Fishing is my passion in life. Living in WA I have been fortunate to sample most of what the states vast coastline has to offer in terms of
frantic sportfishing action. It has been a 25 year pursuit of
pelagics and reef dwelling species whether it be land based or
from the added opportunities afforded by a boat. WA must surely
have some of the best untapped light sportfishing grounds in Australia
if not the world.

"Having gorged myself on years of this incredible bluewater action ,up and down the coast, the last 10 years or so has seen my focus avert to include the challenge of tropical estuarine and big tidal river fishing. All the high profile tropical species were targeted but above all the barramundi was the prime candidate I sought to grapple with.

The pursuit of these elusive northern prizes has taken me to most of the Kimberley prime barra hot spots. These numerous ventures have usually been in the form of the mothership/dinghy scenario although I have chanced upon a few adventures at a remote beach fishing camp operation. The undoubted bonus to the fishing aspect is the sheer magnificence of your surroundings that accompany you through the whole of the Kimberley region. The mothership option is one way to capitalize on this natural beauty as you sail through remarkable waters with equally stunning scenery accompanying you the whole way. All this is done in a good degree of comfort and affords plenty of relaxation time. The fly in/ fly out beach camp option is exciting but is now the realm of those with a copious amount of disposable income. That certainly excludes me. Creature comforts are scant and no hygienic toilet or shower facilities on offer. If you enjoy a beer or two or a mixer for your favourite spirit be prepared to pay premium city club prices for whatever you had ordered in. Unfortunately we never really hit that fishing El Dorado on the numerous probes into these wild and remote meccas.

Searching ever eastwards brought me to the Ord River and Mackas Barra Camp. By now I had accumulated enough knowledge on my quarry to see the vast potential offered on the Ord on that first expedition down river. My mate and I have fished the last 3 wet seasons run offs with Macka in his purpose built surveyed boats. Our resulting captures and the intensity of fishing action was beyond even our wildest imaginations.

Fishing in text book colour change conditions, usually only seen in big territory rivers, we tackled a river at yearly record flood levels that had other operators heading for home not to be seen for months to come. The action was the stuff of dreams and I still just sit back ,recall some of images and shake my head in disbelief. The beaming photos prove the day dream. Our first run off saw us break our own previous barra bests of 30lb fish day after day. The following year was a clone with the fishing even more hectic as our skills and tactics were honed hourly with the deluge of willing fish. We broached the 40lb barrier this time with a superb saltwater barra engulfing a twitching surface popper at one of the many run off creek mouths. This year just couldn't get any better we thought. A gyrating ,eye popping silver slab of 50lb put our doubts to rest one memorable afternoon in February. This was the culmination of another amazing week of fishing history. All this in a river at now all time record levels with not another soul in sight and just our unheard gasps and shrieks left to waft downstream with the ceaseless flow.

Ord is a vast river system chock full of treacherous obstacles such as sand bars and mud banks certainly not a place for the amateur or faint hearted. An intimate working knowledge of the rivers many vagaries is essential for safety and to enable you to access the prime fishing real estate to achieve the results we did. Andrew McEwen offers an impeccable professional service both on and off the river and his knowledge of it is without peer. The "on river" exploits have had us returning for more year after year with 2003 already inked in. I've found no other Kimberley venue that compares to the Ord in terms of barra in size and quantity. He'll scour the length and breadth of that waterway to put you onto that much sought after stupefying action and that fish of your lifetime.

As to the equally important "off river" attractions, the camp is superbly comfortable and located high on a picturesque bend on the river with sweeping vistas downstream. A 24 hour power supply ensures plenty of creature comforts. Overhead fans in the communal area and each of the accommodation bungalows ensure you stay cool day and night. No massive price hikes on drinks either - what you order in is yours at town prices. Civilised fresh water showers and toilet facilities are always appreciated at the end of a long hard day on the river. Three very hearty freshly prepared meals a day keep your energy levels up on this most complete of fishing adventures.

Mackas Barra Camp doesn't rely or survive on old worn out reputations bandied about by those who haven't really tried all the options on offer. I've seen and achieved results I never thought possible whilst fishing the Ord over the past 4 years. The service, location and fishing is superior to anything else I have experienced in the Kimberley over the many years of exploring its hidden secrets. It makes the competition appear as overpriced , amateurish imitations of what your true Kimberley barra fishing experience should be.