Bag a Barra — 11 July 2025

It's time now to head to the Top End and Bagabara, with Glenn Watty Watt, thanks to Barefoot Fishing Safaris and uniden. For the best in UHF communications, explore the extract series at uniden.com.au. Oh, our man, Watty. How are you, son? I'm pretty good, mate.

It's hard to complain up here at the moment. I'm sure it is. I'm sure it is, mate. And obviously, you've been doing it very tough up there because they tell me that basically the place is bulging at the seams at the moment with tourists.

I mean, I couldn't believe, well, I think I mentioned this to you last week. heading south, Vane, Vane, Vane, Vane, Vane, just going past us. Heading north. Is there any room up there or what's happened?

What a hell of a lot of room, mate. No, um, yeah, everywhere you go. Of course, it's school holidays up here at the moment too, actually in the last weekend now. So you got all the locals coming out as well as everyone in their vans and flying up as well.

So, yeah, everything's pretty packed. I've got mates that have been out in Kakadu there and and Catherine as well. We were looking at booking a room down in Catherine, they're pretty hard to fall into bed down there for the weekend, so, um, yeah, it's all happening, which is, you know, and that's great that everyone's back on the road, and, um, what do we have, Gunlon Falls, reopened again out in Kakadu after being closed for, on the 4 or 5 years there. So, that's another, another event that's happened as well. Oh, what a great job, mate, just bought another buddy, 10,000 acres or something out in Litchfield, that they're going to open up another heap of spots too.

So, I might actually be a lot more country than that too. But yeah, so, you know, it's all, it's all going good, more spots being opened up, and, and of course, um, yeah, like this dry season weather, it's just beautiful for getting out, having a bit of a fish or a camp. The Northern Territory do it better than most. I've got to say to you, WA and the Northern Territory certainly know how to cater for the RVs, the caravaners, they certainly do a great job.

That's good news about Conlon Falls opening back up. And for people that want to know what that is, it's the bottom end of Kakadu, which basically where, if you watch the movie Crocodile Dundee, where he's spearfishing in that water. That's Scotland Falls, and it looks basically the same. I mean, I called and looked at it a few years ago.

I couldn't believe it. Great spot. Yeah, right. Great spot.

And it's been, it was closed for a while, and then it was almost due to be open again, and then we had that late rain in April whenever that was, and that sort of washed away a heap of the work, they'd almost completed. So, anyway, it's been open for a week or so now, so that sort of, I mean, that spreads everyone out a bit and sort of maintains that serenity that you're going for when you go camping out in one of those areas. So yeah, that's great news. And you can swim there, too, can't you?

Yeah, you can swim there. That's all open. There was one the other day that was, oh, not here. One of the Litchfield waterholes is closed at the moment, but they're all pretty well signed and you can get on, you know, you search it up on Facebook and stuff and point out, of course, the tourist info centres will know updated.

It probably, it does pay to check because they do get closed from time to time because of a croc siding or a fence needs renovating or whatever it is. So, before you make the effort to burn out there for the day, um, does, does hurt, uh, or does help to just double check. Yeah, absolutely. Now, what's biting, mate?

How the fishing? Mate, it's going really well. Remember, I was saying it was a bit cold and windy there last week. It's actually, we've had pretty good weather conditions up here this week.

The wind's dropped right out to that sort of, you know, just a gentle southeasterly and then a bit of a glass off with them, incoming or onshore winds in the afternoon. So it makes it really good for getting out chasing those tuna and mackerel that are out in the front of the harbours and off Dundee, as well as keeping the water clean, up inside the mounts of the big rivers and stuff. So, yeah, it's all happening, mate. It's actually pretty cool to go and sit down on somewhere like Stokes Hill wharf at the moment when the harbour looks nice and flat and beautiful and see everyone burning around out in the boat, having a good time and enjoying it.

Yeah, absolutely, mate. Sounds fantastic, mate. And I've, mate, I've got to say to you, I was very sad when I left there, the territory. Oh, no, we just passed through on the way back.

Bring a tear to my glass eyes. I drove over the border into Queensland body. That's right. It's a shame you can't. Shame you don't have the ability to work remote, mate.

Otherwise, you might be able to slab. What do you mean, work? What do you mean, work? What have you been working for a mate? I been working with mate for the last 2 months.

We're at a campground now. But no, we had to get back, mate. commitment, aren't you? Too many commitments, we've got a big one with Blue Lagoon Beach Resort, which people are coming camping with.

It's just on that. If you want to come camping with us. Blue Lagoon Beach Resort, August one through to the 3rd, come camp with us. We've locked, we've locked in, Cyclone Rose is the live entertainment.

We've got fire going. We've got the combi keg with the beers and the cocktails flowing, pizza truck, 3 days of fun. Come and see us and camp with us, blue Lagoonbeet resort.com.au. Keep on the beach for our winter camp out there on the central coast of New South Wales.

I wish you could be there, Watty. Yeah, how good. You did that last year too, didn't you? Yeah, that's right.

I can tell you, until you now, spots are going faster than a Stalin Commodore at the moment. Mate, they've probably, have you been there since last year? They might have fenced off a special little duck arena down there, so you don't cause time with all the regulars. They fence off a duck area every 6 weeks at Christmas, mate.

I'm always there. I love it. It's a great spot. I'm vegetables, like a zoo.

It's like, oh, what's they put in a petting zoo here. Oh, that's just the duck. Caged. Duck fence.

Got a pen around him. All right, Watty. Well, the fish are boarding. It's all happening.

The weather's good. The place is jumping. Darwin, the Top End. It doesn't get any better than that.

I love it there. You're lucky, man. That's right mate. Yeah, yeah.

And we're getting some good reports from our groups over in New Guinea too, at both lodges. So it's all happening. I like being a bit of a keeping me finger on the pulse of what's bite and wear all over the world. It's a pretty interesting part of the job, isn't it?

That's why you're on this show. What are your wealth of knowledge, son? Useful to someone, not to others. That's it, mate.

All right. Well, chat to you next week, eh? Good on you, mate. We'll do that.

There he is. That's Wadi up in the Top End, the big Top End report, my favourite part of Australia, the Northern Territory. We live there tomorrow. I absolutely love it.

And what he is a very lucky man, trust me. It is a great way of life in the northern territory. and if you want to get up there and experience some of it for yourself. Don't let the grass grind your feet.

Get up there and you, as Mount Leylan used to say to me, you're not any younger than you are now. What are you waiting for? So get up there, check out what he goes, well, if you want to go fishing Barefoot Fishing Safaris. Check out the website, check out the social media pages.

If you want to take fishing to another level, check out angling adventures. He breathes this stuff. He loves it. He's the best in the business.

Barefoot Fishing Safaris in the Top End, and get out and bag yourself a barrel with our man, Watty.