Fishing the Top End with Albatross Helicopters

Craig Grosvenor [Darwin NT]

Talk about a buzz! Imagine scooting across the floodplains at over 160kph,so low it seems you must raise your feet to avoid them getting wet, focusing straight ahead as the rest is a blur. Your pilot then shoots you up into the sky, over the dense tree-line which you didn’t even see, banks hard left toward the fishing destination only he knows about….after all, only a chopper can get there. Spot the crocs on the mudflats soaking up the sun, wild buffalo bathing in their wallows and wild pigs in numbers roaming the dense bushland…oh and don’t forget the pristine view of bird-life flocks of magpie geese and ducks, the albatross and jabiru…even the wedge-tailed eagle…the list is endless….once you have your breath back, remind yourself that you are on your way to catch the famous barramundi….welcome to the world of Heli-Fishing…this folks is the ULTIMATE way to go fishing!

Albatross Helicopters

Craig Grosvenor preparing for a day of un-imaginable fishing!

It was a Sunday afternoon and still recovering from the night before, I received an invitation to go heli-fishing with brother Mark. Mark operates Albatross Helicopters out of Noonamah, just south of Darwin catering for everything from scenic tours (including Kakadu, Litchfield and Darwin) and fishing charters to cattle mustering. Not being one to miss out, I dragged myself out of bed .A quick selection of Classic Barra, Reidys and Bomber lures, my backpack and the closest rod and reel combo I could find, I was enthusiastically on track to the best Sunday afternoon I could have possibly asked for.

Departing Noonamah in the newest addition to the fleet, the Robinson R44 Chopper, we headed North-East, skimming our way across the Adelaide River floodplains in search of the destination proven before to be an awesome barra run-off location. On arrival we circled the area in search of any big lizards that may have been hidden amongst the reeds, thankfully there were none.

The location looked awesome- a forked section of classic run-off banks, the edges lined with reeds and the odd fallen timber providing ideal cover for a likely barra or two. Keeping a close eye for crocs (having been informed that this was big croc territory) I tied on my old favourite, the 15A Gold Bomber. Realising that the tide had already turned I suspected we may have missed our optimum opportunity at this particular spot. Working the snags and back-eddys for twenty minutes proved this to be the case, with only two barra around 55cm landed. Not to be disheartened, Mark suggested we head to another ‘good spot’ he knew about which is less influenced by tidal movement. Who am I to argue? Back in the chopper and heading westward we came across wild dingos, pigs and buffalo. Knowing full well about my seedy stomach from the night before Mark decides now is a good time for some ‘mustering practice’ and begins turning the machine inside out and upside down until my face turned a light shade of green. Good bloke that Mark.

Placing the chopper firmly on the weed bank of ‘spot 2’ I was again advised to watch for crocs. This spot carried an eerie feeling with waist-high reeds and steep mud banks-the kind of place you carry a pistol on your belt just in case. With eyes in the back of my head I made my way to a junction less than 50 metres away treading heavily to hopefully avoid coming too close to a croc laying in the reeds. This spot looked even better, with a good snag visible at the centre of the fork within easy casting distance. The presence of active bait fish gave a positive presence of barra. We were in with a shot. Starting with a Bill’s Bug fizzer I worked the reedy edges with an erratic retrieve action and had several follow ups from juvenile barramundi however they appeared finicky, not attacking the lure with gusto. Mark was throwing around a Classic Barra 120 in the Blue bleeding mullet colour with similar results. Time to try something a little different. I noticed Mark changing to a green classic lure so to test the waters I went for a Tiger Lily Bomber. First cast I hooked up on a good fish, peeling line downstream I chased along the bank, landing net slung under my left arm. The fish shot clear of the water twice before I managed to get the net under him. Lacking a measurement ruler, a guess would say about 80cm. Not a bad start and a nice chrome fish too. Back up to the junction again and Mark was on to what appeared to be a barra in the 90’s, shaking it’s head as if to say ‘no way’, and eventually drilling him in the timber toward the opposite bank. No time to complain we were both back into it scoring the occasional fish. A glance at my watch revealed time was quickly running out. Mixing up the lure selection for the next half hour I failed to land the ‘superfish’ we all dream about, so began packing the chopper for the trip back to Noonamah. With that came an anxious yell from the waters edge…at first I thought Mark had fallen in..but soon worked out he wanted the landing net. This time he was onto a horse, the fish stripping platypus pretest like a spool machine. At this point I wished he was using braid. Landing net in hand I observed anxiously as this brute of a fish tried it’s hardest to give us a hernia, thrashing itself back and forth across the creek. That hernia came close when this monster managed to find a submerged snag…and we all know what happens when 6kg monofilament line, a good snag and big barra come together. Mark mumbled something to the effect of ‘its all over’(with different language) but waited patiently in hope that a miracle might happen. A few minutes passed and the big female must have come back out the way she went in. By this time the fight had lasted a good twenty minutes and the fish was getting tired, eventually landing, taking some quick photos, reviving and releasing it to live another day.

We took a rough measurement using a piece of rope and later verified a length of 122cm. Incidently, Mark was using a Gold TILSAN Barra lure when this superfish struck.

Just goes to show…it aint over till its over!!

We learned one more thing during this exercise…Albatross Helicopters need a bigger landing net!!

Albatross Helicopters run helifishing tours upon request from Noonamah.

Prices start at around $450 per person, with tackle, softdrink and light refreshments provided on the day.

Albatross Helicopters also run scenic tours over Litchfield Park and around Darwin starting at $89 with Kakadu starting at $155 per person.

For bookings phone 89885081.