Page 85 - Bush 'n Beach Fishing magazine

Early morning glassout. Coral trout are abundant across the local reefs.
Stunning southeast Cape York
Mn Cape Melville magic
weakens out. Mornings are often
coral trout, red emperor and tricky snapper, to name a few.
Y final arti- cle on des- tinations in
glassed out, with a vigorous northeast sea breeze kicking in dur- ing the afternoon.
Cape York
by ‘BILLABONG’ BAZZ LYON
southern Cape York focuses on the magi- cal Cape Melville area, tucked away in a re- mote corner of the east coast.
course, over coral reefs and rubble patches.
window of opportunity, if it happens.
Spanish mackerel and cobia are usually around in good num- bers, including off the Flinders Group of is- lands, where you typi-
This place of stunning scenery features pic- turesque coastlines and islands set against the rugged backdrop of the Melville Range’s huge granite boulders.
isB! ear in mind that Ba- thurst Bay is one of the windiest places on the Cape, with the south- east trade wind blowing at well over 30 knots for much of the dry season.
* continued P86
In good weather that
November is typi- cally one of the bet- ter months on the east coast as the trade wind
Fishing-wise, head to any island or structure to fish for the usual pelagics and reefs for
The main camping area is within Cape Melville National Park on the beachfront at Ba- thurst Bay.
The local saying is that you add the pre- dicted wind speeds to- gether to get a realistic idea of wind velocity.
Camping is allowed along the many kilo- metres of beach, with gnarly Wongai trees of- fering wonderful shade.
Under such condi- tions, I don’t reckon it’s worth the trouble to visit – better to wait for a period of calmer weather.
You can launch your boat off the beach and fish a wealth of country – from mangrove creeks to the west, rocky head- lands along the coast, around islands and of www.bnb shing.com.au
We’ve even had steaks blown off our plates at Bathurst Bay!
So, occasionally we will go to Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park first and wait for a
Bathurst Bay offers great beachfront camping under shady Wongai trees.
Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2020 – Page 85