Toga Party !!
http://www.riverandreef.com/articlelive/articles/166/1/Toga-Party-/Page1.html
Al Simson
I'm a guide working on Cape York at the top of Australia. My biggest love is sight fishing. Whether it be big trout or permit on the dry !!! It's all about the take.I grew up in Vancouver and Whistler B.C. and have been fishing in Australia for the last 12 years on and off and guiding here now for 4. I have been flyfishing for 30 years , commercial fly tying for 26 and have fished extensively through out B.C., the Yukon, Alaska, Hawaii, Australia, North and South Islands of New Zealand and Tasmainia. By Al Simson
Published on 03/19/2008
Toga party, forget the bed sheets , it’s all about the fishing.
It was late October when my brother came down to Oz to fish with me and do a couple of trips on the “Tropic Paradise”. We just got back from a week at sea and had a few days off between trips. So I figured we take the opportunity to go fish the Jardine Swamps. These are a series of freshwater billabongs that can only be accessed by boat from Seisia. They are a short walk through the scrub off of the mighty Jardine River. Years ago they got fished occasionally but now they are all but forgotten by most people. Usually I try and fish them at least a couple of times during the season and have a small fishing boat stashed at one of the larger billabongs. It is perfect for rowing around and casting to all the likely looking spots along the banks and in the lily pads. The billabongs are stunning with deep crystal clear water, banks lined with massive Paperbark trees and patches of water lilies which give the whole scene splashes of purple and white colour.
The main fish we were there to catch was the Saratoga. A very primitive member of a class of fish called 'Bony Tongues" many know of their cousins the Arowanas of South America but our Toga's have golden colored flanks, blue hued scales that are beautifully fringed in pink and hot pink spots that dot their emerald green fins and tail. Usually found amongst the water lilies and shoreline grasses they are an ambush predator occasionally seen cruising around their small hunting territories. Always looking up for a terrestrial meal to fall in they are suckers for dry flies. Flies like Dahlberg’s and big deer hair skating flies that I would use for Steelhead back home are a deadly weapon.
But we found on this occasion that Toad style flies out fished the surface action. In the billabong Toga's are not the only fish that are caught in there. Barramundi, Archer fish, Tarpon, Coal Grunter and big Catfish all reside in the same areas as the Toga and are always a welcome by-catch. My brother hooked and landed a nice catfish that nearly pulled his arm off. A lot of the Toga’s and Barra can be sight fished this time of the year due to low water levels. This makes for some exciting fishing from a small boat. We had a couple of fantastic days on the billabong hooking lots of fish and enjoying the solitude on the water before we had to head back to Seisia. We all have our “ secret” little spots that we go to from time to time and this one is definitely one of my favorite ones. I can hardly wait till I visit the Jardine Swamps again this year.
It was late October when my brother came down to Oz to fish with me and do a couple of trips on the “Tropic Paradise”. We just got back from a week at sea and had a few days off between trips. So I figured we take the opportunity to go fish the Jardine Swamps. These are a series of freshwater billabongs that can only be accessed by boat from Seisia. They are a short walk through the scrub off of the mighty Jardine River. Years ago they got fished occasionally but now they are all but forgotten by most people. Usually I try and fish them at least a couple of times during the season and have a small fishing boat stashed at one of the larger billabongs. It is perfect for rowing around and casting to all the likely looking spots along the banks and in the lily pads. The billabongs are stunning with deep crystal clear water, banks lined with massive Paperbark trees and patches of water lilies which give the whole scene splashes of purple and white colour.
The main fish we were there to catch was the Saratoga. A very primitive member of a class of fish called 'Bony Tongues" many know of their cousins the Arowanas of South America but our Toga's have golden colored flanks, blue hued scales that are beautifully fringed in pink and hot pink spots that dot their emerald green fins and tail. Usually found amongst the water lilies and shoreline grasses they are an ambush predator occasionally seen cruising around their small hunting territories. Always looking up for a terrestrial meal to fall in they are suckers for dry flies. Flies like Dahlberg’s and big deer hair skating flies that I would use for Steelhead back home are a deadly weapon.
But we found on this occasion that Toad style flies out fished the surface action. In the billabong Toga's are not the only fish that are caught in there. Barramundi, Archer fish, Tarpon, Coal Grunter and big Catfish all reside in the same areas as the Toga and are always a welcome by-catch. My brother hooked and landed a nice catfish that nearly pulled his arm off. A lot of the Toga’s and Barra can be sight fished this time of the year due to low water levels. This makes for some exciting fishing from a small boat. We had a couple of fantastic days on the billabong hooking lots of fish and enjoying the solitude on the water before we had to head back to Seisia. We all have our “ secret” little spots that we go to from time to time and this one is definitely one of my favorite ones. I can hardly wait till I visit the Jardine Swamps again this year.