Hawkesbury River Bream Fishing

If you’re starting fresh, keep it simple and light—you want gear that lets small lures swim properly but still survives oysters.

• One-outfit do-it-all: a 7’ (2.1 m) 2–4 kg graphite spin rod with a 2000–2500 size reel, spooled with 4–6 lb braid and a 1.5 m leader of 8 lb fluorocarbon. That’ll cover hardbodies, plastics and light bait work around the Hawkesbury.

• If you can run two outfits (ideal):

  1. Crank rod: 6’10”–7’2”, 1–3 kg, moderate action for 35–45 mm diving hardbodies (they stay pinned better on a softer tip).

  2. Plastics/jerkbait rod: 6’10”–7’2”, 2–4 kg, fast action for 2–3″ prawn/grub plastics on 1/16–1/8 oz heads and small minnows.

• Line & leader (Hawkesbury rules of thumb):

  • Braid: 4–6 lb (go 6 lb if you’re new; it’s forgiving).

  • Leader: start 8 lb fluoro most days. Drop to 6 lb in clean, still water (Cowan Creek). Bump to 10–12 lb when you’re grinding oyster racks, rock walls or bridge pylons. Retie often—any nick means a lost fish.

• Terminal tackle:

  • Jigheads: 1/16–1/8 oz, size 2–4 hooks for 2–3″ plastics.

  • Bait hooks: size 2–4 bait-holder or small circles.

  • Sinkers: tiny ball 0–2; use just enough lead to tick bottom in the run.

  • Snaps: small, fine-wire if you like changing lures quickly (or tie direct for max action).

  • Knot: FG (braid-to-leader) or a slim double uni if you’re learning.

• Lures that simply work here:

  • Hardbodies: 35–45 mm, shallow (1–1.2 m) for edges and medium (2–3 m) for pylons/walls.

  • Plastics: 2–3″ prawns/grubs/creatures on light heads; natural browns/olives in clear water, prawny hues when it’s coloured.

  • Crabs: slow-sink micro crabs for pontoons, racks and shaded structure.

  • Topwater: small poppers/walkers at first light on glassy banks.

• Bait kit (for kids or beginners):

  • Same rod/reel. Running sinker to a 60–80 cm leader, size 4 hook, fresh prawn or nipper. Cast uptide and let it drift naturally.

That setup will catch you bream anywhere on the Hawkesbury. Start with 8 lb leader, fish moving water, and don’t be shy about upsizing leader around sharp stuff—better to land one good fish than “almost” land three!

As outlined in this Hawkesbury fishing session, there are so many different ways to target these fish. I typically prefer hardbodies as its always an explosive take.

The best time is when the tide’s moving—I plan around current first, light second. If you can line up first or last light with the last of the run-in or first of the run-out, that’s prime on walls, racks and pylons. Midday can still fish if there’s flow and shade (deep edges, up-current pylon faces), but if the tide is dead even sunrise feels slow. After dark, bridge and wharf lights create their own bite window—quiet presentations drifted through the glow work well.

Its hard to just pick one, but I do like The Vines and flicking hardbodies at the oyster covered rock walls. That is the second location we visited on this session.

To be honest its a bit hard to say as I generally practice catch and release and rarely weigh or measure my catch. That being said it would definitely be over 2 kgs.

After rain, fresh water flows down from Wisemans and the creeks and pushes the bream towards cleaner, saltier water near the mouth (Broken Bay). I start where the brown water meets the green/blue water—that “salt line.” Fish the first clear water you find: downstream bends, deep slow pockets (eddies), and any structure with clean tide washing over it. As the river clears over the next days, the fish spread back into the middle sections and then further upstream.

Use small hardbody lures (35–45 mm)—shallow divers (1–2 m) for rock walls and slightly deeper (2–3 m) for bridge pylons.  Plus 2–3″ prawn/crab/grub plastics on light jigheads. In clear water, choose natural browns/olives. When it’s murky or dirty, go brighter prawn tones. I always carry a silent shallow crank (that’s basically a small, hardbody with no rattle that runs just under the surface for spooky fish in skinny water) and a slow-sinking crab for docks and oyster racks.

Go with 4–6 lb braid with 8 lb fluoro leader, this is my everyday setup. If they’re touchy, I’ll drop to 6 lb leader; if I’m grinding racks and pylons, I won’t hesitate to 10–12 lb. Keep leaders fresh—any nick from shell grit is a lost fish waiting to happen.

Live nippers, fresh prawn and mullet strips cover most situations. Nippers shine on flats and gentle flow; prawn and mullet stay on the hook better around oysters and pylons. Use minimal lead—just enough to hold bottom in the push.

Although, as highlighted on this trip, I love flicking unweighted live crabs at pontoons on a low tide – its always great fun and pretty much a guaranteed way of getting into some bream!

I’m normally in a boat but here are my tips for fishing from the shore. Always think moving water plus shade and rocks. Here’s the super simple shore plan:

• Brooklyn (rocky points near town): Go in the last hour of the rising tide and the first hour of the run-out. Stand back from the ferry zone and cast along the rocks, not straight out.

• Dangar Island (Bradleys Beach & rocky corners): On a rising tide, bream come right in close over the weed and sand. The start of the run-out is good too—cast parallel to the shoreline.

• Berowra Waters (picnic-area banks/rock edges): Fish anytime the water is moving. Shade helps. If the sun’s high, wait for the run-out tide to start and fish the deeper edges.

• Upper Cowan (Bobbin Head / Apple Tree Bay): Clear, deep water. Best at dawn or late arvo with any moving tide. Cast tight to rock walls and let your lure/bait sink a little.

Easy rule: If you can see the water moving left or right, it’s fishing time. If it looks still or slack, take a break or move spots.

Go at low tide and work the exposed sand flats—look for the little keyhole/figure-8 holes and pump the ones that still have a bit of water in them. The upper Cowan bays (Cowan, Smiths, Coal & Candle) all have easy walk-in flats, and even near Apple Tree Bay the first bay on the left exposes good patches at low. Around Brooklyn/Mooney Mooney it’s muddier, so a boat helps you reach small sand tongues on inside bends and island edges. Use a hand pump, keep your nippers in clean, aerated water, and follow NSW DPI rules (check bag limits per person; and for any no-collecting zones and updates).