Richards Bay grunter success
Kosi Bay/Mapelane - The non-edible anglers have been kept well entertained by a good few Black Fin Sharks on bigger slide baits and swim baits. Some anglers have been treated to fish over 100kgs! The anglers targeting GT's on live bait have been hugely successful in many areas but Banga Nek in particular has been firing on all cylinders with two Giant Trevally (Caranx Ignobilis) over 30kgs being landed last week. This is surely the spot to visit if GTs are on the target list!
Cape Vidal - This spot has proven popular with the drop-shot anglers as usual, providing many fishermen with hours of fun with Three Spot Pompano and Blue Fin Kingfish. These species have been caught mainly on McArthy 3 and 4" Minnows in a variety of colours, fished on a 1/8oz- 1/2oz jig head, depending on the rod that is being used. Generally the lighter the jig head the better as the action of the minnow improves drastically with less weight to sink it. At the Cape Vidal ledges, there have been a lot of hook-ups with Raggies but very few being landed as these Sharks become close to impossible to land over the rocks with light tackle and thin leader. In cases such as these, the best thing to do would be to use a main line no less than a high abrasion resistant line such as Giant Abrasion in a diameter no less than 0,50mm. Leader line less than 1mm will cut like cotton against sharp rocks under tension, therefore Tapered leaders or 1mm minimum will be on the menu.
Richards Bay - Richards Bay Harbour itself has produced more than its fair share of good sized Grunter recently, caught on a variety of baits including Sand Prawn, Mud Prawn, Chokka and Ginger Shrimp. The incoming tide seems to be favourable of late, with most fish being caught during the first two hours of the incoming water. Off the beach, good catches of Sand Sharks have being reported throughout the day and into the night. Most of these fish have been caught on big Chokka throw baits or slide baits.
Mtunzini - This venue has been the talk of the town over the last weeks fishing, having seen more big Diamond Skates being landed than anywhere else on our coastline. These big Diamond Skates will readily feed on a fleshy bloody bait such as small Bonito head or cutlet, Mackerel head, Shad flapper, Shad cutlet, Red Eye baits and even bigger Chokka baits. Fishing in that area on Thursday, Lloyd Pereira landed a GT of just over 35kgs and his dad Mike, landed a Black fin Shark of around 50kg’s, both of these fished were released safely.
Salt Rock - Salt Rock has produced a fair number of Grey Sharks on throw baits when the sea conditions permit for decent angling, with the odd Brown Ray and Honeycomb being landed on smaller baits that were originally intended for edible fish such as Stumpnose, Black tail and Bronze Bream, which have also been on the bite. For the youngsters starting off with the whole surf spinning scene, there have been big shoals of Torpedo Scad present in the Ballito/ Sheffield area that will feed on smaller bait fish such as Anchovy and Sprat. Small spoons are the secret to hooking into a good few of these light tackle fish.
Umhlanga - A spot that has consistently been producing a variety of flat fish and decent edibles at the Lighthouse and last week was no exception. The usual suspects being Honeycombs, Brown Rays and Sandies have been present, with a lot of Snapper Salmon and Shad pulling through with the colder currents we have been experiencing. At Eastmore in the late afternoons there have been an impressive amount of Pompano being landed on smaller Chokka baits and Sea lice, mostly fished on a small hook such as a Mustad Big Gun 2/0 on straight nylon trace.
Durban - All of the Local Piers have been hammered with smaller Grunter recently, with a few baits being picked up by the more powerful, unexpected Rays. Needless to say, most of these fish have not been landed as the tackle being used is not up to the test. Good to see a few of the local spinning gurus targeting Snoek off the piers again and best of all is that they are getting some decent Snoek out. Kingies, Snoek and the odd Salmon are not uncommon for this style of angling and is good fun for anybody. Best is to plan your fishing around the high tide as there is little water to fish on the low tides. Our beaches saw almost four days of North Easterly winds last week and this was taken advantage of by many anglers trying to get in on the action at Ushaka and Vetches. Funny enough, yet another Bow Mouth Sand Shark was landed in the area, and many other big flat fish up to the 80kg’s. Great fishing to be had not even five minutes from home! For the kids, a small rod and reel such as a Daiwa Megaforce 9ft rod, paired with a Daiwa Crossfire 3000 reel will be the perfect outfit to use for the amount of Snapper Salmon being landed on these beaches on small Red Eye baits and Sardine baits.
Toti/Umkomaas - The pattern has not changed much at all, with good numbers of Sandies, Browns, Greys and the odd Honeycomb being landed on anything bloody and fleshy. If one can get their hands on Shad cutlets or Red Eye then the game is on. Umkomaas has been producing many Grunter on Sea lice and Bay Squid if one is lucky enough to get their hands on a few!
Port Shepstone/ Transkei - The fun continues with the number of Blue Rays, particularly in the Munster Area, a few Hound Sharks and many an Eel Tail Barbel. Further down the Coast the anglers using bigger baits have got themselves into some time consuming fights with some excellent specimen of Hammerhead Sharks in the evenings.
(File Photo:Gallo Images)
- Kingfisher
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