Sugarloaf Reservoir Fishing Report
Updated Tue, 29 Sept 2026 from live weather and tide data
Melbourne Water’s off-stream reservoir in Christmas Hills: lure-only shore fishing in designated areas for yellowbelly, redfin and carp, a Victorian licence and a Bureau gauge.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
44.03 m79,713 ML
Air / High
7 °C / 21 °C
Wind
NNE 2 km/h
Sources: Bureau of Meteorology gauge 229607A, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Sugarloaf Reservoir has cool water and fish holding a little deeper and slower. The gauge reads 44.03 m, holding steady. Today brings cloud cover, wind NNE around 2 km/h, rising pressure near 1030 hPa and a high of 21 °C. Water sits around 13 °C for the season (estimated). With the waning gibbous, the solunar majors run 1:47 AM-3:47 AM and 1:47 PM-3:47 PM: the windows to build the day around.
Tie on: Blade or vibe, slow hops · Lightly weighted plastic · Whole pilchard or squid on the bottom · Suspending hardbody. Prime windows: 1:47 AM-3:47 AM, 1:47 PM-3:47 PM, 8:17 AM-9:17 AM. Similar at 21 °C. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.
Before you go
A Victorian Recreational Fishing Licence is required unless exempt (for example under 18 or 70 and over): from 1 July 2026, A$10.00 for three days, A$24.70 for 28 days or A$40.80 for a year online. Melbourne Water and Parks Victoria allow shoreline fishing only, in designated areas during park hours, with lures or artificial baits; no natural bait, berley, wading or cleaning fish in the reservoir, and no kayaks or canoes.
Victoria requires a fishing licence for most fishing, from A$10.00. Victoria fishing licence: cost, rules and where to buy →
Chasing golden perch here? Check the size and bag limits with VFA before you keep anything; the Golden perch page has the seasons and the tactics.
Fishing times for Sugarloaf Reservoir today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (05:58), sunset (18:21), the moon and today's score. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 1:47 AM-3:47 AM and 1:47 PM-3:47 PM; minor 8:17 AM-9:17 AM. Waning Gibbous, 91% lit.
Water and weather
Live readings from Bureau of Meteorology station 229607A (SUGARLOAF RES DAM).
Storage level, last 30 days
Bureau of Meteorology Water Data Online, station 229607A. Latest reading 2026-09-26 08:00.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp7 °C
High / Low21 °C / 7 °C
WindNNE 2 km/h, gusts 5 km/h
Pressure1029.7 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain74% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset05:58 / 18:21
MoonWaning Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~13 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Sugarloaf Reservoir
The best day on Sugarloaf Reservoir this week looks like Wednesday 30 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: Wednesday, 30 Sept — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.
Today, 29 Sept — Fair
A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
- Solunar majors
- 1:47 AM-3:47 AM and 1:47 PM-3:47 PM
- Minor period
- 8:17 AM-9:17 AM
- Sun
- 05:58 to 18:21
- Moon
- Waning Gibbous, 91% lit
- Sky and wind
- Overcast, 27 km/h
- Rain chance
- 0%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Sugarloaf Reservoir: seasons written for the southern year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
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. Slower. Work the deeper timber and the drop-offs with vibes and bait.
When to come: the Sugarloaf 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
Golden perch
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 Sugarloaf Reservoir today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataMon, Sep 28
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Golden perch led the card at good. High of 19 °C, wind to 8 km/h.
Sun, Sep 27
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Golden perch led the card at good. High of 16 °C, wind to 24 km/h.
Sat, Sep 26
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Golden perch led the card at fair. High of 13 °C, wind to 16 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
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Storage levels
Compare it with every other storage in the state on Victoria dam levels today.
About this water
Sugarloaf Reservoir is a lake in Victoria, Australia, covered from the Victoria reports and listed in all Australia waters.
Fishing Sugarloaf Reservoir: the full guide
The reservoir
Sugarloaf Reservoir is in the Christmas Hills, about an hour north-east of Melbourne, reached from Simpson Road off the Eltham–Yarra Glen Road. Melbourne Water completed the dam in 1981: a rockfill embankment with a concrete upstream face, 89 metres high, holding 96,253 megalitres over 440 hectares. It is an off-stream storage filled with water pumped from the Yarra River and Maroondah Reservoir, and from the Goulburn through the North–South Pipeline when that is running. The water is treated at the nearby Winneke plant.
What you can fish for
Parks Victoria suggests shoreline fishing for yellowbelly (golden perch), redfin and European carp. The Victorian Fisheries Authority’s angling guide adds that the reservoir was stocked with trout until 2000, when Melbourne Water withdrew permission to stock, and the VFA’s list of waters stocked in the past 15 years does not include Sugarloaf. The same guide warns that mercury levels in redfin here are above the statutory limit, which is worth weighing before you keep any for the table.
Where fishing is allowed
Melbourne Water allows limited shoreline fishing in designated areas, and Parks Victoria adds that it is permitted only during park hours. Parks Victoria’s access notes describe a gate at the northern end of the lookout’s grassed picnic area leading to the designated fishing area, then about 50 metres of gravel path to a sloping rock wall, where a long rod helps. The VFA guide notes that most of the banks where fishing is allowed are open, with no vegetation. Stay inside the designated areas.
Lures only
Only lures or artificial baits may be used. Parks Victoria rules out worms, maggots and bait fish brought from anywhere else, and the VFA guide adds that no natural bait or berley, bread and corn included, is allowed. Wading is not permitted and fish may not be cleaned in the reservoir. Soft plastics, small hardbodies and spinnerbaits worked along the rock wall suit yellowbelly and redfin, and a slower retrieve close to the bottom helps when the water is cold.
Licence and rules
Anglers here need a Victorian Recreational Fishing Licence unless exempt, and those under 18 or aged 70 and over are among the exempt. The 2026/2027 prices, from 1 July 2026, are A$10.00 for three days, A$24.70 for four weeks and A$40.80 for a year through Service Victoria. The VFA sets a 30 cm minimum and a daily bag of five for golden perch, which must stay whole or in carcass form until you are away from the water. Kayaks and canoes are not permitted, and craft launch only through the Sugarloaf Sailing and Boating Club, so this is a shore fishery.
Hours and the report
The park opens at 8.30 am every day and closes at 5 pm, or 7 pm in daylight saving time. Dogs are not permitted, bins are not provided, and no fires may be lit on Total Fire Ban days. Bureau of Meteorology station 229607A, Sugarloaf Res Dam, with Melbourne Water as supplier, feeds the level and 30-day chart; because the storage is filled by pumping, its level follows transfers as well as local rain. The water temperature shown is an estimate.
Common questions
Can you fish at Sugarloaf Reservoir?
Yes, from the shoreline in designated areas during park hours, with lures or artificial baits only and a Victorian fishing licence unless you are exempt.
Can I use bait at Sugarloaf Reservoir?
No. Worms, maggots, bait fish and other natural baits, bread and corn included, are not allowed, and neither is berley.
Can I fish Sugarloaf from a kayak?
No. Kayaks and canoes are not permitted on the reservoir, and Melbourne Water allows shoreline fishing only.
Is fishing good at Sugarloaf 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 229607A — SUGARLOAF RES DAM
- Open-Meteo forecast model
- https://open-meteo.com/
- Moon and solunar windows
- Calculated on this site
- Pages checked
- parks.vic.gov.au/places-to-see/parks/sugarloaf-reservoir-park
- parks.vic.gov.au/get-into-nature/all-abilities-access/park-accessibili
- melbournewater.com.au/water-and-environment/water-management/water-sto
- melbournewater.com.au/water-and-environment/water-management/water-qua
- vfa.vic.gov.au/recreational-fishing/fishing-locations/inland-angling-g
- vfa.vic.gov.au/recreational-fishing/fishing-licence
- vfa.vic.gov.au/recreational-fishing/recreational-fishing-guide/catch-l
- vfa.vic.gov.au/recreational-fishing/db/list-last-stocked-information
- bom.gov.au/waterdata
- 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.