As many of you know, I have a passion for fishing; I can "talk the talk", but rarely can I "walk the walk!" This trip was my fourth, yes my fourth .... to Lake Monduran and local park managers, Rob and Kelly must love fishing tragics like me - those of us chasing the dream of catching a 100cm plus Barra monster.

I was invited as a 12th man on this trip and with Anita’s approval; I accepted the late invitation and packed the trusty Quintrex 4.3 Hornet, named “Shrek” for obvious reasons...... won’t go into it too much.... and the 100 Series Land Cruiser with gear needed for two days of fishing.

6 fellas, 3 boats and 3 cars took to the highway and headed North on Friday with the aim of being on the water prior to sunset..... getting out of Brisvegas was the hardest thing, but once north of the Caloundra turn off we were off, Roy Orbison bursting out his melodies and Jimbo and I in the car talking excitedly like two school boys that just bought $10 dollars of candy! We were off to catch the barra!

Once we had arrived and purchased our permit , we unpacked our bedding in the “chalet de comfort”, perched high on the hill overlooking the western view of the dam, then it was all into battle stations to get boats prepped, rods loaded with the armoury of lures and off to the ramp to launch “Shrek’, “Wilgo” and “Glamour Puss” Me pictured below cruising in pristine waters in my beloved "Shrek" Look at how calm it was..... awesome boating for new boaties, no currents, no tides and no ramp rage!

What a sunset that evening, and wow once the sun went down, the State’s population of insects quickly descended onto any form of light you shone..... Sorry state enforcement bodies, but turning on an anchor light, had you swallow an assortment of little creatures into your lungs and airwaves!

After launching and heading off to the renowned "point" in the main basin, we sounded up the weed beds and started to bomb the place with our armoury of lures, from shallow diver hard bodies, Slick Rigs, Gold bombers, rattle and spots, and every other lure that we purchased from the tackle shop!

By 8pm, the thought of casting another lure lost its momentum and by this stage no beer had been consumed so we headed back to the “Chalet de Comfort”  for a dinner of protein and carbohydrate, coloured with a choice of red and brown sauce..... Beer, man talk and meat! Heaven for the city slicker, metro-sexual males we have been becoming.....

Alarms were set for 4.45am yes that’s right, I can’t get up for Toby, (our 16 week old crying baby) at this time, but tell me we are going fishing and I’m up and ready! Well, after several pokes and the “wake up Hodson” I gingerly got out of bed....  as the boat was packed with the awesome Evakool 60l fridge / freezer (plug intended, these things are amazing) some nibbles for the day, we set off in chase again of the elusive Lake M barra....

Yayayaya dididido etc etc all day casting and trying techniques from all sources of information, thanks Youtube, QFM and Bush-n-Beach no luck prevailed..... Apart from Jimbo at dawn having a surface popper engulfed by a Salmon Tail Catfish, for the few moments our hearts were racing as we had a caught a Barra, the drought on board Shrek had been broken..... Nevertheless the catty ran out puff quickly and we then knew that this wasn’t a Barra. However hearing your lure being engulfed when you can hear a pin drop at day break is something that takes you back again and again to keep trying.... They tell me that’s why golf is so addictive, always striving for that amazing swing and drive!

By lunch time, hunger and tiredness had set in and it was time to head back and recharge the batteries, restock the esky with “Coke” and nibbles. It was at this time that we realised the dam is still running over the spillway, yes an excuse as to why no fish were caught, you know, the dam water is murky, lots of rain, nutrient load too high, all the fish went over the wall.... we had every plausible excuse under our hats just in case a barra wasn’t caught!

Sticking our heads over the dam wall were we silenced by the sight of numerous dead Barra. The spillway as photographed is not kind to fish that the make the decision to head down stream. Which over the summer period is the natural instinct of 60cm barra that are deciding at this time in their lives that they would like to start wearing high heels and lippy! (Barra are hermaphrodites and at around 60cm or so in length they change sex from a male to a female!)

We ended up venturing down a track to get to the lower area and the smell and sight was rather gross. Many dead fish up 120cm in length decomposing on the banks and in a dying state just circling in eddies on the side of the torrents. Fish were seen the shallows waiting the time to pass. However I must say, considering the number of Barra that live in the dam, to see approx 100 or so Barra dead is probably a poofteenth of a fraction of the number of fish in the dam. But all in all, still sad sight to see.

So late in the afternoon it was time to go back out in the dam and chase our elusive friends.... One of the boys Gibbo finally succumbed to landing a Barra and had this to say in his own words..................

Gibbo stated “At least I have three witnesses to the event and as such, it can become a tale of folklore people in a hundred years can elaborate on the following “

(Old Man Monduran to Young Whipper Snapper):

“I heard a tale of a man back in the carbon tax depression who took a trip with five other comrades. He was the Gibbo.
He travelled from afar and rode a white stallion of the water named “Wilgo” and his aim was to reduce the population of the Ill-tempered Barramundi-cuda, and save the world population from freshwater predators.
Little did he know that the specialized equipment he brought was doomed to failure, for on one session the equipment failed and thus could not achieve his goal.”

(Pause for suspense)

(Young Whipper Snapper):
“What happened next?” He remarks with sheer terror at the story.

(Old Man Monduran):
“With a heavy heart Gibbo rode “Wilgo” back to shore, the feeling of dread that the elusive Ill-tempered Barramundi-cuda had defeated him, until an idea brewed in the magnificent skull of his that instead of attacking the menace from out wide, why not chase them from the bank?
With a cast of his rod he battled on until he was attacked by a Barramundi-cuda right on the shore. With only his hand he fended of this 35  -----meter half-fish, half leopard monster until only he stood, covered in his own blood from the fight, while the fish suffered its death throes on the shore.
With a kick of generosity Gibbo the Barramundi-cuda Destroyer sent the fiend back to the depths with a warning that the gangs of Barra-cuda fishes wrought on destroying the sanity of the peaceful human population chasing them were to start playing the game for the others anglers or he will be back…….”

(Young Whipper Snapper)
“Wow, I want to grow up to be just like him…….”

Yes Gibbo caught one (next to the boat ramp) and he has bragging rights, and yes I would brag even though it was only 35 cm long!

Waking on Sunday morning with a head ache from lack of sleep, stomach turning due a protein diet we ventured off for one final fish. The weather had changed to a sultry, windy / rainy cool morning and the dam just shut down (no really shut down).  Even finding fish on the sounder was near impossible (By the way, where do they go so quickly?)

After taking some more pictures of the scenery (no fish to photograph) we headed back to the ramp to prep the boat for the journey home, and then back to Chalet de Comfort to tidy up there.

Lake Monduran is a spectacular freshwater impoundment, full of amazing wildlife from turtles to Swamp hens, Eagle's nests to cormorants, spectacular clear nights with the sky bright from all the stars to water so calm at day break you can see the grey hairs in your hair!

Although a quick trip this time, all 6 of us vowed to come back later in the year when the weather warms again to try again. If you don’t mind coming home empty handed but enjoy some time in and on a magnificent water way, I can confess that I am addicted to the place, and one day, yes one day I will catch the Barra of my fishing dreams.