Long Weekend Madness: The Bite Is On Fire!

Rock & Surf:

The long weekend has rolled in… and the fishing? Absolutely blazing!
For rock and surf anglers, Easter weekend has officially kicked off, and both edibles and inedibles are putting on a full-scale feeding frenzy. From rockcod and shad to kob and bronze bream, the ocean is alive with action. The seasonal shift has flipped a switch, and the bite is electric.

Up in the northern stretches of KZN, things were a little sleepy over summer, but when the fish decided to play, it turned into something special. The north coast remains a bit of a wild card. One spot fires, the next goes quiet. That’s all part of the chase. Your best move is to time it right: low tide scouting, keep an eye on those sandbanks, then wait for a few days of northeast winds paired with a calm sea. When those pieces click into place, it’s go time.

The central coast is buzzing with variety for anglers willing to put in the effort. Shad are active along the beaches and piers, and drift baits are producing beautifully in calmer conditions. Stumpies and smaller kob are feeding hard along the rolling banks, especially where the whitewater spills over the sandbanks. Chokka and prawn baits are proving deadly for these species.

Down south, the action hasn’t let up. From bream to grey sharks, anglers are still pushing for personal bests even this early into April. Prawn and chokka remain the top baits, with red prawn edging ahead as the standout choice.

So gear up, get out there, and make this long weekend count. The fish are waiting… and they’re hungry.

Offshore:

The wind’s eased off, the rain’s packed its bags, and now it’s game time. Blue skies are cracking open over the coast, that north-easter has done its job, and the ocean is properly alive. Warm water has been pushed in, the bait has followed, and the predators are right behind it. If you’ve been waiting for “perfect conditions,” you might’ve missed the memo… the fish don’t wait. The ocean still has a bit of attitude, but that’s exactly when things get interesting. Anglers who’ve backed themselves lately have been rewarded with screaming drags, tight lines, and sessions that leave your hands shaking long after you’ve packed up.

And now… it’s the long weekend. Extra time. Extra tides. Extra chances to make something unforgettable happen. The coast is stacked right now. Snoek, couta, dorado and tuna are all in the mix, and it’s not about luck, it’s about getting your approach right. Everyone always asks about lure colour, but here’s the truth: it’s the least important piece of the puzzle. Focus on your speed, your depth, and your presentation. Get your lure in the strike zone, make it move like something worth eating, and suddenly everything changes. That’s when the bites come. That’s when things get wild.

Up on the North Coast, the action has been full tilt. Snoek are still thick, and some of the better fish have been coming from slightly deeper water, so don’t be shy to push out a bit. And just when you think you’ve got it dialled, a couta or tuna piles onto your spread and turns everything into chaos. Dorado are lighting up the colour lines, tuna are smashing baits, and there’s always the chance of something bigger sliding through. Durban has been a bit mixed, but anglers fishing smart are still getting results, especially on couta. The smaller fish are around in numbers, but the big ones are there too, just waiting for a properly presented bait.

Further south, things get heavy. This is where the bottom brutes live, and they are not here to play games. Proper gear, solid knots, and a bit of grit are non-negotiable. If there’s a weak point, those fish will find it fast.

So here’s the deal: the long weekend is sitting right in front of you, the coast is alive, and the fish are feeding. Plan smart, fish hard, and take your shot when the window opens. Because somewhere out there, just beyond the backline, your next screaming run is already loading.

Freshwater:

News from Jan : Dare I put my foot in it again by reporting on the weather…?  Oh, go on then … the weather does indeed seem to be settling, and The Midlands is having some pretty balmy days and that slight autumnal chill is in the air come evening, with cooler nights and mornings.  The trend, if you can call it that, bodes well for waters to cool some more (it has already started), and fish to start getting hungry and actively feeding.  There was still some rain about over the last week, but seems to be more easterly, so the catchments in the east were not (too) affected.  With holidays in full swing, and the hordes rushing to the coast, The Midlands waters should be quiet and available for an unhurried session or two … as it should be.  Take the time and head on out.

The rivers are fining off, and they have been some great reports coming from across The Midlands to as far afield as Underberg.  The Mooi and Bushman’s Rivers were the preferred destinations for the Natal Fly Fishers Club members, with some good fish reported in the 9-11 inch / 23-28cm and 13-15 inch / 33-38cm ranges.  Autum is hopper season, and the Dry Fly game is picking up.  A foam hopper pattern is large enough to use as a searching pattern to avoid the tiddlers, but if only getting bumped and not eaten, switch to a smaller dry to get the eat.  Hopers are also useful to suspend a nymph in the classical dry-dropper rig … if you are that way inclined.  Still 2 months to go of the river season, and conditions are setting up very nicely.

With the decrease in rainfall, and river levels were dropping such that the scaly anglers started moving about, and some good fish in the 30-40 cm / 12-16 inch bracket were reported.  Subsequent to that however, rains have put paid to that notion, with a return from the Umkomaas River noting ‘river was brown and very strong’, quipping “too thick to fish, but too thin to plow…”.

The NFFC stillwaters have been a tad quiet over the last week, with a couple of returns noting dirty water after some thunderstorm action.  Other waters are reporting signs of rising fish in the 20-25cm / 8-10 inch range, and a “small black fly” being effective.  No water temperatures were reported, but as the waters cool, they will also clear, and we are looking forward to an excellent winter season.

A reminder that entries for the winter stillwater events are already open for the TOPS Corporate Challenge (May-August), Kamberg Trout Festival (4-6 June), and Boston Fly Fishing Festival (19-20 June).  Looking forward seeing many of you there – come and say Hi!

Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) continues to be a cause for alarm in The Midlands KZN … biosecurity remains a critical component of FMD control, and all anglers are advised to take heed of biosecurity notices / signage in and around The Midlands, and to please comply with any movement regulations, and assist where possible with hygiene and risk-reduction measures to safeguard local livestock.

On the bass front : Midmar Dam continues to be the water of choice, with good numbers of fish coming to hand.  Event 7 of the Bass Warehouse Tournament trail took place last weekend at Midmar.  Results were TIGHT, with the Top 3 teams coming in 50g apart, separated by a mere 100grams.  Biggest fish came in at 1.6kg – Congrats to Bryan Leppan. 

Popular lures from the events were a range of soft plastics ranging from Senko’s, Paddle- and C-tails and flukes, along with a range of Buzz, Chatter and Spinnerbaits.

Albert Falls remains on the quiet for bass, but there some good carp coming to hand for the bank anglers.
As the water start cooling, the yellowfish season at Sterkfontein Dam starts to wind down … although if that ‘Slab of Gold’ is still in your checklist for this season, April can still deliver.

And now for something completely different!  North, but not too far, Shaun Dickson of Walkabout Fishing reports on some hot early-season days at Jozini … fish everywhere : tigers smashing flies, as well as bream … and the season is only just getting underway.

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