Spearfishing WA North: Ningaloo and the Kimberley
Exmouth and Ningaloo are prime tropical shore diving with hard sanctuary lines. Broome, 1300 km north, is crocodile and box-jellyfish country and an information page only.
Exmouth is the reason to come: Bundegi at the tip of the gulf, Tantabiddi lagoon by the boat ramp, Sandy Bay and the Bay of Rest - 2-11 m of lagoon reef with trevally, emperor, coral trout, spangled emperor and cod. The catch is zoning. Spearfishing is prohibited in Ningaloo Marine Park between Tantabiddi Well and Winderabandi Point, and rockcod and wrasse may not be speared anywhere in Ningaloo Marine Park. Turquoise Bay is a sanctuary, look only, and the Navy Pier is permit-only with no spearing. Broome is the other end of the scale - the Cable Beach and Gantheaume Point card reads crocodile, box jellyfish and 9 m tides, no shore spearfishing, charter reef trips offshore.
The dry season, roughly the cooler half of the year, is the practical window on this coast: the wet brings run-off, heat and stingers, and the Kimberley tidal range at Broome is up to nine metres. Whale sharks are protected and are a Ningaloo season in their own right, March to August in the phenology data - they are a look, not a target.
Rules: DPIRD Fisheries WA. Recreational Fishing from Boat Licence for powered-boat fishing; no licence for shore diving; all inland waters closed. Spearfishing while diving under compressed air is prohibited in Ningaloo and Shark Bay marine parks. Protected species up here include potato cod, humphead Maori wrasse and whale shark; estuary cod, coral trout, spangled and red emperor, blackspot tuskfish and baldchin groper are all regulated with their own size and bag limits. See https://www.dpird.wa.gov.au/individuals/recreational-fishing/. Safety, conditionally: declared crocodile habitat and box jellyfish at Broome, big tides, remoteness with no easy exit, and a moderate white-shark rating at both towns.
Top spots
| Spot | Nearest city | Character |
|---|---|---|
| William Preston Point | Exmouth (Ningaloo) | A rocky point: reef and boulders round the headland, 3–7 m |
| Cable Beach / Gantheaume Point | Broome | Info point only |
| Honeymoon Cove | Wickham | A pocket beach 500 m south of the old Point Samson jetty, where coral… |
| Cunningham Point | Park Hill? | Saltwater crocodiles can be in any water here (DBCA), and box… |
| Town Beach - Guwarrigun | Broome | Where the Broome sand runs out into rock and weed, 2–6 m |
| Point Samson Back Beach | Wickham | Four small coves line the 700 m of rocky shore running south from the… |
Reserves & no-take zones
- Ningaloo MP (state) — Special Purpose Shore Based Activities Areas (shore line fishing only) + Benthic Protection Area (trolling only): spearfishing prohibited — Spearfishing banned: Spearfishing banned in this protected marine zone.
- Ningaloo Sanctuary Zone (WA) — No-take / spearfishing banned: Spearfishing banned in this protected marine zone.
- Ningaloo Sanctuary Zone (WA) — No-take / spearfishing banned: Spearfishing banned in this protected marine zone.
Cities in this region
FAQ
Can you spearfish at Ningaloo?
Outside the closed stretch, yes. Spearfishing is prohibited in Ningaloo Marine Park between Tantabiddi Well and Winderabandi Point, rockcod and wrasse may not be speared anywhere in the park, Turquoise Bay is a sanctuary and the Navy Pier is permit-only with no spearing. Check the zoning carefully before each dive.
Can you spearfish at Broome?
Not from shore. Our card for Cable Beach and Gantheaume Point marks it information-only: declared crocodile habitat, box jellyfish and tides up to nine metres. The reef trips run offshore by charter.
When is the season?
The drier, cooler half of the year is the practical window. The wet season brings run-off, heat and marine stingers, and the Kimberley tidal range makes Broome a tide-planning exercise in any month.
What can you spear here?
Trevally, emperor species, coral trout, mangrove jack, queenfish, cobia and stripey seaperch, all under WA size and bag limits. Potato cod, humphead Maori wrasse and whale shark are protected, and rockcod and wrasse may not be speared inside Ningaloo Marine Park at all.
See also: WA Mid-West (Geraldton–Kalbarri) · Northern Territory