As we headed to Australia, a smile dressed my face… this was the first “non-work” vacation I had taken in quite some time…
The Sydney beaches were gorgeous. Surfers and tourists played in the sun and I couldn’t help but look beyond them for signs of decent fishing. Spotting the shark net in the distance, I quickly remembered that these beaches were much different than those on the west-coast of BC and the thought of a run in with a man-eating bull or great white shark rose my heart rate and lessened my desire to go swimming.
Choosing instead to seek excitement in a local beer and quick visit around town, I settled in to what would soon become my home away from home and didn’t take my time to add a woman’s touch to the open space.
Arriving in Australia always loses me two days… as they are one day ahead of us, the 30 hour commute inevitably steals another day and I needed some rest to allow my body to catch up.
Blue Eyes and I decided we would venture north up the coast until we had found isolation and productive fishing grounds. On our way there, we found delicious meat pies and small towns.
Crossing over small rivers, I would point out the window, littering him with questions about what sort of life lived deep in the river depths. Explaining that although these are technically ‘rivers’, they are still tidal and all sorts of danger lurked within.
I rolled my eyes at his answer and threatened to go swimming if the hot weather persisted… My joking was short-lived when he gravely let me know that even though the rivers were small, many of them were home to large, hunting bull sharks who venture into the small bodies of water to feed at night.
I opted to stick with swimmer friendly beaches.
A kangaroo crossing secured my realization that I was no longer in North America and I threatened to chase every one I saw… I quickly got an education on how unfriendly a boxing kangaroo can be but it did nothing to change my mind.
Settling in for the week, the warm breeze kissed my face and I stared in awe at the view. Whales thrashed in the bay and colourful birds of all sorts chirped above me.
Eager to get down to the water, we hopped in the old beach truck, grabbed the permit that allowed us to drive on the shore and laughed hysterically as we caught air over sand dunes & narrowly escaped the clutches of rolling salty waves that promised to assault the Land-cruiser’s undercarriage.
We pulled into a corner and explored a rock wall that we would later fish from. So much excitement! We could fish the surf, the rock walls, offshore, the large channels and the small “rivers”. Jew fish, sharks, bass, flathead, marlin… and countless other species that I had never heard of piqued my curiosity…
As I walked barefoot through the sand, I couldn’t imagine being happier; a thirty year old woman who thrives off adventure and here I was about to dive into Australia; land of the wild! Grizzlies for most of the year, bull sharks and snakes the rest? I was petrified and ecstatic at the same time!
We fished into the dark from shore at a small river opening and I raked a large popper through the water in hopes of a feeding bass. The mosquitoes eventually annoyed me to discomfort and we decided to get a full day in tomorrow.
Awakening rested and bubbly, we grabbed the boat and headed out to find some jewfish and flathead.
The thought of fat large-mouth bass escaping us last night only heightened my ambition and it didn’t take much convincing to get BE’s to turn the boat down a beautiful little stream. The heat encouraged a swim but the fear of a rare shark encounter was enough to convince me otherwise.
Sweating and cursing, I cast poppers into the shade of the trees until a poorly measured cast broke off our last top-water pattern. “Ugh”, it was time to rest during the mid-day sun and venture back out later in the evening.
On our way home, a purple flipflop littered the side of the road… in unison, we turned to it and pulled over to grab it. While I sipped my Dark & Stormy (my new favourite drink), Blue Eyes cut up the footwear and tied up a hideous (yet efficient) popper.
Going out again that evening, I balanced on the bow and cast aggressively into the darkness.
The water exploded beneath my fly and I blindly set my rod upwards… into a beautiful bass.
I slept better than I had in months and come dawn, we were packed up and ready to try our luck at jewfish in one of the larger channels. True to the daily routine, we slowed at a kangaroo and I granted it a break from my chase as my eyes fell upon it’s full pouch… I simply loved these strange little animals.
Launching the boat in the early hour, we packed both flies and soft plastics (which evidently I am not overly talented at using)… and hit the current.
We were trying to catch some flathead for dinner and experiment with catching jewfish on the fly. I rigged up a heavy sink tip and a weighted fly from friend and custom tier Mike Rice … proceeding to have my ass handed to me while BE’s pulled in fish and I sat empty handed and stubborn.
Releasing several small jew fish, we took home a flathead and took a break from fishing in the surf.
Petrified of sharks, BE’s, a seasoned surfer (below) and Australian native, persuaded me to trust him and I did so as I squeezed into the tight wetsuit and allowed him to paddle me into the salty waves.
Explaining the technique and giving me a push, I wavered uneasily and tried to get my feet straight on the board. Falling and laughing until the sting of saltwater penetrated my nostrils, I stood up like a five year old proudly beaming from ear to ear. “Again, again!” I squealed and he laughed at me as a large wave crashed at my body and sent me tumbling.
Driving along the beach, again we stopped at every object buried in the sand, and turned over shells, poked at beached puffer fish and marvelled at a cool (yet, slightly gross) shark embryo. Protective and cautious, BE’s had bought me a pair of snake boots to wear during our off road adventures and I wore them like a schoolchild in gumboots while tromping around the terrain.
The next day, rock fishing was on our list of activities… with a summer dress and a gigantic smile, we headed out to hit the bluffs. A giant kangaroo grazed alongside the road and, as was every morning, I exited the vehicle and made my way to him.
As I stalked low and creeped towards him, an Aussie accent rang from within the truck. “Honey, I don’t think that is one you want to mess with…” I approached cautiously and eyed up the animal. This one was different. Enormous and unbothered by me, he tilted his ears back and proceeded to eat. Kangaroos balance on their tails and are able to both kick and punch any opponents… I thought the whole concept was fascinating. Check out this YouTube clip here to see how they fight https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36tBS6dXo-U
Then he stood up…
His large arms looked like a gorillas, his shoulders steep and his tail thicker than any I had seen so far. My slow steps soon halted and I turned back to the truck…. “Yup, I think you’re right….” The kangaroo nonchalantly went back to eating.
The rocky walls of the Australian coast are breath-taking. In high spirits (and snake boots, of course for the bushy parts of the trail), we hiked through the hillside until we reached one of his favourite fishing spots.
A dip in the rocks lay filled with stagnant water and I stopped to peer into the natural aquarium. Starting to strip down to bathe in the clear water, he stopped me from climbing in and reminded me to proceed with caution in case a deadly Blue-ringed Octopus might also be lounging in the tidal pool.
I knew he wasn’t excited about me having to put my clothes back on so I chose to believe him and opted to leave the pool alone.
Gorgeous little velvet flowers sprouted from the crevices and their soft touch caressed my fingers…
As I expressed my shock at the amount of dangerous animals that lived down under, he went on to settle my fears and let me know that awareness and knowledge would keep me safe…
My ease was short lived as we hiked down the steep rock face and I was briefed on the dangers of rock fishing. While there were no snakes on the warm rocks (birds wouldn’t allow them that luxury), crashing waves were a very real area of concern and we ensured that we were standing in a dry spot, away from the reach of a wave that might decide to grab an unaware angler and toss them in to the churning white waters of the ocean.
Losing some fish but catching dinner and some sunshine… we retreated back to the house to eat.
My two weeks in Oz were unquestionably too short… Leaving most of my packed belongings behind, I knew I would be back in only two weeks time… I love the land down under and am so excited to explore it further to see just how many fish I can coax with this fly rod of mine.
See you again soon!
xo ~AV
