Mon 12th July, 2010 - Day 45

There was no rush to emerge from bed this morning so I arose at 7.15am and who knows what time Rex was up. The first item on the agenda was the washing for both the Muller’s and us. After this was finished we had brunch which consisted of bacon, sausages, eggs, herbed and cheese grilled tomatoes, baked beans and croissants washed down with a cuppa.

Then it was time for Rex and Mick to prepare to go fishing at high tide. Maureen & I had to revisit the supermarket to purchase a few things we were unable to get yesterday.

POPPY’S FISHING REPORT

Mick & I went fishing at the Derby Wharf at about 2.30pm at which time the tide had already reached its peak. We fished beside the boat ramps adjacent to the wharf. We were using whole fish bait & I was using 3 ganged hooks initially. Mick was using the same.

A bloke was fishing on the ramp itself & said he had caught a large Barramundi the previous day. He was using bobby floats with his rig whereas Mick & I were fishing on the bottom.

We were getting plenty of taps on the line from something fairly small & soon most of our bait was gone. I changed to a single hook & fish piece. After a while I hooked up to what seemed a fair fish, which gave a good fight. I ended up landing a small catfish which after removing it;s dagger like pectoral fin from my jogger, decided to return to the water. I had heard many years ago that saltwater catties were not good eating, unlike the freshwater variety which I knew were very nice. Meanwhile the bloke who had caught the big Barra, had snagged one of his lines, his float & bait were floating with the tide. Suddenly he was gone so Mick reckoned he would try to retrieve the float. He soon returned with the float & bait still intact. ( A bloke in a returning dingy had un-snagged it for him).

We fished for a while longer, Mick using his newly acquired rig & me my single hook. We decide to call it quits & left for the Information Centre to check if the Tunnel Creek/Winjana Gorge road would be open for our last day in Derby & found it was still closed. Tomorrow would be a relaxing day at the office.

The four of us had dinner under the awning at our van. Grandee had prepared one of her award winning salmon salads, Maureen & Mick had prepared a fantastic fruit salad for desert. After all this eating & wine drinking we felt fairly weary, so we decided to call it a day.So it was goodnight from them & goodnight from us.