NT Fishing Report

With Alex Julius         17 March 2011

It’s Saturday, and after the AFANT AGM tomorrow, I’ll be going remote for a few days on a fishing trip that was planned early last year.

As we all know, the big Wet this year has hung on in earnest longer than normal. Typically, the Run-off is well under way by mid-March, but every few years the Wet lingers, or reinvents itself.

So there’ll be no reports this week, although I expect the going will again have been tough this weekend – given that it is still raining and the rivers are more likely rising than falling.

However, I am prepared to make a prediction based on past years, and that is that the coastal creek mouths in Chambers Bay will go ballistic with big barra from Sunday 20 March to Wednesday 23 March.

The reason is that these four days coincide with the peak spring tides, and these particular springs are exceptionally high.

To the advantage of anglers intent on having a shot at a big barra session during these big tides is that they fall about an hour and a half later in Chambers Bay than they do in Darwin Harbour, so you’re looking at roughly an 8.00am high tide on the Sunday and roughly a 10am high by the following Wednesday.

Mind you, for a day trip, you’ll still need to get going in the early dark hours of the morning, allowing two hours to get to Shady Camp and another two or more hours to launch, then motor down the river and along the coast to your chosen creek.

Even those overnighting at Point Stuart Wilderness Lodge will make sure they’re at the Shady Camp boat landing by 5.00am, thus giving themselves a good shot at securing a prime spot to fish through the high tide.
Those with the biggest head start will be the well-organised fishos on the various motherships and the floating hotel at the mouth of the Mary.

On the motherships, it will mainly be professional fishing guides, and you’ll be doing well to beat them to a spot.

Good luck on that one!

Now, on something totally non-barra-related, entries for the inaugural Dundee Beach-based 2011 XXXX Gold Billfish Tournament are now being accepted.

As reported last year when the Dundee Beach venue was first announced, the tournament dates have been moved forward to the 28-30 May.

According to host Darwin Game Fishing Club Tournament Organiser, Peter Dienhoff: “This is to conicide with the ‘run’ of billfish which has been happening over the last three years off Dundee Beach; hence the competition will be run from Dundee Lodge with Billfish Base at the Lodge.”

You might remember that, after reporting almost weekly on the amazing run of sailfish, as well as some marlin, in April/May last year, I wrote:

“Bloody hell, will one of our gamefishing clubs please get a dedicated billfish tournament happening from Dundee?

Obviously, neap tides early in May would be the go, but that would clash with the big Daly River barra tournaments for sure. But maybe late May or even early June would work.

There are increasing numbers of anglers getting out there and giving the billies a go, and I’m sure the response would be huge; not to mention the potential numbers of sails and marlin that would be tagged and released.

Given how the Broome sailfish scene took off, and how many charter boats operate successfully because of it, I can just see a small fleet of gameboats moored at Dundee and working through the dry season.

The weather, of course, would be the problem, but Broome gets its share of rough days too, as do the billfish waters out from Cairns in north Queensland. Anyway, there’s a thought.”

As it turned out, Peter and others in the Darwin Game Fishing Club had been discussing this very concept, and I think it’s going to be a wonderful catalyst for growth in the Darwin game fishery.

“With our record wet season rains pushing nutrients out of Bynoe Harbour, Finniss River and Anson Bay, I believe the tournament is shaping up to be a cracker,” Peter said.

“It is quite possible at that time of the year for competitors to expect up to 10 tags a day per boat.

“My personal records over the last 3 years for that area have been mind-boggling (74 raised in two and half days fishing, plus other captures of 12 sails in a day).

“This tournament has the potential to really put Darwin on the map for billfish anglers. The dates do not clash with any other billfish tournament in Australia and will bring a boost to the local economy with the different type of tackle required, accommodation etc,” Peter continued.

“All going well, we hope to gain some Australia-wide exposure and encourage anglers from interstate to compete over the next few years.

“This will allow anglers to travel from interstate and fish our fantasic Run-off for barra and also take in the tournament while in Darwin and thus get stuck into the billfish all in one trip - it doesn’t get much better than this!” Pete explained.

For further information, email or go to the club’s website www.darwingamefishingclub.com.au.

Wayne Francis (left) and Dean Shaw with a quality sailfish landed in a frenzied session wide of Dundee Beach at the end of April last year.

Natalie and Josh Kerr with Natalie’s sailfish caught in May last year.