The Hawkesbury: Treasure on the doorstep by Dan Selby

Many Sydneysiders thinking of a family fishing holiday often daydream of faraway destinations to the north, south or west. Unfortunately they overlook what's right on their doorstep, a hidden treasure - the mighty Hawkesbury River.

With its sandstone escarpments, abundant birdlife, great fishing and crabbing and its proximity to Sydney, the Hawkesbury has plenty for your next fishing adventure.

Whether it's a day trip, a weekend or week-long stay at one of the resorts, on board a houseboat or camping at one of the many van parks, the Hawkesbury has a lot to offer the keen family fisho.

With over 150km of navigable water, the Hawkesbury is as diverse as it is large.

Stretching from the headwaters above Penrith in Sydney's west, it flows down through the historic township of Windsor, where the famous Bridge to Bridge ski race finishes.

From there it continues on its snake-like path, flanked by sandstone cliffs down to the brackish reaches at Wisemans Ferry. This is a very tourist-friendly township that has some great attractions and accommodation options.

The river widens from Wisemans Ferry and meanders down through the mangrove-lined banks and oyster-encrusted intertidal rocks to Spencer and Brooklyn, home to some huge mulloway and blue-nosed bream.

Let's explore the fishing options into digestible chunks.

PENRITH TO WINDSOR: FRESHWATER

Only an hour's drive from the CBD is a hidden jewel that most people are unaware of - the Nepean or Devil's Gorge.

This beautiful piece of water is flanked by towering sandstone cliffs and can turn on some great bass fishing. Spring and Summer are the best times for encountering the local bass after they have made their annual migration back upstream and negotiated the new fish ladder at Penrith Weir.

Launching a kayak, canoe or boat from Tench Reserve (gates open from sunrise to sunset) and heading upstream will lead you into the gorge proper.

Most techniques work well here, with the key factor being accurate casts. There are caves, fallen timber, boulders and weed beds to probe.

Starting early in the morning, casting surface plugs or flies to the prolific structure often yields explosive bass strikes. The towering cliffs shadowing the valley mean the surface bite can last on until mid-morning some days.

Let's face it, I'd rather warm up catching bass on the surface than wait until the sun is high enough to take the chill from the air!

If the fish aren't keen on surface lures, my next recommendation would be a handful of spinnerbaits in a variety of colours and sizes. Cast to the same structure and these lures will take fish all day. You can get them into some nasty country where other lures will foul up.

Casting tight to the rock walls, allowing the spinnerbait to 'helicopter' down the steep face, is a proven method for targeting big fish sitting deep.

If lure fishing isn't for you and there are some kids to keep entertained, have a picnic in one of the many bankside parks. You can soak earthworms, bread or corn and expect to encounter bass, European carp, eel-tailed catfish and mullet through the warmer months.

Downstream from Penrith Weir, the river gains a little momentum and is well-suited to canoe and kayak anglers.

This is a great section with long pools interspersed with rapids; there is plenty of fallen timber, weed beds and overhanging vegetation to cast at.

For an effortless trip, most anglers like to use two cars, dropping one off further downstream at Devlins Lane, Yarramundi or North Richmond and picking up the other on the way home. This will allow you to concentrate on fishing and not have to worry about how long it will take you to navigate back through the rapids and current.

Alternatively, you can opt for a shorter trip and launch at one of the aforementioned pick-up points.

Between North Richmond and Windsor are the upper limits of the tidal water. There is a good stretch that is accessible by boat when launching from Windsor's Governor Phillip Park.

Caution should be taken and you should stick to the 8-knot speed limit because there are quite a few shallow sandbanks and weed beds at low tide.

Bass are the main target here, with the occasional estuary perch. I highly recommend surface lures and spinnerbaits here because it can get quite overgrown with weed late in the season.

There are a few land-based options at Windsor, including the local jetty next to the bridge, the beach on the opposite side of the bridge and the Breakaway towards Freemans Reach.

The main species encountered are bass, estuary perch, mullet, carp and, in the Summer months, the occasional bream and flathead. The best baits are fresh Hawkesbury prawns and earthworms for the bass, bream, flathead and EPs, bread for mullet and corn kernels for the European carp.

WINDSOR TO LOWER PORTLAND

This stretch of river is tidal-influenced and can turn on some great fishing through Spring, Summer And Autumn. Bass and EPs are the main species but anglers in the know regularly take good catches of flathead throughout the warm months, plus the occasional bream.

There are several locations to target these species but the main attraction would have to be the towering sandstone cliffs littered with caves and crevices.

Casting hardbodies, soft plastics and spinnerbaits on a falling tide to all the nooks and crannies will put you in with a good chance of bass and EPs.

Other fish-holding structure can be weed beds, tree snags and drop-offs, all of which are quite common in this section.

It's such a large area and one may be forgiven for not knowing where to start.

The best approach is to single out a piece of water and give it a good work over with your chosen method. If unsuccessful, move a few kilometres up or down and repeat the process.

The structure here is quite accommodating for bass and EPs but what about the flathead? They can be found on the major drop-offs and creek mouths through Spring, Summer and Autumn.

Flathead put up a great fight on light spinning and baitcasting outfits in the warmer water in these reaches and taste great on the barbecue.

The main issue with eating fish from this section is blue-green algae, which is at its worst as the water rises above 25° in a sustained dry spell. Anglers should keep an eye out for clumps of algae on the surface and avoid eating fish from areas of high concentration.

Access to the water is quite limited here due to private property. Most fishing has to be done from a boat, canoe or kayak, although the skiers and wakeboarders tend to make conditions a little scary through Summer.

The best public ramp is Governor Phillip Park at Windsor, with the alternative being Skeleton Rocks Reserve at Lower Portland. This old punt landing ramp is quite dilapidated and has a severe drop-off at the bottom.

There are also plenty of ski/caravan parks dotted along this section and use of their launching facilities usually incurs a fee of around $10.