top of page

Alex's Column 22 December 2023

It’s still up in the air as to whether it’s going to be a wet Christmas.

The BOM website doesn’t forecast as far as Christmas Day, but other sites

show it will be hit or miss.

There should be some great fishing opportunities over the Christmas/New Year

period, subject of course to the weather.

I like this weekend’s tides as they move slowly towards a spring tide period.

It’ll be a bit windy for most of next week, but not so bad that venturing

offshore will be a problem for the larger trailer boats.

However, the week after, the forecast is for hardly any breeze at all.

Mind you, if a cyclone turns up, that forecast will fly straight out the door.

At the end of the day, what we really want is a fair dinkum rain depression

across the whole Top End.

Most of the big tidal rivers have a bit of fresh coming down, but it’s time now

for a decent flush and some floodplain flooding.

Fingers crossed this will happen.

………………………………………………………...................................................................................................................

If you were interviewed at a Darwin boat ramp over the last few weeks, it was

part of the NT Recreational Fishing Experience Survey.

This survey is supported by the Fisheries Research and Development

Corporation and conducted in collaboration with NT Fisheries.

It aims to delve deep into the experiences of recreational fishers to help inform

resource utilisation and measure fishery performance.

The survey, which is focused on barramundi fishing, has been taking place at

boat ramps and is also online.

It took me about 20 minutes to do the survey, and I can see where it is coming

from.

All recreational barramundi fishers are encouraged to participate.

According to AFANT CEO, David Ciavarolo, “The NT Recreational Fishing

Experience Survey is a unique opportunity for Territorians to be part of positive

change and to help inform the future management of NT fishing.

“If you love barramundi fishing in the NT, this is your chance to be a game-

changer – share your experiences and opinions and take the NT Recreational

Fishing Experience Survey online today.

“If you meet one of the friendly boat ramp survey team, be sure to take five

minutes to tell them about your day, as both the boat ramp surveys, and

online surveys are crucial components of the research.

“There are some great prizes on offer for people who participate in the survey

too, so thanks to Craig’s Fishing Warehouse and AFANT you could win – just for

sharing your views about the fishery you love,” David explained.

Kane Dysart from the NT Guided Fishing Industry Association said we really

want to know how satisfied anglers are with the quality of fishing on that

particular survey day, and how happy they are with Fisheries management.

“Hopefully, it will lead to establishing the effectiveness of Fisheries

management in interpreting and achieving proper satisfaction requirements.”

It’s something that I’ve believed in for years: just because a fishery can be

described as being sustainable in respect of population numbers, for many

anglers to enjoy catching fish – eg barramundi – there may well need to be a

lot more fish than simply meets the requirement of sustainability.

………………………………………………………...................................................................................................................

I wish you all a wonderful and safe Christmas and holiday season.

Go out there and get amongst them, weather permitting of course.

If you a catch a nice one or two, why not email a photo with full name to



Everyone has a secret spot and where Ryan Christophers caught this

72cm chrome-plated barra is staying secret.



Cruize Christophers, 9, with his 66cm barra from Spot X.



Comments


bottom of page