The Hinchinbrook and Cassowary Coast Region. A hidden gem situated between Cairns and Townsville boasts some of Australia’s best fishing and boating. Described as “one of the most beautiful places on earth to fish,” by Fishing Earth.com, the pristine waterways of this Great Barrier Reef gateway are set to burst onto the world’s radar as one of the most iconic fishing and holidaying destinations.
Hinchinbrook Island is Australia’s largest Island National Park. Spanning 37.4 kms in length and approx. 10kms wide, the island is a tropical wilderness of rainforest, waterfalls, mountains, swimming holes, bays and coral-lined beaches.
The highest point of the magnificent and imposing island is Mt Bowen at 1121metres. Separating the island from the mainland is the Hinchinbrook Channel comprising 164km ² of serpentine mangrove estuaries; a thriving maze of an ecosystem teeming with countless species of fish. Anglers can expect to find an abundance of Trevally, Mangrove Jack, Barramundi, Fingermark, Jewfish, and Grunter to name just a few. If you get sick of hauling in fish you can relax and take in some of the other abundant wildlife. Dolphins, Dugongs, sea turtles, crocodiles and an amazing array of birdlife are just some of the critters that can be spotted all year round.
"One of the most beautiful places on Earth to fish"
The secret’s out. From the 10th – 13th October 2016 Hinchinbrook was home to the International fishing series, where the best anglers from South Korea, Japan and China compete to be crowned 2016 International Fishing Series Champion. The catch and release tournament was held in the Hinchinbrook Channel and surrounds and via Heli-Fishing in the Herbert River Gorge.
The international fishing series is a televised event set to hit screens in April 2017. The series is to be broadcast into an estimated 400million households across Asia in four different languages, there is hardly a fishing enthusiast in Asia that will miss it.
Hinchinbrook Shire Council has been proactive in attracting the attention of adventure tourism operators and major event producers. Hinchinbrook and the Cassowary Coast shires will benefit from their efforts with the fishing series and the Hinchinbrook Harbour Development to provide the catalyst in increasing investment in local tourism development in the Hinchinbrook and Cassowary Coast Region.
Prior to 2016, Tourism Australia had not significantly tapped into the potential of heavily promoting Australia as a world class, must-go fishing destination. The organisation has now dedicated 40million dollars to the aquatic and coastal campaign, which will showcase unique and varied fishing experiences. Tourism Australia states that the enormously popular sport has been identified as the next big thing for marketing Australia, with research showing it to be an area of ‘untapped tourism potential’.
"Fishing the next big thing for marketing Australia"
According to the Tourism Australia website, TA Managing Director John O’Sullivan said in the last year, 315,000 international visitors tried their hand at fishing, representing five per cent of all tourists. “Fishing is one of Australia’s biggest sports and leisure pastimes but international awareness of just how much our country has to offer in this area is something we want to improve.”
Offering everything from big game, reef, estuary, jetty, river and beach fishing to heli-fishing and fly-fishing, our beautiful country is the stuff that recreational fishing dreams are made of. When hunting for the best fishing destination in Australia, Cardwell and surrounds should be high on the radar as it just so happens that these stunning North Queensland waterways offer all of the above fishing genres amid the breathtaking land and seascapes.
So locals rig your lines and fire up the tinny, the secret’s out! With any luck tourists will be flocking to the region in their droves sooner than we may think to enjoy alongside locals the stunning offerings of the Cassowary Coast and Hinchinbrook Regions.
Tourism Australia promotes industry opportunities to submit videos and photos or news and story ideas on aquatic and coastal products and experiences to be included in the campaign through social media channels. For more information on these opportunities, click here.
Author
Georgia Phelps - Freelance Design, Marketing, Copywriting
