getting HOOKED

IN SPITE of bad weather and rough seas, fishing hasn’t been all that bad, with plenty of action to report along the KZN coast by rock and surf anglers.

NORTH COAST:

Kosi Bay: Bonefish was the major species to talk of here. The water seems to be heating up nicely now, so anglers should look out for the summer species.

Cape Vidal: Garrick were landed here on blacktail and pinkie live baits. Smaller baits thrown into the shallows were successful with wave garrick. These fish can weigh anything up to 2kg, so be prepared for a rod-bender.

Richards Bay: With the sea being unpleasant, most anglers converged on North Pier. Quite a few milk sharks, spinner sharks, blue rays and grey sharks were accounted for here.

Ballito: There were plenty of shad about teasing anglers, who had to return them to the sea because of the shad ban that’s now in place.

The baits that survived the shad attack attracted grey sharks and smaller brown rays.

DURBAN BEACHES:

u-Mhlanga: The high seas in the area put paid to any aspirations of targeting the big game fish.

Anglers had more luck scratching for blacktails and stumpies around the protected rocks.

Red prawn baits on Chinu size 4 hooks produced the best results here. These light hooks allow for movement in the water and hence more bites.

Blue Lagoon: The odd stumpie and grunter were caught here. The shad anglers have been keeping away from this area, and it’s good to see that shad accidentally caught were released back into the water.

Durban Piers: Lots of grunter and sole were caught off the piers. Cracker shrimp and chokka baits did the trick here. Due to rough water, the spinning tackle, which has less drag in the water, worked best.

Addington: Grey sharks and brown rays were caught on cutlet baits with long casts into deeper waters.

DURBAN HARBOUR:

The harbour was a hive of activity last week and there were some excellent catches too. Anglers on boats around the Bat Centre landed some nice-size grunter on cracker shrimp during the evenings and a variety of species during the day.

There were also kingies around, which took McCarthy Paddle Tails and top water Strike Pro Gobi Poppers. The area around the yacht mole produced lots of kingfish.

SOUTH COAST:

The Bluff: There were plenty of karranteen and blacktails that kept the boys on school holidays happy. Prawn and chokka baits worked best for the kids, while their dads tried for kingies and kob with a measure of success.

e-Manzimtoti: As Murphy’s Law would have it, as soon as the shad ban season kicked in, this area was inundated with the species. Many anglers trying for kob and rock cod landed decentsize shad.

Remember that most shad at this time of year have roes ready to be released, so handle them with care when releasing back into the water.

e-Mkhomazi: Grunter were plentiful around the river mouth. They were caught on cracker and crayfish baits. However, sardine and chokka also scooped quite a few catches. Smaller kob were present in the area.

Scottburgh: The area in front of the rocks was most fruitful for anglers. A few large kob (up to 15kg) were caught to the right on the rocks.

Smaller garrick were nabbed on plugs and McCarthy 7” Minnows. Bloody baits at night accounted for blue and brown rays.

Port Shepstone: There were reports of kob caught in the Sandspit area on baits, as well as Rattlers and dropshot. Garrick were caught on Paddle Tails and plugs.

However, there has been a noticeable drop in catches since the start of the closed season for shad. Kob and garrick were caught sporadically along the lower South Coast.

Send any info about fishing, fish caught or competitions in your area to mike.pereira@kingfisher.co.za

Until next week... TIGHTLINES!