The first two $10,000 catches in this year’s Million Dollar Fish competition have been caught in Kakadu’s Yellow Water Billabong providing even greater incentives for travellers to bring a fishing rod to Kakadu over the ‘green season’.
The latest lucky angler was Top End fisherman Basil Te Aho and his father Kimgi, who caught a massive 81cm barramundi. The barramundi was one of 125 tagged barramundi released in season four of the Million Dollar Fish competition. This year’s prize pool includes no less than five barramundi with million dollar tags, along with 100 with $10,000 tags, and a further 20 with purple tags, worth $2500 cash to the angler and $2500 to a NT-based charity.
The lead up to the wet season is a prime time for catching barramundi in Yellow Water Billabong, a prime destination for both fishing and nature enthusiasts, who can view the abundant wildlife on a range of cruises during the day.
The green season offers remarkably rich experiences for visitors as thunderstorms build in the afternoons, the dry land turns green, streams begin to run, and the new breeding season commences.
Sealed roads make the most of Kakadu’s prime attractions accessible throughout the green season. Indigenous rock art can be viewed at Nourlangie, cooling swims can be enjoyed in waterholes such as Motor Car Falls, and hundreds of bird species along with crocodiles and other wildlife are active on Yellow Water Billabong.
There are many other advantages of visiting Kakadu during the green season, including:
- Discounted prices: hotel rates are significantly lower during the green season. Cooinda Lodge is offering rates from $139 per night for newly refurbished rooms, and as a special bonus: advance bookings 21 days prior to arrival attract a further saving of $20 per nightreducing rates to as low as $119 per room. Mercure Kakadu Crocodile Hotel has a similar advance purchase deal with rates starting from $129 per night. (Room rates subject to availability/conditions apply)
- Waterfalls at their most awesome: as the rains fall on the Escarpment, the waters cascade over the steep cliffs in spectacular fashion. One of the highlights of visiting Kakadu is to take a helicopter or light aircraft tour over the region to see Jim Jim and Twin Falls, as well as famous landmarks such as Ubirr, with the previously dry plains turned into vast waterways.
- Follow the art trail: Kakadu has one of the world’s greatest concentrations of rock art sites. Some paintings are up to 20,000 years old, which makes the artwork one of the longest historical records of any group of people on Earth. The paintings provide a fascinating record of Aboriginal life over thousands of years, and show their close personal relationship with the land and spiritual heritage. The rock art galleries at Nourlangie are accessible through the green season and feature naturalistic paintings of animals, traditional x-ray art, and paintings of early contact with European people. Kakadu National Park offers free guided tours of the rock art sites, while visitors can also see local Kakadu artists and weavers at the Ochre Gallery at Mercure Kakadu Crocodile Hotel, the Warradjan Cultural Centre and Bowali Visitor Centre.
General Manager of Cooinda Lodge Kakadu, Brett Skinner, said there are many great reasons for visiting Kakadu in the ‘wet’: “In many ways this is the ideal time to visit, because the park’s flora and fauna come alive and there is fishing ‘gold’ just waiting to be caught in Kakadu’s billabongs.
“Over two or three days, visitors can follow crocodiles on a Yellow Water Cruise, take a scenic flight over Kakadu and see waterfalls at their most spectacular, discover Indigenous culture and heritage at the Warradjan Cultural Centre, view the remarkable rock art at Nourlangie, swim in beautiful rock pools, and discover the region on one of the Yurmikmik Walks. There’s something for everybody, and with a bit of luck, you can return home a millionaire – or at least with a good feed of barramundi!”
Bookings and itinerary ideas – www.kakadutourism.com or 1800 500 401
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