Sardine Report 8 June 2021: Sardines in Durban and Scratching gulleys between shoals
Sardine Report 8 June 2021
Sardine Report 8 June 2021: Sardines in Durban and Scratching gulleys between shoals
Except for the news sent in by Adam Kamdar, with video, of sardine netters doing their thing this early morning, things have been characteristically quiet. The pilot shoals have kind of run out. Been eaten mostly. Some netted.
And now the wait is on.
In this sardine report however, we have a little advice on how to survive the times in between sardine shoals.
Scratching!
Light sticks. Tiny traces. Small baits. BIG FUN! Our guests here for the 2021 Sardine Run, are regular Shaun Begg, and his mate Arno Davies. Both of these guys can fish already so all I am doing is showing them where to go. So far they have each racked up a bunch of species. Including some noteworthy Blacktail.
Scratching in the gulleys and the inside can really help your mental health when the sea is on it’s head like it’s been for the last long while. And the sardines are between stops. Just remember not to ever have your back to the waves. And beware of slippery rocks!
Deep Sea
Many fish are around waiting for the big shoals of sardines, now that they’ve had a taste. And if you really work hard, some really good fishing is out there.
You can see more of this kind of action at https://thesardine.co.za. Where we also have an interactive map logging all verified sardine sightings for this sardine run in 2021.
Welcome to the Sardine Report 7 June 2021. It’s been chaos! With certain carparks and beaches getting gridlocked. As more and more people respond to questionable mainstream media live updates.
Sardine Fever is far more contagious with cellphones and the internet to help spread the word!
The best approach to sardines really is to spot shoals further offshore. And then try to predict where they will hit the beach as they move north. And set up your ambush in advance. And tell no one when you get it right!
Following the crowd will just get you into a traffic jam.
Pumula yesterday
Pumula sticks right out off the coastline and the bay between the launch site, and Sharks Bay to the north, is always a hotspot during the sardine run. Yesterday was no different with sharks in the shorebreak and all.
Quite a few nets went in throughout the day and many crates hit the beach.
This gallery was shot yesterday morning (Sunday) at Stebel Rocks, across the bay looking south to the Pumula chaos. Before the crowds were called in.
Access at Pumula is extremely limited but please don’t park like a paluka! Non-sardine cars don’t give a hell and come flying around that corner at the speed limit which is 100kmh?!
Please be careful and considerate out there!
Record of Sightings for Sardine Run 2021
These are the confirmed sightings we have logged so far. The steady migration northwards can clearly be seen in this data. The shoals hitting the northern section of the KZN south coast today could be from the same bunch we have been following through the Transkei recently.
The big shoals recorded swimming by off Oslo Beach and Port Shepstone this morning, are the ones to be watching.
11 May 2021
Many sardines, some together in a long stripe, passed here. Three separate reports confirmed this early sighting. Birds, gamefish and cetaceans were present.
5 May 2021
Scattered shoals of confirmed sardines all over the place. Extremely cold water reported as low as 11 degrees could explain this early sighting.
19 May 2021
This sighting at Brazen Head could be of the same shoal that came through Morgans Bay near East London, a week or so ago.
April Sighting
Riaan Smith dived with a fairly large shoal of sardines, in 11 degrees water, off Coffee Bay. This was at the end of April already.
22 May 2021
[08:04, 22/05/2021] Jason Heyne: Saw a what I suspect is a big shoal off Sinangwana (Mpande – close to brazen head and PSJ) this morning. Dolphins and birds were smashing it hard! Large area… Probably around 500-1000m area… Wish I had a boat and crew to go jump in! From Nils Von Delft down there right now!
28 May 2021
Sporadic but continuous sardine action out deeper as reported by Quentin in Mdumbi. Cold water is coming finally. 21 degrees at Port Edward today bodes well.
31 May 2021 – 8:00am
Mr. Ant Nel has just called me from the beach at Port Edward. Sardine boats are on the beach! Mark Snyman got a small net in and as of today, the first three crates of sardines are official. Thank you Ant! Lance Dunn. Master Watermen, for the images.
31 May 2021 – 10:00am
Deep off Ramsgate there were plenty boats out enjoying the action as the first shoals to hit KZN swim right into the waiting ambush. Dolphins, sharks and sardines!
31 May 2021 – 2:00pm
Margate Pier is the epi-centre of the action right now as the early shoals of sardines (pilot shoals) move north at high speed. Being chased by so many predators like gamefish, dolphins and sharks. Garrick are playing the game nicely and now we just hope anglers also do by observing bag limits and size restrictions. Please. The water temperature has dropped below 20 degrees courtesy these beasterly easterly cyclonic conditions.
1 June 2021 – 2:00pm
The ASFN team have found sardines off the back of Stebel Rocks, in Umzumbe. How these little guys survived last nights storm we’ll just have to guess. More at https://thesardine.co.za
3 June 2021
We got a video in of a wild ocean with plenty activity on the backline to slightly deeper. The waves and wind were too wild for anyone to go near the buzz. But it certainly was sardines. And a lot of them!
4 June 2021 – 10:30am
Margate Beach scores again! Action spilling out onto neighbouring Manaba Beach. Sardines confirmed on the beach!
6 June 2021 – 11:00am
Two nets taken at Pumula. Sardines are spread out so don’t follow the crowd. They could pop up anywhere at the moment so keep your eyes on the water!
7 June 2021 – 9:00am
Shoal spotted 300m off Umkomaas travelling north at high speed. Being chased by all kinds of marine wildlife. These guys could well be in Durban by nightfall today! Unless they all get eaten before then.
7 June 2021 – 9:00am
A HUGE shoal of sardines, about a kilometre long, is easily seen off Oslo Beach. And from way inland even. It is a really dense and long shoal that is surrounded by many medium to small pockets.
Sardine Report 7 June 2021
You can access our Sardine Map 2021 by clicking right HERE!
The week ahead
Shaun Begg with a Souther KZN Blacktail – Sardine Report 7 June 2021
The weather seems to be backing off. But only after today’s backup big wind, to yesterday’s sand blast. That east yesterday was so blowing right through us as we persevered for a few scratches. And it’s gonna blow the same again today.
The water was still terribly warm as of yesterday. This also needs to change. The optimum water temperature for sardines is about 19 degrees. And below.
The water is also still really discoloured and we are counting on the usually strong north south current to take the brown water away.
This could take quite a few days so we just gonna have to be patient and wait it out. Today’s big east will help move that water along, and reduce the overall water temperature.
The next spring tides are upon us and hopefully this will clear the estuaries too. There is a lot of hoping going on but it’s all we can do for now.
Shad are literally everywhere. Everywhere where the sardines were before, the shad will be. But it’s not been easy. They are around for a short while and then disappear off again.
Arno Davies scratching the gulleys this morning
Blacktail and karanteen anglers are the only ones enjoying these crazy weather conditions. They can get down amongst the rocks and gulleys and escape the relentless winds.
We did see one guys yesterday, at Anerley, hook into what could only be a big rockcod or something. It gave this giuy hell as it swam all ober the reef, eventually cutting the line on the sharp rocks.
Sharks n things
Sharks of all kinds are plentiful right now. The usual zambezi and bronze whaler contingent can be seen all over the place. At Pumula yesterday they put on an excellent show for the massive crowd. And even a 4m great while was caught by the KZNSB.
The humpback whales made their first appearances last week already. And yesterday a huge pod of high-speed common dolphins came crashing past the backline. Soon all kinds of cetaceans will be here.
Gannets and terns make up the forward ranks of the airborne attack. That lovely sound of a few terns working a shoal of baitfish is mesmerising.
Sardine, surf and dive report 3 June 2021: well ok, sometimes it makes sense to chuck all the surfing, fishing and diving news together into one video. It’s a bit long, but you can always fast forward through the sections that you are not into so much.
BTW
It turns out that 73% of you guys are fishermen. Surfers are 30 %. And divers a mere 20%! There are obviously overlaps as in many surfers also fish and dive.
Please Like and Subscribe to stay in touch this sardine season 2021.
Sardine, surf and dive report 3 June 2021
Synopsis for SKZN
The bad weather has won the battle for 3 days and nights solid. Thunder and lightning. Sheet rain. All the rivers are down. Brown water extends to the horizon in some places. The forecasts don’t paint any prettier a story.
But…
It’s definitely not all doom and gloom. The storm was concentrated mainly over southern Kwazulu Natal. And for the most part, behaved itself for the first few days by staying real close to the coast. It only rained hard inland after the first day or two of the coastal deluge.
The waves are actually quite inviting too. Durban is cooking, some other more hidden spots will be too. JBay seems to have waves every day, according to the Brucifire Surf Report. There is heaps of east in the swell today though so I wouldn’t go boating out there. Or diving! Unless you get those x-ray vision goggles. And a rebreather.
Anything can happen
The ocean recovers fast this time of the year. Real fast. But I am sure you are also tired of checking the weather forecasts by now. They have been depressingly accurate since they got their heads around the cut-off low assault that came in so fast.
But it’s got to stop!
Surely there can’t be that much rain in the sky?
Gallery
Mainly from Brucifire and friends in sunny wavy JBay?! Many taken from the office at JBay SurfView.
Thanks to Jason Heyne and Brucifire for the collaboration. That even features the voice of Darrell Hattingh as he opines about the conditions. Adam Kamdar also piped in with the surfing contribution.
There were reports of sardines washing up at Mgababa today. But the sea is too wild for even those hell men sardine netters?!
This currently performing cut-off low-pressure smashing KZN with wet weather, thunder and lightning – arrived with NO warning! Again! These things are lethal in that they are fast and unpredictable.
And, they really pack a punch.
Cut-off low systems
In 1990 we had a cut-off low fire up in the middle of an epic Sunday afternoon’s fishing session on the salmon reefs off Port Shepstone. A plume of spray came down the Umzimkulu Valley being charged on by a phenomenal offshore wind that blew umbrellas and deck chairs right off the beach and out to sea. It came in a literal flash and we were caught out there in a melee of zero visibility, crashing electric storm and gale force offshore wind.
The thing lasted about 30 minutes before it took off for Cape Town sinking FOUR ships along the way!
That was a mean one.
A cut-off low is when a little low-pressure anti-cyclone, is hemmed in at each side, by the continent of Africa, and two or more high pressure systems being forced in at us by a cyclonic gathering up north.
Or by Google…
A Cut–Off Low (COL) is a low pressure system that develops south of South Africa, stemming from the main westerly trough systems of cold air. As the COL develops, it deepens into a defined closed system that extends to the surface and which also becomes displaced equator-ward of the main westerly flow .
There are many more in-depth descriptions on the web that you can dive into.
Today
Today’s cut-off low-pressure system also arrived with zero warning. Although the system had been spotted lurking 300kms out a day or so ago. It moved in with lightning speed and this is what it does.
The two weather radar maps going ballistic at left and middle, are of the electric storm activity loitering just offshore. Right up and down the KZN coastline. The shot at right is the prediction as it moves into the continent and makes landfall.
Danger
This is very dangerous weather. Many casualties and deaths are recorded each year, because of these tempests. These are the conditions that cause the dreaded flash floods that KZN has long been infamous for. Rivers swell. Drainage can’t cope.
It keeps raining hard.
And eventually the naturally occurring and human built flood systems cannot cope anymore.
And the water takes over.
Indoors
If you have the choice, today is the day you stay inside!
The sardines love Port Edward. It’s one of their favourite spots along their journey into some big fish’s mouth. Or a net.
Mark Snyman has been at the sardines for quite some time now and is dialled in enough to be proclaimed the first netter of the season to come back with a few crates of bona fide sardines.
On da beach!
Matt Defillipi got in on the action just afterwards and beached with 140 crates! Also at Port Edward.
Video report
Port Edward
A huge thanks to Mr. Ant Nel for calling in today’s action. Backed up by Lance Dunn. And the Master Watermen team. A few more boats gave it a go but missed As of a short while ago the beach has not slowed with traffic as more and more people arrive.
Sardines boats launching at Port Edward 31 May 2021
Ramsgate
Once again the Master Watermen network came through for us with this awesome little piece of action from Ramsgate just now.
R102
If you got time on your hands and would like to feel the sensation that is the annual sardine fever, then jump on the old R102 coast road and enjoy a beautiful drive down the coast. With your binoculars. Fishing rods. Or a bucket!
It’s never a guarantee, but it’s never not a guarantee either. You could be surprised anytime anywhere around any point or in any bay or cove. The sardines are still very spread out and often a little pilot shoals like these ones, will mistakenly meander too close to the beach, and become trapped by a tide or some swell.
This is what you are looking for!
Conditions coming this week
The waves have been plentiful lately. Surfers are having some fun, unlike the fishermen. Conditions have been tough. And there is a big cyclone swell predicted to come out of the north this week, and into the weekend.
Plus some heavy winds!
And although these conditions are tough to deal with, the sardines count on them!
As they do the cold water. Which, as soon as it dropped below 21, produced the sardines again this year!
Check back for more sardine action at https://thesardine.co.za and if you subscribe to our YouTube channel too, you won’t miss out on one sardine this year.
