Arno Bay is legendary for big snapper, and a bit more picturesque than whyalla.

PM J Déjà Vu, I reckon he's from down that way?

 Will do.

 Better off staying half hour away at coffin bay, great fishing out that way and alot nicer, might want to book a caravan park plot early though as its popular in summer :-)

Elliston, Arno Bay Or Tumby Bay. Smokey Bay is better than Streaky Bay

I'm going to Streaky Bay and Smoky Bay in April. I agree Smoky is slightly better however Streaky has more facilities (Smoky only has a general store) - That is I prefer Smoky Bay for the fishing and the wife prefers Streaky bay as she can wander the shops!!.  From Streaky you can also run down to Sceale Bay (about 35km by road) and out from there for Bluefin tuna weather allowing (they should be starting to come through mid december).  As Kane said Coffin Bay is also pretty good particularly if the boat is big enough to get offshore (trouble is you will likely get the afternoon sea breeze that time of year anywhere in SA). In December Coffin Bay will have the advantage of Snapper and Kingfish inside the bay

Yep book your accom if staying in Carvan Pks or rental shacks otherwise you may be limited to Motels.

Personally I would be focusing on the west side of Eyre Peninsula  (Coffin Bay to Ceduna) however you do get some big snapper on the eastern side. - Snapper runs will be on on both sides in December but check with local regulations first as they are talking about extending the november snapper ban a few extra weeks (you should be OK). Dropping the boat in at Pt Sinclair or Fowlers west of Ceduna is also an option (4wd beach launches or carton of beer to someone with a tractor) however again the wind may be a problem at that time of year. 

Cheers

Paul

Thanks for all the info so far, i definately plan to book ahead, so as soon as i get my destinations down i'll do that.

Even if there is a Snapper ban extended into december there are lots more species to fish for yes? Tuna would be good, im guessing the whiting would be down that way too. Kingfishing sounds like a blast from what ive read on various forums.

What sort of fish do you find in Smokey Bay? Its about 70 odd km from Streaky, i'd be happy to drive that and stay in Streaky.

So Paul H, if you had to choose three great spots to spend three days each at what would they be and why? also what style fishing do you prefer there?

Thanks

Port August Power Station cooling water outlets Yellow Tail Kings/Mahi Mahi at that time of year.

PT Lincoln go out behind the islands to the pens early morning feeding and late arvo talk to the skippers on the boat for permission to fish close and cube up Mulies and drift bait big bluefin.

KG are everwhere just find broken ground squid also.

Tackle shops sell a small local GPS coordinate book for all the tyre and artifical reefs for the east coast.

Dont forget the rip at point lowley north of Whyalla for big YTK.

you will have a ball.

 Excellent, thanks. I'll be looking into that thoroughly.

One last thing the Ceduna Oyster Bar left hand side coming from Perth.

Fresh as and cheap mate.

My three picks and reasons would be as follows

At the top Coffin Bay.

Snapper and big kingfish in the Bay in December and also whiting, salmon and other smaller species. Tuna starting to show offshore mid to late december if winds are down. As I mentioned above in December you will most likely have the afternoon sea breeze which kicks in anywhere from 11am-1pm to contend with and that the reason Coffin would be top of the list.  If its windy you still have options to find somewhere sheltered and still can get big fish. Not much in the way of facilities Caravan Park, general store and pub but Pt Lincoln is a 1/2 hr drive away and has everything. (watch for roos at dusk dawn and night - garentee one will jump out in front of your car at some stage)

Second Streaky Bay (with the option to head up to Smoky Bay or down to Sceale Bay for the day).

Has all the facilities you need.  Streaky is not as Large as coffin Bay but if windy there are still some options for getting a sheltered spot.  In december they have a snapper run and snapper comp.  Large snapper can be caught off the jetty.  if windy there is a hole between the boat ramp on the western side of bay and the caravan Park where you can pull snapper (dawn/dusk is best) this is about 1/2 way between the C Park and Boat ramp.  KG whiting throughout the bay - known spots are the bushes and Eba Island (just ask anyone to show you where these are) If the wind is down you can either head up to Smoky Bay or down to Sceales Bay (very basic ramp but usable - is sometimes shallow and I have had to run trailer out on a rope to retreive.  Can launch/retrieve in a hole around 100m up the beach if you have a 4wd).  Offshore from Sceales is tuna, snapper, kingfish and sampsoms - whiting abound in the bay.  Smoky bay - in december whiting in the bay and snapper at some car bodies inside the Island - best fishing at Smoky is out through the channel and past the Island - need wind and swell to be down for this area - if fishing outside the island be aware there are a lot of small reefs - some break some do not - be careful - not all of them are on my chart)

Port Lincoln I would miss - Has Snapper but generally smaller than Tumby or Arno, Tuna are not likely to be around the pens quite yet in December.  Both Coffin and Streaky Smoky bays fish a lot better -even for KG whiting.

Other options would by Arno or Tumby Bay (lots of big snapper in December) and possibly Whyalla.  Either Tumby or Arno Bay would be my third choice. - Personally I'd pick only the first two and spend an extra day or two as you will just be starting to get the place wired when its time to move on.

Port Augusta for Kingfish however they can be very fickle here and you could fish for 3 days without getting one (or you may get 3) but they are generally big. Mahi Mahi haven't been seen much in last few years and are generally small but fun if they are there  Other than Whiting,squid etc not many other options in Pt Augusta.

Will hopefully be putiing up a fish report in April whislt away and a few pics keep an eye out.

Hope thats a help. 

Cheers Paul

PS - if you need a deckie send me a PM with a little notice if possible

 Thanks a lot Paul, where do you live mate, it would Definately be good to have some one with knowledge of the area on board. I'll let you know when dates are rock solid.

Hey, December in SA is all about big Snapper in the gulfs and Mulloway on the beaches. December is getting a bit late for the kings at Pt Augusta and Coffins but the tuna might be moving past Fowlers around then and the Mulloway will definately be at the nearby beaches. If your interested in the Snapper try to be fishing for the opening day of the ban if possible as the fishing is often spectacular.

All the best

James

if you have the boat its worth going offshore from tumby bay to get to buffalo rocks snapper all year round and in amazing quantity also offshore from ceduna theres fair protection from the islands if you get out to st francis island which is the furthest one only 30 ks or so than theres plenty of fish there and a decent anchorage if you ever and overnight stay. lived in SA for 15 years and most of these spots so pm if you want anymore info

best of luck

Excellent fellas thanks, i'll be in touch later in the year. sorry for the late reply. went to kalbarri classic and been on night shift since then. currently eyeballing a sweet plate boat in perth.

Yalata Mulloway oh yeah

Righto, now i have the boat situation under control, its time to get some solid dates down for this trip. Im looking at 2nd-5th Dec at Streaky Bay and 6th-9th at Coffin Bay. In preparation i have upgraded my Navionics to the new Australia Gold as my platinum card is 62 region.

Im also investing in 1 maybe 2 gopro 2's. Just need to decide what accessories would be best for the boat. Maybe a wifi controller instead of LCD bacpac.

Do you do well trolling in these areas? Given the info you guys have provided i can go north or south out of Streaky to some good ground, and likewise with Coffin Bay. The boat has a 400L tank so fuel wont be a problem.

I also bought some Bluechart and homeport software to study the areas better as i've found it far more detailed than Navionics.

Mobie PM me your email address and some time in the next week I'll put together some detailed info for you and a few gps marks.  trolling - you will be a wee bit on the early side but blue fin tuna should be starting to show in December and you should pick up a few wide off both Streaky and Coffin Bay's.  - most of the tuna fishers at streaky launch from Sceale Bay about 30km south (ramp in pretty basic though).  December is a good time for beasts of kingies in Coffin Bay itself they'll give you a run for your money in the shallows (will need to up anchor and be mobile once hooked up).  Snapper will also be in Streaky Bay itself in Dec (they have a snapper comp and some big ones are even caught off the jetty) so the tyre reef and a few other spots would be worth a drop.

You'll get out wide no problem providing the swell and winds are good but don't push it if there not - it can get very unfriendly and there's not much in the way of help available, but you will have other options in the bays if the weathers crap - even the bays get a bit rough at times but you can ussually find some shelter.

Will also send some info re the oyster leases as you will have to dodge these in both streaky bay and coffins.

Cheers Paul

PS just checked - closed season for snapper ends on November 31st so you'll be right with your dates.

Cheers

Thanks Paul. Anyone know when Snapper Comp is on?

MM can't find anything via google I will make a call and find out - is possible its no longer held I'm usually there in feb and april lately - will advise

PS Mobie be aware there is a lot of talk here about extendin the snapper ban into December say around 15th.  don't know what happening - so much crap here ATM for rec fishers hard to keep a finger on the pulse.  This may affect your trip which would be a pisser.  Dicks in charge should realise we plan trips for this stuff and if there changing things a bit of notice would be of use - say make the changes for next year. 

 Yes that would be a bummer but I guess there are plenty of other fish to catch huh, not being a fish eater I'd probably release any snapper anyway. 

Ok, the time is here.

Next friday i head from Kalgoorlie to Streaky Bay. Have got 5 days there hoping to find some action.

Then i head down to Coffin Bay for 5 days for the same. After that i drive to Victoria and will be having 3 days in Portland. Off to the mighty Murray after that in hope of catching a Cod. Then shoot over to Tas to the Great Lake for NYE and some RnR.

On the return trip i'll be fishing in Ceduna for 4 days.

End of Feb i will try my luck for the first time in my boat at Duke Of Orleans.

At the start of March i'm heading to Kalbarri for the three day Classic followed by the next weekend back at Esperance for the Annual Deep Sea Classic there.

So i hope to have a lot of good pictures and video to show everyone soon.

That's a lot of driving Moby but beats work.  Good Luck

Around what dates are you going coming back through Ceduna.  I may be heading west at some stage in Jan to have a shot at the Bluefin etc (no definate plans at this stage and I could end up either at Smoky Bay or Coffin Bay).

Cheers

 Hey paul, coming through Ceduna on the 7th to the 11th. Leaving on the 12th for home.

also a big thanks to Paul H for a massive amount of help and advice on the areas I'm fishing.