Off The Hook... Fishing - it’s a man’s sport… Or is it?! by Amanda Reynolds

Having never fished before, I was slightly apprehensive when my colleague Rebecca English (Inside Sales Support), suggested we spend a day trawling a river system of the Top End looking for the very elusive barramundi.

Barras (from photos I’ve seen) are BIG fish; will I be able to reel one of these in, if I did catch it? The river system in the Top End – isn’t that where crocodiles roam? What about putting the bait on the hook? Eeekkk!

All I can say is that I need not have worried, everything was taken care of from the stability and comfort of a custom built boat to keep the pesky crocs out and the sun off our heads, to using lures to attract the barra and having a very competent guide from Darwin’s Barra Base with us who had fished the area for nearly 20 years and knew exactly where to take us to ensure a fish or 22 would be caught!

A fishing trip in the Top End is exciting, entertaining and definitely worth a thought of doing for everyone from old to young. Although we caught inland barra (9 for me to be exact, 84cm the biggest!!!), there are any array of species that live in the Top End from blue water snapper, red emperor, coral trout, black jewfish, the list goes on. The added bonus of fishing inland is that you get to experience the Top End’s beautiful wetland billabongs and the nature that goes with it, from wallabies, brolgas, sea eagles and jabirus.

I started out a non fisherwoman and ended up a convert with a story of how I caught a fish “THAT BIG”!!!. Take it from me, don’t think twice about fishing the NT – just do it!

Do you have any holiday reviews about spending summer in the Top End? Comment below to share your NT holiday reviews with fellow travellers!

Amanda Reynolds | Business Development Executive VIC/TAS

Have a question about fishing in the Top End? Click here to ask Amanda and make sure to check back in a few days for her response!