Friday 15 June
We arrived in Fitzroy Crossing at Trevor and Emma’s place just after 4 o’clock. Trevor was already kitted out in his fishing gear and anxious to get going after cherrabin. Emma was still not home so, after a quick unpack, Trevor and I left Christine to do the rest and went fishing (sounds fair). We met his mate Troy and some visiting relatives down at Donkey Crossing and I had a wonderful time watching Trevor get very dirty and tired using his cast net to catch cherrabin. After a successful if not spectacular catch, we headed home for a much needed tea and bed.
Saturday 16 June
In the morning, Christine and I did a spot of shopping at the local store, leaving a little shocked at the outrageous prices ($6.15 for a tub of yoghurt, $6 for a handful of grapes etc). A bit of housework followed and we managed to catch up on some much needed clothes washing. With the afternoon free, we set off with Trev and Em for a swim at Red Air. Trevor also suggested packing a couple of light rods just in case we felt like fishing for sooty grunter.
Red Air proved to be a beautiful spot, with a fast flowing stream. Christine got her exercise in by swimming into the current for 10 minutes or so. She swam her little heart out but went absolutely nowhere. Meanwhile, Trevor and I tried our hand out on the sooty grunter (black bream to locals). We tromped up and down the bank and managed 2 nice ones and one beauty of 32cm!
We had barbecued sooty for entree that night, picked fresh from the bone, there is no finer fish!
Sunday 17 June
The plan was for Trevor and I to get up before dawn to fish the upper reaches of Geike Gorge. With the success of the previous day, the pressure was off so we decided to take it easy and fish the afternoon. Boats are only allowed in the main part of the gorge before 7am, between 12 and 1pm then after 4pm. This is to allow uninterupted eco cruises for tourists. We spent the morning at school finalising the timetable and our teaching duties for the coming week.
By noon we had had lunch, arrived at the gorge and had the port-a-bote rigged. We were using my boat and Trev’s 5hp outboard. The combination proved effective and we made good time down the gorge, even with a bit of unsuccessful trolling thrown in. We spent an entertaining 3 hours or so catching 5 excellent sooty grunter. Trev managed a pair at 31cm and 32cm so he was well pleased. To make it even better, Trevor’s mate Troy came past. They had struck out andwere looking very envious of our catch.
Just when we decided it couldn’t get much better, Trevor suggested a last minute troll on the way back. He suggested he had a “secret spot”. His rod was already rigged with a gold Reidy lure so I trolled while he steered. We didn’t have to wait long before a solid hookup suggested that there was more to life than sooty grunter. After a huge run and a heart stopping time when the line went slack for a bit, the fish settled down to a slow pull in the reeds, giving one half jump and some head shaking as the dinghy came along side. At 85cm, the landing net proved a little inadequate and it ended up a broken jumbled mess. As we hauled aboard for measuring and photgraphing, Troy’s boat came around the bend and we could hear a shout of “They’ve got a barra!” It made Trevor’s day.
We cut the destroyed landing net away from the lure, unhooked the fish and released it. Meanwhile, Troy and his uncle had their troll rigs out, going over the same area. As we left, there were shouts of glee as they landed a small barra, around 45cm. We unpacked the boat well satisfied.