Greenough River Mouth (Cape Burney)

The Greenough River meets the ocean at Cape Burney, twelve kilometres south of Geraldton, and the river mouth is one of the better land-based mulloway and tailor spots on the mid-west coast. The river itself is brackish in its lower reaches and holds bream year-round; the bar opens and closes with rainfall and storms, which dictates how the surf and the lower river fish from week to week. Greenough Beach south of the mouth runs unbroken for kilometres of gutters, and the Southgate Dunes section is where the mulloway anglers tend to set up after dark. It fills the gap between Geraldton and the Lancelin–Cervantes coast.

Surf for mulloway: whole mulies, tailor heads or live herring on a 6/0 hook on a running sinker, fished from the gutters either side of the bar after dark. Tailor: ganged-hook mulies or 30–60g metals worked through the surf in the autumn run, dawn and dusk. Lower river bream: light spin with small plastics or hardbodies tight to the snags and the deeper holes above the bar. Whiting and tarwhine: small baits on a paternoster off the beach on a rising tide. Pink snapper: from the rocks south of the mouth in the cooler months when the West Coast demersal rules permit.

Mulloway are the headline — soapies are common in the lower river and bigger fish from the surf at night. Tailor through autumn, black bream year-round in the river, herring, skippy, tarwhine, sand whiting from the beach, plus salmon in autumn and the occasional pink snapper from the south-side rocks.

The bar is not a fixed feature — after a winter storm it can blow open and the lower river runs clean to the sea, then close back over a dry summer. Mulloway anglers fish the change of light and the change of tide together; chasing one without the other halves your odds. Greenough Beach is patrolled lightly and the Southgate Dunes are 4WD country once you leave the formal car park.

Cape Burney is around 4.5 hours from Perth via the Brand Highway, mostly sealed with the final approach a sealed access road. There is a sealed car park at the river mouth on the Cape Burney side and informal beach access points along the dune track to the south. Geraldton is 20 minutes north for fuel, supermarkets, hospital and tackle. Caravan parks are at Cape Burney and in Geraldton. The Southgate Dunes south of the mouth require a 4WD; do not commit a 2WD to the soft sand.

Cape Burney faces west into the prevailing Indian Ocean swell and the afternoon south-west sea breeze runs hard most summer days. Easterly mornings are calmest. Surf shape changes with each storm cycle as the bar moves; visit on a fresh tide and read the gutters before committing to a spot. The lower river clears to a brackish blue between flushes and tannins up after rain. Water clarity at the mouth drops fast in any blow. Cyclone-driven swell from the north-west is occasional in late summer.

Greenough Beach is open Indian Ocean surf with strong rip currents through the gutters, especially around the bar where the river outflow concentrates the rip. Wading the bar is dangerous in any swell. The Southgate Dunes section is remote enough at night to warrant telling someone where you are fishing — mobile coverage is patchy beyond the car park. White sharks have been recorded along this coast, including off Geraldton, and the bait push that draws mulloway also draws sharks. Snakes are present in the dune scrub through summer.

The river outflow concentrates bait in the surf zone, the gutters either side of the bar are deep enough to hold fish through the tide, and the Southgate Dunes give anglers space to spread out at night. The combination of clean food supply, deeper near-shore water and limited foot traffic produces consistent mulloway from soapies up to genuine quality fish.

No. The bar opens after rainfall and winter storms and closes back over dry summers. The lower river holds bream regardless, but mulloway and tailor fishing at the mouth itself shifts with the bar — when it is closed the fish hold further out in the surf, and when it is open the bait push is more concentrated. Read the bar each visit.

Yes. Cape Burney is in the West Coast Bioregion, so pink snapper, dhufish and the broader demersal mixed bag are subject to the September 2027 closure window and the wider West Coast rules. Check current DPIRD dates before targeting demersals from the south-side rocks.

Yes. The lower river is wadable and bank-accessible from the Cape Burney side and produces bream year-round on light spin gear. A boat or kayak helps reach the upstream snags above the bar but is not required for a productive session at the mouth.