Bennetts Beach

Bennetts Beach is the long surf beach at Hawks Nest — MidCoast Council puts it at 14.3 km, running north from Yacaaba Headland to Dark Point — with the stretch north of the surf club toward the Myall Lakes National Park boundary the part most anglers fish. It is open ocean sand with a constant supply of pipis and beach worms underfoot, which is half the reason the fishing holds up year-round. The beach is best known for jewfish out of the deeper gutters, schooling tailor and salmon through the cooler months, and a genuine run of winter bream and tailor that locals plan their season around. Whiting work the shallows in the warmer half of the year, and the rocks of Yacaaba at the southern end add snapper and bigger jew to the mix for anyone prepared to scramble. It is a real surf-fishing beach rather than a postcard one — the structure moves with the swell, so reading the sand matters more than knowing a fixed mark.

Locals walk the beach at low tide and read the banks before they wet a line, looking for the dark blue-green gutters and the deeper holes between sandbars where fish hold. The standard approach is a long surf rod and a paternoster or running-sinker rig fished into a gutter on a rising tide into dusk. Beach worms and pipis gathered on the spot are the bread-and-butter baits for whiting, bream and dart, while strips of mullet, whole pilchards on ganged hooks or a live yellowtail feed the tailor, salmon and jew. The jewfish game is a night game — set up on a deep gutter close to dark, fish big fresh baits, and be patient through the tide change. For mobile anglers, a 4WD lets you cover ground and fish remote gutters well away from the patrolled flags, which is where a lot of the better fish come from.

Mulloway are the prize here and run best from spring through to early winter, fished after dark out of the deep gutters on big baits. Tailor and Australian salmon school through the cooler months and are the most reliable fish on the beach from autumn into spring, often feeding in the same wash at dawn and dusk. Winter is when bream and tailor genuinely fire — the late-autumn-through-winter window is the one the beach is known for. Sand whiting work the shallow gutters through the warmer half of the year and respond to fresh beach worms and pipis, with dart joining them over summer in the foamy water close in. Dusky flathead turn up in the gutters and around the southern corner on the warmer months, and the Yacaaba rocks add snapper to the jew and tailor for those fishing the headland.

Gather your own pipis and beach worms on the falling tide, but keep it legal — pipis may be taken for bait only and not beyond 50 m from the high-tide mark, 50 per person, and beach worms are capped at 20. Fish the gutters away from the flagged swimming area; the patrolled stretch near the surf club is busy with swimmers and boards through summer, and the better fishing is north toward the national park boundary anyway. This spot is inside the Port Stephens–Great Lakes Marine Park, and zones change what you may do, so check the marine park zoning map or the FishSmart NSW app before you fish. Mulloway are 70 cm minimum with a bag of one per person, plus a boat limit of two per boat per day when two or more people are aboard. Low light on a rising tide into the change is the window that does the damage, particularly for jew and tailor. If the beach is flat and featureless after a calm spell, walk until you find a defined gutter rather than fishing dead sand. Pack out everything including bait scraps and old line — this is a national-park-adjacent beach with nesting shorebirds, and the council is actively policing dune and beach use.

The main access is the free car park beside the Tea Gardens Hawks Nest Surf Life Saving Club off Beach Road, which has change rooms, toilets, outdoor showers, a picnic area and a playground next to the beach. Ask the lifesavers on duty about beach-access equipment during patrol season. 4WD access to the beach runs north from the surf club to the Myall Lakes National Park boundary, and a MidCoast Council beach vehicle permit, displayed on the windscreen, is required before you drop the tyre pressures. The far northern end inside Myall Lakes National Park is under a separate NSW National Parks vehicle permit, and Mungo Beach up there has been closed to 4WD since May 2026 because of beach erosion. The walk from the car park onto the sand is short and flat, making it genuinely kid-friendly for a beach session, and the playground and patrolled flags keep non-fishers occupied while someone soaks a bait.

The beach faces roughly east-southeast, so it takes the prevailing southerly swell across most of its length and the gutters reshape constantly with it. A moderate swell of around 1–1.5m carves good gutters and fishes well; once it pushes past 2–2.5m the beach gets dumpy, the gutters fill in with foam and it becomes hard to hold bottom and dangerous to wade. A westerly or light offshore wind cleans the water and is ideal; a strong onshore southeasterly blows it out and packs weed into the gutters. The southern end near Yacaaba gets some shelter from the headland on a big southerly, which is worth knowing when the open beach is unfishable. Tide changes around dawn and dusk are the prime windows, and the beach generally fishes better on a rising tide pushing into the gutters. The Marine Park User Guide lists this as a commercial haul-netting beach, so a net crew on the sand some mornings is part of the scenery.

This is an open surf beach with rip currents that shift with the swell — the deep gutters that hold fish are the same channels that feed rips, so do not wade deep to cast and watch the water behind you. The southern end near Yacaaba carries the most consistent surf. Heavy swell can dump on the steep sand and knock you over; if it is over 2–2.5m, fish the top of the beach or stay home. Anyone scrambling onto the Yacaaba Headland rocks at the southern end is into serious rock-fishing territory — swell washes the lower ledges without warning and the rock is slick, so cleated boots are essential and a lifejacket is strongly recommended on any swell-washed rock or wall here — adults AS 4758 level 50S or greater, under-12s level 100. Watch for bluebottles on an onshore wind, and mind 4WD traffic on the sand, especially around the access tracks and near pedestrians.

Yes. 4WD access runs north from the surf club to the Myall Lakes National Park boundary, and a MidCoast Council beach vehicle permit is required — check the council's current permit options before you drive on. Drop your tyre pressures, stick to the marked access tracks and stay off the dunes, as the council actively patrols vehicle use here. Mungo Beach, inside Myall Lakes National Park further north, has been closed to 4WD since May 2026 after beach erosion. You also need a NSW Recreational Fishing Fee to fish anywhere in NSW, including off this beach.

The beach produces mulloway (jewfish) from the deep gutters, tailor and Australian salmon through the cooler months, and a strong run of winter bream and tailor that the spot is known for. Sand whiting and dart work the shallow gutters in the warmer months on fresh beach worm and pipi, and dusky flathead turn up over summer. The Yacaaba Headland rocks at the southern end add snapper to the tailor and jew. Remember NSW bag and size limits — for example dusky flathead must be within a 36–70cm slot — and check current NSW DPIRD rules before you keep anything.

Low light on a rising tide into the change is the prime window — dawn and dusk do most of the damage. Late autumn through winter, roughly May to August, is the headline season for bream, tailor and salmon, while mulloway run best from spring into early winter on the night tides. A moderate swell around 1–1.5m that carves defined gutters fishes far better than a flat, featureless beach, so it is worth walking the sand at low tide to find the holes before you cast.

Wear one. Yacaaba is a serious rock-fishing platform where swell washes the lower ledges without warning and the rock stays slick long after a sea drops, so a lifejacket is strongly recommended on any swell-washed rock or wall here — adults AS 4758 level 50S or greater, under-12s level 100. Cleated boots, a mate on the rock and never turning your back on the sea belong with it.

Tackle and bait outlets in Hawks Nest and across at Tea Gardens cover the frozen and fresh staples. The best local bait, though, you collect yourself — the beach carries pipis at the shoreline and beach worms in the wet sand on a falling tide, and fresh worm or pipi will outfish anything frozen for whiting, bream and dart. Keep it within the rules: pipis are bait-only, must not be taken beyond 50 m from the high-tide mark and are limited to 50 per person, while beach worms are capped at 20.