Shad biting at Umhlanga
We have been told of good shad fishing at both Amanzimtoti and Umhlanga over the past week. We have also heard reports of good kob fishing at Port Shepstone.
North
Kosi Bay has been relatively quiet and has produced a few edibles and smaller sharks. Edibles to be expected include stumpies, grunter and three-spot pompano. The odd speckled snapper has been landed off the rocks on chokka throw baits. There have been some good catches of blacktip sharks around Banga Nek on big dead baits and slide baits. Reports suggest that the Cape Vidal area and surroundings have been producing plenty of flatfish. Most of these fish have been caught on medium sized throw baits such as mackerel head or chokka baits. Remember your length of 80lb coated bite trace and strong hooks such as Mustad's Big Gun 6/0 or 8/0 as there is always a possibility of a toothy critter picking up your offering. There have been a few raggies and diamonds in the area as well, so be prepared with an outfit to handle a substantial fish. The Hlobane area has been on par with Cape Vidal in terms of the non-edibles. These fish have been a lot bigger than previously and seem to be more abundant. Anglers who have been sliding baits have managed a few pulls as well as the anglers using grinder set-ups. The grinder set-ups are allowing for an easier cast, more direct hook set, less drag in the current thanks to the braid and not to mention the excellent casting which allows the angler to cast a small to medium sized bait the same distance if not further than anglers sliding baits. Be sure to check out Daiwa's brand new BG range of coffee grinders, perfect for this style of angling. Zinkwazi has had a fair amount of action with the likes of grey sharks and blue rays. Shad have beaten most fish to the bigger fleshy baits and a decent number of larger specimens have been landed - including a fine specimen of 5.96kg. The odd diamond ray has been landed on shad head off the beach section at Ballito. Shad have been plentiful and the size has definitely increased. There is also a massive increase in the amount of sandsharks in the Ballito area, some up to 50kg.
Central
Umhlanga lighthouse has been fishing extremely well over the last week, and despite the strong winds, has produced plenty of good size shad. Blue Lagoon locals have been stocking up on shad as the bite steadily increases throughout the month. Garrick have been sighted chasing shad and a few have also been hooked. Time for those live shad slide baits again. There have been good catches of blue rays and grey sharks off the rocks and the beach to the right of the point. Grey sharks have been landed throughout the Durban stretch, off the piers and beaches. These have been targeted with grinder outfits and 50lb braid. When targeting these fish, there is always the possibility of hooking into a much larger fish where the problem is stopping the fish before it swims into the shark nets and cuts the line. This is why a reel with a strong drag such as the Daiwa BG 8000 is used along with 40lb/50lb J Braid. This combo has more than enough stopping power and can be used for anything from shad to honeycombs. Along with the grey sharks off Durban, there have been good catches of blue rays, grunter, stumpies and also the odd kob. Shad have been coming out on the high tide on the Bluff, with more success being had on bait than spoon. There have been sightings of smaller kingies in the shallows, committing only to smaller live baits.
South
Shad are on the loose at Toti and so are the anglers. Crowded fishing conditions have meant plenty of catches of shad and a few garrick too. The lack of shad in the Warner Beach area has meant anglers have had to transport their own live bait to the beach in order to fish for garrick. There have been a number of garrick around. Shad, small yellowfin kingies and hundreds of juvenile grunter have been landed in the Umkomaas river mouth section. There have also been a few snapper salmon in the evenings for the anglers using light tackle. Scottburgh Point has seen blue rays, grey sharks and the odd edible such as lantern fish landed in dribs and drabs off the point. Up and down weather patterns may provide for uneasy fishing in the week to come. Nice catches of shad and also some bigger kob were seen at Port Shepstone over the weekend and throughout the week and first light has been best for the shad. Better size bronze bream and zebras have been caught along the Hibberdene coast recently. These fish can often be found swimming towards the angler once hooked and it is difficult to set the hook once this happens, so and is often advised to use a Mustad Demon fine wire circle hook in a 2/0 or 3/0 size for the angler struggling to hook into the fish, whereas the Mustad Chinu is the preferred hook for the general bait used for these fish. Orange Rocks has produced excellent catches over the last week and particularly on the weekend. Garrick, shad, kob and good stone bream were landed regularly. At Port St John's, most of the deep water points have been active with greys, raggies and the odd hammerhead shark. Plenty of edible fish have been landed around the river mouth section.
(File Photo: Gallo Images)
Twitter - @kingfisherdaiwa @SportswaveAndre
Kosi Bay has been relatively quiet and has produced a few edibles and smaller sharks. Edibles to be expected include stumpies, grunter and three-spot pompano. The odd speckled snapper has been landed off the rocks on chokka throw baits. There have been some good catches of blacktip sharks around Banga Nek on big dead baits and slide baits. Reports suggest that the Cape Vidal area and surroundings have been producing plenty of flatfish. Most of these fish have been caught on medium sized throw baits such as mackerel head or chokka baits. Remember your length of 80lb coated bite trace and strong hooks such as Mustad's Big Gun 6/0 or 8/0 as there is always a possibility of a toothy critter picking up your offering. There have been a few raggies and diamonds in the area as well, so be prepared with an outfit to handle a substantial fish. The Hlobane area has been on par with Cape Vidal in terms of the non-edibles. These fish have been a lot bigger than previously and seem to be more abundant. Anglers who have been sliding baits have managed a few pulls as well as the anglers using grinder set-ups. The grinder set-ups are allowing for an easier cast, more direct hook set, less drag in the current thanks to the braid and not to mention the excellent casting which allows the angler to cast a small to medium sized bait the same distance if not further than anglers sliding baits. Be sure to check out Daiwa's brand new BG range of coffee grinders, perfect for this style of angling. Zinkwazi has had a fair amount of action with the likes of grey sharks and blue rays. Shad have beaten most fish to the bigger fleshy baits and a decent number of larger specimens have been landed - including a fine specimen of 5.96kg. The odd diamond ray has been landed on shad head off the beach section at Ballito. Shad have been plentiful and the size has definitely increased. There is also a massive increase in the amount of sandsharks in the Ballito area, some up to 50kg.
Central
Umhlanga lighthouse has been fishing extremely well over the last week, and despite the strong winds, has produced plenty of good size shad. Blue Lagoon locals have been stocking up on shad as the bite steadily increases throughout the month. Garrick have been sighted chasing shad and a few have also been hooked. Time for those live shad slide baits again. There have been good catches of blue rays and grey sharks off the rocks and the beach to the right of the point. Grey sharks have been landed throughout the Durban stretch, off the piers and beaches. These have been targeted with grinder outfits and 50lb braid. When targeting these fish, there is always the possibility of hooking into a much larger fish where the problem is stopping the fish before it swims into the shark nets and cuts the line. This is why a reel with a strong drag such as the Daiwa BG 8000 is used along with 40lb/50lb J Braid. This combo has more than enough stopping power and can be used for anything from shad to honeycombs. Along with the grey sharks off Durban, there have been good catches of blue rays, grunter, stumpies and also the odd kob. Shad have been coming out on the high tide on the Bluff, with more success being had on bait than spoon. There have been sightings of smaller kingies in the shallows, committing only to smaller live baits.
South
Shad are on the loose at Toti and so are the anglers. Crowded fishing conditions have meant plenty of catches of shad and a few garrick too. The lack of shad in the Warner Beach area has meant anglers have had to transport their own live bait to the beach in order to fish for garrick. There have been a number of garrick around. Shad, small yellowfin kingies and hundreds of juvenile grunter have been landed in the Umkomaas river mouth section. There have also been a few snapper salmon in the evenings for the anglers using light tackle. Scottburgh Point has seen blue rays, grey sharks and the odd edible such as lantern fish landed in dribs and drabs off the point. Up and down weather patterns may provide for uneasy fishing in the week to come. Nice catches of shad and also some bigger kob were seen at Port Shepstone over the weekend and throughout the week and first light has been best for the shad. Better size bronze bream and zebras have been caught along the Hibberdene coast recently. These fish can often be found swimming towards the angler once hooked and it is difficult to set the hook once this happens, so and is often advised to use a Mustad Demon fine wire circle hook in a 2/0 or 3/0 size for the angler struggling to hook into the fish, whereas the Mustad Chinu is the preferred hook for the general bait used for these fish. Orange Rocks has produced excellent catches over the last week and particularly on the weekend. Garrick, shad, kob and good stone bream were landed regularly. At Port St John's, most of the deep water points have been active with greys, raggies and the odd hammerhead shark. Plenty of edible fish have been landed around the river mouth section.
(File Photo: Gallo Images)
Twitter - @kingfisherdaiwa @SportswaveAndre