Cairns fisherman Justin Ward has had one of the more bizarre catches of his life: two asylum seekers.

Mr Ward was wetting his line just near the mouth of the Daintree River when he spotted the two Vietnamese men in mangroves.

"As we came around into the mouth of the river these two lads were hanging off the mangroves there looking severely worried,” the fisherman recounted.

Cairns local, Justin Ward. (9news)

Mr Ward enjoying a beer with one of the men. (9news)

The pair were in luck, with Mr Ward deciding to take them crabbing, while also giving them a tour of the croc-infested waters.

In an exclusive interview with 9NEWS, the fisherman said the first thing the pair asked for was to go to the market.

He explained to them that it wasn’t market day, and instead let the pull in the crab pots.

He said they were dehydrated and hungry, and while he had a beer, all they had was water; Mr Ward insisted he would've shouted them one if they'd asked.

The pair enjoyed the trip, capturing memories of the crocodiles they spotted.

Mr Ward pictured with the two asylum seekers. (9news)

“They were taking photos and taking selfies,” Mr Ward recalled.

“They weren’t exactly sure what we were talking about, but everyone was laughing.”

The fisherman said he had a lot of empathy for the Vietnamese men - but knew he had to alert authorities.

Mr Ward hopes he gave them a brief Aussie experience.

Speaking with Mr Ward about the bizarre experience today. (9news)

It comes after three people were arrested in the Daintree Rainforest around lunchtime todday, as Border Force officials continue their search for or at least 20 people on the run after the boat they were in ran aground north of Cairns yesterday.

A group of people were this morning seen running across a road into the rainforest, with police taking chase.

It's believed there could be a few dozen people on the run while 11 were captured last night and transported to Cairns.

Cabinet Minister Steven Ciobo today called for those on the run to be rounded up and shipped to Nauru.

"Those people if we can find them, they should be taken into custody, so to speak, and they should be sent to Nauru," Mr Ciobo told Sky News.

"Or they should be sent somewhere offshore if we're able to do it under our international obligations."

Australia is legally obliged to process onshore the protection claims of people who arrive in the country.

The boat arrival flies in the face of the coalition government's claims to have "stopped the boats".

Mr Ciobo, the incoming defence industry minister, said the incident showed there would always be people trying to sneak into Australia.

"I believe that if we can, if we capture these people, we should be sending them offshore for processing," he said.

"They should not be allowed to stay in Australia. We may not be able to do that under conventions, we'll have to have a look at it.

"I think as a government we absolutely should be trying to make sure that they're shipped off to somewhere like Nauru, for example, for processing.”