Tag: river

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The Greenspots are back!

Aldo with his first greenspot kingfish

The Greenspots are back!

The Greenspots are back! Well, I ain’t exactly sure of where they go to when they are not here, but they are definitely back. In the Umzimkulu River estuary. And the other few surviving estuary systems not destroyed by erosion and siltation.

The wet season, that turns our estuaries to brown, then orange – chases these prized gamefish away. As the rains erode the sand and rock that carries that orange coloured dye with it, visibility is reduced to zero. Not ideal for these high-speed hunters. These guys NEVER slow down. They also don’t really do fresh water although you will find them very far up any healthy estuary.

They hunt in packs. And mercilessly attack artificials. It’s not uncommon for two or three or even four greenspots to whack your lure, in a row. Or simultaneously. All of this greenspot kingfish attack behaviour has been thoroughly documented in video and can be viewed on our YouTube Channel by clicking right HERE.

Double header greenspots

The day before chaos unleashed itself on this land, we were out fishing for rock salmon. On the Umzimkulu River. And hoping for a kingfish. Greenspot or otherwise – we were amped! And we were well rewarded for our enthusiasm. The first guests we had on this champagne weather Sunday the 11th of July, were Stephen and Nicky. They had booked an anniversary fishing cruise!

Within five or ten casts, Stephen was bending on what turned out to be the very first greenspot kingfish of this 2021 estuary gamefish season. Nice work Stephen! But even a blind chicken can catch a fish with that lure – the Dirty Prawn Black Mamba or something. Dave Phillips, the proprietor of the Dirty Prawn lure company, made this one especially for these trees and the fish that haunt them.

The second fish was on my second trip for the day with Louis Khan and family, all the way down from Kokstad. And they brought plenty of enthusiasm with them which always turns into luck. Aldo got into a proper greenspot! And it gave him a proper fight on his lightish tackle. With the whole crew cheering him on. Including Chelsea dog who has been demonstrating some extreme levels of testosterone and adrenalin lately.

She has really missed the greenspots!

The greenspots are back!
The greenspots are back!
This is the iind of smile the greenspots dish out gleefully
The greenspots oof the Umzimkulu put a huge smil on Stephen's mug

Let’s gooooooooo!

Yeah I know it’s hard going with these all-night vigils and permanent high-alert levels. But if you feel like getting some time out on the water and in the wild, chasing greenspots -then please buzz me urgently!

The water is crystal clear today and we do not have ONE guest!

You can buy the Dirty Prawn Black Mamba (not it’s real name), on the Dirty Prawn website right here. But even better, you get TWO Dirty Prawn hand-tied and locally made buckshot lures, when you buy a MYDO Estuary Pack. It comes with detailed instructions on how to use each South African made lures that are in the box. Including poppers, trollers, spoons, dropshots and more.

MYDO Estuary Pack

Louis and Aldo each ordered one!

WhatsApp +27 79 326 0671 or email umzimkulu@gmail.com.

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A long KZN south coast fishing weekend at the Umzimkulu Marina

Spinning sticks at the ready as Gizmo patrols for anything that moves

A long KZN south coast fishing weekend at the Umzimkulu Marina

These long weekends are just great and this one was filled with enthusiastic anglers from all over the globe. It started on Friday early morning with a 5kg kob taken off The Block on a paddletail. This set the tone for the long fishing weekend to come, and soon the Sandspit was lined with anglers. Who stayed all weekend!

Back up the river, at the Umzimkulu Estuary, Steve from England was over the moon with his pair of sharp-toothed catfish and a perch. Mark and crew were stoked with their perch, grunter and a kingfish.

But the bottom fishing team on the Niteshift had most of the fun with a big musselcracker, a bunch of bright orange cardinal snapper, and tales of huge yellowtail busting them up time after time. Took and entire day though, as the mid morning low tide kept them out there.

Matt Wainwright brought his highly maneuvrable little RIB down for the weekend, and in two sessions had to deal with some serious easterly surf, a feisty hammerhead shark and a couple of yellowfin tuna!

Captain Matt Wainwright scanning for tuna off Port Shepstone over the weekend
Captain Matt Wainwright scanning for tuna off Port Shepstone over the weekend

Overall the ocean seems to be coming alive all over the place after all the rain and brown water.

The only thing out of place, was the lack of mackerel in the usual spots, but we did find a few red eye sardines finally.

Spinning sticks at the ready as Gizmo patrols for anything that moves

Check out http://umzimkulu.co.za for some great KZN south coast fishing options.

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The Umzimkulu River this morning

The Umzimkulu River

The Umzimkulu River this morning

Down on the Umzimkulu River nice and early this morning…the rainy weather has moved along…and the river is flowing nicely.

The water may have been a bit too discoloured for my lures, but it certainly looked like the stuff grunted and snottie salmon love to bite in.

The wind is up again, so we will wait for the incoming tide to take our guests out for a fish in the river later. The incoming tide brings back the clear saltwater the kingfish and rockies like to hunt in.

Come and join us down here on the lower south coast of KZN Natal, to fish the rivers and estuaries, and the many rocky headlands that help get your bait right out deep. It’s a windy, but fishy time of the year around here. Many fish use our estuaries when the rains come pouring down, dragging nutrients and muck down into the ocean.

Aside from human pollution, the water that goes orange-brown in our rivers each year, is actually quite clean. The colouration comes from a pigment found way up in the catchment. It’s the same stuff that gave the Orange River it’s name!

BUT, I would not swim in it. The sharks we have seen as of late have been huge and plentiful – more over the last two years than ever before.

The Umzimkulu RiverOtter countryEarly morning on the Umzimkulu River

Click on over to http://umzimkulu.co.za to get in touch.

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Trout fishing in Lydenburg

Trout fishing in Lydenberg

Small stream trout fishing in Lydenburg (Mpumulanga, South Africa) is an exciting winter prospect. River caught trout are known to be far more voracious and cunning than their bigger dam raised counterparts. River trout are free range hunters that patrol the shallow flowing waters using their camouflage and stealth – to ambush prey.

Waking up early, very early – coffee and rusks to get you on the go. The sun – nowhere, but first light helps you make your way carefully, down to the river. Rushing waters and waking birds guiding you all the way.

Sneaking up to the river bank, ever aware, you imagine you can see the trout you are after, swimming in the clear current, just downstream. Stripping out some line, you carefully approach, your camo gear helping you stay hidden. Quiet steps. And you cast. A small, gentle, but accurate cast  – you only need a few metres most times. Your 2 or 3 weight fly rod, with floating line, and a short five foot or so fluorocarbon leader, is a cinch to operate. Your neat little Red-eye Damsel fly – deployed for the ambush. Mimicking a Dragon Fly Nymph.

Encouraging your offer to drift towards your prey, you start to twitch it as you retrieve your line against the flow of the lightening stream. As the fly reaches the small pool you thought you saw the fish in…

Bang! An explosion in the water right in front of you and your rod tip is violently jerked downstream and you set the hook! The sun is rising, the birds are cheering, and the fish are biting.

Dreams are coming true!

This is the time of the year, for this type of trout fishing action.

Trout fishing in Lydenburg…at Highland Run Fly-fishing Estate

In the Mpumalanga Drakensberg, 17 kilometres out of Lydenburg, is Highland Run Fly-fishing Estate. Tucked away tightly up into the Drakensberg mountains. With the trout filled Spekboom River flowing right through it. 5.1 Kilometres of pristine, crystal clear trout stream.

The nature-centric development of three lodges, on a grand piece of mountain range, available via shared ownership, is great opportunity, to realise stories like the above. It includes shared ownership of the land around the houses – so you are also contributing to the conservation of the area, by investing. And then reap the rewards of ownership in a unique and worthwhile project like Highland Run, by Dream Resorts, in Bryanston, Johannesburg.

Click on over to http://highlandrun.co.za to learn more about the project.

“You need only move in the direction of your fantasies, to experience them…” – Frenchie Fredericks circa 1970’s

Highland Run Trout Stream - trout fishing in Lydenburg
Highland Run Trout Stream – trout fishing in Lydenburg

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Zambezi Shark on Rapala in the Umzimkulu

Zambezi Shark on Rapala in the Umzimkulu

A Zambezi Shark freshly caught and released in the Umzimkulu River
A Zambezi Shark freshly caught and released in the Umzimkulu River

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

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