Category: Results

Northern Division Daiwa Barra Tour AOY

Place	Angler	Teemburra	Faust	Tinaroo	Total
1	Kerrin Taylor	82	100	100	282
2	Cy Taylor	82	99	99	280
3	Scott McAuley	97	93	82	272
4	Mark Mercy	82	76	82	240
5	Jason Wilhelm	96	91		187
6	Alan McNamara	82	98		180
7	Kaj Busch	94	86		180
8	Matt Coleman	82	97		179
9	Michael Lumby	82	95		177
10	Jason Cameron	82	94		176
11	Dennis Roughan	98	76		174
12	Gavin Jarema	82	90		172
13	Danny Anderson		76	93	169
14	Luke Coleman	82	87		169
15	Trevor Burgess	93	76		169
16	Gavin Dunne	100			100
17	Andy Thomson	99			99
18	Ben Leighton			98	98
19	Warren Adams			97	97
19	Neville Gannon			97	97
21	Lindsay Dobe		96		96
22	Dan Bowater			95	95
23	Craig Dunne	95			95
24	Ian Leighton			94	94
25	David Milson			92	92
26	Peter Price		92		92
27	Rod Collings	92			92
28	Arthur Lovern		89		89
29	Michael Myers		88		88
30	Jeff Reid			82	82
30	Reuben Taylor			82	82
30	Allan Craperi			82	82
30	Joseph Wiliams			82	82
30	Vince Cassaniti			82	82
30	Boyd Hamlyn			82	82
30	Trevor Spry			82	82
30	Gavin Comino			82	82
30	James Coate			82	82
30	Bruce Kuhn			82	82
30	Warren Mulla			82	82
30	Theo Davis			82	82
30	Dave Powell			82	82
30	Coota Stevens			82	82
30	Glenn Campbell			82	82
30	Jack Campbell			82	82
30	Jason Muller			82	82
47	Tim Warren		76		76
47	Steve Cantamessa		76		76
47	Colin Slade		76		76

Place	Team	Teemburra	Faust	Tinaroo	Total
1	Millerods/Shimano	86	100	100	286
2	Isa Strike Zone	86	92	84	262
3	Lake Glenbawn	96	98		194
4	Squidgy	97	94		191
5	Mundi	98	93		191
6	Team Got None	86	99		185
7	Codseeker	86	97		183
8	Ando’s Sportsfishers		81	95	176
9	Team Ecogear	100			100
10	Black Cans			99	99
11	Squid Lips	99			99
12	Eyes and Ears			98	98
12	Quay Marine			98	98
14	Team Triumph			96	96
15	One of These Days		96		96
16	Penn		95		95
17	The B-52’s			94	94
18	Team Cow		91		91
19	The Hiltons			84	84
19	Ocean Blue			84	84
19	Snag Rats			84	84
19	Delishus Fishus			84	84
19	Fatman and Ribbon			84	84
19	Northern Angler			84	84

28 anglers gathered at Tinaroo Holiday Park cursing the weather gods for the final event of the 2006 Daiwa BARRA Tour, the Shimano Lake Tinaroo 2-day Evening Event.
28 anglers gathered at Tinaroo Holiday Park cursing the weather gods for the final event of the 2006 Daiwa BARRA Tour, the Shimano Lake Tinaroo 2-day Evening Event.

Coming off an impressive win at Peter Faust, there was a lot of talk about the Taylor boys. They backed it up well, blitzing the Teams category for Millerods/Shimano with a total of 12 barramundi for 892cm, 611cm clear of the next team.

1st place winning a cheque for $600, a Millerod Camofish Barra Hi-Roller rod and Shimano Cruxis 200 reel was Kerrin Taylor wth 6/10, 448cm. Followed closely in second place winning $500, a Diawa Team Advantage rod, Daiwa Millionaire SW203 reel and TD sensor braid was Cy Taylor with 6/10, 444cm. Third (Ben Leighton 2/10, 215cm), fourth (Warren Adams 1/10, 116cm), fifth (Neville Gannon 1/10, 116cm) taking out the remaing places winning cash and prizes including G.Loomis, Angler and Ian Miller Raider Barra Mauler rods.

The Go-So Big Barra was a tie with Warren Adams and Neville Gannon both boating 116cm specimens. The Shimano Bonus prize including a Barra Mauler rod and Shimano Curado 200 DPV reel, however went to Adams who remembered to include the Shimano Calcutta reel he caught the barramundi on, in the photo.

Gannon explained he caught his fish in the second session using a Rapala X-Rap in silver colour, working it parallel to the weedbeds, using a hard erratic jerking retrieve. Adams, a repeat Big Barra winner from last year, caught his barra in the first session in the same spot as last year, a clearing area out from the timber. Working on the presumption that the fish do laps around and must visit the area as they come out from the timber, he ripped his modified 8ft Killalure Barra Bait painted white to once again tempt that large fish.

“I had only painted the lure white that morning and it still smelt of paint, not that it mattered to the barra” he joked.

The overall accolades went to the Shimano/Millerods team, impressing many locals and anglers with their performance. Choosing to anchor and fish a bay in 1 to 3 metres of water with a horizontal laydown under the water. This spot appealed to them as the wind was blowing in to the back of the bay and the water temperature was slightly warmer.

Casting their modified 100mm Squidgy Slick Rigs with rear trebles far into the rear of the bay and slow rolling it parallel to the underwater timber, many of their hits came quickly as they wound in the slack line and began to work the lure.

Pulling the aggressive fish from the snags proved to be difficult, losing 3 fish on the first session and 5 in the second.

“We would always get a bit of leader back when we lost a fish, meaning at least our knots were holding” the boys explained.

A $150 stocking donation went to the Tablelands Fish Stocking Association, a contribution for the future of the lake.

With the Northern leg of the Daiwa BARRA tour now complete, the Northern Angler of the Year Title went to Kerrin Taylor (282/300). The Northern Team of the Year also went to the Shimano/Millerods team (286/300). Putting them in a great position for the AOY, with the Southern leg still to be completed.

If you would like to join in the fun for either the remainder of the 2006 Daiwa BARRA Tour or want to start planning for next year, check out all the info at www.australianbarra.com.au.

Place	Team	Angler	F1	L1	F2	L2	TF	TL
1	Millerods-Shimano	Kerrin Taylor	5	363	1	85	6	448
2	Millerods-Shimano	Cy Taylor	5	358	1	86	6	444
3	Black Cans	Ben Leighton	2	215			2	215
4	Quay Marine	Warren Adams	1	116			1	116
5	Eyes and Ears	Neville Gannon			1	116	1	116
6	Team Triumph	Dan Bowater			1	70	1	70
7	Black Cans	Ian Leighton	1	66			1	66
8	Ando Sportsfish	Danny Anderson	1	65			1	65
9	The B-52’s	David Milson	1	58			1	58
10	The B-52’s	Jeff Reid					0	0
10	Isa Strike Zone	Mark Mercy					0	0
10	Isa Strike Zone	Reuben Taylor					0	0
10	The Hiltons	Allan Craperi					0	0
10	The Hiltons	Joseph Wiliams					0	0
10	Ocean Blue	Vince Cassaniti					0	0
10	Ocean Blue	Boyd Hamlyn					0	0
10	Snag Rats	Trevor Spry					0	0
10	Snag Rats	Gavin Comino					0	0
10	Delishus Fishus	James Coate					0	0
10	Delishus Fishus	Bruce Kuhn					0	0
10	Eyes and Ears	Warren Mulla					0	0
10	Team Triumph	Theo Davis					0	0
10	Quay Marine	Dave Powell					0	0
10	Fatman and Ribbon	Scott McAuley					0	0
10	Fatman and Ribbon	Jason Muller					0	0
10	Ando Sportsfish	Coota Stevens					0	0
10	Northern Angler	Glenn Campbell					0	0
10	Northern Angler	Jack Campbell					0	0
			16	1241	4	357	20	1598
			Avg	77.5625	Avg	89.25	Avg	79.9

Place	Team	Angler	F1	L1	F2	L2	TF	TL
1	Millerods-Shimano	Kerrin Taylor	5	363	1	85	6	448
2	Millerods-Shimano	Cy Taylor	5	358	1	86	6	444
3	Black Cans	Ben Leighton	2	215			2	215
4	Quay Marine	Warren Adams	1	116			1	116
5	Eyes and Ears	Neville Gannon			1	116	1	116
6	Team Triumph	Dan Bowater			1	70	1	70
7	Black Cans	Ian Leighton	1	66			1	66
8	Ando Sportsfish	Danny Anderson	1	65			1	65
9	The B-52’s	David Milson	1	58			1	58
10	The B-52’s	Jeff Reid					0	0
10	Isa Strike Zone	Mark Mercy					0	0
10	Isa Strike Zone	Reuben Taylor					0	0
10	The Hiltons	Allan Craperi					0	0
10	The Hiltons	Joseph Wiliams					0	0
10	Ocean Blue	Vince Cassaniti					0	0
10	Ocean Blue	Boyd Hamlyn					0	0
10	Snag Rats	Trevor Spry					0	0
10	Snag Rats	Gavin Comino					0	0
10	Delishus Fishus	James Coate					0	0
10	Delishus Fishus	Bruce Kuhn					0	0
10	Eyes and Ears	Warren Mulla					0	0
10	Team Triumph	Theo Davis					0	0
10	Quay Marine	Dave Powell					0	0
10	Fatman and Ribbon	Scott McAuley					0	0
10	Fatman and Ribbon	Jason Muller					0	0
10	Ando Sportsfish	Coota Stevens					0	0
10	Northern Angler	Glenn Campbell					0	0
10	Northern Angler	Jack Campbell					0	0
			16	1241	4	357	20	1598
			Avg	77.5625	Avg	89.25	Avg	79.9

22 anglers gathered at Proserpine Bait and Tackle thinking of big things for the second event of the 2006 Daiwa BARRA Tour, the Squidgy Peter Faust 2-day Morning Event.
22 anglers gathered at Proserpine Bait and Tackle thinking of big things for the second event of the 2006 Daiwa BARRA Tour, the Squidgy Peter Faust 2-day Morning Event.

Windy conditions greeted anglers on both days, but it was the Taylor boys’ knowledge of the dam that won them the Championship Team Title for Millerods/Shimano. They outclassed the other teams with 9 fish for a total length of 855cm.

In first place was Kerrin Taylor, with 5 fish for 514cm. Using a Millerod Camofish Barra High Roller rod matched to a new Shimano Calais Digital reel, spooled with 30lb Penn Power Pro braid and straight through 80lb Maxima monofilament leader.

Taking second place was Cy Taylor, with 4 fish for 341cm. Who also uses the exact same gear thanks to a recent sponsorship deal.

The boys have spent many weekends prefishing the dam, trying different hours of the day to fish to gain further experience. In the overcast conditions, they have found the barramundi at the back of the weedbeds in shallow water. Targeting these with a Squidgy Slick Rig in the 110mm size, recently modified to include a stinger treble.

Kerrin explained the technique, “I first wind fast to keep it out of the weed, and then change to a steady slow retrieve.”

The change of wind direction on Day 2 did not change the boys’ plans to hit the same weedbeds.

“We have been talking to Jason Wilhelm lots about barra habits and how to target them”, they said. “It has helped our fishing heaps!”

The Go-So Big Barra prize and Bonus Squidgy Prize however went to Michael Lumby from Team Codseeker Lures. Scoring an impressive 118cm specimen early on the first day from the weed on a Squidgy Slick Rig.

“I was keeping off the weed in about 15 feet of water, and following the contour of the weed with the retrieve”, Lumby explained.

A $100 stocking donation was presented to Lindsay Dobe from the Peter Faust Stocking Group.

Dobe commented, “The recent purchase of the 35cm stockings has been working well and this money will definitely help to purchase more of these.”

27 barramundi were boated over the two days for a total length of 2475cm, making an impressive average size of 91.67cm.

The Daiwa BARRA tour now travels north for the Shimano Tinaroo 2-day Evening Event. With the briefing scheduled for 1pm Saturday 21/10 at the Tinaroo Holiday Park.

If you would like to join in the fun for either the remainder of the 2006 Daiwa BARRA Tour or want to start planning for next year, check out all the info at www.australianbarra.com.au

Place	Team	Angler	F1	L1	F2	L2	TF	TL
1	Millerods-Shimano	Kerrin Taylor	4	405	1	109	5	514
2	Millerods-Shimano	Cy Taylor	3	282	1	59	4	341
3	Lake Glenbawn	Alan McNamara	1	114	2	178	3	292
4	Team Got None	Matt Coleman	3	233			3	233
5	Penn	Lindsay Dobe			2	171	2	171
6	Codseeker	Michael Lumby	1	118			1	118
7	Codseeker	Jason Cameron			1	107	1	107
8	Mundi	Scott McAuley	1	106			1	106
9	One of These Days	Peter Price	1	104			1	104
10	Squidgy	Jason Wilhelm			1	103	1	103
11	Isa Strike Zone	Gavin Jarema	1	101			1	101
12	One of These Days	Arthur Lovern	1	93			1	93
13	Team Cow	Michael Myers			1	77	1	77
14	Team Got None	Luke Coleman			1	59	1	59
15	Squidgy	Kaj Busch	1	56			1	56
16	Team Cow	Tim Warren					0	0
16	Isa Strike Zone	Mark Mercy					0	0
16	Mundi	Trevor Burgess					0	0
16	Lake Glenbawn	Dennis Roughan					0	0
16	Penn	Steve Cantamessa					0	0
16	Ando’s Sportfishers	Colin Slade					0	0
16	Ando’s Sportfishers	Danny Anderson					0	0

Place	Team	TF	TL
1	Millerods-Shimano	9	855
2	Team Got None	4	292
3	Lake Glenbawn	3	292
4	Codseeker	2	225
5	One of These Days	2	197
6	Penn	2	171
7	Squidgy	2	159
8	Mundi	1	106
9	Isa Strike Zone	1	101
10	Team Cow	1	77
11	Ando’s Sportsfishers	0

18 anglers set out at Teemburra Dam for the first of the 2006 Daiwa BARRA Tour’s Championship events. The Classic Lures Night event is the first of three events held on this northern leg, with the Squidgy Peter Faust 2-day Morning Event and Shimano Tinaroo 2-day Evening Event to follow.
The 9 teams all gathered together at the Pinnacle Hotel to have their boats checked out, before hitting the water at 4pm, and fishing through until 8am the next morning. All returning to a warm breakfast and tales of the one that got away.

The Champion Team category proved a hotly contested title, with eventual winner Team Ecogear, comprised of Gavin and Craig Dunne claiming the title with their combined limit length of 367cm.

The Champion Anger title belonged to last year’s AOY Champ Gavin Dunne, the Ecogear Tackle representative from Brisbane with a 4/5, 295cm limit, which included the event’s Go-So Adventure Wear Big Barra, a lively 81cm specimen. He scored the prized Millerod Camofish Barra rod and a $300 cheque.

Second place was secured by Andy Thomsen, 2/5, 155cm, third (Dennis Roughan, 2/5, 145cm), fourth (Scott McAuley, 2/5 141cm), and fifth (Jason Wilhelm, 2/5 136cm), taking out the remaining places and cash and prizes including G.Loomis and Angler Rods.

Dunne commented on dropping 10 fish before 8pm when they retired for a sleep. Up at 4am again, they knew they had the right technique, it was a matter of landing a fish.

Locating fish on the sounder in 15 to 20 feet a slow lift hop of their Jackall Mask Vibe 60’s in Pearl Ayu and Gold Glitter tempted several barramundi.

“We were basically using bass techniques!”, Dunne commented. “Working a continuous 16 foot mark targeting leading edges and points, we cast ahead of the boat and work the lure back”.

Dunne’s gear included a Nories 6’10, 8-14 pound bait caster rod matched to a Daiwa Alphas 103 reel. Choosing to spool this with 9 kilo Yamatoyo Saltwater PE braid and 20 pound Yamatoyo Harris Flourocarbon leader.

Dunne noted the team’s success was using light drags and keeping the rods tips in the water whilst fighting to ensure the barramundi didn’t jump and perform the heart breaking head shake. Both brother’s do not often get to fish together and enjoyed the time together on the water.

A $100 stocking donation was handed to the Mackay Area Fish Stocking Association who proudly announced the dam was due to receive another 20,000 barramundi fingerlings by Christmas.

A total of 26 fish were caught and released with a total length of 1920cms, and an average of 73.85cms, up from last year’s average of 72.12cm. All statistics recorded by the anglers provide a valuable insight into the Teemburra Dam’s growth as an awesome fishery.

After a well earned sleep, the next leg of the Daiwa BARRA Tour sees the tour travel to Peter Faust Dam, for the Squidgy Peter Faust 2-day Morning Event.

If you would like to join in the fun for either the remainder of the 2006 Daiwa BARRA Tour or want to start planning for next year, check out all the info at www.australianbarra.com.au.

Individual Results

Place	Angler	Team	F1	L1	TF	TL
1	Gavin Dunne	Team Ecogear	4	295	4	295
2	Andy Thomson	Squid Lips	2	155	2	155
3	Dennis Roughan	Lake Glenbawn	2	145	2	145
4	Scott McAuley	Mundi	2	141	2	141
5	Jason Wilhelm	Squidgy	2	136	2	136
6	Craig Dunne	Team Ecogear	1	72	1	72
7	Kaj Busch	Squidgy	1	72	1	72
8	Trevor Burgess	Mundi	1	71	1	71
9	Rod Collings	Squid Lips	1	70	1	70
10	Kerrin Taylor	Millerods/Shimano	5	399	Disq	Disq
10	Cy Taylor	Millerods/Shimano	5	364	Disq	Disq
10	Mark Mercy	Isa Strike Zone	0		0	0
10	Gavin Jarema	Isa Strike Zone	0		0	0
10	Jason Cameron	Codseeker	0		0	0
10	Michael Lumby	Codseeker	0		0	0
10	Matt Coleman	Team Got None	0		0	0
10	Luke Coleman	Team Got None	0		0	0
10	Alan McNamara	Lake Glenbawn	0		0	0

Team Results

Place	Team	TF	TL
1	Team Ecogear	5	367
2	Squid Lips	3	225
3	Mundi	3	212
4	Squidgy	3	208
5	Lake Glenbawn	2	145
6	Millerods/Shimano	0	0
6	Isa Strike Zone	0	0
6	Codseeker	0	0
6	Team Got None	0	0

In our over exploited and increasingly urbanized environments experiencing quality and what is perhaps best described as mind blowing fishing can be a hard thing to come by. Looking further a field to more remote and less populated locations is what is increasingly required to experience exceptional fishing.
Cape York is once such place that pops to mind when far flung and remote venues are sought, with the region north of Weipa home to comparatively untouched fishing and minimal human habitation. A Mecca for a myriad of tropical angling species, The Cape is perhaps best experienced from the comfort and luxury of a multi-day mothership guiding operation, with the legendary Eclipse Charters operation the crème de crème of choices on offer.

And the Winner Is?
Such an adventure was up for grabs on the 2005 Daiwa BARRA Tour, with 44 year old Seaforth Fishing Guide, Arthur Lovern winning the much envied randomly drawn sponsored prize at the last event at Lake Tinaroo in November. A seven day all expenses paid trip on the Eclipse was just what the hard working guide from NQ needed. With the trip booked in for August 2006 the hard part for Arthur would be the waiting for his holiday to arrive.

Your Home Away From Home
The Eclipse itself is a fisherman’s home away from home, with the 15 metre air conditioned multi decked vessel providing anglers with all the comforts they need for a week of hard-core tropical fishing.

Sumptuous, belt busting sized meals are liberally provided throughout the day, with the return to boat for lunch seeing you refueled and ready for another hot afternoon session. While comfortable beds, hot showers, unlimited freshwater, and a spacious living area further add to the list of features on the Eclipse, it’s the sensational fishing on offer that is of most interest to those that come aboard.

A Week in Heaven
Fishing from sunrise to sunset each day as you leap-frog your way along The Cape, a week on the Eclipse as you’d expect will produce a blur of angling mayhem. For Arthur and the crew this was definitely the case. A handful of sessions stand out though, and highlight perfectly the diversity and quality of fishing available when you spend a week in angling heaven.

1. Action Jackson

The afternoon of day two of the trip was a lesson in tuna feeding mayhem, with wave after wave of feeding mack and longtail tuna decimating bait ball after bait ball only a kilometer off the beach at the mouth of Jackson River. With scant regard and concern for the running outboard and the slapping hull of the boat, the schools roamed around at speed, inhaling any resemblance of bait they could find.

“It was amazing to see, the ocean was like a wave of tuna surfing across the water. You’d see them coming and they just wouldn’t stop feeding, eating as they swam towards the boat, around the boat, and under it”, explained Eclipse regular Mark ‘Chainsaw’ Lawson.

The fishing as expected was red hot, with any cast placed in their path consumed with gusto. While the screaming runs and relentless circling of hooked fish were tough, getting them to take a lure was not, with the tuna gladly taking whatever we through at them. Slugs, buck tail jigs, and flies were some of the standouts, with the local shark population appreciating the free feed offered by the long fight time of using fly. It was the end of the first full day and for many of us our arms were already sore. Not a good thing with another six days to go.

2. Jack Attack

If you’re into tropical creek fishing then mangrove jacks are generally on your hit list. A day on the MacDonald River scratched this itch for Mark and Arthur, with a rising tide and active fish delivering redhot action. Targeting timber strewn edges the pair used an assortment of bibbed minnows to rack up fish after fish.

“They were holding in fairly shallow water, and they were in good numbers”, explained Arthur. While a steady flow of fish was forthcoming it was the concentrations of fish they found on some snags that was most exciting.

“Some laydowns would produce jack after jack, after jack”, explained Arthur.

“I think the most we pulled from one snag was 8 fish”, he added. “To see multiple fish, lit up and competing for your lure is fantastic”, Arthur concluded.

This run of hot creek fishing was experienced by other crews fishing the MacDonald, with Steve and I bagging out on jack, barra, and cod on the same afternoon, using a mixture of suspending jerkbaits. For Mark and Arthur they struck it the best tallying up 10 different species for the day, and a long list of multiple hook-ups. Not bad going in the tropics for the middle of winter.

3. Flats Feast

Few things epitomize The Cape more than sight fishing gin clear flats under cloudless blue skies. The flats leading into the MacDonald River provide just this experience one morning, with light offshore southeast winds delivering ideal conditions to spot cruising fish. Identifiable as groups of grey smudges mooching their way across the sandy bottom, the fish fell to small chrome slugs and plastics, lead cast to them and retrieved past their nose.

While primarily a mixture of queenies, and trevally, one pod of blue salmon had Steve Morgan and I jumping out of the boat, and chasing them along the beach. The end result of a double hookup, Simon: 1, Steve: 0 and the rest of schooling continue on their journey along the beach.

Some of the other highlights from the flats include, shadowing a group of permit as they frustratingly ignored all we presented at them. Watching a 1.02 metre queenfish go nuts in two foot of water was a buzz, while the two hours anchored up on the drop off from the flats into the river produced a string of fish and a host of species.

With the fish riding the flooding water into the river mouth, the catch card read as role call of northern species, including, golden trevally, queenfish, barracuda, big eye trevally, salmon, and mackerel. All on a mixture, of bucktail jigs, clousers, lipless crankbaits, jerkbaits, slugs, and of course, surface poppers.

4. Fingermark Frenzy

The day spent trolling a small inshore reef of Port Musgrave was one of the most brutal encounters of the trip. Bouncing deep diving minnows (4-6 metres) along or just above the bottom was the gun technique, with the hits violent, abrupt and the hookup often short lived. The strike was like hitting a brick wall, with the lure stopped in its’ tracks, then towed home to the reef below.

“It was aggressive heart in your mouth fishing”, explained Steve Morgan. “Pulled to you feet on the strike, then straining under a locked drag, you just never knew if you were going to win or if the fish was going to brick you”, he added.

The lure loss as you’d expect was high, with each passing run past the Eclipse providing the spectators with an update of the lure count. By lunch time we’d loss five lures and were already looking for reinforcements for the afternoon session.

The largest fished wrestled from the reef tipped the ruler at 75cm, while Arthur added a new PB to his list of achievements from the trip with his 65cm fingermark. Other notable captures from the session included a 94cm gold-spot estuary cod on baitcaster gear, and watching a 3kg fingermark getting eaten at the side of the boat by a 40lb cod. It was primeval fishing at its’ best.

Back on the Eclipse it was actions stations also with an array of species, including fingermark, sweetlip, coral trout, and golden trevally poled onboard.

5. Barra Bonanza

No trip to The Cape is complete without a hot barra session, and it waited until the last day on the Wenlock River to arrive. Fishing the smaller feeder creeks running into the main river, it was quintessential barra fishing, casting lures as bank side timber on a rising tide. To patterns emerged from two different boats, one involving slow rolling Texas rigged plastics through the structure, while the other involved more traditional bibbed minnows.

“It was great fun”, explained Steve Morgan, “One snag in particular we must have pulled 20 fish from, not big fish, but great sport none the less”. Not to be out down was the crew of Arthur Lovern and Mark Lawson, who in contrast used more vibrant pink colour hard bodies to tempt their fish.

“It was out of this world the aggressiveness of the fish we found”, explained Arthur. “It was a constant barrage of hits, strikes and hookups, one fish in particular floated up behind my lure sitting motionless on the water, and boofed it off the surface. It was awesome to see”, concluded Arthur.

Some of the other highlights of the morning session included Peter Morgan’s 75cm barra, two beautifully coloured Queensland groper, a couple of fingermark, and a string of hyper alert archer fish that lined up to eat Mark and Arthur’s lures.

The Final Word
While the fishing draws you to The Cape it’s the experience of the Eclipse and its’ crew that help make the trip truly memorable. Skipper, Dick Forster, guide, Shane Miller and cook Janeen Burns ensure that all you have to do once onboard is enjoy yourself. With warmth, humour and genuine hospitality the staple for your week aboard, you step off the ship at the end trip already planning your return visit.

For trip prize winner Arthur Lovern it was a fishing trip of a lifetime.
“As a guide it was nice to be on the other side for a change”, explained Arthur.
“The service onboard was fantastic and the fishing was sensational. You were chasing tuna one moment and 30 minutes later you were onto jacks and barra, you couldn’t ask for much more. The diversity of fish, angling and the non-stop fishing was something to behold. It was like dying and going to fishing heaven”, concluded Arthur.

Fact Boxes
Fact Box 1
List of species caught on the trip Archer fish, barramundi, black spot cod, gold spot cod, Queensland groper, mangrove jack, fingermark, grey mackerel, Spanish mackerel, pikey bream, queenfish, big eye trevally, giant trevally, golden trevally, mudcrab, mack tuna, longtail tuna, tomato cod, coral trout, grass sweetlip, barracuda, blue salmon, tarpon, giant herring, pikey bream.

Fact Box 2
If the thought of feeding 500 lb groper, and experiencing the best fishing Cape York has to offer is of interest, than a trip on the Eclipse is for you. Operating between April and December, the Eclipse provides an exclusive 7 day, 6 angler remote fishing experience that will satisfy the most hardcore angler. Operating out of Weipa, the fly in, fly out expedition is light tackle fishing at its’ finest. For enquiries or bookings contact Eclipse Charters- (02) 9453 9377, eclipseoz@bigpond.com.au, www.eclipsecharters.com.au

Mackay’s Arthur Lovern was the lucky BARRA angler drawn out of the hat by Jack Erskine to win the trip on the Eclipse out of Weipa.

Well, we’ve done the trip and it was a cracker!

Keep an eye out for the article about it in an upcoming QFM, NSWFM or VFM. There’s some sneak-peek pics, though, in the Image Gallery.
Arthur was ‘bloody stoked’ with the lucky break, after his name was randomly drawn from all competitors who took part in the tour. His best barra for the tour was a 114cm monster from Peter Faust Dam.

Anglers competing in the final round of the 2005 Daiwa BARRA Tour at Lake Tinaroo were presented with tough fishing conditions with only a total of 16 fish landed.
It was a local Cairns team in Quay Marine that managed to land a total 447cm to out perform the other teams to claim the Championship Team Title. Teammates Warren Adams and David Powell fish this Lake approximately once a month, and knew the spots and techniques to lure the Tinaroo barra into their boat.
The Champion Angler title belonged to Warren Adams, who after a slow first day was the only angler to fill the session 5 fish limit for a total of 339cm. Lindsay Dobe (3/10, 193cm) finished second, David Lange (2/10, 113cm) third, David Powell (2/10, 108cm) fourth and Matt Coleman (1/10, 107cm) fifth.

Adams’ bag was assisted by his kicker fish of 117cm, which was the event’s Daiwa Big Barra. Moving into deeper water after dark in search of larger fish, the Big Barra fell to a Rob Gaden’s Barra Classic lure, that Adams had modified by scratching the paint off to reveal the chrome underbody.

Adams’ choice of gear included a custom Lane Casey rod modelled on a G.Loomis blank, a Shimano Calcutta baitcaster reel spooled with 30 pound Platypus braid and finished with 80 pound Jinkai trace.

The game plan for the Quay Marine team was to double anchor the boat and cast into the shallow bay near the DPI research station, working the lure into the deeper water. The lure of choice for this shallow water was the Reidy’s B52 lure in chrome.

“I like to also beef up the hooks with VMC 3x trebles” Adams explained.

The Big Barra hooked up at 7.30pm once the sun came down and the team moved to deeper water surround by sunken tobacco bushes.

“We don’t use a net on the big girls,” Adams said. “They are a bit tired by the time they come to the boat, so I gently grab them and lift over the side” he continued.

Proserpine Bait and Tackle owner Lindsay Dobe made the trip from his local waters of Peter Faust with legend Jack Erskine to claim second place. In his first year as a tournament angler Dobe’s first session 3 fish bag was a great achievement for him.

“I came here looking for that legendary 70 pound fish” he joked.

Dobe uses exclusively Penn equipment in a new Penn Pinpoint Tournament Series 10kg 5’8 rod matched to a Penn Jack Erskine Signature low profile baitcaster reel. He spools this with Penn Propower 50 braid and finishing it off with the famous Jack Erskine 80 pound leader.

“I targeted the timber in daylight hours and moved to the points of the shallow bays at night” Dobe said.

I’d really like to thank the ABT for the great format of the Barra Tour and hope to see it kick on in future years. It will benefit the industry and get more people fishing,” he continued.

A stocking donation was made to Tinaroo representative John Mondora who explained to the crowd it was great to see so many of the tagged fish previously stocked in the dam caught.

“These fingerlings were released at about 12″ in length, we now see them at about 60cm. Next year we should have some good fish captures around the 85-90cm mark” he said.

SERIES CHAMPIONS

The Series Championship Team was hotly contested. Team Ecogear 1 finished on top with a total of 473 points. Second was Freddy’s Fishing World (460), third was Peter and Cathy (450), fourth was FCM (439) and finally Barradise (437).

Series Champion Angler belonged to Ecogear representative Gavin Dunne. Gavin managed a top 10 finish in 4 of the five tournaments, an extraordinary effort.

“I have learnt a lot from this tour” he said. “The sharing of information has been great, and I can’t wait till next year” he finished.

With the 2005 Daiwa Barra Tour now complete, statistics will be collated and a schedule for next year prepared. If you would like any further information on ABT tournaments please visit the website www.australianbarra.com.au.

Place	Angler	F1	L1	F2	L2	TF	TL
1	Warren Adams	Â	Â	5	339	5	339
2	Lindsay Dobe	3	193	Â	Â	3	193
3	David Lange	1	59	1	54	2	113
4	David Powell	1	58	1	50	2	108
5	Matt Coleman	1	107	Â	Â	1	107
6	Jack Erskine	Â	Â	1	58	1	58
7	Gary Boyd	Â	Â	1	48	1	48
8	Brian Hampton	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Barry Collett	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Steve Wilson	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Gary Bolter	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Gavin Dunne	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	John Schwerin	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Dennis Schwerin	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Steve Morgan	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Darren Lewis	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Alan Macnamara	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Luke Coleman	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Jason Swan	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Trevor Spry	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Peter May	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Cathy McNaught	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Jason Wilhelm	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
8	Garth Dunwoodie	Â	Â	Â	Â	0	0
9	Peter Roberts	Â	-0.14	Â	Â	0	-0.14
9	Graham Vallance	Â	-0.14	Â	Â	0	-0.14

The average size of the barramundi caught was 92.34cm, once again proving that Faust is one of the standout big barra fisheries of the east coast.

The Champion Team category was awarded to Tackle Tuggers, consisting of Denny Howarth and Clay Dale, who together boated a combined bag of 6 fish, for a total of 430cm, easily outclassing the other teams.

The event however belonged to Mussellbrook electrician Alan McNamara, who claimed the Champion Angler and Daiwa Big Barra Title. With his fishing partner Darren Lewis leading the way in the two-day event and claiming victory, McNamara picked up where Lewis left off, landing 3 fish for the session, for a total of 308cm.
Team Freddy’s Fishing World (Lewis & McNamara) headed straight to the bay that had delivered them so much during the previous event, and it was here that they began to target the fish holding in about 4 feet of water. With a Reid’s B52 lure (colour-silver and purple) tied on, McNamara worked his lure methodically, twitching it and pausing over the weed. His choice of tackle included an EGrell B65 rod matched to a Daiwa Advantage baitcaster reel, spooled with 50 pound Harro Bionic braid and finished with a Jack Erskine twisted leader.

“When the big barra struck it jumped once and made a short run for open water. It lapped the boat once before it was netted”, McNamara explained.

“It wasn’t until 12 hours later that I boated my next fish. I knew I was in with a chance, with one good fish and not seeing many camera flashes throughout the night” he said.

Having fished the deep water and the timber for no touches, it was the bay that had previously brought them a fish that yielded yet again. Working a stretch of bank 200 metres from where the Daiwa Big Barra was captured, the B52 was on fire, this time in 8 feet of water.

“It was frustrating fishing, as 3 out of 10 casts pulled up weed, but I persisted, as I knew the fish were there” McNamara said.

“Between the early hours of 4 and 5am we had a hot little session. I reckon we lost 5 fish, one was an absolute monster. It was like a little black marlin leaping out of the water heading straight for the boat”, he claimed.

“Unfortunately, the lure just fell out and I thought to myself that was huge, oh well, keep fishing”, a determined McNamara explained.

Second place getter Denny Howarth (3/5, 243cm) explained how he caught all his fish using top water lures such as Sugois and Cultiva Tango Dancers.

“I mainly use a walk the dog technique and try and mix it up with slow and fast retrieves. When I felt a bite, I paused the lure and simply jiggled the rod tip a bit until the barra engulfed the lure”, Howarth explained.

Having caught several barra in 2-5 feet of water over the previous two days, this is where team Tackle Tuggers concentrated their efforts. Howarth’s choice of gear included a Shakespeare Ugly Stick 5”6 rod, matched to a Shimano Calcutta baitcaster reel spooled with 30 pound Bionic braid and finished with a 50 pound twisted crimped leader.

The final leg of the 2005 Daiwa BARRA Tour sees the series travel to Lake Tinaroo near Cairns. Here the AOY Team and Angler of the Series will be decided, and the winner of the Eclipse mothership charter will be drawn.

If you would like to join in the fun for either the remainder of the 2005 Daiwa BARRA Tour or want to start planning for next year, check out all the info at www.australianbarra.com.au

Place	Angler	F1	L1	TF	TL
1	Alan Macnamara	3	308	3	308
2	Denny Howarth	3	243	3	243
3	Lindsay Dobe	2	208	2	208
4	Paul Topp	2	205	2	205
5	Rodney Collings	2	191	2	191
6	Peter Price	2	190	2	190
7	Peter May	2	187	2	187
7	Clay Dale	3	187	3	187
9	Gavin Dunne	2	174	2	174
10	Arthur Lovern	1	114	1	114
11	Andy Thomsen	1	113	1	113
12	Matt Coleman	1	109	1	109
13	Robert Williams	1	95	1	95
14	John Oakes	1	77	1	77
15	Steve Blaney			0	0
15	Brian Hampton			0	0
15	Barry Collett			0	0
15	Les Reibelt			0	0
15	Trevor Burgess			0	0
15	David Lang			0	0
15	Steve Tracey			0	0
15	Trevor Cassidy			0	0
15	John Schwerin			0	0
15	Dennis Schwerin			0	0
15	Darren Lewis			0	0
15	Luke Coleman			0	0
15	Jack Erskine			0	0
15	Cathy McNaught			0	0
15	Adam Meredith			0	0
15	Michael Boehm			0	0
15	Cy Taylor			0	0
15	Kerrin Taylor			0	0
15	Peter Roberts			0	0
15	Graham Vallance			0	0

The Champion Angler Title belonged to Darren Lewis, catching fish both days for a total limit of 367cm. Travelling all the way from Mussellbrook in NSW to fish the tour, Lewis a bi-yearly visitor to the dam utilised advice from his father and local tackle store shop owner Lindsay Dobe to locate and catch his fish.
Slow and windy conditions greeted 22 teams on the first day of the Peter Faust Dam leg of the ABT Daiwa BARRA Tour. 16 anglers caught fish, but it was a 118cm specimen, the largest to date on the tour that was the show piece of the event.

After a slow first night, Team Attack/Gamakatsu came through on the final day to claim the title of Champion Team. Fishing from the largest boat in the field, anglers Steve Blaney and Paul Topp sounded some arches and anchored up to catch their 5 fish for a total of 459cm.

The Daiwa Big Barra prize was captured by Matt Coleman on a Storm soft plastic, black and gold in colour. The 118cm fish was caught in the main channel of the dam, and was found holding on a weed bed in about 10-15 feet of water. Coleman’s choice of tackle included a Shimano T-Curve 6’6 rod, matched to a Shimano Calais baitcaster reel, spooled with FINS 50 pound braid and finished with an 80 pound mono leader.

The Champion Angler Title belonged to Darren Lewis, catching fish both days for a total limit of 367cm. Travelling all the way from Mussellbrook in NSW to fish the tour, Lewis a bi-yearly visitor to the dam utilised advice from his father and local tackle store shop owner Lindsay Dobe to locate and catch his fish.

Second place was secured by a consistent Peter Price with 4/10, 348cm, while the remaining place getter included, Steve Blaney (3/10, 297cm) in third, Jason Medcalf (2/10, 211cm) in fourth, and Michael Boehm (2/10, 192cm) in fifth.

Lewis armed himself with a 5’8 Typhoon rod, teamed to an ABU 5500C reel, 50 pound Harro braid and 80 Penn 10X leader. Choosing to throw a gold Bomber lure in the shallows and a gold 1 metre Predatek Viper lure in the deeper water, he landed 4 fish and pulled the hooks on another at the boat. On a tough first day he landed a 94cm specimen in a shallow bay, the average size for the tournament.

The final day included two fish over a metre and a smaller 45cm specimen that in the end won him the event.

“One of the larger barra initially jumped and then took about 150 metres of line” Lewis explained. “Al, my partner, had to pull the anchor so we could chase it down and get some line back” he said.

Catching 2 fish each day was runner up Peter Price. Tying the boat off a solitary log near the weed, he continued to cast the Squidgy Slick Rig in the drop bear colour. Using a G. Loomis 665 rod, matched to a 253 Daiwa Millionaire reel and spooled with 30 pound Bully braid, and a specially made mono leader. Modelled on a similarly constructed version by Jack Erskine the leader provided Price with the protection he needed against the abrasive characteristics of his quarry.

“I like to fish a light drag” Peter explained. “This way we can lead the barra around until it tires and decides to come up on its side” he said. “This go-easy technique seems to minimise the barra leaps and head shakes” he continued.

A $200 donation was made to Andy Thomsen from the local stocking group. “This money helps to provide future fish for all anglers. We hope to be able to continue the big fish that we see here at Peter Faust Dam” he told the crowd.

With the moon rising late over the hills of Proserpine, the Night Championship Monday night is shaping up to see plenty of full limits. This may be the best chance to see record breaking bag on the 2005 Daiwa BARRA Tour.

If you would like to join in the fun for either the remainder of the 2005 Daiwa BARRA Tour or want to start planning for next year, check out all the info at www.australianbarra.com.au.

Place	Angler	F1	L1	F2	L2	TF	TL
1	Darren Lewis	1	94	3	273	4	367
2	Peter Price	2	152	2	196	4	348
3	Steve Blaney			3	297	3	297
4	Jason Medcalf	1	106	1	105	2	211
5	Michael Boehm	2	192			2	192
6	Paul Topp			2	162	2	162
7	Matt Coleman	1	118			1	118
8	Scott McAuley			1	104	1	104
9	Gavin Dunne			1	103	1	103
9	Rodney Collings			1	103	1	103
11	Les Reibelt			1	102	1	102
12	Andy Thomsen			1	101	1	101
13	Cathy McNaught			1	91	1	91
14	Denny Howarth			1	85	1	85
15	Clay Dale			1	82	1	82
16	Dennis Schwerin			1	79	1	79
17	Brian Hampton					0	0
17	Barry Collett					0	0
17	David Lang					0	0
17	Steve Tracey					0	0
17	Trevor Cassidy					0	0
17	Ken Best					0	0
17	Ken Berry					0	0
17	John Schwerin					0	0
17	Gary Boyd					0	0
17	Steve Morgan					0	0
17	Chris Machonachie					0	0
17	Christine Machonachie					0	0
17	Alan Macnamara					0	0
17	Luke Coleman					0	0
17	Peter McAuley					0	0
17	Philip Lyons					0	0
17	Geoff Busbridge					0	0
17	Arthur Lovern					0	0
17	Jack Erskine					0	0
17	Lindsay Dobe					0	0
17	Peter May					0	0
17	Brad Cooper					0	0
17	Adam Meredith					0	0
17	John Schofield					0	0
17	Peter Morgan					0	0
17	Trevor Burgess					0	0
17	Peter Roberts					0	0
17	Graham Vallance					0	0

Rod Collings, a 33 year old Truck Driver, outclassed the field with a 5/5, 482cm limit, which included four fish over 90cms, plus the event’s Daiwa Big Barra, a fantastic 110cm specimen.
40 anglers set out at Teemburra Dam for the first of the ABT BARRA Tour’s Night Championship events. 20 teams in all gathered together at the Pinnacle Hotel to have their boats checked out, before hitting the water at 4pm, and fishing through until 8am the next morning.

The Champion Team category proved a hotly contested title, with eventual winners Team Pig Scuttlers, comprised of Rod Collings and Andy Thomsen claiming the title with their combined limit length of 864cm. Followed by Team Evakool/ Bass to Barra in second place and Team Ecogear 1 in third. The Champion Anger title though belonged to Rod Collings, a 33 year old Truck Driver, who outclassed the field with a 5/5, 482cm limit, which included four fish over 90cms, plus the event’s Daiwa Big Barra, a fantastic 110cm specimen.

Second place was secured by Andy Thomsen, 5/5, 382cm, while one centimetre separated the third (Steve Morgan, 5/5, 366cm), fourth (Graham Vallance, 5/5, 365cm), and fifth (Gavin Dunne, 5/5, 364cm) places.

Having fished a few times over the last couple of years with Peter Faust guide Andy Thomsen, Rod commented that his partner really encouraged him throughout the night. Heading out 2nd last off the line, they watch the other boats all head off into the distance, and they simply putted around into the first bay to begin flicking a combination of topwater lures and Storm plastics in front of the weed beds.

Rod’s choice of gear included a Live Fibre Blade, 5’6, rod matched to a Shimano Chronarch baitcaster reel, spooled with Fins PRT 30 pound braid, and Black Magic 60 pound leader. Andy used a similar combo in a Strudwick 5’6, 5-6kg rod, plus a Shimano Chronarch reel, spooled with 30 pound Tuff line and the same 60 pound leader.

Fishing consistently was the key to this team’s large total. Andy had two fish before sunset, and then Rod caught his first barra of 98cm right on sunset, working a Cultiva Tango Dancer across the surface in one of the many weedy bays.

Once dark, they concentrated their efforts in the timber, working 4-5” Storm plastics, green in colour beside the trees. At 1.00am Rod scored his 4th fish, the 110cm Big Barra. Luckily for him it was in the clearer section of the timber and it made a dash for the weed beds. The first of several runs saw the barra take approximately 50 metres of line.

“It was going fairly hard at one stage” Collings commented.
“I’m sure you had about 80 metres of line out at one stage” Thomsen followed.

Spending the rest of the night amongst the timber and rarely sitting down to rest, Team Pig Scuttlers compiled the remainder of their in the area. In the early morning, on the way back to the ramp, they boys decided to throw some flies at the points. Collings using an 8 weight Scott fly rod matched to a Fenwick reel with Fins braid and Scientific Angler intermediate line, while Thomsen choosing a slightly heavier 10 wt Pro Angler Mastery Series 3 piece travel rod and a Pro Angler reel with floating line. This scored them several smaller fish but each could feel confident that their efforts throughout the night would put them in the placings.

“The weather was beautiful last night! It was awesome to have the barra boofing all around you. It seemed they would go crazy every 20 minutes or so”, the anglers concluded.

Keith Day from the Mackay Stocking Group was presented with a $400 donation to go towards future stocking of Teemburra Dam.
“It is one of Australia’s premier fisheries”, Day explained.
“It’s great to have tournaments of this ilk on the dam, and we can’t wait until the ABT returns next year”, Day told the crowd.

After a well earned sleep, the third leg of the ABT BARRA Tour sees the tour travel to Peter Faust Dam, for the second of the two-day events, and the final round of the Night Championship events. With plenty of metre plus caught in the lead-up to the event the location is set to be popular with those on the tour, and is shaping up to be two of the potential highlights of the Daiwa BARRA Tour.

If you would like to join in the fun for either the remainder of the 2005 Daiwa BARRA Tour or want to start planning for next year, check out all the info at www.australianbarra.com.au.

Place	Angler	F1	L1	TF	TL
1	Rodney Collings	5	482	5	482
2	Andy Thomson	5	382	5	382
3	Steve Morgan	5	366	5	366
4	Graham Vallance	5	365	5	365
5	Gavin Dunne	5	364	5	364
6	Kerry Symes	5	344	5	344
7	Matthew Mott	5	316	5	316
8	Barry Cotter	4	283	4	283
9	John Schofield	4	269	4	269
10	Peter Price	3	266	3	266
11	Stephen Palmer	4	253	4	253
12	Peter Morgan	2	161	2	161
13	Les Reibelt	2	152	2	152
14	Alan Macnamara	2	148	2	148
15	Trevor Burgess	2	141	2	141
16	Cathy McNaught	2	129	2	129
17	Dennis Schwerin	2	86	2	86
18	James Coate	1	81	1	81
19	David Lang	1	74	1	74
20	John Oakes	1	73	1	73
21	Peter May	1	73	1	73
22	Peter Roberts	1	72	1	72
23	Leon Coate	1	71	1	71
24	Robert Williams	1	70	1	70
25	Philip Lyons	1	70	1	70
26	John Schwerin	1	69	1	69
27	Scott McAuley	1	69	1	69
28	Trevor Cassidy	1	68	1	68
29	Dean Coghill	1	68	1	68
30	Brian Hampton	1	44	1	44
31	David Pack			0	0
31	Steve Tracey			0	0
31	Darren Lewis			0	0
31	Peter McAuley			0	0
31	Keith Day			0	0
31	Tim Galletly			0	0
31	Jason Cameron			0	0
31	Geoff Busbridge			0	0
31	Arthur Lovern			0	0
31	Gary Boyd			0	0