Burnanga Indigenous Fishing Club Inc.

09/10/2026

🎣🔥 BURNANGA RIVER VOICES FESTIVAL 2026! 🔥🎣

Join us for a FREE family event celebrating culture, fishing, music and community on Yorta Yorta Country! 🖤💛❤️

📅 Saturday 7 November 2026
⏰ 2pm – 10pm
📍 Victoria Park Lake, Shepparton

🎶 Live music, cultural performances, fishing activities, kids’ activities, food and much more!

🎤 Hosted by Rex Tunt & Bush Tucker Bunjie!

🎟️ REGISTER HERE – IT’S EASY! 👇
https://www.trybooking.com/au/event/1574399

❤️🖤💛 FREE FAMILY EVENT – ALL WELCOME!

Please share and tag your family and friends! 🙌🏽

19/09/2026

🎣🐟 The gates are opening! Dunyak Moira reopens tomorrow, just in time for the school holidays!

And even better? It’ll be open EVERY DAY these school holidays, from 8am to 6pm.

☀️ Pack the fishing rods, round up the family and head to Dunyak Moira in Merrigum for some free, catch-and-release fishing.

🌿 Whether you’re keen to cast a line or just looking for an excuse to get outside and enjoy the space, we’d love to see you there.

Find out more about Dunyak Moira at watermatters.gvwater.vic.gov.au/dunyak-moira

02/06/2026

🦞 Burnanga Murray Cray Monitoring Day 🦞

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! 🦞🔥

Spiny Murray Crayfish season is officially open, and while many families are out hauling nets like it’s Christmas morning, Burnanga Indigenous Fishing Club has been busy helping monitor and protect these incredible creatures for future generations.

Last week, our Burnanga mob joined the Arthur Rylah Institute, DEECA at the Gulf Regulator for our annual Murray Crayfish monitoring day. A huge thank you to Wandjarra for once again leading the day and sharing cultural knowledge, stories and leadership throughout the event.

Our young people and community members had the opportunity to experience electrofishing, an important scientific monitoring technique used by researchers to safely survey fish populations and assess the health of our waterways. It was a fantastic hands-on learning experience, giving everyone a closer look at how science and cultural knowledge can work together to care for Country.

The excitement on the boys faces was priceless, especially when a huge Murray Cod was caught during the monitoring activities. The day was filled with learning, laughter, storytelling and valuable discussions about the future of our river systems and the species that depend on them.

The monitoring highlighted some important concerns, including declining Murray Crayfish numbers in the Barmah region, habitat changes, and the ongoing need to protect these culturally and environmentally significant species.

As the season opens, we encourage everyone to fish responsibly and know the rules:

✔️ Bag limit: 2 Murray Crays per person per day
✔️ Slot limit: 10cm to 12cm
✔️ Anything outside that size range goes back to help protect breeding populations and ensure future generations can enjoy this iconic species.

Burnanga is proud to be part of caring for Country, protecting our waterways and ensuring our young people can continue learning from and connecting with the river for generations to come.

A big thank you to everyone who attended and supported the day, including the Arthur Rylah Institute, DEECA, and our Burnanga members.

Healthy rivers. Healthy crayfish. Healthy Country.

28/05/2026

The Burnanga Indigenous Fishing Club would like to acknowledge with deep sadness the passing of our brother and cousin, Tom Day III, known professionally as Jirri Jirri.

We are deeply honoured and proud that Tom designed the Burnanga logo, a logo that has become such a symbolic and iconic representation of our club, our rivers, our people, and our connection to Country.

Jirri Jirri was a highly acclaimed, multi-disciplinary contemporary Aboriginal artist and designer with heritage spanning the Gunditjmara, Yorta Yorta, and Wemba Wemba nations. He was renowned for his large-scale public murals, intricate acrylic paintings, and digital designs that carried culture, story, and identity.

When designing the Burnanga logo, Tom incorporated the Murray Cod, a powerful symbol of our river systems and our fishing culture. The cod holds strong significance to our people and reflects our connection to the waters of Yorta Yorta Country.

Most importantly to us, he was our brother, our cousin, and our family.

Our logo is more than just artwork — it is a piece of Tom that we carry with us everywhere we go. His spirit, talent, and cultural legacy will continue to travel with Burnanga for generations to come. Our people will cherish this forever.

We send our deepest love, sympathy, and condolences to all of Tom’s family, friends, and loved ones during this heartbreaking time.

Rest easy brother. Your art, your story, and your spirit will forever live on through Burnanga and along the rivers you loved. ❤️🖤💛

21/04/2026

Our waterways are vital to our Country, culture, and community. Carp breeding at this scale shows why caring for and protecting our rivers matters more than ever.”

08/04/2026

🌿🐛 Burnanga Bug Monitoring Field Training – Get Involved!🐛🌿

Burnanga Indigenous Fishing Club invites community members to join us for a hands-on Macroinvertebrate (Water Bug) Monitoring Activity on the beautiful Goulburn River in Shepparton.

Come and learn how we care for Country through water monitoring, while gaining real skills in identifying river bugs and understanding water quality.

✨ What you’ll learn:
• Identifying water bugs (including shrimp)
• Water quality testing techniques
• Understanding river health and environmental flows
• Cultural connection to waterways and caring for Country

📍 Location: Off Jordans Place, Shepparton (river access near boat ramp track)
📅 Date: Tuesday 14th April
⏰ Time: 11:30am – 1:30pm

👩🏽‍🦱 Ages:12 years and older
🍴 Light lunch and refreshments provided
🚗 Need transport? Contact us – we’re happy to support

🧢 What to bring:
• Long pants & long-sleeve top
• Hat
• Sturdy boots
• Water bottle

💜 Why it matters:
Water bugs are strong indicators of river health. By learning to monitor them, we strengthen our role as caretakers of Country and protect our waterways for future generations.

👉 Spots are limited! Send us a message to register your interest.

24/02/2026

🌊 Ancient Waters, Living Knowledge 🌍

What an absolute honour to present at the WRFC Conference — sharing our story of water, culture and connection to Country on a truly global stage.

This year marked a significant milestone. The WRFC has been running from 1996 to 2026, bringing together leaders in recreational fishing from across the world — and for the first time ever, it was held in Africa.

The conference welcomed 180 delegates from 28 countries, creating powerful conversations about sustainability, cultural knowledge, environmental water and the future of recreational fishing worldwide.

Over the years the WRFC has been hosted in:
• Australia
• Europe
• Canada
• Norway
• USA
• Brazil
And now Africa — making history.

In South Africa, recreational fishing currently receives low recognition — yet the opportunities for economic development are significant. With 139 freshwater species and over 2,000 coastal species, the potential for growth, tourism, employment and environmental stewardship is enormous.

Beyond the formal presentations, the greatest gift was the connections. The friendships formed with passionate people from around the world, the shared learning, and reconnecting with our colleagues from the Australian Recreational Fishing Foundation reminded us that while our waters may be different, our responsibility is shared.

“Ancient Waters, Living Knowledge” carries the message that our rivers are not just resources — they are ancestors, teachers and living systems that require care, respect and cultural leadership.

A heartfelt thank you to the sponsors who supported this journey:
💙 Rumbalara Aboriginal Co-operative
💙 Oxfam Australia
💙 Goulburn Valley Water
💙 Yurrigal Energy

And a very special acknowledgement to the incredible people working behind the scenes. Our sista girl Rachael Stewart — thank you for what you do. Your support, strength and quiet leadership never go unnoticed. It truly takes a village.

Because when we speak for water, we speak for our ancestors — and for the generations still to come.

18/02/2026

18/02/2026

🎣🌞 WHAT A DEADLY DAY ON COUNTRY! 🌞🎣

On Saturday the weather turned it on for us — beautiful sunshine in the morning and a real scorcher by the afternoon! 🔥🌊 But that didn’t stop our community from coming together for day of fishing, culture and connection.

There were a few great catches across the day, and some deadly prizes went out to those who participated and landed a fish 🎣👏🏽 The lure activity was a huge hit too — with some lucky winners walking away with prizes!

A big thank you to Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation for the use of the Kingfisher, and to Ralf Hume for leading a guided river cruise. 🌊 It was special to see our community and Elders out on the water together, connecting to Country in such a meaningful way.

We were honoured to have esteemed Yorta Yorta Elder Uncle Col Walker provide a heartfelt Welcome, grounding us in culture and reminding us why we do this work.

Burnanga President Corey Walker also welcomed everyone and shared some exciting news — that he and a delegation will be travelling to the 11th World Recreational Fishing Conference in South Africa to present on “Ancient Waters, Living Knowledge” — showcasing the work we are leading here on Yorta Yorta Country. 🌍🔥
From our rivers here at home to the world stage — we carry our community with us. Keep an eye out for our stories on this page

A huge thank you to:

🤝 Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation
💧 Goulburn Valley Water
🌿 Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority
🎣 Victorian Fisheries Authority
🌊 Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder

The snags were good, there was plenty of food and drink, cups of tea and biscuits flowing, and lots of yarning with Elders — which is always the best part. ☕🍪

We were also proud to capture powerful stories through our River Voices filming, where community and Elders shared their experiences and spoke about the importance of environmental water and caring for Country.

A big thank you to the entire Burnanga team — your hard work behind the scenes makes these days possible. 💙

This is what Burnanga is about:
Caring for Country. Strengthening culture. Connecting community through fishing.

We look forward to more deadly events and activities throughout the year — stay tuned! 🎣🌿 🔥