Category: Sardines

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Book your sardines now!

Book your sardines now!

Sardines! Coming fast!

Offshore Africa, The Sardine specialists down in The Transkei, have already started taking bookings, for their Sardine Run experience.

Which is…jump right in with them, sharks and all!

Make no mistake, it’s a military type operation, and Rob Nettleton and Debbie Smith, partners in the show, take it very seriously. Their combined experience adds up to decades on, and under the ocean. Heaps of this time surrounded by dangerous marine animals. It is this experience that allows the totally mind-blowing trips out to sea off Port St. Johns to happen. Coupled with reliable, fast boats, and well-trained skippers…the exhilarating ride out through the surf and up and down the awe inspiring Wild Coast, will never be forgotten.

Right from the word go, the adrenalin starts pumping. Loading up, and prepping the powerful RIBs growl into life, as the winter induced offshore wind pumps down the stupendously beautiful Umzimvubu Valley. The next thing your heart is in your mouth, as you face the most hardcore ride of your life – through the surf at the Port St. Johns river mouth! And out to sea!

Flying with Offshore
Flying with Offshore – Rob Nettleton at the helm

The sardines are easily spotted by the birds they attract. Seagulls, Gannets, Albatross, Skuas, Terns…they are all highly aware of the bounty at large. And where the sardines are, that’s where the dolphins, whales, sharks, fish…are.

Jump right in!

Yip! The next thing you are surrounded my marine wildlife. The clear blue waters reveal all. The entire food chain! Staying out of the food chain is not that difficult really, sticking together provides the single biggest advantage – confidence. Just float there calmly and observe the carefully controlled mayhem, as predators who normally are averse to each other, start to work as a Springbok team. Those poor sardines!

Enjoy this gallery from the 2015 Sardine Run…

The sardines take a hammering from all kinds of marine wild life

There is more amazing imagery and video at this link…

http://offshoreportstjohns.com/?product=the-sardine-run-6-nights-5-days

 

Enjoy this cool video montage assembled from some of Rob and Debbies best footage, shot in and around Port St. Johns.

To get in touch with Offshore Africa…

http://offshoreportstjohns.com

https://web.facebook.com/offshoreafricaportstjohns/

 

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Offshore Africa’s new sardine spotter plane

Sardine spotter "Tzulu"Dowsett will be piloting this awesome machine as he searches the seas for sardines and their predators

Offshore Africa’s new sardine spotter plane

Take a look at Offshore Africa’s new sardine spotter plane!

Yep, introducing “Tzulu” Dowsett as the pilot of the cool gyrocopter that he will be flying to locate shoals of sardines this year. Starting in about two months time, pilot shoals of sardines will have started making their way north, as the exodus starts. It’s estimated that almost 10% of the entire sardine population breaks from the main pack down in the southern oceans to form the greatest shoal on earth.

Having this facility will help put clients of Offshore Africa down in Port St. Johns, right on the button. Port St. Johns is the epi-centre of the sardine run each year – Offshore have been taking punters out and into the middle of the action for many seasons now – the longest operating dive facility there.

Rob Nettleton and Debbie Smith, the operators of Offshore Africa and Diving with Sharks, have been hard at work underwater for decades. Their local experience combined with excellent service reputation and happy customers, have made them first choice for anything sardine and radical!

Situated in the Transkei, on The Wild Coast – Offshore have many other things to do in Port St Johns, when you make it down there. The team there have a huge cruiser on the Umzimvubu River, aswell as an air boat – unbelievably one of only two in the country. Fun, fun, fun!

Enjoy this gallery from 2015 sardine run…it gives a great idea of what goes on down there!

The sardines take a hammering from all kinds of marine wild life
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Fish-eye view – the MYDO Luck Shot dropshot rig

Protea Reef Tuna are suckers for the MYDO Luck Shot Mini

Fish eye view – the MYDO Luck Shot dropshot rig

Dropshot fishing with a MYDO Luck Shot is so entertaining!

And it’s not all about luck!

This is how much technology a fish has to deal with, when faced with a MYDO Luck Shot dropshot head. The hydrodynamic design features an articulated join that allows for complete freedom of movement for whichever plastic bait you choose to use.

The results are unpredictable side to side and up and down swerves that mimic the plight and flight of an injured, fleeing baitfish. Predator fish are excitable at the sight of anything out of the ordinary, movement – and colour. Use the colour Luck Shot that suits the water and light conditions.

And change your retrieve for completely different results.

  • Crank it up hard onto the surface and it comes up blasting like a plug, and when it goes back underwater, it drags a beautiful and shiny bubble down with it, that becomes a smoke trail of air and chaos as it dissipates. Repeat.
  • Troll or wind evenly and it swims life-like and calm, like an unwary baitfish.
  • Do the twitch and variate for violent swerves and panicky actions
  • Drag on the bottom and excavate clouds of sand – just what the kob are keen on…

To get in on the MYDO action, click on over to https://thesardine.co.za/mydo/ and check for a tackle store near you. We are in 90 shops so far! If there isn’t one (unfortunately there are many tackle stores who refuse to stock our South African home grown and hand made lures for whatever reason), then just order online, and we will deliver to you sharply.

Click here for the shop and more MYDO information.

Many thanks

Sean

+27 79 3269671

umzimkulu@gmail.com

JP's Dorado on Mydo Luck Shot Mini #2 dropshot fishing
JP Bartholomew’s Dorado on Mydo Luck Shot Mini #2
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A brace of couta at Hibberdene by the Posthumous brothers

The Posthumous brothers with their ultimate brace of couta. Ask these brothers about ways to catch couta!

Flashback to 17 June 2007: A brace of couta at Hibberdene by the Posthumous brothers

A brace of couta at Hibberdene by the Posthumous brothers: The sardines had come at last.

Trucks, cars, bikes, planes…were buzzing up and down the lower south coast of KZN Natal like bees. Every man and his dog was on the chase. The scent of sardine hung in the air and it was making people a bit crazy.

The Posthumous brothers with their ultimate brace of couta. Ask these brothers about ways to catch couta!
The Posthumous brothers with their ultimate brace of couta. Ask these brothers about ways to catch couta!

But not the Posthumous brothers Louis and Dawdie.

They were completely focused on their umpteenth sardine run. But they weren’t after sardines. They had their big sticks ready to fly with perfectly maintained and serviced ancient Penn reels. These are two of the best anglers I have ever met. Total dedication. Perfect equipment. From bay to bay the two brothers hunted. Headland to headland. Lookout to lookout.

Eventually the trail led further up the coast to Hibberdene, and the Posthumous brothers were onto it. They parked their car in the old carpark, and scrambled. Guns loaded. Hibberdene is a great spot for an ambush and as the two brothers got to a place in the rocks they could cast from. A bait ball of sardines boiled on the backline.

These guys cast. Huge casts, and perfectly aimed every time. Time after time. They were fishing their own couta spoons. The same ones they use so successfully off the ski-boat. Moulded at home. Hand tied with wire. Double everything. Heavy duty. Huge hooks. For heavy duty fish.

Oh yes, and very shiny! Using secret methods to get the metal glass smooth and ultra-reflective.

The two brothers let fly at the same time. The twin white metal missiles went straight for the early morning sun and the sardines boiling the surface up. The pair of spoons landed on the glassy ocean and bounced, and dropped into the clear backline water.

They both hooked up. Simultaneously!

Two big and angry crocodile couta!

The fish screamed off together threatening to burn each other off.

For 40 minutes they each fought their quiet battles.

Both winning – they pulled their twin fish up the beach!

A brace of couta at Hibberdene by the Posthumous brothers.

(BTW, I sure I hope I got this story all exactly right, it was a long time ago!)

Check out our YouTube Channel right HERE.

The Sardine News

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Fishing Sunwich Port with Sunwich Superette

Fishing Sunwich Port with Sunwich Superette

Fishing Sunwich Port puts you in the game for all kinds of angling action. Gamefish love the bay and are often caught right from the rocks or beach with lures or baits. The shad love the inside gulleys and channels and put on a great show. Karanteen and blacktail frequent the nooks and crannies afforded by the jagged and random reef throughout the bay. And the sardines! Yep, they also pull into Sunwich every time they make the journey this way…

Sardines at Sunwich Port, on the lower south coast of KZN Natall
Sardines at Sunwich Port, on the lower south coast of KZN Natal (c) Orcas

Sunwich Supperette, across the road from the beach, have been growing their fishing department year by year, and by now can be pronounced a fully functional and well equipped fishing store.

Headed by Ismail Jama and well supported by his family, the store has grown from strength to strength over the past few years. Delicious takeaways and Indian cuisine are on offer too! Sunwich Superette is a favourite convenience for locals from Umzumbe to Umtentweni.

AND…Sunwich Superette stocks The Mydo range of lures. Baitswimmers and couta traces. Mydo SS Spoons. And the super fun Luck Shot range of dropshot heads and rigs. Ismail also carries his own brand of lures, at incredible prices.

More to follow…

 

 

 

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