.
The Macalister River storage above Maffra in Gippsland: bass, golden perch, trout and redfin in a lake that fills fast and empties for the irrigators, with a Bureau gauge.
The Melbourne Water reservoir near Neerim South: a trout, bass and redfin lake opened to shore fishing, with a Bureau gauge on the level.
The Mornington Peninsula’s former reservoir at Tuerong: bass, estuary perch and redfin in a natural features reserve opened to shore fishing, with a Bureau gauge.
The Moorabool River reservoir south of Ballarat: a stocked trout and redfin lake near the falls, opened to shore fishing, with a Bureau gauge.
The Werribee catchment reservoir near Ballan: trout, redfin and golden perch in a lake beside the Western Freeway, with a Bureau gauge.
The Murray at the paddle-steamer port: cod and golden perch through the red gums at Echuca and Moama, with the Bureau’s gauge at the wharf.
The Murray at Swan Hill: cod and golden perch through the Mallee river town and its red gums, with the Bureau’s gauge at the bridge.
The Murray at Mildura: cod and golden perch on the Sunraysia river, with the Lock 11 weir pool, the town wharf and the Bureau’s gauge above the city.
The Murray at Robinvale: cod and golden perch on the Euston weir pool between the vineyards and the Mallee, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Goulburn tailrace below Eildon: Victoria’s most fished trout river, cold and regulated, with a total ban in the closed season and the Bureau’s gauge at Eildon.
The Goulburn tailrace at Alexandra: trout in the lower runs of the tailwater, with the same closed-season ban and the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Goulburn at Seymour: cod and golden perch below the trout tailrace, in the deep pools and snags of the middle river, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Goulburn through Shepparton: cod and golden perch in the lower river below the weir, with Victoria Park Lake, the river parks and the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The upper Ovens at Bright: a clear trout stream under the alps, open from the first Saturday of September, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Ovens at Myrtleford: trout in the runs and the first natives in the pools, between the tobacco flats and the alps, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Ovens at Wangaratta: cod and golden perch in the lower river through the town, at the King junction, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Kiewa at Mongans Bridge: a trout stream in the valley below the Bogong High Plains, with the Bureau’s gauge at the bridge.
The Mitta Mitta below Dartmouth at Mitta Mitta: a cold tailwater of big trout in the valley, with the Bureau’s gauge at the village.
The Loddon at Bridgewater on the Calder: cod and golden perch in the weir pool and the red gums north of Bendigo, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The upper Loddon at Newstead: trout, redfin and the first natives in the pools above Cairn Curran, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Campaspe at Rochester: cod and golden perch in the lower river below Eppalock, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Broken at Benalla: cod and golden perch in Lake Benalla and the river through the town, with the Bureau’s gauge at the bridge.
The upper Latrobe at Noojee: a small, cold trout stream in the Gippsland forest, with the trestle bridge and the Bureau’s gauge at the village.
The Macalister above Glenmaggie at Licola: a mountain trout stream on the edge of the Alpine National Park, with the Bureau’s gauge at the village.
The upper Tambo at Swifts Creek: a trout stream in the high country between Omeo and the coast, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Glenelg at Casterton: cod, golden perch, redfin and trout in the middle river of the south-west, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Wimmera through Horsham: cod, golden perch and redfin in the town weir pool and the river, with the Bureau’s gauge at the city.
The Delatite below Mount Buller: a small trout stream in the valley above Lake Eildon, with the Bureau’s gauge at Tonga Bridge.
The Howqua from the high country to Lake Eildon: wild trout in a clear, rocky river with the camps of Sheepyard Flat, and the Bureau’s gauge at Glen Esk.
The Jamieson above the lake at the old gold town: wild trout in a rocky high-country river, with the Bureau’s gauge at Gerrang Bridge.
The Rubicon near Thornton: a small trout stream with its own 25 cm minimum, part of the Goulburn tailrace rules, with the Bureau’s gauge at Rubicon.
The Buckland above Porepunkah: a clear trout stream off Mount Buffalo with camps along the valley, and the Bureau’s gauge at Buckland.
The Steavenson at Marysville: a small trout stream below the falls, rebuilt after the fires, with the Bureau’s gauge at the falls.
The upper Yarra at Warburton: trout in the runs and the pools of a forest river an hour from Melbourne, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Thomson at Walhalla: wild trout in the gorge below the dam and above the old gold town, with the Bureau’s gauge at Walhalla.
The Tarwin at Meeniyan in South Gippsland: estuary perch, bass and eels in a slow dairy-country river toward Anderson Inlet, with the Bureau’s gauge at the town.
The Moyne River port on the Shipwreck Coast: bream in the river, salmon on the beaches, snapper and tuna outside, with the wharf and the breakwater in the middle of town.
The Great Ocean Road resort: the Lorne pier’s squid and salmon, the Erskine River mouth and the reefs of Louttit Bay, with snapper and gummies for the boats.
The Surf Coast town on the Anglesea River: bream in the river, salmon on the beach and Point Roadknight’s reef, with the Great Ocean Road running through.
The Barwon River mouth at the Bluff: bream and whiting in the river, salmon on Thirteenth Beach and the bluff’s rocks, with the Bellarine’s tide people search for.
The Bellarine’s surf town across the river from Barwon Heads: the main beach’s salmon and whiting, the river mouth and the reef off the point.
The Mornington Peninsula’s bay town: Rye pier’s squid and whiting, the shallow bay flats and the back beach on Bass Strait, with the pier lights at night.
The Mornington Peninsula’s Bass Strait village: Flinders pier’s squid and whiting, the Cape Schanck and West Head rocks, and the reefs off the point.
The Phillip Island bridge town: the San Remo jetty and the Eastern Entrance rip, whiting and salmon, with the pelicans and the fishing fleet.
Anderson Inlet and the surf beach: whiting and flathead on the inlet flats, salmon on the beach and the Eagles Nest rocks, with a tide that runs.
The five surf beaches and the Anderson Inlet back door: salmon and gummies on the beaches, whiting in the inlet, and the pipis of the sand.
The oldest port in Gippsland: the jetties and channels of Nooramunga, whiting, flathead and gummies, with the Ninety Mile Beach beyond the islands.
The Gippsland Lakes village between Lake Victoria and the Ninety Mile: bream and flathead in the lake, salmon on the beach, with the jetties and the Bunga Arm.
The Snowy River mouth: bream and estuary perch in the Snowy and the Brodribb, salmon on the beach and the Frenchs Narrows, with Cape Conran down the coast.
Sydenham Inlet and the Bemm: the bream village of East Gippsland, with the inlet flats, the river snags and the entrance that opens to the sea.
Horsham’s recreation lake in the Wimmera: Murray cod open all year as Wimmera basin water, with golden perch and redfin, and a Bureau gauge.
The lake near Corop in northern Victoria: Murray cod and golden perch on the VFA’s specified-lakes list, with the cod closure applying and a Bureau gauge.
The Werribee River reservoir at Melton, west of Melbourne: Murray cod on the VFA’s urban-lakes list, open all year south of the Divide, with a Bureau gauge.
The reservoir at Harcourt near Castlemaine: Murray cod on the VFA’s specified-lakes list, with the cod closure applying and a Bureau gauge.
The Barwon at Inverleigh west of Geelong: brown trout, redfin and blackfish in the plains river, with a Bureau gauge and the Victorian trout stream closure.
The lower Moorabool at Batesford on Geelong’s edge: trout, redfin and blackfish in a basalt valley river, with a Bureau gauge.
The Campaspe at Redesdale above Lake Eppalock: Murray cod and golden perch in a granite river, with a Bureau gauge and the cod closure.
The lower Loddon at Kerang: Murray cod and golden perch among the lakes and red gums of the northern plains, with a Bureau gauge.
The King River at Cheshunt below Lake William Hovell: trout in a clear mountain valley river, with a Bureau gauge and the river trout closure.
The upper Buffalo River at Abbeyard under Mount Buffalo: trout in a clear alpine valley, with a Bureau gauge and the river trout closure.
The Big River in the forest above Lake Eildon: trout in a clear mountain river, with a Bureau gauge near Jokers Creek.
The Acheron at Taggerty below the Cathedral Range: trout in a clear valley river near Alexandra, with a Bureau gauge.
The Cann River at the Cann River township in East Gippsland: Australian bass and estuary perch in a forest river, with no current Bureau level series.
The Genoa River at Gipsy Point, the quiet arm of Mallacoota Inlet: bream, flathead, estuary perch and mulloway, with no current Bureau level series.
The Wimmera at Dimboola: Murray cod, golden perch and redfin in the red gum river of the Wimmera, with a Bureau gauge and the cod closure.
The Murray at Cobram in the trout cod protection reach: Murray cod and golden perch, with all fishing closed from September to November, and a Bureau gauge.
The lower Snowy at Orbost: Australian bass and estuary perch on the river flats above the estuary, with a Bureau gauge at the town.
The Goulburn at Murchison between Nagambie and Shepparton: Murray cod and golden perch in the red gum river, with a Bureau gauge and the cod closure.
The Broken River at Casey Weir below Benalla: Murray cod and golden perch in the weir pool, with a Bureau gauge and the cod closure.
The Campaspe at Barnadown below Lake Eppalock: cod and yellowbelly in the red gum river toward Rochester, with a Bureau gauge.
The lower Ovens at Peechelba near the Murray: Murray cod and protected trout cod in a red gum river, with a Bureau gauge.
The upper Ovens at Harrietville under Mount Hotham: trout in a clear alpine river, with a Bureau gauge and the river trout closure.
The Barwon at Winchelsea on the way to the Otways: brown trout, redfin and blackfish in a willowed river, with a Bureau gauge.
The Hopkins at Framlingham above Warrnambool: brown trout, blackfish and estuary perch in a quiet western river, with a Bureau gauge.
The Yarra at Warrandyte on Melbourne’s edge: trout, redfin, blackfish and Murray cod in a bush river, with a Bureau gauge.
The Broken River at Gowangardie near Shepparton: cod and yellowbelly in the lower Broken, with a Bureau gauge and the cod closure.
The lower Loddon at Appin South near Kerang: cod and yellowbelly on the northern plains, with a Bureau gauge and the cod closure.
The Barwon at Pollocksford on Geelong’s western edge: trout, redfin and blackfish between Inverleigh and the city, with a Bureau gauge.
The Thomson at Wandocka below the high country: brown trout in a Gippsland valley river, with a Bureau gauge.
The Wonnangatta at Crooked River in the Victorian Alps: wild trout in remote high country, with a Bureau gauge.
The Snowy at McKillops Bridge in the Snowy River National Park: bass in a wild gorge river, with a Bureau gauge at the bridge.
Species activity across the covered waters, written for the southern year. Peak of the year: March.
1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.
Seasonal surface curve for the dominant water type here, in degrees Celsius (estimated, not a reading).
Read from the agency page named on each row, on the date shown, and calculated for 2026 from the rule as written: a date written as a day of the week is computed, not copied. Species with no published closure are not listed, which is not the same as open.
| Fishery | 2026 | Rule | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trout and salmon in rivers and streams | Closed 2026-06-09 to 2026-09-04 | Rivers and streams close from the Tuesday after the King’s Birthday weekend to the Friday before the first Saturday in September. Lakes and reservoirs stay open all year. | Victorian Fisheries Authority, trout and salmon regulations, read 2026-09-23 |
| Trout in lakes and reservoirs | Open all year | No closed season in lakes and reservoirs; the winter closure applies to rivers and streams. | Victorian Fisheries Authority, trout and salmon regulations, read 2026-09-23 |
| Murray cod | Closed 2026-09-01 to 2026-11-30 | Closed 1 September to 30 November inclusive, except in Lake Eildon, Eildon Pondage, Lake Eppalock, Cairn Curran, Lake Nillahcootie and the other waters the VFA lists. | Victorian Fisheries Authority, Murray cod, read 2026-09-23 |
Melbourne’s bays are the centre of Victorian fishing and they behave differently: Port Phillip is big, shallow and pier-lined, with a spring snapper run and whiting and squid over the weed; Western Port is channels and mudflats with a hard tide, whiting, gummy shark and elephant fish. East of them the coast runs to Lakes Entrance, Mallacoota and the Gippsland Lakes, the bream and flathead water; west it runs through Geelong, Apollo Bay, Warrnambool and Portland, salmon beaches and a tuna port. Inland, the storages fish for Murray cod and golden perch in the timber and trout in the cold arms.
Victoria sells one Recreational Fishing Licence for every method in every public water, from A$10 for three days, and exempts more people than any other state: everyone under 18, everyone 70 and over, and a list of cards. The Victorian Fisheries Authority publishes the limits, the Murray cod closed season from September to November, the trout rules and any snapper closure, and the marine parks around the bays and the coast have their own zones. Each water page links the rule that applies.
On the bays the wind decides which shore fishes, because a northerly and a south-westerly swap the lee sides; on the Southern Ocean coast the swell decides whether the beaches and the rocks are fishable at all; on the lakes the level from Water Data Online decides where the fish are. The daily report scores the pressure trend, the wind and the sky; the tide panel on the coastal pages is a modelled curve for the coordinates, labelled as a model, with the Bureau of Meteorology linked for the official prediction.
Yes, unless you are exempt: under 18, 70 and over, or holding one of the cards the VFA lists. From A$10 for three days; see our Victoria licence page.
From spring through summer, with the early fish off the western shore; the VFA publishes the limits and any closure, and our Port Phillip page rates the month and today’s conditions.
Port Phillip, Western Port, Melbourne, Geelong, Mornington and Phillip Island, the Gippsland Lakes, Lakes Entrance, Lake Tyers and Mallacoota, the Great Ocean Road towns, Port Welshpool, and Lakes Eildon, Eppalock and Hume.