Fishing Moruya & Tuross Head
General fishing in Moruya & Tuross Head is highly dependent on tidal movements, sandbar configurations, and seasonal water temperature increases. During the summer and autumn months, warm estuary currents activate flathead and whiting feeding patterns over the shallow intertidal flats. Boaters must exercise extreme caution when navigating the Moruya River and Tuross Lake bar crossings, as shallow shoals can create highly hazardous breaking waves.
Land-based anglers are well catered to with excellent public wharves, expansive rock walls, and accessible lake foreshores. Casting metal slugs or unweighted baits from the Moruya River breakwall on a rising tide is a highly effective way to intercept pelagic salmon and tailor. Wading the shallow, clean sand flats of Tuross Lake on a warm afternoon offers spectacular sport for whiting on light surface lures.
Offshore and boat fishing operates out of key launching facilities, including the riverside ramps in Moruya and the protected estuary access at Mossy Point. Boaters can easily explore the deep channels, mangrove-fringed banks, and extensive oyster leases inside Tuross Lake. Ocean-going vessels can navigate the coastal bar to access productive nearshore snapper reefs or target pelagics along the continental shelf.
Top 10 Species
Landbased
- Moruya River Breakwall: The northern and southern breakwalls at the Moruya River mouth are exceptional platforms for intercepting salmon, tailor, and kingfish. Fishing the incoming tide as it pushes clean ocean water into the river is the ultimate trigger for pelagic activity. A sturdy rock spin outfit casting metal lures or unweighted pilchards into the current is highly effective.
- Coila Beach: Coila Beach offers fantastic surf fishing with deep, well-defined gutters that consistently hold large schools of whiting and bream. Dawn and dusk provide the ideal low-light conditions required to tempt these fish into the shallow shore break. A standard surf rod rigged with a paternoster and fresh beach worms will guarantee a highly productive session.
- Preddys Wharf: This historic and newly restored timber wharf is a brilliant, family-friendly location to catch bream, flathead, and tailor. The run-out tide is highly advantageous here, flushing baitfish directly past the pylons into the waiting mouths of predators. Light spinning gear utilizing lightly weighted peeled prawns or small soft plastics ensures constant rod-bending action.
- Tuross Lake Sand Flats: The shallow sand flats at the entrance to Tuross Lake are famous for producing massive whiting on surface lures. Wade fishing during the top of the tide on a calm, warm morning is the perfect scenario for this visual style of fishing. A finesse spin rod casting small surface poppers or walk-the-dog lures will provoke explosive topwater strikes.
- Potato Point: Potato Point is a prominent headland offering deepwater rock fishing and excellent access to adjacent surf gutters. A rising tide coupled with a moderate swell creates the perfect wash zone required to target drummer and luderick. Heavy rock gear and abrasion-resistant leader are necessary when casting cunjevoi or peeled prawns into this rugged terrain.
Offshore
- Tuross Canyon North: The offshore canyons located east of Tuross are prime hunting grounds for massive yellowfin tuna and marlin. The autumn and winter months bring cooler waters and massive bait schools, triggering frenzied feeding from the tuna. Heavy game outfits in the twenty-four to thirty-seven kilogram class trolling skirted lures or cubed pilchards are mandatory to land these giants.
- Moruya Offshore Reefs: The shallow reef systems sitting just outside the Moruya breakwalls are a highly reliable producer of quality snapper and morwong. Drifting over the broken ground at first light before the sun penetrates the water column is the key to success. A medium boat outfit rigged with a lightly weighted paternoster and fresh squid strips will easily entice the resident reef fish.
- Tuross Lake Oyster Leases: The extensive oyster leases inside Tuross Lake are absolute magnets for huge, aggressive yellowfin bream. Fishing the top of the tide allows boats to push right up against the racks to cast deep into the structure. Accurate casting with small hardbody lures or lightly weighted plastics on heavy fluorocarbon leader is required to extract them.
- Coila Lake: Coila Lake is a massive, shallow coastal lake renowned for its incredible summer prawn runs and giant flathead. Fishing the dark moon phases during the summer months is a local tradition for scooping prawns and casting for flathead. A light spin outfit casting shallow-running hardbodies or surface lures over the weed beds provides thrilling sport.
- Deua River: The upper reaches of the Moruya River, known as the Deua River, offer pristine freshwater fishing for Australian bass. The warmer months provide the best action, especially during the early morning or late afternoon when bass feed on the surface. Drifting in a kayak and casting surface crawlers or small spinnerbaits tight against the timber is highly addictive.
Hot Spots
- Broulee Island: A highly structured, rocky area offering excellent land-based fishing for squid and bream on light tackle.
- Binga: A dramatic rock headland providing excellent land-based spinning for tuna and kingfish during the summer.
- Tuross Boat Shed: The deep drop-offs out front of the shed consistently produce great catches of flathead on the run-out tide.
- Wairo Beach: A long, expansive surf beach with deep gutters perfect for targeting mulloway on a night tide.
- Moruya River Oyster Leases: Structured leases in the mid-river area that hold exceptional numbers of heavy bream.
Local Bait Tips
- Pink Nippers: Collect these premium baits by pumping nippers using a hand-operated suction pump on intertidal sand flats during a low tide. Keep them alive in shallow saltwater or on a damp sponge in a cool container to maintain their natural movement.
- Poddy Mullet: Gather these hardy baits by using a legal, clear plastic poddy mullet trap baited with bread crumbs in the shallow estuary margins. Ensure the trap is checked frequently and any undersized or excess fish are immediately returned to the water.
- Beach Worms: Locate these exceptional surf baits on local beaches by dragging a stinky fish frame through the receding waves to entice them to rise. Once the worm extends its head, use your thumb and forefinger with a small pinch of dry sand to extract it cleanly.
Boat Ramps
- Moruya Riverside Park Boat Ramp:
Moruya Riverside Park Boat Ramp: Situated on Ford Street off the Princes Highway in Riverside Park, Moruya, this concrete boat ramp is managed by Eurobodalla Shire Council and provides town-center access to the Moruya River. It has no staging pontoons, floating walkways, or boarding wharves. Boaters face strong estuarine tidal currents and extremely slippery ramp and bank conditions underfoot, particularly during low-tide cycles. While no facilities are directly on the ramp, toilets and cafes are nearby, and Rotary Park to the west features free public BBQs, picnic tables, and a public swimming pool. A popular country market is held immediately adjacent to the ramp in Riverside Park on Saturday mornings.
- Preddys Wharf Boat Ramp:
Preddys Wharf Boat Ramp: Positioned at Preddys Wharf on the Moruya River in Moruya Heads, this concrete facility is managed by Eurobodalla Shire Council and provides deep-water access to the estuary and ocean. The concrete ramp is undergoing a comprehensive upgrade in late 2026 to replace legacy timber infrastructure with a new 42-metre L-shaped floating walkway with fiberglass mesh decking, grab rails, a relocated gangway, a dedicated kayak launch platform, and a Marine Rescue mooring. Navigators must contend with powerful river-mouth currents and ocean bar hazards, while landside parking is strictly capped to protect adjacent ecologically sensitive seagrass beds (Posidonia australis) and saltmarshes.
- Mossy Point Boat Ramp:
Mossy Point Boat Ramp: Located on Annettes Parade, Mossy Point, this facility is managed by Eurobodalla Shire Council and provides direct launch access to the Tomaga River. It consists of a concrete boat ramp with a small sandy launch zone but has no staging pontoons, floating walkways, or boarding jetties. The ramp launches directly into powerful tidal currents and shallow river-mouth navigation channels. Because of these hazardous river-mouth conditions, novices are officially advised to use the calmer Tomakin boat ramp at Kingston Place instead.
Bait and Tackle
- Tackle World Moruya: 1/68 Queen St, Moruya NSW 2537 | Phone: (02) 4474 4381
- Ampol Moruya (After-Hours): 95a Campbell St, Moruya NSW 2537 | Phone: (02) 4474 2811
- Club Tuross (After-Hours): 40 Monash Ave, Tuross Head NSW 2537 | Phone: (02) 4473 8186
Basecamp & Accom
- Tuross Beach Holiday Park: Monash Ave, Tuross Head NSW 2537 | Phone: (02) 4473 8236
- Lakeside Tourist Park: 1 Monash Ave, Tuross Head NSW 2537 | Phone: (02) 4473 8181
- BIG4 Moruya Heads Easts Dolphin Beach Holiday Park: South Head Rd, Moruya Heads NSW 2537 | Phone: (02) 4474 2748
Emergency & Safety
- Emergency: 000 | Marine Rescue Tuross/Moruya: Preddys Wharf, Moruya NSW 2537 | Phone: (02) 4474 3535
