Fishing Up A Storm?

Dundee Downs Bush Retreat has been a very pleasant place to set up camp.  Only four klms to the boat ramp, lots of shady trees, power, flushing loos and after a storm (which are reasonably frequent) we even have waterfrontage.

From the Front Steps

Like An Island In A Stream

What it doesn't have is Mobile Phone Coverage!  Even though we are reasonably close to Darwin, this area is not in Telstra's 98% of the population.  Never mind, its only a 50klm round trip to make a phone call!

Apart from ducking in and out of tropical storms, Team Turtle has been having a go at working out Top End Tidal Movements and trying to fish.

Last Saturday morning, Tuf Tinnie was loaded up with fishing rods and lures and we set out to check the spots the locals had told us about.  A couple of small bites were all that were on offer and then it was a quick trip back to the boat ramp.  The quick trip was okay but we were too late for there to be any water left there, even though there was still 90 mins left before dead low.  What was left of the boat ramp was far too steep for The Captain to winch Tuf Tinnie onto The Trailer without totally ending up in what was left of the creek so we just pulled her up the boat ramp.  This system did work except the poor little boat was left with a few gaps in her hull (near the transom) where she had been pulled over the rough concrete and bounced.  Not a very good look for a boat!!

After our return to camp, The Captain was able to find some suitable stuff to make temporary repairs until we can find an aluminium welder.  At least we can't see daylight through the hull.

Sunday was time to purchase more provisions.  The nearest reasonable supermarket was at Berry Springs - 70 klms away.  The only drawback was that it started to rain and kept raining and the Charlotte River was flowing very rapidly (and deeply) over the causeway.

Its Not The Depth But How Hard It Was Flowing

 It was with a little bit of trepidation that we made our return journey.  Upon reaching the causeway, we noticed quite a few cars on either side of the river just waiting for it to go down.  A Commodore Ute had made it across from the other side but only just.  The water had been a little bit deep for it and the electricals had given up.  The Captain had a beer and thought about the situation.  After about an hour of deep contemplation her decided that "it should be okay" and off we headed.  But not before he had turned off the air-conditioner and any other non essential equipment.  Fortunately, we made it!!  Which was good as it would have been very embarrassing for a NSW car to end up over the edge.

The next couple of days were extra damp so we did not venture out onto the high seas as well as waiting for the stuff to dry in Tuf Tinnie's bum.

Thursday was a pretty good day, so off we went again!  A few small fish were caught by The Captain but the best one was a poor little Catfish.  Not only did it attempt to eat a dead prawn, something tried to eat it on the way  up.

Half Gone!

Its remains were swooped upon by a couple of sea eagles and put out of its misery!

We then headed back to the boat ramp to try and beat the storm.  We did, but with about five minutes to spare.

Impending Storm

Yesterday (Saturday) The Deckie finally caught her first fish.  It was only a little cod, but at least it was a fish!

The Deckie's First Fish

And, there was another first.  Our first crocodile siting!  The Captain was the first to spot it amongst all of the logs in the creek and it was not impressed when we stalked it.  After a few photos, it had had enough, closed his eyes and sunk into the murky depths.

Watching, Watching......

Just About Fed Up With Stalkers

A quite afternoon followed, a few small fish were caught and then we once more headed back before we ran out of water again.