Golden perch
Excellent
Prime. Hop soft plastics and vibes around the timber, or fish shrimp and worms on the bottom.
Barkers Creek Reservoir Fishing Report
Updated Mon, 9 Nov 2026 from live weather and tide data
The Coliban Water reservoir at Harcourt near Castlemaine: stocked Murray cod, golden perch and trout, kayaks allowed, the spring cod closure and a Bureau gauge.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
364.51 m1,690 ML
Air / High
13 °C / 19 °C
Wind
E 3 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge BARKERSCREEK, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Barkers Creek Reservoir is fishing in its best temperature window, with the bite spread across the day. The gauge reads 364.51 m, holding steady. Today brings clear skies, wind E around 3 km/h, steady pressure near 1017 hPa and a high of 19 °C. Water sits around 19 °C for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:30 PM-1:30 AM and 11:58 AM-1:58 PM: the windows to build the day around.
Murray cod
Closed today
Reopens 1 Dec 2026. 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.
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: 11:30 PM-1:30 AM, 11:58 AM-1:58 PM, 5:11 AM-6:11 AM. Warmer at 25 °C. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.
Before you go
Victoria requires a fishing licence for most fishing, from A$10.00. Victoria fishing licence: cost, rules and where to buy →
Chasing murray cod here? Check the size and bag limits with VFA before you keep anything; the Murray cod page has the seasons and the tactics.
Fishing times for Barkers Creek Reservoir today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (06:09), sunset (20:03), the moon and today's score. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 11:30 PM-1:30 AM and 11:58 AM-1:58 PM; minor 5:11 AM-6:11 AM. New Moon, 0% lit.
Water and weather
Live readings from Bureau of Meteorology station BARKERSCREEK (Barkers Creek Storage).
Storage level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station BARKERSCREEK. Latest reading 2026-11-06 00:00.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp13 °C
High / Low19 °C / 5 °C
WindE 3 km/h, gusts 8 km/h
Pressure1016.7 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain7% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset06:09 / 20:03
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~19 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Barkers Creek Reservoir
The best day on Barkers Creek Reservoir this week looks like Tuesday 10 Nov, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today.
Best day this week: Tuesday, 10 Nov — good at 4/5, rising pressure behind a front, typically the slowest.
Today, 9 Nov — Fair
A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
- Solunar majors
- 11:30 PM-1:30 AM and 11:58 AM-1:58 PM
- Minor period
- 5:11 AM-6:11 AM
- Sun
- 06:09 to 20:03
- Moon
- New Moon, 0% lit
- Sky and wind
- Overcast, 14 km/h
- Rain chance
- 0%
Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out.
Species guide
The species that matter on Barkers Creek Reservoir: seasons written for the southern year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
Murray cod
Closed 1 September to 30 November in NSW, Victoria and the ACT, and 1 August to 31 October in Queensland; check the exempt lakes
Closed now Reopens 1 Dec 2026. 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. Rule as read from Victorian Fisheries Authority on 2026-09-23.
The giant of the inland rivers and the big lakes (Hume, Mulwala, Eildon). A snag fish that eats big lures, and a species with a closed season across the Murray-Darling.
Golden perch
Best: November to April
Yellowbelly. The bread-and-butter native of the Murray-Darling lakes and rivers; loves warm water, structure and a lure worked slowly past its nose. Prime. Hop soft plastics and vibes around the timber, or fish shrimp and worms on the bottom.
When to come: the Barkers Creek Reservoir 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
Murray cod
Golden perch
SlowPeak
Water temperature through the year
Typical surface temperature for this water type in degrees Celsius; today is around 19 °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 Barkers Creek Reservoir today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataSun, Nov 8
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Golden perch led the card at excellent. High of 16 °C, wind to 21 km/h.
Sat, Nov 7
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Golden perch led the card at excellent. High of 14 °C, wind to 26 km/h.
Fri, Nov 6
5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Golden perch led the card at excellent. High of 20 °C, wind to 19 km/h.
Before you go
Licence
Victorian Recreational Fishing Licence (RFL), from A$10.00, 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 VFA and change: confirm the current rules on the agency page linked from the Victoria licence page before you keep anything.
Access
Anglers at Barkers Creek Reservoir need the Victorian Recreational Fishing Licence unless they are exempt; our Victoria page has the fees.
Storage levels
Compare it with every other storage in the state on Victoria dam levels today.
About this water
Barkers Creek Reservoir is a lake in Victoria, Australia, covered from the Victoria reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Barkers Creek Reservoir: the full guide
Barkers Creek Reservoir
Barkers Creek Reservoir is the small Coliban Water storage at Harcourt, between Castlemaine and Bendigo in central Victoria. Coliban Water says it opened in 1868 to supply the orchards and farms of the Harcourt district, and it still provides rural irrigation. The VFA lists it among its specified lakes on the Murray cod page, and the Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge at the reservoir supplies the level and the 30-day chart on this page. Cairn Curran and Lake Eppalock nearby have their own pages.
Species and seasons
Murray cod are the headline fish: the VFA’s table of on-grown native releases lists 4,829 Murray cod for Barkers Creek, and the VFA has reported golden perch fingerlings stocked here alongside the trout it grows at Snobs Creek and releases each year. The reservoir is north of the Great Dividing Range and not on the VFA’s exempt list, so the Murray cod closed season, 1 September to 30 November, applies; the species card computes it. As a specified lake it carries a bag of two cod within the 55 to 75 cm slot.
Where to fish it
Coliban Water allows bank fishing, kayaks, canoes and small portable craft from a single entry and exit point. Electric motors may be used, a boat may carry a petrol outboard only if it is not run, a five-knot limit applies and life jackets must be worn on the water. A kayak lets you work structure and deeper edges the bank cannot reach, while trout cruise the margins in the cooler months.
Planning a visit
Barkers Creek Reservoir is at Harcourt, just off the Calder Freeway between Castlemaine and Bendigo, both of which have supplies and tackle. The site is open in daylight hours, with a car park, seating, toilets and walking paths; swimming, camping, fires, sail craft, paddle boards and inflatables are not allowed. Plan cod sessions for the warmer months, trout for winter, and remember the spring cod closure here.
Reading this report here
Small and sheltered by the hills, the reservoir is affected more by temperature than wind; the water temperature estimate, labelled as one, is warm in summer and cold in the central Victorian winter. The chart shows the storage level; pressure and sky build the score at Barkers Creek Reservoir.
Licence, access and rules
Anglers at Barkers Creek Reservoir need the Victorian Recreational Fishing Licence unless they are exempt; our Victoria page has the fees. Coliban Water sets the access and boating rules on its reservoir page, and the VFA limits and closed season are in the sources.
Common questions
Is Murray cod closed at Barkers Creek Reservoir in spring?
Yes, from 1 September to 30 November, under the VFA closed season.
Can I use a kayak at Barkers Creek Reservoir?
Yes. Coliban Water allows kayaks, canoes and small portable craft, with electric motors only, a five-knot limit and life jackets worn.
Do I need a licence at Barkers Creek Reservoir?
Yes, unless you are exempt: the Victorian Recreational Fishing Licence is needed at Barkers Creek Reservoir.
Is fishing good at Barkers Creek Reservoir 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 BARKERSCREEK — Barkers Creek Storage
- Open-Meteo forecast model
- https://open-meteo.com/
- Moon and solunar windows
- Calculated on this site
- Pages checked
- 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.