Bag a Barra — 18 February 2022

It's time to head to the Top End and Baga Barra. With Glenn Watty Watts. Thanks to Shimano. Remember to buy local and fish local, visit Shimanofish.com.au.

Well, he's our version of Crocodile Nundee, this bloke. He's just everywhere up in the Top End. He knows what's going on. He's got his ear to the ground.

He knows what time each pub closes, like, you know, not the official clothes, but you know, when they say last drinks. He knows that you know, might get another 15 or 20 minutes out of him, so he'll leave one pub and dart to the next one and get that last few minutes in. And amongst all of that, he gets around and he checks out all the fishing spots, he spends a fair bit of time doing that, and this week. He's been setting up a base camp on the Daly River.

How good would that be? Let's find out what he what's happening, son? Yeah, g'day, duck. you right.

Yeah, man. I've always been a big fan of the old lock-in too, you know, when you're sweet enough with the barman that they'll just close the door. That's when the real party starts. The lock in.

I don't know whether the lock-in's still happening around here at pubs. I mean, I think, but it is the Northern territory. When you're sweet enough with the barman, the publican. Ain't it good when you're sweet with the public and how good is life?

And anyone listening to me, are you, you know, out there who, you know, don't mind going to a pub or you got your regular pub that you had, do you? You know, it's, uh, your local, when you're sweet with the publican. Geez, it makes a difference, doesn't it? Makes life easy.

That's what I used to do, mate. When I did a lot of travelling around in me, earlier days and every new town, I'd go to, I'd go and introduce myself to the coppers and the public and 1st up, and you're off on the right foot. So the, well, what did they say? Would they?

I mean, you introduce us to introduce you off to the coppers? What were you expecting to get into trouble? No, just keep yourself out of trouble. Yeah, you never know when you might need them.

No, fair enough. No, I just, that's a good one. introducing to the introducing yourself to the publican is isn't a bad one. But yeah, I've got to agree with you, mate.

When you're sweet with the public and I'm sure plenty of people out there listening are. It's just, you just get a rails run, don't you? You know, you turn up and you just, oh, you know, what do you, hey, pal, your beers on the bar. They know what you drink.

They look after you and then, yeah, it's just, you know, you might ring up. Look, you know, I've got the bride coming down for a feed tonight, you just hold a table for me, all that sort of stuff. I reckon you are right. and I'm tipping you be sweet with a few publicans up there, they'd all know you pretty well, wouldn't they?

Yeah, that's right. Oh, they're all friendly bunch up here, mate. It's easy to be sweet with them. You're talking about the Daly River.

I got in pretty good with old mate who owes the Daly Waters pub. How good is that? Yeah. Yeah, it's a good joint to be friends with the publicans for sure. Have you met him?

He rows around that, he rides around on that scooter thing with the wide load sign on the back. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He's he's a great. can't think of his name.

Great bloke. And he actually shouted me one of those steak and barra feed. you had that there? Yeah, I did years ago.

Last time I went through there. How good is it? The barbeque steak and barra. Yeah, it's a good one.

If you're going up there, it's a great pub, great campground, and then you've got 2 big gardens. We got the outs, you got the undercover beer garden, but then you got the outdoor beer garden with 2 inground swimming pools. How good's that? Yeah, she's grouse.

She is, mate. She's one of my favourite pubs. Now, you've set up base camp down there in the Daly River. See, she fishing?

What's happening? Yeah, that's right. yep, It is fishing.

I haven't been out just yet, but report from yesterday, 20 fish, 30 fish, 40 fish from different boats. So pretty excited to get amongst them myself. Yeah, yeah, that's right. Remember there, a week or 2 ago, we spoke about how high the river has been, up above 10 metres over the crossing.

It's dropped back right now to a touchover 4 metres, and yeah, that's sort of a bit of a magic mark. It's when all the billabongs start blowing back out into the main system and then uh, you know, brings that, brings that bait out with them and and all the fish start congregating around the mouths of the creeks and the snags associated with them within 100 metres either side and that's when you can really start to have your, your real good runoff fishing, which is really exciting for us as the 1st day kicks off on Monday. How good is it? So when the, so basically when the waters, like the wet season starts to drop off, is it, is it dropped off yet or is it still, I know, I know that you sent me a video the other day, when I've been that flood out here, you sent me a video of pouring at your place, how is it?

Are there still is there still a bit of rain around and storms at night or are they starting to drop off a bit? Yeah, no, still around? We're into a bit of a monsoonal break period at the moment, so you're not getting much rain during the day, um, but still getting uh, sort of evening storms, say they start at dark time and you might get them right through every now and then through the night and then daytime's been sort of sunny in blue skies. um which is why the rivers start to drop is not getting that constant rain in this, in the catchment.

Uh, and it's, yeah, we will, we would expect it to get another sort of week or so, pretty solid, more continuous rain. Uh, probably, yeah, this last week of February or maybe early March, but um, it will start to paper off now and and water levels will start to drop and really bring that season, sort of kick, kick the season into gear. If so, once that happens and the water levels do start to drop, and as you say, you know, the billabongs and all that wash back in, and so is it change, it actually changes your conditions and what you catch, and there's more, there seem to be more about because of the fact that you've got, you know, they've got a bit of feeding, you know, a bit of feeding there, in light of those waters? Is it different like fishing now and over the next few weeks and it is saying 2 months time?

Yep, definitely. So, yeah, right now is, um, is like we say, the rivers is starting to drop and that, that just, um, I guess it aggregates the bait into smaller areas or certain areas, um, which just, uh, condenses where the fish, um, sort of hanging out, of course, because they follow the tucker around. Remembering that there's been a heap of water up in the floodplains since early December and even before that with some storms and all, you know, frogs and all the fish and lizards and all the other critters, yabbies and cherubin and this sort of thing are all being breeding up for the last few months. Um, and then as that water starts to recede, they sort of get forced off, the floodplains back into the main system, and then, you know, with the concentration of Tucker, you'll get a concentration of fish.

So, um, it, it really does become sort of probably the easiest time of the year to catch good numbers, the Barra. But then again, in a couple of months time, say by by the end of May or by May, um, it's, uh, largely has ran out, um, and then all the fish will be back in the main river system proper, um, and it fishes a different way again, and, and then at the end of May, you'll get a cold bit of weather, and that, and that changes their behaviour again as we go into that dry season pattern. So, yeah. For those of you... No, no, no, no, no, for those of you listening to us on Flow FM and in, you know, Kicks Country radio and network stations and people on podcasts in the southern part of the country, that colder weather he's talking about is 34 degrees. I remember when I was up there.

I mean, seriously, you can rub it in, mate. I mean, I remember when I was up there, and we were talking to the your beautiful other half, the long suffering Louise, and I think she was giving us a bit of a bit of a knockdown to where to sneak our car in and park at Litchfield, and she said, when you get in there, just watch it. You know, the water's a bit cold. this time of year.

And, you know, it's a bit chilly and I don't swim there because it's too cold. mate. It was absolutely beautiful. It's got to be bloody warm as a warm bath for me to dive in anywhere like that.

It was unbelievable. Well, you're just too acclimatised, mate. I'm telling you. Yeah, that's right.

You've got the old... We got the oldies up here at the moment from Mexico and they're struggling a little bit with the heat. Yeah, that's for sure. Oh, the humidity.

It actually gets hotter down in Vic than it does up here this time of year, but it's much drier heat and you got to keep the water into your up here. The old man's used to only drinking coffees and VBs. So you've got to keep reminding them to get into the water. Sounds like my old man who's not around anymore.

Great bloke. You would have liked him, but he loved his coffees and he certainly loved his VBs, let me tell you. And I remember. It's a long story, but we were out one day and my cousin with me, what are you? It was a bit of a family day out anyway, we'd run out of beer as you do.

So the old man's produced a warm case of VB Keynes from the boot of the cage. This is the best I can muster. And they weren't good, mate, but we still drank them, eh? Yeah, much better if they come off the icy cold essence.

Oh, mate. Oh, but anyway, yeah, you'd know the difference for sure. the humidity up there. Well, it's great, mate.

So you've got the base camp. So, just quickly, how long will the base camp run for? You could use, you're not living down there. You base yourself down there for a few days, duck back game charger, batteries, do what you do, go back and you've got different tour groups or different customers, meeting you there or travelling down with you there and you're getting them out and giving them that full daily water experience.

Is that right? How long, how long is the base CFO? How long are you there? I'll be down there on weekdays, right through till the end of April.

Yep. Uh, and then from there, I'll actually move camp over to Dundee Beach and set up there for a couple of months as well as we get into that, the wet, like I say, the weather changes and we can, we get into that um, sort of mixed fishing with the bar and blue water stuff. But yeah, I'll be there 5 days a week until the last week of April starting Monday. Which would be nice. I bet you're looking forward to that.

Very excited. Yeah, it's going to, Cracker is set up for the fishing season, and of course, with all the travel restrictions and dramas we've had the last couple of years, it's going to be really fun to just get back out on the water with all my good clients and stuff that I haven't seen for, you know, some of them for a couple of years because of interruption. So yeah, everyone's really excited to be good. Do you get a lot of repeat business, like regulars, who come up like every year, every 2 years?

Yeah, yeah, definitely. Most of the guys, in fact, every, every trip I've got booked for runoff, I think, 17 groups is, um, they're all guys that have fished with me before. And, um, yeah, obviously haven't got to know me well enough to figure out there's other people that they could go. We don't tell people about them. I mean, I know they're all good blokes and them mates yours, but we just don't tell them about them here, anybody you've been here.

Yeah, yeah, okay. Look, we look after you. We look after our man, our own croc Dundee, so you're rich. It is just like fishing with your mates only. These blokes are actually chipping in for fuel and paying their way, whereas you most, you know, they jump on the base, breaking these gear, usually, fuel, and then say, see you later at the end of the day.

Yeah, that's it. The only thing that's in comedy is you've got to wash all the boat and clean everything up, but they're actually chipping in. exactly right. And look, if you are one of those people.

in that 17 groups that are going up there, don't be late, OK? Not even a few minutes. Don't be late, mate. You will not live it down. I mean, the best part was, I copped it for being late. And then we had to sit around waiting for the joint to open up to get our breakfast.

I mean, it didn't really matter. I mean, it just meant we waited there less time. But I couldn't tell my mate, Watty, that. You're a good man, mate.

You enjoy and mate, and we'll catch up with you next week and see what you've caught and how it's all fairing up there, mate. in a great part of the world, one of my favourites spots anyway. And I'm sure you'll do very, very well, like you say, it's been a pretty tough couple of years with COVID and travel restrictions and border closures. Let's hope we get back to some normality this year.

You've got a full year booked, which is fantastic for you, mate, and I'm sure we'll find out more about what's been doing over the next week when we talk to you next week, if we can get hold of you, okay? Absolutely mate. Thank you very much. Good on you mate.

There he is, that is Glenn. What do you want? Barefoot Fishing Safaris. Check him out?

mate, you might want to just see, you might get a cancellation or something. Go on the website. Barefoot Fishing Safaris.com.au or check out the Facebook page of the same name, which of course is Barefoot Fishing Safaris. Great name as well, and a great bloke and certainly does know how to help you catch that elusive Barramundi, which everybody seems to want to do.

And I've got to tell you, I absolutely have no idea about this stuff when it comes to catching Barron Mundy's and even Fish on Lewis, to be honest, but I was in the boat with Watty for about an hour and next thing you know, I had one on the hook and in the boat, which was pretty good, and you can, you 2 can experience that just by going to that website. barefootfishingsafaris.com.au and follow him on Facebook. He's posting videos and photos, all of the time, Barefoot Fishing Safaris, Facebook page, and some educational stuff there for you as well.