It takes many, many barrel rides, to finally get one this good, on video.
Sard, well done, fantastic ride…and see you in the morning!
Other than Sard’s fantastic ride today at an undisclosed faraway location, practically every surf spot on the south coast fired today. And it looks to be that way for the next two weeks solid!
Productivity week!
And another billfish in the boat…the last word…for now.
I hope this very well made video documentation of a 600lb fish makes you laugh as much as I did. Take note of the chair/ladder thing flying across the deck and into the wireman’s head. However, there are very many clips featuring billfish jumping into the boat – on YouTube, and not all of them have happy endings. Big fish take extra consideration.
Keep the fish behind the boat, hand on the throttle and all your concentration on the fish!
For more crazy video material on this subject…click here.
The story as it leads up to the video…
We do these boat trips on our 28ft retired commercial cat with roof and chairs – as often as possible, and have a long time working relationship some of the backpacker establishments around the southern KZN. They had called double agent Ryan Poisson up, to fetch a willing bunch of worldly young representatives, all amped for the seafood feast and afternoon cruise on the Umzimkulu River, in Port Shepstone. No-one guessed at a Zambezi Shark taken on Rapala.
And so we found ourselves strumming along with two Strike Pro Rapala imitation lures (we have run out of MYDO Luck Shots but there is a new batch in the oven), on two rods borrowed off the Niteshift, rigged for Snoek (Queen Mackeral) with long wire traces (luckily, as it turns out). Conversation always turns to sharks on the boat eventually, and today was no different with the Swedes showing lots of interest in the stories we always start telling at this stage. After years and years of speculation and random but few sightings, it was long though that the sharks were long gone from their old haunt of the 20th century when locals could shoot at marauding bull sharks (Zambezi) and Hammerheads from off of the old combined railway/road bridge that crossed at modern day Spiller’s Wharf.
Then local guide on the river, Marius Awcamp got his beautiful little baby Zambezi fishing off the wharf at Spiller’s, in March this year. Click here for that story… This was the first confirmed shark catch in the river for many, many years. Others had been hooked and just bit through the trace each time, or snapped the line after a long fight.
But after an hour or so of trolling, food was ready and with no strikes but plenty chirps from the United Nations of Fishing Experts, food got collected from the delicious Bela’s Mozambican Restaurant, right on the water at Spillers Wharf, and we headed up to the deep hole underneath Royston’s Hall. Touching up the mud bank we could cast right into the hole and work it’s edges, in the hope of an angry Rock Salmon, determined Kob or stupid Flagtail or just something. Conversation was fairly centred on our fishing abilities and then shark stories…and we were being offered all sorts of advice and even rewards if a fish got caught, least of all a shark. But it was a fantastic afternoon and the sighting of a huge Oxe-Eye Tarpon, a metre long, tailwalking right in front of us, that kept the lures going. We were motivated, Elvis Wabody (Mozambique) and I combined to throw 100 times until eventually – THUD – something substantial, turning out to be the first Zambezi I have caught on a lure, struck.
A fantastic fight, and the fish soon showed itself to be a healthy little Bull Shark pup, and submitted for a clean and entertaining release…
Sharks RULE!
It was a beautiful afternoon and with our crew of 6 tourists from the Mantis and Moon Backpackers in Umzumbe, were in high spirits as we trolled two little Strike Pro Rapala imitations through the rising and jumping fish on the Umzimkulu River.
At one stage, a huge tarpon, about a metre in length tailwalked across the bow of the boat. After getting a few chases and a missed strike, we stopped off at the big hole up near Roystons Hall, and started to cast the lures around the place. The water was clean but the river still flowing quite strong. After a hundred casts, and much egging on from the travellers, the green and yellow Strike Pro got hit. A strong fish that fought well, doggedly staying out of sight until at the last minute it broke the surface and showed itself to be a beautiful little Zambesi Shark!
Luckily the boat was full of camera wielding touro’s and we got a heap of great pics and a video clip (coming soon), before releasing it with a kiss, very alive and well, back into the Umzimkulu River. Since this is the second similair sized Zambezi caught in the river this year, with many more of the same shape and size being encountered, we can only deduce that a big momma might still be cruising up and down, after having given birth in the estuary. Maybe there are a few!
To fish with us on the Umzimkulu River, email Sean on umzimkulu@gmail.com or call +27 79 326 9671
Brian Moulang, up from Port Elizabeth, booked a charter with us on the Niteshift, for some Yellow fin Tuna action. It was a long hard day, but eventually a tuna showed itself after the entire day and many, many miles. Starting on the backline catching livebait, we saw Lawrence Wursnip and John Collinson show off two over 30kg tuna, taken just as we got there…and so the struggle ensued. It even took a trip out to Protea Reef, where we found the usual, big sharks, and big current!
So back to the backline. Luckily the bottomfish reefs kept us entertained while we waited for that elusive tuna strike…when that live maasbanker went away it sounded like U2 cranking up!
Enjoy the video…
