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The Protea Reef tuna revisited

Protea Reef Tuna are suckers for the MYDO Luck Shot Mini

The Protea Reef tuna revisited

As we cruised up to the north pinnacle of the famous Protea Reef tuna concentration, the surface boiled and I threw with the wind. It was my first cast so I checked the drag and started cranking, hauling my Mydo Luck Shot to the surface where I could see the commotion it was causing. Bubbles were trailing behind it, the Lure was changing direction as it’s designed to and it was throwing up a plug like splash to round the performance off.

I hardly had time to appreciate it all happening right in front of me so when I saw the Skipjack boil and swallow my lures, I just about flipped out.

Short work of the Skipjack, which was a few kilos overweight to be live bait. Then all the rods went away, and my dad and I, the only crew today, had our hands full of crossed lines, angry little skipjack, and a few yellowfin tuna about football size.

So we had some fresh fish to smoke – our mission this early Friday morning…but we chanced it one more time, all the while hearing on the radio that the sharks were wild down south. A rod started pulling a bit – the big reels had their drags tightened up – so I grabbed the big stick and started pulling. No chance. A shark came in right under the propellors and grabbed our poor baby yellowfin tuna. It screamed a hundred metres of line off in excitement so we gave chase, hoping for as much line back, and maybe a chance at getting our lure back.

After winding all the line back in against the shark, suddenly it felt like it had just let go. But I still had some pressure, which turned out to be a badly chopped but intact yellowfin.

That was the end for us. Once those sharks find out your strategy for the day, they latch on and just milk the situation for every tuna, skipjack, bonito or lure they can.

I grew up on this reef, and an absence of a season or two gave me some perspective on the situation at Protea.

There are still the sharks. They still own the place.

There are some huge charter boats burning up and down. There seems more and more each year. Feeding the sharks. One guy had lost five lures.

A few locals and even one commercial chap was dragging artificials for tuna, using bottom sticks with Scarborough reels.

The bonito were about. Baby tuna. And Skipjack. On the pinnacles as usual.

But mainly I saw plastic. All shapes and sizes and colours. Big bags. Small bags. Pieces. Tiny pieces. Yoghurt containers. Plastic foil. The works. We had to dodge a few plastic obstacles a few times to avoid hooking the stuff.

And then, as we throttled up to head for home – two really big loggerhead turtles popped up to say goodbye. We chatted and told them not to eat the plastic. They kind of said yeah, yeah, and swam back below the waves.

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Bazaruto marlin biting: Captain Duarte Rato checking in…

Bazaruto marlin biting: Captain Duarte Rato checking in…

It’s always an absolute delight to open my inbox and see something, anything from Captain Duarte Rato. Duarte has developed a bad reputation among the marlin of our waters, between Bazaruto, Inhaca, Vamizi, Madeira, Cape Verde – he has been sticking tags into big shiny shoulders for many a year – he must have pin pricked thousands of billfish…!

Hope all good. I know it is off season and not much normally going on this side but just want to tell you that the fishing as been absolutely ballistic of the Bazaruto Archipelago the last couple of months. I have not been out much but the boys on Vamizi have been hammering it. I had a client from CT come for 3 days late April and they caught and released something ridiculous like 70 odd game fish over that time. There as been good numbers of cuda, queen mackerel and kingfish but it is the Yellowfin tuna that is running the show and they are all over the place. With so much game fish and bait fish (skipjack and frigate bonito) it is no wonder that the Marlin seem to have forgotten to look at the calendar this year and they boys have been catching a good number of Blacks between 100 and 300 pounds (but up to 600) in the last month and a half! Considering they are not really targeting them and that we are in May…it is insane! But hey, I did not hear anyone complain! A few sailies showing as well and as we go into winter they should arrive in good numbers…..

PS: On my way to Cape Verde on Monday for 5 weeks. They are having an insane Marlin season there…I mean mind blowing! The top boat has released something like 170 odd Blue Marlin in the first 30 days of fishing….that is an average of 6 Blues a day!!!

BRING IT ON!!!!!”

Thank you Duarte, I feel like a pinhead in your presence!

 

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The all new MYDO Luck Shot Mini

The all new MYDO Luck Shot Mini, thoroughly tested and proven to increase strikes…

MYDO-Luck-Shot-Mini_edited-

 Features:

  • hydrodynamic articulated design features create radical swimming motion. It flails, ducks, dives, wobbles, splashes…and works on any retrieve. Change retrieve often for best results.

  • it’s weedless design gets you dragging in and out of bottom structure.

  • weighing in at an ounce or two (two sizes), you can flick these lures way out there with great accuracy, even into the howling wind.

  • fits any paddletail, trick bait, worm…and is rigged strong with a 5/0 single hook for the saltwater guys and a 4/0 for the bassers and other freshwater targets. The #2 has 7/0 Mustad O’Shaugnessy singles for power pulling (Luck Shot tested to 50kg’s drag!)

  • target literally all fish…just cast, drop, jig…troll…drift…just make sure one is always in the water…whatever you are doing, the MYDO Luck Shot Mini will be doing it’s job of mimicking injured and struggling fish.

  • perfect eyes for predator fish to home in on.

  • made in all the MYDO Bellyshine and Candy colours.

Trade enquiries to umzimkulu@gmail.com

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