Rainbow trout
Excellent
Prime. Shore fishing along the edges with bait, spinners and flies, and the rivers if the season is open.
Barwon River at Winchelsea Fishing Report
Updated Mon, 9 Nov 2026 from live weather and tide data
The Barwon at Winchelsea between the Otways and Geelong: brown trout, redfin, eels and river blackfish in a river of long pools, with a Bureau gauge.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
0.68 m
Air / High
12 °C / 20 °C
Wind
SE 11 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 233201, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Barwon River at Winchelsea rewards patience today, with cool water and short feeding windows. The gauge reads 0.68 m, holding steady. Today brings a mixed sky, wind SE around 11 km/h, steady pressure near 1017 hPa and a high of 19 °C. Water sits around 13 °C for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:31 PM-1:31 AM and 11:59 AM-1:59 PM: the windows to build the day around.
Brown trout
Excellent
Prime. Nymphs and streamers on the rivers, and the lake edges on the overcast days.
River blackfish
Closed today
Reopens 1 Jan 2027. River blackfish and two-spined blackfish cannot be taken or possessed in, on or next to Victorian waters south of the Great Dividing Range from 1 September to 31 December inclusive.
Tie on: Blade or vibe, slow hops · Lightly weighted plastic · Whole pilchard or squid on the bottom · Suspending hardbody. Prime windows: 11:31 PM-1:31 AM, 11:59 AM-1:59 PM, 5:09 AM-6:09 AM. Warmer at 24 °C with a rain chance. 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 rainbow trout here? Check the size and bag limits with VFA before you keep anything; the Rainbow trout page has the seasons and the tactics.
Fishing times for Barwon River at Winchelsea today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (06:08), sunset (20:07), the moon and today's score. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 11:31 PM-1:31 AM and 11:59 AM-1:59 PM; minor 5:09 AM-6:09 AM. New Moon, 0% lit.
Water and weather
Live readings from Bureau of Meteorology station 233201 (BARWON WINCHELSEA).
River level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 233201. Latest reading 2026-11-07 10:00.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp12 °C
High / Low20 °C / 8 °C
WindSE 11 km/h, gusts 18 km/h
Pressure1017.1 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain29% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset06:08 / 20:07
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~13 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Barwon River at Winchelsea
The best day on Barwon River at Winchelsea this week looks like Thursday 12 Nov, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today.
Best day this week: Thursday, 12 Nov — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.
Today, 9 Nov — Fair
A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
- Solunar majors
- 11:31 PM-1:31 AM and 11:59 AM-1:59 PM
- Minor period
- 5:09 AM-6:09 AM
- Sun
- 06:08 to 20:07
- Moon
- New Moon, 0% lit
- Sky and wind
- Partly cloudy, 21 km/h
- Rain chance
- 0%
Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out.
Species guide
The species that matter on Barwon River at Winchelsea: seasons written for the southern year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
Rainbow trout
Streams from October to June in NSW and from September to June in Victoria; lakes open all year; Tasmania from the first Saturday of August
Open now Closes 15 June 2027. 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. Rule as read from Victorian Fisheries Authority 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. Prime. Shore fishing along the edges with bait, spinners and flies, and the rivers if the season is open.
Brown trout
Streams from October to June in NSW and from September to June in Victoria; lakes open all year; Tasmania from the first Saturday of August
Open now Closes 15 June 2027. 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. Rule as read from Victorian Fisheries Authority 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. Prime. Nymphs and streamers on the rivers, and the lake edges on the overcast days.
River blackfish
Victoria: closed 1 September to 31 December south of the Great Dividing Range; an evening and night fish the rest of the year
Closed now Reopens 1 Jan 2027. River blackfish and two-spined blackfish cannot be taken or possessed in, on or next to Victorian waters south of the Great Dividing Range from 1 September to 31 December inclusive. Rule as read from Victorian Fisheries Authority on 2026-09-29.
A slimy, mottled native of cool, snag-filled streams on both sides of the Divide in Victoria, feeding mainly at night, late evening and early morning. The VFA sets a 30 cm minimum and a combined bag of 2 blackfish, and closes them from 1 September to 31 December south of the Great Dividing Range.
When to come: the Barwon River at Winchelsea 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
River blackfish
SlowPeak
Water temperature through the year
Typical surface temperature for this water type in degrees Celsius; today is around 13 °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 Barwon River at Winchelsea today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataSun, Nov 8
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 14 °C, wind to 18 km/h.
Sat, Nov 7
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 13 °C, wind to 21 km/h.
Fri, Nov 6
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 18 °C, wind to 27 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
At Winchelsea the Victorian Recreational Fishing Licence applies unless you are exempt; our Victoria page has the fees.
About this water
Barwon River at Winchelsea is a river in Victoria, Australia, covered from the Victoria reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Barwon River at Winchelsea: the full guide
The Barwon at Winchelsea
Winchelsea is the town on the Barwon River west of Geelong, where the river comes down from the Otways through farmland on its way to Inverleigh. The Bureau of Meteorology’s gauge at Winchelsea, station 233201, supplies the river level and the 30-day chart on this page. The Barwon at Inverleigh and at Pollocksford have their own pages.
Species and seasons
The VFA guide lists redfin, brown trout, short-finned eel and river blackfish above Winchelsea, eels and blackfish the most abundant, and tench, eels, redfin and brown trout as the main catch below the town, where river blackfish are also present. The Barwon falls under the Victorian river trout closure, from the Tuesday after the King’s Birthday weekend to the Friday before the first Saturday in September, which the species card computes.
Where to fish it
Between Winchelsea and Inverleigh the VFA describes very extensive pools, a channel 17 to 25 metres wide and pools up to 4.7 metres deep over sand, mud and clay, with rubble and gravel in the riffles. Above the town, access can be limited by private property and blackberry, so start from the public reserves in town and stay on public frontage.
Planning a visit
Winchelsea has cafes, and Geelong has tackle and supplies. Bring light gear for trout and redfin and a bait rod for blackfish and eels after dark.
The river through the year
The Barwon at Winchelsea runs highest in winter and spring, when rain comes off the Otways, and low in late summer, when the pools warm and the trout go deep. The trout fishing is best in autumn and spring, and the river trout closure takes them out of winter. Redfin are active through the warm months in the slower water, and blackfish feed in the snags after dark.
Reading this report here
The chart shows the Barwon rising after winter rain in the Otways and running low in summer. The water temperature estimate, labelled as one, is cool in spring and autumn; pressure and sky build the score at Winchelsea.
Licence, access and rules
At Winchelsea the Victorian Recreational Fishing Licence applies unless you are exempt; our Victoria page has the fees. The VFA trout regulations and the Barwon angling guide are in the sources.
Common questions
When is the Barwon closed for trout?
In the river, from the Tuesday after the King’s Birthday weekend to the Friday before the first Saturday in September.
What can I catch at Winchelsea?
Brown trout, redfin, short-finned eel and river blackfish, with tench in the pools below town.
Do I need a licence at Winchelsea?
Yes. At Winchelsea the Victorian Recreational Fishing Licence applies unless you are exempt.
Is fishing good at Barwon River at Winchelsea 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 233201 — BARWON WINCHELSEA
- 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.