Bag a Barra — 4 September 2026

It's time to head to the Top End and Bag a Barra with Glenn Watty Watt. Thanks to Barefoot Fishing Safaris and Uniden, for the best in UHF radio communications. Explore the extract series at uniden.com.au. Well, he waited until I left the Top End before he surfaced.

Now, he tried to tell me, I mean, what, of course, who is he, an operator of Barefoot Fishing Safaris, is that he was on a fishing trip overseas. That's what he was saying, but I've got mail, that he was hiding at home waiting for me to leave the Top End. I was there for almost 2 weeks, never spotted him. And I don't think he went anywhere.

I think he was at home waiting for me to go before he came back out and stuck his head up. What do you get, eh? You reckon you're onto me a little plan there, hiding in the donga of destiny, keeping a low profile for a couple of weeks until you left, but, um, no, uh, mate, it goes to show you got to, you know, you got to book in early. I keep telling you that.

You got to book me in. Yeah, there's only one little thing. I mean, yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't know if you think you are, but I mean, we've got a pretty important schedule. I mean, you know, you got to fit in with us, mate.

It doesn't work the other way around. You fit in with us. You know, if you want to progress, you need to stop what you're doing and just maneuver your plans around us. That's how it works.

I've got to say to you, we had a great time up there. We went one day we were ducking down to Berry Springs. She said, you know, I do love it down there. Jeez, it wasn't there some people in there.

There were a couple of imbeciles up these trees. They climbed right to the very top to jump off. They took off pretty quickly once the Rangers yelled out to them, but mate, talk about, I was just there and I was talking to this other bloke. I said, mate, nothing can go wrong here. I could not believe. One of the blokes was as big as me, mate.

And the branches were bowing under his weight. And I thought, mate, this is not going to end well. Anyway, but what I'm getting to was on our way to Berry Springs. We went obviously through Noonamah and they were getting set for the radio, which was on.

Geez, wasn't there some people there getting ready for that? Oh, mate, it's pretty hectic out at Noonamah when the Rodeo's on. I mean, they run a really professional setup out there. You would have seen traffic control and all sorts of things.

Yeah, of course, everyone sets up the the tent and the swag or a lot of rooftop tents these days and um, you know, stays and and has a good party and um, yeah, really enjoys the night, aren't they? A couple of them a year now. So it's, yeah, it becomes a pretty big event. Well, there were evangs.

It's all parked off to the side of the road. Just, you know, as you said, rooftop tents, swags, all that, campers and caravans just basically parked on the side of the road. Like, I'm not right on the road, but, you know, off to the left a bit and getting set for what was going to be a pretty big night. And you are right about that traffic control.

There's also an RBT there. and they'll make you off to the off to the radio. I said, no, we actually offer a bit of a dip at Berry Springs, you know? So, and there was a few there as well. But anyway, but no, we did enjoy our time up there and we had a mate who was travelling with us, we had some car troubles, we ended up having to stop back at Alice Springs and we met up with them on the way back and still with us now.

We're at Longreach right now. But certainly, but mate, I've got to say to you, we had a great time. We went up and did the Mindil Beach market thing and then we I've got to give a shout out to this shop that we found. Mr Barrow.

Mr. Barry, yeah, down at Duck Pond down there. Oh, mate. Near the big diet shop? Yep. Yeah, near the water in the waterfront there. Oh, mate, how good is the gear in there?

Here we go in there. They got all the good stuff in there, mate. Yeah, that's, we call into Mr. Barrow. if we ever send fish home.

They, they do, um, they do like an air, airplane approved fish box, so we, we quite often pull in there if we've got a few fish to send home with people, and yeah, I mean, they've got all the good stuff in there. Really good, beautiful, all local fresh produce. So, yeah, that's where you get your mud crabs as well, if you can't catch your own. So, yeah, really.

Yeah, that was a great. We went there a couple of times. The big king prawns. We got some oysters, the oysters.

Oh, mate. Yeah, very, very good shop, that one, mate. And certainly next time we're back there, we will be going there. And let me tell you, we will be back because we love it there, mate.

And then we'd have to catch you again next time. So I reckon we'll pop up, pop up there again next year. And we stayed at the Free Spirit, which is a great spot, and we actually bumped into people that we bumped into there 6 years ago when we were there last. Yeah, certainly plenty to do.

Now you went on your big fishing adventure. How did that go? Oh, mate, it's one after the other at the moment. So yeah, that's right.

I was back out at Christmas Island. So um, this time with uh, it was um, sort of an international partners week, so a bit of a big networking thing and excuse to have a few beers with some industry fellas and stuff. So, yeah, I mean, it's amazing place. There's 3 or 4 really good um different lodge operations you can get to there and um, you know, yeah, like it's about as remote as you can, as you can get in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and Fiji and, you know, just spectacular.

It's the largest coral atoll in the world. People are beautiful. Fishing's amazing. Yeah, it's just a real paradise. So I got back from that a few days ago, mate.

Now I'm hustling. I got a few days, I've got 5 days of guiding of my own to do out in Bynoe. I'll be staying at Crab Claw, which would be cool, and then the lioness and I, 2 days after that, are off to Mongolia for 3 weeks. So, it's um, yeah, it's flat out.

I I don't know how I'm going to get it all organised, but I guess I'll make it happen in the end. Oh, no you will, mate. You couldn't make it happen, hang around waiting for us, but you certainly did get out there and do what you do and left the whole place. I looked after the place for you while you were gone, okay?

Yeah, good. That's good. I'll tell you one thing, I will rap about Darwin. Is it so easy to get around?

I mean, there's no traffic. It's unbelievable. The road system is just amazing. Peak hour, really, is non-existent.

When you're used to Sydney, peak hour, not that I go into the peak hour of Sydney too often these days, but I used to, and you'll, and I've been calling Peak hour in Melbourne and Brisbane. I mean, it's absolute chaos, chaos. But up there, and it just seems to be shopping centres everywhere and just easy to get around. We actually we actually went out and had a look at the Darwin Surf Club, which I didn't even know that Darwin had one.

and we had a bit of a feat. Great. A beautiful beautiful spot. We went to the cat.

Well, what happened? I dropped the missus off at Casuarina shops and thought, I'll just go for a bit of a drive at the dog with me and I ended up tripping over that and I thought, how good is this? So then when I picked her up at the shops. You've got to come back here and have a look at this place.

And so we went out there, we actually went up to Cullen up to Cullen Bay, is it, and had a bit of a feed there and... There's a really good joint there that does crabs. There's chilli crabs it might have been where you went. Kathy's place. No, no, we went to seafood on. We've seen crabs and fish.

Oh, so you bit on Cohen's good too. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, we went there, but then but I think what we'll do next time is probably go to your mate, Mr. Barra, and then take that up to get some gear there and then go up and just sit on the grass up there at Cullen Bay and with a couple of chairs and a little esky or something. I think that'd be just as good.

mate. beautiful part of the world. Beautiful part of the world. And we just basically chilled out and kicked back. And of course, the free spirit, that place never let you down.

Jeez, it's good there. So, mate, we had a great time. It's just a shame we didn't see you, but mate, next time, eh? Yeah, that's right.

Next time, and I assume you'll be heading up this way. at some stage next year, but yeah, I'll be around unless I'm not type thing. The free spirit is great. It's sort of right in the middle of every which way you want to turn and I'll put a lot of people through there over the years and, you know, they've got a couple of swimming pools, playground for the kids and that really good bar restaurants from that pool type thing.

So yeah, it's a good point. Yeah, no, it's fantastic, mate. It's a great a great part of the world right up there, mate. I love it there and shame you weren't there.

But anyway, as you said, we probably will head up there next year. So we're already talking about it. Can't wait already. I love it.

All right, Watty. I'm glad you're back safe. Shane, we didn't see each other, but we will keep talking and mate, who knows? You might come down to our way.

Maybe not. Well, yeah, no, well, I'm keen to do that, but I like to wait till the weather gets over sort of 25 degrees at a minimum for me. There's not too many... warm there. This week, apparently. Yeah, up around 29, my joint this week.

Yeah, that's why we're okay. Well, not summer, but anyway, here at Long Reach at the moment, which it's warm here today as well. All right, mate, we've got to run. talk to you next week.

Right, mate. No worries at all. There he is. That's our man, Watty in the Top End.

Of course, Barefoot Fishing Safaris. You can check him out there. And if you want to take your fishing adventure to another level. Well, you're just going to angling adventures.

He is our man up there in the Top End, has been for a few years. We didn't get to spend any quality time. It's probably a good thing to be honest. He would have got me to that Noonamah Tavern and God knows what would have happened there.

He gets a bit loose, old what are you on the drink? Anyway. He'd have let me astray, let me tell you, you don't have to be too good at doing that to leave me astray on the drink. So it was probably a good thing that he wasn't there.

We dodged a bullet. There you go, that it would have been good to see him. Audio. It's more powerful than you think.

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