Fishing in Millstream Chichester National Park

Millstream Chichester National Park sits in the Pilbara region of northwest Western Australia, roughly 122 kilometres southeast of Roebourne. At around 200,000 hectares, it holds something unusual for this part of the continent: permanent water.

The Fortescue River runs through the park, fed by an underground aquifer recharged by runoff from the Hamersley Ranges, and the result is a system of deep pools, palm-fringed rock pools, and spring-fed waterways that hold fish year-round in country that is otherwise brutally dry.

The Fortescue River is the main fishing water in the park. Deep Reach Pool, reached via the 6-kilometre loop walk from Millstream Homestead, is the named spot where barramundi are caught.

Canoeing and kayaking are listed activities here, which means you can work the pool from the water as well as the bank.

Crossing Pool is another access point — the campsite there backs directly onto the river, and anglers have fished from the bank or off the small platform at the water's edge.

Python Pool, near the park's northern entrance, is fed by the same aquifer and holds permanent water, though it is primarily a swimming spot rather than a fishing destination. The Pilbara summer is not fishing-friendly.

Temperatures regularly exceed 50°C between November and April, and the park itself recommends carrying a litre of water per hour of walking.

The practical fishing season runs through the cooler months — roughly May to October — when the heat eases and the permanent pools are most accessible. Fishing in the park falls under Western Australian recreational fishing rules.

Check with the park before you go: conditions in remote Pilbara water can change, and what the pools hold in a good season may differ from a dry one.

The water here exists because of geology and deep time — the Yindjibarndi people have known these springs for more than 40,000 years. Fish it with that in mind.