Bag a Barra — 14 June 2024

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

Well, before we get out of here, we better talk to our man Watty in the Top End because he's had a mate of mine out, one of the partners of Oz off Road on Corrobory Billabong. Did he survive hanging around with you for the day? Did he? What did he? Mate, I was actually wondering how such a mild mannered, upstanding citizen, like James, he got ripped up with a bloke like you all day, but anyway, um, didn't discover that, and you've got him, he got the wool pulled over his eyes somehow there, I suppose.

But yeah, we had a good day, mate, caught some fish and a couple of beers at the Humpty Dee pub on the way home. So that's the way we roll, of course. So you brought him down to our level, took him to the Humpty-Doo, got him on the terps. Yeah, that's right.

I'll give it a shot, but yeah, I don't know. He wouldn't want to go too hard, flying himself around like he is. So anyway, that's good. Yeah, he's a good man, man.

He wanted to go fishing up there and I said, nah, you need to talk to my man, Watty, and he'll take you out to my favourite spot anyway, which is corrobory Bill along. and they got a couple of Barr and some Saratoga. So they're biting, although the water's cold. you mentioned that I remember, I don't think I might have told you.

I think it was last year, we went to a Barramundi farm up at Mission Beach, and we thought, you little beauty, we're going to catch a 100 of the things here, but because it was a cold day, which was very unseasonal for Mission Beach. We got nothing They hide in the cold. The barrman.

Yeah, it does happen, mate. Yeah, and more so, just when you get a sudden drop, um, like we did, we have discussed it before, but once they, um, once that sort of settles down, um, you know, they'll realise that, oh, well, it's winter time and um, we've got to get back into it again. But, um, yeah, it's that 1st sudden drop that, um, sends them a bit cranky, a bit, bit like us, mate. We had a couple of nights under 15 here at home and we all hiding don't want to do anything.

So yeah, it's pretty similar. Well, where did you have that one? Just recent, under 15 at night. Oh, yeah, well, we're at the, we actually camped down the Daly for 3 nights there last weekend and it was like 11, 10 degrees every night.

bloody freezing cold for us. You know, it's a it's a common thing. It happens this time of year every year. So, yeah.

That's incredible considering it's, you know, we are in blue collarville on the Hawkesbury. It's been that sort of weather at night, nine, 10 degrees. So that's, but I can say one thing. It hasn't been 30 during the day either.

It's got to about 70. No, that's right. Yeah, I mean, it's back up to 28 by sort of 9 o'clock. How good is it?

Maybe by the middle of the day, nice and dry. So, like it's actually perfect, camping weather, because you can sort of snuggle in with the lioness of an evening and then chuck the footy shorts on in the morning, off you go again, you know? Yeah, yeah, sounds good, mate. and no wonder plenty of people hitting that way.

You're seeing many up there, mate. Like, I mean, there's mixed, mixed, mixed feedback coming here where people say it's a bit quiet, others say it's full noise. Danny seems to tell us plenty of people hitting with a cake. What are you seeing the Top End?

Is it just normal? N numbers? Yeah, it's hard for me to judge too much of, I suppose, about that general tourism, because I'm not in the city too much, but definitely, you know, corroborate tab and humpty-doo, and all those sort of bush pubs and and the places that I swing past, they're chock a block at every lunchtime and there's tour buses everywhere and plenty and plenty of caravans. So, yeah, I think it's, um, it's starting to get going a bit now, but it probably is running a little bit later than normal perhaps. People sitting in your seat at the pub. you know, being walked in his, you know, oh, he's a good stool.

Look at the position. Look where this stool is. This is the best seat. Watty Stool.

That's right. Yeah, no, they get moved out of there pretty quickly. I reckon they would do. Now, I think this school holidays, it'll be, it'll crank up and that'll be, you know, should be back to normal again, of course.

So we've got cracking night coming up in a few weeks, so that's always the big one. Oh, cracker night. How good is it? You got to love the northern territory.

Cracker night. Now, before we let you go, you're off to New Guinea fishing next week. We're going to try and get you in New Guinea. We've done that before.

And so we'll try and get you again. So you'll be over there. What's it, just a bit of a trip, bit of a tour for customers? Oh, I'm just going over.

Yeah. The 1st I'm over there for 3 weeks for a start and that's just to keep an eye on things and make sure all the maintenance and stuff we did on the boats earlier this year. Um, sort of does what we needed to do and just make sure the lodges are are running to sort of as best as they can be, which they're beautiful places, but they only get used sort of during tourist seasons. So, um, it doesn't hurt to, to be there and just make sure it's all ticking along nicely, and, and of course, I'll, I'll probably get to have a fish and meet some of our awesome clients.

A lot of these guys that are going on these trips of guys that I've guided up here in the Top End as well. So, it's good to be able to catch up with them in perhaps a bit more relaxed environment where I'm not so much on the job and and then I'll come back for a week and then back for 2 weeks of um, actually fishing, having a bit of fun um, with my, my mates and and my groups um, over there sort of towards the end of July. So yeah, I'm actually getting all organised now. I heading to head to Cairns in a couple of days and then off we go.

Fantastic, mate. All right. Well, you better send us a number so we can get hold of you over there and we'll have a chat to you next week, eh? Yeah, yeah, that'll be awesome.

We'll definitely be able to do that, is good phone service all around there. I'll be able to share a few videos and pizz and stuff of, of the beauty of sort of remote um New Guinea, which um, so, you know, a lot of people, it's not even on their radar, but once you see it, it becomes um, something to tick off the bucket list. So yeah, we're really lucky to be able to spend a bit of time there. All right, got a fly, mate. We'll talk to you from there next week.

Righto, mate. Look forward to it. There he is. That's Glenn Watt.

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