WAY OUT WEST

I peered through sleepy eyes out the front window of my house as I heard Marty Asmus’ car pull up. Our gear was already packed into my trusty old L series Subaru and after grunting pre-dawn pleasantries to each other we headed off into the darkness on a four day intensive reconnaissance of the publicly accessible land along the Murrumbidgee River between Narrandera and Balranald.

This trip was to gather data for our second book detailing where the publicly accessible land is, how to get there and what you can expect on your arrival at each site. Fisherman, campers and especially the ‘Grey Nomads’ in buses, Winnebago’s or towing vans are always on the lookout for a scenic place for a cuppa, or to set up camp for a few days.

The first book in the series Fishing and Camping Murrumbidgee River – Gundagai to Narrandera was released in September 2004. This book was well received and so we decided to extend the boundaries and cover a popular section of the Murrumbidgee from the town of Narrandera, across the Hay plain, to Balranald.

Whilst our aim was to build a book, we packed enough fishing gear in the back of my wagon to fill a tackle shop. With so many good locations along our route we couldn’t resist the temptation to wet a line. I usually always take my boat when fishing, but it would have slowed us down too much and as such, we were limited to shore based fishing.

As soon as the sun gave us enough light to see we started gathering our data. This involved driving every track in each reserve, writing detailed notes on various features, taking pictures and GPS marks, before moving on to the next site.

After a full day of this routine we were ready to discard the GPS, camera, maps and notepad and get into some fishing. I pulled the Subaru to a halt at Burrabogie Reserve, located between Hay and Carrathool. Before the dust had settled, Marty was clambering down the bank firing casts at a huge snag in the water. Seconds later a 58cm Murray cod is flapping at Marty’s feet. He backed this fish up with another smaller cod before hunger pulled us away from the water to light a fire and cook tea.

With the fire lit and BBQ cooking, we set up a pair of rods with worms and settled back to a relaxing beer. Our rest was short-lived as the cod and carp were ravenous keeping us on the move constantly fighting fish and rebaiting. Once darkness settled, the fish stopped biting completely and we finally got our tea cooked. The tally since our arrival was five cod and a handful of carp.

In the morning light the giant river red gums are stark in contrast to the flat, featureless plains extending to the horizon away from the river. We rolled our swags up as another day of driving over rough, rutted tracks beckoned. This day we hoped to explore through Hay and to our farthest sites west of Balranald and just upstream of the Murray River and Murrumbidgee River confluence.

Our taste of fishing at Burrabogie had the juices flowing. All day we resisted the itch to cast a lure into the fantastic waters of the Hay Weir and further downstream at the Maude Weir. As the day progressed we re-set our goal to stretch to Redbank Weir by nightfall and unfortunately, we couldn’t spare any time for random fishing events.

The land surrounding Redbank Weir is privately owned and we were fortunate to gain permission to camp and fish this excellent stretch of water. We quickly set up camp in the failing light, unloading only the bare essentials. This time it was my turn to fish whilst Marty lit the fire and cooked tea. In this part of the world, golden perch are abundant and I soon had several fish to 1.5kg sitting on ice. The fish were biting so well, that it was difficult to keep up with two rods. In the end I had to wind my lines in so I was able to eat tea!

Marty joined me after we had eaten and the procession of fish on our lines continued with golden perch and carp biting until midnight when we pulled our rods out and crawled into our swags.

Day three was a tough slog along the back roads through Oxley and Carrathool on predominantly dirt roads that appear to continue straight and flat forever. The only relief along the treeless plains are the distant red gum forest’s lining the banks of the Murrumbidgee.

Our last night was spent in Benerembah State Forest which is large enough to get lost in. We were lucky to find a couple of locals who showed us the shortcut to the best campsites, which saved us from driving aimlessly. This night we decided to both fish and worry about food and a fire later.

I drew first blood taking a 55cm cod within seconds of my bait hitting the water. Marty was lure fishing unsuccessfully and after my instant success he changed tactics and joined me bait fishing. The water was dropping quickly which usually stops the fish from biting. Buoyed by my early success we fished hard for several fruitless hours, which was testament to the non-ideal water conditions.

Our data collection on the fourth and final day was easier than expected and we were ahead of schedule, allowing us to take more time to explore fishing opportunities. We alternated having a few casts at each likely location throughout the day and despite spending more time fishing, we were still fishless by late-afternoon when we completed our final site.

We were tired from the long days in the car and late nights by the fire, but decided that we needed to finish on a high note, which for us meant catching a couple of fish. Fifty kilometres up the road from our last site was Berembed Weir, which offers some of the best land-based inland fishing available. It’s also one of our regular haunts and we know each rock and log almost by name.

The lethargy of fours days in a car was forgotten as we sprang out and jockeyed for the best positions on the rocks, all the while eyeing the water for the eddies where the fish lay in wait. Our lures landed simultaneously and expectations were soon dashed as the fish refused to cooperate. Cast after cast into a normally sure-fire spot failed to raise a strike and we moved on to new water.

Standing high above the water on top of a rock wall, I noticed a swirling eddy approximately thirty metres away from the bank. I usually fished this particular spot closer to the shore, however I belted a prospecting cast out to this pocket of water. My spinnerbait barely sank below the bubbling water when a cracking strike registered through the braided line. I missed this fish and after winding for several metres, another bite registered up the line, again without hooking up.

I called to Marty that I had found the fish and he sprang across the rocks toward me like a startled goat. Both lures landed in the strike zone and Marty’s was instantly eaten by a powerful fish that bolted directly into the current and powered away. I had to wait a split second before a fish scoffed my lure and took the same path as Marty’s fish. Both fish were too strong to wind against the current, so we chased them downstream, jumping across rocks to a ledge at water level, where they could be landed.

The fish were determined to reach a shallow section of river littered with snags, but fortunately both fish were turned before they reached this sanctuary and escorted into the shallows. Marty’s fish was estimated at 4kg, whilst mine was slightly smaller at 3kg.

It was a fitting end to our trip and we were satisfied with our last minute adrenalin-packed captures.

All we have to do know is write the book.

© Jamin Forbes December 2006