Can I drive to the Abrolhos Islands?

No. The Abrolhos are 60 to 80 kilometres offshore from Geraldton with no road, no bridge and no public ferry. Access is by chartered vessel, private boat or fly-in fly-out scenic flight. Most fishing visitors take a 3 to 6 day live-aboard charter out of Geraldton.

Does the West Coast demersal closure apply at the Abrolhos?

Yes for private boats — the Abrolhos sit at the northern edge of the West Coast Bioregion and the boat-based demersal closure applies, continuously, until spring 2027. Licensed charter boats outside the Perth metro zone are exempt, so a charter holding West Coast demersal quota tags can still land demersals for clients, though DPIRD's guide also says baldchin groper cannot be taken or landed at the Abrolhos while the closure runs. Abrolhos-specific limits are tighter than the rest of the coast — for charter clients now, and for everyone once the closure lifts: a mixed demersal daily bag of 1, against 2 for the rest of the West Coast. Baldchin groper are separately closed 1 October to 31 December inside the Abrolhos Islands Fish Habitat Protection Area, and that closure catches land-based and charter fishers too. Confirm the current rules with DPIRD and your charter skipper before each trip.

What is the best time of year to fish the Abrolhos?

April to July is the traditional window — settled weather, warm Leeuwin water still pushing south, and reliable charter availability. Summer is also fishable for pelagics like Spanish mackerel and tuna but the trade winds are harder. On a private boat, do not plan an April-to-July trip around a demersal feed: the boat-based demersal closure is continuous until spring 2027, not a seasonal window, so those months sit squarely inside it. Licensed charters are exempt, and an operator holding West Coast demersal quota tags can still land demersals for clients, so ask whether the boat carries tags before booking a demersal trip.

Are there sanctuary zones inside the Abrolhos?

Yes. Multiple sanctuary and special-purpose zones overlay the three island groups under the Houtman Abrolhos Islands National Park and the Fish Habitat Protection Area. Charter skippers know them; private boats need a current DBCA visitor map and a plotter with the zones loaded. Penalties for fishing in sanctuary are significant.

Bite Compass

Bite Forecast

Houtman Abrolhos Islands (Wallabi / Easter / Pelsaert Groups)

Tue 13 Oct 2026 · Australia/Perth

Forecast updated 8:03pm AWST

Save

Change Spot

←

13 Oct

Today

tap to pick date

→

Today Tomorrow Sat 17 Oct

📍 Houtman Abrolhos Islands (Wallabi / Easter / Pelsaert Groups)

new · 4%

Weather: Sunny Wind: S 185° · 22 km/h Swell: 2.0 m @ 10 s SW Water: 20.3 °C Pressure: 1016.5 hPa → steady Faces several ways: wind direction isn't scored here

★★★☆☆

Medium Fish Activity

▸ Why this score?

At the day's peak · 6:00 am

Solunar Between windows

Time of day Dawn

Tide Turning

Wind SE 26 km/h

Moon new all day

Water temp 20.3 °C all day

Learn how the score works →

Activity Forecast

Now

Day Timeline

Major Minor Tide Twilight

First light 5:26 am Last light 6:56 pm

Low 6:30 am High 9:54 pm

Drag or use arrow keys to explore

Feeding Windows

Best times to fish based on activity score.

Peak

5:00 am → 8:00 am

Good

6:00 pm → 8:00 pm

Good

1:30 pm → 3:30 pm

Good

1:30 am → 3:00 am

1h 30m

First light

5:26 am

Last light

6:56 pm

Sunrise

5:50 am

Sunset

6:32 pm

Moonrise

7:00 am

Moonset

9:11 pm

Low tide

6:30 am

High tide

9:54 pm

Hourly Wind

High Bite Hours Highlighted

12am

☀️

20°

↓︎

167°

38 km/h

1am

☀️

20°

↓︎

163°

37 km/h

2am

☀️

20°

↓︎

158°

33 km/h

3am

☀️

20°

↘︎

155°

29 km/h

4am

☀️

20°

↘︎

150°

28 km/h

5am

☀️

20°

↘︎

136°

27 km/h

6am

☀️

20°

↘︎

126°

26 km/h

7am

☀️

20°

↘︎

120°

25 km/h

8am

☀️

20°

→︎

110°

24 km/h

9am

☀️

20°

→︎

100°

24 km/h

10am

☀️

20°

→︎

108°

18 km/h

11am

☀️

21°

↘︎

128°

13 km/h

12pm

☀️

21°

↓︎

159°

11 km/h

1pm

☀️

21°

↓︎

191°

13 km/h

2pm

☀️

21°

↓︎

194°

15 km/h

3pm

☀️

21°

↓︎

193°

16 km/h

4pm

☀️

22°

↙︎

203°

19 km/h

5pm

☀️

22°

↓︎

199°

21 km/h

6pm

☀️

22°

↓︎

197°

23 km/h

7pm

☀️

22°

↓︎

202°

22 km/h

Now

☀️

22°

↓︎

185°

22 km/h

9pm

☁️

22°

↓︎

170°

23 km/h

10pm

☁️

22°

↓︎

167°

21 km/h

11pm

☀️

22°

↓︎

168°

19 km/h

Hourly Swell

Steady ~2.0 m SW

12am

2.3 m

@ 11 s

↙︎

Solid

ground

1am

2.2 m

@ 11 s

↙︎

Solid

ground

2am

2.1 m

@ 11 s

↙︎

Solid

ground

3am

2.2 m

@ 11 s

↙︎

Solid

ground

4am

2.3 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

ground

5am

2.4 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

ground

6am

2.4 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

7am

2.4 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

8am

2.4 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

9am

2.4 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

10am

2.3 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

11am

2.3 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

12pm

2.3 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

1pm

2.3 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

2pm

2.2 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

3pm

2.2 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

4pm

2.1 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

5pm

2.1 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

6pm

2.1 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

7pm

2.1 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

Now

2.0 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

9pm

2.0 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Solid

10pm

2.0 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Moderate

11pm

2.0 m

@ 10 s

↙︎

Moderate

Water Temp (°C)

↘ cooling — down 0.5° over the last 3 days

Sat

10 Oct

20.8°

Sun

11 Oct

20.7°

Mon

12 Oct

20.2°

Tue

13 Oct

20.3°

Wed

14 Oct

20.7°

Thu

15 Oct

21.0°

Fri

16 Oct

21.1°

Sat

17 Oct

21.2°

Sun

18 Oct

21.3°

Mon

19 Oct

21.3°

Wind Map

Wind data (text)

Now: 22 km/h S (185°).

Wind map data: ECMWF HRES (operational), updated every 6 hours. Not for navigation.

Open in the full fishing map →

Feeding Windows

Best times to fish based on activity score.

Peak

5:00 am → 8:00 am

Good

6:00 pm → 8:00 pm

Good

1:30 pm → 3:30 pm

Good

1:30 am → 3:00 am

1h 30m

First light

5:26 am

Last light

6:56 pm

Sunrise

5:50 am

Sunset

6:32 pm

Moonrise

7:00 am

Moonset

9:11 pm

Low tide

6:30 am

High tide

9:54 pm

Species at This Spot

Keep Tabs on Houtman Abrolhos Islands (Wallabi / Easter / Pelsaert Groups)

Get an email when the bite score here hits High, and stop refreshing this page. Free account, takes a minute.

Alert Me When It's High Save This Spot

Weekly Bite Forecast

Houtman Abrolhos Islands (Wallabi / Easter / Pelsaert Groups) + nearby Perth spots. Thursday 6pm — top windows, conditions, what's biting.

Free. Unsubscribe any time.