Beast Mode Fishing Weekend: Shad, Sharks & Kob Chaos!
IT’S HERE! The BIGGEST SHAD COMPETITION of the last few decades is well on it’s way — and it’s going to be absolute madness! The KingFisher Shad Competition is back and it’s BIGGER THAN EVER, with a jaw-dropping R75 000 in cold hard cash up for grabs, plus an epic array of gear, tackle, and prizes that’ll blow your mind! This isn’t just a fishing comp — it’s a coastal takeover, a shot at glory, and the kind of adrenaline-pumping action you’ll talk about for years. THE SHAD ARE RUNNING, THE PRIZES ARE REAL, AND CASH IS A CAST AWAY!
Rock & Surf:
The stoke is OFF THE CHARTS right now — fishing is about to go nuclear this weekend! The South Coast is erupting: Shad are going ballistic, and gamefish are tearing through shoals like missiles. Hit-and-miss? Maybe. But those putting in the grind are cashing in with rod-bending, reel-screaming chaos. This is winter fishing in beast mode — don’t sleep on it!
Up north? It’s stealth mode. Perfect time to hunt kob and stumpies off the ledges and gullies. One light stick, 10–12ft rod, prawn or chokka… stay mobile, stay sharp, and let the action find YOU.
Hungry for teeth? Grey sharks are prowling. Drop a swim bait if you’re brave — the kind of fight that gets burned into memory. And with flatfish already showing, those warm currents are hinting at monsters rolling in soon…
Meanwhile, the sardines are STILL firing nets on the South Coast. Garrick, Brusher, and Shad mayhem everywhere. And let’s not forget — R75,000 is up for grabs in the KingFisher Shad Comp. This is the week to sharpen those hooks, hit the surf, and make it happen.
It’s building. It’s boiling. It’s about to blow wide open. The best fishing of the season could be THIS weekend. Tight lines, legends — let’s go make it wild!
Offshore:
The fishing is on fire right now, and this weekend is shaping up to be insane! The weather’s been a wild mix, but the cold is finally losing to that spring warmth — and the bite has lit up. Couta, tuna, snoek, dorado, wahoo… it’s all happening.
North Coast Madness: If it’s couta you’re chasing, the north is the hotspot. Cape Vidal has exploded with action! Plenty of smaller fish are around, but the bruisers are lurking deeper. If you’re patient and push into that water, you’ve got a shot at a true giant. Dead baits, live baits — they’re all working, but a prime mackerel or sardine is pure gold. Closer to Durban, anglers are finding fish, but watch out — the sharks are stealing more than their share!
Central Coast Action: The river mouths are alive with snoek, and these silver speedsters are keeping rods bent. Keep your setup light and your lures running true, and you’ll get your shot. Slide out to the reefs and wrecks, and you’ll find couta smashing purple flashers and chartreuse lures. Push even deeper, and the tuna are waiting. Skirted and high-speed lipped lures are doing the damage, and if you find floating structure — hit it! Dorado love that kind of cover.
South Coast Heat: From Toti to the Shoal, the tuna are on the chew. Live bait slow-trolled around the bait marks is the ticket — rigged on a 6/0 circle hook for solid hookups. Dorado are in the mix too, smashing the same presentations. And the Shoal? It’s wahoo city right now. These torpedoes are built for speed, so crank those fast-trolled lures and find the strike zone. Work the area, hit it from all angles, and when you connect — hang on!
The season is turning, the fish are firing, and the chaos is building. This weekend is going to be wild — sharpen your hooks, fuel up, and get ready to bend some rods. Tight lines, legends!
Freshwater:
News from Jan: Even though it appears that summer is making inroads, the news of elevated temperatures and balmy fishing conditions of the last week don’t seem to have reached the fish. Looking deeper into the weather patterns, conditions certainly looked like they had settled, with the barometric pressure graph looking the flattest it’s been in weeks, even months. But the fish hadn’t read the memo, and it’s been slow week for those anglers trying to get a fishy smell into their net.
With less than 2 weeks to go to the opening to the trout river season, hopes are high that the rivers will provide some saving grace to the non-eventful fishing to date. The bits of precipitation received over the last 2 weeks, and recently some more snow on The ‘Berg, augers well for the watershed and the additional input should get the fish moving.
Going by the number of returns, the better weather had a number of the Natal Fly Fishers Club anglers out and about over the past week. While a couple of the anglers managed to commune with fish (mostly in the 13-15 inch / 33-38cm class, and one in the 21-23 inch / 53-58cm bracket), most came away empty-handed after flogging the water. Being on the receiving end of queries as to where fish are being caught, it is worthy to note that the fish reported are from any number of the NFFC waters … and very seldom the same water … “Lighting never strikes twice (in the same place)…”
The past weekend saw The Kamberg Valley Association host the annual Kamberg Outdoor Challenge, the afternoon of the day’s events puts the contestant on a local water to test their skills against the wily trout of The Valley. Fishing was reportedly “tough”, with only a few fish coming to hand. Flies that proved successful ranged from snail patterns, to midges and even a hopper dry fly. In the wet flies, fish were caught on yellow and white patterns.
With new cases continuing to emerge, KZN dairy farmers have been severely impacted by Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD). To assist landowners and protect their stocks, the NFFC has closed some more of its waters at their request, as they monitor the outbreak. The NFFC further requests all anglers to please follow any landowner or staff requests to respect their vehicle / footwear sterilization protocols as required.
The mystery surrounding the slump in the bass fishing at Albert Falls continues – especially with the very popular Albert Falls Classic scheduled for next week 28-30 August – theories range from the bass overfeeding on tilapia (and therefore not interested in artificials), to the long-standing discussion regarding water quality. The other species are however picking up, with some good size Red-breast and Mozambique Tilapia being reported.
Midmar Dam is still giving up some good bass and carp.
Natal Yellowfish (aka Scaly) are proving to be the saving grace for anglers at present, with fish being reported from both the Umkomaas and Tugela River systems. Umkomaas is a numbers game, with more, but smaller fish, while there are some trophy fish coming to hand in the Tugela. Weighted nymphs are the bread and butter for these fish, ranging from small scruffy patterns (e.g. Hare and Copper), through Pheasant-tail Nymphs (PTN) in Hot-spot livery, as well as Gold-ribbed Hare’s Ear (GHRE) with a pink bead.
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