The first glimpses of summer are here but the weather needs to behave… The fish have been starting to warm up so get your gear and get out there!
Top tip. Floats. Adding floats to your trace can drastically increase your success rate. Not only do floats give the bait a more natural presentation but they also add attraction in the form of colour. Common colours that work for certain species are as follows: Orange is a fantastic colour for scratching fish and in particular bronze bream, glow in the dark works very well for kob, red and white floats work extremely well for shad (when the season is open).
Offshore:
The bigger seas have made for “interesting” days on the water. Nobody likes a wet launch in the morning so take care and don’t rush to launch. The KZN coast has seen plenty of fish so get out there and get the drags screaming.
North – The north coast has been throwing some spicy launches at the more shore break dominant launch sites. Guys always be careful and don’t launch if you have hesitations.
The north coast has been seeing a lot of snoek in the mornings. The fish have been on the deeper side with some proper size specimens being boasted. The fillets have out fished most lures with spoons performing when the bait balls show up. With regards to the spoons, make sure to use a spoon as small as possible while still having enough weight to cast. A really good spoon to use for snoek is the Kingfisher Anchovy, they are available in a variety of sizes, from 5 to 50g.
The deeper reefs have seen some good couta and tuna on live baits. Down rigged baits have been the most successful.
Central – The central coast has seen much the same as the north. The tuna have been the most consistent of the target species with most trips seeing a few hooked. Trolling lures at speed has been the most productive way to cover water but slowly drifting around the bait spots with a live bait out is the best way to target the bigger fish.
The central coast has also seen a lot of bottom fishing with kob and geelbek being the main species. Chokka and sardine have been the pick of the baits.
South – The south coast has seen a lot of bottom fish action over the last few weeks. The rockcods have been very greedy and always and they have jumped on most baits dropped down to the bottom. The tuna has been the only reliable gamefish to target down south with the rest of the bunch being hit or miss. The tuna has been taken on everything from small live baits to large skirted Konas.
Rock and Surf:
Brusher continues to top the target list and for good reason. There are still decent numbers of garrick around the river mouths.
North – Spinning along the north coast has accounted for some very good fish recently. Throwing spoons at first light and into the morning off deeper points and bays like Christmas Bay will produce kingies, snoek and some surprises. Distance is very important so make sure your tackle is balanced and your technique is good.
The north has seen the first of the summer flatfish/sharks. The beaches along the Zululand coast have seen some big raggies as well as a few honeycombs and sandies. Big fleshy baits and a throw into the deeper water is required.
Central – The central coast has been quiet, other than the basin area. This section of beach is fishable in most water conditions and does not stop producing fish. The diamonds and grey sharks have been the main species coming out but the odd sandy and honeycomb does make it on to the catch lists. The same baits as mentioned above will produce fish.
On the edible side, there have been brusher along the Bluff side, and these have drawn a lot of angling pressure.
South – The south coast has seen a spike in kob catches around the Toti to Umkomaas area. Chokka and live baits have been the best for these fish. Remember with your chokka baits that floatation and movement are very important as well as some noise from a rattle in the foam.
The rest of the south coast has seen good scratching for species like stumpies using prawn baits. There have been a lot of fish caught, with most of them between 1-5kgs. On the inedible side, there are some grumpy honeycombs hanging around the deeper points, so persevere if you are after an early season flatfish.
Freshwater:
The freshwater scene has been dominated by the mighty Natal scaly and some proper bass this past week or so.
Bass – Summer is almost here! The fish are starting to display proper summer activity with the warmer days producing good results.
The bass have been plentiful in most of the dams. The fishing has been better in the smaller venues that clear up quickly. These small dams often have a lot of plant growth and fish well with a weedless frog. You can fish these directly on braid for the best results.
The larger dams have been a bit tricky with the dirtier water making fishing seem impossible. A bass’ ability to sense is remarkable so don’t be afraid to fish in the brown water. Using a lure that has enough flash and or rattle is your best bet.
Carp – The carp fishing has been quiet. We have not received any reports over the last few weeks.
The specimen angling tends to slow down in terms of size with the number of fish caught picking up in summer. This is also true for conventional angling.
The fruity and sweet flavours are the way to go. Once again persevere and you will come out with a good result.
Trout – The Stillwaters are fishing very well, but the focus has definitely shifted towards the flowing rivers. The size of the fish has not been the same giants as in previous weeks, but the fishing has been good.
Minnow imitation streamers have been the most successful flies mentioned across the different venues. Those fishing the smaller venues have seen better results with smaller patterns. The fronts coming through have slowed fishing down a bit and might need you to scale down to worm patterns and hand-twist retrieves.
Keep an eye on the water temperatures and rather leave the fish be if the temp gets too high.
Herewith this week’s report from Jan at the Kingfisher in PMB – “While not quite the “all 4 seasons” over a weekend we reported on previously, it sure was 50:50 with extremely hot and blustery conditions to start, and then cold (some 10deg+ change from one day to the next!) and light rain conditions. If you were out and throwing a line, hope you caught the best of it … and top tip : the Norwegian Weather Gods are predicting the same again, so keep an eye on the forecast!
Again, all the mizzle did was to settle some dust for a day … and sadly get the lawn excited, adding to the weekend chore list (not my fave activity!). Back to the blistering conditions it was at the start of the week, with the rivers looking skyward looking for more of the drippy stuff. I was in the northern ‘Berg last weekend, and although I had been warned, took gear along in the hope of throwing a line for a scaly or a rainbow trout on the upper Tugela … it was in vain, and images I sent to regulars that frequent the area said that it’s the lowest they have ever seen it up there.
After initial excitement of the river season opening last month, the river anglers of the Natal Fly Fishing Club are now starting to hang back in the wait for rain … there was only a single return from the Mooi River over the past week. A couple of good fish just shy of the 12 inch / 30cm mark came to hand though, probably from the deeper runs. Water temperature wasn’t reported, but with the recent spells of heat, pretty sure that temp will be up … not a good thing for the fish, especially in the upper skinny water beats. Please handle your fish with care and get them back as quickly as possible.
It seems like Sunday is the (usual) day for fishing on the weekend, as there were only two returns from the NFFC stillwater anglers. Good news again that the NFFC stocking programme is going well, as one of the reports showed the angler getting stuck into the “stockies” in the 7-9 inch / 18-23cm and 9-11 inch / 23-28cm range, with some better fish in the 15-17 inch / 38-43cm and 17-19 inch / 43-48cm brackets in between.
Some private stillwaters produced recently : PMB lady angler Carmen Barends got stuck into a mixed bag of brown and rainbow trout at Troutbagger, a well-known Midlands venue for trout and bass.
No word on water temperature, but it is important to note as it WILL greatly assist in where, and how, you fish a body of water, stillwater especially. As we progress into the heat of summer, fish might be found cruising the shallows in the early morning after waters have cooled overnight. Daytime temps will send fish (trout especially) into the depths as they look for the cooler, oxygenated water as the surface waters get baked. A thermometer should be part of every angler’s kit.
The deathly silence of fishy tales and pics on the bass fishing socials continues … word has it that Albert Falls continues to be (very) tough at present, while Midmar is producing, the fish apparently in full spawn. But as they say : No pics, no proof … so guys, c’mon now, time for a bit of show and tell!
The scaly anglers are grinning ear-2-ear however – with river conditions as they are on the upper beats (ask me how I know), the lower sections are where the action is at present, and some cracking fish have been reported from the Umkomaas River. With plenty fish in the 20-40cm / 8-16 inch bracket that will keep one busy, it’s the reports of the lunkers that will keep one going back at the prospect of getting stuck in. The NFFC beat on the Umko did just that this weekend with three fish that topped the 21 inch / 53 cm mark, the biggest of which stretched into the 25-27 inch / 63-68 cm bracket! Now THAT is a proper scaly – Well Done and Congrats to Andre Vorster who said that it was “just the best day ever!”.
On the yellowfish front, Sterkfontein season is just around the corner, there are a few reports of anglers headed north already for what is arguably South Africa’s best sight fishing venue for cruising yellows. We look forward to reporting as the season hots up”. Thanks Jan.
Series 22 of Hier Gaan Ons Alweer on kykNET with Petri de Wet kicks off at 18:00 on Saturday the 7th October 2023 on kykNet, channel 144.
There are a number of repeats during the week. The repeats are on Sundays at 16:30, Mondays at 12:30, Tuesdays at 17:00 and Fridays at 22:00.
Series 22 runs for three months, (HGOA premiers every Saturday at 18:00) ending on the 6th January 2024.
As most of you know, Petri and his guests cover various angling styles in and around Southern Africa, fresh and saltwater.
Watch out for our very own Gilbert Foxcroft and Adriaan van der Merwe in the specimen sections, they join Petri and land some awesome carp.
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.
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. https://www.youtube.com/c/TheKingfisherFishing
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Please send any info about fishing or fish caught in your area to mike.pereira@kingfisher.co.za