D'Entrecasteaux Channel

Getting there; South of Hobart.

Major angling species; Flathead, cod, morwong (perch) Australian salmon, Atlantic salmon, trout, barracouta, bream, mullet, squid, pike.

Special restrictions; Recreational fishing only.

Other attractions; The D'Entrecasteaux Channel is a large area and has many attractions. It is a popular area for boats, yachting, bushwalking, vineyards and historic monuments plus there is the Woodbridge Marine Centre, Hastings Caves, thermal pools and some beautiful picnic areas.

The D'Entrecasteaux Channel consists of an area between Bruny Island and Tasmania's mainland. The main channel itself is a haven for a range of bottom dwelling fish, such as flathead, perch, cod, and the occasional gummy shark. As a "recreational only"fishery it receive little fishing pressure and reliable catches can almost be assured all year round.
A number of pelagics visit the Channel during the year. These include Australian salmon, barracouta, mackerel, warehou and squid.

Atlantic Salmon - Sea cage cultivation of Atlantic salmon occurs along the south-east coast and escapees are often taken by recreational anglers. Break-outs are common, being the result of damage by seals, storms and human error. The fish commonly weigh 3-4 kg. Atlantic Salmon are superb eating and fight well.

The hot spots are in the open water adjacent to the sea pens in the D'Entrecasteaux Channel and in sheltered areas such as Port Esperance (where there is scope for fishing from the bank). The best results come in the first fortnight or so after a major escape. Often the fish can be seen breaking the water and sometimes they can be polaroided.

Some Professional guides run charters in this area chasing Atlantic salmon.

Access to the Channel is good with many areas accessible from the shore. Plenty of small boat ramps are scattered along its length.

D'Entrecasteaux Hot Spots

Dover-Port Esperance
Port Esperance is probably the best location in the Channel - primarily due to its diversity. The angler can either go out in the bay or fish around the islands for fast action on flathead, salmon and barracouta. The real feature of the area is the Esperance River though which contains Atlantic salmon, sea-run trout and bream.

Atlantic Salmon congregate in schools when they escape from the farms. Further up-river bream and sea-run trout reign supreme. The whitebait run can get the sea-runners quite excited and they can be seen in the shallows charging at schools of whitebait.

The two best places are the Dover jetty and in front of the Esperance Camp on the river.

Southport
The large jetty at Southport provides a good structure to catch barracouta, squid, flathead, mackerel and leatherjacket. The surrounding rock platforms contain reliable numbers of food sized wrasse.

A popular area is the Lune River. The Lune is similar in many ways to the Esperance River although the Lune produces many more large trout - sometimes up to 7 kg. The Lune is also home to flathead, small Australian salmon and a good population of very hard to catch bream.

Gordon, Woodbridge and Kettering
All these areas are similar and offer huge scope - especially for the land based angler - due to their good structure. Gordon has good squid runs when they enter the Channel and it also supports a good population of the common species.

Woodbridge jetty is similar again and is worth a visit just to see the Woodbridge Marine Centre. Kettering is the location from where the Bruny Island ferry departs and although it is a busy bay it still fishes well.