Wattamolla and Curracurrang shore fishing
Wattamolla's sandy bay, the reef around its two points and Curracurrang's deeper platforms are three different fishing plans. Worms over the beach sand suit whiting and bream. Weed floats and small animal baits belong in the reef washes. Pilchards, lures and larger fish baits come into their own where those washes empty into deeper water.
Curracurrang is the fishing bay and platform system south of Wattamolla. Curracurrong, with an o, is the separate waterfall bay farther south. The old subsidiary ledge names identify different water; their positions do not establish a present-day approach.
Choose your water and tackle
| Area | Water to look for | Starting approach |
|---|---|---|
| Wattamolla Beach | Shallow sandy bay | Light worm or lawful nipper baits for whiting, bream and flathead; choose a quiet period clear of swimmers |
| Providential Head and Boy Martin Point | Reef wash close in, cleaner sand farther out | Weed for luderick; crab or cunje for drummer beside reef; larger fish baits over sand |
| North Curracurrang | Deeper wash interrupted by a shallow reef ridge | Weed near the ledge; slowly worked winter pilchards outside; account for the reef on the retrieve |
| Curracurrang Bay and South Curracurrang | Return washes, boulder water and outside current | Bobby-cork pilchards for bream, trevally and tailor through the drift; close weed or animal baits in individual washes |
Three rigs cover the main choices: light worm tackle for the beach, a balanced weed float for luderick, and a pilchard rig for the deeper wash. A bobby cork keeps a fish bait above boulders; it serves a different purpose from the sensitive float used to show a luderick bite. Small crab or cunje baits need abrasion resistance near rock, not unnecessary casting weight. Pack larger squid or fish baits only if the chosen position reaches clean outer ground and offers a workable landing. For float balance and bait presentation, see the blackfish guide.
Wattamolla Bay
Wattamolla Beach
The beach is the light-tackle option. Worms or legally obtained nippers over the shallow sand suit whiting, bream and flathead. Early or late sessions avoid the busiest swimming period. Keep casts clear of people, and do not assume that a convenient car park makes every part of the bay suitable for fishing.
Can you line-fish in Wattamolla Lagoon? Ordinary rod-and-line fishing is not prohibited by the lagoon-specific Fisheries closure: it bans nets and traps all year, except a landing net. NPWS lists fishing as permitted at Wattamolla. General NSW fishing rules and current park closures still apply. The fishing methods in this guide concern the ocean beach and rocks.
The picnic area has public parking and toilets. NPWS describes access via Wattamolla Road and warns that parking can fill on weekends. Check the current beach approach as well as the park alerts; arrangements at the lagoon crossing have changed during maintenance works.
26–27 October: Filming will limit parking on level one of the Wattamolla car park. The picnic area remains open; follow NPWS signs and staff directions.
Providential Head and the northern boulders
Providential Head is the northern point of Wattamolla Bay in the older fishing accounts. The shallow reef makes a wash around the point. Work a lure or pilchard along its outside edge for tailor, or use crab or cunje closer to the rocks for drummer and bream. The historical account particularly associates the bream fishing with autumn.
Inside the point, the long low shelves offer weed-fishing water. A cabbage bait under a properly balanced float follows the wash for luderick and drummer. A crab or cunje bait works closer to the bottom. There is some shelter from a northeast wind, but the low shelves still require a calm sea.
The large northern boulders give you two targets. The wash beside them suits luderick, drummer and bream. Beyond the reef is cleaner sand, where a wider squid, pilchard or fish bait can find snapper, mulloway, flathead or tailor. If the aim is bream or drummer, there is no advantage in casting straight over the useful wash. If the aim is a larger fish over sand, a small bait dropped into the boulders is the wrong presentation.
Boy Martin Point and Floating Rock
Boy Martin Point is the southern side of Wattamolla Bay in the old fishing accounts. The flat inner rock reaches clean sandy water, with reef wash closer in. Pilchards or squid over the sand are the snapper and mulloway approach, with flathead a summer possibility. Small baits near the wash are more useful for bream and drummer.
Floating Rock is a freestanding rock within this southern group. The wash curls around the point into mixed fishing water: pilchards and fish baits for tailor, trevally and bream, larger baits for mulloway or snapper, and drummer nearer the structure. Its low connection is reported to cut off with the tide. This is useful fishing history, not an invitation to cross to it.
At the outer point, rough boulders favour crab or cunje for drummer and bream. Tailor can be spun along the wash edge around dawn. On the eastern side, a boulder-studded gutter gives a rising-water target for lightly weighted animal baits, with a cabbage float an option for luderick in calmer water. The very low southern front was already described as hazardous in the original account and is not presented as another visitor station.
North Curracurrang
North Curracurrang: wash, deep water and reef ridge
North Curracurrang is a long platform system with several different kinds of water. At its lower northern end, the first wash suits weed floats for luderick and drummer. A small boulder bight beside it is a closer bait-fishing target for drummer on crab or cunje.
The higher ledge faces deeper wash. Slowly worked pilchards are useful around first light for tailor, salmon, bream and trevally. Crab or cunje kept near the base suits drummer and leatherjackets. A larger squid, pilchard or mullet bait cast wider is the snapper approach. The lower finger outside reaches better spinning water for tailor, salmon and passing kingfish or tuna, but it is also more exposed.
Along the main seaward front, a weed float can be followed through individual washes instead of sending every bait into the deepest water. The deeper outside water is where a lure or drifting fish bait covers the pelagics. Keep enough room between these two methods that the spinning outfit does not cut across the float line.
North Curracurrang Point itself has an important trap in the fishing plan: deep water close to the ledge, but a shallow reef ridge across the front. A live bait may tempt a kingfish beyond it, yet the ridge creates a difficult landing problem. The more ordinary plan is a weed float for luderick and drummer, or a slowly worked pilchard, with or without a bobby cork, for winter tailor, bream and trevally.
On the bay side of the point, visible outcrops bring the fishing back to close rough ground. Crab or cunje suits drummer, with abrasion resistance more important than casting distance. Cabbage floated through the autumn washes is the luderick option. Access to these individual ledges remains unverified.
Curracurrang Bay
Curracurrang Bay: northern washes and sandy water
The northern side of the bay is low and exposed to southerly sea. It can be less affected by a northeast wind, but those are different things. There are useful changes in bottom along it.
Near the outer point, submerged outcrops suit drummer and bream on small crab or cunje baits, with luderick in the weed-fishing wash. A longer cast was described as reaching gravel patches. That is the water for a squid, pilchard or mullet bait aimed at snapper.
Farther into the bay, the account identifies two prominent washes with cleaner sand beyond them. A cabbage float through the wash is the luderick approach; drummer, bream and jackets are closer to the rock. Over the sand, fish baits can add flathead, tailor or mulloway to the possibilities. Check what is actually in front of you rather than treating the old sketch as a chart of today's sand edge.
At the inner reef point and neighbouring boulders, fish near the structure for drummer and leatherjackets. The reef-and-sand junction is the better place for a bream, trevally or tailor bait. This is a smaller, more deliberate target than simply casting into the middle of the bay.
Curracurrang Bay: the southern return wash
The higher inner ledge on the southern side reaches boulder water where a pilchard can be fished on the bottom or suspended under a bobby cork. Bream, trevally and tailor are the main targets. A larger squid or mullet bait cast farther out is the snapper or mulloway option.
At the south point, watch the direction in which the wash fades back into the bay. A lightly weighted bait can travel with that water for bream and trevally, with tailor also possible. A bobby cork helps keep a whole pilchard working through the drift instead of dropping into the boulders. The high ledge is not a rough-weather refuge.
South Curracurrang and The Gulf
South Curracurrang platforms
The first low ledge has wash along its front and southern edge. A cabbage float suits luderick and drummer; crab or cunje close to the structure suits drummer and bream. Leatherjackets tend to make the ledge base worth a separate small-bait presentation.
Outside, whole pilchards slowly retrieved or suspended under a bobby cork cover winter tailor, salmon, bream and trevally. In warmer water, lures can intercept kingfish or tuna. Wider squid and fish baits are the snapper and mulloway approach. The low ledge and the main platform both need settled conditions; even a moderate groundswell can rule the platform out.
The intervening boulders are close drummer water, with an occasional bream. An older account places a wider hole near a white boulder, but that landmark has not been reliably identified.
At the northern edge of the main platform, the wash supports luderick, drummer and bream. Winter spinning is for tailor and salmon; visiting tuna are a warm-water possibility. Wider bottom baits may find snapper, although the southern tip has the stronger historical association with that method.
Middle Ground and the southern tip
Middle Ground is the uneven central part of the ledge, with potholes and two main washes. Close bait or weed fishing works those washes for the regular reef fish. The outward-moving water can also carry a lawful live bait away from the rock. Decide how a larger fish could be landed before making that switch.
The southern tip is a larger freestanding rock beside a conspicuous outward wash. A drifting pilchard, lure or live bait covers the outside water for tailor, salmon, bonito and larger visiting predators. Leatherjackets and drummer remain close to the structure. The old accounts include remarkable pelagic captures here, but an ordinary session still starts with the bait, the water in front of you and a manageable target.
For lure choice and retrieve speed, see the bonito guide. A lure cast across fish you can see is more purposeful than endlessly retrieving through empty water.
The Gulf bait-water
The Gulf is the deep gutter on the southern side of the main platform. It is the historical bait-supply water: a steady berley trail can bring yellowtail within reach. Use only lawful baitfish and observe their size and bag rules.
There is also fishing to be done with the slick itself. A pilchard allowed to move out through it can find bream, trevally or tailor, while a small bait close to the ledge suits leatherjackets and drummer. The gutter separates pieces of coast; it is not an implied around-the-rocks connection.
Curracurrong and Eagle Rock
Curracurrong, with an o in the last syllable, is the separate waterfall bay farther south. Its cliff-bound water and Eagle Rock are geographic landmarks in this guide. The historical mulloway fishing beneath those cliffs was a boat account, so it is not turned into a shore-fishing recommendation.
Planning the session
Use the NPWS Wattamolla visitor information for public parking and the official walking track. The path reaches the Curracurrang area, but it does not establish access to every lower ledge. Current park alerts include sunset-to-sunrise closure of Wattamolla picnic area Monday to Thursday, excluding school holidays, through 18 December 2026. Plan the return around the actual gate and closure arrangements.
Bring legally obtained bait. Check the Sydney South closure maps and fishing rules before collecting weed, cunje or crabs. Abalone gut is prohibited as bait, and blue groper must not be targeted or retained under the current NSW rule.
On the ocean rocks wear the required approved lifejacket, fish with a companion and watch the sets before committing. Keep your exit clear and leave when water starts washing the standing area. Neither a high ledge nor an offshore breeze cancels the incoming swell.
For the coast to the north, see Jibbon and Marley. The next southern guide covers Garie, Era and Burning Palms.