A man has had a lucky escape after spending a night stranded in a tree in Western Australia's remote Kimberley as crocodiles circled below him.

Police say Stan Martell was fishing on Friday night on the Lynne River when he fell asleep.

He woke to find his boat had become jammed under a mangrove tree trunk.

The boat filled with water and he was forced to clamber up the tree, leaving behind his satellite phone and emergency radio beacon (EPIRB).

Mr Martell has told the ABC he spent the night worrying that the tree branch would break.

"I crawled up as high as I could, and just sat there like a koala bear all night," he said.

"But was a bit wary about the crocs. I saw two crocs right where I was, one was a big one, and one was about 10 foot.

"I didn't want to go swimming anywhere, so I just sat there watching my boat and thinking, I can't believe this has just happened.

"In that sort of situation, you've only got a split second to make up your mind what you're going to do, and that tree that brought me undone actually saved me too."

It was not until the next morning that he was able to climb down and activate his EPIRB.

Senior Sergeant John Kazandsis, of Wyndham Police, says it is unlikely Mr Martell would have been rescued had he not had an EPIRB.

"The feedback from the sea rescue guys is that he was fine, he appeared to be in good health, and it just reinforces the value of keeping an EPIRB onboard and being able to get hold of help when you need it," he said.

"If he didn't have the EPIRB or any other form of communication, I really don't want to think about what the outcome could have been.

"The crocodiles that he could see were sitting in the water but crocodiles do climb up on the banks and you just can't be sure of what's around you."

Mr Martell was rescued by a volunteer marine rescue team the next morning.

He is now recovering in Kununurra, uninjured but badly shaken.