FISHING has been quite good over the past two weeks, with garricks making an appearance.
Using live shad, mullet, karenteen or artificial lures, such as plugs, is the best way to hook these amazing fish.
There have been reports of anglers catching shad all along the South Coast.
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The Block in Port Shepstone is a favourite spot, with shad being caught there in abundance.
A few small kob and kingies have come in off the rocks, with paddle tails being the preferred way to target both these species.
There have also been some very big stonebream caught at Sandspit.
Bronze bream are still on the bite and there are some decent sizes that have been landed.
Trafalgar has been producing a lot of edible fish such as catface and yellow belly rock cods, as well as a few stumpies.
Sealice and chokka baits seem to be the winning baits for all these edible species. The odd blue ray has also come out while targeting edible fish.
Some good bottom fish have been coming in and a couple decent size couta being landed.
Two couta in the high 20kg mark were boated last week. Some decent amberjacks were caught.
Reports are that Craig Treherne landed a 26kg amber and a 20kg cracker recently.
In other news, one of the contacts on the South Coast Herald WhatsApp group raised hopes today when sending some photographs of sardines being netted at what looks like Margate beach.
The person actually said it was at Uvongo, which was the first ‘red flag’ that, sadly, there were no sardines anywhere.
The contact, known to the Herald only as ‘Hello There’ said she had been sent the photos by a friend.
Some of the younger journalists in the newsroom have never really experienced a proper Sardine Run, which is a great pity.
The photos show what used to be a consistent run, in its prime.
They’re interesting photos, showing the number of fish that used to be caught, and the excitement generated among South Coasters.
In the ‘old days’, beaches were packed with people, either swimming (knee deep) in the sea among the shoals, or just watching the frenzied excitement.
What was spectacular was the bird life that would follow the ‘Greatest Shoals on Earth’ as dubbed by the late John Tack, who played such a big role in boosting tourism in the area in his time.
Watching the birds dive for the fish was quite something.
Fishermen loved the arrival of the sardines as the big game fish followed after. The only down side was that the sharks followed the game fish, and the nets were taken out, so no swimming to far out.
So far this year there seems to be no sign of the silver fish, or any headed in this direction.
Whether is be global warming or foreign vessels off the Eastern Cape pillaging these fish, no one is one hundred percent sure.
Traditionally, cold water suits these fish, and while it has been called a migration, it’s arguably more accurate to call it a range extension.
Hopefully the day will come when a proper Sardine Run comes this way again, when people run into the sea in their work clothes, just for a chance to grab a few of the fish.
Send fishing news and pictures to desmondg@dbn.caxton.co.za.
Tight lines.
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