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Alright, anglers, rods have been bending all weekend and with the purple patch, it’s time to fish hard and fish smart!
Let’s keep our spots pristine — always leave the areas you fish in better condition than when you arrived. Take a moment to pick up litter and toss it in the nearest bin. We’re all about keeping our waters clean for the next big catch!
The action is ON! With the northeast winds and summer heat, the fish are biting like crazy! Whether you’re on the shore or out on the boat, the fish are ready to play!
For all you weekend warriors, here’s the gear you need to get the most out of your time on the water:
A solid set of pliers — versatile and essential from fly fishing to big game trolling.
Sun-protective clothing — Stay cool and keep fishing through the heat of summer.
A reliable headlamp — Don’t let low light stop your night fishing adventures.
A waterproof pouch — Keep your tech safe and dry while you chase those big ones!
The summer fish are in full swing and the catches are rolling in from all along the coastline! From edible treats to drag-peeling inedibles, it’s been a fishing frenzy.
Rock & Surf:
North Coast – It’s been patchy but productive! Fish and move to find the action. Bloody and fleshy baits are getting results, and the banks have diamonds to offer — just gotta find ‘em! Plenty of Sandies & grey sharks, and stumpies are coming through with sea lice and small prawn/chokka baits.
Central Coast – Big stumpies, kingfish, and pompano are coming in hot! Chokka and prawn baits are the winning combo. Shad are still around, though the catches are slowing down — make your snood longer to increase your chances. Plus, grey sharks and some solid diamonds are popping up, especially if you’re floating your bait for the greys and going big for the diamonds!
South Coast – The bragging rights are flying high! From grey sharks to bronze bream, it’s been an absolute smash on the south coast! The action’s been amazing, so get out there and show the fish who’s boss.
Offshore:
Offshore fishing has been a wild ride, with bottom fishing keeping things steady when the gamefish go quiet, and then pure CHAOS when those drags start SCREAMING!
North Coast – From Umdloti to Sodwana, it’s been HOT! The inshore reefs are delivering MASSIVE couta and snoek, mostly on live bait. Here’s the SECRET: Down rig your live bait—one close to the bottom, one higher in the water column. Start fishing higher and work your way deeper as the day goes on. Keep those live baits tight and be READY for the BIG HITS! Bottom fishing’s been a bit slow, but there’ve still been some nice reds and daga in the mix.
Central Coast – KZN has been CRUSHING it! Charter boats are keeping their clients on FIRE with tuna and the occasional billfish that’ll get your heart PUMPING! Darker-coloured skirted lures are bringing in the speedsters, but don’t forget—Wahoo LOVE a skirted lure too, so rig up some wire or a chain gang to keep them hooked! Bottom fishing is on POINT, with slinger, soldiers, and a few rockcod coming up! PLUS, some nice geelbeck salmon are making an appearance. Squid and sardine are the baits that are doing the job!
South Coast – Aliwal Shoal and the lower coast are seeing some EPIC fishing too! Tuna, wahoo, and other gamefish are lighting up the catch reports! Purple lipped lures and high-speed skirted lures are GETTING IT DONE! Tuna have been biting at various depths, and whether you’re throwing live bait, poppers, or trolling lures—you’re gonna be in for a RIDE!
Freshwater:
News in from Jan Korrubel, The Kingfisher in PMB.
Of course as soon as we mentioned that the rains appeared to be slowing down, it came back with a vengeance. Summer is hanging on in desperation – The greater Midlands is a muddy mess after recording well over 150mm over the last 7-10 days, and over 200mm in specific areas.
The rivers are as fast and full as they are going to get … “shunting” to put it in a word. The dry fly isn’t going to cut it … just yet … but we live in hope, but we are also running out of season. So here’s hoping <fingers crossed> that the rains do eventually tap off, and we get to throw a line on some slow(er) moving water in these last 8 weeks.
Less than a handful (3 to be exact) returns from the Natal Fly Fishing Club (NFFC) anglers over the last 2 weeks from The Bushman’s and Mooi River beats … a nil return (El Blanko) for one unlucky angler who’s hopes were dashed by a storm the night before, but ventured out nonetheless … “river was high and dirty, did not fish” … even venturing further upstream and finding some super speedy water that didn’t warrant further investigation. The other of anglers did however come right, and reported “river pumping” and “If you wanted a Trout, you had to drop your fly 6 inches from the edge where bankside obstructions created small eddies and slow patches!”. Water temperature was reported at 19deg.C
This week Pietermaritzburg played host to the 19th annual Fly Fishing Film Tour (F3T), showcasing some 11 iconic fly fishing shorts from around the planet. With shows now having taken place in Johannesburg and PMB, if you missed it, you will need to head on down to Cape Town for the final two shows on South African soil.
KZN Fly Fishing Association (KZNFFA) Senior Trials take place this weekend – with the flows still pushing, there will be some challenging beats … wishing all the anglers Tight Lines.
The dams and stillwaters are brimming to overflowing, but the stillwater anglers are getting itchy feet’s, as there were a good number of returns from the NFFC anglers. Reports varied between “too hot to fish” and “thunderstorm activity curtailed the afternoon session” … but there were fish to be found inbetween the weather’s shenanigans., the best of which was a rainbow that fell into the 15-17 inch / 38-43cm bracket.
Further afield, The Underberg stillwaters have also been producing some fish. The waters are reported as being “warm”.
It’s very quiet on the side of the bass angling fraternity – word is that Albert Falls is very much on the slow, while Midmar is fishing better. The Now that the dams are overflowing properly, the Albert’s anglers are waiting for “some flow” from the overflow input from Midmar to get the water – and the fish – moving. Some carp and barbel have been reported from Alberts.
Sterkfontein Dam got back into gear recently, reports Jeremy Rochester from Escape Fly Fishing. Warm weather and water temperature is what is required for the yellowfish to become friendly, so as we head towards the tail end of the season, keep eyes on the weather! There is still some epic fishing to be had before The Fat Lady sings her last summer aria.
For the best in tackle and advice, pop into any of the seven Kingfisher stores, they are open 8am-5pm Mon-Fri, 8am-1pm on public holidays, Saturdays and Sundays.
Series 23 (can you believe it; this is Petri’s 23 series) of Hier Gaan Ons Alweer on kykNET, premieres are on from the 6th of January 2025 on Monday evenings at 17:30 on kykNet, channel 144 and there are a number of repeats during the week. The repeats are on Tuesday’s at 11:00, Wednesday’s at 10:00, Thursday’s at 11:30 & Friday’s at 14:30. Series 23 ends on the 31st of March 2025.
As most of you know, Petri and his guests cover various angling styles (fresh and salt water) in and around Southern Africa.
The KZN Angler News audio fishing report is South Africa’s first fishing podcast series that focuses on the latest fishing reports of the East Coast. This report is free and available on all major Podcast platforms including Apple Pods, Google Pods, Spotify and Deezer as well as SA’s most popular Facebook Pages.
Angler News SA – https://www.ecr.co.za/podcasts/ansa/
Go to The Kingfisher Daiwa – www.facebook.com/thekingfisherdaiwa and “Like” us on Facebook to catch reviews, videos, fishing reports, great promotions and lots more.
As always, remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel to stay up to date with all our new video releases and to brush up on your species knowledge, tactics and tips/tricks.
The KingfisherFishing – https://www.youtube.com/c/TheKingfisherFishing
Please send any info about fishing or fish caught in your area to Vinesh Soogreem – vineshs@kingfisher.co.za
