Dunsborough

Dunsborough is a beautiful little coastal town 254 kilometres south of Perth in Western Australia. It nestles on the shores of Geographe Bay. It is a popular tourist destination for many Western Australians, and over the last ten years, the town has increased and become quite wealthy.

Lately, I have been feeling a bit trapped in the city, so I called Kevin a good mate and my son Jesse and quickly made a flying fishing trip to Dunsborough. We packed our gear and chatted incessantly about the big Salmon we’d catch as we drove south on the three-hour trip. In Bunbury, we spotted 15-foot Shimano surf rods on sale. An unbeatable price, so two rods and reels were added to our kit.

We arrived at 4 pm and checked into our digs at the Wyndham Resort a few kilometres north of Dunsborough. We wanted to get set up before dark, so we made our way into the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park without wasting too much time.

After looking at a few locations and with light fading, we eventually settled on Smiths Beach as the place to catch our monster salmon. It was an easy walk from the 4WD to the beach. Within 15 minutes baited and setup.

The new 15-foot rods made casting off the beach a breeze. I pulled in a nice-sized Herring on the first throw. As time wore on, we caught a few more Herring and had a few sound bites from ‘something’ more prominent.

One small salmon

After a thousand casts… well, maybe not that many and waiting for the tide to turn, a small salmon was the only fish caught by 9.30 pm. It was getting pretty chilly on the beach by this stage. So it was back to our accommodation for a hot shower and some kip.

We hadn’t given up fishing, and the following day we were up at 6 am. Starving as we’d only snacked the evening before. So it was into town for a hearty breakfast and back to Smiths Beach by 7:30 am.

Early Morning Fog on Smiths Beach

The morning air was very cool, and a light sea fog hung as the sun made its entry. Nothing caught off the beach. We did land a few Wrasse off the rocks, enough for a feed, at least.

With little happening, the fishing day for us closed at 9:30 am, knowing we faced a 3-hour trip to Perth. We all agreed it was a great trip, albeit too quick and only a handful of fish. I think we’ll be back, so look out, Salmon!