Rhyll Jetty

Rhyll is the small fishing village on Phillip Island's north-eastern tip, and its long jetty at the end of Beach Road is a heritage-valued Parks Victoria local-port asset with a T-head used for boats and cruise-ship tenders. It is popular in the holidays, and the usual catches are King George whiting, salmon, yelloweye mullet, silver trevally, flathead and garfish. Its secret weapon is underfoot: the surrounding mudflats hold bass yabbies, which can be pumped for bait. Rhyll's family beach and playground next door make it the gentlest jetty on the island.

Light tackle, a paternoster rig and small long-shank hooks, fished from the rising tide through to high, is the recipe. Freshly pumped bass yabbies are hard to beat for whiting, and small strips of squid or pipi work for mullet and trevally. Garfish come up the berley trail under a float. Flathead can be picked up on the sand off the sides, though plenty of them are undersized.

King George whiting (27 cm, bag 20) are the target, with yelloweye mullet (combined bag 40), garfish (combined bag 40) and silver trevally (20 cm, bag 20) the dependable bites. Salmon (21 cm, combined bag 20 with herring) visit in the cooler months and flathead (27 cm minimum) are about all year. Expect plenty of undersized flathead among them.

Pump your yabbies on the falling tide before the session, then fish the flood. Victoria allows one bait pump per person with a barrel no wider than 8.5 cm; spades, forks and other hand-held digging tools are not allowed in the intertidal zone. Bass yabbies are a permitted catch in the intertidal zone outside Port Phillip Bay, but single-shelled molluscs such as snails, limpets and periwinkles can't be taken from the intertidal zone anywhere in Victoria, and bass yabbies are limited to 0.5 litres per person. The local service station sells bait and tackle. Churchill Island Marine National Park is a couple of kilometres away and is no-take.

There is a car park at the base of the jetty, the Rhyll caravan park is a short walk away, and the service station sells food, drinks, bait and tackle. The beach beside the jetty has low waves and a playground nearby. The jetty is long and level; Parks Victoria's 2024 port plan proposes handrails, lighting and a new gangway to the T-head, but those depend on future funding.

Rhyll faces north-east across the port toward Corinella, so strong north-easterlies make it lumpy while south-westerlies are sheltered. At low tide much of the surrounding water drains to mud and sand flats, so the rising tide to high water is the fishing window. The water over the flats is shallow and warms quickly in summer.

The mudflats are soft and the tide returns quickly — keep an eye on the water while pumping yabbies. Jumping or diving off the jetty is prohibited because of shallow water and submerged objects. Cruise-ship tenders and charter boats use the T-head. Keep off any closed or fenced landing.

Yes. Bass yabbies can be pumped for bait on the mudflats around Rhyll Jetty. You may use one bait pump per person with a barrel no more than 8.5 cm wide, and you can take up to 0.5 litres of bass yabbies; hand-held digging tools are not allowed in the intertidal zone.

Expect King George whiting, Australian salmon, yelloweye mullet, silver trevally, flathead and garfish. Fish from the rising tide through to high with light tackle and small long-shank hooks.

It is one of the most family-friendly jetties on Phillip Island: a calm beach, a playground and a car park at the base. Jumping and diving off the jetty are prohibited, and children should be watched on the deck.