Bag a Barra — 19 December 2025

It's time now to head to the Top End and Bagger Barra, 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. Well, we normally get him up in the Top End. But, as you know, if you've been a regular listener to this show, and there are a few of you who listen all the time, I know, my mate, Chris, out there, at CGU surgery, in Richmond, New South Wales, Chris, the boot man, we call him, he's the R.M. Williams, boot repairer out there. Plus he's got a pretty good store there as well.

I know he tunes in every week. He just gets the podcast as soon as it goes live and tunes in while he's hammering away at boot heels and stuff. But you'll know that each year, what he heads to the farm in Victoria. And, you know, he normally flies down 1st class and all of that.

It's obviously been a tough year this year because he's on the train. Watty? have you been in the have you been in the driver's seat yet? No, I'm just about to go down, see if I can grab myself with a beer and a pie, and then I might be my shift to salvo, I reckon, up in the driver's seat.

I think you could still do that. I know you're not allowed to do that in planes anymore for obvious reasons. But I think on a train, you can still do it, can't you? you know, maybe I'll go and hit them up.

Yeah. Good idea them up. I reckon thing for the kids do, yeah. Oh, absolutely. I mean, look, I can tell you.

I don't travel trains too often, I will say. But the last time I was on a train, I went to a function, this was years ago, this would be 10 years ago. And anyway, in Sydney. Anyway, so I got a, I did the complete public transport thing.

I got the river cat from the harbour back to Parramatta, walked up to Parramatta Station and then got a train all the way out here, the Blue Goliville, and I've got to say to you, at night, after you've had a skinful, it was an experience. But I reckon on a train. I mean, I'll tell you what I'd love to do one day, the Indian Pacific. Yeah, that's right, mate.

Yeah, I mean, we're sort of doing, um, I guess that last part of that part of the leg from that, that would be the Indian Pacific, from Adelaide to the, um, to the east towards Melbourne. Now we're jumping off in Horsham in a couple of hours and just about to go across the border here, but it is a beautiful little run. You sort of wind your way up out of Adelaide through the hills and then through a bit of nice wine country and then, of course, now we're in this big broad acre cropping country as well and everyone's going pretty hard on the headers and that sort of stuff. It's, yeah, you just watch everything and go past, mate, and someone else does the steering and, and then it's only a 45 minute run down to Balmoral from Horsham when, um, when we arrive there in a couple of hours time.

So it's an easy, it's an easy way for us to get from Adelaide to the farm. So how did you get to Adelaide? Flu. Flew down, mate.

Yeah, that's right. And then we had a couple of days in Adelaide, which was cool. We went and checked out one day, the test cricket there and yeah, a few other things. Of course, Louise is from Adelaide originally.

So we've got a lot of family and friends and stuff down there, so we do that. and that was really nice. We had some good weather there too. We're down right on the beach there and um, caravan parks are all chocker block and Adelaide's really humming with that cricket on, so that was really good. Yeah, well, and just on, you know, the lovely Louise's family.

I mean, how have they taken to the fact that, you know, you're now part of the deal? Well, I don't know, mate. I haven't, I don't quiz them that deeply about it. I suppose they keep turning up to the barbeque, so that's, and I keep getting invited, so it must be on the right track there at least partially.

Mm, I reckon. Yeah, I'm just wondering. I mean, that'd be big, would it? I mean, just imagine, you know, you know, look, I've got a new

I've got a new bloke. bringing home and lock on the door and he's Watty. So what train are you on? You said you're going to get a beer and a pie.

So what, you can do that on the train? Yeah, yeah, we're on the Overlander that goes all the way to Melbourne from Adelaide. I think it does it a couple of times a week and yeah, they had a Brekie on the go with some coffees and croissants and stuff this morning and then, yeah, shouldn't be too far away for a beer and a pie. I reckon that's what they had last time, so I'm about to wander down there.

So when you say wander down there, was there a bit of a bar car, bar car, is there? Yeah, there's 2 there's 2 of them, actually, because it's a chocolate block for Christmas time, they banged another one on, they reckon. So, yeah. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

When they went through the passenger list. And they saw that you were on it. They've gone, hang on a minute. We might struggle.

This could be a bit of a strain here. We better put on another bar car. I might put a VV card on your... Oh, VP, come on.

It'd probably be a South Australian beer, I suppose. Western, isn't it? It might be something like that. go and drown a couple of them, yeah.

Are you a VB, man? I think you're right. thought you were a northern? I suppose it depends where you are.

Oh, no, I like the Carlton beers, mate, VB, Melbourne, Carlton draft, that sort of stuff generally. Yeah. I don't want a Carlton draft on tap, I will say. And and I've got to say to you that, you know, I mean, I'm a, you know, if anyone, look, I don't want, look, if, yeah, Queensland listeners, just block your ears.

Oh, hang on, this is an answer. I mean, too easy, I mean, I am a too easy new man, but I'll tell you what, I don't mind. is the bush chooks. The Emu exports.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, that's right. That's sort of the West Australian version of the old VB. Yeah, don't give you a bad drop, mate.

Careful, the old bush took. What was that? They can bite you. So I'll give you a bit of a touchup if you're not careful. The same as West End.

Oh, yeah, I probably have had a West End, probably especially when we did Adelaide. I know what it is. I mean, we're down there for Adelaide four-wheel drive show. I've probably had one, but I've got to say to you, I am partial to a bush chalk. I don't mind those MU exports and you can get them here. The local bottle I here has them.

Yeah, there'll be a few special people around there that are bloody down a few this time of year, especially. They could give you a touch up. How good is it? But it is good.

I mean, I bet the other passengers on the plane on the plane, on the train. They'd be rapped to go, well, obviously we've got a, we've got a seasoned drinker here. Thank God for him. We got an extra bar car.

Enjoy a couple of coldies on the way down from Adelaide. Is there a lot of people on the train? I suppose he stacks of people travelling now? No, she's chock a block, for sure.

Yep. And we all got allocated seats and they were very clear that you weren't allowed to move around too much. So I mean, everyone, because they stop it, they stop it half a dozen spots on the way too, pick up and drop off a few. So, yeah, it's a bloody good little thing and it's not too, it's pretty cheap and it takes about the same amount of time to, um, jump the train as it does to drive from Adelaide to our joints.

So, you know, if you can do it and we spin the seat around and play a bit of cards and stuff with the kids as we go and yeah, it's a nice relaxing sort of part of the holiday. It's great. Yeah, no good stuff, mate. That's fantastic.

And then on the farm and you'd just be kicking back there with family and having a bit of fun, I guess. Yeah, we're going to go and try and wrangle a few yabbies pretty much as soon as we get in and then I've got the big contract on the old man and mum are away overseas for a wedding for a few days. I've got to go and wrangle a pig and get him in the cool room so that we can have our boxing day pig on to spit like we do traditionally at our place. All the neighbours come around and that and bit of a carry on while we watch the cricket.

I'm in charge of, buddy, getting that pig hung up in the next couple of days. I've got to get onto that as soon as I get home. All right. Well, it sounds big, mate.

All right, Watty. Well, listen, I just wanted to thank you, mate, for another big year and being a part of our show. It's been fantastic, and you've certainly taken us to some good spots, and this year we were lucky enough, thanks to Elon Musk and Starlink. Not that he knows who we are, but certainly we've been able to talk to you.

Um, you know, in some good spots. I mean, even a few weeks ago. Oh, well, I mean, a few weeks ago when you're at West Harnland on a boat and we can get you clear as a bell. I mean, it doesn't get any better than that.

Done there a couple of times and then right down the mouth of the Adelaide South Alligator River and Kakadu earlier in the year. That's right. It's, oh, man, it's bloody good that we can do it. and I get the same enjoyment out of listening to everyone else, I'm all around the traps, mate, too. So, yeah, it's a great show.

Well done. Yeah, part of it. No, no, mate. And I just think it becomes a bit more authentic when we even when we take the show on the road, ourselves when we're out filming and working.

We take the, you know, we're doing the show from places like on the Nullibo or in the, you know, in the northern territory. Some places where we've done this show from, you're out there, you know, and you describe what you're seeing. It makes it a bit more fair to income. We're not in a studio all the time.

In fact, we're never in a proper radio studio. We just didn't, either in my studio in Blue Collarville or, which is, or where I can look out the window of my studio and see the jet skis and then behind the wall out there, there's a little outback bar and, you know, so you think, well, this is, this is not a bad place to work. Oh, we're out there somewhere. And, you know, we've done the show from everywhere this year, but the fact that we can talk to you from the boat has been really good this year and you've been out on the water and you've, and we've heard people in the background catching fish whilst you've been on, it's been really good. Or right, mate, will you enjoy the train ride and just look, just go easy on the beers down at the bar car.

Is it, can you sit down there for a while or? Yeah, you can go and hang around down there, mate. We might take the music speaker down there so if we can get a bit of a party jumping and put the band on down there. Ah, how good is it? I've got to say, I think it would be good.

I've never I've never done it. I reckon I'd love to do the Indian pursuit. I would enjoy it. I reckon it's just... Yeah, I'd love it.

Everyone, yeah, it's really different to the plane. I notice that like everyone's chatting to whoever's sitting in front of them behind them beside them and they're all making friends and then, yeah, like it's just so relaxed. So we really enjoyed it. become a real tradition.

and part of our um sort of holidays down south every time we come down now, so it's great. Yeah, Indian Pacific, or the Gan, or the Gan, whichever, however you want to pronounce it. That'd be all right. That'd be all right, too.

That'd be all right too. But I don't know, just something about Indian Pacific. You know, like, one of my things I always wanted to do, and I've been very blessed in this job to get around Australia and, you know, do the over this year, we did the Gib River Road, and I've done, you know, Airs Rock, Ularoo, and we're going back there next year, actually, in Cape York. And I always say, the one thing that you want to do in this country is go and see Uluru, and look at it with your, you know, stand there and just take it in.

One of the other things I think would be one of those things I want to do is the ride on the Indian Pacific, the whole way. Yeah, that'd be a that'd be a good one, mate. It gives you real appreciation of how huge this joint is and and also how sparsely spread out everyone is too. Well, I've driven across, eh? I've got a lot of room between everyone.

Yeah, that's right. Yeah. It's different experience. Of course, when you're just sitting there glaring out the window rather than having to concentrate and drives.

It's much more enjoyable, I think. Oh, I think it'd just be something. It's an experience to say I've done it. I'd love to just, you know, I'd just like to say, you know what?

I've been on the in the Pacific. You did have a good bar car, wouldn't it? Yeah, it'd have to, mate, because that's a few nights on the train there, so you'd go to bed and everything if you were lucky, and yeah, you'd be able to settle right in. Well, no, mate, mate, no mistake, mate.

I'll be certainly doing that All right. Well, mate, Merry Christmas to you, the lovely Louisa, kids, and you enjoy the farm. We might try and jag in next week while you're down there, see how things are, how things are going.

That's right. As long as I don't have gout from eating to me, yeah. I'm a spit mate, we'll be right. Ha ha, you idiot. We're gonna give it a good stab, though.

Listen, that gout's not fun. Oh, I reckon there's probably a amount of blokes all over the country listen to us now going, I don't mention gout, not this story. He said told me hearing it. Yeah, all right. Merry Christmas.

Have a good one, mate. we'll catch you next week anyway, mate.