Duke of Orleans Bay / Wharton Beach (Condingup)

The Duke — as the Esperance and Kalgoorlie regulars call it — sits on a peninsula between Cape Le Grand and Cape Arid national parks, about 85km east of Esperance via Condingup. Wharton Beach on the western side is the marquee water: white sand and turquoise clarity that get it onto best-beaches lists, with salmon, herring and whiting for the anglers who look past the view. On the bay side, a narrow strip of sand runs out to a small island where most of the serious land-based fishing happens — herring, skippy, snook, garfish and squid off the rock, with groper prowling the headlands. It's a family-holiday fishery with a caravan park at its back and good water in every direction.

The clear water is the tool — walk the Wharton sand and sight the salmon schools before you commit a cast, then meet them with metals or ganged mulies. For the bread-and-butter fishing, walk the sand isthmus out to the island and fish light off the rock: small hooks, minimal lead, and a steady trail of pollard berley to hold the herring and skippy — let the sinker run a touch heavier for the skippy feeding deeper. Whiting want a light rig worked over the sand in the bay's sheltered corners, flathead sit on the drop-offs, and squid jigs earn their keep over the weed and white sand on calm days. Fresh squid or mulies soaked in a Wharton gutter cover the heavier chances.

Australian salmon are the headliner and hang around this coast most of the year, not just autumn. Herring and skippy are the reliable core off the island rocks, King George and sand whiting work the seagrass edges and sand, and snook, garfish and southern calamari round out the bay. Flathead hold the drop-offs, gummy sharks turn up after dark off the beach, and western blue groper patrol the headland rocks — legal take in WA at a 500mm minimum and a bag of one, though many anglers let the big blue residents be. A stray mulloway off Wharton is possible rather than probable.

Pick your corner to the wind — the peninsula and islands mean there's nearly always a fishable lee somewhere between Wharton and the bay. Watch the tide before walking the strip to the island; it can wash over on a high tide with swell, and the island is a poor place to discover that. Wharton's beach driving is soft-sand 4WD work — drop pressures and stick to the harder sand low on the tide. Sort bait, fuel and supplies in Esperance on the way through; Condingup is small and the Duke sells scenery, not sinkers.

The run from Esperance is about 85km east via Fisheries Road and Condingup — call it just over an hour by car. Both Wharton Beach and the Duke of Orleans Bay foreshore are reachable by 2WD to the car parks, with a picnic area at the bay; driving on Wharton's sand itself is 4WD-only. The Duke of Orleans Bay Caravan Park at the townsite is the accommodation base and the reason the place fills with Goldfields families every holidays. Small boats launch off the beach with a 4WD. Phone signal is patchy this far out — tell someone your plans if you're fishing the rocks.

This is Southern Ocean water with a sheltered heart — the open Wharton side takes the swell while the bay corners and island lee stay workable in most winds. The famous clarity means you can spot schools, weed lines and sand holes from the beach, and it also means the fish can see you: lighter leaders pay in the calm. Summer brings the whiting, squid and family weather; winter brings swell, groper water and the beach mostly to yourself. After a blow, give the weed a day or two to clear from the bay corners.

The sand strip to the island can wash over on a high tide or rising swell — check the tide before you walk out and don't linger into a building sea. The headland and island rock is exposed Southern Ocean platform fishing: watch the water before stepping down, wear a life jacket, and never turn your back on the swell. This coast has a documented white shark presence, so keep bleeding fish and berley out of the water where people swim. Wharton's soft sand bogs 4WDs regularly, recovery is a long way off, and phone coverage is unreliable — carry gear and water accordingly.

Australian salmon most of the year off Wharton Beach, with herring, skippy, snook, garfish and squid off the island rocks in the bay, King George and sand whiting over the sand and seagrass, and flathead on the drop-offs. Gummy sharks show after dark and western blue groper hold the headland rocks.

Not to get there — the car parks at both Wharton Beach and the Duke of Orleans Bay foreshore are reachable in a 2WD, and you can walk onto the sand from there. You only need a 4WD to drive on the beach itself, and that's soft-sand work all the way: drop tyre pressures and follow the harder sand low on the tide.

Salmon hang around the Esperance coast most of the year, unlike the short autumn run further west. The weeks around Easter are the classic peak, with a second productive window through September and October. Clear water helps — walk the beach and look for the dark schools before casting.

The locals' spot is the small island at the end of the narrow sand strip on the bay side — most of the land-based fishing is done from its rock, for herring, skippy, snook, garfish and squid. Wharton Beach handles the salmon and surf side, and the sheltered bay corners cover whiting and calm-day sessions. Watch the tide on the strip so you don't get cut off.

About 85km east — just over an hour's drive via Fisheries Road and Condingup. The Duke of Orleans Bay Caravan Park at Wharton townsite is the base for staying out there; otherwise it's a comfortable day trip from Esperance. Stock up on bait, fuel and supplies in town before heading out.