FISHING REPORT 03RD OCTOBER 2009.

Anglers
The windy season associated with spring has certainly kept up with tradition as howling winds from the North and South are now nearly a daily occurrence. However angling at this time of the year can be very rewarding as we still have the winter fish here and the first of the summer fish start arriving from now on mostly in the form of flatfish and sand sharks.

The Transkei which is fishing very well now also starts producing some very big sharks off most of the deep water points, but for the moment the focus down there is still garrick and kob. The main areas are the traditional Port St Johns and surrounding points and the Hole In The Wall areas. Quite a few big fish over the 20 kg mark have been reported recently. Anglers targeting kob in these areas at night with Strike Pro type lures are also having a good measure of success with some big fish. Terry Nel from Tacklenet in Port Edward reports that fishing down there in Port Edward is great and many shad are coming out especially at the waterfront. Some game fish such as garrick are around. Nice catches of bronze bream have been reported down there. This week the shad season closes so remember that your bag limit is 0 until December the 1st. So target another species instead.

Further north, the North Coast and Zululand beaches are also providing anglers with fair catches of garrick and kob. Anglers targeting bigger fish in the form of some early season sand sharks have also had some good returns particularly in the Port Durnford area. Locally there are still some garrick around with the odd kob coming out at night but anglers who are now targeting busher and pompano have had the odd fish in the Doonside and Twini areas. Shad for all it’s worth seem to have disappeared and catches of traditional venues are very sketchy. The only place where reasonable catches are being reports are from the Durban beachfront piers, the Umgeni stretch and the lower South Coast.

Ski boats
Ski boats are still having a great season as far as bottom fishing is concerned as there are plenty of daga and geelbek salmon coming out on both North and South Coasts. Black muscle cracker, rock cod and good size’ reds’ generally make up ski boaters bags. Fishing Ski’s have also had to change, as the rather dismal couta season has seen most ski anglers chasing snoek in the backline and for what it’s worth the snoek have really come to the party this year and some good numbers and above average size fish have been caught on both North and South Coasts, but at this time of the year weather conditions really don’t favor the fishing ski fraternity. There is still however some good bottom fishing to be had and recently anglers have had some fine catches of big daga salmon in the vicinity of the Barge at Umhlanga and at the close reefs off Toti. Dorado is the next fish to target on the ski boats and fishing ski anglers and the first fish should be around within the next few weeks.

Nikao Fishing Adventures
Mike Laubscher from Nikao Fishing Adventures took 4 clients Deep Sea Fishing off Durban, they launched at 05h30 and there was a breeze blowing. They first collected some live bait and for a change this happened very quickly with only mackerel coming out and no sand soldiers for a change. After they had about 30 mackerel Mike rigged up 2 of them to do a slow troll for some game fish, Mike decided not to pull lures as the swells were quite big even though spaced apart. This produced nothing. They then went out on a reef to do some bottom fishing and got several bottom fish including the biggest mackerel Mike has ever seen which was about 500mm long and gave a good fight. The wind just started blowing harder and harder and at around 11h00 a large wave broke right over the boat and made them all sopping wet and they decided to call it a day. The wind was relentless and picked up even more and they took a slow ride in big swells back into port and spent a little time in the bay before ending the booking.

Mike also went up to Lake Jozini also known as Pongolapoort Dam to scout the dam and then for some tiger fish fishing with 2 clients from the USA.
Day 1: Mike arrived at Lake Jozini around 15h30, and immediately launched his boat to take a quick look around the dam, It was cold and there was a light rain, the wind was pounding and the waves were about 0.5m,  very choppy. Mike went searching for the fish and had pre-set up 12 rods with different lures and started throwing them, and very quickly found the pattern and got 3 small tiger fish of around 800 grams in less than an hour.
 Mike found all the fish right up in the weeds, and a weightless fluke fished top water style with a jerk pause retrieve in the Baby Bass colour produced the fish.
Day 2: It was overcast and there was no wind and so the dam was like a sheet of glass, and the water was very clear. They immediately started with the pattern that worked the day before and it was within minutes that Mike’s client hooked into a nice tiger, but unfortunately the fish came over the line and they lost him. It was a very frustrating day as the fish were biting short, Mike  wanted to use stinger hooks, but could not as all the fish were taking by the weeds. They had 20-30 hits which missed or it was an on/off. They found that whenever there was a gust of wind they got hook-ups, and when the water was glass the fish were biting short. In the end they boated 6 fish with the smallest around 1.2Kg (1 ½ lbs) and the largest around 2.5Kg (5 ½ lbs).

The largest fish was the last fish we caught and was the only fish caught on drop shot, all the rest we caught on weightless flukes. All these fish were safely released. Jozini and the whole Maputuland area; it is one of those places where you can get back to your roots in Africa and just replenish yourself.  With the lake surrounded by Game Reserves you can get in a good days fishing, whilst watching some game in front of you, and it is far away from the rat race. It is one of those places you’ve just gotta go to.

Mike stayed at Shayamoya Game Lodge, were the accommodation and service is really first class. These guys know how to look after you, make you feel comfortable. Shayamoya Lodge is really recommended if you are ever going up to that area. Whist fishing at Jozini they also had the privilege to see Giraffe, Rhino, Hippos, Water Buck, Nyala, Springbok, Buffalo, Elephants, Warthogs and many, many birds as well as a huge Iguana sun bathing on a rock. Mike guided a father and son at Inanda Dam for a second day. They launched at 06h00 and fished until 13h00. The morning was superb without a breath of wind and stayed like this till around 10h00, then a breeze started picking up and the wind direction was constantly changing direction which is typical of Inanda Dam at times and by 12h00 they had a strong South Westerly blowing which put a serious chop and small waves onto the main dam area. This South Westerly is going to bring the anticipated cold front and rain for the next week. Water surface temperature started at 19.4 deg C and ended at 20.8 deg. C.

They started at the cliffs in the morning with some top water and had no enquiries and so decided that again the fish are going to be deep. Mike is sure that the pre frontal conditions are responsible for the fish being deep as the week coming is going to be really lousy with lots of rain and heavy winds. Out came the drop shot rods again and they started checking at the 6m (20ft)mark where they had success the day before, but found no fish. They ended up getting their first fish at 8m (26ft) and all our other fish at 9m (30ft) on steep drop offs. They ended up with 9 fish for the day, the best being around the 1.5Kg (3 ¼ lbs) and most the fish just under and over the 1Kg (2 ¼ lbs) mark and 2 smaller bass that were less than keeper size. If this were a competition they would have weighed in a 5 fish bag of around 5.7Kg (12 ½ lbs).

3rd annual bass classic
Mnini dam, located within 15 kms of Amanzimtoti is hosting its 3rd annual bass classic over the weekend of 3rd and 4th October 2009. Thousands of rands are available for the biggest bass and the heaviest bags of 5 bass on both days. Lucky draw prizes will also be handed out on the presentation day, the 4th October. Entry fee is R150 per angler and covers both days. For more info contact Ron on 0833007528.

Fly fishing competition
The Matatiele Mountain Lake is hosting their fly fishing competition on 31st October and the 1st November 2009.  First prize for a tagged fish is R10, 000.00, 2nd R5, 000.00, 3rd R2, 500.00, 4th R1, 500.00 and 5th R1, 00.00. There are many more prizes to be won. Entry fee is R350.00 and this includes your entry, Saturday dinner and Sunday breakfast. There is a cash bar and camping facilities with ablution blocks available. For registration and bookings please contact either Shane on 083 299 4996, Lionel on 039 7373170 or Dale on 082 331 7262. This is always a very well run competition and is certainly worth while making the trip up the hill. Some info supplied by Dale that will hopefully wet your appetite. “With all that out of the way, we hope to see you fishing here this year. The fishing has been the best that I have ever seen, we had a 5.3kg brown trout caught 3 months ago and personally I caught a 4kg rainbow last week-end, with the average catch of fish ranging between 2.5 to 3kgs. We have also just recently stocked with browns and rainbows. The lake is clean and cold and an absolute pleasure to fishin at the moment.”

The Kingfisher’s “Biggest Shad Competition”
The Kingfisher’s “Biggest Shad Competition” is in full swing. The heaviest  shad  for the month of September will receive a 14’ Kingfisher Poseidon 5pc Graphite Rod, valued at R1, 925.00, the second heaviest shad will receive a Daiwa SL 50SHK Reel, valued at R1,189.00 and third heaviest shad will receive a Daiwa Opus Plus 6000 Reel valued at R567.00. Please note that all shad (fresh) must be weighed at The Kingfisher, 53 Hunter Street, Durban during trading hours and please remember there is a bag limit of four and the minimum size is 30cm.
So far, first place goes to Ettienne Rampaul with a shad of 5.228kg’s that was caught at Orange Rocks, second place is a shad of 4.776kg’s also caught at Orange Rocks by Raveen Ranjuam and third place is a shad of 4.036kg’s caught a Beechwood by Steve Roulon

The Kingfisher’s trading hours
The Kingfisher’s trading hours are Monday, Wednesday to Friday 8:00 to 17:00, Tuesday 8:30 to 17:00 and Saturday 8:00 to 13:00.
Shane from Freedivers is holding a clinic on diving (spear fishing and cray fishing) at The Kingfisher, 53 Hunter Street Durban on the 25 October 2009. This clinic is free and like all of the clinics, booking is a must.

Free Fishing Ski Clinic
The Kingfisher at 53, Hunter Street, Durban hosts a free Fishing Ski Clinic on their premises once a month by Markham Pollard. These monthly clinics are there to help beginners and experienced anglers to see what the sport is all about and how to target certain species of fish. It also shows anglers what equipment to use and also elaborates on safety. Over and above this they also hold Rock and Surf clinics run by Ivan Stopforth and a Drop Shot clinic by Lloyd Pereira. These Clinics are very informative and covers all the basics, including equipment, knots, bait presentation, and tactics. To book for one of these free clinics phone the Kingfisher on 031- 368 3903.

Here is a picture of Ettienne Rampaul’s 5.288kg shad, caught at Orange Rock's on the 25/09/09.