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Inhaca Island with The Frenzy

Salad fish on Inhaca Island

Inhaca Island with The Frenzy

The Frenzy is back in the show, appearing here in a quick video on Inhaca Island…

The Sardine team have been marooned on Inhaca Island off Maputo in Southern Mozambique for 8 full days now. As you can see, The Frenzy is making the most of it all, whilst the rest of the team are fixing outboards!

We have been able to get out to sea a few times…Santa Maria is like a fairyland, and The Lighthouse is a deserted Tofo like headland with waves, and wrecks, and reef, and abundant sea life would you believe it. Crystal clear Mozambican current water laps up against the eastern seaboard and over a myriad of rich shallow reefs. Baitfish are everywhere and we even saw a shark on one trip!

Inhaca Island is certainly an overlooked jewel here right out front and in full view of Maputo. Cars can’t get here (although there is a small fleet of cars that live here), so the only traffic is by boat, and comes in and out of the little small boat mooring bay in front of the broken Pestana hotel effort on the West shore. Very limited traffic.

More Inhaca action to follow…

 

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Spearfishing weekly by Jason Heyne

The sea conditions have been average this week with good viz being hard to find. Hectic north south current has made the diving hard but current brings game fish. The sea today (Friday) was perfect with a light south west blowing and small swell in most places. Saturday a light west blows throughout the day with the swell running at 1.3m. Sunday morning the south west picks up and so does the swell to 1.8m later in the day. So Saturday is the best day for a dive. The return Garrick run has really come on and some good fish should be shot in tomorrows DUC Garrick comp. The weigh in is at 4pm at DUC if you would like to come have a look. Good luck to all competitor’s. Brusher are ever present in the shallows and wahoo are out deeper. As always dive safe and straight spears.

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Jason Heyne checks in from under the water

Jason wrote the post on Friday…we have been a bit busy, but better late than never!

"The diving conditions have been well below average this week. Buster North east turned the sea into a washing machine. The sea started to settle today (Friday) with a light south west blowing. Saturday is a pearler of a day with zero to 5knt wind all day switching from offshore to onshore midday and the swell running at 1.4m. Sunday the swell picks up to 1.7m with a moderate south westerly blowing in the morning and dropping off during the day.
Middle south coast was looking like it was cleaning up today.
Daga salmon, brusher and Garrick should be around in numbers. The trick will be trying to find water clean enough to see them! I’m leaning towards Saturday as the best bet for a dive. As always dive safe and straight spears!"

Thank you Jason

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The perfect storm in Maputo last night

Storm in Maputo

The perfect storm in Maputo last night

The weather and swell forecasters never had a clue. Forecasts for the Maputo zone were favourable all week. There were signs of some menace as the forecasters jumpbled weather windows around, but nothing really stuck out. Not even on the synoptics. All the elements in place – surprise being the main one, for the perfect storm in Maputo last night.

And we were on our way back from Pomene, 290 Nm north, when we drove straight into it!

Luckily our vessel, the MSC Albatross, was built for this shit, and we were able to ride into Inhaca with salt soaked grace. Right in the middle of the 70 knots recorded in Maputo. The twin 330hp Volvo Pentas and 15 metres of semi displacement purity sailed in just fine, at 25 knots, we were flying along with the east wind.

We survived just fine, we are always ready for this type of phenomenen, but the statistics are not good for some…

Check the gallery, with the bad news following it…

Then we have a video too…

 

And then the very bad news…a few boats were lost too, including this work boat operating in the channel. One person is presumed missing so far. The boat capsized in the wild seas, spilled it’s crew and washed up on Ave da Marginal across the front of Maputo. Others were rescued but the toll will only be tallied as the day goes on.

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More to follow…

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Cracking good fishing in the Umzimkulu today

Cracking good fishing in the Umzimkulu. Cor Coetzee, a few minutes ago...
Cracking good fishing in the Umzimkulu. Cor Coetzee, a few minutes ago…

It must one of really good fishing days on the Almanac as reports of great catches come flying in from all over. In fact, it’s been a really fishy week, a 1000lb marlin in Mauritius (about the 5th or 6th by sport anglers this year), Captain Duarte Rato on Bazaruto released a 900 and has been catching liquorice all sorts out there, JP Bartholomew got that nice bone fish…

And this morning too, Brian Lange was chucking for rock salmon in the Umzimkulu nice and early… bagging a slick kob on a MYDO Luck Shot #1.

How to start your day...
How to start your day…

To go fish in the Umzimkulu for a weekend or day, browse the options in our Tours and Excursion category. Or contact me on umzimkulu@gmail.com

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