(NOTE - click images to enlarge!)
My
partner Debbie had the day off..........no Real Estate agent works on this day,
and so after a very late start for us, we found ourselves launching at the
Barron River ramp on the highway. As I backed the tinny down the ramp I could
already feel the winds picking up.
We should
have been here at 6:30 I mused, not to worry; we could find somewhere to fish.
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| We poked my little CCC out the river mouth. |
As I
zoomed down to the river mouth and poked the nose of my CCC outside, conditions
weren't too bad. As long as I took it steady we should be right. Debbie was mad
keen to get some "salt air" in her lungs. We spend most of our
fishing time way up in the fresh and being an old prawn trawler skipper, the
salt water was still her real love.
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| Heading up Trinity Inlet - north side! |
And so it
was that I found myself out of the Barron mouth, heading south east (or was it
SW?) back up the Cairns Harbour, Trinity Inlet. It was a bit choppy at first
but nothing that my little tinny couldn't handle. Deb was stoked, she felt
alive - salt spray in her face, sea water all around, the magnificent backdrop
of the Yarrabah range to the east and the Kuranda range to the west. We do
really live in paradise.
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| Plenty of fishy looking snags here! |
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| What about this one! |
OK babe, let’s
just drift along on the wind and tide & cast to the shoreline snags.
Successive wet seasons have dumped these big old trees right on the water’s
edge....on the high tide and with a relative easy cast to the structure, there
just might be a barra or two hiding there.
 |
| Was Deb happy - you bet! |
Just as
we eased into a little bay, where the water was a bit clearer, Deb cast to snag
number 57 and right on cue a lovely little silver barra snaffled her lure. It
wasn't a big fish, it didn't have to be. Deb was so stoked to land a true salt
water barra at last and after landing, a quick pic and a measure...it went just
on 55cm, it was gently put back into the drink. You couldn't wipe the smile of
Debbie's face if you tried. This was something she had wanted to do for ages,
and it had finally come together on Anzac Day 2013.
 |
| Snags.....looks good eh! |
 |
| Cast No 213! |
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| Such a beautiful place TNQ! |
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| Back inside the river - as a Jetstar plane brings some more tourists! |
After a
few more stops and a hundred casts to likely looking structure, I decided that
the winds were picking up (as is the daily occurrence on the east coast of
TNQ), the tide was getting low and it was time to get back into the river. By
this stage I had to travel fairly wide to avoid the little "surf"
that was building on the shallow sand flats at the mouth but we were soon back
in the safety of the tidal estuary and zooming upstream.
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| Under the Barron highway bridges! |
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| Boat ramp and boating pontoon. |
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| The old river bridge at Stratford - a very popular fishing spot! |
Today was
going to see a big drop, low tide just after midday was a low of only .4m. If I
was going to fish upstream, we had better get a move on before the shallow
reaches of the Barron became a too dangerous proposition to try and cruise
over. As luck would have it, we made our way right up to the Freshwater creek
mouth, powered off the plane and settled under a huge shady tree for coffee and
morning tea (a late one at that).
 |
| Zooming upstream.....Kuranda Range in the distance! |
It’s a
proud day for us Aussies, ANZAC Day; we have the footy (AFL to me) and a heap
of other sporting events to drool over. So in a show of patriotism, I decided
to put on a green and gold Flat Jak. This proved to be a superb choice.
As we drifted
downstream on the falling tide I couldn't help but comment on the dirty state
of this river - perhaps they were releasing water from the dam, perhaps they
had has some heavy rain upstream. Either way, I was not too confident of
success but more content to just "suck it and see"...drift down and
if we caught a few fish that would be a bonus. I was almost lost in a trance
when that first little hit came from a feisty little juvenile.
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| My first little barra....on the patriotic colours! |
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| Now that's a bit better! |
But smash
my lure it did and the barra was quickly landed, photographed for proof and
gently released. About three casts later I was slammed again, this time about
half way back to the boat....put the lead down baby I exclaimed, there appears
to fish holding up here and we just might catch a few.
 |
| Nice barra Deb.......barracuda that is! |
Deb cast
back upstream and worked her lure back over some rubbly bottom...........bang!
She was on to something a bit bigger, was this the barra we were after. After a
spirited fight and violent head shakes the fish finally showed itself. It was a
barra alright but not the one we wanted. A barracuda, not barramundi. A quick
pic and it was back in the drink, you don't waste time with a thrashing cuda in
a small tinny. They have massive teeth and deserve due respect.
Sorry
babe....it was fun wasn't it!
 |
| Now that's a jack....well, almost! |
Oh, I’m
on to another little barra, an another and another........what a day after all.
Deb frantically changed lures, have you caught anything on this blue one she
asked. Nope, its a brand new lure and I bought it for you my darling. Deb smiled.....sure
you did, and right on cue she hooked up to another little barra. She had
christened that lure and in the process ensured that she had landed the two
biggest barra of the day. Still under legal size but who cares (sob, sob,
sob!).
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| Another 55cm barra on the new "blue" Flat Jak lure! |
I think
we landed 8 barra for the day (a late start and an early finish for
me)....hell, the footy was on and even though we have MyStar / Foxtel and can
record live TV, I was anxious to get home and watch the Bombers thrash the
Pies!
And they
did, you beauty!
· We had had a fabulous day out on
the water.
· Only 15 minutes’ drive from home.
· In comfort and safety of a pretty
little, much maligned waterway
· We had landed 8 barra, a cuda and
a jack (well its almost a jack ha ha)
· Launched / retrieved at the
magnificent new pontoon / ramp on the highway bridge
· Washed the boat down
· Drove home and sat down with a
cold beer to watch the footy
NOW
THAT'S A GREAT DAY!
Catch you
on the water!
Regards,
Les
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