On Saturday the 7th August, we had planned a fishing trip with my sister, Julie, brother in law, Carl and my Dad. We wanted to target the ladies 3kg line class record for Garrick. The weather forecast did not look good. There was supposed to be a small window of good weather in the morning before the NE wind would get up and blow us off the water. We decided to launch as early as possible to get in what little fishing we could.
At 6am we headed for the ski-boat club and were in the water by 6:30. We then headed out to the pipeline to catch livebait. The sea was beautiful with no wind and almost no swell. Carl and I dropped the jigs down on a good showing and immediately went on. We brought up strings of maasbanker, shad and pinkies. By 7:30 the live well was full, we headed off to the backline to look for Garrick. We had decided on an area between 5 mile and groenkop where the low tide created a few strong rips. I rigged up 2 shad and a pinkie on the 3kg spinning rigs and my Dad worked from south to north through the rips. After about an hour, we had just turned to work back south when one of the shad was eaten. Julie rushed to the rod and fed the fish while Carl and I cleared the other lines. After we were happy that the fish had swallowed the bait, my Dad increased the speed and Julie started winding. The line took tension and ran off the reel. Hookup! The fish ran straight fot the backline which indicated that it was indeed a Garrick. The current record is vacant so we knew that this was the fish we were looking for. My Dad moved the boat into deeper water out of the surf zone so that we could fight the fish in open water. Julie brought the fish to the boat and had the leader on the rod after 15 mins. But this is where our progress came to a grinding halt. The fish turned broadside and stayed just out of reach. Every now and again, it would make a run along the surface breaking surface, trying to throw the hook. After the leader had been through the tip guide about twenty times, I managed to get the gaff into the fish and haul it aboard. Mission accomplished! It was a nice size fish and it had given Julie a good rev.
It was still early so we decided to try for another fish. I put the 3kg away and put the three 6kg spinning rigs out. The Garrick record on 6kg is just under 10kg, so we needed a relatively big fish. Again I put out 2 shad on the surface and a pinkie on the bottom. We worked the same rip for a while without a strike so moved further south to try another rip. As we moved into the turbulent water, the far shad was eaten. Again Julie fed the fish and after a while, my Dad opened the motor and the line came tight. The fish came to the boat quickly and as it made a pass at the boat, I put the gaff in.
It was not big enough for the record so we continued trolling along the rip. The lines had been in the water for a short while when the deep pinkie bait started revving. The rod bent and the reel freespooled. Julie took the rod and fed the fish for a bit before tightening up. Hookup! The fish fought in the surf and gave a good show on the surface. After a few minutes, the fish was at the boat. We decided to tag the fish as it was once again not big enough for a record. Carl put a wet towel on the deck and got the tag ready. I traced the fish and took hold of the tail. The fish was still very strong and I battled to keep hold of it. Eventually, I took hold of the tail with two hands and lifted it into the boat. I inserted the tag, measured it and then cut the leader. We took a few photos and then sent the fish on its way.
The tide was now starting to turn and the rip was dissipating so we quickly put the lines in the water to work it before it was gone. A few minutes after entering the rip, Carl shouted that there was a commotion on the surface just behind the boat. I saw the rigged shad jumping out the water trying to get away from something. Then a Garrick came up behind the shad, turning the water into a ball of foam and spray. When the shad landed, it disappeared in a big swirl. We all expected the reel to start running, but nothing. Julie retrieved the line to find the shad had been hit off the bridle and we were left with a bare hook. Moments later, the other surface shad was eaten. The reel free spooled and Julie took the rod. After a short while, we struck the fish and again the hook found it’s mark. This fish came to the boat very quickly and we saw that it was also quite small so again we decided to release it. We had the fish on the leader and Julie put some pressure on it so that I could get my hands on it. It was on the surface, next to the boat when it gave a last kick and the hook came out. Oh well, it was probably better that way in any case.
By 12:00 the rips had frizzled out and we were left to work the backline blindly. The sea was still beautiful and the strong wind that was predicted had not arrived. About an hour passed without any luck so we trolled south towards the harbour. Just in front of 5 Mile lighthouse, the deep bait revved and the reel freespooled. Again Julie fed the fish and then tightened up. The rod dipped for a bit, then came back as the hook pulled free. Oh well, 4 out of 5 is not bad. We decided to call it a day and packed up and headed home. We weighed the two Garrick and the smaller one was 7,2kg. The fish on 3kg line was 9,2kg, a new Ladies SA record.
