Trout Dreaming

Once again when you head out into the Australian bush you can expect one of these things to be immanent…
1. You are about to tread on a highly poisons animal or be bitten/stung by one…
2. You are stuck in an inhospitable landscape with no access to the outside world…
3. You are being pestered by thousands of bush flys!

OK, so yes there were flys, and yes we were in a remote part of the world … but it is a very beautiful part of the world, and one where you can happily forget about the rest of the world.

First job was to set up camp which was done with little to no real crises (The clever crow/raven stole a loaf of bread but hey if you don’t watch’m most animals smart enough to know humans know there is always food to be had around them).

A beer and some nibblies to regain ones strength and it was time to see what damage had been done by repeat seasons of long dry spells on the clear waters of Cave creek.
Cave creek is a stream feed by an artesian spring (the snow melts and slowly travels through the limestone of Kosciusko national park and finally, after about 2 years, is released into this stream).
Now, I’ve been at blue waterholes in high flow periods, when the water rushes down from the surrounding hills and plains and makes the stream look like a roaring river… but most of the time it is a sparkling creek clearer than glass which ambles along at a leisurely pace. This is great and healthy for the fish but very hard for the fisherman who is trying to out wit the twice shy trout. Well the water level was a good half to full meter below where it would normally be. This has been the way for the past few years but each time I return I’m sure it’s falling lower…

This has changed the places that the fish like to settle… but the numbers of fish remain high (as you can see them scatter as your shadow crosses the water) and you could not say that it isn’t a healthy stream with plenty of healthy ponds, weed banks and bubbling runs.

Having explored the steam, caught one or two mid to small trout (confirming ones ability and the capability of the stream) I returned to the camp… sure enough it was dark by this time…

Catching up with Matt explaining to Mike the jist of fly-fishing.
We all returned to the camp site for tea.

Dinner turned out to be half frozen Lasagne and burnt garlic bread (What did they expect leaving me to cook)… 2 kg of prawns, cheese, olives and dips for entries, Dinner really was superfluous with red wine, beers and scotch being consumed.

Day one over and already the fish had performed a treat!

Well I get itchy now and then...

My work colleagues start muttering "Is he on holidays again?"

It's not that I dislike work, or that I can’t stand still for more than a blink of an eye...(this one is maybe true).
I just have this need to travel, add to this a love of fly fishing and you have an unhealthy and at times expensive habit.

So At 3 am on Friday the 16th I caught my taxi to the airport and headed to Canberra.
Now some back details about me and Canberra...

Canberra may be the nation’s capital but it is also a massive back water...
For 10 years I treaded water getting a degree or two and trying my hand at policy writing.
I was Engaged and almost married...
I was born there and lived there till I was 5...

In truth I've probably spent a very large percentage of my life in the wind chill of those spectacular Brindabella’s...(Mountain range just to the west of Canberra). The combination of Friends and near family made it very painful to visit for the first few years when I'd moved to Brisbane, as my heart would swell and I would want them all to know just how much I missed and loved them.

The Roads in Canberra are also part of what I miss (imagine, if you can, big wide roads which are only busy during the public service push to and from work) great for Motorbikes and pushbikes alike.

OK, finally the thing that Canberra is great for is that it’s only a few hours away from my beloved Blue Waterholes...
Now blue waterholes is not mine, in fact it's part of Kosciusko national park, but it is where I first learned to fly fish and having been there on and off for the past 10 years she is like a first love with every curve and bend forever etched into my mind.

Having been keen to share my love for this place, fly fishing, and my friends... I invited several friends to come with me.
Now although I could say that I invited Matt the truth of the matter would be that I prompted matt to attend.

Some back ground to Matt:

Matt is a pure hearted man... (His morals have always made me feel guilty)
He's a hairy bald man... (I think he was born this way, but I'm scared to ask)
I shared a group house with Matt and Andrew for somewhere between 2001 and 2004.
He taught me to fly fish...
And ultimately he loves Blue Waterholes more than I do.

So earlier in the year I had booked Matt in to make this fishing trip... and like clock work matt had made arrangements and provided the equipment, maps, directions and useful addvice to all that would attend.

Another fact about camping with matt is his family traditions...
When matt and his family go fishing it is in a luxurious fashion...
You will not go hungry (I'm yet to go on a camp with matt where we did not have many leftovers on the return to Canberra). Add to this the cheese and biscuits, the dips the olives the sun dried tomatoes, the red wine the beers the scotch the world famous flame grilled BBQ Pork Ribs!

Sure as night follows day and day follows night matt picked me up from the Airport and we made our way to his parents house. Now Max and Gill are Matts parents and on occasion they would join us at blue waterholes unfortunately the latest health changes has meant that they don't get away that often these days and so after a brief chat... some hap hazard packing of cars matt and I stole there near new 4 wheel drive.

Having obtained vehicles and supplies we made our way south to Cooma...

Some shuffling and swapping of drivers occurred as we meet with Ant and his father took on more supplies and luggage and continued.

Cooma's claim to fame is being the "Gate Way to the Snowy Mountains" as spelled out in 'A river somewhere' any place that claims to be a gateway is in itself nowhere...
This said Cooma has a beautiful tree filled park which is always a great place to stop for lunch or just a toilet break.
Another feature of Cooma is that on its outskirts is the Alpine Angler... a fishing shop so close to the waters that the blokes that work there can always tell you what's happening on the waters and which flies will cause a rise.

OK so I'm starting to use fishing terminology ... I'll leave this to the next blog.

After the AA you turn off the alpine hiway and head inland through Adaminaby (A town of some 101 buildings which where moved brick by brick to create Lake Eukenby as part of the Snowy Hydro scheme). This is the home of the Big Trout and at 10 meters tall it is a spectacular fish which shines like those gems of the streams.

Having passed Adaminaby we journey on towards Tumut, never to reach Tumut we turn off the sealed roads and head along the gravel road of the Long plain...

Long plain is a stretch of spectacular natural grass lands home to the Wild Brumbies, rabbits, hares, and Wombats.
The plain seems to stretch on and on... it is rather spectacular and you really get an idea why it was seen as a great place to graze cattle in the summer... At this time of year the fields are full of wild flowers and flowing streams.

Stopping off at the Murrumbidgee as we entered long plain it wasn't long before we were fishing... (Again wait for the next blog).

OK enough already.... When it comes to camping by the river it's hard to beat matt's favourite camp site... yes it does involve lugging equipment up and down a hillside but it is cool in the day and warm at night this is the beauty of camping beside the crystal clear waters of Cave Creek.

Cave Creek is artigen water which takes some where between 2 and 1000 years to slowly filter through the surrounding limestone and just appears at the mouth of the many caves in this area. The water is somewhere between 6-9 degrees year round which is superb for the cold water loving trout that call these waters home and is a great place to keep the beers chilled.

The wild life here is both beautiful and cheeky... turn your back on the ravens and they’ll be eating their way through un attended food supplies...

Watch your sausages or the Kookaburras will have them knocked out before you can say "Lett'm cook you mug!"

The Robbins swallows, and wag tails will sing and dance, the water dragons, blue tongs, skinks and shale back lizards will make you hesitate in question as to what that flash of scales was. And when you come across a Black snake your heart will race in some confusion of what the devil he was doing there waiting for you on the path!

My favourite things to watch when not fishing is the trunks of the Alpine Gums as they change from silver to copper to bronze then finally to gold and then back to green...

Some where between the Snow Gums, the perfect blue heavens and the Canyon with it's waterfall lies a place special to my heart and soul... this place is Blue waterholes