On Friday the 8th January it was Johan and Willem van den Berg’s birthday. These two are identical twins and have been friends of mine for about 20 years. They invited all of the usual friends around, some of which we had not seen in ages. The party got a bit out of hand as we all thought we were never going to see each other again. At around 3am the party calmed down as the guys left. The plan was to go marlin fishing on the Saturday with Oom Hannes and Michael Duvenage and Divan Coetzee on Hannes’ boat “Lihann”.
At 4am Oom Hannes woke Michael and Divs and hitched the boat. There was a bit of a ‘go-slow’ that morning due to the bottles of brandy and whiskey that had held us hostage until the early hours of the morning. Divan had crashed at the Duvenage residence but needed to race home that morning to feed the pets before he could go out to sea. In the mean time I was fast asleep at home, oblivious to the hustle and bustle of my crew mates. By 5am “Lihann” was at the club and Michael phoned me to hear where I was. When the phone rang, I reached over to answer, but didn’t realize I was on the edge of the bed and literally fell out of bed to answer the phone. I realized I had overslept and flew out of bed, brushed teeth and did some low flying to get to the club. I felt like death warmed up! When I arrived at the club “Lihann” was on the water waiting for me so I boarded and away we were. Before we were out the harbour mouth, I had found myself a dry spot on the deck on which to lie while we ran to the fishing grounds about 30km north.
The sea was like a dam and at 40m the water was already 27 degrees and purple! At 70m Michael slowed to trolling speed and we got to work dropping the riggers and setting lines and teasers. On the Japan we swam a medium sized blue and white moldcraft super chugger with a bird. On the Port long rigger was a pink and white Pulsator Marlin Magnet. The Port short rigger had a blue and white Pulsator Marlin Magnet. The starboard long rigger had a halfbeak with an Islander Saillure while the Short had a blue and white Williamson bonito smoker. Two teasers were pulled off the roll bars, one a chain of moldcraft squids followed by a super chugger and the other a swimming, mirror lined Saturday night special that’s name escapes me. Next to these we swam two small halcos that were intended for skipjack or yellowfins.
At 6:30 in 260m of water, we had just settled down to wait (some were sleeping already) when Hannes – the only one on the boat that could see past the transom – shouted ‘Daars hy! Dis ‘n marlyn!’ and with that the port long rigger popped and the reel took off. Michael sustained 3rd degree carpet burns when he jumped up and grabbed the harness. Divan, myself and Hannes pulled in the other lines while Michael got into the chair. The fish jumped a few times and took about 100m of line before the hook pulled. Unlucky! Michael said it was a blue of about 80kg. None of us got a good look at it because we were frantically retrieving lines. All we caught a glimpse of was the white water when the fish jumped. We reset the lines and returned to our positions prior to the strike. Hannes worked the area for about an hour and a bit when Leon Maree on “Big Sea Hunter” called us and said they had a fish in the spread that didn’t want to eat. We could see them about a kilometer ahead of us working the area in which they raised the fish. Not a minute later Leon called in a hookup. We turned away from them to give them some space to fight the fish. We were still watching them fighting their fish when I saw the port long rigger bend and the rubber band stretch. “There it is!” I shouted as the band popped. The 80Lbs International took off with the fish running and jumping away from us. Michael jumped into the chair while we were clearing the lines. Hannes was busy releasing the elastic of the starboard short when it popped in his hands and the 130Lbs international screamed. He looked back slightly confused and then saw a second marlin stick its head out the water just behind the boat! “Hier is nog een!” he shouted. None of us could believe what was happening, but there we were hooked up to two blue marlin at the same time with a hangover of note! You can’t make up stories like this even if you tried!
At 4am Oom Hannes woke Michael and Divs and hitched the boat. There was a bit of a ‘go-slow’ that morning due to the bottles of brandy and whiskey that had held us hostage until the early hours of the morning. Divan had crashed at the Duvenage residence but needed to race home that morning to feed the pets before he could go out to sea. In the mean time I was fast asleep at home, oblivious to the hustle and bustle of my crew mates. By 5am “Lihann” was at the club and Michael phoned me to hear where I was. When the phone rang, I reached over to answer, but didn’t realize I was on the edge of the bed and literally fell out of bed to answer the phone. I realized I had overslept and flew out of bed, brushed teeth and did some low flying to get to the club. I felt like death warmed up! When I arrived at the club “Lihann” was on the water waiting for me so I boarded and away we were. Before we were out the harbour mouth, I had found myself a dry spot on the deck on which to lie while we ran to the fishing grounds about 30km north.
The sea was like a dam and at 40m the water was already 27 degrees and purple! At 70m Michael slowed to trolling speed and we got to work dropping the riggers and setting lines and teasers. On the Japan we swam a medium sized blue and white moldcraft super chugger with a bird. On the Port long rigger was a pink and white Pulsator Marlin Magnet. The Port short rigger had a blue and white Pulsator Marlin Magnet. The starboard long rigger had a halfbeak with an Islander Saillure while the Short had a blue and white Williamson bonito smoker. Two teasers were pulled off the roll bars, one a chain of moldcraft squids followed by a super chugger and the other a swimming, mirror lined Saturday night special that’s name escapes me. Next to these we swam two small halcos that were intended for skipjack or yellowfins.
At 6:30 in 260m of water, we had just settled down to wait (some were sleeping already) when Hannes – the only one on the boat that could see past the transom – shouted ‘Daars hy! Dis ‘n marlyn!’ and with that the port long rigger popped and the reel took off. Michael sustained 3rd degree carpet burns when he jumped up and grabbed the harness. Divan, myself and Hannes pulled in the other lines while Michael got into the chair. The fish jumped a few times and took about 100m of line before the hook pulled. Unlucky! Michael said it was a blue of about 80kg. None of us got a good look at it because we were frantically retrieving lines. All we caught a glimpse of was the white water when the fish jumped. We reset the lines and returned to our positions prior to the strike. Hannes worked the area for about an hour and a bit when Leon Maree on “Big Sea Hunter” called us and said they had a fish in the spread that didn’t want to eat. We could see them about a kilometer ahead of us working the area in which they raised the fish. Not a minute later Leon called in a hookup. We turned away from them to give them some space to fight the fish. We were still watching them fighting their fish when I saw the port long rigger bend and the rubber band stretch. “There it is!” I shouted as the band popped. The 80Lbs International took off with the fish running and jumping away from us. Michael jumped into the chair while we were clearing the lines. Hannes was busy releasing the elastic of the starboard short when it popped in his hands and the 130Lbs international screamed. He looked back slightly confused and then saw a second marlin stick its head out the water just behind the boat! “Hier is nog een!” he shouted. None of us could believe what was happening, but there we were hooked up to two blue marlin at the same time with a hangover of note! You can’t make up stories like this even if you tried!
After the lines were cleared, I took control of the rod with the second fish. Both the fish took off in a similar direction with Michael’s fish heading for Australia. My fish stayed relatively calm and I tried my best to pull it ‘stand-up’ style without a bucket or harness on a 130Lbs bent butt rod designed for the chair … Not very comfortable! After about 20 minutes my fish was at the boat. Divan took the leader and pulled it closer. The hooks were in the top and bottom jaw which prevented the fish from getting enough oxygen and that is why it did not fight. Divs removed the hooks and turned the +-60kg blue marlin loose.
We could now focus on Michael’s fish which was now close to the boat. This fish had taken a lot of line and was still really feisty when it got to the boat. I took the leader and the fish jumped a bit giving a good show for the camera. Divan took the bill and removed the hooks before releasing the fish which was about the same size as the first fish. I think the people on the other boats 5km away could hear the shouts from “Lihann”. This was the first time Michael, Divan or I had been with a double header where both fish were released. We were over the moon! But this put us in the unique position of having 2 marlin releases by 9:30am and a lot of daylight left to try for a third marlin, something that does not happen often … It had only been done 6 times before in SA.
With a new lease on life, we reset the lines and continued the search for another fish. By 11:30 the hot day was taking its toll on the three of us. The cooldrinks were almost finished and we were starting to battle. We had to ration the liquids on the boat if we were to stay on the water longer so every hour we would share a cooldrink amongst the four of us. This was not enough so we cut the lid off a coke tin and put the blocks of ice in to melt. Now we had a few sips of water and cooldrink every hour which helped the situation a bit. At 12:00 in 650m of water the boat “Dirkie” hooked up next to us. They were fighting their fish when our starboard short rigger popped. A feisty baby blue rocketed out the water right behind the boat then took off for the nether regions of the ocean, at speed! Divan launched himself into the chair while the rest of us cleared the deck in great haste … we didn’t want to bugger this one up! The deck was cleared in a flash and Divs settled down to his task of pulling the fish. After the long fast run, the fish was spent and came to the boat easily. I took the trace and Michael took the bill. The fish was about 50kg and had an extremely small bill, so small in fact that Michael had a hard time taking hold of it. This fish thought it was a grander and gave us carrots next to the boat but we finally managed to get the hooks out and turn the fish loose. Oh my word! There is no way that I can explain how glad we were to get that fish. I get goose bumps just thinking about it. That last fish might have been small, but it put us into the record books as being the 7th crew in South Africa to have accomplished this feat, and only the second ski-boat. Wow! What an honor to be on the boat. We decided to have a celebratory cooldrink on our achievement, bugger the one cooldrink an hour rule!
Now the pressure was off and we could enjoy the rest of the day and head back to the club … but the thought of a forth fish was in the back of everyone’s minds even though no one dared to say anything incase we jinxed it. We had a knockdown from a dorado at about 2pm but it missed the hooks. It is amazing how at that stage even the strike from a lesser gamefish can make you turn into a screaming banshee, willing the fish to grow a bill and start jumping. By then the ice had melted and the last of the juices had been drank. Hannes suggested we head for home, working the 50m ledge in the process. The water was blue and there had been the odd fish caught there. At 3:15 we were on our last. We had had enough of the thirst and decided to pack up and have a drink at the club. Michael and I pulled in the teasers and the halcos and were busy clearing the short rigger lines when the center rigger popped. The reel screamed for few seconds then stood still. The bird came to the surface and the lure continued smoking behind it. We all agreed that it was probably a dorado and left the rod where it was. As we cleared the short lines, the same reel took off again, this time with vengeance. We all looked at each other not knowing what to do. We all just stared back waiting, anticipating, hoping the fish would jump. The boat went over a swell which now blocked our view. We were all on our tip toes trying to see if it would jump … and then it happened! A small black marlin came flying out the water behind the boat with the small super chugger in its mouth. We were almost hysterical! But alas, before we could get Oom Hannes into the chair, the reel stopped screaming and the show was over. The bird came to the surface indicating the hook had pulled. Talk about an anticlimax! That could have been our 4th fish – a first in South Africa! But it was not meant to be. We hoisted our three release flags and had one last high-five before we headed for home.
We arrived at the club to see the boat “Dirkie” waiting for the trailer. As we drove past, we could see a massive tail sticking out the back. The fish that they hooked up next to us was the big female and the few small fish we caught were the males patrolling in the area that she was in. After quite a bit of battling, the fish was hoisted on the gantry and pulled the scale down to 316,4kg (696Lbs) a beautiful fish! Well done to the guys on “Dirkie” on an exceptional fish.
We on the other hand were at the bar drinking the best tasting water ever! After the thirst was quenched Hannes ordered “The Long Glass” for the team of “Lihann”. A drink had never gone down with more lumps and bumps than that one, especially after the previous nights celebrations. But it was still a great ending to a great day!
I would personally like to thank Hannes for inviting me to fish on this day. I think I speak for everyone on the boat when I say it was a spectacular day and will remain in our minds for many years to come!
With a new lease on life, we reset the lines and continued the search for another fish. By 11:30 the hot day was taking its toll on the three of us. The cooldrinks were almost finished and we were starting to battle. We had to ration the liquids on the boat if we were to stay on the water longer so every hour we would share a cooldrink amongst the four of us. This was not enough so we cut the lid off a coke tin and put the blocks of ice in to melt. Now we had a few sips of water and cooldrink every hour which helped the situation a bit. At 12:00 in 650m of water the boat “Dirkie” hooked up next to us. They were fighting their fish when our starboard short rigger popped. A feisty baby blue rocketed out the water right behind the boat then took off for the nether regions of the ocean, at speed! Divan launched himself into the chair while the rest of us cleared the deck in great haste … we didn’t want to bugger this one up! The deck was cleared in a flash and Divs settled down to his task of pulling the fish. After the long fast run, the fish was spent and came to the boat easily. I took the trace and Michael took the bill. The fish was about 50kg and had an extremely small bill, so small in fact that Michael had a hard time taking hold of it. This fish thought it was a grander and gave us carrots next to the boat but we finally managed to get the hooks out and turn the fish loose. Oh my word! There is no way that I can explain how glad we were to get that fish. I get goose bumps just thinking about it. That last fish might have been small, but it put us into the record books as being the 7th crew in South Africa to have accomplished this feat, and only the second ski-boat. Wow! What an honor to be on the boat. We decided to have a celebratory cooldrink on our achievement, bugger the one cooldrink an hour rule!
Now the pressure was off and we could enjoy the rest of the day and head back to the club … but the thought of a forth fish was in the back of everyone’s minds even though no one dared to say anything incase we jinxed it. We had a knockdown from a dorado at about 2pm but it missed the hooks. It is amazing how at that stage even the strike from a lesser gamefish can make you turn into a screaming banshee, willing the fish to grow a bill and start jumping. By then the ice had melted and the last of the juices had been drank. Hannes suggested we head for home, working the 50m ledge in the process. The water was blue and there had been the odd fish caught there. At 3:15 we were on our last. We had had enough of the thirst and decided to pack up and have a drink at the club. Michael and I pulled in the teasers and the halcos and were busy clearing the short rigger lines when the center rigger popped. The reel screamed for few seconds then stood still. The bird came to the surface and the lure continued smoking behind it. We all agreed that it was probably a dorado and left the rod where it was. As we cleared the short lines, the same reel took off again, this time with vengeance. We all looked at each other not knowing what to do. We all just stared back waiting, anticipating, hoping the fish would jump. The boat went over a swell which now blocked our view. We were all on our tip toes trying to see if it would jump … and then it happened! A small black marlin came flying out the water behind the boat with the small super chugger in its mouth. We were almost hysterical! But alas, before we could get Oom Hannes into the chair, the reel stopped screaming and the show was over. The bird came to the surface indicating the hook had pulled. Talk about an anticlimax! That could have been our 4th fish – a first in South Africa! But it was not meant to be. We hoisted our three release flags and had one last high-five before we headed for home.
We arrived at the club to see the boat “Dirkie” waiting for the trailer. As we drove past, we could see a massive tail sticking out the back. The fish that they hooked up next to us was the big female and the few small fish we caught were the males patrolling in the area that she was in. After quite a bit of battling, the fish was hoisted on the gantry and pulled the scale down to 316,4kg (696Lbs) a beautiful fish! Well done to the guys on “Dirkie” on an exceptional fish.
We on the other hand were at the bar drinking the best tasting water ever! After the thirst was quenched Hannes ordered “The Long Glass” for the team of “Lihann”. A drink had never gone down with more lumps and bumps than that one, especially after the previous nights celebrations. But it was still a great ending to a great day!
I would personally like to thank Hannes for inviting me to fish on this day. I think I speak for everyone on the boat when I say it was a spectacular day and will remain in our minds for many years to come!
