At 4:45 At and Piet woke a few of us and we headed to the beach. The SW wind was blowing about 10knots and it was predicted to pick up to about 20 knots by the afternoon. At, Piet, Divan, Peetertjie (Pierre’s younger brother) and myself hopped aboard and At took us safely through the surf. The first stop was at the livebait marks directly off the launch. There were shoals and shoals of baitfish on the surface and every cast into the shoal resulted in an almost full string of livies.
The current was from South to North (reverse current) and combined with the SW wind, we were pushed north at quite a speed. At suggested we slow-troll south to get back to the area where the baitfish were so I rigged 5 rods with livies and staggered them in distance from the boat and in depth. We slowly made our way south and were almost in the bait area when I noticed the rod with the furthest line (AKA Japan) bent slightly. I told Divan that there was something not right with the bait and he pulled the line in to check it. About 20m from the boat, the reel took off in his hands – “ON”! He gave the rod to Peetertjie who pulled a skipjack tuna of about 4kg to the boat. After the quick fight, the skippie was released and the lines reset. In about 24m off the point, the rod on the downrigger went off. I took the rod out the holder and passed it to Divan while I retrieved the downrigger. I heard the reel running relatively slowly and told the guys that I thought it was a prodigal son. Divan knew I had never caught one before and offered the rod to me. I thought of taking it for a moment then said he should keep the rod – I could be wrong about the species. The fish came up about 20m from the boat and cleared the water. I only got a glimpse of the fish when it re-entered the water and noticed that it was a very dark fish. A few minutes later, we had the fish next to the boat and confirmed that it was in fact a prodigal son of about 9kg. My heart sank but I knew I would get my chance some time or other. Piet gaffed the fish in the head and lifted it halfway into the boat. As he did this, the fish started twisting on the gaff – as prodigal tend to do. The hooks caught on one of the safety lanyards and pulled out of the fish’s mouth. With all the twisting and shaking, the fish managed to climb off the gaff and took off like a rocket! So near yet so far. Suddenly I was glad that I had not taken the rod because I would have been upset to say the least!
After regrouping, At suggested that we run South to the lighthouse and drift to the point. Al of us agreed and made it happen. At stopped the boat in 30m next to a strong current line and we set the lines. The wind had picked up a bit which allowed us to point the nose of the boat north and have the lines out the back. At tacked between 30m and 22m all the way to the point. On the first drift, we managed to get a Dorado of about 6kg which Peetertjie fought. As we were retrieving the lines to run back to the lighthouse, Divan shouted that he was on. He was busy removing the sinker from the deeper line when the fish took the bait that was now not more than 10m behind the transom. I looked back to see a sailfish clear the water! Absolutely spectacular! The rest of us quickly retrieved the remaining lines and then stood watching the aerobatics of the sailfish. It continued jumping toward the boat and on several occasions it almost landed in the boat! Divan could not retrieve any line because the elastic was still attached to the sinker, now hanging off the rod tip. He had to put the rod down and then remove the sinker before he could get a tight line on the fish. After this circus was over, Divan handed the rod to Peetertjie. The fish jumped a few more times and then settled. After about 10 minutes, the fish was next to the boat and Piet grabbed the bill and lifted the +-20kg sailfish into the boat for a few quick photos. The fish was then pulled next to the boat for a few minutes before it was released. Great!
After running South again, we set the lines and started drifting. In 33m off the lighthouse, the japan rod took off. I handed Divan the rod and he pulled in a cuda of about 10kg. About 15 minutes later, the bait with a 6oz sinker was eaten and the reel ticked off about 3m of line. I took the and quickly pulled the fish to the boat. I was expecting a small milk shark of a remora, but was pleasantly surprised when I saw a long sliver shine. Piet was quick on the gaff and brought a +-5kg cuda into the boat. Things were looking good! Off the beacons, another rod took off. Piet grabbed the rod and had a good tussle before he brought a +-7kg cuda within range for Divan to gaff.
We again headed South for the lighthouse where we started another drift. The wind was now blowing about 20knots and the sea was getting rough – but the fish were eating so we stuck it out for a bit longer. We had just started our drift when I saw two Dorado behind the boat. They both ate surface baits at the same time and gave a great display. Piet and I pulled the two fish to the boat and Divan gaffed them and put them into the hatch. About 10 minutes later, Divan saw 2 more Dorado behind the boat. I pulled in the closest surface bait and both the Dorado tackled it. I hooked up on one of the fish but the second one grabbed the skirt on the trace and ripped the hook out of the first fish’s mouth. Both fish then disappeared at speed. Not long after, the medium depth bait was eater. Peetertjie fought the fish to the boat where we saw that it was a foul hooked cuda of about 5kg. The fish took a final run near the boat and the hook pulled – unlucky. With the drift almost over, the deep rod went off. Again, it ran relatively slowly. I again nominated it to be a prodigal son but nobody thought I was being serious ... until the fish popped up next to the boat and I turned out to be right! Piet redeemed himself and gaffed the +-5kg fish and put it into the hatch. That brought our species tally to 5 for the day. Not too shabby!
With the sea getting really rough, we decided on one last drift. About 5 minutes after setting the lines, the japan line smoked off. I picked up the rod as the fish stripped line at a fast pace. Before the other lines could be retrieved, the hooks pulled. I rerigged the bait and the wait continued. Off the point, just before we called it a day, the deep line took off. Piet told me to take the rod as it might be the fish I was looking for as it started off relatively slowly. The other lines were cleared and I started fighting in earnest while At followed it. After about 15 minutes, the fish had taken us to 40m and we all realised that we were connected to a shark. The fish came to the surface in front of the boat and then ducked under the boat. I slacked off the drag and cleared the motors before increasing the drag again. As the pressure came back, the line parted where it had rubbed on the sharks skin. After that fight, we called it a day and headed back to join the rest of the party on the beach.
Thanks to everyone for a great day on the ocean.
