FISHING EC BAIT DEMO
CATCH COMPETITION
TIDES
DECEMBER 2015
ALCOCK’S River Bream On Grunter Hunter
SUNDAYS Classic 2016
RASSPL
Border Blacktips Haga Haga Results
KAYAK CORNER
Brett Armstrong
E FRE Y COP ASE PLE ONE E TAK
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ISSUE: 24
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FEC | December 2015
CONTENT
River Bream On Grunter Hunter 04 Border RASSPL Haga Haga 06
Sundays Classic 2016 12
Kayak Corner
FEATURES Bait Demo
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Circle hook with foam rig for river angling.
Catch Competition 26 Send us your photos and you could win.
Tides
Check the tide tables to make sure you fishing the right times.
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22 Target Line
Freshwater Angling Club results after 8 competitions in 2015.
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EDITORS
LETTER
MAGAZINE EDITOR Nigel Louw CONTRIBUTORS The Alcock’s Shane Smit Kenny Brown Brett Armstrong Carl Henn
CONTACT ADVERTISING: email: nigel@fishingec.com Mobile: 073 690 2606 Website: www.fishingec.com
Find us on Facebook Search: Fishing The Eastern Cape
No part of this magazine may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of Fishing The Eastern Cape. The magazine is published monthly and cannot be held responsible for inaccuracies in articles. The views expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of the editor. Fishing The Eastern Cape does not accept responsibility for advertising content.
I hope everyone is going to get out there this December and fish, because if you don’t you will be missing one of the best seasons. We have had reports and received emails of lots of large Kob catches from estuaries to rock and surf and deep sea. Also good species around as you can see from the last Haga Haga RASSPL competition. Some stand out catches on the Port Elizabeth side is the 20kg plus Leeries that have been coming out of the Swartkops River. Don’t forget to send in your catch photos for our Catch & Win page. You could be the next winner.
Nigel Louw Editor
ON THE COVER
Derek Nicholson with a large Kob he caught on live Mullet in the Haga Haga RASSPL competition. FEC | December 2015
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River Bream
On Grunter Hunters Words/pics: The Alcock’s
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ur family organised a quick trip to the Transkei to test our new colours of the Alcock Brothers Grunter Hunter which is designed to catch Grunter on top water lures so we decided to test it on one of our favourite fish – the River Perch or Bream. After a 5 and a half hour trip we unpacked our stuff, launched the boat and were off to do our first afternoon’s fishing for Bream. We headed up river to some rocky cliffs that we know hold plenty of Bream. My Dad was on the front of the boat which is the best position to get the first cast at the Bream.
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He had a couple of casts against the cliff with no luck then as the tide started to go out the Bream began to bite. He did a perfect cast a couple of centimetres away from the cliff, a small tweak to get the rattle attracting the Bream and he had a little boil, then on the next tweak – Smash, into a nice Bream. After a short fight he landed a lovely fish of about 1.2kg – Lando in the meantime, had seen a Bream rise and threw his Chartreuse Grunter Hunter right against the cliff face – he let it lie still for a couple of seconds and on his first tweak was
smashed by a lovely Bream which was a little bigger than my Dad’s. We were obviously very happy as we had not tested these colours on Bream before but they were turning out to be a huge success. As the tide went out we caught more and more Bream and ended with about 10 for the afternoon. We caught Bream for the next couple of days and managed to land 3 Grunter as well on Grunter Hunters which bodes well for the future as on our next trip will specifically target Grunter and let you guys know how it goes. The Grunter Hunter is so versatile that you can catch Kingies, Leeries, Grunter, Bream, Snapper and almost any game fish on them. It really has been a huge success so far. FEC | December 2015
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Border Blacktips Haga Haga Results Words/pics: Shane Smit
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he Border Blacktips held our 4th league competition on the 7th of November at one of The border regions most beautiful locations, Haga Haga. Haga Haga is one of the teams all time favourite locations and it shows as we managed a healthy total of 90 anglers for the day. Lines in was at 6am and straight off the bat visiting angler Ryan Armstrong managed a beautiful 8kg kob on slide mullet just right of pullins bay. At any of our previous comps this season, Ryans kob would’ve been in the prizes but not on this day as not long into the morning, member angler Derek Nicholson landed a healthy 13kg kob also on slide which won him top honours in the edibles section. Most anglers will agree that fishing was not at its best in terms of fish numbers with just on FEC | December 2015
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30 anglers blobbing for the day. 144 Fish in total were caught with Bronze bream, dogsharks, sandys and small black Steenbras making up the bulk of it. We did however have an outstanding catch at Haga Haga with a 7.5kg Geelbek being caught by member Mark Birkholtz late in the day. A strong southwest wind pulled in late morning and for most this was the end of the bites unfortunately. Border Blacktips team manager John Frost showed some dedication and dropshotting in the gale wind caught a decent 3-4kg kob and losing 2 others in quick succession with 1 of them almost literally pulling him into the water to the amusement of the competing anglers close by. Member Ashley Sangerhaus took top honours in the non edible division with a healthy 20kg grey shark and Mark Birkholtz 2nd with a 8kg smooth hound shark. Heaviest ray went to Member Neil Reynolds with a good blueray of 14kg. Rounding up the top 3 edibles was member Tony Davis 8
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with a silver Steenbras of 3kg. The ladies and juniors found conditions testing but as always showing the men that they are equal to the task with Visiting Kowie angler Marinda Venter managing a 1.2kg Bronze bream and Border Blacktips Newcomer Stephanie Siebert a 1kg Sandy at Pullins Bay. Top Junior went to Blake Clarke with a nice shad. All in all a great day was had by all with a lot of laughs and good camaraderie shown amongst the competitors. 144 fish consisting of 24 different species with a combined weight of 213.8kg of fish were caught and successfully released at Haga Haga so well done to all the anglers! A big thanks to all our sponsors for making our competitions possible but a
big Thank you must surely go to Neil at Haga Haga Hotel for his great hospitality during the event aswell as the sponsored prize of a weekend away for 2 at his fine establishment. We cannot wait until the next competition I assure you! Our next competition and last one for 2015 will be at Kiwane on the 28th of November where we will end the year off with a bang! It is our biggest comp of the season by far so you do not want to miss this one! Remember that anyone can enter any of our comps, for more information and pre-registrations drop me a mail at shane.rasspl@gmail.com
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R E V I R S SUNDAY 6 1 0 2 C I S CLAS y Brown
nn Words/pics: Ke
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he Sundays River Angling Club is based about 45km’s east of Port Elizabeth and sits just off the banks of the beautiful estuary of the Sundays River. The Club is one of the oldest Light Tackle Boat Angling Clubs in the Eastern Cape, clocking 81 years old this year. The format of our competitions had to be changed over the past years to become more in line with protecting our marine environment and as well as educating our anglers. We had to start implementing catch, measure and release system on all our FEC | December 2015
competitions. Since we changed the format for the better of both angler and the environment, we launched our prestige angling event called the Sundays River Classic. This angling event will be running its 5th year in January 2016 and has only grown year by year. The competition started off with a merely 84 anglers participating and has now grown to 296 anglers participating in our last event in 2015. The competition is based on a specie draw and is open to all boat, bank and kayak
anglers. We have identified 10 common species caught in the Sundays River and the biggest fish of each specie will go into a draw for the main prize. So even if you caught the biggest fish, a smaller fish of different specie could win. This gives each participant affair chance. The main prize will consist of R10 000 cash, 2nd prize R5 000 cash and 3rd prize R3 000 cash, plus each will receive some prizes. Thanks to all our loyal sponsors that have been with us each year and ensuring we FEC | December 2015
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can make this event possible. We have grown from a mere 23 sponsors to over 80 sponsors recorded at the last event. Our event prize value has also grown from R18 000 to over R100 000 worth of prizes for our January 2016 competition. Friday the 22nd of January ‘16 will be the opening function together with registration that will take place at the Sundays River Angling Club. The first 100 anglers will each receive a goody bag. People will be entertained with live music, braai fires and even be energized by the Red Bull Wings Team. Lucky draws will take place during the evening with the main draw prize being a Raymarine fish finder. Saturday the 23rd we will start with a skippers briefing in the morning, followed with the start of the competition. Lucky draws will take place during the skippers briefing with the main draw prize being a Lowrance fish finder. The first 20 fish caught, measured & released will each receive a R100 cash, plus some prizes. Sunday the 24th lines up will be early in the morning, followed by a free breakfast roll for all participants. Prize giving will take place FEC | December 2015
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just after breakfast. Lots and lots of lucky draws will take place, so even if you did not catch a fish, you can still win a prize. Prizes vary from cash to a 15ft Kayak, to a generator, to vouchers, to hampers and prizes. For more info regarding the competition you can contact the Club Chairman, Kenny Brown on 082 655 6622. You can also like us on facebook.
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CORNER K A Y A K FISHING
Words/pics: Brett Armstrong
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ast London kayak fishing enthusiasts have a club under which we operate, namely, Kayak Fishing EC. We have a very informative website (with more updates to follow) at www.kayakfishingec. co.za and a Facebook page with the same name, Kayak Fishing EC, and would like to encourage you to go and checkout our site and to also Like us on Facebook and then share/spread the news. The club is focused on both ocean and river kayak fishing, so there is something for everyone here. We have a host of information and galleries available on the website, so check it out and join us on the water.
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Project Bamba – Concept Fishing Kayak: Over the last few weeks, I have managed to spend quite a bit of time at Wild Coast Kayaks where, Nigel has been assembling and modifying his new Fluid Bamba fishing kayak. He seems to suffer from the same OCD behavior as I do, taking extreme care and thought into everything things he does. He has a vast amount of experience at fishing and at modifying kayaks, so this was great for me to see and be a part of. He has customized one of the most beautiful kayaks I have had the pleasure of seeing. Some of the additions he has done included, the fitment of a Minn Kota electric trolling motor, rear box crate for additional storage, a retractable anchor system with anchor trolley system, a Railblaza light system, water proof hatches with removable bags, hatch lid control system, additional rod holders and my personal favorite, a live bait well with electronic bilge pump. Over the next few issues I will provide more photos and information on the many modifications he has done and more importantly the benefits thereof. I always believe, your kayak experience has to be enjoyable, so the more organized and setup you are, the better your experience will be. So watch this space for more detailed reviews and build details. The basic dimensions and specs on the Fluid Bamba are: Length – 425cm, Width -80cm and Weight – 34kg. It has an amazing amount of stability, but turns and gets up to speed extremely quickly. The power to weight ratio and hull design are very impressive. I was actually blown away by this kayak and even felt it would be a great kayak for the ocean as well. The built in Rudder system is extremely effective and the control in turning and in very windy and choppy water conditions is second to none. The plastic mould and quality of the build are very good. The amazing design with lots of storage compartments and hatches makes this an incredibly versatile and fun kayak to own. Checkout these photos of some of the modifications Nigel has done to his 2015 Fluid Bamba.
Aerator pump mounted in 6” hatch through a bung hole.
8” Hatch with spray nozzle, fed by the aerator pump in other hatch.
Electric motor speed control and live well pump switch. FEC | December 2015
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Custom bait board, Rail Blaza mounted over side and Railblaza rod holders.
Trolling motor custom installation with foot control steering.
For more information on kayak fishing and related aspects, please do not hesitate to contact me at info@kayakfishingec.co.za. Also checkout our website at www.kayakfishingec.co.za. To join our Whats app kayak fishing EL group, please message Brett on 071 883 8769 and request to be added to the list. Remember: Safety first and always respect our environment. FEC | December 2015
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TARGET LINE
Freshwater club results Words/pics: Carl Henn From Saturday 31/10/2015 to Sunday 01/11/2015, Target Line Freshwater Angling Club had its 8th club competition for the season, this time an overnight at Bridal Drift Dam, in East London. 10:00 was lines in and all had high expectations for this overnight. From early news started coming in of exceptional fish being caught and some heavy bags were going to be the order of the day. Yet again it was proven that some areas with shallower water produced better fish than deeper waters. At the weigh-in it was very clear that a record or two were going to be bettered for our club. The record for barbel and carp were probably going to be smashed. I felt sorry for our weigh master as the bags kept coming in. For such a young club as us, two individual club records were broken. Chris Koch landed a monster barbel of 13.500kg and Lezanda Engelbrecht landed a carp 22
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of 6.265kg. 258 fish were caught by 21 club members competing in this 24 hour comp with a total weight of 407.563kg . Here are the top results of the comp: Seniors: 1 Martin Piek 39 fish 38.243kg 2 Adriane Domoney 26 fish 44.416kg 3 Jacques Husselmann 9 fish 25.981kg Masters: 1 Chris Engelbrecht 2 Chris Koch 3 Jack Sutton
37 fish 59.415kg 11 fish 31.092kg 12 fish 17.304kg
Ladies: 1 Lezanda Engelbrecht 34 fish 60.069kg 2 Petra Piek 28 fish 39.889kg Juniors: 1 Jordan Barnard
1 carp 1.854kg
Here are the standings after 8 competitions: Seniors: 1 Martin Piek 147pts 2 Adriane Domoney 132pts 3 JJ Koch 100pts Masters: 1 Chris Englebrecht 147pts 2 Anthon Henn 126pts 3 Chris Koch 105pts Ladies: 1 Petra Piek 87pts 2 Lezanda Engelbrecht 79pts 3 Jackie Domoney 50pts
Juniors: 1 Liane Husselmann 2 Nikita Moodley 3 Jordan Barnard
70pts 45pts 15pts
Our next club competition will be Nahoon Dam in December and many fish are waiting to hit our scale. For any enquiries on how to join our club, feel free to call me on 073 857 2209, e-mail sales@targetline.co.za or targetlinefreshwaterangling@gmail.com or join on face book at Target Line FAC. See you all reel soon on the banks. FEC | December 2015
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X TIPS O B T I A B
THE
CIRCLE HOOK BAIT FOR RIVER ANGLING
This is another option to the dingle dangle rig by just using foam. For river use only as a hard cast in the sea would cause the bait to tear from the hook. You can cast it gently in the river. Words/pics: Nigel Louw
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You need a circle hook and some bait foam.
Slice a fillet along the one side of the sardine.
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Slice the stomack of the sardine.
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Place the foam strip on the fillet piece.
Sponsored by SPARGS MALL BEACON BAY 043 711 7700
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Cotton the fillet onto the foam.
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Place the stomach secion onto the other side of the foam.
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Cotton the stomach on to make a nice juicy bait. Lastly take your circle hook and pierce it through the foam and bait so it leaves the hook proud.
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CATCH & WIN Angler: Keegan Brunsdon Species: Yellowtail Location: Kei Mouth Bait: Sardine and Squid Size: 10.7kg
Angler: Shane Luck Species: Kob Location: Port St Johns Bait: Chokka Size: 24kg
Angler: Josh Tweeddale Species: Kob Location: Gonubie River Bait: Mad Mullet 2oz plug Size: 6kg Send us your best catch picture and you could win an awesome prize. (Photo must be of yourself holding the fish and preferably still alive. Photos of gutted fish do not qualify) Email your entry to nigel@fishingec.com with the following details: - Anglers full name - Species - Location caught | December 2015 26 - BaitFEC used - Size/Weight
November Winner Angler: Derek Nicholson Species: Spotted Gully Shark Location: Glen Eden Bait: Pinkprawn Size: 32kg
Derek wins himself an asortment of Triton lures. Sponsored by Bilimoria Fishing Tackle + an Alcock’s book.
Angler: Warren Ahlschlager Species: Kob Location: Wavecrest Bait: Bucktail Size: 80cm
Keep sending in your catches and stand a chance of winning a prize plus a copy of the new Alcock’s trolling and spinning book. FEC | December 2015
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TIDE CHART December 2015 Information supplied by the Hydrographer SA Navy The Hydrographer is not responsible for any transcription errors.
TO ADVERTISE WITH
CONTACT: NIGEL@FISHINGEC.COM 073 690 2606 28
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