Around Oz the First Time - Chapter 53 - Broome Day 5

Being a second Tuesday, I have a what we call an A Team meeting, a group of business people, part of a larger organisation, the Business Blueprint structure, who get together on a fortnightly basis to check up on each other, check out how they are going with their business plans and generally supply a bit of a forum to bounce concerns. In particularly small business its sometimes very hard to fund someone to talk to and these meetings provide one of the necessary interactions we all need.

One of the things of interest from the meeting is the ability to throw a picture behind yourself and create videos, making it look like you are anywhere in the world. Now there are issues with the, but for the small businessperson looking to create content, marketing videos or other media, its cheap (actually free if you play the game properly) and easy to “play”. Whilst it’s not perfect, it is progress and it can make a small business look like a winner.

Just after the meeting is finished the Missing Link returns my call from last night. They are in Charleville, heading for Mt Isa via Barcaldine, sound familiar, and I suggest to him they will catch up shortly. They laugh as they are heading north east once they hit Mt Isa. Rosey is looking forward to hot springs and there are apparently some in the wetlands near Barcaldine. They are also expecting to spend some time at Corella Dam, where although he notes his yabby traps are all perished, so he might treat himself to some new ones.

I also relate the story of our time in Mt Isa and that the local police had told us of the multitude of barramundi in their water catchment. Apparently now they are considering a couple of days there. Nothing like having no real agenda to allow you to change what you are looking to do. Looking at the Google Maps we think we could catch up with them at Mt Isa in 5 days, four if we cut the corner from Timber Creek to Daly Waters. The only issue would be the state of Highway 80.

Just a thought, but for now we are thinking about whiting and barramundi fishing and potentially visiting Malcolm Douglas Crocodile Farm today, although I must admit having seen his documentaries, particularly the one where his offsiders would not continue with him as he traversed Bass Strait in an open boat, make us wonder about this “attraction”.

The wind is up again this morning, there is a cold front approaching. In prior days the wind started early and petered out during the day leaving the afternoons calm, but today may be different. We will wait and see.

The morning brings a zeal for investigation. Not only, that we have birthday gifts to get into the post and I have taken to “nanna wrapping” them as we don’t have any sticky tape in the van, I needed to resort to gaffe tape, and I purposely over use it for effect on the one for Robyn’s brother in law. He is turning 60 and we have gotten him a unique Collingwood cheese platter made from bamboo. The other gist is a set of earrings for our daughter in law, much harder to “nanna wrap”, but I give it a good go.

As we are about to get into the Cruiser and leave, all the others suggest they want to come as well and we all head towards the town centre. We park by Australia Post, and Robyn and I head on in and arrange the transfer for the gifts.

Once the gifts are dispatched, we join the others. Heading towards the Paspaley Arcade I spy a shop where the Mango Smoothie has been taken to another level and I buy one for Robyn, along with a chocolate ice cream for myself. Rosalie sees what I am doing, and I offer to purchase one for her as well, which she readily agrees. The Smoothies here contain more mango than normal, ice cream, yoghurt and honey. My ice cream comes well before the smoothies and we sit in the court and wait, because after the smoothies arrive, we need to go and purchase bait for this afternoon’s attack on the whiting.

Robyn and Rosalie both claim the smoothies are the best they have had so far on tour, and they attack them with vigour. The ice cream and the smoothies are gone and its time to find the special prawns we have been told are the best bait for local whiting. We of course head immediately for the deli section of Coles, thinking that is the place where we will find these animals. Not to be, so we circle around the area in ever increasing circles unable to find the exact item we are looking for.

We have dinner to think about as well and Robyn selects some lamb chops, which I like as well. She also grabs some leaf salad, which will go well with the chops. Almost given up we notice a Bait Section in the corner and low and behold the required bait is here. We grab 3 packets and some other tackle and head out.

At the Cruiser Forbsy reminds me he wants to grab a stubbie holder from the Roey Hotel, as a gift for a relation of the same name. We head down the avenue and stop outside the hotel and as we walk in we decide we might as well lunch here, that is before Robyn spies dumplings on the specials board, and that’s enough for her. I also order the dumplings as well, adding to it a couple of drinks. Then it is off outside to find a table in the shade, rather than inside in the air conditioning.

Forbsy has ordered fish tacos and the Silver Leader crew will share a pizza. The food comes quickly, and we tuck in. While we are eating a Virgin Jet screams overhead and off to its destination. The noise is deafening reminding us of the smallness of this town and the airport being effectively in the middle.

Lunch done its time to return to the park and ready ourselves for fishing, but first Forbsy wants to show Silver Leader and the girls the Streeter Jetty. I change direction and head back around the town. We pass the jetty and the passengers almost blink and miss it, and laugh with us at what used to be.

Back at the park, we quickly rig for the whiting. Now to work out the logistics as Silver Leader and Rosalie are booked for a camel ride, and Robyn wants to put in a couple of hours work. Forbsy and I will go and see if we can find “old mate” from the park, or the spot he was talking about, between two humps along the beach.

Ok we are on the beach, I slip the Cruiser into 4WD but only as a precaution, and immediately I believe I needed it as the run through the rocks takes up into the soft sand and I feel the Cruiser start to dig in, but only for a moment, and we are soon back down on the hard sand. We head along the beach, no white Suzuki and a myriad of what you might term humps in the beach. We give up and decide to simply pick a spot. This we do and we park with the back of the Cruiser open to the sea, to allow for quick changes of tackle and access of extra bait, should the need arise.

The wind is blowing directly onshore, making casting difficult and the monitoring of line direct to the bait almost impossible as there is a large bow in the line as the wind pushes it. The line with this large bow is then carried by the waves towards the beach, tough fishing indeed. No bites for a start and I motion to Forbsy, who returns the inquisition.

All of a sudden, Forbsy’s rod is bending alarmingly. He is on and playing with a fish. He plays it in the surf until he has it in a position where he can wash it up the beach. Not a whiting unfortunately, it’s a trevally, not a disappointment just not the target species. He takes it back to the Cruiser and takes a picture of it before sending it back into the surf.

We stop of a libation break and think about changing spots as this one has only produced one fish and that was some time ago. Forbsy gets a call from Silver Leader, they are on the camels and are about halfway through their ride. Almost immediately, Robyn calls and is on her way walking to the beach. Forbsy and I look at each other and think, now is as good as any to change, so we pack everything up and head up the beach to collect Robyn.

As we head up the beach, we see a column of camels. Believing them to be Silver Leader and Rosalie we look to get a good vantage point from which to video and take pictures. This is indeed the ride they are on. We get between the column and the sea, to ensure the sun is behind us and we give the riders a gob full for good luck. We then proceed to the pick up point for Robyn and return to the beach.

The ride is still not finished, and Robyn gets a chanced to see the riders “enjoying” the experience. We then head on to find another spot for fishing as well as viewing the sunset. On the way out we noticed a large flock of seagulls on the beach, and we decide that has to be a spot.

Of course, birds have wings and while we were picking up Robyn, they must have used them as we are unable to fund them as we were unable to find the Suzuki or the humps in the beach. A spot away from others is picked and we unload chairs, tables and provisions, then I go back to fishing. All day I have been up to my hips in the water then occasionally being thumped by a wave and being drenched up to the armpits.

Its not long before Silver Leader and Rosalie join us. Silver Leader immediately begins ot fish and has the same issues as we did previously, although here we occasionally get to see the line tighten, but before we can do anything about it, the fish has spat the hook.

I resort to the large slug lure with less effect.

The sun is now setting and time for some pictures. This sunset, without obstructions from the palm trees at the on ramp and enhanced by the dust contained in the change is more spectacular than the last. Seagulls from time to time cross our path and I decide to capture then in slow motion, and we tempt them with left over bait. There are a couple of sea eagles on the beach nearby, we snap them as well. The sunset has the cameras popping at a great rate, we even pose Forbsy to look like he is catching the sun as it passes below the horizon.

Its getting late and we have lovely lamb chops to have for dinner, so we pack up and head back to the park. Silver Leader starts the barbeque immediately on return to warm up, I chop some potatoes and Robyn deals with the salad. Manu/Silver Leader does his usual great job on the food and we devour our repast.

Barramundi chasing tomorrow, trust we do a lot better than we did today, but the wind will still be with us, at least in the morning, so we will see what we will see. I set the alarm for 5.30am to allow enough time to be ready by 6.45am for pick up at the front of the park. There is a bit of work to do with rigging etc, and I don’t want to be holding the party up. It’s a full day charter but that is only 7.00am to 1.00pm.