 GOING WALKABOUT — Fishing the Western Australian Coast — by Tim Elliott
“I FLYFISH because the voices in my head tell me to.” These words will resonate with many a flyfisherman. The “little voices” had been at work for some time, challenging me to fulfill a dream by exploring the coastline of Western Australia.
There is much unexplained logic in a flyfisherman’s quest to fish in remote and, at times, exotic locations, and there may well be some raised eyebrows as to why I chose this area of Australia. The voices? ... Well, I’m not entirely sure.
Meticulous planning had been shaping in my mind for a period of two or so years, and this included spending many hours on the internet researching the flyfishing potential between Perth and Broome. I had, however, found enough enticing detail in a reference book — Fishing guide to Western Aus- tralia by Kurt Blanksby and Frank Prokop — to confirm my decision was sound and well worth pursuing.
Of course, Perth is a fair distance from South Africa and one doesn’t simply set off for a weekend to throw a fly at an unknown number of species on a sparsely inhabited coastline. There was something far more mesmerising as I jetted out of Johannesburg at the end of April last year with my wife as companion for a six-week meander, starting out from Perth. Our plans included the hire of a campervan as a mobile home and effectively joining the “grey nomad” brigade as they make their way in leisurely fashion up this magnificent coastline in the warm sunshine of the winter months.
JURIEN BAY
I reflected on how good it feels when plans come together as we manoeuvred our way out of Perth onto the Brand Highway, with our first destination being Jurien Bay. Arriving in the late afternoon after a pleasant drive through desperately parched countryside, I was immediately taken by the beauty of this small coastal resort with its white sandy bays and shimmering light-to-dark-blue waters.
After checking into the first of what would be many caravan parks, I noticed a well-positioned jetty ideally located for flyfishing just a short stroll away. I drew a few curious glances from a couple of fellow bait fishermen as I set about getting a fly into the water. Within about an hour I had accounted for a feisty giant herring of about 2kg, a small garfish and a herring (tommy rough).
Watching a late, spectacular setting sun I had a surge of adrenaline with three new species on my list and, more importantly, another 2 400km of coastline up ahead.
A word on the weather: this time of year — around autumn — is ideal for flyfishing. Generally, we had gentle offshore breezes in the morning, followed by a calm period to midday, and then the “Freemantle Doctor” cooled things down in mid-afternoon.
DONGARA-DENNISON
Our next stop about 360km further north was Dongara-Dennison, with the added bonus that a superb shoreline was no more than 100 metres from our camp site. Fishing conditions were superb, with calm inshore conditions prevalent due to the offshore reef which provides protection all the way up to Broome.
Read the full story in the February 2010 issue of FLYFISHING. |
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