RYAN MOODY
Australia’s preeminent authority on all things barra fishing, Ryan’s been called a lot of things over the years – these days it’s ‘The Beach Janitor’…
Ryan’s spent half a century on the water. He was introduced to the ocean as a kid, when his dad used to take him diving and spearfishing.
“They say I was three years old when my dad dragged me kicking and screaming into the boat for my first fishing trip,” Ryan said.
“They also say he had to drag me out of the boat when the trip was over!
“I was hooked from the start.”
WILD RIDE
Those early days fishing around tropical North Queensland’s Magnetic Island turned into a 40-year career on the water.
“At age 16 I was on the mackerel boats, catching fish on handlines for the markets.
“By 18, I was working alongside some of the best skippers in Australia on the professional gamefishing circuit.
“Chasing giant black marlin off the Continental Shelf, while rubbing shoulders with the likes of INXS, the King and Queen of Sweden, and boxing legend Barry Michaels, it was a wild ride!”
It was during the gamefishing off-season in the late ’80s when Ryan started his barra fishing charter business.
Over the next three decades, he guided clients through the mangrove mazes and expansive sandflats of the Hinchinbrook Channel – set against the mountainous backdrop of World Heritage-listed Hinchinbrook Island (part of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area) – earning a reputation as Australia’s most successful barra fishing guide.
BURRA-MUNDI
Derived from the Aboriginal word ‘burra-mundi’, meaning ‘large-scaled river fish’, the barramundi (Lates calcarifer) is arguably Australia’s most iconic sportfish.
A wild barra measuring a metre in length is considered the Holy Grail among recreational anglers; a milestone just a small percentage of people are lucky enough to achieve.
Throughout his professional guiding career, Ryan put clients onto over 2000 metre-long saltwater barramundi. Yes, that’s over 2km of silvery metre-plus barra! (If he added up all the barra caught and released over the years, it would go halfway to the moon!)
“It was a real privilege to assist so many people in fulfilling their dreams of joining the ‘metre barra club’.
“In one of the most beautiful locations in the world, I’ve seen the most amazing things during my career… sharing so many experiences with so many people has been a big part of this very memorable journey.”
Ryan at the helm of ‘Mood Swings’ – somewhere in the remote north Great Barrier Reef.
MOOD CHANGE
Living in Cairns (QLD, Australia) with his wife Karen Rudkin-Moody, Ryan retired from guiding several years ago.
The pair created online education resource Ryan Moody Fishing, to share Ryan’s lifetime of experience with others.
“Working on the water has a different meaning these days… we spend several months each year living aboard our Black Watch 40 Mood Swings, producing online content while we’re at sea.
“It’s not all work and no play. We have plenty of time to relax and just enjoy being on the water, remembering past experiences and creating new ones.
“During our years at sea, we’ve weathered storms with cyclonic winds, been involved with several rescues and recoveries, and have also discovered seven uncharted shipwrecks.
“We’ve also witnessed the true state of the Great Barrier Reef and have found some of the most amazing coral gardens you’re ever likely to see – particularly in recent years, which has had the best cover on record.”
TRUE NORTH
Spending so much time in the remote north Great Barrier Reef region obviously means seeing things not seen around big cities… and it’s not always good.
“Just as we see the true state of the reef, we see the true extent of the ocean’s rubbish problem… some places have plastic piled over a foot high.
“As there’s no-one around to pick it up, the plastic on these remote beaches is worn down by sun and waves, turning it into microplastics, which finds its way into the food chain.
“It’s always sad to see entangled sea birds and turtles, along with all the other marine life impacted by plastic pollution.”
THE BEACH JANITOR
Ryan and Karen are affiliated with one of Ocean Mind Coffee’s partners, Tangaroa Blue.
“Along with reporting and assisting in the removal of ghost nets [lost or abandoned commercial fishing nets], our work with Tangaroa Blue is to bring further awareness to the marine debris problem in the remote north and assist with organising cleanups.
“Even though a lot of the plastic floats in from overseas, we encourage everyone to do the right thing – all the way out here on the reef and around waterways at home.
“Karen and I are constantly cleaning up garbage from irresponsible beach users in Cairns… I’ve earned nickname ‘The Beach Janitor’.
“People can call me whatever they like, as long as they pull their fingers out, get involved and start helping us clean up our marine environment!”