FOR Cleveland’s Bob Johnson, the waters of Raby Bay are more than just canals – they’re his “big aquarium”.
The 88-year-old has spent the past two decades casting a line close to home, finding simple joy in throwing in bread and watching fish gather beneath the surface.
It’s a quieter chapter in a fishing life that stretches back more than eight decades.
Mr Johnson’s earliest memories date to just three years old, fishing alongside his grandfather off the Manly wharf in Sydney.
“Pop was fantastic, a great old man, and we would have a wonderful time, sitting there fishing with a sandwich in our hand,” he said.
“We would catch the little fish and let them go, and keep the big ones.
“It has been a wonderful side to my life.”
That early passion grew into a lifelong pursuit, eventually leading him to join the Caringbah Anglers Club, where he embraced both the camaraderie and competitive side of the sport.
In 1975, he reached a career highlight, taking out the title of New South Wales deep sea fishing champion both individually and as part of a team.
His prize catch, a 2.7m marlin, was proudly displayed in his home for years before he downsized and passed it on to family.
Mr Johnson said his fishing adventures also took him to the far north, where he spent time in the Gulf of Carpentaria.
“They were great years, especially in the gulf. I would fish and hunt,” he said.
“You could camp on a billabong at one of the stations and not see anyone for months.”
Among his many stories – some, he admits, “best not published” – one encounter still stands out.
Fishing off Crocodile Head Gorge in Jervis Bay, he recalled a close call with a massive tiger shark.
“There was a shark hanging around spooking our fish.
“It was the biggest shark I’d ever seen,” he said.
“It was as long as the boat (5.5m). It swam around and nearly turned the boat over.
“We thought that was funny at the time, but we could have been his dinner.”
Over the years, Mr Johnson owned a wide range of vessels, from small tinnies to game boats and even sailing and parasailing craft, before selling his last boat about four years ago.
Since settling in the Redlands 20 years ago, he said Moreton Bay has become his favourite place to fish.
“I just like it anywhere in Moreton Bay wherever the fish are running,” he said.
“I enjoy fishing. It’s the contentment of sitting there enjoying the surroundings and the water.
“You catch some fish and let them go and you catch some and eat them.
“If you fished every day, you’d have too many fish.”
