A Not So Eggsellent Easter

Saturday was just one of those lazy days - the boat ramp was chaotic with half of the population of Mt Isa putting their boats in and out - so we thought better of it.  Besides, there (apparently) weren't too many fish of any decent size being caught.

And Sunday wasn't much better!

Firstly, the Easter Bunny didn't make here to Karumba.  Fair enough, as his eggs would have probably melted in this heat and also The Deckie shouldn't really eat chocolate.  But still.........
Secondly, we didn't have much luck with our attempts at catching live bait but we still put Tuf Cat in for a paddle and settled in for a fish out near one of the channel markers.  The Deckie had a bite within seconds of dropping her bait but then something BIG swallowed that poor little fish and headed for Darwin.  The something BIG eventually spat the little fish out (or we pulled it out) and we were able to retrieve the hook and sinker.  The poor little fish had meanwhile died.  Would have liked to have seen what the something BIG was, just so we could tell the story with more clarity.  We did catch a lot of grunter in the next half hour or so but they were all far too small and had to go back to their parents!  Meanwhile, there were some newly hatched dragonflies that had settled on the boat.  Not a problem, but then they told all of their friends and families we were a nice place to rest - it was like the old classic movie "The Birds".  Even when we started up the boat, they clung on for dear life and we had to actually had to brush them off with a towel.

Dragonflies on the Canopy

On the Fishing Rod and Line

On the other Fishing Rod and Line

After escaping the clutches of the swarms of dragonflies, we made a quick trip up the river - between the point and the town - where we had a bit of luck the other day.  Well, the day continued as it started and the fish were just not interested in dead and previously frozen bait.  In an attempt to alleviate this situation we thought we would try a bit of cast netting at a nearby "beach".  Yep, that worked well!  We did catch a few live bait but totally miscalculated the swiftness of the dropping tide.  The result was a very "romantic", twenty one hour camp out on a mud flat only ten minutes from our caravan park.

Tuf Cat's Turn to be Stuck in the Mud

Fortunately, we had enough provisions (rationed of course) to see us through the afternoon, evening and morning, self-inflating mattresses and two cans of Aeroguard.  In this part of the world, they only have one low and one high tide within twenty four hours, unlike the east coast where there are two of each tide in each twenty four hour period. We did manage to choose the day when the tide was at its very lowest for the entire month. 

Two hours before today's high tide, poor old Tuf Cat was able to wrench her battered body from the mud and float off.  A quick trip home for a wash down for Tuf Cat, a coffee for The Deckie and a beer for The Captain.

Nothing like living life on the edge!!