Bag a Barra — 1 May 2026

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. d.com.auu. Well, I've got to say that it doesn't get much better than this. I mean, we've got Wadi on his boat, Starlink turned on, all happening in the Top End, fishing.

You can go and do that with him, you know. You just got to go to Barefoot Fishing Safaris, and check out the website, check out his social media pages, and you can go fishing with Watty and go on his boat. I've got to say after being on it. of times myself, it's certainly an experience, well worth doing.

Watty, where do we find you, mate? What part of the beautiful Top End are you in today? Yeah, well, luckily enough today, Duck, I'm actually on a day off and I'm back out on the boat. We're at the top of the South Alligator River.

It's waiting for this high tide to turn. Hopefully, fish will start biting, and we'll be able to chuck a couple in the esky to take home for a feed tonight. That's when you know you've got a good job. When your job is, could you imagine, say, I guess people who wash cars on the weekend they wash their own. I guess on the weekend they probably wash their own car.

I used to say that mechanics drive the biggest heaps of junk ever. And car detailers drive the dirtiest cars, but your job fishing every day, talking fishing, breathing fishing on your day off. What do you do? You go fishing. Yeah, well that's right, mate.

I don't get much of a chance to actually have a go meself, and right now, the fishing's so good up here that you sort of got to make the effort when you get a chance, even though I'm only one day in between trips, but yeah, I can come out and have a fish with one of my good mates who's blasted out from Darwin for the morning, so we'll just we'll only be on the water for a few hours and have a bit of fun, talk some shit and a bit of a decompress and get ready for the next group. Okay, well, you can talk that if you like. I've got to say, I can't really bag you because for somebody who basically lives and breathes camping and caravaning and four-wheel driving, as soon as we get a bit of spare time, guess what we do? We do the same thing.

So I mean, anyway, we are very, very lucky. Yes, sir, the fishing's pretty amazing at the moment. Is that because of all the wet and the water and everything else that's been going on up there in the last few months? Yeah, that's right.

I mean, of course, we had a fairly record wet season up here, and then that gives everything a chance to build up the bait, and the environment sort of just gets really primed for when the water starts or stops raining, which we probably had our last reign for the until probably September the other day, I reckon. So, yeah, water temps up on the floodplains are nice and high and there's so much bait around that, yeah, right now, especially as we come into these big tides over the weekend, the fishing should really fire up on, well, all of these Top End rivers over this weekend and then into next week as well. So if I can get a chance for a couple of hours for myself to actually have one on the line, that's a good opportunity for me to have a bit of fun myself. And obviously stuck up the freezer.

Yeah, that's right. Timmy's going to take a few home back to Darn. We've got 4 in the SQ already on the ice. So another 2 and we'll have our bag limit for ourselves. And it's good for me, mate.

I don't take um, I don't really take any fish on the, on work days, of course, so it is nice to be able to have a um, feed a nice feed of salty barrow when we get back home with the kids on days off. Yep. And what about, how's the crocodile activity up there at the moment? I mean, they'd be, you know, I mean, all that big wet and all that water and, you know, everything that's been going on, which has brought the fish on, out of the crocs wreck, that they'd be everywhere, wouldn't they?

Yeah, we haven't, we're actually seeing too many right now, but this morning when we pushed up the river on the low tide, There was plenty of them around. And actually, one of the cool things about fishing the South Alligator River is that you get to see a lot of baby crocodiles on the edge on low tides as well. They're, of course, just their little miniature play version of their big scary mother and father and everyone loves having a look at them.

But there's actually a couple of really big ones that hang right in this area where I am now. And one of them, the other day, who'd be a 4 metre crock every day of the week, chased one of our fish, which is unusual for a crop that size. I'll give him a bit of a flogging with the land and I haven't seen him since. So hopefully he's going to stay away.

Hang on, hang on. You gave the crocodile a flogging with the landing net. Yeah. That'll do you.

That'll do me. I mean, fair, dear. I mean, you are the like, you know, the great warrior of the top ain't, I mean, I've got to say to you, this week on Oz Afraid TV, just on those offraid TV. You been watching it?

Come on, honestly, honestly. on YouTube, I'm there, for sure. No, no, no. Well, no, no. They're not on YouTube yet, but they will be.

on 9 and 9 now. But I can tell you this week, this week's episode, I'm actually feeding a crocodile. big one. Oh there you go.

I've got that over in Cananara or somewhere, wasn't it? No, that was it. Malcolm Douglas's crocodile farm, young Owen Douglas. And mate, I had the chick chicken on a stick with a fence about 2.5, 3 foot eye in front of me and me standing there while he's calling it.

I'm going to tell you now. Well, but I think if the crocodile bit me, it'd be turning its head around and licking something else to get the bad taste out of its mouth. So I think I'm safe. Yeah, my face.

So it's for people that just for people that don't know, because we broadcast all over Australia, East Alligator River, where is that? Yeah, we're actually on the South Alligator River at the moment. Sorry, sorry, the South. over the next few days, but South Alligator River is right in the heart of Kakadu. There's a big bridge that you drive over as you're going out to Jabberoo and all the waterfalls and stuff on the Arnham Highway and we're actually fishing upstream about 20 kilometres upstream of that bridge right now.

It runs another 90 odd kilometres downstream as well. So it's a huge river, a big system, and of course, you know, we're driving up here this morning, you've got all the beautiful bird life. There's a couple of big jabberoos nests right in the top of these trees and stuff. So, yeah, it's a spectacular place to work and sort of do what I do, but also a beautiful place to have a day off as well.

Yeah, absolutely. I'm talking about Kakadu. What about Carl's Crossing? I mean, that'd be starting to become a bit popular now, wouldn't it?

I mean, there'd be a fair bit of activity there with not only the crocodiles, but probably plenty of fish as well. Yeah, I mean, it certainly would be. We actually can't get there at the moment. The roads close that Majila Creek, which is a bit of a flat sort of area you've got to get to, got across on the road out to Kales, but I'm sort of hoping and predicting that it'll be open in the next few days. I've got some guides that really like fishing in that upstream section of the East Alligator, which is absolutely spectacular, of course.

And yeah, once that opens up, then another big benefit is, of course, that it spreads the load on every other river as well, so everyone can have a bit more room when they're out fishing. Yeah, no, absolutely, mate. All right. And what about, you got any other mail on what's happening around the traps?

Is it like the harbour or the Daly? Anything like that? Yeah, well, of course, the Daly is still in repair mode. They've got a bit of a mud army down there, digging out everything that's been covered by these big sandbars and mudbanks and stuff in that big flood.

There was a sandbar and they're still working on it. that's blocked the boat ramp at the Woolliana tourist park that was 2 stories high. They're 25 metres high, I think. So they're just still working to try and get everything open, mate.

They got to build a whole new road to get people in there. So it's going to be a little while before they're back in line down there, but they're fishing everywhere else. I mean, we're right in this change of season now where you start to get the cool breezes and some cooler overnight temperatures. So offshore starts to really fire as well as as well as the remainder of the runoff until perhaps the end of May.

Oh, you're, you're, I mean, on the spot up there. I mean, I'm talking to people here at this big holiday expo here at Rose Hill in Sydney. Are you talking to any tourist operators like who are getting cancellations or anything like that or, I mean, because from what I can see, a lot of the outback areas and the common theme is that they're going to struggle a bit this year, which is a really a real big shame in light of the fact that of all the water that's been running through the country, it's going to look absolutely amazing in the outback this year with the greenery and the bird life. But unfortunately, people are a bit uncertain.

We've got fuel prices all over the shop. You know, interest rates, hikes, stuff like that. It's getting tougher. Are you hearing anything like that up there or people cancelling trips or bookings or anything anywhere, like not just fishing, but around the place in general?

Yeah, I don't really have any of that sort of direct mail from the caravan parks. It's such, apart from the Daly. Of course, they're virtually off the line for the rest of the year, but I know the tourism mob up is really actively promoting the fly and save sort of stuff in the territory, which is probably a bigger part of the tourism economy than the gray nomad market anyway. Because we're a long way away.

So a lot of people are flying, but yeah, even that sort of becomes expensive as well. So, yeah, fingers crossed, it all settles down and we can all have another good tourist here because you're dead right. The territories never look better after this big wet season and all those businesses that have been blooded need everyone's support as well. Absolutely, mate.

Yeah, absolutely. And I guess when you look at, say, someone like, if you were going on one of your trips from down here flying up, you would have probably bought and paid for your airfares 6 months ago, you know, even, you know, say, 3 months ago even. So you're locked in, so your cost has already been paid. It's just how much beer you drink when they get with you, which could blow the budget to be honest.

Yeah, that's right, mate. I guess it's very unfortunate and perhaps a bit removed from it. But I do feel for the guys who are who sort of service that half day and one day market, I think they'll be impacted for sure later on. Yeah, I hope not, mate.

All right. Well it sounds good. I'm glad that you're they're having a bit of a fish for you for yourself and you've already got a couple in Nieski, which isn't too bad. I mean, for you.

I mean, I have been with you and we did struggle to get anything. That was me, that was, it could have just been me putting the mocker on you, to be honest. But it is good. you out there, mate.

I really appreciate you talking to us on a rare day off. And mate, get into them, try and catch one for me, will you? Yeah, I'll try to do that, mate. I'll flip the invoice through to your PO box, eh? Yeah, okay.

Yeah, okay. Yep, that's sweet. I'm not sure if I remember the number to give you. So you'll have to just work to that for yourself.

Just send it via a pigeon. Carry a pigeon. Oh, yeah, okay. All right, you enjoy, mate.

Get up there and get into it, mate, and enjoy a cold one later today to wash down the day, eh? I'll do that mate. I'll have one of them for you for sure. Have two.

It's pretty stressful here. Have 2 for me. Make sure. Okay, I'll definitely.

Thanks mate. There he is. That's our man, Watty, Glenn, what do you want? And how good is it?

He's actually on the boat, on the water right now with a couple of barrows already in the esky. got to be happy with that. What did he say, at 4 already? another couple to go.

And mate, up there doing it. It doesn't get any more real than this, does it? He's actually there doing it up in Kakadu, on the river as we speak. So very, very happy with that on a rare day off, having a bit of a fish for himself.

How good is it? Barefoot Fishing Safaris. If you want to go up there and live, what his lifestyle, even if it's only for a day or two? That's where you need to go, Barefoot Fishing Safaris.com.au and go fishing with body and I've got to say.

A lot of people ask me about Watty here at the show. So he's got a few fans down here. Maybe we might bring him to one of these shows one day and he can apply his wares here at a stand and maybe sell a few, uh, a few tickets on his crew, on his fishing charters because I'm certainly, I can tell you at 1st pain, it is very, very good to do. You certainly do switch off the minute you're on the boat with Watty.

And that's not because you switch off from life. You just switch off on what he's talking about, to be honest. I mean, you can get into your luck a bit. But no, but anyway, it was very funny.

We had a TV video running here of an episode of Oz Afraid TV that we did, where we're on Watty's boat, and I could hear what he talking to me. I thought, what's going on? I turn around and there, there we were sitting on the end of his boat having a bit of a chat on corroborate Billabong. Barefoot Fishing Safaris.

If you want to go for that big barrow in the Top End. got to go with body, Barefoot Fishing Safaris, check him out online, and of course, check out his social media pages as well.