The eastern side of Exmouth Gulf seems to be one area of our vast coastline that’s still relatively unknown to most folk, seemingly swathed in mystery and spoken of in hushed tones by those who have been there. Very little has been written about it in the fishing press over the years, and I for one have long thought it would be well worth a visit.
Despite operating a fishing camp at the top end of the gulf for a number of years, I never managed to find enough time to make the effort and get across there during my days working out of Long Island.
Fairly recently I somehow stumbled upon a website for a place called Wilderness Island that was situated on the eastern side of Exmouth Gulf. I found it interesting that I’d never heard about it through the fishing grapevine, and no-one I spoke to about it was any the wiser.
Then out of the blue a few months ago, Western Angler got a call from the Wilderness Island crew, who wanted to get someone up to have a look at the place and sample some of the fishing on offer. I didn’t have to be asked twice when I was invited to join Russell Waterman and Scotty Coghlan on the trip.
Jim Alston is the man behind Wilderness Island and he’s got plenty of the right credentials needed when tackling a project like this. Jim grew up on a couple of the local cattle stations situated right on the edge of Exmouth Gulf, so he knows his way around this neck of the woods like few others. He’s one of those blokes who’s very good with his hands and a bit of a jack of all trades, and also spent some time in the Kimberley on Kimberley Quest honing his guiding and hospitality skills before having a crack on his own.
But best of all he’s an honest, likeable, knockabout sort of bloke with a passion for what he does.
Together with his right hand man and No.1 fishing guide, “Ningaloo Harry” Butler, Jim basically spent two years living and building the Wilderness Island camp from scratch, at the same time fishing around the area when time permitted to get things properly sussed. They’ve been joined by Exmouth local and charter skipper Shane Wunhym and between the three of them they seem to have most bases covered.
Our first impressions of Wilderness Island were very favourable, despite a wetter than average trip across the gulf in Shane’s big eight-metre ali rigid hull centre console, punching straight into a 15-knot easterly most of the way. I don’t reckon I’ve been that wet in a boat since Miles Leahy and I slogged 30-odd miles from Bernier Island back to Carnarvon into a stinker of a southeasterly in my 5.1m Westerberg, when every wave hit our starboard quarter and drenched us to the skin.
Once we’d reached our destination, my initial thoughts were how much the camp reminded me of Bluey Vaughan’s legendary One Tree Beach, both in the rustic charm of the camp itself and the geography of the adjacent coastline. Pretty high praise indeed I know! Wilderness Island is obviously not anywhere near as isolated as Rob’s camp and doesn’t have some of the spectacular features unique to the Kimberley. It also lacks the major river systems scattered throughout the area that produce the abundant freshwater run-off and the associated red-hot barra fishing.
There were still plenty of similarities though, with the coastal geography of the area around Wilderness very different to what I’d been expecting. While there were the vast mangrove systems that I’d imagined, the area also abounded with beautiful sandy beaches, countless rocky headlands and islands, shallow offshore reefs and crystal clear water.
The camp itself was set atop a substantial cliff face around 30 metres above the high water mark, offering you magnificent views looking west out across Exmouth Gulf. It consisted of a main mess, dining and living areas combined under the main roof, with corrugated iron at the bottom to bench-top height and above this was heavy duty shade cloth that allowed light and breezes in but kept any mozzies and sand flies at bay.
A well-equipped kitchen with solar power, gas cooking facilities and refrigeration, and a large stainless steel workbench, occupied half of the main area, while the other part boasted a large dining table, comfy lounges, well-stocked bookshelf and, of course, a bar!
Out the front of the main living area was a large, shaded deck with some of the best views imaginable looking back towards Exmouth across the gulf. A perfect spot to unwind and watch the sun go down after a hard day’s lure casting if ever I’ve seen one.
A barbecue area and fire pit at the bottom of the decking was another great place to relax, while right on the beach was a private, rustic bathroom complete with piping hot shower and bathtub, courtesy of a 44-gallon drum and a good fire.
Accommodation is in permanent safari type tents with canvas roofs, shade cloth sides and wooden floors. Maybe not quite the Ritz, but certainly comfortable enough and definitely insect free.
The first couple of days at the camp were great, with some enjoyable light tackle sportfishing close to camp and a good feed of mud crabs from just around the corner at low tide, courtesy of Harry’s eagle eye and deft work with a crab hook.
We started to settle in and relax as we got to know our hosts Harry, Jim and Shane and they too probably breathed a sigh of relief as we managed to get a few runs on the board early in the tour. Having been on the other side of the fence, it was always a nervous time showing visiting fishing journos around as you’re really hoping that the weather co-operates and the fish turn on.
On day three, Jim stayed back at camp to do a few chores and welcome a couple of private boats that were due to arrive from Exmouth. He also made start on a new project; clearing a bush airstrip to enable clients to fly into Wilderness Island rather than do the 45km crossing by boat. So with Shane skippering the boat and Harry acting as our guide, Scotty, Russ and I set sail early in the morning and headed south from camp.
Hanging in close to the shore in the lee of a steady easterly, we had a ball casting poppers to big, acrobatic queenies we found on some shallow sand flats. Russ discovered the joys of lure casting and that there was more to fishing than tangling with his beloved bottom fish, and a few nice jacks and malabar cod extracted from some rocky outcrops rounded off the day as we headed home in ideal conditions.
Back at camp that evening over the traditional beer or two on the balcony, we learnt that Jim was going to join us on Shane’s boat for the next day’s action. I suggested that maybe a ‘fishing shootout’ between the Western Angler crew and the Wilderness boys might be a good idea and create a little friendly rivalry. Jim reckoned that local knowledge would stack the odds heavily in their favour, but we were just glad that the local boys were going to pick up a rod and have a crack at the fish.
We commenced the day again in the shallow mangrove-lined estuary system known as Deep Creek, where the queenies kept us entertained for the first couple of hours before going off the bite. There was plenty of action on smallish Halco Roosta poppers and it was certainly gloves off as the challenge began to heat up, and any semblance of angling etiquette quickly went out the window.
Next stop was a small dropoff at the front of another creek where giant herring are known to frequent. We all switched to small chrome lures and despite a couple of hits, the odd flash of brilliant silver and one blistering run, we just couldn’t stay connected to what may well have been giants. Motoring around the flats and up a couple of the bigger creeks we saw good numbers of sizeable golden-tailed fish that Harry identified as permit. One of the holy grails as far as saltwater fly anglers are concerned.
Shane and Harry reckon that it’s a pretty common occurrence to see good numbers of permit, all that they need to do is nail a few good fish and the swoffers will come from everywhere. It must be said though it’s probably easier said than done!
Once the easterly died down we moved further offshore to a shallow coral shoal known locally by the very encouraging name of Monsters.
The rivalry between the two sides had continued to develop throughout the course of the day and it was now really every man for himself. As soon as the fish were located and someone was on, lures would sail from every direction towards the hooked fish, which was often accompanied by a few mates. The school consisted mainly of big golden and brassy trevally.
Jim enjoyed the relaxed day’s fishing, generally with a book in one hand and a baitcaster in the other. Every now and then he’d nearly jump out of his skin as his lead-head jig got nailed and his tranquillity was shattered.
We had a ball for the duration of the morning, so much so that our proposed lunchtime arrival date back at camp was postponed until mid-afternoon. It was a great way to get to know the crew from Wilderness Island and they really appreciated having a fish and a laugh with Scotty, Russ and I. And as Harry read out the final scores of the day while we cracked a well deserved coldie back at camp, the 15-all scorecard was just about the perfect ending for a great trip. I’m hoping that a rematch next year could be on the agenda!
Darryl Hitchen was one of the pioneers in sportfishing in WA and has been throwing lures from boats almost all his life. He’s written for Modern Fishing and ran his own guided fishing business in the North West before returning to Perth.
Full credit and to Darry Hitchen for this honest article. Special thanks and full kudos to Scotty Coghlan and Russell Waterman from Western Angler for the use of this feature and review of Wilderness Island.
