*Photos* Hooked on the Durban Ski Boat Festival

If you are a fisherman, 4am wake ups on the weekend are fun and important events. For non fishermen, those things don’t really exist. 

 

Well, judging by this weekend’s Durban Ski Boat annual fishing competition a fair share of South Africans are fishermen…

 

Well over 400 fishermen and women descended upon the beautiful Durban beachfront this weekend for the DSBF – the highlight of the angling calendar on the East Coast. 

 

The reason? Well, aside from two days of incredible fishing along the best coastline in SA – there is that main prize. A boat. Not just any boat – a Seacat 520 worth over R400 000. Not too shabby at all. All anglers had to do was catch the biggest ‘cuda – or barracuda. 

 

I spent quite a bit of time at the Ski Boat club this weekend watching the many faces come and go. Young kids mesmerised by all manners of fish, Dorado, Bonnies and other beautiful specimens. The smell of cooked boerewors wafting through the club from morning till night – only challenged by the live music under the marquee tent.

 

 

 

 

 

(Above: All-day fishing: scenes from the festival) 

 

I lost count at around the three digit area when counting the many boats – but what got to me was the unique, funny and sometimes downright odd names of the vessels! From obscure fishing terms, to the names of what I assume to be loved ones – to quirky sayings only a fisherman in the North Pole would understand – the boats lined the coast, waiting for the noisy tractors to tuck them away for the night.

 

I didn’t get to see all the entries – but many, many quality fish were brought in to the weighing station – Dorado at over nine kgs , some Bonnies at around the seven kg mark. 

 

Occasionally prizes were given to spectators who correctly guessed the weight of the anglers’ hauls. I was off by around 300 grams in the category I tried my luck at. A ‘Cuda at 9.8 kgs and I said 9.5 – not bad for a land lubber like me.

 

 

 

(Above: The weigh-in)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Above: Night scenes - Photos courtesy Angela Randall) 

 

At night, the rodeo bull played its part in entertaining guests – not me, I promise… And the live band had everyone dancing and celebrating under perfect Durban skies. 

 

Many of the fishermen used their boat containers as makeshift accommodation – substituting their comfortable beds at home for blow up mattresses on cold concrete floors, their family tales for fishing stories of “the one that got away” again…

 

A young chap by the name of Patrick won this year’s competition – and I am told that he is barely old enough to remember the massive catch from the late 90s off shore somewhere down south, or was it north? I can’t recall – but the silver haired gentleman who told me was quite certain that Patrick, who caught a massive 28 kg Cuda, was a young lad who got lucky. Very lucky. I mean, it’s not often you catch a fish worth R400 000!

 

It was my first experience at the DSBF annual fishing competition and mark my words, it won’t be my last! Perhaps one day I will be taking part – but where am I going to find a boat to fish off? There is this guy Patrick who I believe has come into luck recently...

 

 

(Above and below photos courtesy Angela Randall)

 

 

- Jason McCall