*Photo* Tuna spooks KZN angler
A fisherman in Durban was given quite a scare by a yellowfin tuna earlier this week.
Cameron Johnston hooked the 27kg tuna while fishing off a kayak near the reef at Vetchies Beach. The fish took a live maasbanker.
The tuna proceeded to tow Johnston across the harbour entrance and close to the path of some big container ships. The angler had to dodge these vessels, while still keeping some of his focus on the very lively tuna.
Johnston had some help negotiating his sticky situation.
"Fortunately two other kayakers were kind enough to stick with me during the fight. They assisted me by keeping an eye out for ships. I had to paddle like hell and they told me once I was clear of danger," Johnston said.
Johnston heard about a smaller tuna caught near Vetchies recently and decided to try his luck by using his live maasbanker at the spot. The rest is history.
Our photograph shows Johnston and the tuna that gave him such a scare this week. It took him 40 minutes to land the fish. You can see North Pier in the background.
The area off Vetchies has seen a fair bit of activity lately. Shad have been biting close to the reef and have attracted larger predators. Marlin were spotted last week and one of them ended up beaching close to uShaka Marine World.
(Photo:Claire Foster)
- Andre Bloem
Twitter - @SportswaveAndre @ECRSportswave