Exciting news, it’s The Kingfisher’s birthday and to celebrate we are offering a massive discount of 25% on all products (this does however exclude Shimano rods and reels, they are less 15% and bait is nett).  The Sale starts on Thursday the 29th  June and runs to Sunday the 2nd July 2023, there will be daily lucky draws, giveaways etc. This birthday sale will be across all The Kingfisher branches and Tackle Centre. We will be open on Sunday the 2nd until 1pm, so get in early.

 

Just like that we are over the halfway mark for 2023…

The sardines are still around in big numbers, but the rains will slow down the action for a few days.

Top tip. Lockdown has taught many people and businesses the benefit of online platforms. This is also apparent in the world of fishing. Whether you are fishing for carp, bass, marlin or sharks, there is a wealth of knowledge on the net. Look at the forums on the many websites. These can be valuable areas to not only connect with people with similar interests but also a place to learn from people that have been in the field. Although it will never replace the personal touch of visiting the Kingfisher, our online content will help when you can’t get to the shop. Make sure you are part of our online world by following us on Facebook and Instagram and subscribing to our YouTube channel. These platforms will not only keep you up to date with our competitions and product releases but are also loaded with tips and tricks from the experts. Also, it’s free so you have nothing to lose…

Offshore:

The offshore has been up and down. The seas have been choppy but those that have launched have landed some good fish.

North The north coast has produced some fantastic fish with big tuna and some fat snoek being landed. The snoek have been around the Tongaat long beach area. The backline is a fantastic stretch to troll for both garrick and snoek. The snoek have been preferably picking a fillet bait while the garrick like a live shad or mackerel.

The deeper reefs have produced some quality reef fish along with decent tuna on the drift. A live mozzie or mackerel under a balloon will quickly draw the attention of a passing gamefish.

Central The Durban area has been focussed on the snoek at Blue Lagoon and the bottom fish on the deeper marks.

The snoek have also been a bit smaller than the earlier season fish but they are still fun to catch and make a delicious meal. Much like the north, a redeye sardine fillet trolled behind the backline produces a bite on most mornings. The Strike Pro Magic Minnow has earned its reputation and deserves a spot in every snoek tackle box.

The bottom fish have been keeping the KPs back-winding. Some very decent cracker have been landed over the last week or so and respectfully, many have been released (well done to these anglers). The rest of the catches have been made up of rockcod (white-edged, catface, yellow belly) and the usual red fish. The slinger and soldiers have been of a very impressive size, seems lockdown may have done them good. While fishing on the bottom, try fishing a trap stick with a livey. This is best done using a balloon to suspend the live bait a meter or two below the surface. This is a great way to target gamefish while getting your bottoms.

South The bottom fishing on the south coast has been great. Dageraad, scotsman, crackers, slinger, daga, geelbek, rockcod and soldiers have all been regular culprits on the catch reports. Those new to bottom fishing will be happy to know that there are ready-made traces available for targeting all these species at your nearest Kingfisher branch. If you are looking to multi-target different species, then you need to use a trace that incorporates hooks ranging from 3/0 to 9/0. I would highly recommend circle hooks. Using a 3/0 on the top snoot, a 6/0 in the middle and a 9/0 on the bottom snoot will allow you to target everything that is likely to visit the inshore or offshore reefs.

The game fishermen have managed some good tuna out deep but the wahoo on Aliwal have continued to play hard to get. Only a handful have been landed and many sad stories have been told in the past few weeks.

Rock and Surf:

Most of the shore-based anglers have focussed on the sardine action. There have been good nets pulled with some decent fish landed, let’s hope the recent rain doesn’t destroy the action.

North The north coast has seen a couple of garrick for the guys fishing live bait. Targeting the areas of slightly deeper water close to a river mouth are your best bet for these fantastic gamefish. The tackle does not need to be too heavy as a garrick is one of the cleanest fighters you will ever hook. The north coast has also seen some very good shad coming out. This bodes well for the upcoming shad competition and we look forward to seeing your giant shad getting weighed in!

On the inedible front, there have been a couple of diamonds around, but the main fish caught have been blackfins and grey sharks. Mackerel has been the bait of choice for all of these. Targeting both of the sharks mentioned sometimes necessitates a decent cast so make sure you have the correct braid and sinker weight for your rod to maximise the distance of your bait.

Central The beachfront has seen some good fishing since its opening. Most of the central zone fishermen have made the trip down south to follow the sardines instead.

The Blue Lagoon “pier” has seen the most productive fishing over the past couple of weeks. The stumpies have been feeding well for most of the day and night. Prawn, chokka and sardine heads have been the best baits. The shad fishing has been slow, but the persistent anglers have done well. The lure guys have seen less success but with some of the sardine action moving past, the fishing should pick up!

Harbour The harbour has seen a lot of action recently. The center bank has been fairly busy on the weekends so make sure you get to your spots early to avoid disappointment. Also please respect the other anglers and anchor a fair distance from them.

The grunter, skates and smaller sharks have been keeping the bait guys honest with some big specimens coming to the boat side. The lure anglers have also managed some good fish with kingies making up the bulk of the catches but the occasional oxeye tarpon and springer creating some screams of excitement.

South The sardine hotspots have all lived up to their reputation this year. Pennington, Rocky Bay, Pumula to name a few have all seen a lot of action. The gamefish action has not been amazing on the whole, but guys have managed good catches of kingies, garrick, shad and some snoek (with a prodigal son or three).

The main focus has been on the giant sharks. This is 80lb braid + territory and is not for the faint hearted! The drone anglers have seen the most hookups but with the sheer number of fish in the water, swim ffs are a constant problem no matter the thickness of your line. Trace wise, the 12/0 Mustad Demon Circle heavy hook has been the hook of choice for price and strength. This connected to 250lb+ carbon-coated steel makes for a more than heavy enough setup. If they bite through 250lb, they will bite through anything.

Freshwater:

The freshwater fishing has been good for those braving the cold mornings. The bass require a bit more focus, but the trout and carp are feeding rather well.

Bass The colder weather has meant slower; more finesse approaches have done better than ripping a spinnerbait through an area. Dropshot fishing with a straight-tail worm has seen the most success from the reports coming in. Colour of the worms has not been of the utmost importance, but the more natural browns and greens have seen more productive fishing. Target the deeper areas adjacent to structure or shallow flats. The bass will move between the shallows and depths to find the warmer water.

The smaller jerkbaits have also seen results but they have to be able to be fished slowly and therefore need to be of the suspending type.

Carp The carp fishing has been on fire for the last couple of weeks. The fruity flavours continue to produce fantastic results with bank anglers having to empty the keepnet before the end of the session.

The specimen anglers have been reporting slower catches with long periods between catching bigger fish. The small fish on the other hand have been a bit of a nuisance. Using bigger baits will stop the smaller fish from picking up the bait.

The conventional anglers on the other hand have been having a ball with the numbers. Albert Falls and Inanda are both fishing very well.

Trout The midlands have been cold! This has not put the trout off; on the other hand, the fishing has been rather good. Most of the trips up to the many stillwaters in trout country have yielded success for even the newcomers to the art of fly fishing.

Some of the venues have still reported good catches on orange-coloured flies so make sure you do have something in orange to use if nothing is working. The stockies have been feeding fairly heavily on bulkier flies with a black woolly bugger continuing to come out tops. The flexibility of this pattern in terms of retrieves is phenomenal! The larger fish have been a bit more selective with more realistic baitfish patterns producing some good results.

News from our Jan, The Kingfisher in PMB – “As a (former) Marine Biologist, I do miss the sight and smell of The Big Pond every so often – especially with the sardine run on the go at present – but boy I was happy to be nowhere near the beach this week when the storm ripped down the coast.  There was so much flotsam in Durban Harbour, that it looked like you could walk across it!  While the weather is still rather mild up here in The Midlands, the naysayers have it that the “best” of winter is still to come … but in the meantime, the waters of The Midlands are still throwing up some rather good fishing on all fronts.

After partaking in two events, I was happy just to have a day on a Natal Fly Fishers Club water with mates / fellow members under no obligation or pressure to catch fish in a “competition environment”!  Having just experimented with a new material, I had a fresh dragonfly pattern hot off the vice, and I set it off to swim without a care whether it caught fish or not (not really, but you get the drift … I didn’t HAVE to catch fish).  I am happy to report that the fish took a liking to it, and after a few teaser “bumps”, lucked into a solid 52cm / 20 inch thick lady Rainbow who gave me quite a tussle in the 11 degree water.  There were certainly other submarine’s around, as all three of us on the water experienced something more akin to a underwater freight train, and donated flies in the process.  A great day out however, with eight fish landed, the biggest fish coming in at 58cm / 23 inches.

While we were catching fish on larger patterns, a neighboring NFFC water was also giving up some subs on smaller midge-type patterns – the fish coming to hand there also in the late 50cm / 19 inch range, and one cracking the 60cm / 23 inch mark.

Last weekend saw Leg2 of the TOPS Corporate Challenge taking place on the waters around Nottingham Road. With no frosty starts encountered over the weekend, the balmy weather had the fish out to play and some 285 trout came to hand, of which 74 measured 50cm / 19 inches and more, and 6 fish TOP’ed the 60cm / 23 inch mark.  The largest fish stretched the tape to 65cm / 25 inches, raising the bar from the 64cm fish from Leg1.  Leg3 takes place in a month’s time, so no doubt the fish will be well rested and happy to play some more.

The bass anglers are once again playing their cards close to their chest, with nothing to be seen on the Socials … but if you keep your ears open and pay attention, some news always seems to slip by the gatekeepers … we have it on good report, that while the action seems to have slowed right down, there have been fish in the 2 / 3 / 4 and even 5kg mark coming to hand from Albert Falls.  No recent reports from Midmar.

As mentioned last week, winter bass fishing is generally considered to be slow and tough, so there is LOTS of discussion on the socials around baits and lures.  A recent Angler News SA poll for the “Top 5 Best Winter Bass Baits” had suspended jerk bait and dropshot take the Top votes, followed by lipless crank, football jigs, spinner baits and Ned Rig.

If haven’t already seen or heard – and if not, just where have you been hiding? – the annual Kingfisher Birthday Sale is currently in full swing, and with 25% off everything (Shimano at less 15% and Bait is Nett), best you pop into your local Kingfisher for the best in tackle and advice!”. Thanks Jan.

Please remember to leave the areas that you fish in a better condition than when you got there. Take a few moments to pick up some litter and take it to the nearest bin. Tight lines and screaming reels.

 

 

 

 

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 Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.

For all your angling needs, (freshwater or saltwater) pop in and see The Kingfisher’s new store at the Tiffany’s Shopping Centre in Salt Rock or give them a shout on 032 307 0041.

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. https://ansapodcast.buzzsprout.com

Please send any info about fishing or fish caught in your area to mike.pereira@kingfisher.co.za

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Categories: KZN Fishing Reports