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ARNHEMLAND BARRAMUNDI NATURE LODGE

You get to the Adelaide River mouth by launching in Saltwater Arm, itself always worth trying for both barra and golden snapper.

Not far away is Leeders Creek where there is an excellent boat launching and security service.

Neap tides are also better at Leeders, but I’ve had some good sessions just flicking lures to the snags on spring low tides similar to this Sunday’s.

Darwin Harbour has been hit and miss with all the rain.

In recent years, with commercial netting no longer taking place in the harbour and its arms, the size of fish available to anglers has increased considerably.

Fifteen years ago you would fish the arms for barra by casting to tidal run-offs or gutters; and then you would only be catching barely legal fish.

Trolling just never seemed to produce with any consistency, but that’s all changed now.

At this time of year, as long as you can find clear water streaming past a mangrove flat with a bit of a channel, you’re a great chance of trolling up some beaut barra.

Best tides are definitely during and just after the neaps when water clarity is good – this Saturday is perfect – and you want to be fishing well into the rising tide, maximising your efforts as the water level approaches the edge of the mangroves.

I am constantly receiving reports of barra in the high 70s, through the 80s and even a few measuring more than 90 cm – all fish caught trolling the arms of Darwin Harbour.

These are invariably fish on the move and they are best targeted with lures that dive to more than a metre – not much more – when trolled a fair way back on braid line.

Bombers are ideal, as are Classic 120s in the shallow version, but even smaller lures like Terminators and Spearheads are doing the job.

If you’re adept at jig trolling, you’ll increase your chances tenfold.

Of course, casting lures on the flats and at colour-change gutters is the usual effective technique in Darwin Harbour’s arms.

I wouldn’t be surprised if those little creeks on the eastern side of Middle Arm fired up this weekend.

The bluewater scene also continues to produce great fishing.

The Peron Islands went ballistic last weekend – big macks, huge goldies, fat red emperors…it was all happening.

The Vernon Islands on the other side of Darwin also produced.

Big queenfish, giant trevally and broadbarred mackerel were all on the chew.

Big jewfish also made their presence felt at a couple of locations over the past week.

For the first time in years, I had a report that the ledges on the inside of Indian Island in Bynoe Harbour are holding jew.

Closer to Darwin, the Lee Point artificial reefs also produced jewfish.

If the weather gets too blowy this weekend, then sticking to the calm, protected waters up the harbour arms, or in the likes of Leeders Creek and Saltwater Arm, would be a wise decision.

Apart from barra, this time of year is when the golden snapper are at their thickest and most ferocious in these locations.

We’re not talking big fish, although a couple of kilo of harbour goldie isn’t exactly small.