There on the bank to welcome us were several villagers, including James Kataala, Chief of the Beuro Clan, Village of Guro Guro.

Dale had been invited by the Guro Guro to discuss and negotiate exclusive fishing rights to that stretch of river.

We were also privileged to be allowed to fish there that day – in fact, we were the first visitors ever allowed to fish there – and what we found was some of the best Niugini black bass fishing I’ve experienced.

One spot we cast and trolled yielded successive triple hook-ups, and we actually landed two of the three both times.

In that session, the two boats landed 36 bass up to 8 kg, all caught either casting or trolling.

They weren’t as big as some of the bruisers the lads were able to pull out of the snags on live bait and finely-tuned, come-here tackle at other places we had fished during our stay, but for numbers it was hard to beat.

Smaller bass – up to 4 kg – can often be stopped with the heavy baitcasting tackle required to take on this pig dog of the rivers.

But as they get bigger, the challenge becomes more daunting.

That’s why Dale has introduced live-bait fishing for anglers seeking an alternative to casting or trolling lures.

It allows you to use a whopping-great hook that will complement a true bass stump-puller, 25 kg braid and a game reel with high-speed and massive drag washers that can be screwed down to bludgeon levels.

Add to the above the single, most-preferred tucker of the black bass – the chunky tilapia – and you’ll encounter more big ones and enjoy a much-increased catch rate.

But you’ll still get pummeled if you don’t fish the live-bait tackle to the max.

Dale uses Shimano Trinidad 16N narrow-spool, high-speed retrieve reels loaded with 24 kg braid for live-baiting.

He likes less-experienced clients to have the reel in free-spool but with the ratchet on.

That way they don’t have to worry about an explosive take and the inevitable over-run that follows when the ratchet is off and the spool is not being feathered skillfully with the thumb.

After just two or three seconds, the reel is engaged and the belting strike is made.

The trick then is to pump and wind in short strokes without ever stopping the rod.

At all times, it should be fully bent and either going up or going down.

Quite simply, if you give a big bass enough rope to turn its head away from you, you may as well have not bothered to soak a bait at all.

You don’t play a Niugini bass; you get in there and brawl with it.

This type of fishing is the epitome of the knock-down battle, and it is an absolute buzz because often as not you win.

Our best fish of the trip went 13.5 kg (30 lb) and we landed plenty between 9 kg and 12 kg.

Twice from my boat I witnessed genuine 40 pounders (18 kg) almost landed.

Each time the leviathan was belted to the boat in a matter of seconds, but once there and able to regain its head, it dived straight down and severed the line even before we stopped exclaiming about its size.

We caught 103 bass in five days, the 11 biggest (9 kg to 14 kg) were all caught on live tilapia.

Bendoroda Wilderness Lodge is not only the gateway to the most-consistently-good Niugini bass fishing in PNG; it is also a remarkable and fulfilling cultural and geographic experience.

Right from the moment you set foot on the beach in front of the Lodge, you are greeted by the people of Bendoroda Village and you feel the genuine warmth of their welcome.

For me, after a nearly-three-year absence, it was a bit like coming back to family. Actually, I later discovered three kids had been named Alex after that trip, and I trust you won’t read anything more into that than you should.

Check out www.hotspot.com.au for more information.