Hornby Lighthouse / South Head

South Head is the southern jaw of the harbour mouth, and the rock platforms below Hornby Lighthouse drop straight into deep, current-swept water with almost no shelf. Kingfish, salmon, tailor and bonito all run this line because the tide funnels bait through the heads twice a day, and the predators ride that conveyor belt in and out of Port Jackson. It's one of the few genuinely land-based deep-water spots in Sydney where a pelagic on a livebait is a realistic target rather than a fluke. The lighthouse, the colonial gun emplacements and the open ocean view are a bonus — the fishing stands on its own.

Most pelagic anglers fish a live yakka or slimy mackerel under a balloon or float, hooked towards the tail and set at varying depths to find the kingfish as they pass. Spin-fishers work metals and stickbaits across the wash for salmon, tailor and bonito, especially on the run-in when bait stacks against the ledges. A berley trail of cubed pilchard or chook pellets pulls trevally and bream into range on the bottom, fished with lighter gear off the same platforms. Early morning and the last hour before dark on a rising tide are the windows locals build a session around.

Yellowtail kingfish are the headline act from late spring through autumn, with bonito mixed in through the warmer months on metals and small live baits. Australian salmon and tailor school through in autumn and respond to spun metals in the wash. Silver trevally and yellowfin bream feed year-round under a berley trail and are the reliable bread-and-butter when the pelagics go quiet. Luderick come on in autumn for the float-and-weed crowd, and dusky flathead turn up over the sand patches in the warmer months — the slot runs 36 to 70cm with a bag of 5, so anything over 70cm is a breeder and goes back.

The good ledges are limited and the spot draws a crowd on a calm summer dawn, so arrive early and give established anglers room rather than crowding a productive corner. Source live yakkas and slimies first from a harbour wharf — the Clifton Gardens Reserve wharf off Morella Road or Camp Cove are the usual stops — because there is no reliable bait-jigging from the deep platforms themselves, and the harbour-wide Intertidal Protected Area rules out gathering bait off the rocks in any case. Eastern blue groper hang around this rocky ground, and the species is no-take everywhere in NSW with line fishing for it prohibited until 1 March 2028, so any that grabs a bait goes straight back and none should be targeted. These are the harbour-mouth platforms, sitting right on the edge of the east-of-the-bridge advisory area, where the advice is to eat no more than about 150 grams of harbour-caught fish a month. A landing net or gaff on a long handle earns its keep here, because lifting a decent fish up a vertical face by line alone is how leaders and fish get lost.

Park at Camp Cove in Watsons Bay — Cliff Street and the marked Pacific Street spaces are the closest, and they fill fast on warm mornings and weekends. From the car park it's roughly a 500m walk along the South Head heritage trail past the old gun emplacements to the lighthouse precinct, then a scramble down onto the rock platforms. Public toilets are at Camp Cove and at Green Point Reserve near the car park, but there are none at the lighthouse end. The trail itself is an easy harbour-headland stroll suitable for kids and a stop at the beach, but the final climb onto the fishing ledges is steep, uneven and not for small children or anyone unsteady on rock.

The platforms face the open ocean at the harbour entrance, so they fish best in light winds and a swell under about 1.5m — a westerly offshore breeze and a clean, rising tide is the classic combination. A southerly or easterly swell pushes straight onto the ledges and washes the lower rocks fast, shutting the spot down for safety long before it's unfishable for fish. The tide change through the heads is the key trigger, with the run-in concentrating bait against the rocks at first light and dusk. After a big sea or heavy rain the water colours and the bite drops away, and that's the day to fish the calmer harbour spots instead.

This is exposed open-ocean rock fishing at the harbour mouth, and the lower ledges wash over without warning when a set rolls through — people have been swept off platforms along this stretch of coast and drowned. Watch the swell for several minutes before committing to a low spot, never turn your back on the water, and never fish here alone or in a southerly or easterly sea. The rock is slippery wet or dry, so cleated or felt-soled boots are essential, not optional. This is exposed ocean rock over deep water, so wear an appropriate lifejacket every time — an adult jacket to Australian Standard AS 4758 level 50S or greater, level 100 or greater for under-12s — and never fish the lower ledges in a building sea. Bluebottles blow in on northerly summer winds, and the climb down to the ledges is the most dangerous part of the day for a slip.

Yes — the deep water right off the rock platforms below Hornby Lighthouse is one of Sydney's better land-based kingfish spots. A live yakka or slimy mackerel set under a balloon on the rising tide at first light is the standard approach. Kingfish must be at least 65cm to keep in NSW, with a bag limit of 5, and you'll need a NSW Recreational Fishing Fee to fish here.

Yes — wear one. These are exposed ocean ledges over deep water where anglers have drowned, so a lifejacket goes on every session: an adult jacket to Australian Standard AS 4758 level 50S or greater, and level 100 or greater for anyone under 12. Cleated or felt-soled boots matter just as much, and never fish the lower rocks in a southerly or easterly swell.

Park at Camp Cove in Watsons Bay — the Cliff Street and marked Pacific Street spaces are closest and fill early on weekends and warm mornings. From there it's about a 500m walk along the heritage trail past the gun emplacements to the lighthouse, then a scramble down onto the platforms. Toilets are at Camp Cove and Green Point Reserve, but not at the lighthouse.

Australian salmon, tailor and bonito run past on metals through the warmer months and into autumn — salmon have no minimum size and a bag of 5, tailor 30cm with a bag of 10. Silver trevally feed year-round under a berley trail at 30cm with a bag of 10 across all trevallies, yellowfin bream at 25cm with a bag of 10 shared with tarwhine, and luderick come on in autumn at 27cm with a bag of 10. Eastern blue groper are common on this rocky ground, but the species is no-take everywhere in NSW and line fishing for it is prohibited until 1 March 2028, so they must be released and never targeted. A NSW Recreational Fishing Fee is required to fish anywhere in NSW.

The walk and the lighthouse precinct are fine for families, but the actual fishing ledges are steep, exposed and dangerous in any real swell, so they aren't a good choice for a first-time rock fisher. Beginners are far better off at Camp Cove beach 500m back, which is sheltered and produces squid, whiting and bream. Anyone fishing the ocean platforms should go with someone experienced and watch the sea before climbing down.