bit of billabong fishing

[otis.drum]

Hi Guys, hope you are all well, i realise it has been a while - somehow i got busy!

thought i'd throw up a couple of picks from one of my favourite freshwater spots up here on the cape. enjoy, i did sorry about the picture size, i'm not sure how they will turn out. i'm having trouble working out how to get consistent sizes when reducing on my mac.

it's a decent drive along some hidden goat tracks to this little spot, but it is worth the effort. it fishes very well, and possibly due to its lack of visitors - among other things.

once close, we have to walk. plenty of water and museli bars. hot work but a beautiful spot.

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three long and wide billabongs, all that's left of a river thousands of years ago. still hold water and even runs into a creek from the last of the wet season run off (trickles). beautifully lines with lillies and birdlife all around. there is a lot of food in these billabongs so i'm guessing i'm not the only predator in the area, and don't like to find myself too close to the water.

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we normally catch massively over fat over grown archer fish off our lures here but this trip they were a little shy. that's ok though, coz there are plenty of other species to be had. a nice couple of saratoga early.

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these things are a great sports fish. very aggressive and love to jump when hooked. they are a bag of bone and no good to eat but well worth the catch and release. for that matter all we do is catch and release in this spot.

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this trip i took a mate, Tim, and my old man, who has moved to weipa to be more annoying to me. not really, i enjoy having him closer. he isn't much of a fisherman and struggles with the bait caster, so every now and then i will take it off him and give it a couple of flicks to check it is ok. on this occasion he walked off behind a tree for a leak so i picked up his rod to check it out. i flicked it twice into the middle of the waterway and retrieved fast to just see it was ok. on the second retrieve, almost dragging the lure across the top of the water i saw a bright golden silver flash from beneath the lure and my line was heading off to the side. i let the reel spool for a few seconds and the struck. before our eyes the water exploded and gill rakers where in overtime. one of the hardest parts about fishing these areas is getting to the edge of the water with enough room to flick the rod, but what's harder is getting decent fish away from snags, weed and fallen branches. you are torn between wanting to jump into the shallows to make sure your catch doesn't get away, and not wanting to be caught yourself by a larger predator.

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fairly lucky on this occasion, and we were able to pull a decent barramundi from the water. 90cm and in very good shape. he has not been going hungry!

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dad decided he wanted a picture seeings i 'stole' his rod.

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fishing was slightly quieter this day, probably only because we weren't catching 6 archer fish between other species. Tim took a really nice golden catfish on a lure. people turn their noses up at catfish up here but they can be quite good eating, and there is lots of flesh. but again this fella went back to see another day. Tim being careful not to be spiked by the poisonous barbs.

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we then took a half km walk off to a river to chase more barra and some oversized sooty grunter. the sooties are great fun to catch in the fairly shallow water around rockbars. they attack from beneath with lightning speed and pull like there's no tomorrow once hooked. these sooties are the biggest i have come across not only in length (up to 50cm) but super fat. a good one would feed a family no worries.

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heading back to the car i decided to cross over between billabongs and try my luck on the other bank. we had made comment in the morning that it looked less heavily treed on that side and that access could be better (grass is always greener story). it was little different but from the edge of a weed bed (lilies) i managed to pull this beauty. 80cm Toga. fun fun!!

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great fun, and always entertaining listening to my father whinge the whole way home that we threw back that barra etc.

thanks guys, hope yo enjoy.

[longbow steve]

Looks like an awesome spot otis! How far from the coast would you be there? It is good that your dad has moved closer. Thanks for posting.
Cheers Steve

[GrahameA]

Morning.

Saratoga! What a great fish. ...... What great country ...... dream.

[otis.drum]

Morning Grahame, yes loverly country and the Saratoga are a beautiful and prehistoric fish.

Hi Steve, this is a long way from the coast. much of the cape's coastline is inaccessible. this is about smack bang in the middle of the cape.

[Stickbow Hunter]

Good to see your post otis. Good write up and great photos of a top bit of fishing. Do you also take your bow with you on these trips? The pigs might like purple.

Jeff

[otis.drum]

ha, you're not the first person to comment on the shirt colour Jeff.

there is an extensive marshy swam land at the top of these billabongs, and while there is a bit of sign around, this particular are has too much water for me to bother hunting. i do hunt swamps here and there at times, but i generally like the harder land with less water for bowhunting.

[longbow steve]

Morning Grahame, yes loverly country and the Saratoga are a beautiful and prehistoric fish.

Hi Steve, this is a long way from the coast. much of the cape's coastline is inaccessible. this is about smack bang in the middle of the cape.

So there are Snappy Lizards that far inland ?

[Stickbow Hunter]

there is an extensive marshy swam land at the top of these billabongs, and while there is a bit of sign around, this particular are has too much water for me to bother hunting. i do hunt swamps here and there at times, but i generally like the harder land with less water for bowhunting.

Sounds fair enough to me mate.

Jeff

[otis.drum]

Morning Grahame, yes loverly country and the Saratoga are a beautiful and prehistoric fish.

Hi Steve, this is a long way from the coast. much of the cape's coastline is inaccessible. this is about smack bang in the middle of the cape.

So there are Snappy Lizards that far inland ?

Oh yes, across the whole Cape really Steve. i only have a small number of shallow clear spots i'm happy to wade in.

this particular spot is 150km up this river, and i have seen salt water crocs 40kms further up. they have been reported on occasion 80km further up, plus these billabongs are only 500m from the river.

[longbow steve]

Do you reckon I will be safe camping in a mozzie dome? I am already having croc nightmares .

[otis.drum]

Do you reckon I will be safe camping in a mozzie dome? I am already having croc nightmares .

haha, you'll be fine, just don't sleep right next to the waters edge.

[Stickbow Hunter]

haha, you'll be fine, just don't sleep right next to the waters edge.

That and make sure you're five metres of the ground.

Jeff

[rodlonq]

Very nice spot Otis. It is good to get your Dad out fishing. I'm taking Dad and my two sons fishing for a weekend in a couple of weeks.

Well done mate. Cheers..... Rod

[GrahameA]

Hi Steve and Otis.

So there are Snappy Lizards that far inland ?

My view is a little biased. Up around "the North" if it is water and it is in anything bigger than your bath it is likely to have things that bite you in it.

[otis.drum]

i would have to agree Grahame.

[Gringa Bows]

Nice fish Otis,nothing wrong with purple shirt Jeff,some blokes on here where pink

[longbowinfected]

Hey Steve you big wuss. Doesn't your bike have roof racks and a fold out tent?

You might think about suspending a hammock well up a tree.

Kev

[bigbob]

Those rifle or archer fish you mentioned Otis, now I know you lot are spoiled with barra and jacks etc but they actually are very nice eating if you get a good size one.People still chase barra round the mission R. bridge? Was a guy there eons ago when I was there that used to sneak out along the catwalk under the bridge with a bow [ instant dismissal if caught at it]seen him pulled in after he arrowed a big barra. Don't think he even got wet before he made the bank! Most nights he went out he would snaffle a good fish in ten minutes or so.He happened to be of indigenous origin so he may have had some leeway with the powers that be.