P16 - FISH & BOAT, February 2019 Fishing Corroboree Capers By Dave Donald CCoorrrroobboorreeee BBiillllaabboonngg iiss ppaarrtt ooff When you’ve spent a life-the Mary River catchment and just Trolling the more open stretches of the billabong time chasing fish as I over an hours drive from Darwin - can produce lovely barra like this! have, somewhere along in NT terms almost in the suburbs! the way the realisation dawns that It’s not the sort of spot you’d go ex- there’s much more to fishing than pecting to catch a heap of big barra just catching fish. That fact seems – except maybe at run-off time – but to become even more vivid whenonce the dry season comes along, the opportunity comes to visit places there are usually plenty of medium that are more remote and conse-sized ‘mundi spread through- quently, very rich in natural terms. out this extensive system. It’s difficult to ignore an environ- The Billabong also ment where the wildlife, both ter- supports a size- restrial and marine, are abundant, able population of and limit your focus to just those saratoga as well few target species on your bucket as tarpon and list. The world is suddenly revealed the inevitable as so much more than a barra or catfish. It’s thready spot, rather that these spe- chock a block cies are simply a part of a complex with snags interwoven web that revolves around plus a cou- the interaction of a myriad of flora ple of rock and fauna that provide you with the bars while opportunity to wet a line. the greenery It’s almost as though a pair ofincludes mil- blinkers have been removed fromlions of extra your eyes! Where once the graceful large sized flight of a sea eagle would have gone water lilies unnoticed, now you stop and mar- that cover more vel at its agility. Searching for turtle and more water tracks on the beach while travelling as the dry progresses. just offshore now becomes routine This proliferation of lilies rather than an afterthought. and snags certainly make Where once fishing was all about it more amenable to lure filling an icebox, it becomes more of fishing, rather than bait. an appreciation of another opportu- Trolling the long, nity to experience the ‘wholeness’ of more open reaches is very the natural world. popular and can be pro- Such feelings are easy to nurture in ductive at times, but for my money, places like Cape York Peninsula and casting a lure or fly is the ideal way the Northern Territory. to enjoy this wonderful waterway. As somebody who has had the Probably the most enjoyable fish- Keeping a ‘toga attached to a hook them – and that usually promptscausing the hook to come free. This pleasure of living on the Cape for ing I’ve experienced at Corroboree is not easy at the best of times, but a few more derogatory commentseffect can be minimised by using TT nearly 30 years, I can readily identify happened while casting weedlessthe degree of difficulty increasedfrom the ‘unlucky’ fisho. SaratogaSnakelockz jigs, as the swivelling with plenty of places that have given rigged soft plastics over the lilly pads several fold when the underwaterhave a very hard, bony mouth andhead seems to negate the leverage me immense pleasure over the years, using a light-tipped spin outfit load- forest of lilly stalks was factored into that, coupled with their twisting afforded by a fixed weight. In fact, both in fishing and whole of envi- ed with 7kg braid. the equation. It was white-knuckle jumps, makes them very difficult to the first time I ever used the Snake- ronment terms. In fact, these two are The lures were tossed well up to- stuff on the one hand but hilarious keep hooked. Their ability to shed a lockz on saratoga (in the Wenlock complimentary. f wards the shore- on the other as these ‘prehistoric’ lure is further enhanced when a soft River), my score of 5 out of 5 strikes One of the Where once ishingwas all line over the beauties made their escape time af- plastic is rigged on a lead-head jig landed was unprecedented at that stand-outs that about fillingan icebox, it floating greenerythen slowly re-ter time. The few that reached the as the weight acts like a pendulum time and remains so to this day! immediately becomesmore of anapprecia- boat were admired and much appre- when the fish shakes its head, often Continued next page comes to mind tion ofanother opportunity totrieved across theciated before being released. inthis regard - as p holeness’ of mosaic back into My guide and companion on a faras the NT goes ex erience the ‘w open water, while couple of these Corroboree casting - is Corroboree thenaturalworld. trying to target sessions was master rod builder and Larry puts another cast into the lily pads. They extend for Billabong! I’ve the larger ‘holes’. good mate, Larry Lockwood. kilometres on Corroboree, the area increasing in size as visited and worked in the Terri- Most of the strikes came when the We have an absolute ball flicking the dry season progresses. The cover they provide sup- tory a number of times in the last 15 plastic ‘hopped’ from the pads into around the football field sized lilly ports a very healthy barra and ‘toga population. years and after my initial visit there, the water. ‘jungles’, honing our casting skills quickly came to the conclusion that The majority of the culprits in along the way. Competing for the no fishing trip to the Territory is these cases were acrobatic saratoga, fishiest looking pockets is all part complete without a trip to this al- but there were quite a few barra on of the contest but sometimes the most magical place. the job as well. strikes come when you least expect A scarred old Corroboree buffalo gives the photographer the ‘evil eye’ as he tries to get closer. Seeing crocs and buffs are part of the wider world open to you as a keen fisho. Don’t let fish be your only focus!