Can you fish at Gunnamatta Bay Baths in Cronulla?

Yes. Sutherland Shire describes the netted tidal baths as free pools where you can swim, jump, float and fish, and the productive line is the water just outside the nets where fish gather against them. From the grassed foreshore of Gunnamatta Park you can cast toward the moored boats, the seagrass flats and the sand drop-offs for whiting, flathead, bream, tailor, luderick and squid. With swimmers inside the enclosure, just outside the nets is both the better fishing and the better manners. Like everywhere in NSW you need a NSW Recreational Fishing Fee to fish, even from the shore.

What fish can you catch at Gunnamatta Park?

Sand whiting (best October–April), dusky flathead (year-round), yellowfin bream (year-round, best in autumn-winter), plus tailor in the cooler months, with Australian salmon schooling further out around Salmon Haul and the bay mouth, luderick over fresh weed in autumn-winter, and southern calamari over the seagrass in autumn. Most are caught on fresh nippers, worms, strip baits, small soft plastics and surface lures.

What's the size limit for dusky flathead in NSW?

Dusky flathead have a slot limit in NSW: you can keep fish from 36 cm up to 70 cm, and anything over 70 cm must be released, because those are the big breeding females. The daily bag is 5 and the possession limit is 10. Gunnamatta Bay regularly produces flathead in and above the slot, so a measure and a wet-hands release for the big ones matters here. The other numbers worth knowing are yellowfin bream 25 cm on a bag of 10 shared with tarwhine, sand whiting 27 cm on a bag of 20, luderick 27 cm on a bag of 10 and tailor 30 cm on a bag of 10.

Is Gunnamatta Park good for fishing with kids?

It is one of the better family fishing spots in the Sutherland Shire. There is a car park, toilets, picnic shelters, shade and a playground right beside flat, grassed water with wave-free netted swimming areas. Kids can flick a bait off the grass for whiting and bream while the family picnics. Just note the baths are not patrolled by lifeguards, keep an eye on the unfenced water's edge, and watch for oyster cuts on the pylons.

Do you need a fishing licence at Gunnamatta Bay?

NSW does not issue a traditional licence, but you must pay the NSW Recreational Fishing Fee to fish anywhere in the state, salt or fresh, including from the Gunnamatta Park foreshore. It is $7 for three days, $14 for a month, $35 for a year or $85 for three years, bought online, by phone or from a fee agent, and the receipt must be carried while you fish. Limited exemptions apply, including for under-18s, Aboriginal people and pensioner concession card holders.

Bite Compass

Bite Forecast

Gunnamatta Bay Baths / Gunnamatta Park (Cronulla)

Sat 12 Sep 2026 · Australia/Sydney

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📍 Gunnamatta Bay Baths / Gunnamatta Park (Cronulla)

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Weather: Sunny Wind: NW 333° · 8 km/h Swell: 1.5 m @ 10 s S Water: 18.0 °C Pressure: 1028.2 hPa ↓ falling

★★★☆☆

Medium Fish Activity

▸ Why this score?

At the day's peak · 6:00 pm

Solunar Between windows

Time of day Dusk

Tide Moving

Wind NE 15 km/h

Moon new all day

Water temp 18.0 °C all day

Learn how the score works →

Activity Forecast

Day timeline

Major Minor Tide Twilight

First light 5:35 am Last light 6:09 pm

Low 2:07 am High 8:19 am Low 2:12 pm High 8:26 pm

Drag or use arrow keys to explore

Feeding Windows

Best times to fish based on activity score.

Peak

5:30 pm → 9:00 pm

3h 30m

Good

5:30 am → 7:00 am

1h 30m

Good

12:00 pm → 3:00 pm

First light

5:35 am

Last light

6:09 pm

Sunrise

5:59 am

Sunset

5:44 pm

Moonrise

6:18 am

Moonset

6:54 pm

Low tide

2:07 am

High tide

8:19 am

Low tide

2:12 pm

High tide

8:26 pm

Hourly Wind

High Bite Hours Highlighted

12am

☀️

13°

←︎

252°

2 km/h

1am

☀️

12°

←︎

265°

6 km/h

2am

☀️

11°

←︎

274°

8 km/h

3am

☀️

10°

←︎

273°

8 km/h

4am

☀️

10°

←︎

284°

7 km/h

5am

☁️

10°

←︎

287°

7 km/h

6am

☁️

9°

←︎

286°

8 km/h

7am

☀️

11°

←︎

291°

9 km/h

8am

☀️

13°

↖︎

295°

7 km/h

9am

☀️

16°

↖︎

305°

6 km/h

10am

☀️

19°

↖︎

325°

7 km/h

11am

☀️

20°

↑︎

352°

7 km/h

12pm

☀️

21°

↗︎

63°

5 km/h

1pm

☀️

20°

→︎

83°

13 km/h

2pm

☀️

20°

→︎

73°

15 km/h

3pm

☀️

20°

→︎

68°

15 km/h

4pm

☀️

19°

↗︎

62°

14 km/h

5pm

☀️

18°

↗︎

57°

14 km/h

6pm

☀️

18°

↗︎

47°

15 km/h

7pm

☀️

17°

↗︎

44°

13 km/h

8pm

☀️

17°

↗︎

36°

10 km/h

9pm

☀️

16°

↑︎

5°

8 km/h

10pm

☀️

16°

↖︎

333°

8 km/h

11pm

☀️

15°

↖︎

319°

9 km/h

Hourly Swell

Steady ~1.4 m S

12am

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

1am

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

2am

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

3am

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

4am

1.5 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

5am

1.5 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

6am

1.5 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

7am

1.5 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

8am

1.5 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

9am

1.5 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

10am

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

11am

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

12pm

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

1pm

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

2pm

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

3pm

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

4pm

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

5pm

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

6pm

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

7pm

1.6 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

8pm

1.5 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

9pm

1.5 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

10pm

1.5 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

11pm

1.4 m

@ 10 s

↓︎

Moderate

ground

Water Temp (°C)

→ steady around 17.9°

Wed

9 Sep

17.8°

Thu

10 Sep

17.7°

Fri

11 Sep

17.9°

Sat

12 Sep

17.9°

Sun

13 Sep

17.9°

Mon

14 Sep

18.0°

Tue

15 Sep

18.0°

Wed

16 Sep

17.8°

Thu

17 Sep

17.7°

Fri

18 Sep

17.8°

Wind Map

Wind data (text)

Now: 8 km/h NW (333°).

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

Feeding Windows

Best times to fish based on activity score.

Peak

5:30 pm → 9:00 pm

3h 30m

Good

5:30 am → 7:00 am

1h 30m

Good

12:00 pm → 3:00 pm

First light

5:35 am

Last light

6:09 pm

Sunrise

5:59 am

Sunset

5:44 pm

Moonrise

6:18 am

Moonset

6:54 pm

Low tide

2:07 am

High tide

8:19 am

Low tide

2:12 pm

High tide

8:26 pm

Nearby spots

Species at this spot

Sand Whiting
Dusky Flathead
Yellowfin Bream
Tailor
Luderick
Southern Calamari (Squid)