GET YOUR camera ready. You’re just not going to believe the size of this fish!

It’s the most photographed fish in town, for fishing enthusiasts always want to have their picture taken reeling it in. And there’s no worry about this fish slipping off the hook. This one is bolted to the ground!

The Big Barra was the brainchild of a local barramundi fisherman, Bill Miller, who along with his mate Ron Sturmfels constructed the fibreglass-and-steel fish in a shed in Normanton 13 years ago. They did it by using a plaster cast of a real barramundi frozen in the correct pose. (Apparently the real one wasn’t quite as big as the model turned out to be, though.) It was then erected as a landmark for the Gulfland Motel.

The Big Barra is illustrated and written about in the ‘Big Things’ book by David Clark and is marked on the ‘Big Things Map of Australia’ that lists more than 50 roadside attractions that are more than three metres in size.

As well as guaranteeing you a catch that can’t get away, the Gulfland Motel offers motel accommodation and caravan park facilities. While you’re there, pick up a bird list. Ornithol­ogists have identified 29 varieties that have been seen around the complex.