One of the best things about living on the Gold Coast is that you’re never too far from a good fishing spot. Whether you’re taking the kids out to catch their first fish, or you’re a regular weekender, there’s always more great Gold Coast fishing spots to discover. Here are some of the best.
Gold Coast fishing spots in the city
The beauty of living on the Gold Coast is that you don’t need to leave the city to throw in a line, making it an ideal spot for quick post-work trips. Below we list a few of the best Gold Coast fishing spots you can find in the city—just remember to always follow the QLD fishing regulations.
Gold Coast Seaway
Situated between South Stradbroke Island and the Southport Spit, the Gold Coast Seaway is a channel that connects the Nerang River to the Pacific Ocean. It’s a great spot to throw in a line due to its ease of access and wide variety of fish, and is arguably one of the most popular Gold Coast fishing spots. You can usually find yellowtail, kingfish, whitehead and flathead all year round, and there are mangrove jacks and bream aplenty.
If you like fishing from the shore, you can find great spots anywhere along the Spit, South Stradbroke Island and Wave Break Island. You can also fish off the sand pumping jetty, which is a great spot for flathead. While you can fish off the rocks lining the shore on either side of the Seaway, the water moves fast and the tides require careful study. If getting out on the boat is more your thing, you can find more tips and tricks, including the best locations, here.
Southport Pier
Image from Panadia
Located in the Broadwater Parklands, the Southport Pier—AKA the Broadwater Jetty—is a popular spot with locals thanks to its ease of access and wide array of marine species. As well as being home to numerous types of fish, it’s a great spot to hook a ray, and is known to be a good spot to catch squid at night.
Gold Coast Canals
With more than 400 kilometres of canals to explore, you don’t have to venture far from the Gold Coast to find a great fishing spot. They’re particularly good around springtime when bait gathers, attracting a range of fish species from bream and estuary cod, right through to trevally and flathead. You can fish off the canal walls, or enjoy cruising on the water and fishing from a kayak or tinny. While most places in the canal system offer good fishing, we recommend starting with Broadbeach Canal Reserve, Runaway Bay, Platter Park, Mermaid Waters and Sickle Park, and exploring from there.
Gold Coast fishing spots just outside the city
If getting away from the inner-city is more your style, the following Gold Coast fishing spots are well worth the (very short) drive.
Jacobs Well and Jumpinpin
By Shiftchange – Own work, CC0
Located at the very south end of Moreton Bay near the mouth of the Pimpama River, Jacobs Well is a small fishing town that serves as the gateway to some of the best estuary fishing the Gold Coast has to offer. Flathead, whiting and bream are in abundance and bait fishing is the common style. Anglers typically use worms and yabbies for whiting and bream, and pilchards and whitebait for tailor and flathead.
If you’re keen to stay close to town, the jetty makes an excellent first stop. You might even catch a prawn here if they’re running! For the more adventurous fishers keen to explore the pristine waterways the area has to offer, Tipplers Passage and Golden Bank are two other great spots to try on your way to Jumpinpin, which really is the star of the show up this way.
Situated between North Stradbroke Island and South Stradbroke Island, Jumpinpin is a deep, fast moving channel of water that can be dangerous to inexperienced fishers. Flathead are known to congregate for spawning, you can find mulloway in the deeper sections and if you’re lucky, you might even find a treasured mini black marlin. Yabbies and crabs are plentiful as well. Experienced fishers can also use Jumpinpin as a gateway to get offshore and take advantage of the abundant waters loaded with snapper and pearl perch.
Nerang River
Nerang River Parklands. Image from Orienteering Queensland
Flowing right through the centre of the Gold Coast, the Nerang River makes for some excellent freshwater fishing. Although you can fish all along the river, we recommend heading out to the Nerang fishing platform, under the M1 motorway in the Nerang River Parklands. It’s a great spot because it’s right near Weedon’s Crossing which is a major inflow point for the river, meaning there’s lots of food available for the fish. Species you’re likely to reel in include bream, flathead, whiting, mangrove jack, shark, trevally and mud crabs. Parking is available in Arthur Earle Park.
Tallebudgera Creek
Tallebudgera Creek—or ‘Tally Creek’ as the locals call it—meets the ocean right near Burleigh Head National Park. The river mouth is a great spot to catch a flathead or two from the tinny, and the water beneath the bridge is particularly deep, making it a prime spot to catch large fish. Alternatively, you can head inland to seek out the full range of what Tallebudgera Creek has to offer. From bream, whiting, and luderick to the prized mangrove jack, Tally has it all. If you prefer to cast off from the shore, Tallebudgera Creek is a great option—the majority of the creek is accessible and there is plenty of parking, particularly upstream.
Snapper Rocks
This iconic surf break at the very southern tip of Coolangatta makes for a great day out for the whole family. You can fish from Snapper Rocks themselves to seek out pelagic fish such as tuna, bonito and tailor, or wander up and down the beaches that stretch either side of the point. Just be careful of the swell.
Heading just north of Snapper Rocks will place you at the Kirra Reef, which is one of the best Gold Coast fishing spots for beach fishing thanks to the large volumes of bait fish it holds all year round. There’s a gutter quite close to shore that makes an excellent spot. Alternatively, head just south of Snapper Rocks for more excellent beach fishing, or to reach the rock walls that guide the Tweed River into the ocean.
Pine Lake, Elanora and Currumbin Creek
Image from dzh621 on Reddit
Situated in the heart of the suburb of Elanora, Pine Lake is a relaxing spot for a quick fish that’s fed from the Currumbin Creek. Species that are commonly caught here include mullet and herring, mangrove jack, trevally, bream, flathead, whiting, jew fish, queenfish and crabs. Park at the shopping centre and meander around the foreshore until you find a spot that takes your fancy.
If you’d also like to check out Currumbin Creek, it’s just south of Tallebudgera Creek. Currumbin Creek has several bridges you can fish off, and a few sandy spots along the river that make good access points. There are also two dedicated fishing platforms with shade covers and seats, located along the boardwalk that winds through the mangrove flats near Palm Beach-Currumbin High. The Currumbin Creek generally holds whiting and flathead, squid during the cooler months, and the occasional flounder or sand crab.
References
- GCfishing.com, 2004, Gold Coast fishing locations
- City of Gold Coast, 2022, Boating, fishing & jet skiing
- Destination Gold Coast, 2022, Top 5 fishing spots on the Gold Coast