How do I get to the Mackerel Islands?

Three ways, and none of them is a public ferry. Mackerel Islands Pty Ltd says its ferry from Onslow is not operating in 2026 and lists a 30-minute scenic flight from Exmouth that lands on Thevenard, or a hire boat across from Onslow; parts of its site still mention an island transfer service, so confirm the current arrangement with the operator. Self-drive private boats can launch at Beadon Creek and run out in settled conditions. Onslow is a 14-hour drive from Perth or a flight into Onslow airport.

Can I stay on the Mackerel Islands?

On Thevenard, yes. Thevenard Island has chalet-style beachfront cabins and club-village rooms operated by Mackerel Islands Pty Ltd with on-site meals and fishing-charter packages, open 28 March to December 2026. Direction Island's rustic beach shack is closed for the 2025 and 2026 seasons, so it is Thevenard or a day trip. There is no public ferry, and Thevenard has only a small general store and limited fuel hours — bookings and bring-everything planning are part of the trip.

What can I catch at the Mackerel Islands?

Spanish mackerel are the namesake and run thick from April through November. The reef holds spangled emperor, red emperor, coral trout and rankin cod, with GTs and queenfish on the wash and shoals. Sailfish and the occasional black marlin run wide in the warm months. Land-based fishing off the Thevenard rocks produces queenfish, trevally and the occasional mackerel at change of light.

Does the West Coast demersal closure apply at the Mackerel Islands?

No. The Mackerel Islands sit in the North Coast Bioregion — north of the Kalbarri boundary that triggers the West Coast demersal closure. North Coast rules apply: a 4-fish demersal mixed bag with tighter per-species caps, plus species-specific size and bag limits. Verify current DPIRD rules before each trip.

Bite Compass

Bite Forecast

Mackerel Islands (Thevenard Island / Direction Island)

Fri 09 Oct 2026 · Australia/Perth

Forecast updated 7:59am AWST

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📍 Mackerel Islands (Thevenard Island / Direction Island)

waning crescent · 5%

Weather: Unavailable Swell: 0.3 m @ 9 s W Water: 23.7 °C Faces several ways: wind direction isn't scored here

★★★☆☆

Medium Fish Activity

▸ Why this score?

At the day's peak · 5:30 am

Solunar Minor window

Time of day Dawn

Tide Moving

Moon waning crescent all day

Water temp 23.7 °C all day

Learn how the score works →

Activity Forecast

Day timeline

Major Minor Tide Twilight

First light 5:32 am Last light 6:43 pm

Low 3:10 am High 9:07 am Low 3:12 pm High 9:17 pm

Drag or use arrow keys to explore

Feeding Windows

Best times to fish based on activity score.

Peak

4:30 am → 6:30 am

Good

6:00 pm → 7:30 pm

1h 30m

Good

9:00 pm → 12:00 am

Good

10:00 am → 12:00 pm

First light

5:32 am

Last light

6:43 pm

Sunrise

5:54 am

Sunset

6:21 pm

Moonrise

4:45 am

Moonset

5:08 pm

Low tide

3:10 am

High tide

9:07 am

Low tide

3:12 pm

High tide

9:17 pm

Hourly Swell

Steady ~0.2 m W

12am

Calm

1am

Calm

2am

Calm

3am

Calm

4am

Calm

5am

Calm

6am

0.3 m

@ 6 s

←︎

Calm

chop

7am

0.3 m

@ 8 s

←︎

Calm

8am

0.3 m

@ 10 s

←︎

Calm

9am

0.3 m

@ 10 s

←︎

Calm

10am

0.3 m

@ 9 s

←︎

Calm

11am

0.3 m

@ 8 s

←︎

Calm

12pm

0.3 m

@ 9 s

←︎

Calm

1pm

0.2 m

@ 9 s

←︎

Calm

2pm

0.2 m

@ 9 s

←︎

Calm

3pm

0.2 m

@ 9 s

←︎

Calm

4pm

0.2 m

@ 10 s

←︎

Calm

5pm

0.2 m

@ 10 s

←︎

Calm

6pm

0.2 m

@ 10 s

←︎

Calm

ground

7pm

0.2 m

@ 10 s

←︎

Calm

ground

8pm

0.2 m

@ 11 s

←︎

Calm

ground

9pm

0.2 m

@ 10 s

←︎

Calm

ground

10pm

0.2 m

@ 10 s

←︎

Calm

11pm

0.2 m

@ 9 s

←︎

Calm

Water Temp (°C)

→ steady around 23.7°

Tue

6 Oct

24.0°

Wed

7 Oct

24.0°

Thu

8 Oct

23.9°

Fri

9 Oct

23.7°

Sat

10 Oct

23.5°

Sun

11 Oct

23.4°

Mon

12 Oct

23.4°

Tue

13 Oct

23.5°

Wed

14 Oct

23.6°

Thu

15 Oct

23.6°

Wind Map

Wind data (text)

Current wind summary unavailable — see the wind chart above the map.

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

4:30 am → 6:30 am

Good

6:00 pm → 7:30 pm

1h 30m

Good

9:00 pm → 12:00 am

Good

10:00 am → 12:00 pm

First light

5:32 am

Last light

6:43 pm

Sunrise

5:54 am

Sunset

6:21 pm

Moonrise

4:45 am

Moonset

5:08 pm

Low tide

3:10 am

High tide

9:07 am

Low tide

3:12 pm

High tide

9:17 pm

Nearby spots

Onslow (Town Beach / Beadon Creek / Mackerel Islands) 23.6 km

Species at this spot

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