How to Catch Squid from Perth Jetties

Squid fishing off Perth jetties is one of the most accessible fisheries we’ve got. No boat, not much gear, and when conditions line up you can walk away with a feed in an hour. The trick is knowing when to go, what jig to throw, and how to work it — because southern calamari are pickier than most people give them credit for.

When to Go

Dusk and dawn are the two windows that matter. Squid hunt in low light, moving up into the shallows to pick off baitfish as visibility drops. An hour either side of sunset is usually gold, and the first grey light of morning can be even better if you can drag yourself out of bed. Night sessions under jetty lights also work — the lights pull in baitfish and the squid follow.

Conditions matter nearly as much as timing. You want clear water, light-to-moderate swell, and not too much wind chop. If it’s been blown out for days and the water’s milky, hold off — squid rely on sight, and they won’t commit to a jig they can’t see properly. A run of settled arvos after a southerly blow is often when the bite fires up. Ignore the tackle shop bloke who tells you they were going off yesterday — he says that every day of the week, including the days he was shut.

Where Around Perth

Perth has more squid jetties than most cities have fish and chip shops. Start with the classics. Woodman Point Jetty and the nearby Ammunition Jetty are both well known for calamari, with shallow weedy bottom and seagrass edges that squid love to ambush from. Hillarys Boat Harbour is easy-access and good for a quick arvo session, especially under lights.

South of the river, Palm Beach Jetty and Rockingham Jetty both fish well when the wind’s coming off the land and Cockburn Sound is glassed off. North Mole picks up squid too, particularly on the inside of the wall where the water settles. Further south, Mandurah Jetty is a go-to for anyone down that way. The dark streaks along the boards at Hillarys that nobody ever hoses off are a rough map of where the bite has been good.

Jig Selection

Jig size and colour are where most people get it wrong. For jetty work, size 2.5 and 3.0 are the bread and butter. Go up to 3.5 if you’ve got a bit of current, more depth, or you’re trying to get past smaller pickers to a bigger calamari sitting deeper. Drop to 1.8 or 2.0 if the squid are fussy and short-striking.

Colour comes down to water clarity. Clear water, bright day: natural tones — browns, pinks, tans, anything that looks like a prawn or a small baitfish. Dirty or low-light water: bright, loud, or glow — orange, chartreuse, pink with UV, glow-in-the-dark bellies. Carry half a dozen jigs minimum and be willing to change. If you’ve worked a spot for fifteen minutes with no interest, swap colours before you swap locations. Most Perth squid anglers end up collecting 3.0s in every colour available like Pokémon cards, and still reach for the same scuffed pink one every trip.

Technique

Cast out, let the jig sink, and count it down. Shallow weedy ground might only need a five-count; deeper water off a jetty head might want fifteen or twenty. You’re trying to work the jig just above the weed, not through it.

The retrieve is a whip-pause. Two or three sharp upward flicks of the rod tip to dart the jig like a panicked prawn, then drop the tip and let it flutter back down on a semi-slack line. That pause is when ninety percent of hook-ups happen. Watch your line and feel the weight — squid don’t hit like a fish. You’ll feel the jig suddenly get heavy, or the line will go sideways, or a tap that feels like weed. Set on any weight change. If you wait for a proper bite, you’ve already missed it.

Rigging and Rigs Worth Knowing

Keep it simple. A 2500-size reel, a light graphite rod with a soft tip, 10-15 lb braid and a rod length of 10-15 lb fluorocarbon leader will cover most jetty work. Tie the jig direct with a loop knot so it swims naturally.

Two rigs worth having in the kit:

Pole jig / float rig: a float above a jig suspends it at a set depth — deadly when squid are sitting in the middle of the water column and won’t chase.
Drop-shot bait jig: a whole pilchard or mullet wired onto a spiked bait jig, cast out and left on the bottom under a float or on a slow drag. Slower, but a good option when artificials aren’t getting attention.

Run a single jig at a time while you’re learning — tandem rigs tangle more than they’re worth off a crowded jetty.

Landing, Handling, and Common Mistakes

The biggest mistake is lifting a squid straight up the jetty. They’ll either drop off or ink you on the way up. Lead them to the corner of the jetty, keep steady pressure, and either walk them down to a lower platform or use a drop net if it’s high. Everyone insists they don’t need a net until the afternoon they watch a three-kilo bag bounce off the rocks. Point them away from you and your mates when they clear the water — that ink goes everywhere and it does not come out of a good fishing shirt. A black streak across a white polo is the real badge of a Perth jetty angler; dark clothing on squid sessions is just common sense.

Other classic errors: retrieving too fast, setting too hard and pulling the jig out, fishing midday glass-off in crystal water, and standing directly over the jig rather than casting out and working it back. Spike them humanely between the eyes once landed — it kills them instantly, stops the ink, and the flesh stays better. For bag and size limits, check DPIRD before you keep anything.

Squid reward anglers who pay attention. Pick your window, match the jig to the water, and work it like it’s hurt. Before you head out, check wind, swell, and sunset times for your jetty on BiteCompass — ten seconds of planning saves a wasted drive. Then go throw a few casts. Once you get the feel of that weight-change bite, you won’t fish for anything else at dusk.