Shell Shock

On Sunday 2^nd December, At and I launched “Avanti” off Vidal. The surf was terrible and a few boats ahead of us took some punishment going through. After waiting about an hour for the tide to turn, we managed to find a gap and get through the waves.

There had been a big storm the night before and the lightning didn’t help the fish’s shell shock. It was going to be a difficult day.

On the bait marks, there were shoals of mackerel and maasbanker on the surface, but they were very skittish. It took about an hour to get a handful of livies. We decided to put out some lures and cover ground just looking for some life. Near the lighthouse, we found a few bonnies and caught a few on the spinning rod. With no further action we headed north to the greens and put out a few livies. There were a few nice current lines so we spent some time working them. In about 22m, the deep bait went away. The fish made a few short runs then came to the boat where At gaffed a 8kg cuda. I rerigged and At trolled over the deeper current line. As we finished the turn, there was a splash on the far bait. The rod keeled over and the reel smoked of. We needed to follow the fish to stop the run and eventually I managed to get the fish on the leader. It was a kawa-kawa of probably 9kg. One of the fattest ones I’d ever seen. After releasing it, I rerigged and set the spread again.

A good cuda for vidal

It was pretty quiet for a while but eventually on the same line we had the cuda, we went on with another fish. It came to the boat without taking any line but when the leader came up, the fish turned and smoked off about 200m right into the backing. At chased after it while I put line on the reel. Finally, the leader came out the water but at that moment, a massive Zambezi shark appeared right next to the fish and all hell broke loose. The fish took off under the boat between the motors I freespooled the reel and tried to get the line off the motor. Luckily the prop did not touch the line and we could free it. Again there was a lot of line out and when the fish slowed down, At followed it and I pulled as hard as I dared. The leader came up as well as a very tired cuda. At gaffed the fish and lifted it to “safety”. It was a really good fish for Vidal standards, probably about 16kg.

Over the next hour, a few boats arrived and the fish went quiet. After trying for a few hours, we headed south trolling on the current line. I had just finished checking the baits when the close livie went away and we hooked up to a dorado. It gave us a bit of a run around but eventually we loaded it. By now it was 3:30pm and we were tired so we pulled in the lines and headed back to the beach.

Running on empty

On Saturday 3^rd November, Tjaard and I went up to Cape Vidal for the day. There had been reports of a lot of dorado around, so we made sure we were there as early as we could. When we drove onto the beach, we saw that the launching conditions were terrible. Probably the worst I had ever seen at Vidal. Several crews were waiting to launch and only after an hour or so did the conditions improve to the point where we could get close to the water.

Eventually at about 7:30 we were on the backline and started looking for bait. There were large shoals everywhere, but they were proving a bit difficult to catch. After some time, we had a few baits to start fishing with. We headed south and at the beacon we came across a nice current line in 25m. I put out 3 livies and worked the area. It did not take long before I spotted a dorado swimming behind the boat. I brought the close bait in a bit and from nowhere another fish charged in and grabbed it. I hooked up and passed the rod to Tjaard before bringing another bait. This bait was also quickly eaten, and I hooked up. The first one was at the boat, so I put the rod I was holding in the holder and gaffed the fish. Tjaard then finished the fight with fish number two. Not a bad start.

I rerigged and made a shallower turn. There were a few dolphins around and soon they started eating out precious livies. After having 2 baits stolen, I suggested we move away from the area to preserve our limited bait stocks. We ran about a kilometre south and set the lines. Just as we had the last line out, the far bait went tight with another dorado. While Tjaard was fighting this one, I hooked another fish close the boat. They were not the biggest fish which meant they came in quickly and we could reset the lines. I was about to make a turn to head shallower when the far line went away. When I tightened up, the line went down deep, a sure indication that it was a tuna. This hard fighting fish gave Tjaard a good run around before I could gaff and bleed it. Seared tuna steaks … check!

There were definitely a few fish in the one small area, so I doubled back on my tracks and sure enough we hooked up to yet another dorado. This one was very small, but

Making every bait count

the hooks were in the gills and it was bleeding profusely so we kept it. After this last strike, I rigged our last livie. We were now running on empty with the bait level, so I headed shallower to hopefully find a shoal of bait.

While moving shallower, the wind changed to SE and it was like someone threw a switch. For about 2 hours, none of the boats had any action. This gave me some time to prospect the shallows. In about 15m, I saw a bit of a showing. As I dropped the jigs, the close livie went away and we hooked up to another dorado. Tjaard took the rod while I tried to get some live bait. The showing was getting better and better. On each drop, I caught a mix of mackerel and maasbanker and soon had enough bait to last a week. At the same time, Tjaard had the dorado at the boat where I gaffed it.

The tide was turning in an hour’s time. I didn’t want to beach on the high tide, so I suggested we head out to the deeper water for the last 2 hours before we head back. On the tide change, there were a few sailfish hooked and I was hoping that we would also get a chance at one. Just before the ledge, a movement caught my eye. As I turned, I saw a sailfish free jumping next to the boat. At one stage I thought it was going to end up in the boat. Unfortunately, despite making a few turns in the area, we did not get a pull. At 2pm we upped lines and headed back to the beach with 6 dorado and a yellowfin.

2018 St Lucia 12 x 12 Species Tournament

On Thursday evening, 25^th October, I arrived at the St Lucia Ski-Boat Club for the briefing of the 12x12 species tournament. I was invited to fish by Ockie Theunissen and Zander on Ockie’s boat “Hannock”. This was the first time that I would be fishing this tournament and from who I saw at the briefing, there was some strong competition. The tournament rules stated that a team was only allowed to weigh in 5 fish of a species for the duration of the event. There were 12 target species. For each specie that was caught on the day, bonus points were awarded (12 pts for the 1^st specie, 24 pts for the 2^nd specie, 36 pts for the 3^rd specie etc.).

On Friday 26^th at 5:30, we launched for the first day’s fishing. The weather was great, but the water was cold and green with minimal current. This was going to be a difficult few days. Our first stop was to get livies which would be essential for some of the possible target species. While catching livies, I managed to get a small sarda-sarda which we would use for cuda. With the tank full, we headed to Big Hill and trolled lures around hoping for a tuna, dorado, wahoo or billfish. It didn’t take long to get a small yellowfin and a short while later another two. With a 5 fish limit, we could only catch 3 fish on day 1 and leave 1 for each other days to score the bonus points. With the tuna done for the day, we headed inshore to look for a cuda. We rigged a few livies and the small sarda-sarda and trolled around. I was designated skipper while Ockie and Zander would work the deck and catch the fish.

Some nice Dorado for team Hannock"

After trolling for what seemed forever, we managed to get a pull on the sarda. It turned out to be a bigger sarda that narrowly made the 3kg minimum weight for “Other tuna species”. That was great, 2 species down. I suggested we run a bit further south on the ledge and troll livies hoping for a dorado or billfish. Again, we trolled for a few hours with no success. Just before we started to lose hope, the far line went away with a dorado. We were super excited, but this changed quickly as the hooks pulled. We rerigged and set the lines hoping that we had come into a good area. To our delight, the close livie was eaten and Ockie fought a dorrie. It had a follower so I flicked a bait out and went on. Moments later, Ockie’s fish threw the hook so I passed him my rod and pinned another livie. As it hit the water, I went on. Zander gaffed Ockie’s fish then the next one too. Just when we thought it was over, we had another fish go tight but unbelievably, it also threw the hook.

That was the last action we had for the day and ended up with 3 species. At the end of day 1, we were in 2^nd position just ahead of “Fintastic” and closely behind “Wave Dancer” who had 4 species.

Ockie with a GT prior to release

On day 2, we were on the beach early and had an easy launch. We knew where the live bait was from the first day it only a few minutes to get a good supply. There were a few fish straight off the launch the previous day, so we made a quick drift with livies on Chisa but never had a pull. A few boats had found yellowfin on the deeper ledge, so we headed out trolling lures. As I passed over the ledge, two rods went on with yellowfin. We could only weigh one so released the smaller one. Trolling commenced, and we soon had 2 small bonnies in the livebait tubes that we would use a bit later. We made a deeper turn hoping for a wahoo or billfish but were rewarded with two skipjack. Unfortunately, one pulled hooks but the other made it to the scoreboard as a second specie. Knowing that we had found some dorado on the ledge, I ran back to the same area and put out the same spread as the day before with an addition of a fresh bonnie that we sent deep. We worked the ledge for about half an hour when the bonito was eaten. Ockie took the strike and put some big pressure on the fish. There were some good nods then it started coming up. I could mark it on the echo sounder, so I was pretty sure it was not a shark. Soon we could make out a big silver shape of a good kingfish. The rules dictated all kingfish needed to be measured, photographed and released so we sent it on its way.

We knew that was our joker species for the day and needed to capitalize on it so we persevered with the dorado search. We did have 4 big sharks eat the other 4 bonito that we rigged for kingfish, so Zander was a bit buggered going into the last hour of the day. We were pretty desperate and eventually I saw a flying fish jump out the water near the far bait. Moments later the rod bent and a dorado showed itself. There was a bit of panic around the boat, but we managed to gaff the fish! We only had a half hour left so we quickly reset. As luck would have it, the far bait went on almost immediately. It looked like a nice fish and it had a follower. Ockie pitched a bait and went on and at the same time, Zander’s fish pulled hooks! To our surprize, that same fish stayed on the surface and followed the hooked one, so I pitched it a bait and was dumbstruck when the fish turned and ate the bait. It just hung there hardly moving. We managed to gaff both fish just in time to hit the beach.

The coveted 12x12 trophy

At the weigh-in, we ended the day on top with 4 species followed closely by “Wave Dancer” and “Bizy Liz”. The last day was going to be hectic.

On Sunday 28^th, the tension in the air was palpable as the boats launched. We had a game plan and were going to stick to it. We needed to catch our banker species so after catching some livies, we ran to the ledge and put out some lures on the second turn we got a yellowfin, but it was under the minimum weight of 5kg so we tried a while longer without any luck. The water had turned green so we moved to stage 2 of the plan and made a few deep turns and found a shoal of skippies. The very first one we got was a weigher, but the next few were too small but at least we had 1 species. We ran back to the ledge trying for the tuna but aside from a pulled hook, we had no action. With the dirty water pushing out, there was a strong colour line in 100m. We had been working the edge with lures looking for a dorado or wahoo but didn’t have a touch. At one stage I saw a big flying fish launch itself out of the green water. This was the first sign of life that we had seen and was an indicator that there was a gamefish in the area. We immediately stopped and put out live baits. This time luck was on our side and within 20 minutes the close live bait went away with a dorado. There was a second fish with it, so Zander fed it a bait and hooked up. While I was clearing the other lines, the far livie went away. I hooked the fish then put the rod in the holder to gaff the other fish. After Ockie’s fish was gaffed, he took the third rod and loaded a beautiful 16kg dorado. We had 3 dorries in the boat of which we could only weigh one, but at least we had our second specie. 

2018 12x12 Winners - Team "Hannock"

Now we had to get a third to make sure we were safe. Going into the last hour of the comp, our nerves were shot. The wind was blowing a gale and the water was a terrible colour. Despite trying all the tricks, I could not find a yellowfin and at 1pm we called it a day, hoping that we had done enough.

At the prize giving that evening, the results were revealed. 3^rd was “Bizy Liz”, 2^nd was “Wave Dancer” and we had managed to clinch the win! Aside from that, we also took prizes for the top individual, biggest Kingfish, biggest dorado and biggest fish on day 2. Thanks go to Ockie and Zander for a great weekend with some good laughs and memories. Well done to St Lucia Ski-Boat Club for a top event!

Vidal turns on

On Sunday 14^th October at 6:30, At and I launched “ABF” at Cape Vidal. There had been a few dorado around and we were keen to get in on some of the action. There was a 10 knot SW blowing and just enough current to keep us standing still… perfect.

We first set about catching some live bait. We took about an hour to get a good supply. I suggested we troll a few strip baits around to cover area and find where the fish were holding. We tacked between 20m and 40m heading south with the current. It didn’t take long to get a pull but unfortunately, it missed the hooks. We found a current line in 30m and worked it a bit. The far bait was the first to go away with a good size female dorado which we were stoked to get into the boat as it meant that we had some fresh fish for supper. The next turn produced another nice fish. It seemed things were hotting up. At was busy trolling shallower when he spotted a dorado jumping in front of us. It was no surprize when the reel smoked off. This was a very good fish but after a few big jumps, it spat the hooks. We made a turn and went on with a smaller fish which At caught. While he was fighting the fish, there were 2 followers, but they just did not want to eat. We trolled along the current line but had no more luck. Due to unforeseen circumstances, some of our livies had died so we quickly stopped at the point and caught a few more. While we were drifting, I pinned a livie and put it out. It didn’t take long for a pull and soon had another dorado in the hatch. This was turning out to be a great day.

A great day on the water!

With the live well full again, I put out a few baits and slow trolled around. It took about an hour to find the fish and the close bait we went away. It took only a few minutes to land the fish and we made a turn in the area. Moments later, the far rod went off. At took the strike while I cleared some lines. We noticed another fish jumping around so I threw a lure at it with no luck. The fish kept jumping as if it was hooked. Only then did I notice that it was already on one of the lines I had brought closer. With 2 fish on, we had some fun and games. At’s fish was soon at the boat but it had a follower… and a big one. I flicked out a livie and watched the fish eat it. I hooked up and put the rod in the holder before gaffing At’s one. We still had 2 fish on so we both took a rod. At had his fish at the boat so again I put the rod down and gaffed it before continuing the fight. This last fish gave me a hard fight and only after about 20 minutes could we gaff it. A great 15kg fish.

With more than enough fish to eat, we packed up and headed back after a fantastic day’s dorado fishing.

Double up on dorries!

On Saturday 6^th October at 5:30, Hansie, Tjaart, Buffel, Iwan and I launched "Mitsu-fishi" off Richards Bay. There had been a few dorado and marlin around, so we decided to give it a try.

Iwan's Sailfish

We headed up North and set the lures in a depth of around 80m. The water was only 23 degrees and had a green tint to it. We slowly worked north along the drop-off. There were a few birds around and the odd flying fish, so we were hopeful that we would find something. At about 8am, I saw a movement behind the right short, but was not 100% sure that I was seeing what I was seeing so I didn’t raise the alarm. Moments later, the rigger popped and the reel started running. There was a bit of weight to the fish and from what I thought I had seen, I was 100% sure it was a billfish. The line angled towards the surface and a big sailfish stuck its head out the water and thrashed about. We cleared the lines and put 9 year old Iwan in the chair. This was the first time he had ever been in a fighting chair but he did an exceptional job right from the beginning. After a few jumps and a few runs, Iwan had the fish on the leader and just like that, Iwan had caught his first billfish!

Double up on dorries

The lines went out and trolling commenced. We followed the drop-off and in about 250m, the right long rigger popped. The fish pulled line off at a constant pace and so we cleared the lines. The lure I was retrieving was halfway back to the boat when it was also eaten. Immediately a nice dorado cleared the surface. I left the rod in the gunwale and let Iwan wind it in while his dad was in the chair with the other fish which we had not seen yet. I gaffed Iwan’s 13kg dorado and put it in the hatch while Buffel brought his fish in. It was also a good 17kg dorado which was also boated.

That was all the action that we had for the morning. Later that day while heading home, two dorado chased the lures down but never connected.

2018 Garrick

On Friday 14^th September, Wayne and I launched “Galavant” off Richards Bay. The fishing had been sporadic the past few weeks, and the weather was also unstable, so we were not sure what to do. We headed to the pipeline to catch some bait but battled to catch shad. After an hour, we only had 2 but the hatch was full of big maasbanker.

There were already 5 boats around the pier, so we opted to head up north. There was hardly any swell and the wind was less than 5 knots. I rigged up 3 livies and Wayne slowly trolled north. It did not take long to get a pull. The close bait went away and after feeding it a bit, I tightened up to my first Garrick of the season. It gave me a great fight on the light line and when it was tired, Wayne grabbed the tail and removed the hook before taking a few pics.

1st Garrick for 2018

Wayne's Garrick

The baits went out again and apart from a missed strike it was quiet. Wayne turned back and headed towards where we started. We had a pull on the mid distance bait but unfortunately it was a shark. Not long after that, the close bait went away. Wayne fed it and tightened up. The fish just started taking line when the main line broke. On closer inspection, it looked like something had nicked the line. Just bad luck I guess. There seemed to be some life in the area, so we turned around and worked the area. I rigged up a shad and just after putting the rod down, the reel went away. I fed it for a bit, but there was nothing, so I started retrieving the line. About half way back, the line took tension and I tightened up on a fish. I passed the rod to Wayne who had a great fight with his first Garrick for the season. There was a second fish swimming with the hooked one, so we made quick work of unhooking, photographing and releasing the fish. With a fish each, we decided to head deeper to the ledge to look for a tuna.

On arrival, I saw some bonnies and threw a spoon into them. On the second cast, I hooked a bait size bonnie and rigged it up. Unfortunately, after 45minutes, a shark ate it and Wayne was the lucky one to fight it to the boat where we broke it off.

At the end of the ledge, we upped lines and headed home after a great day on the water.

Club Record Salmon

On Monday 20 August at about 6pm, Andre, Hansie, Terence and I launched “Good Time” out of Richards Bay. There had been a few salmon coming out, so we were hoping to get a few.

We stopped at the pipeline and there were about 10 other boats there already. Sounding around, we found a spot and put out the anchor. We went about catching some live bait and soon had some baits on the bottom. I was secretly hoping to get a big fish as I was using 8kg line, hoping for another record like the week before. At around 7pm, Hansie had a bite. He tightened up to a good strong fish that gave him a great fight on the light gear he was using. After about 15minutes, he had his first daga for the season. A good 24kg fish.

A few beautiful salmon

The rest of us continued fishing while Hansie played around with the maasbanker that were attracted to the boat lights. At around 7:30, Andre hooked up and managed to catch his personal best salmon of 26kg. I don’t think I have seen anyone prouder of a fish before. In the meantime, Terence and I were holding pole, watching everyone else catching fish. Hansie then caught a really big shad and Terence rigged it up. At about 8:30, Terence had a big bite and went tight on a fish that fought in another league. The spinning reel that he was using stood up well to the strong 25minute fight and after a few trips around the boat, the fish popped up next to the boat spent. We could see that this was a record size fish so we kept it.

New Club Record

I was now the only one still trying for a fish, but luckily this meant that there were no other lines in the water to cut me off. In the next 2 hours, I had three fish that mouthed the bait without me even feeling the bump. Eventually, after rigging up a really lively shad, I had a solid take. I tightened up pretty quickly and went on with another strong fish. The light tackle took strain with the strong runs of the fish and my heart sat in my throat with every head nod. After a long dogged fight, the fish was visible in the lights. The size looked close to the size that I needed for the record, so Andre gaffed it and brought it onboard. It had been a long night and having all caught a fish, we could not have asked for more.

We stopped at the club and weighted my fish first. It pulled the needle to 26.8kg, narrow missing the record. I’ll just have to try again… and I will. When we put Terence’s fish on the scale, even though it was late in the evening, a small crowd gathered to see this weight. We were all astounded to see the weight of 49.1kg! A fish of a lifetime. I congratulate Terence on a fantastic fish. You are the envy of many an angler.

Just in the nick of time

On Tuesday evening at 17:45, Andre, Hansie, Tjaart, Terence and I launched “Good Time” out of Richards Bay. There had been the odd daga salmon around and the weather had given a gap to try for them.

We headed out to the pipeline, sounded around until we found a bit of structure and put out the anchor. We went about catching a few shad and maasbanker for live bait. It didn’t take long for us all to have a live bait in the water and the waiting began. The sand anchor was slipping a bit but we decided to leave it so that we could cover a bit of ground. There were about 15 boats in the area, and none had any luck, so we thought this might work in our favour. After a few hours, Hansie had a bump, but the fish only nipped his livie, killing and discarding it. At about 9pm, we decided to up lines and position ourselves again. When Andre and Tjaart retrieved their lines, their livies were also dead with the small pin hole teeth marks on them.

36.7kg Daga Salmon

We rigged up a sand anchor and rock anchor and set it over a likely looking spot. It was absolutely dead and at around 11pm I suggested that we start packing up. Slowly we upped lines and I noticed that Andre, Tjaart and Terence were tangled. While they were sorting things out, I pinned a fresh livie and sent it down. With the tangle sorted, we were about to pull anchor when I felt a solid bump on my rod. I dropped the tip and let the line come tight before setting the hook. The rod keeled over with the weight of a good fish. It went on a short but strong run with big head nods. I could not do much with the 10kg tackle, so I let the drag on the spinning reel do its thing and slowly tire the fish out. After about 15 minutes the fish was on surface in the lights where Andre could get the gaff in the mouth. He struggled to pull it aboard and only when it was lying on the deck could we see the size of the fish. It was a really good size fish, well over 30kg. With a fish on the deck, we were happy to call it a night and headed home. We weighed the fish at the club and it registered 36.7kg. A possible record on 10kg line.

Thanks to Andre and my mates for a magic evening. If you are looking to book a fishing charter, give Andre a call (072 639 9366).

Party poopers.

On Friday 6^th July at 5:30am, At, Gert, Pierre and I launched “Avanti” out of Richards Bay. There had been a number of snoek caught the previous day and the conditions looked identical, so we were hoping to get into some action.

We arrived as it started getting light, so I wasted no time in putting out a few small lures. When the sun was well above the horizon, we had our first pull. It was a snoek of about 6kg that Pierre caught… not a bad start. The lines were just out again when Gert had a strike and caught a similar sized fish. At turned back on the line where we had the pulls and unsurprisingly, we got another fish. This one was about 8kg. There seemed to be some bait balls on the sounder, so we worked the area and picked up single and double strikes. By 8am we had 6 fish, but it was as if someone had flipped a switch and they went off the bite. None of the boats were getting pulls so we assumed that was a wrap for the day. I tacked around a bit looking for the bait and birds, but there was nothing so I worked a shallow ledge that I knew and fluked another smaller snoek. After a few turns without any more action, I headed out a bit deeper to where I thought I had seen a splash. There were 2 terns fluttering about but when I got near them, they vanished. I made a lazy turn in the area and two rods went away. One fish was a nice one while the other was only about 4kg.

A good morning haul of snoek

I had just put the lines out again when we spotted the two birds again. They were dipping over a dark patch in the water. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that the fish had pushed a baitball to the surface. We stopped near by and threw lures into the shoal. We all had chases, but nothing committed. The trolling lines were in the way, so we brought them in allowing us to manoeuvre more efficiently. At positioned us upwind of the shoal and we threw lures at it. The fish were quite aggressive and chased the lures on almost every cast. At one stage we were all three on with nice fish. This went on for a while before the first boat spotted us. As always happens, they started spoiling the fun by casting over our lines and just getting in the way. The sight of 2 boats right next to each other caught the attention of other boats who arrived on the scene. What really got to me was when one idiot, who loves the sound of his own voice, tried to tell us that we should move because the baitball kept swimming under our boat! This coming from anglers who can’t find their own fish and must rely on us to find them before they even had a chance at hooking anything! I had a few choice words for him…

With so much boat traffic on a baitball that was only about a meter wide, the fish became skittish, so we decided to pack up and head home. We had caught our fish for the day and knew there was a lot of work to be done cleaning fish. We were back in the harbour at 11am with a tally of 24 fish. There were 11 fish between 7 and 9kg with the rest being shoal fish of around 5kg.

Perseverance sometimes pays

On Saturday 30^th June, At and I launched “ABF” off Cape Vidal. The beach was hectic after the spring high tide as a 1-meter berm had formed along the whole beach in the bay. All the sand that had washed into the see made the bay very shallow, so we had to box smart to keep the boat floating. Eventually we made it into deep water and through the surf. The idea was to pull some lure around until about 9am then look for some livies and maybe a cuda.

I had 3 lures out and At trolled around the lighthouse area but we only managed a small yellowfin tuna. There were a lot of small bonnies around, so we caught one and rigged it. It took a surprisingly long time for it to be eaten, and when it was, it ended up being a shark. With no fireworks, we headed back to the point and looked for some livies. There were rugby field size shoals of bait on the surface, but they were almost impossible to catch. After almost an hour, we had a few livies in the well so headed up north, pulling lures as we went. Other than a small yellowfin, we didn’t have much luck so we stopped at vegetation and rigged up 3 baits. After an hour, we had a pull on the mid water bait. The fish swam to the boat and gave about four massive head shakes before coming to the surface. It was a sailfish, but unfortunately it was bill wrapped and the hooks slid off the bill quite quickly. We tacked south and worked the bait shoals. I saw the big spearo rubberduck heading our way and the skipper drove straight over my far line, then almost road into us trying to fix his cockup. We were getting pretty frustrated so wound in the lines and put some distance between us and them.

 I put out 3 lines on Oscar and while I was making the last few adjustments, the surface bait went off. At took the rod but as he started fighting it, the line parted. It must have been a nick where the boat road over it. While this was going on, the deep bait was eaten but the hooks pulled quite quickly. We regrouped and put out fresh lines and baits. I lined up a small pinnacle and as we approached, the showing came through. We missed a fish on the whip spoon, then the deep line went away on a relatively fast run. At took the strike and I followed it. Just then the surface rod went away with what I could feel was a tuna, so I slacked the drag and left the rod in the holder while At fought his fish. Eventually the fish came up where I gaffed a really nice 12kg cuda followed by an 8kg yellowfin. It was getting late and I didn’t want to battle on the beach so we headed home.

Maasbanker over bonnies

On Saturday 16^th June, Jurgen and I launched “ABF” off Richards Bay. We were hoping to catch an amberjack and maybe a cuda later in the afternoon. Reports from the previous day were that there was no livebait on the pipeline or the usual spots, so we spent some time looking around the bay and managed to get about 10 big maasbanker.

I headed out to the ledge and on arrival, I saw there was a good showing on the reef. The problem is that it was a bit high off the bottom. We rigged up a live maasbanker and Jurgen sent it down. It did not take long for a pull but unfortunately the hook turned into the bait and missed the fish.

The reverse current had pushed up off the reef, so I took us back to the mark. As I stopped, there were a few bonnies splashing near us, so I put a cast in with a spoon and managed to get one. We rigged it up and sent it down expecting a good pull, but after probably 20 minutes and 3 or 4 drops later, the bait died without and bite. Jurgen rigged up another maasbanker and sent it down. Sure enough, he got the pull and went tight with a fish that gave him a bit of a fight before coming to the surface. IT was a blacktip kingfish of about 8kg. Unfortunately, it was hooked in the stomach, causing considerable damage. At least we had a fish.

There were a few more bonnies on the surface, so I made another cast and caught one. IT was a bit smaller than the first, so we hoped that we might get a fish on it. Unfortunately, nothing was interested, and the bait ended up in the coolbox. Jurgen rigged up another maasbanker and went tight again. This time it was a big kawa-kawa. After that last fish, the showing dissipated and despite putting another live maasbanker down, there was no action, so we headed back to the harbour and tried for Garrick around the pier. Again, the fishing was slow and only produced two small sharks. 

First cuda for the season

On Friday 8^th June at 8:30am, Zander and I launched “ABF” out of Richards Bay. The SW wind was supposed to improve in the afternoon, so we decided to take the punishment in the morning and head south into the wind and come back with it in the afternoon.

We first battled for about an hour to get live bait before making the 18km trip. This took us quite a while in the small boat as we headed straight into the wind and waves. It took over an hour to get there and to say we were wet and shaken was an understatement. To make things worse, as I slowed down on arrival, the one motor died and would not start for the love or money. A bit frustrating considering it had come back from a service the previous day! We decided to fish on with one motor and later when the weather settled, we would try to fault find. In the meanwhile, it was time to fish. Zander put out 4 rods and I trolled around the wreck looking for a cuda. There were some good showings but no action on the baits.

Time passed and at about 3pm, I trolled over a good showing. I suggested that Zander put down a bucktail on the spinning rod to see what it was. On the second flick, he went on with a fish. While he was tussling, I noticed the one rod with a big bonnie on it bump a few times. I wound the reel a bit and I could still feel the bait there. The leader was on the rod so I stopped winding. Suddenly a long black shape came speeding in and hit the bait. I freespooled and let the fish start moving off before I tightened up. The line melted off the reel as the fish went on a long fast run. We were in a bit of a pickle and Zander was still fighting his fish and I needed to chase after mine! Zander put max drag on his fish and managed to land a blacktip kingfish which was unceremoniously released. With the lines cleared, Zander followed the fish and I put line on the reel. The fish came up to the surface where Zander put the gaff into a good size cuda. It was a great fish, but unfortunately had no condition.

A late weigh-in of cuda

With high spirits, the lines went out again. The sea was improving and there was a bit more surface activity around. As I was approaching the marks, the deep wala had a quick pull, but didn’t stick. Normally a sign of a smaller fish. I worked the area a bit more but it was quiet. Zander changed out the live bait to bigger, fresher one and on the next pass over the mark, that rod keeled over as another good fish ate the bait. The fish made an incredible run, so I had to chase it down while clearing the other lines. Finally things settled and Zander could fight his fish. The fight had changed however… there was not much tension and Zan had to wind like mad to keep a bend in the rod. The leader came up and we both expected to see just a head or possible a smaller fish, but we got a surprize when the fish popped up next to the boat. It was another good one which I gaffed and loaded. It was a similar size fish, but it had swallowed the bait and one of the hooks was around a gillraker so the fish could not breathe once it had finished its long run, so it didn’t fight after that.

It was after 4pm and knowing that it would get dark soon, I suggested we try to sort the motor out. With the jumpers connected, we tried to start it, but no go. After pull starting and trying every other trick we knew, it would not start so we upped lines and made the long trip home on one motor, returning well after dark. At least we were safe. The fish weighed in at 25kg and 27kg. Not bad for our first cuda for the season.

Just FYI, the motor was sorted the next day. It was a plug that was not reconnected, causing the battery to drain to a point where the computer could not start up…

Hooked on Fishing

On the 26th May, At and I launched “ABF” out of Cape Vidal. The launch was one of the easiest that I have seen in a while. Once on the backline, we sounded around looking for some live bait. There were a lot around, but most were tiny. We struggled for over an hour to get a decent supply of bait before we headed north. We put out a few lures and trolled along the ledge hoping for a wahoo, but we only managed to catch a big bonito and a small yellowfin tuna.

When we arrived at vegetation, I rigged up 3 livies and At tacked us between 24 and 30m. There seemed to be some life on the 28m depth. We saw several big manta rays, a few shoals of bonnies and what looked like a big shark. We had worked the area for about an hour when the surface bait went away. At took the strike while the fish took a fast run on the surface. I turned the boat to follow the fish and saw a bunch of dolphin heading towards the fish. We were 100% convinced that they would eat the fish, but by some miracle, they swam straight past it and left us alone to fight it. Soon At had a nice 9kg cuda on the boat. We were pretty chuffed and went about resetting the lines.

About an hour later, At was busy throwing a stickbait when we saw a big dark shape behind it. It faded off before we could get a good look at it, but it looked to be a billfish. On the next throw, the fish rushed up and grabbed the stickbait but didn’t hook up. We now knew it was indeed a sailfish, not only that, but there were three of them in the water. I ran to the back, retrieved the mid water line and removed the sinker, just as a fish came in and grabbed the bait. I gave it a bit of line then tightened up. There was a bit of tension, but then the hook pulled. I cleared the line and retrieved the deep line to try the same move, but on closer inspection, the bait was missing… I still had a far surface line out, so I brought it closer, but nothing came up to it. The fish had faded off so At turned the boat back to the area. He threw the stickbait again and again the fish followed it. 

A movement behind the boat caught my eye. There was a fish on the surface bait. I held the reel in freespool anticipating the strike, which came almost immediately. I fed the fish then tightened up. It hung in the water just shaking its head a bit before slowly moving off. It was almost as if it did not know It was hooked. A few minutes later, the reel smoked off and the sea erupted as the sailfish made a series of jumps. It was beautiful to see especially at such a close range. After the excessive jumping, the fish had tire itself out, so it behaved next to the boat. I passed At the rod and took hold of the bill. The one hook was a bit deep, so I opted to cut the wire and leave it in. After a quick pic, I revived the fish and sent it on its way. Very cool!

I'm hooked on fishing!

We regrouped and put out fresh baits. I was busy attaching a sinker when the line was ripped out of my hand. I was on with something… After a strong fight, I had a big bonnie on the leader. I didn’t want to take the fish out the water and tried to pop the hooks out with the long nose pliers. I had one hook loose and was busy with the other when the bonnie shook its head and the treble went into my hand. Luckily, I could get the fish off the hooks before it shook some more. A quick snip with the sidecutter and we were back in business.

In the next two hours, we had 3 cuda pulls, but they just chopped the bait in half. We worked the area and soon had a proper smoker but unfortunately it bit the wire off. At that stage, it was getting late, so we opted to up lines and head home after a great day on the water.

Late season dorado

On Saturday 19^th May, At and I launched “ABF” off Vidal. The Cape Vidal Ski Boat Club was hosting their annual junior competition so there were quite a few boats that had launched. We were lucky to be able to use their tractor, so launching was a breeze.

The SW wind was blowing a bit, and there was the odd raincloud that dampened the party, but other than that, the sea was not bad. We sounded around a bit and managed to get a few nice livies in the well. We still didn’t have much of a game plan so we put on a few lures and trolled around. It didn’t take long to get a pull and soon we had a yellowfin bled and on ice. Trolling commenced and in the next hour we had a few more pulls and released 2 kawakawas and 2 more yellowfin.

We were still off the point so decided to switch over to bait and see if there were a few other species around. I had one line out and was busy with the second when I saw a big splash behind us. The rod in the holder next to me keeled over the reel smoked off. At took the strike and fought the strong fish. It gave him a run for his money and finally had a 14kg yellowfin in the hatch. There were a few bait shoals on the surface in 30 to 35m so we made a few turns through them. We missed a fish on the midwater bait and a few minutes later had a pull on the surface bait which stuck. I wound the line tight until the fish started taking line, then passed the rod to At. The fish surfaced and jumped a few times. It was a bit strange to get a dorado this late in the season. We loaded the fish and were excited at the idea of having freshly caught dorado fillets for supper.

We slowly tacked south and whenever we intercepted a bait shoal, we would get a pull. Unfortunately, none were cuda, but it was fun to get pulls from a skippy and a few more yellowfins, the majority of which were released. By 1pm, we decided to call it a day and went in to beach with a tally of 1 dorado, 1 skipjack, 2 bonito and 6 yellowfin.

A Royal Treat

On Sunday 29^th April, I launched with Dewald and Andre Smit, and the boys on “Seaduction”. We were hoping to get a few of the GT’s that were around. The SW wind had blow through the night and the sea was pretty uncomfortable. We battled to get livies, but eventually had enough to fish with. The ride out to the reef was bumpy so we took it slow and after about an hour, we arrived.

There was still a good showing like the previous day, so I was confident that we would get a few fish, despite the big swell. 

I rigged up a bait and explained to Dewald what to expect on the strike. No sooner had we started marking the fish on the sounder, the rod bumped and pulled down. Dewald fed the fish and tightened up. He was on to a fish, but it was not pulling like the previous day’s fish. When he had it at the surface, we saw why… it was a small GT of only about 10kg.

We headed back up to the mark and rigged another livie. Almost as soon as it hit the water, Andre went tight with a GT. This fish gave more of fight and after about 10 minutes, we had a fish of about 15kg. Dewald and Andre took turns on the rod and the next 2 fish were a bit better size, about 20 and 25kg each.

As the day went on, the sea settled beautifully and the showing on the sounder just got bigger and bigger. There were about 8 boats on the reef and most were getting pulls, but these strong fish were testing their tackle to the max. I witnessed a few rods snap, reel handles break, and countless knots pull. We were lucky as the only fish we lost were due to pulled hooks or being reefed. It was amazing that the bite could be so consistent. Every time the bait was positioned correctly, we had a pull within 30 seconds! It was however very concerning to see a lot of these fish being gaffed and boated.

By the end of the day, we had caught 15 good size GTs. The average size fish was however smaller than the previous day, but still respectable at around 16-20kg.

Over the next 2 days, the SW blew 20 knots and the conditions changed. The strong reverse current came in and the fish faded away. We launched "Ohana" With Jannie and Andre on the Tuesday the 1^st and only caught 1 GT and got reefed by another.

Kings of the reef!

On Saturday 28^th April at about 6am, Jurgen Putz and I launched “ABF” off Richards Bay. We were hoping to find some of the amberjack and kingfish we had caught the previous weekend. Our first stop was on the pipeline to catch some bait, but there was nothing to be found. After puzzling around on a few spots, we managed to find about 10 maasbanker. With a few livies in the well, we headed out to the reef.

GT released (100cm)

When we arrived, the water was a dark green colour and 23 degrees. Not exactly ideal, but I slowly drove over the reef and saw a really good showing. The other boats were trolling around and none of them had any action, so I quickly rigged a livie and put it out. I passed the rod to Jurgen and was still busy explaining what to expect when the rod was almost pulled out of his hands by a fish! He locked up and the heavy jigging rod buckled over. The reel was set on 12kg drag and it made little impression on the fish’s first run. Jurgen had to thumb the spool to eventually get the fish under control. I positioned the boat on top of the fish to keep the line vertical to prevent being cut off. The big head nods continued for most of the fight and after 15 minutes of extra heavy pressure, the fish was next to the boat. It was a beautiful GT of about 20kg. After a few pics, we speared the fish back into the water and it swam off strong. Not a bad way to start the morning!

Jurgen with another GT (109cm)

A good GT being tagged

I rigged another livie and drove to the same spot. No sooner had the bait hit the water, another GT grabbed it and the fight was on again. During the fight, I scratched around in my fishing bag and found my ORI tag kit. When Jurgen had the fish on the boat, we measured the length and inserted a tag before releasing another good fish. Again I rigged up a livie and stopped on the mark. This time, when Jurgen hooked up, the fish took a strong, sustained run and I had to chase after it a bit to get the line vertical. The fight was a bit different to the first two and when the fish was next to the boat, we saw why. It was a good Amberjack of about 14kg… Jurgen’s first. Stoked with this good fish, we headed back up to the mark. Two other boats were vertical jigging on the spot so I pulled in next to them. I was busy talking to Terence, the skipper of one of the boats, when Jurgen’s rod keeled over again. I took chase. It was another good amberjack. This was turning out to be a great morning! The other boats had not had a pull yet, so I assumed the bite was slowing. I moved in between the other boats and put a bait out myself while Jurgen took the controls. To the disbelief of the other boats, it took only a few seconds to hookup again! I put on as much pressure as I could and just before my back started to give out, the fish was next to the boat. Another great GT which we tagged and released.

25kg being released (113cm)

It was only 8:30 and we had 5 decent fish. I expected the bite to start slowing but every time we put a bait on the showing, we hooked up. By 10am, we had 4 GTs and 5 Amberjack. A few other boats arrived on the scene and with all the transducer pinging and vertical jigs banging on the reef, the fish became a bit shy. I suggested a slightly different approach to the situation, just to see what would happen. Sure enough, the subtle change saw us hooking up on every pass over the showing. When I finally felt strong enough to take another strike, it was my luck that I hooked a big potatoe bass!

Big pressure on an Amberjack

At about noon the bite finally slowed. The fish had scattered a bit the other boats started moving off. We had almost no bait left so I scrounged a few livies from Jorrie on his boat “Frigate”. I rigged up a tuna trace on a small spinning rod and pinned one of the livie. The showing had moved a bit so it took a while to find it but when I finally did, Jurgen put the bait out and quickly went on with a small yellowfin the we bled for sushi.

At about 1pm, we were the only boat left on the reef. Slowly but surely the life returned to the are with small bonnies on the surface and a proper showing. I put out another livie on the big rod and went on immediately! Jurgen was back in action again. I called Terence and suggested he come back to the area as it had switched on again. The two boats made turns swimming baits and fighting fish off the shoal. Terence had hooked up a fish and were spending a lot of time in it. We had managed 2 more released in that time, so it was obviously a decent fish. Eventually he called me on the radio and told me they had released a GT that measured 129cm… equivalent to 41kg… an excellent fish.

Jurgen's 100lbs GT (133cm)

It was getting late, so I suggested we make one last drop. The bait was in the water for only a few moments and Jurgen hooked up. Immediately we knew this was a bigger fish as it was fighting in a different league. It took us close on 20 minutes to turn it for the first time and from there it was another 10 minutes to get it to the boat. When we saw the GT, we were shocked at the size. It was quickly tagged, measured and released. The equivalent weight was 45.7kg! The tally for the day was 8 GT’s released (All over 100cm, biggest 45kg), 11 Amberjack (biggest 26kg), 2 kawa-kawa, a yellowfin and a potatoe bass. Talk about an epic day!

Buckled and Bent

On Sunday 22^nd April, At and I launched Avanti off Richards Bay. We were hoping to catch a few jube-jubes for bait for the cuda season. The forecast was for a perfect day. The water was warm and clean and just enough current to keep things active.

A 16kg Amberjack 

Our first stop was on the bait marks and it did not take long to get a hatch full of bait. We headed out to the ledge and started trolling a few small lures around. There was not much activity and almost no showing on the reef, so we trolled south hoping to find the bonnies. Eventually we spotted a few splashed and as we trolled through the area, all the rods went on with beautiful small bonnies. We made a few turns in the area and managed quite a few baits and a small yellowfin tuna, but they grey wary of the boat and sounded, so we continued trolling south. A short while later, the big rapala close to the boat was eaten. It came to the boat easily, and in the clean water, I could see it was a wahoo. Unfortunately, it made a run at the boat and the hook pulled. Things were very quiet, so we decided to put some live bait down for bottomfish. The current was just perfect so with one motor in gear and the autopilot on, the boat maintained position and we could both fish. There were no takers on the bottom, so I rigged a live maasbanker and put it out on the surface on my light spinning rod. After about 20 minutes, there was a big splash on the surface and the spinning reel smoked off. We chased after the fish which all but spooled the reel. When it finally slowed, the fish changed direction. I’m guessing the leader pulled across its tooth as the 40lbs leader cut off close to the bait.

At with a 23Kg GT 

There was a good showing on the sounder, but nothing was eating. There were a few splashed near us, so we put out the small lures again. At one stage, I was bringing in a bonito when something smashed it, leaving only the head. I flicked it back into the water and a wahoo streaked in and grabbed it, biting through the nylon. I quickly grabbed a dead bonnie out the cooler and pinned it on my light spinning rig. As it hit the water, the wahoo grabbed it and streaked off. I fed it a bit, but when I tightened up, the fish made a short run before the hook pulled. Knowing there were a few wahoo around, I rigged up a live maasbanker and put it out on the surface. Moments later, I was onto a fish but it turned out to be another small yellowfin.

A 20kg GT about to be released

At positioned the boat on a nice showing and held the boat there while I put a livie into the showing. As the bait reached the right depth, the rod buckled and the reel smoked off. I had 80lbs braid with a 12kg drag on the fish but it still made an impressive run. About 15 minutes later, I had a hard fighting amberjack of about 15kg in the boat. My arms were tired so I took the wheel while At put down a livie. As the showing came through, he went tight! The fish didn’t make a long run, but it was difficult to lift it. About 20minutes later At had a beautiful kingfish next to the boat. Unfortunately the fish was in the gills so we loaded the 23kg kingie. We had drifted off the showing so a fare was so I put out a small lure while At took us back. Just as we arrived on the mark, I caught a small bonnie which I rigged up and let out on the surface. Before I could get a second bait rigged, the reel smoked off but moments later, the main line parted. On closer inspection I could see that it was cut off. My guess was it was a wahoo that doubled back and swam into the line. I put on a new trace and threw a small spoon into the bonnies. Soon I had another bonnie on the surface. At trolled slowly north and almost on cue, the reel took off. This time it was a slow but strong run and the fish stayed deep. We both thought it was a shark, but I could gain a bit of line and after about 20 minutes, the fish showed itself. It was another big kingfish of about 20kg. Luckily this one was hooked in the jaw and didn’t have any barotrauma so after a quick pic, I released it.

Me with a 27Kg GT

Again we moved back up to the spot and managed to get another bonnie on the spoon so it was rigged and put out on surface. There was a good mid water showing so I sent a livie into it. While I was waiting for a pull, the bonnie was eaten and At took the strike. While the fish was giving him a good pull, my rod was almost jerked out of my hands by a strong fish. It made a strong run big head nods. Both of us were bending on fish so I tried to stay at the back of the boat while At brought his fish closer. We were both surprised when his fish came into view. It was a huge kawa-kawa of about 9kg. With the worry of burning off gone, I could move to the front of the boat and fight from there. Eventually the fish tired and I could lift its head. It started coming up easily and I could see bubbles coming to the surface. Down deep I could just make out the silver body of a big kingfish. When it surfaced, the stomach was hanging out its mouth and it had blown badly. I tried to get it back down but failed so we reluctantly loaded the 27kg fish.

At with his 19kg Amberjack

We had one decent livie left in the live well so I talked At into going back onto the mark. I let the bait down into the small showing and almost immediately went tight. The fish made an incredibly strong run against a heavy drag and extra pressure from me thumbing the spool. After the run, I managed to gain some line, but my hands started cramping so I passed the rod to At. He too started cramping up but managed to pull it off the bottom. The fish fought him almost all the way to the boat before giving up. It was a lovely 19kg amberjack!

That fish was the nail in both our coffins so we packed the rods away and headed home.

Swording is fun ... but its hard work!

On Tuesday 20^th March, Wayne Ritchie, Hansie van Wyk, Herman Olivier and I boarded a plane headed for Kenya. We wanted to focus on broadbill and learning the techniques used to catch them.

We landed in Mombasa at noon on Wednesday 21^st and had an eventful trip up to Watamu where we checked into Ocean Sports. Our charter captain Rob Hellier from “Unreel” met us there for a welcome drink and we discussed the plan for the week. The festivities carried on into the night but luckily, we had some time before we would head to sea.

On Thursday 22^ndat around 3pm, we hopped into a tender made our way to Rob’s boat. From there we headed out to sea for about 10 miles before putting out a few lures and trolling the rest of the way to the rips. Unfortunately, the water colour did not look good on the drop-off, but as we approached the seamount, the water cleared up and looked beautiful.

My Royal Billfish Slam completed!

At around 6:30pm, the lures with squid strips and light sticks were deployed. Two on the outriggers and one on the downrigger at about 30m down. Rob trolled south at about 3-4knots along an underwater ridge that went from 1700ft to 1300ft and back to 1700ft. There were several boats on the water and at 8pm two had released fish. We headed south to where they were fishing and at 10pm, the downrigger rod went away with a speed. There was a commotion on the surface and a big glowing foam as the fish thrashed on the surface. I was on strike and after backing up on the fish and getting it close, it took off on a 200m run straight down. After a further 20 minutes, it was back on top where we could see the light stick just inches from the rod tip. As the Daddus the deckie prepared to take the leader, the worst imaginable thing happened … hook pulled! We had no option but to try again.

Herman's 1st Broadbill

We had caught a few big squid on the surface lures earlier in the evening, so the fresh strips were rigged up. About an hour later, we had a pull on the long rigger, but it never stuck. It came back twice but never hooked up. Rob made a turn and we slipped back a small whole squid. I was busy feeding it out when it was hit. I fed the fish for a while, but again it didn’t connect. Trolling commenced and at 1am, the downrigger rod took off again. The lightstick raced across the surface as the fish went on a fast run. I took the strike and Rob backed up on the lightstick. There were a few tense moments as the fish violently shook its head and made short runs, but eventually it settled down and I could get it under control. Daddus took hold of the leader and brought the fish alongside. Hansie grabbed the bill and they lifted a feisty broadbill swordfish into the boat. After a few quick pics, it was released. I was over the moon! This fish was the last one I needed for my Royal Billfish Slam of 9 billfish species. My trip was made, and it was only night one!

Wayne with a broadie

Without wasting time, the lines went out again. Herman was up next and an hour later, he was hooked up to his first broadbill. This fish came to the boat quickly and after a few pics, was also released. What a night it was!

Things went quiet and apart from a quick on-off on the downrigger at dawn, there was no further action, so we trolled back to Watamu where I celebrated my Royal Billfish Slam and Herman’s first swordfish.

On Friday 23^rd, after a long afternoon / evening snooze, I woke up to the sound of the boats diesel motors idling along. The celebrations had obviously taken their toll on me, but I was glad to be back on the water. After 10pm, there was a hit on the downrigger. After a short run, the fish unfortunately pulled hook. At around midnight, the moon went down and we had a solid take on the downrigger. Wayne was on the rod and made short work of his first broadbill which was also released.

The night wore on with only a few squid bites, and at about 3am the downrigger rod went away again. Hansie took the strike but he immediately felt the heavy shakes of a fish that was wrapped in the leader. It was not surprising when the hook unfortunately pulled. This was the last swordfish bite for the night. When the sun came up, the lures went out and we trolled back. On the way, we managed to get a wahoo and two dorado. 

After two back to back nights, we decided that we needed a day off to recuperate. With all our sleep caught up, we were ready for another two nights.

Hansie "Polu Kai" van Wyk

There were a few fish down south of Kilifi on our off day, so Rob suggested we head there and work our way north if it was quiet. With the lures out, it didn’t take long for us to get a dorado. Not long after, a stripey came in and hooked up on the left short. Wayne was on the rod and after 20 minutes released a feisty marlin. 

There was a ship drifting near the seamount so we trolled around it and caught 3 more dorado. Just before dark, another stripey charged down the lure, but didn’t commit. It seemed there was some daytime action so we hoped that it would continue into the night, but it was anything but. Apart from a few squid, it was very quiet. At about 10pm, while checking the downrigger bait, the rod shook violently and the reel took off as a sword grabbed the lure. Hansie had the rod in his hands when this happened so he was fighting straight away. The fish took some line, but before we could clear the other lines, the hook pulled!

Trolling commenced and at about midnight, the short rigger popped and the reel ran a bit. The light stick hopped in the air as the fish jumped, but it didn’t fight like a sword. It ended up being a small dorado!

Hansie's Swordfish

The moon went down at 1am and we were hoping for the swords to come up, but nothing happened. Rob decided to troll north with the current to the ledge where we had fished the previously. He worked the area for an hour or two and began marking fish. At 4:30, the downrigger rod went away and Hansie was into a broadbill. It went on a deep run and Hans said it felt different, almost as if it was a dead weight. He fought the fish for about 25 minutes before the light stick hit the rod tip. With the fish next to the boat, we could see it had totally wrapped in the leader and was DOA so it was loaded. We were over the moon as all of us had caught a broadbill for the trip!

Grand Slam Blue

With very little time left, the lines went out again and Rob made a turn over the same spot. The short rigger popped and the reel gave a short burst before the hook pulled. I held the bait there and sure enough the fish came back. It missed the hook twice before fading to the long bait which it crashed and hooked up. I could feel it was a small fish so Rob backed up on it and Daddus grabbed the leader. While he was trying to calm the fish down, the hook came out and the fish was released. By now the sky was light so the marlin lures went out. Rob trolled through the rips and over a few seamounts on the way home. First we got a nice dorado and a 20kg wahoo. 

Shortly after, the centre rigger popped and Herman was hooked up to a 300Lbs blue marlin. The fish made several jumps then sounded. After about 45 minutes, it came up and Daddus grabbed the leader and brought the fish along side where it was released. Only then did we realise that we had caught a boat grand slam of 3 billfish species in 24hrs … a first for all of us! Awesome! Despite looking for a black or a sail, it was not to be and we headed back to Watamu. It goes without saying that there was a bit of celebrating that went on that morning…

On our last night, we fished aboard “Tarka” with Cullem. The conditions were a bit bumpier than the previous evening and we rocked and rolled quite a bit in the rips. Things were quiet in the early part of the evening but at 10pm, the short rigger popped. Herman was on the rod and was hooked up to what seemed to be a small sword. Before the other lines were cleared, Herman had the lightstick right next to the boat. We were ready to take the leader when it turned and made a bit of a run. This run then accelerated with big head shakes. Realising it was not that small, the deck was cleared and the fight started in earnest. An hour later, with the line now straight up and down, we got Herman into a harness so he could put some heat on the fish. Unfortunately after only a few minutes, the harness straps ripped off and Herman just managed to grab the rod in time. With another harness on, he fought on into the night. Finally the line angle came up and we could back up on the fish. The light stick was on the surface only meters from the boat. 

Herman after 2 hours

The fish moved out from under the boat’s shadow and obviously did not like the bright moon as it got its head down and made another 100m run straight down. Two hours into the fight, the fish shook its head and shot to the surface. We all thought it had come off, but the rod then keeled over again as the fish changed direction. Again the lightstick was close, but we just could not get the leader and again the fish sounded. This time it swam just below the thermocline and would not budge. There it stayed for another hour while we tried every trick in the book to get the fish to change its mind. Eventually the angle increased and the fish came up. The lightstick was clearly visible 20m from the stern. Cullem backed towards the fish but when it was only meters away, it shook its head and took off on a run that was as strong as its first one more that 3 hours earlier. With the fish still on surface we again slowly backed up on the fish. Herman was gaining line steadily and all was under control when the hook pulled and the fish was gone! 

Wayne with Broadie #2

It was enough to make one cry. After 3 and a half hours, we were so close yet so far. We had drifted 7 miles with the fish and it took us a while to get back to the area we hooked it. By now it was 3am and we were in position again on the ledge. I heard the rigger pop and then the reel took off. Wayne was on the rod and the deckies were clearing the downrigger, so I cleared the long rigger rod. The swivel hit the rod tip and I leaned over to lift the lure into the boat when there was an almighty splash just 2 meters from the transom. The leader ripped out of my hand the rod keeled over. We had a double! I just managed to hold on to the rod as the lightstick flew under the boat and out to the side. The fish went on a mental run on the surface while Wayne’s fish sulked near the boat just under the surface. I let my fish run while Wayne fought and eventually released his second swordfish. By that stage, I was into the backing with 200m topshot off the reel, but we took it calm and soon had the fish just below the boat. Just as the deckie was reaching out to grab the leader, the hook pulled! Nuts!

Jono Boosen Tours

With just an hour of darkness left, the trolling commenced. As the sun came up, the downrigger popped, but when the fish jumped, we saw that is was a dorado which quickly threw the hook. That brought our Kenya Broadbill trip to an end. The aim was to tick a sword off all our boxes and we had done just that … and more. Thanks to the guys for a great trip.