FELLOW Fisho writers, Pete Zeroni, Jamie Crawford and I just returned from a short stay in the Northern Territory for two different fishing trips.
The team was invited up to Melville Lodge with Tiwi Islands Adventures to do a story on the blue water fishing options off Melville Island.
Also on the same trip was the winner of the Fisho subscription prize, Bob Audsley. Bob, simply by renewing his subscription to Fisho, won a three day fishing trip to this awesome fishing lodge for himself and two very lucky friends, Keith Noyse and Mike Sawatske.
A few months out from the trip, Pete, a Darwin local, offered for Jamie and I to come up a few days earlier and fish with him and some mates on a remote camping trip. Jamie and I snapped it up. The camping trip was awesome! Sleeping under mozzie domes with the boats anchored on the beach having a quick bite, heading out for a fish and amazing camp cooked dinners was just fantastic.
We did a mix of estuary and bluewater for a heap of different species. Some of the more memorable sessions were jigging a deep estuary hole with soft vibes for some nice black jew, barra, threadfin and blue salmon. We also had a good bluewater trolling session where one triple hookup produced a lovely mackerel for Jamie, decent queenfish for Pete and good trevally for me. The weather was hot but nice and calm, so just awesome!
Pete and Jamie are two of the nicest blokes to fish with. No egos, competent fishos, good company and generous with their knowledge, time and equipment. So we were hoping this camping trip would be a great warm up for the luxury of Melville Lodge. Sadly, due to heavy work commitments, Pete had to pull out at the last minute so it was just Jamie and I who would do the lodge and meet up with Bob, Keith and Mike.
As always, Melville Lodge turned on the variety in species and fishing options. We jigged offshore reefs for trevally, mackerel and big golden snapper, cast the flats for some of the best barra sessions I’ve had for ages, visited the legendary Goose Creek for saratoga and cast to snags for everything else that swims in the territory. Then, at the end of a long hot day on the water, a cold shower, cool drink and luxurious lodge accommodation was just what this frozen southerner needed at this time of the year.
Keep your eyes peeled for an upcoming feature story from Jamie on Melville Island.
