Daly River

What a fabulous place! Staying at Lee and Jenny's Bushcamp was a stroke of good luck - friendly owners, green lawns, shady trees and a pool. Can't ask for much more than that. Oh wait - how about a Happy Hour viewing spot overlooking the river bend where you can watch the boats coming in each day during the Barra Classic Fishing Comp?

This place is a Mecca for serious game fishers and it's easy to see why. The Barras are big around here and although Graham did his best, unfortunately those big buggers managed to elude him. He did however amass an impressive tally of thirteen barramundi from Bamboo Creek, which still count even if we had to throw them back. His two biggest were 42cm which, though a good size for our Weber, were still 13cm undersize. Let's face it, if you caught a 42cm bream back home, you would be pretty happy. All the same, consider that bucket list item truly ticked and just to make it official we visited the Barra Classic HQ at a nearby caravan park and picked up an official shirt for the man. To say he's pleased with himself is not a lie. Pretty chuffed I'd say!😀

Fishing from the riverbank here also means some serious croc watching. This was my role and since Graham managed not to get eaten I'd say I did a pretty good job. They're everywhere here and so stealthy, it's quite something to watch. We brought my Pa's binoculars along and they've been great to watch these amazing (and yes, slightly terrifying) animals in their natural habitat. We were so careful to make sure we kept back from the water's edge etc although this is tricky when pulling up fish etc. Fishing off the pontoon was also probably not our best decision either and after spotting a large croc swimming around it the next day we decided not to tempt fate.

Our final night was pretty special in the spirit of caravanners and Top End hospitality. Everyone soon gets to know everyone else in a place like this and the hospitality arrives in bucket loads. Take this for an example, a couple scored big in the Barra stakes while fishing out in their boat today. Four Barra in excess of 65cm. Not being big fish eaters they donated the barra to Lee to cook up for dinner for everyone in the park. Jen then door knocked everyone in the park inviting one and all to a "barra cookup" under hot coals and to bring something to share. Well, we've never seen so many varieties of potato salad, potato bake and chips in our life. Potato is a staple for caravanners on the road, so not so strange to see everyone bring a potato "something" to share as salad is hard to come by out here. Good humour and fun were shared by all. Jen topped off the night with dessert by serving up tiramisu for everyone.

One final gracing of hospitality came from our caravan neighbours, Brian and his wife, who presented us with a 68 cm barra (filleted), to add to our freezer. A little something to sustain us on our journey as we head West. Thanks guys for adding to our special memories. Our time on the Daly has been awesome!Leia mais