Good pier fishing in Durban

Kosi Bay/Maphelane/Vidal - Many good size fish are being landed on slide Chokka baits, most of which are Kingfish and Sand Sharks. Kingfish of all species have been prolific in these areas, mainly taking larger baits. Vidal has been king of the Three Spot Pompano over the last week, with dozens being landed by anybody willing to throw a small enough bait. Although these fish have been a bit on the small side, there have been a good few bigger fish surprising some anglers. Along with the Wave Garrick have been some very respectable Black Tip or Yellowfin Kingies. These fish travel in huge shoals in search of food, which includes squid, small bait fish and crustaceans, basically anything that moves. Most anglers will not struggle to get a few bites when these fish are in the area, but remember that these are predatory fish and like fast moving lures more than most baits.

Richards Bay - Strong winds and rains have led to dirty and off coloured water, with more weed in the water than most anglers can compete with. Few fish have been caught, but the few that were landed were taken on smelly baits such as Red eye and other fishy baits. The bay itself has fired on all cylinders throughout the week and weekend, mainly with small edibles and some impressive Grunter caught on cracker. There have been a lot of anglers catching Springer too on bait as well as drop shot and small top water lures such as the Strike Pros, Gobi Poppers and Taisticks.

Salt Rock/Ballito - Most of the deep water points have been producing fish such as Snoek and Kingies on spoon and drop shot, early in the mornings and a surprising amount of fish being landed late into the evening. After these game fish have basked in the sun (as we so often see the Snoek doing) the whole day, they become active and full of energy later in the day. This is why in most cases there is a good afternoon or evening session to be had after a hot sunny day. A good few edibles have been landed off the rocky points such as Dave’s Rock, mainly big Blacktail and Stumpies.

Durban - This stretch has been very quiet recently with the exception of the pier anglers having some excellent angling on the weekend. There are many flatfish in the deeper water beyond the piers and those who have been targeting these fish are really having some fun. Species include Brown Rays, Diamonds, Honeycombs, Sand Sharks and some very big Ribbontails. From our beaches, mainly North banks and South of Blue Lagoon, anglers over the last week have been rewarded with catches of edibles and some nice Yellowfin Kingies on Maria Duplex; this is a sinking crank bait.

Toti/Winkel - Small Shad early in the mornings have been coming out mainly on bait. Anglers using spoons for these fish have been relatively unsuccessful over the last week and weekend. A few anglers have been lucky enough to hook into some Spinner Sharks on slide baits as well as on bigger throw baits. Winkle saw some Brown Skate action on Wednesday but the rest of the week was not so productive. These fish were caught on Chokka and Red eye baits. In these areas where anglers have been known to catch smaller Shark species like Hammerheads and Grey Sharks, it is always advisable to add a small length of 40-60lb bite trace (Fishmate nylon coated wire) to your standard flatfish trace. This will avoid sharks biting your hooks off and turning your fishing trip into an expensive outing.

Scottburgh- A few Pompano were seen landed, mainly on Sea lice bait. There are not a lot of Pompano around, but the fish being landed are of decent size. Umdoni Point has come back to life, with a few Skates as well as Grey Sharks.

Lower South Coast – A bit quiet at the moment, but Trafalgar has seen very good catches of Bronze Bream of late, with many of the fish tipping the scales at over 3kg. As far as Port St John's goes, the Skimmington area has seen a few big Shad as well as juvenile Garrick. The points are still providing bigger inedible species especially on larger slide baits such as Bonnies and Chokka.

(File Photo:Gallo Images)

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