Welcome to the Port Campbell Jetty Fishing Location. This is a truly unique fishing destination, roughly a 3-hour drive from Melbourne, 15 minutes beyond the 12 Apostles, located on Lord street heading towards Peterborough. Here, there are stunning views of limestone cliff faces and rolling waves as you overlook the Bass Straight. This old jetty is part of the boat launch where a few crane boats are launched into the water. However, for land-based anglers, it offers exceptional fishing opportunities for silver trevally, Australian salmon, snook, snapper, squid, and gummy sharks.
It’s a small compact jetty which can get very busy during peak times and often fishes best in Winter and early Spring. Here, you are fishing straight into the bass, and it can have very rough seas, so please take care, especially on rough days. During high winds and storms, waves can crash over the jetty, so ensure you check conditions before fishing here.
BECOME A FISHINGMAD MEMBER & UNLOCK ACCESS TO
Weekly Fishing Reports | Workshops | Giveaways | Podcasts | Competitions | Maps | GPS Marks | Rigging Tutorials | Sounder School | Exclusive Footage | Tackle Talks | Gear Guides | Kayak Club | Much More
Things to do at Port Campbell
Port Campbell is a small coastal town located along the Great Ocean Road, renowned for its breathtaking views. Established in the 1870s, it’s an excellent spot for fishing, hiking and taking in the sights. 15 minutes before Port Campbell, you will find the historic 12 Apostles, one of Australia’s most iconic landmarks. These amazing rock formations have eroded somewhat over time, but this is still a spectacular spot to visit for the 12 Apostles alone. You can also walk along Port Campbell beach, Port Campbell discovery walk trail, walk Gibson steps, enjoy the stunning views or stop in town at the cafe or pub.
Fishing Port Campbell Jetty
The jetty was built over 150 years ago and has undergone several renovations over the years, battling the strong southern coastline. It’s a small fishing platform which can get very busy in peak times. Here, you get strong running water and currents, which encourage many pelagic fish to congregate. At Port Campbell Jetty, you can seasonally target
- Silver Trevally
- Australian Salmon
- Snapper
- Squid
- Flathead
- Gummy Sharks
- Snook
- Wrasse
- King George Whiting
The fishing here can be so diverse, with many species you can target, and you can catch them in a variety of ways with bait, soft plastics and lures. It’s a brilliant location in Winter to cast soft plastics and lures for Silver Trevally, Australian Salmon and Snook. You can catch plenty of them here, and they’re of good size too. These seas can be very rough, and the fish can be of good size, so it’s often a good idea to fish a bit heavier here. As you move into Spring and Summer, you can catch good volumes and sizes of snapper and gummy sharks.
In close, there are many scattered reefs that hold vast populations of wrasse. It’s also important to keep in mind that only a few kilometres offshore from this pier, there are frequent catches of tuna, sharks and for many years, it has been a tremendous commercial area for crayfish. So you never know what you might catch off the jetty, although silver tevally, salmon, and snook are the most common catches.
Rod & Reel Setup for Port Campbell Jetty
Gear selection varies at this location, depending on the species you’re targeting and whether you’re using bait, lures, or soft plastics. Keep in mind, fishing here has strong flowing water, structure and reefs, so it pays to fish a little heavier than usual. For the most part, those using soft plastics will have success here chasing a variety of species with a 7-foot, 2-5-kg spin rod coupled with a 3000-size reel spooled with an 8-14lb line and leader. A combo that is sensitive to feel the bites and inquiries, yet lightweight enough to cast all day. If you plan on casting larger soft plastics or light metal lures for Australian salmon, then consider upgrading to an 7 or 8-foot, 3-6 or 4-8 kg rod paired with a 3000 or 4000-size reel. If you are targeting bigger fish with bait such as snapper or Gummy Sharks, then you’ll need a heavier outfit such as a 4-8 or 5-10 kilo fibreglass rod coupled with a 4000-5000 size reel spooled with a 20-30 lb line and leader. You can also choose to go with a longer rod, should you feel the need for greater casting distance. The range of rods and reels on the market is massive, with budgets varying wildly. Therefore, it’s essential to pick something that matches your skill level and budget.
Places to fish near Port Campbell Jetty
Not far from here, you can also try fishing at these destinations
Best Baits for Port Campbell Jetty
At this location, we would highly recommend the baits suggested below. There are several ways to present baits, including a running sinker rig, paternoster rig, or dropper rig. The rig and sinker choice will be dependent on the species you are targeting and the conditions, such as wind and tidal strength.
- Pilchards
- Squid
- Pipis
- Blue bait
- Silver whiting
- Raw chicken strips
- Prawns
- Mussels
Lures and soft plastics for Port Campbell Jetty
At this location, we would highly recommend the following soft plastics and lures.
- Long Casting metal spoons
- Rapala X-Raps
- Berkley Gulp Turtleback worm
- 2.5″, 3″ and 4″ curltails ( Gulp Nemesis, Daiwa Wave Minnow, Zman grubZ, Squidges Wrigglers )
- 3″ and 4″ paddletails in natural colours ( Keitech easy shiner, Zman StreakZ, Munroes 3.75-inch paddle tails )
- 4″ and 5″ inch jerk shads ( Zman scented jerk shads, Berkley Gulp
- Squid and Yabbie Imatations ( Nomad Squidtrex, Berkley Turbo Shrimp, Clone Prawn, Nomad Jerksquid )
- Shallow mid diving hard body lures ( Daiwa Double Clutch )
- Vibes and Blades ( Zerek fish trap, Samaki Vibelicious, EcoGear SX40 )
Targeting Silver Trevally at Port Campbell Jetty
Trevally pound for pound is one of the best fighting fish. In certain parts of Australia, surface popping for Giant Trevally is one of the bucket list fishing experiences that you must tick off. However, in Victoria, you will mainly be catching the smaller silver trevally. Silver Trevally are a lot of fun to catch; they fight hard, often turning to their side mid-battle to add resistance. They have intense bursts of speed, and usually, they will make a last burst run towards the structure as you reel them in closer. Good bait options include blue bait, white bait, raw chicken, pilchards, pippies, squid and mussels. Trevally will also take a range of soft plastics, including worm and minnow imitations, small paddletails, small surface poppers, and small metal spoons.
We recommend targeting silver trevally with a 2-5 kilo fishing rod coupled with a 2500 reel spooled with 6-10 pound braid and equivalent fluorocarbon leader. If there are larger silver trevally in the area, you can go heavier, moving up the scale to a 3-6 kilo class spin rod, paired with a 3000 size reel spooled with fine 8-12-pound braid and an equivalent fluorocarbon leader especially when there is a structure and a reef.
Targeting Australian Salmon Port Campbell Jetty
I prefer targeting Australian Salmon with light spin gear. It makes the experience enjoyable and easy to use. A 7-foot 2-5kg spin rod paired with a 2500 or 300 size reel and 12lb braid and leader works excellently. When schooled up and actively feeding, they will smash soft plastics, ideally 4″ paddletails and curltails in natural colours, which imitate a baitfish that they are feeding on. Winter is a great time to target salmon as they’re active and school up in big numbers. Salmon is a powerful sports fish that punches well above its weight. When hooked, they produce intense bursts of speed, powerful runs, and vigorous head shakes. Do keep an eye out for gutters, which are patches of deeper water that Salmon will swim through in schools. The darker colour of the water can identify these. When bait fishing, pick a surf rod between 12 and 15 feet in length, which allows for long casts with heavy sinkers and keeps your lines high above the crashing surf. These will be 6-10 kilo class. We recommend a Paternoster rig with a star sinker. Giving you two baits at different heights. You could also attach a surf popper above.
Targeting Snapper at Port Campbell Jetty
Locally, Snapper season starts around October and finishes towards April. The big reds migrate inshore due to the warmer water temperatures, which provide ideal conditions for spawning. Dawn, Dusk, and tide changes are considered the best times to catch snapper. Snapper will take a variety of baits and soft plastics. For bait, a 7- to 8-foot rod with a 4-to 7-kg rating, paired with a 4000- or 5000-size reel spooled with 15-to 30-pound line, is excellent. Good bait options include pilchards, silver whiting, squid, and salmon. For soft plastics, a 7-foot rod with a 3- to 6-kilo line weight, paired with a 3000-size reel, is a great setup. Good soft plastics include jerk shads, whip baits, curl tails, or paddle tails, which are typically between 3 and 5 inches in length and available in a variety of colours. We encourage you to read our detailed guide on how to catch snapper.
Watch this instructional video on how to catch snapper with soft plastics in Port Phillip Bay.
Targeting Gummy Shark at Port Campbell Jetty
We recommend targeting gummy sharks with a 7-foot, 8- to 15-kilo rod paired with a 4000- to 6000-size reel spooled with 20- to 40-pound line. Finished with a strong leader ranging from 40lb through to 60 pounds. Ideal rigs include a running sinker rig, a single or double snelled rig, or a paternoster rig. You can use an Ezi rig, attaching a sinker to the clip and then tying on a pre-made double snelled rig. Octopus or circle hooks from 5/0 to 7/0 are preferred for presenting chunks of salmon, trevally, squid, mackerel, Eel, mullet, pilchard, yakka’s, & garfish.
Targeting Snook at Port Campbell Jetty
These toothy critters are fun to catch on light spinning gear. You will find them in shallow weedy waters, often a bycatch for those targeting snapper, whiting and flathead. You can catch snook with staple baits such as pilchard, prawn, and squid. However, Snook loves natural-looking soft plastics retrieved at a medium pace, including minnows, paddle tails, and grubs. Adding scent to the soft plastics appears to really help. Snook also respond well to shallow and mid-diving hard body lures in shiny colours retrieved at a medium pace. Metal slugs and blades trolled slowly also work very well. Do handle snook with care, as they have razor-sharp teeth. Despite their sharp teeth, it’s still best to target them with light gear that you would generally use for pinkies and flathead. We recommend a 2-4 or 3-5 kilo spin rod paired with a 2500 size reel, spooled with 8-12 pound line and leader.
Targeting Squid at Port Campbell Jetty
Targeting squid is a fun form of fishing that is growing in popularity, offering the reward of fresh calamari. Squid can be caught all year round, you will find them in shallow weedy areas and they respond well to jigs in clear water conditions. We recommend reading our detailed guide on How to catch squid. An egi rod between 7.5 feet and 9 feet in length is ideal, and there are plenty of egi rods on the market that are suitable for the purpose. We recommend an 8-foot 3-inch rod paired with a 3000-size reel spooled with 15-pound braid. Squid jigs are prone to snags in this area, and we have found that using slow-sinking jigs in the smaller sizes, specifically 2.5 and 3.0 grams, helps avoid this problem. Cast your squid jig to allow time for the jig to sink, then do a series of lifts and pauses to imitate a wounded prawn. The natural temptation is to strike. Instead, a subtle lift is all that’s required to maintain line tension and a constant, slow reel.
Check out this instructional video guide on how to catch squid
Targeting Whiting at Port Campbell Jetty
Whiting is a bread-and-butter species which are fun to catch on light spinning gear and tastes great. Whiting school up in big numbers and they respond well to berley, so berley an isolated area with a mix of chicken pellets, Tuna oil, and pilchards. Whiting fishing requires finesse, so we recommend a light 1-3 or 2-4 kilo spin rod around 7 feet in length. Coupled with a light 1000-2500 size reel, spooled with 4 pounds or 6-pound line and leader. When bait fishing a simple running rig with a small sinker to swivel, then 40cm of 4-pound leader to a small baitholder long shank hook or a paternoster rig with 2 hooks and a size sinker depending on your conditions.
Targeting flathead at Port Campbell Jetty
We encourage you to read our detailed guide on how to catch Flathead. Flathead is a year-round prospect that can be caught at any time of the day. They are ambush predators that wait in disguise for smaller fish to swim by for an easy feed. This highlights the importance of keeping your baits and soft plastics towards the bottom. If fishing from a boat or kayak, we would recommend drifting around the sandy flats until you find a good patch of them. Also, keep an eye out for depth drop-offs, which are great locations for an ambush predator to be waiting. We recommend targeting flathead with a 7-foot 2–4 or 3-5 kilo fishing rod paired with a 2500 or 3000 size reel spooled with 8-12lb braid and equivalent leader. You can go lighter, but flathead has bristly teeth that can compromise your fishing line.
Flathead is not fussy and will happily have a go at many various soft plastics and lures. We highly recommend reading our detailed guide on the best lures and soft plastics for catching flathead. Top choices include worm and yabby imitations, paddletail and curl tail soft plastics, deep diving hard body lures, vibes, and blades. If you are targeting flathead with bait, we recommend using a paternoster rig or running sinker rig. Good bait choices include pilchards, mussels, squid, chicken, whitebait, Pipis, blue bait and prawns.
Images of fish supplied VFA and DEPI. All other photos and videos shown on the Port Campbell Jetty Fishing Guide are Fishing Mad originals. Thank you for visiting the Port Campbell Jetty Fishing Guide. If you believe this location guide is missing key information or requires corrections, please email our team at enquiries@fishingmad.com.au with specific details. Please also feel free to share any fishing pictures you have from this location with us. Thank you. This can be a very weedy area and at times almost unfishable, so that wind direction can play a significant factor. Only two fishing lines are permitted. Always carry your Victorian fishing license, and always follow catch limits.
