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These metre-long barra were caught almost in Darwin suburbia at Buffalo Creek with Rob Marchant's Barramundi Fishing Charters

Matt Flynn's Northern Territory
fishing report: March 27, 2005

Also available in the Darwin Sunday
newspaper, Sunday Territorian


It looks like being an oustanding Easter for fishing, whether you go inland or offshore, or stay close to home and fish Darwin Harbour and Shoal Bay.

All the rivers are fishing well - even the Adelaide River.

Two metre-plus barra were caught in Shoal Bay's little Buffalo Creek in a single session rcently, and there have been loads of big crabs about.

Quality golden snapper and jewfish are biting well offshore, and harbour wrecks are expected to produce big jewfish at the turn of the tide today and tomorrow.  

King Kontis Fishing Tours' Tom Kontis said he was coming home from harbour trips with quality snapper and jewfish.

"There are also some big grunter about on the deep water harbour reefs - not just one or two but lots of them,'' he said.

"The goldies have been prime fish up to 4kg with a lot of smaller jewfish with them, but I expect the big jewies are about to start up with the bigger tides this weekend.

"The snapper are on natural reef in deep water - the quality of the goldies is superb.

"We also brought in a large shark that looked like a bronze whaler of about 2.5m long.

"There have also been birds splashing around out near the Six Mile Buoy so maybe there are some early pelagic fish in the harbour to liven things up.

"The fishing is changing all the times with the tides - I predict big jewies will be caught this weekend - the weather has been absolutely glorious."  

Fishing and Outdoor World's Matt West said the Mary River should fish well at the Arnhem Hwy bridge lagoon this weekend, as the water level was dropping fast.

"The Daly River might start rising because the Katherine River has been getting a bit of rain,'' he said.

"Upstream on the South Alligator River has been good after the Kakadu Klash competition with most barra taking large soft plastics.

"Lure One Fishing Charters' Chris Hurt has been getting into some good fish in Darwin Harbour's East Arm.

"There have been mackerel caught in Fog Bay already with one boat crew reporting triple hook-ups.

"Magela Creek on the East Alligator River has been high - it has been going up and down with people getting over the crossing sometimes and reporting plenty of fish available in the East Alligator River."  

Happy Micks Charlie Chambers said he landed a 20kg barra at the South Alligator River's Nourlangie Creek rockbar on a large gold Bomber.

"We only got a couple of other small fish, so we were pretty happy,'' he said.

"It looks like a good year for barra fishing despite the low rainfall."  

Top End Fishing Supplies' Steve Compain said fishing has been exceptional offshore.

"We went out on Tuesday for our skipper Dave Pears' bucks party - we took two boats and we started at Charles Point and caught nine jewies to 15kg,'' he said.

"Then we went out to South Gutter and caught big goldies to 6kg.

"The other boat caught six jewies at Charles Point and then went to Lorna Shoal and caught a 26kg mackerel.

"We also caught a beautiful coral trout as well as more goldies and trickies, and the weather was beautiful.

"The Daly River has been good right down toward Clear Creek with people getting plenty of 80cm and 90cm barra.

"The big nine-inch Tsunami soft plastics are still popular - a lot of big fish were caught at the Kakadu Klash on them - but the downside is the fish can throw these big rubbers quite easily.

"Business is brisk - people are definitely going fishing this Easter."  

Katherine Rod and Rifle's Warren de With said Roper Bar on the Roper River was fishing well last Sunday and Monday with a 1.02m barra caught on Monday afternoon and lots of fish from 80cm to a metre.

"But the Roper has risen again and the fishing at the crossing has slowed - once the river goes down again it will be unbelievable,'' he said.

"The fish being caught are your typical clean-looking Roper barra.

"The Victoria River has just come down under the highway bridge again - it may need a another couple of weeks before it really fishes well as there was a lot of rain over the catchment after the cyclone.

"Without any more rain the Vic will start running clear in about two weeks which means trolling will start being very good - it's looking promising for the Vic and the Baines River.

"The Katherine River is about 3m high and dirty - it will take a while to settle.

"The Daly River is about 4m at the crossing and rising - if it rises over Easter the fish will come off the bite - but if there is no rain it will probably drain out pretty quickly.

"There has been fish caught right through the river, from Bamboo Creek down to Clear Creek.

"The McArthur River has also been fishing well - lots of barra are being caught at the mouth, as well as mangrove jacks."  

Reidys Lures Cheryl Reid said Paul Zorn caught a 99cm barra on a silver B52 lure in an eddie on the main rockbar near the top of the tidal Adelaide River.

"Two customers from Katherine had been down the Daly River for 10 days using the Reidys Judge in N2 colour and cleaned up,'' she said.

"They caught most fish downstream and stopped at Charlies Creek on the way home each day to get their last two fish."

Jeff Reid caught a 25kg barra at the mouth of Tommycut Creek on a big silver B52 last week.  

Darwin Harbour Fishing Charters' Rob Marchant put customers onto two metre-plus barra while casting lures near the mouth of Shoal Bay's Buffalo Creek.

"It's just magic to know such fish are available in that little creek near the city,'' Rob said.

"The creek has always had a reputation for holding big barra, and this  proves they are still there."  

Got One's Craig Grosvenor said there were numerous reports of mixed bags from Darwin Harbour including sharks and rays and some decent barra from East Arm and the Catalina Creek area.

"Barra to 71cm have been reported on surface fizzers in white and pink and Skitter Pops in blue mullet colours,'' he said.

"The Kakadu Klash showed that large soft plastics in natural mullet colours and chartreuse greens and the large gold Bombers, and also the large olive Bombers, work well.

"The Rookery on the South Alligator River fished well with most fishermen casting lures at the mouth of the Rookery creek.

"There are also mud crabs galore in Shoal Bay."

Adelaide River fires up

Chad Clancy with a 120cm barra from Beatrice Creek on the Adelaide River

Could it be that one wet season without gill nets is enough to  revive a Top End river's sportfishing potential?
This question follows two weeks of improved barramundi fishing on the Adelaide River above the Arnhem Hwy bridge, including the capture of a 1.20m fish near Beatrice Creek.
Several boats reported Adelaide River sessions of 40 or 50 fish last week, and while similar sessions were had on the Adelaide last wet season there has been one vital difference - trophy fish are being caught.
I fished the upper Adelaide last week with Chad "Barra Beast" Clancy and caught roughly the same number of baby fish in the same spots as last year. But this year there were several fish in the 80cm and 90cm range.
Chad landed a 1.20m fish after casting a small soft plastic to the bank - it was the biggest barra I have seen or heard of taken from the Adelaide for some time. A boat near us was pulling fish in one after another with numerous double hook-ups for about three hours - great action to see on a river that has fished poorly in recent years. The big fish we caught were almost all silver with yellow tails - freshly up from the tidal water - I remember that last year the bigger Adelaide River barra we caught were "swampies".
It is of course possible that the removal of gill nets from the mouth of the Adelaide River from July last year has not given sufficient time for the river to have improved - but it is a strange coincidence that numbers of big fish have suddenly showed up in the upper reaches this year, after previous lean years. 
As the public is not given access to commercial catch data for individual rivers, there is no way of knowing how many fish were netted from the Adelaide annually in years past. As recreational reports are also rubbery, it is difficult to know the real situation.
At least we are seeing a possible improvement in the river.
Don't expect fisheries managers to concede anything - even the steady annual increases in the catch at the Daly River Barra Classic in the years since the Daly River netting closure were claimed to be a result of factors other than the gill net ban.
One thing is certain - next year is going to be interesting on the Adelaide River, especially if the Top End has a better wet season. Kai Hansen, who operates Goat Island Lodge, must be breathing easier, as the fishing is likely to be good this year in the upper reaches during the early dry season.
Here's some recent reports about the Adelaide ...  Happy Micks' Charlie Chambers said a lot of customers were saying the Adelaide River was fishing well. "A lot of people have been fishing Beatrice Creek and catching a lot of fish - the top of the Adelaide River above Goat Island has been fishing really well too.
"I would say it is fishing a lot better than in recent years."
Top End Fishing Supplies' Steve Compain said one group of customers went to the Adelaide last week and caught 40 fish on Wednesday and 55 on Tuesday.
"It has been really good - I have never heard of reports like this, normally it has been just dribs and drabs,'' he said.
Reidys Lures' Jeff Reid said he and and Paul Zorn went to the Adelaide River last weekend and caught about 25 fish at the mouth of Beatrice Creek, including several big fish hooked and lost. Got One's Craig Grosvenor said: "I reckon the Adelaide River at the mouth of the major creeks seems to be working well.
"Up Marrakai Creek at the rockbar and at the mouth of Beatrice Creek has been good." Fishing And Outdoor World's Matt West said the Adelaide River upstream had been fishing well at Beatrice Creek.
"My brother Mark said the biggest fish his customers caught there recently was 9kg.
"There has been one boat anchored up the Beatrice Creek mouth for two days."
AFANT president Warren de With said he was encouraged that big fish now seemed to be making their way up the Adelaide River. "We are pleased especially after this year's fairly poor wet season - there is only one thing that we know has changed on the river and that is that the commercial netter has gone,'' he said.

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