It may be called Australia’s beef capital, but with some clever changes to the rules, Rockhampton is set to become Australia’s barramundi (aka ‘barra’) capital.
When it comes down to it, Rockhampton must have been designed by an angler. The vast, grassy floodplains that sustain the livestock also hold hidden gems in the billabongs and lagoons that sparkle like jewels as you fly into town.
Barramundi. Tens of thousands of them. Australia’s iconic sport fish.
Whenever the mighty Fitzroy River floods, the barra depart these hidden backwaters and enter the river proper to complete their life cycle.
In November 2015, commercial netting was removed from the Fitzroy River and adjoining Keppel Bay and already, thousands of barramundi remain in the river and are helping build the barra populations back to levels that haven’t been seen for decades.
Not surprisingly, the results for recreational anglers have been virtually instantaneous.
