Ningaloo Open: Reef and Fishing After Narelle

Campgrounds, reef and charters open again.

Ningaloo Reef is open again.

Two months after Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle crossed the Coral Coast as a Category 4 system, 311 campsites across Cape Range National Park and Nyinggulu Coastal Reserves came back online on April 27.

Most of the region's more than 200 licensed commercial tour operators are taking bookings, and the reef that many feared the worst for has come through in far better shape than expected.

What the reef looks like now

Marine scientist and commercial tour operator Frazer McGregor inspected the southern third of the 260 km reef system in early April, about two weeks after Narelle passed.

"On the whole, we're all pleasantly surprised that everything is as we saw it before the cyclone, given how intense it was," McGregor told AAP.

"All the critters are still here. We're all stoked."

Manta rays, dolphins, sharks, turtles and at least one dugong had been sighted in the weeks following the crossing.

The coral spawning cycle, which scientists feared could be disrupted by the sustained battering, also came through intact.

Corals reproduce by releasing eggs and sperm into the water column, and there were concerns Narelle could trigger premature release or suppress spawning entirely.

Neither happened.

"Things are pretty much unchanged," McGregor said. "There's no massive scours and rubble fields - there's no real effect."

What Narelle actually did

Narelle is one of the most unusual cyclones in Australia's recorded history.

It made four landfalls - the first on March 20 near Weipa in far north Queensland, and the fourth and final crossing near Exmouth on March 27, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

The storm is only the second system since reliable records began in 1980-81 to make landfall as a Category 3 or stronger in Queensland, the Northern Territory, and Western Australia on a single track.

At Exmouth, it arrived as a high-end Category 4 system with peak gusts of 260 km/h.

The airport terminal was destroyed, mains infrastructure disrupted, and coastal beaches were extensively reshaped by storm surge and erosion.

The toll on marine life was significant on land - more than 1,000 sea turtles, 200 seabirds, and 30 cetaceans were documented dead on WA beaches in the weeks following the crossing, according to data compiled from the event.

The underwater reef structure, however, appears to have absorbed the energy in a way the shoreline did not.

The atmospheric driver

The driver behind Narelle was an active monsoon trough fuelled by near-record warm sea surface temperatures across the Coral Sea and Timor Sea.

Above-average SSTs across the northwest shelf - consistent with the 2025-26 Australian cyclone season - provided sustained energy that kept Narelle at severe intensity across an unusually long track.

The season aligned with a weakly negative Indian Ocean Dipole and warmer-than-average tropical ocean waters, creating the conditions that allowed a system to maintain intensity across multiple state coastlines.

BOM tracks the IOD and seasonal cyclone patterns through its climate monitoring systems - conditions that feed directly into the marine forecast products used by skippers and divers planning offshore trips.

What's open - and what's still closed

Cape Range National Park's 18 publicly bookable campground areas reopened on April 27, including sites at Mandu Mandu, Mesa Camp, Osprey Bay, and Tulki Beach.

Campgrounds in Nyinggulara National Park sustained more extensive structural damage and require complete rebuilding - those sites remain closed.

Charter operations in the Exmouth Gulf are largely back online, with operators including Ningaloo Sportfishing Charters and Evolution Fishing Charters accepting bookings for reef, gulf, and offshore trips.

Accommodation is the main constraint.

Several providers remain closed for repairs, and availability across Exmouth is tighter than a typical May.

For anyone planning a winter trip to the Coral Coast, the direct advice from tourism operators is: book ahead, confirm your campsite, and be flexible on dates.

For divers and snorkellers

The reef structure itself came through with minimal damage, but some coastal snorkelling spots near Exmouth township have been physically altered by beach erosion and storm surge.

Known beach entry points may have shifted - what worked before Narelle may require a short scout on arrival.

Boat access to the outer reef, including the hard coral formations and bommies along the back of the lagoon, is largely unaffected.

Visibility in May is typically at its best off Ningaloo, with calm autumn conditions and minimal freshwater runoff pushing underwater vis beyond 20 m on most reef sections.

This is the strongest the vis will be all year.

Whale sharks are there now

Ningaloo's annual whale shark aggregation - one of the most significant in the world - continued through and beyond the cyclone.

Whale sharks were among the species confirmed in reef waters in early April by McGregor's team, alongside manta rays and stable turtle populations.

The peak of the aggregation typically aligns with the coral spawning event in late March and April.

With fewer visitors than usual due to the recovery period, late May and June offer consistent sightings without the crowding of a typical season - a rare window for a less-contested swim-with experience.

Humpback whales are also beginning their northward migration through the Ningaloo corridor this month, with the first reliable sightings typically recorded from late May through September.

For anglers

The Exmouth Gulf and the inshore Ningaloo reef system hold some of the best light-tackle fishing in Western Australia.

Permit, trevally and bonefish work the sandy flats inside the gulf, while the outer reef edge and the drop-offs near the Muiron Islands hold coral trout, red emperor, and Spanish mackerel in the cooler winter months.

Bar crossing conditions at the Exmouth Marina and Coral Bay boat ramp are manageable in the current late-autumn pattern, with the prevailing south to southwest winds keeping swell controlled inside the gulf.

The outer shelf between Ningaloo and the North West Shelf can run a confused sea in the early weeks of winter when remnant northwest swell intersects with building Southern Ocean fetch - check WA marine warnings and conditions on Seabreeze before heading offshore.

Planning a winter trip

The Shire of Exmouth entered formal long-term recovery in mid-April, guided by a Local Recovery Coordination Group established April 14.

Fuel and food supplies have been restored to normal service levels.

Flights to Exmouth/Learmonth Airport have resumed on modified schedules while the terminal reconstruction is underway.

Insurance assessors were still working through claims in the region in late May - the rebuild is ongoing, but visitor infrastructure is functional.

Key checklist before you go: confirm your campsite booking directly with DBCA for Cape Range sites; call charter operators ahead to check current launch conditions; and allow flexibility on accommodation given the tighter-than-normal inventory.

Frequently asked questions

Is it safe to swim and snorkel at Ningaloo right now? Yes - McGregor's April inspection found no dangerous structural changes to the reef itself.

Some beach entry points near Exmouth township have shifted due to storm erosion, so scout local conditions on arrival before entering unfamiliar water.

Are whale sharks still at Ningaloo in late May and June? Yes - the aggregation typically runs from late March through July. Late May into June is a reliable window with fewer operators competing for sighting positions this season.

Can I still book a fishing charter from Exmouth? Most charter operators are back. Call ahead to confirm launch conditions and availability - some vessels relocated during the recovery period and may have changed moorings.

Are humpback whales passing through yet? The first humpbacks of the 2026 northward migration are expected from late May. Reports of sightings in Ningaloo waters typically pick up through June and into July.