North Australian FISH FINDER TM forums

hi everyone,
My names luke, im 28 and from canberra. im moving up to darwin in march to seek a better life and better fishing. i have lived in the territory before, over on bathurst island off and on for 2 years. came back to canberra 3 years ago and now im well over due to move back.

as im sure everyone else here is, im a pretty dead keen angler, but i havnt got much knowledge of fishing around darwin. i have done plenty of fishing over on the tiwi islands but very limited around darwin. ive got a 6 month old quintrex 400 hornet trophy, it's my pride and joy. 30 hp yammie, 55lb min kota, nav lights, plus all the other standard features.

im in the process of fitting it out for fishing up there. just after some advice on what sorta things i should add to it to make my fishing safe and enjoyable. primarily ill be looking at chasing barra etc. in the creeks, but when the weather allows i wouldnt mind taking it out and chasing some reef fish and palagics.
at this stage ive only got a small list of gear, im looking at upgrading the sounder to a sounder/gps combo, colour screen etc., epirb, wouldnt mind looking into a canopy but has to be functional, most of the hornets ive seen with canopies have been pretty useless for anything but bait fishing. not too concerned with a cover as my house in darwin has a garage. im also interested in any mods that i can make to the trailer as the rough dirt roads worry me a bitt, however at this stage ive got a brand new xr6 ute that wouldnt know a dirt road and i kinda wanna keep it that way but in the future ill be looking at a cheap knock around 4wd for fishing and camping trips.
also pretty keen to here of any good boat ramps around darwin, generally i fish on my own so that limits a lot of ramps that i can use easily. im pretty familiar with darwin and know my way around. i would also appreciate any advice on fishing the harbour.. i dont expect any locations or anything like, yet id be very thankfull if anyone would like to share.
i dont really have any friends up there and wouldnt mind looking at joining some kinda fishing/social clubs, any suggestions would be great... also i wouldnt mind taking some boatless people out fishing.. i try not to have more than 2 people in the boat as the 30hp bogs down pretty quickly, but yeah if anyone would be interested in trips out id be more than happy to take them out in exchange for some local knowledge. im an electrician and will also be looking for work, im pretty picky about what sort of work i do, i try to stick to domestic work, i have excellent knowledge and skills.
cant wait to get up there and would love to hear back.
cheers
Luke.

Welcome to the FFF Luke

There a lots of people here that will be able to help you out with the Harbour.... when you arrive give us a yell and I'll try and help ya out if I can..(i'll PM you the number)

Trying to find a good ramp in Darwin will be very hard (unless you ask hawkeye...then he will tell you there all good ) none of our ramps have pontoons YET so self launching might be an issue..

If you don't yet have a copy of the "North Australian Fish Finder" it would be worth getting one.....good place to find marks to start with.

As for mods to your boat/trailer?

As for work ...you are larfin...everyone is looking for sparkies...if you were interested in a mix of domestic and light industrial I will be able to put you in touch with someone

awesome, thanks mate, i should be up by the end of march, and im planning on having a few weeks holiday (fishing all day every day) before i worry about work. as for ramps, i guess any ramp that has some sand near by is what id be looking for, just somewhere to leave the boat while i park the car. ive got a few old copies of northern fish finder, but yeah, ill be grabbing a new copy very shortly.
thanks once again!

Yeah right boat ramps.....well you can use most except the following IMO....East arm (bl..dy dangerous) and Mandorah(disgusting & dangerous). Also be careful of leaving your car at some of them either overnight or late at night. There is a section on the FFF that deals with boat ramps and thei associated problems.
Anyway welcome Luke you will find the weather a little more pleasant up here I am sure as well as the fishing

G day Luke, with a boat that size solo launching is not that difficult ,Channel island and nightcliff ramps are the ones I would avoid on your own,east arm and elizabeth river are ok except when there a cross wind making life difficult and dinah beach is ok, cant say ive ever used buff creek but could be a challenge when the tides rippin. As for sand near the ramps you won't find any of that, plenty of rocks and mud though.
Trailer wise, I reckon the trailer that came with your rig would be fine as long as its got 14'' wheels and is not a lttle cheap arse job, just make sure everything is done up nice and tight, and your boat is tied down nice and solid.
Canopies are generally a pain for any sort of casting, you can usually get away with trolling with them up, but the one I had on my 395 bermuda was easy to drop down when you hooked up and wanted to fight the fish without contending with poles and straps. they are a godsend when you want a bit of releif from the sun though.

Get out and get into it and you will soon work it out.

Cheers Flicker

cheers.. yeah launching and retrieving on my own isnt a drama, ive got it down to a fine art form, it's more me worried about where to leave the boat when it's off the trailer and im parking the car.. muds fine, rocks worry me. the trailer is great, has 14 inch wheels, and was set up again by the shop after i bought the boat so everything is great. has leaf suspension and nice solid build unlike a lot of the earlier hornet trailers.
i think ill wait untill i get up to worry about a canopy, ill check out a few different ones and see if i can find something functional. thanks for all the advice etc. cant get over how much nicer people are up there than down here

luke79 wrote:cheers.. thanks for all the advice etc. cant get over how much nicer people are up there than down here

That is why we live here.....apart from great weather. and great fishing .

There are lots of Good canopy makers up here.. so I am sure you will find what you want. Once you see a few boats and how people have set them up you will have heaps of ideas....you will be only limited by your wallet

Hi Luke, welcome to FFF. You say you have a 55lb minkota. Is it the one with autopilot? if so when launching around rocks etc drop anker or tie up & set the minkota on auto aimed away from everything.
Works a treat.

March is a good time to get here with the end of the runoff & the barra settling in for trolling if the weather gods behave that is.

The hornets are a great river & billabong boat but a bit underdone for offshore.

As the other guys said get in touch when you arrive.

Its more gravel with a few bigger rocks thrown in, don't worry ally's tough and rocks are better than knee deep mud.

Cheers flicker

2Rods Wrote

Trying to find a good ramp in Darwin will be very hard (unless you ask hawkeye...then he will tell you there all good )

Long gone are the days when we used to accept that it was a tough life being a pioneer in the Top End of Australia and made do with what we had ~ seems now the new wave just want to be soft moddicoddled Territorians



Hawk

Almost Forgot

Welcome to the FFF Luke


Hawk

The only ramp I've ever had drama's with being solo is the Nightcliff one on high tide. Can be a disaster if there's a tiny bit of swell rolling,and the boat gets whacked into the rocks when you tie it up on high.
As flicker said,with a boat that size,you'll be right on most of them.

Hawkeye wrote:2Rods Wrote

Trying to find a good ramp in Darwin will be very hard (unless you ask hawkeye...then he will tell you there all good )

Long gone are the days when we used to accept that it was a tough life being a pioneer in the Top End of Australia and made do with what we had ~ seems now the new wave just want to be soft moddicoddled Territorians



Hawk

Nice response.
30 years ago when you average Territorian barra boat was a 12ft Tinny with a 15 the boat ramps would have been fine. Launch off the bank if needed.

Maybe its time for licensing and rego to come in.

Wash your mouth out dodgy! I'm quite happy not paying licence and rego fees thanks.

cheers Flicker

Would like to introduce myself to your site.

My family & I have lived in Darwin for now 9 years since moving up from SA, and like most people I know have become hooked on the place to a point that we wouldnt want to live anywhere else.

I would regard my fishing experience as "having a go" but yet to set a good score. I do have some moments, but regard fishing like golf, one good shot (fish) and it keeps you coming back for more.

I have a 4.35m seajay castaway 40 honda tiller drive which I use for both harbour and billabongs, and as always would like to use it more often then it really gets out.

I do keep an eye out for FFF stickers, which I now intend to invest in and try and say "Gday" if I have an opportunity.

Anyway, time to do some work to pay for my fishing!.


WATO