FISHFINDER

What to target in October

Whether holiday maker or competitive surf angler, knowing where to find fish and what bait and tackle to use is a great help. Here top surf anglers graciously give readers their hints and advice. We will be expanding this feature as we progress through the year.

Angola

Cubera snapper

• Boat and Beach
• Bait: Live bait, drop shot or stick bait
• State of tide: Outgoing tide
• Fishing regulations: Catch and Release

Info supplied by: Judy Langenhoven

Namibian Coastline

Cape Snoek

• Beach or boat? Boat
• Where to find them: Offshore in over 50m of water
• Favourite spots: Off Swakopmund
• State of the tide: Any
• Bait: Lures work well as does fly fishing.  For bait use pike
• Tackle: For the best sport, go as light as possible.  A 35g lure rod with 20lb braid is good fun.  Use a wire leader to prevent bite offs
• Fishing regulations: You may retain 20 per person with a valid fishing permit

Info supplied by Sea Ace Fishing Adventures. www.seaace.com.na

East London coast

Black musselcracker

Area: Deep sea

• Where to find: Deep sea reefs with a depth between 15 and 40 meters
• Favourite spots: Reef with a depth of 15 – 40 meters that have a good showing of baitfish (black musselcracker feed on the smaller bait fish that are located on these reefs).
• Tide: The tide doesn’t play much of a role when it comes to boat fishing for this species.
• Bait: Large sardine baits, and a bait known as a “flapper”, namely a bait fish with its backbone removed leaving the two fillets hanging from the head, with a 10/0 hook mounted through the mouth of the baitfish.
• Tackle: Rod: Shimano Beast Master Boat 70MH, Reel: Shimano Trinidad 30A, Line: Suffix high viz yellow 50lb braid.
• Fishing regulations: You can keep 1 black musselcracker per person per day if it measures 50cm total length or more.

Info supplied by: Kyle Schmidt

Langebaan (Oct + Nov)

White stumpnose

• Beach and boat
• Where to find them: Tidal pool, shallow water very close to the sand, between 4 – 7 meters deep.
• Favourite spots: Elflyn, Donkergat, Middelkeel.
• State of tide: Two hours before and two hours after low tide.
• Bait: Mud prawn
• Tackle: Medium 6-7ft rod, grinder with 10-15-pound line. 2/0 – 4/0 longshank hook with 20lb hookline of 500-600mm long. Round or oval sliding sinker of 2-3 oz.
• Fishing regulations: 10 per person bigger than 25cm. Please limit you catch and not catch your limit.

North Coast of Kwazulu Natal

Dorado

• Boat
• Where to find:  Open ocean in clean blue water.  Keeps in water of around 30 metres deep and deeper. Feeds just below the surface so don’t use any weights.
• Favourite spots:  Cape Vidal.
• Bait: Sardine, maasbanker and mackerel.  Dorado will also take lures.
• Tackle: It is generally accepted that a single circle hook tied to a 1m fluorocarbon trace line and live bait is most productive.  With dead bait, use a single J-hook and one No. 4 treble.
• Fishing regulations:  There is no size limit or closed season.  In the Isimangaliso Wetland Park, you may have a maximum of 5 fish per person per day in your possession.

Info supplied by: Manie Combrinck, Kayak angler of note.

Steenbras at the Plaat, Gansbaai

After I had been waiting for the sea conditions to improve, at long last on Friday, 4 September I could see conditions improving, and the next morning I awoke to hear rain falling. Just after it stopped I went to check on the surf and saw that it was almost perfect so I rushed down to collect fresh bait. I walked along the beach for about 6km checking out all the banks and gullies, chose a good spot then collected my bait and got to my spot about an hour and half after low tide – just what I wanted!

Using my 14ft Blue Marlin G3 with medium tip, my Diawa Saltist 50 and 18kg Blue Perline Nio leader, a sliding short sinker trace with pyramid sinker and a 900mm hook trace with a 5/0 J-hook, I walked out on to the sandbanks and sent a cast behind the bank. The bait had hardly hit the water with my reel in free spool when a fish hit but it was off. I threw the same cast but waded in to get better depth , and after about 20 minutes got a good hard pull; I waited for the second pull that was even harder then got ready to set the hook on the third pull. The fish gave a good fight – I didn’t get the weight of the fish but it was around 5kg-plus. Afterwards I landed more around the same size. – Trevor Gumbrill

Angola South

Garrick

• Beach or boat? Beach
• State of tide: Early morning and late afternoon. May to beginning of October
• Bait: Spoon or plug artlure
• Tackle: Assassin Amia kob 11ft, Penn Slammer 6500 reel and Grinder braid.

Info supplied by: Marina Kruger, Hentiesbay Angling Tours, 081 251 1489

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