When a very close friend, Graeme Williams, who also happens to be a guide (Heritage listed some say) says that he wants to go fishing on his days off because the tides are good, and asks if we would like to come along for a couple of days you don't tell him,
"I'll think about it!". Yes please, is the only answer.
The last time that we fished Bynoe ( click
2016) was also one of Graeme's days off nearly two years ago now, so even though we were to be picked up at 3pm, I was packed and ready at 8am and sooooo excited.
After 'First night' madness with gin and tonics then a couple of reds we were up before dawn to get on the water early. Roggie was a bit seedy but he made it to the boat.
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| Just before dawn and ready to go. |
We were lucky because there was little or no wind so even though the tides were neapish and only coming down to 3.2m which meant the barra would stay up in the trees more, it allowed us to get onto spots that you can only fish every now and then.
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| Sun up, no wind and glassy water. |
We ran along in one spot on the electric for a 9am low and initially it looked pretty bare, then we saw schools of small barra under the submerged branches of the trees with a mixture of other fish. The challenge was not only to get the fly to the fish under the branches, but you have the added challenge of getting under the over hanging branches as well, the getting the fish out of the snags. Great fun.
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| You have to get your cast in under those branches to the fish |
Theres a lot of big fish out there, but according to Roggie, the
most important fish of any trip is the first fish in the boat because it breaks a spell of 'No Fish'.
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| The Most Important first fish for the trip, just after sunrise |
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| A lot of this size around |
The first fish was around 50cm and there were a heap of fish this size under the
branches. Had double hooks ups on this size over the days we were out there,
esecially as the tides got lower and later in the day. On one flat on the second day we estimated we saw over a hundred of these fish in schools of twenty plus, it was amazing. Other flats had twenty or thirty on them too, and now and then the bigger fish (70cm+?) in twos and threes along with a couple of inquitive lone ones that were 90cm plus that would come up and seem to take a look at us then swim off and ignore us. Frustrating!!
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| About to net another small barra |
There were some flats where we fished the run in tide on the colour changes and on one the barra were non stop boofing on the small bait as they tried to get up the drains. Sounded like the OK Corral gunfight. But we were not invited, because no matter how many flies we put into the boofing fish they ignored us and then as quickly as they started they just stopped.
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| The OK Corral after the gunfight! |
There were some monster queenies out there too that gave me heart failure a few times as they monstered the flies. Trevally around 40cm gave us a good time, they fight like mad, the
3 x10 fish as Graeme calls them. Weight 3lb but fight like 10lb.
There is never a dull moment fishing with the
'Jurrasic Duo', Roggie and Graeme, they are either sledging or trying to sing songs from the fifties and sixties, and in between times they caught fish, and in Graemes case some muddies as well.
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| Crab on fly, one of six |
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| Bringing another crab in |
By midday they both wanted to go in to have lunch and then a nap before going out again later in the afternoon to catch a few Jack and Snapper for the freezer with the barra fillets.
The
Jurassic Duo below....
We used bird fur clousers in black/orange/gold, white and red, white and pink, as well as fibre ones in all white/silver, white pink and my favourite the brown/white. They were tied on 1/0 C70SD hooks. All caught fish.
