Fishing EC Magazine October 2015

FISHING EC BAIT DEMO

CATCH COMPETITION

TIDES

OCTOBER 2015

ALCOCK’S Kob Mania

HAMBURG CLASSIC Results

RASSPL

Border Blacktips Gonubie Results

KAYAK CORNER

Brett Armstrong

E FRE Y COP ASE PLE ONE E TAK

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CONTENT

Kob Mania 04 Hamburg Classic

FEATURES

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Bait Demo

Border RASSPL Gonubie 10

Kayak Corner

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Mackerel head bait.

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

Target Line freshwater club competition results.

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EDITORS

LETTER

MAGAZINE EDITOR Nigel Louw CONTRIBUTORS The Alcock’s Christmas Rock L.T.B.C. Shane Smit 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.

Looks like we going to have some good fishing coming our way. With the warmer season and all the catches we have seen already on websites and Facebook. I have a feeling that the upper estuaries are going to hold lots of juvenile Kingfish for us to target.

The Alcock’s have also had a very good winter fishing season as you will see in there article. It is time to pull out the tackle trays and spin some lures.

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

Lando Alcock with a Kob caught on McArthy baits in the Gamtoos river.

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Kob Mania With the Alcock brothers Words/pics: Chad Alcock

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very year during the winter months we target Kob at the Gamtoos river and we mainly do it by trolling for them at the kransies. This year was no different and we took a couple of mates to troll for Kob over a few days. After a quick trip from Port Elizabeth we launched our boat and were excited for the fishing that lay ahead because every year we catch these fish at this time.

We trolled for 3 hours without a bite and were obviously very disappointed so we decided to move up to the old mouth where we target smaller fish on lead heads and McCarthy drop shots. This turned out to be Lando’s best fishing idea of the year, the Kob were absolutely gale! From Lando

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and my first cast we klapped Kob in the region of about 500g and 13kg the whole afternoon. In between this the little Leeries were chasing all around us and if we just quickened our retrieve we caught a Leerie every few casts.

To make matters even better the Elf were in abundance as well ranging in size from 1.5kg to 3kg and Lando even managed a fantastic sized Bream for the Gamtoos of about 2kg on a lead head.

Needless to say our mates that came with us had a fantastic trip as well and had some exceptional fishing that we will struggle to beat over the coming years but we will try. As the old saying goes “you can never

catch too many fish” – or something like that… And to make this trip even more memorable, over the couple of days we landed 16 Grunter between us on lead head as well.

The interesting thing is that all of the fish were caught on a new lead head that I tie – it’s a chartreuse and redhead lead head tied with olive and white bucktail. This new colour worked like a bomb and a lot of fishermen say that we are quite lucky because we catch a number of fish but I can tell you that we were the only people on the river so obviously if you put in the effort and fish at the right tides as well as the right time of year for your target species you will get good results! We fished a total of 4 days with hardly another boat on the river, the weather conditions were fantastic as it always is in winter and we caught well over 300 fish between us. Most of my customers were saying how poor fishing was and the reason for this is that there were very few other anglers on the water so next winter, if you want to catch some nice fish, put in the effort and your luck will change.

Don’t think it’s just the Gamtoos that is producing, our mates at Sundays had a cooker of a season, Kariega fished very well, Port Alfred fished very well and also Bushmans. I can go on and on but we’ll leave it there, I’m sure you get the picture.

So the fishermen that brave the cold in winter often get fantastic results.

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CHRISTMAS ROCK Light Tackle Boat Liquorland Challenge

2015

Words/pics: Christmas Rock L.T.B.C.

Kelly Janse Van Rensburg with the winning fish, a Leerie of 6.13kg.

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very year the CRLTB angling club host a competition on the Hamburg River that attracts a flurry of hopeful anglers and this year’s event would be no different.

Getting the 44 boats onto the river would be easy this year as the club committee had put in the effort and the prize pool was world class, from household appliances and generators to substantial cash prizes.

Lines in was at 09:00 on Saturday morning and the boats were met with

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a brisk easterly wind that had the river resembling a choppy ocean, however this was not going to dampen the anglers spirits as boated families excitedly rigged their lines and began to put points on the board.

Although the fishing wasn’t spectacular, marshal boats spread whispers of some respectable fish being boated at the oyster beds on the pushing tide. The majority of the fleet anchored just up river of the main sand bank hoping that the strong pushing FEC | October 2015

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spring tide would dislodge the resident crustaceous morsels and ignite a grunter feeding frenzy, and although many fish were being boated, the steam train grunter was eluding the vast maze of baited hooks.

The few boats that navigated the upper regions of the river were kept very busy with the abundant juvenile Kob and even an eel or two.

The night was long and cold but the rising Sunday morning sun and light ocean breeze seemed to re-ignite the anglers efforts and all seemed determined to give one last push before lines up at 09:00 sharp.

Initially I thought that getting 44 boats out of the river would be a nightmare but it seemed to flow effortlessly as CRLTB angling club had all the necessary systems and assistance in place. Well done.

Everybody was tired by now and for those of you who that have fished similar events will know that the prize giving never happens on time, but once again all the dominoes just fell into place and a professional and we’ll structured prize giving followed.

The CRLTB angling club deserves a standing ovation and as always, none of this would have been possible without the long list of very generous sponsors.

I look forward to next year’s event.

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Border Blacktips Gonubie RASSPL Results Words/pics: Shane Smit

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he Border Blacktips held our 2nd comp of the season and 1st ever at Gonubie on the 29th of August. The weather was absolutely stunning for most part of the day with a fresh southwester only showing up as the day progressed.

Water temp was around 18 or 19 degrees and even the sea swell was behaving for a change. Some might say it wasn’t “working” enough actually but these were only details at this point as 6am on the button 95 anglers made their 1st cast of the day. The bites seemed to be there early on and some

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decent specimens took that 1st cast with fresh bait namely members Robert Odendaal landing his 36kg Raggy and Wayne Breetzke a 16kg sweetie both from their 1st cast. Both these fish ended up being prizewinning fish! Another awesome catch was made by member Byron Vermaak also very early on with 2 decent kob of between 3.5 and 4.5kg taking his bait. Both successfully landed and the biggest of the 2 securing him top edible catch for the competition!

As the day progressed and the springtide dropped most anglers ran out of water and

either moved to another spot or stuck it out until the gullys filled up again, this period was quite unproductive for most and only once the water showed up so did the bites once again. Problem was the southwester or “death” wind reduced the bites as it grew in strength and by 2h30pm most anglers had thrown in the towel and weigh in couldn’t come any sooner. Overall I think our first ever outing at Gonubie was a resounding success and will definitely be considered as an event on next seasons’ calendar.

The highlight of the day and A BIG round FEC | October 2015

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of applause must go to a young lady by the name of Nicole Cavanagh who despite being the tiniest and youngest angler of the day managed to land a 107cm or 4.6kg sandshark and take the junior section prize aswell as the title of “most outstanding catch”. Other notable catches were a 10.8kg blueray by member Craig Busse, a 2.6kg galjoen by Visitor Jarryd Dewing and a goen of a zebra by Simphiwe Felani.

Top points and the accompanying title of “hardest worker” went to Masters angler and member Colin Scheepers with 7 species totalling 664.9 points which takes him straight to the top of our Leaderboard after 2 competitions completed, Bare in mind he missed the 1st competition so an even bigger achievement! Well done to Colin and the rest of the anglers! Some interesting facts: 194 fish were caught and released on the day totalling just over 256kg.

Our next competition will be held at Kaysers Beach on the 3rd of October and as usual promises to be an awesome event! Anglers wanting to enter or simply have a query can drop me a mail at shane.rasspl@gmail.com We would just like to send out a huge thank you to Gonubie Hotel aswell as all our Sponsors for the awesome prizes received for this comp, without prizes of this calibre we would certainly not achieve the turnout we did especially at a brand new venue.

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KAYAK CORNER FISHING

Words: Brett Armstrong Photos: Larisa Armstrong

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ummer is on its way and is increasingly evident as the sun comes up earlier and earlier and the mornings are even more beautiful than the day before. We live in an amazing country with splendor and beautiful nature all around us. So what better way to explore and enjoy it than on a kayak!

With the days becoming warmer and the daylight hours even longer, this gives us a lot more time to enjoy ourselves with friends and family while kayak fishing at one of our many local rivers, lakes or even venturing out into the big blue. So in this month’s article I will be highlighting a few key points and considerations which make kayak fishing so attractive to so many recreational and even the more serious fisherman.

In the last few years, kayak fishing popularity has exploded in South Africa. The fact one can get into a quality new fishing kayak for under R8 000 and even better, a good used kayak for around R4 000 has made it an at-

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tractive option for recreational and serious anglers alike. Not to mention the easy portability and launchability of kayaks, which gives anglers access to water they were otherwise blocked from fishing, which often means a bounty of eager-to-bite fish. These reasons alone should make anglers eager to consider and enjoy kayak fishing benefits.

The latest generation of fishing kayaks offer improved stability, amazing storage and versatility and angling efficiency.

A huge difference to the canoes from a few years back. If you’ve been debating getting into kayak fishing, there’s never been a better time to start than now.

Whether you own a kayak or are looking to get one, here are 5 reasons to consider kayak fishing: - Affordability; - Accessibility to water and options for fishing experiences; - Variety of fishing techniques and

methods; - Portability of kayaking verses other boats and watercraft; - Improved perspective while on the water.

Affordability Even a fully-rigged kayak, with all the accessories and equipment bolted on is far cheaper than any other watercraft you can buy for fishing. What makes it even more affordable is the lack of costs around maintenance, fuel and insurance attached to other forms of motorized watercraft. For those on a tight budget, a kayak’s an excellent fishing platform to get you away from the stresses of daily life and just have some “cheap” fun. The lack of running costs attached to this form of fishing is what makes it so attractive to so many people.

But of course, not all fishing kayaks are created equal. Adding electronics, accessories and opting for a propulsion FEC | October 2015

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system beyond a paddle increases the price for sure, but it is still way cheaper than any of the alternatives out there.

Accessibility to the water Motorized watercraft and general river boats require a launch ramp at designated launch sites. This is not the case when it comes to using a kayak. Any areas where you have easy access to the water, is a potential spot to launch your kayak. This is a major factor for sure. There is nothing better than being on a nice stretch of water with very few people around you with absolutely no one else cruising around you on large river boats and disturbing your fishing area. Tranquility is the first prize.

Variety of fish A clear advantage of fishing off a kayak is the ability to access and explore a variety of water, from trout dams where no motorized watercraft are allowed to the local bass waters and even in that quiet and extremely narrow estuary which may even be virgin water yet to be explored. Surely there is something for everyone on a kayak. There is even specialized ocean fishing kayaks out there for catching game fish.

Portability
 Kayaks are also extremely easy to transport to and from the water. They are generally light enough to pick up alone or even

better with two people. Transporting your kayak on roof racks is the most popular method with great roof racking options available from many brands and Holdfast has some amazing deals at Roof Rack World / Wild Coast Kayaks. Many people also opt for transporting their kayak on the back of their bakkie. The ease of driving without a huge trailer behind you is always a bonus.

Improved Perspective
 Fishing from a kayak provides unique angling benefits compared to being on a motorized watercraft or river boat or even when fishing off the bank. Here are a few examples of the different perspectives you will benefit from when fishing from a kayak: - The slow pace and quiet paddle strokes are so relaxing and calming, allowing you the opportunity to take in the amazing nature around you.

- Kayaks are obviously low to the water line, making it easier to cast your bait or lure and to even get closer to obstacles and tricky sections you want to fish. Being low to the water also puts you closer to the action when hooking that lovely fish and trying to net it and land it. Breath taking for sure.

- Many anglers credit a kayak for helping them improve their angling skills. Being able to use a limited amount of tackle and equipment you can access on a kayak forces you to be more organized and efficient.

- The physical benefits from a fitness FEC | October 2015

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point of view are varied for sure and the opportunity to exercise and catch a couple fish with family and friends without even realizing you are exerting yourself is fantastic and a definite advantage.

So baring everything said above, why would you not consider kayak fishing?

Come on guys and girls, try it out! I have proven time and again that if you encourage a friend to come out and join you out on the river kayak fishing, they enjoy it without exception. Whether catching a fish or not, either way a great experience all round had by all. So here is my challenge to you kayak anglers out there. The next time you go out, invite a friend, beg or borrow another kayak and let them experience what we all love. This is the way we grow our sport and our passion for the outdoors.

Kayak Club for East London A good friend of mine, and awesome kayaker, Mark Kimble, has been working extremely hard on all the behind the scenes paper work, administration and policy formulation for the formation of a Kayak Fishing Club for East London. He has almost completed the process. I have been privileged enough to read some of the material he has prepared and I can say that everything is perfect and completely thorough, from safety procedure manuals, events and even to environmental impact and related aspects. He has not missed a thing. Watch this space for the launch of the new club and website. This will be awesome for our sport and will allow it to grow in a more manageable and beneficial way for all who enjoy this amazing sport.

Project Moken 10 Angler As some of you may know, over the last few months I have been working extremely hard on building, what I feel is, my ultimate river kayak. The basic model I went with as the starting point to my project was the Feel Free Moken 10 Angler. Just a fraction over 3m long and around 85cm wide, it was the perfect size and weight which I wanted to start with. It fits comfortably on the back of my Chev Utility Bakkie and is easy to load and cart to the river. Feel Free Kayaks all have a built in roller wheel for ease of pulling to the waters edge. So now, after a couple of solid weeks working on it, I am so close to completion of my baby. Additional storage hatches, multiple Railblaza products and camera mounts, lighting, anchor trolley system with retractable anchor management, rear storage crate system and my amazing Lowrance Elite 4 Chirp. Over the last few days I was also extremely grateful for the help from my good mate, fishing guru and owner of Wild Coast Kayaks, Nigel

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Louw. Nigel had done this before on his own kayak a while back, so I knew he was the best guy to offer me the advice and expertise. We fitted a Watersnake 54lb Electric trolling motor to my kayak, with foot pedal steering and fingertip speed control.

Now this may sound strange and a bit far out, well, that’s because it is. The idea of bolting on an electric motor to a kayak you should just be paddling. Yes, I know, but believe me, it is awesome!!! Everyone was of the opinion that foot pedal steering could not be fitted by virtue of how the foot space and area is designed. We made it work and it’s awesome. I still use the paddle for sure, but this allows me to cover greater distances faster, then use the paddle to gain access to those secluded and tight areas, or closer to the fishing sport I need to move into. This motor is ridiculously quite; with 5 forward speeds and 3 reverse speeds all controlled by a knob strategically placed close to my right hand on the bow. The motor is also extremely efficient on drawing power from my battery. See photo inserts for more details on my setup. Over the next few weeks I will be completing the last few things on my ultimate river kayak, so watch this space.

Coffee Bay – here we come!

A group of us kayak fishing enthusiast at the end of September will be going to coffee bay for a week of tenting, fishing, braais (and probably the boys will have a few beers) and smelling like bait…I will have a write up from this amazing “event” which is in its second year and is literally just a great time in nature shared by a few like minded individuals. So watch this space.

Please do not hesitate to contact me at brettflip@gmail.com should you need any information or have any questions. To join our whats app kayak fishing EL group, please contact Brett on 071 883 8769.

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TARGET LINE

Freshwater club results Words/pics: Carl Henn

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n the 05/09/2015, Target Line Freshwater Angling Club had its 6th club competition for the season, this time at Nahoon Dam, just off the N2.

Everyone was expecting a good catch as the practices produced some good fish. However, this was not to be. Many battled and not many fish came out.

A new master, Lloyd Jarman, showed how this dam should be fished when he caught 4 barbel weighing 23.318kg.

Adriane Domoney did the best of the seniors with 5 carp at 13.718kg.

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Here are the top results of the comp: Seniors: 1 Adriane Domoney 5 fish 2 Jacques Husselmann 5 fish 3 JJ Koch 3 fish

13.718kg 8.759kg 6.438kg

Masters: 1 Lloyd Jarman 2 Anthon Henn 3 Chris Engelbrecht

4 fish 4 fish 3 fish

23.318kg 8.448kg 2.914kg

Ladies: 1 Liane Husselmann

4 fish

1.687kg

Here are the standings after 6 competitions: Seniors: 1 Martin Piek 107pts 2 Adriane Domoney 96pts 3 JJ Koch 69pts

Masters: 1 Chris Englebrecht 2 Anthon Henn 3 Chris Koch

101pts 94pts 67pts

Ladies: 1 Petra Piek 59pts 2 Lezanda Engelbrecht 49pts 3 Jackie Domoney/ Riska Domoney 25pts

Juniors: 1 Liane Husselmann 2 Nikita Moodley

65pts 30pts

Our next club competition will be Bridal Drift Dam in October with many expecting good catches. The chase is on with regards to the scores with not much in the top five in all categories.

The Target Line FAC Carp Bonanza at Wriggles Wade Dam near Stutterheim from 16-18 October 2015 is going to be awesome. 40 hours of thrilling fishing with some very nice prizes up for grabs.

Tickets only R 150.00 per angler for the comp with plenty of lucky draws as well.

For any enquiries on how to compete in this competition, please contact me, Carl Henn on 073 857 2209, e-mail sales@targetline.co.za or contact Petra Piek on 072 026 2556, e-mail rockcliffmp@gmail.com .

See you all reel soon on the banks

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X TIPS O B T I A B

THE

MACKEREL HEAD BAIT This is a great bait for targeting both flat fish (Diamond Rays) and your bigger reef fish like Black Steenbras.

Words/pics: Nigel Louw

1 Slice a mackerel diagonaly from its back down to the stomach.

2 Then sllice a little off the bottom to form it into a nice V-Shape.

3 Slice two thin cutlets off the body of the Mackerel.

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Sponsored by SPARGS MALL BEACON BAY 043 711 7700

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Place one cutlet on one side of the head and cotton into place.

5 Place a cutlet on the other side as well and cotton into shape.

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Push your J-Hook or Circle Hook through the bottom of the mackerels jaw and come out the top, keeping the hook standing proud.

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CATCH & WIN Angler: Bradley Beamish Species: Black Steenbras Location: Cintsa Bait: Whole Karanteen Size: 5kg

Angler: Scott Bester Species: Rainbow Trout Location: Thrift Dam Bait: Zonker pattern fly Size: 5lb

Angler: Calin Rusch Species: Surge Wrasse Location: Tkei estuary Bait: Pilchard Size: 43cm 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 | October 2015 26 - BaitFEC used - Size/Weight

September Winner Angler: Brendan Oostingh Species: Zebra Location: Off Cefane Bait: Octopus leg Size: 1.6kg (New Border Deep Sea Record)

Brendan wins himseld an asortment of Triton lures. Sponsored by Bilimoria Fishing Tackle.

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.

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TIDE CHART October 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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