G’day all,
September 9 to 11th 2011 – Daly River.
Well we have just spent two days fishing the Daly River along the golden patch of river that they call the Golden Mile. Well, there are a few things that spring to mind…firstly, the Golden Mile is not always golden, we are at the end of the dry…or my fishing technique really needs to be refined, ha, ha.
It is probably all of the above but what I can say is that the Daly River is a beautiful place to be on the water and if you get the timing right the fishing can be explosive. We fished for two days at the Golden Mile and caught two Barra within 15 minutes of each other, got a number of strikes on the lures and unfortunately nothing for the fry pan. We saw 20 odd snapping lizzards…local terminology for crocs and putting the boat in and out of the river certainly got your heart racing. The river is a beautiful river with multitudes of wildlife and an absolute joy to be on…I just can’t wait to get back here and have a fish in the run-off season when the fishing is electric.
Lovely Lynda got one hookup of a nice sized Barra that leaped into the air 2m. I have never seen a fish jump so high…in fact it out jumped the many Spaniards I have seen. Whilst spectacular, the fish spat the hook with its famous head wobble and that was as close as we got to a legal sized Barra. If its any consolation to us, judging by the talk at camp, even the locals (darwin fishos)had a poor weekend out. In fact talking to the local indigineous people they told me the only place to get a Barra at the moment was the Daly River Crossing at night…they had pulled out two 80cm Barra the night before. Funnily enough we were told that there were no Barra upstream of Banyan Farm of any note…maybe its a local hidden…or withdrawn secret…try that one hey!
Fishing was slow but our experience here was, once again, awesome. We did catch a Barra in the end but the real enjoyment came from being on the river in a magnificent setting way out in the middle of the Northern Territory. We have plenty of time to snare a Barra yet and the weather is starting to change with the promise of an early buildup…the Barra action may still hot up yet…next spot to try Coroboree Billabong me thinks!
When not on the river the rest of the time was spent around the pool and watching the footy and NRL finals…life can be tuff sometimes…
Off to Litchfield National Park tommorrow, via Adelaide River.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
G’day all,
Waking up at our overnight stay we headed off to Banyan Farm right near the famous “Golden Mile” on the Daly River. I am really looking forward to boating and fishing the Daly but after a long day in the saddle, retracing steps because I forgot boat fuel and getting boat and fishing gear ready the fish can live another day while I rest and prepare myelf for tommorrow…stay tuned!
Btw, Banyan Farm is a smallish caravan park on the banks of the Daly River with boat ramp and floating jetties to moor you boat on…beats tangling with those snapping lizzards…jetties definately help loading and unloading the boat in croc infested waters. Camp fees cost $32 per night with power and amenities are basic but very clean.
Let you know how the fishing goes tommorrow, but for now, goodnight.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
G’day all,
Time to hit the road again and leave Katherine behind us. We are heading to the Daly River to try our luck with some Barra fishing. Daly River is a Northern Territory hotspot and so to miss the action would have been sacrilidge for a fisho like me. On the way we passed Edith Falls and decided on the 40 klm round trip from the highway to check them out – well worth the effort!
Arriving at Edith Falls carpark around 1:30pm we set off on the loop walk. We were dying for a swim and so did the 2.6klm loop in reverse so that we could swim at the upper pool after 1klm instead of 1.6klm. The walk goes mostly upwards until you sight the upper falls and upper pool of Edith Falls. The pool is rather big with a huge boulder island and plenty of swimming options. I found a rock ledge and jumped in to cool down. Amy was right in after me but Jess took a little more coaxing.
With the family in the water we swam off to the waterfall and took turns swimming under the falls and getting carried away by the current. Just to the left of the falls is a rock ledge that you can take a breather and stand on. It was also a good platform to help me scale the water fall and check out the pool above the falls. In fact there was a beautiful infinity pool above the falls and another small waterfall and then the main river. What a beautiful place this is. From up above and looking down Edith Falls is massive and the combination of the tiered falls is enormous. Mmmm, how to get down? Coming up had been a little challenging and slippery so I wasn’t keen to come down the same way. A bit of a look around told me there was no easy way down, so in the end I opted for the airiel route and chose a platform above the falls to leap from. I must say I was a little nervous having to launch myself at least a 1m out to clear rocks below me…and…the drop below was quite substantial. “Warrior Spirit” and leap…I hit the water, went under…phew no hidden rocks…and surfaced…all fired up and wanting to repeat the fun. It was all captured on video so when I get a minute I will upload the blog for all to see.
Back in the upper pool we all enjoyed swimming in the rather warmish water for another 1/2 hour before setting off on our walk back to the car. Heading clockwise (in reverse) we had not long left the water hole when you come across a lookout which takes in the magnificence of the whole Edith Falls. It is a fantastic viewing platform and makes you realise that you are in one of those special places of “breath taking beauty,” totally amazing…gees…nature sure does put on a show throughout the Kimberley’s and Northern Territory.
Another 20 mins and we were back at the car and heading off to find a camp for the night. In the end we managed to find a gravel pit just off the Stuart Hwy which turned out to be a perfect spot for the night. For all of those receiving our SPOT GPS location finder, check out the free camp and use it when passing by.
You can camp at Edith Falls for a fee, being a National Park.
Well another cool place to visit and another day enjoying being on the road.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
G’day all,
A day spent schooling and by the pool…what more is there to say…fun in the pool was the definite highlight!!
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
G’day all,
We are currently based in Katherine and were up early to enjoy the dawn breakfast cruise down the Katherine Gorge (Gorge 1 & 2). The Nitmiluk NP is about 29 klms from Katherine and where we were staying at Knotts Crossing Caravan Park. We set off about 6:10am and arrived at the tour departure point at 6:50am ready in anticipation of the cruise.
All aboard we were enjoying an awesome, big breaky by 7:10am cruising up the gorge watching the sunrise over the sheer cliff faces. The Katherine Gorge is spectacular and certainly one the best gorges we have seen on our journey that has taken us through the Kimberleys and into the NT.
The cruise takes you up Katherine Gorge #1 where you take a 600m walk and board another boat for Gorge #2. You are continually travelling through soaring sheer cliff faces rising up from the calm glassy water and with the low sunlight around dawn the colour of the rock is fantastic. The cruise lasted 2 hours, costing $260 for 2 adults and 2 children…and in comparison to other tourist attractions we have ventured onto, it rates as great value for money. The cruise is spectacular and you certainly walk away full from a big breaky of bacon, eggs, wedges, mushrooms and cooked tomatoes, not to mention the cereal, croissants, yogorts, fresh orange juice and tea and coffee. It is a great way to spend a morning and a great way to see the gorge which is really quite difficult to hike into with a family or a high level of fitness.
Back on dry land we ventured into the tourist information centre and found it full of great information on the Katherine Gorge and Nitmiluk NP and traditional owners. A good place (and cool place) to spend 45 mins or so.
Leaving the Katherine Gorge behind we headed back to the caravan park for a sleep catchup, some much needed admin of various affairs and for the kids some chill time.
After lunch we spent the afternoon around the resort pool cooling down from the hot 35 degree heat. Dinner, bed and ready for an early start tommorrow.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
G’day all,
Leaving our overnight camp at a rest area 15 klms West of Katherine, we arrived in Katherine around 9:00am NT time. Off to the visitors center to book a dawn river cruise on the Katherine/Nitmiluk Gorge and then find somewhere to camp for a few days.
We chose Knott’s Crossing Resort 2klm outside town which was one of the cheapest caravan parks in town but has its own ensuite..cool.
After setting up camp we enjoyed some time together before heading off to the Katherine Hot Springs later in the day. The hot springs are located 2klm West of town on the highway to Kununurra. The hot springs are a warm 32 degrees and are rather large…and they need to be because they are well used and as such are somewhat…mmm…ferrel! We stayed at them for 15 minutes before we could no longer hang in the mirky water. It may have had something to do with a bloke next to us constantly blowing his nose into the springs. When you have experienced the beautiful clean crystal clear waters of the gorges through the Kimberleys and the beautiful Zebidee Springs, the Katherine Hot Springs just don’t add up.
Back to the resort and onto dinner at the Bar & Bistro – poolside. We had a buffet meal for a fathers day dinner and the kids enjoyed the freedom to pack as many desserts into their stomachs as humanly possible. The meal was good but the description of the meal better!
Back to the caravan ready for our boat cruise on the gorge tommorrow.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
G’day all,
The focus of today was to travel to Katherine, some 513 klms down the Victoria Highway from Kununurra.
We left the caravan park (late for us) at 9:30am after saying our goodbyes to Jeff, Tamara & Banjo. They were waiting in Kununurra to have their car fixed after the air conditioning pipes fractured on the Gibb River Road. We hope to catch them in Katherine on Tuesday or Litchfield NP later in the week.
Highlights of the drive was the scenery between Timber Creek and Victoria River as the highway skirts past the Gregory NP and alongside the Victoria River. This is stunning gorge country and a place worth a visit at another time. We are fast running out of time to spend in the Northern Territory so with a little disappointment kept moving.
We had lunch at Victoria River and arrived in Katherine at 4:00pm or at least we thought 4:00pm. We had neglected the change in time zones and were still operating on WA time. As such we found it amazing that the visitors centre was closed when it was scheduled to stay open until 5:00pm. We didn’t work out the time difference until we were back on the road heading to a rest area 15 klm West of town for the night.
We had planned to book in the dawn river cruise on the Katherine/Nitmiluk Gorge for Fathers Day and were disappointed to miss out especially since we thought the visitors centre was unfairly closed!!
We arrived at the rest area after some dinner in Katherine and settled in for the night.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
G’day all,
With Jeff & Tamara’s vehicle out of action and parts not turning up today, Nissan was unable to fix the Patrol. As such we decided to have a lazy day with them in the caravan park.
Morning was spent gas bagging around camp before heading off to the pool for a refreshing dip. Joey Jess & Orangatang Amy were leaping from the side of the pool catching a tennis ball and/or hoop. This was great fun and great family time together. The real laugh was watching the kids throw the hoop and ball to Uncle Jeff and Bushman Bud with tennis balls and hoops worn on most parts of the body. It was a good laugh and lots of fun.
Time for lunch and a quick run to the shops for supplies was next, followed by a trip to the beach area above the diversion dam where signs said you could swim amongst the crocodiles if you so desired. That left Bushman Bud and Captain Underpants with the rather silly challenge of swimming around an old dead tree some 30m from the shore. I casually grabbed Jeff’s foot as we were swimming and he almost jumped clear of the water. The tree had a rope swing attached which we put to good use before getting the hell out of there!
After the refreshing swim it was down to the Ivanhoe Crossing for a looksy and quick fish for a Barra. The water was running very high over the crossing and despite trying both Jeff and I couldn’t snag fish for dinner. My memory though will be of Tamara putting Banjo knee deep in water down from the crossing in saltwater croc infested river. I was that takenback I lost my fishing lure to a snag. These are slip ups that can cost lives and luckily Banjo escaped without harm. Gees you really need to be careful and always on your guard around these places because things can happen quickly and enexpectantly.
With everyone safe and sound back in the car it was back to camp for a BBQ and to watch Geelong flog Collingwood in a surprising upset….ahhhh life on the road hey…pretty cool.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
G’day all,
A day of cleaning and packing up. Wash the car, wash the van, wash the boat and pack up everything…that was about the day!!!
Funny, first day of spring and having a spring clean – never thought about that one.
At least we are getting ready for more adventures!
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia
G’day all,
First thing in the morning we headed back into El Questro Gorge. Lynda and Jess had not been to the end of the El Questro Gorge and so off we went.
To cut a long story short, since I have already described this gorge in detail, we all thoroughly enjoyed the adventure. We found new ways of scaling the big boulder and enjoyed a beautiful swim at Mic Micking Pool…this is a very special place and beautiful one to visit.
Back at camp we packed up and hooked the van, said goodbye to El Questro Station and headed off to Kununurra for the next stage of our adventure.
Approximately 50klm from the Station we ended our adventure along the Gibb River Road. We had witnessed many amazing sights, explored magnificent gorges and witnessed the timeless and moving Mitchell Falls. We had been jarred to breaking point on endless corrugations and had a few minor incidents along the way but all in all our lives were touched by the adventure and the experiences we had shared. A chapter in our adventure closed but it will last forever in our memory.
Onto Kununurra and to the Ivanhoe caravan park to meet up with Jeff & Tamara.
Bushman Bud…Enjoying Australia