Angling Report

Fishing conditions seemed to change day-by-day last week as the wind blew in every direction. For the most part the surf remained fishable although rough at times with some dirty water in areas.
I believe that the new fishing regulations will be released at the end of the month and it is going to be really interesting to see how these new laws will affect the local recreational anglers. I have heard lots of speculation but I believe that this helps no-one and it is better to see what the new laws have in store before discussing its impact.
Local anglers are still targeting the copper bream but anglers that frequent the La Mercy area are wary about fishing the area after the latest hold up of an angler fishing near the Sea Belle hotel. This angler was fishing alone and was confronted by two armed robbers that “cleaned him out”.
In the river mouth areas where the water was a little discoloured, anglers found snapper salmon on the bite and some nice sized fish were caught on light tackle. There have been a few shad in some areas (even though the season is closed) and a few big stone bream and pamphlets were also caught last week.
In the Umhlanga area, anglers fishing near the lighthouse with crab caught a couple of nice sized brusher when the surf was rough. Sharks were feeding in many areas and anglers targeting shad found these fish to be a nuisance. The water between Glenashley and Virginia was dirty for most of the week and very few edible fish were landed. Most of the anglers are targeting shad with little luck and these guys do not seem to care that the season will be closed for just over another month.
While I was in the Durban area I had a word with a couple of surf ski anglers and they said that the fishing had not been great because of the dirty water and choppy sea conditions. One angler said that he had struggled to find live bait and when he eventually managed to catch a few pinkies, every live bait that he put out was eaten by a shark. Windy conditions also ensured that the surf ski anglers did not spend much time at sea and this was a pity because the guys were doing well with the garrick, snoek and yellowfin tuna of late.
Ski boat or deep sea angling has always been an expensive game but when one talks to skippers these days, you realise just how expensive it has become. Safety equipment is not cheap and several items have to be renewed regularly. I hear that the on-board radios have changed from the old 29mhz models which worked really well to new VHF sets that require skippers to attend a course to achieve a certificate at a cost of R1, 800. Everyone uses cellphones these days.
Anyone wanting to invest in a decent fully equipped deep sea fishing craft has to have very deep pockets and the cost does not end with the boat itself. There are club fees, affiliation fees, cost of fishing tackle, repairs or servicing of motors and then the is the high price of fuel. One must now have a vehicle powerful enough to tow the boat, be equipped with a winch to pull the craft onto a trailer plus all the hidden costs that one does not allow for. There are also restrictions on catches allowed which could become even more if the proposed new marine reserves get the go ahead. I would say that every fishing trip that a deep sea recreational angler plans must be considered as a loss even though they might have a decent catch. No wonder one does not see the number of ski-boats launching today as there used to be.
Sealice

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