G'day,

Sunday looked like being a bit of a nothing day. With the Ord at its lowest levels in a while and 10 - 15 knots blowing in the gulf, I racked my brain for somewhere to fish. I made a couple of calls to the boys to see if anyone had any ideas but came up dry. Then I remembered hearing about some remote billabongs not to far from Kununurra. To cut this part of the story short I threw the fishing gear, food, drinks and two kids in the car and headed for the hills.

After about two and half hours drive I found it...well I found something. I'm not sure if it was the billabong I was looking for but it was a billabong!

I always like to approach a new water way with a bit of stealth. Which is a dumb idea when you have a 6 and 8 year old as fishing companions. They also know a bit about fishing and were just about as excited as I was to see this stretch of water...either that or they were happy to be out of the car.

I grabbed one of my rods that already had a white Squidgey mongrel tied on from the previous session. Still trying to keep a lid on the kids we made our way to the water and had a couple of flicks. On the third cast I had a hit, then another, then another then two barra of about 80cm appeared behind the lure competing for it.....wow! Next cast got hit a couple of times. As did the cast after that. I also got another visual and it was also a good fish. It could of been one that I had already spotted as it was about the same size. I wondered along the bank flicking and helping the kids get a lure out. I had another half a dozen hits but still failed to hook up.

I decide to have a beer and change lures. I put a small storm soft plastic that looked like the bait (rainbow fish) I had seen on one rod and a hollow belly on the other. Once again the colour looked similar to the bait. Half a dozen flicks of the small lure came up with zip. Fist cast of the hollow belly had two rat barra competing for the lure from the moment it landed. I'm not sure how you can have so many hits for no hook up. A couple more flicks, a couple more hits then finally a hook up. I nice little rat. I continued with the poor strike to hook up ratio but managed to land another rat that would of gone just about legal. I flicked the hollow belly into the same snags and drop offs as the mongrel and got hits at basically the same places. I love finding Barra that don't know what a lure is!

Zak also hooked a rat on a squidgey but I was too busy with the camera and didn't get to him in time. It would of been his first barra on a cast lure.

As we turned and headed back to the car I was chatting to my daughter Emma when we both saw a silver flash in the clear but tannin stained water. I new exactly what it was and flicked my lure just beyond the spot where the fish had been. It hit the fist cast, it hit the second cast and it hooked up on the third cast. I had a brief tussle before it spat the lure once again! It was one of the bigger fish that I reckon are around 80cm.

Needless to say I have already planned the next trip to my new honey hole!

By the way, this is my first post and I'm not sure how to manage the photos.

Cheers,

CK

Wow! awesome first post, I would love to find somewhere like that good work

_________________

Speachless!, Looks like an awsome spot! Welcome to the forum mate!

awesome looking water nice work for a first post you gotta try and get a tinny in there! you're going to have a blast in the build up methinks

_________________

Great first post mate looks like a crackin spot to be schooling the kiddies too !!!!!!!!!!

_________________

Top stuff mate, sounds like you have a great little spot there, try adding a "stinger hook" to your plastics (trebble).

_________________

good report. keep them coming.

_________________

Take the plastic protector off your hook!!!
Haha done that one before...
Good post mate, nice spot

that spot looks like a dream spot, great fishing mate

_________________

I cant help but think I saw that place from the other side about a month ago doing some weed survey work. Haven't gone back and not likely too but it looked the goods when I saw it. Looks like you proved the suspicion right

If anyone has been there Dick it would be you (and a few ringers). I'm likely to go back there next weekend.

Good Stuff. Well done.

Hey Keighto. Nice post and welcome.

When they are picky like that I push a treble up from the bottom of the plackie....then I thread on the jig head as usual but pass the hook through the eye of the treble. One of the treble hooks then embeds in the plackie....

A stinger would work too like BJ suggested.

Cheers

Do you lose many fish to the treble falling off the main hook mud. I wouldnt feel to secure with a metry on and nothing holding my stinger in place.

Great post by the way mate. Try a hard body lure. your hook up rate will improve and i dont think you would have to many troubles getting hits in a remote place like that.