Anaconda Island adventure

I think we sometimes forget how lucky we are to live in a country such as Australia.

If ever I needed a reminder, I certainly got it when I made my way to Tiwi Island Retreat, nestled on the remote Bathurst Island off the Northern Territory.

This place is adventure central, and I was lucky enough to work on a campaign recently that turned the place into Anaconda Island.

In fact, shopping at your local Anaconda store could see you and nine friends off to experience this amazing location, just like I did – shameless plug!

No matter how great or small, every fishing trip is an adventure and Tiwi Island Retreat is certainly at the extreme end of the scale.

Having been to adjacent Melville Island a decade ago, as I walked across a red dirt runway to board a bright red helicopter with no side doors, I kind of knew what I was in for.

 

Never in my life have I put more trust in a seatbelt.

Once in the air, the nerves settled and as we left the mainland, I got to take in the amazing view above Darwin, crossing Beagle Gulf and looking out to the distant body of water known as the Timor Sea.

Bathurst is the smaller of the two Tiwi Islands and retains true remoteness in its purest form.

As we flew above the coastline, we took in an aerial view of crocodiles and sharks hunting in the shallows, less land-based wildlife was spotted.

From the sky, you certainly get more of an appreciation for the incredibly harsh terrain in this part of the world.

 

The arrival at Tiwi Island Retreat by air or by water is striking.

Tall palm trees line a white sandy beach, on which three or four resident crocodiles lay sunning themselves, keeping an eye on proceedings.

A number of umbrellas surround a pool that wouldn’t be out of place at a Gold Coast accommodation complex and the adjoining twin-share rooms are luxurious, air conditioned and contain bathroom amenities – certainly not your traditional fishing lodge experience.

We dropped our gear off in our rooms, changed into fishing clothes and then sat down for the best fish burger I’ve ever had in my life.

The food bar was set very high right from the start and, I tell you what, it only got better.

 

A few minutes later, we were back on the chopper headed to a notoriously action-packed barramundi spot, at which we had a heap of follows and caught a stack of rats.

The potential was there to see but we probably just missed the right tide for the zone and would have to tackle it another time.

We headed back to base for a cold beverage and an incredible beach bonfire, where tales of the day were traded in abundance.

We were greeted with still conditions on day two, with a trip offshore on the agenda for the morning.

The bottom fishing was a little slow early on, yet we managed a nice feed of golden snapper – or fingermark – which are arguably one of the finest table fish in the sea.

 

I was a little surprised to discover that sharks were as much of a problem here as they are in my local waters off southeast Queensland.

Though we didn’t encounter the big fish-taking models, like at home, we hooked a stack of smaller sharks, so it looks as if their breeding stocks are in full health off the territory.

As we approached more protected waters on the way back, a heap of bird and surface activity suggested it’d be a good idea to troll some Halco Laser Pro lures.

It didn’t take long for rods to start screaming, as we’d found ourselves in a fairly hot bite of big queenfish.

We left them biting and took a few back to base for Chef Locki to work his magic on.

An estuary expedition was planned for the afternoon, and I was determined to catch a few barra on the new Z-Man PrawnZ Elite.

 

Like our land-based session the day before, the conditions weren’t quite in our favour, yet we still nailed half a dozen nice barramundi in a system that was literally a few hundred metres from the retreat.

A couple of those fell victim to my new lure and one rat in particular ate it in plain sight as it sank slowly down the face of some submerged timber, which was cool.

Night two was a highlight – a surf and turf beach dinner that was truly memorable for a number of reasons… the setting, the company and the food.

JZ, Gen and the team at Tiwi Island Retreat certainly have the experience nailed and it’s so great that we’re able to call the place Anaconda Island over the next few years.

Shopping at Anaconda is your best chance of winning your way onto the island, plus keeping on top of its social channels to see the island and all it offers come to life.

If you’re in the market for a remote retreat getaway and a bit of fishing, check out the Anaconda website and get a crew together – you won’t be disappointed.

Catch you.