WHERE TO FISH PART 15

Part 15:Port Alfred and surrounds

By Colin Fletcher and Clinton Schultz

THE hidden gem of the South African coastline,the area between Kenton-On-Sea and the Mgwalana River,not only offers plenty of tourist attractions and luxury game lodges,but also some of the best fishing in the Eastern Cape.

The variety is vast – everything from dageraad,poensie,kob and geelbek to incredible gamefishing in the current line which produces yellowfin tuna, dorado and marlin.This area truly offers it all.

I have been privileged to grow up on this section of the coast,fishing both rock and surf as well as offshore.The amazing history of this coastline never ceases to amaze me and the stories of massive catches have intrigued me for years.

Accommodation for visitors to this area is well priced and it won’t cost you an arm and a leg for a fishing holiday with the family.

Launch sites are also plentiful.From beach launches to harbours,there are a number of different options.

Port Alfred is one of the easier launch spots to get to logistically,but it can be a hair raising launch through the mouth if the weather is not good.Make sure you get local advice if you’re not familiar with the launch.

Other beach and slipway/river surf launches along the coast include Boknes, Kenton, Kleinemonde, Mpekweni, Mgwalana and Birha.

If you’re not confident launching safely in this region, professional charter companies are readily available in Port Alfred.Their services are generally well priced, and the skippers have intricate local knowledge and experience thanks to spending hundreds of hours on the water.This is a great option for a family day outing for those roadtripping down to the area.

If you are visiting and want to meet up with some of the locals, then stop by at the Port Alfred River & Ski-Boat Club situated along the Kowie River.It is a good place to pick up some local information and there’s a great pub and restaurant where you can enjoy the generous hospitality.

Contact the club on 046 624 4532 or visit their Facebook page for further details.

SPECIES

Kob

A highly sought after fish along the South African coastline, kob are great fun to catch and are great eating too.In this area they range from1kg to 20kg, so you never know what you are in for.

The daily bag limit, according to www.saambr.org.za,is one per person per day if caught from the shore and in estuaries east of Cape Agulhas,and five per person per day if caught west of Cape Agulhas or if caught anywhere from a boat offshore.

Minimum size limit is 60cm total

length if caught from the shore and in estuaries east of Cape Agulhas, and 40cm total length (KZN) and 50cm total length (EC & WC) if caught from a boat offshore or from the shore west of Cape Agulhas. Only one kob greater than 110 cm total length may be caught per person per day regardless of area or sector.

You’ll often catch slightly undersized kob that have to be put back,but when you get into a shoal of keepersize fish,great fun can be had.The smaller fish,around 60cm,are best for eating.

Chokka and sardines are easy and popular baits for these fish.A great option on a spinning setup is to use paddletails or dropshots.

Kob can be lazy fish and will sometimes lie in water sheltered by structure,waiting for prey fish to swim past. Smaller fish tend to shoal when feeding,and when you tuck into a shoal it is great fun.With a more aggressive bite than geelbek,shoaling kob closer to the bottom will more often than not bite in an upwards direction and you will feel an upwards bump followed by momentary slack,then SMASH!

Poensie

Black steenbras aka musselcracker aka poensie is probably the most prized bottomfish species in this area.A big specimen is both memorable and extremely fun to catch.

These fish occur along most of the east coast of South Africa and are most abundant along the Eastern Cape/Transkei and KwaZulu-Natal coastlines.

Chokka strips/legs, fresh fillet, a dead Frans Madam (big-eye) or sardine are all effective dead baits for these “cracker”fish.I have been smoked by big crackers on a maasbanker live bait, so that is also a good option to try.

Some people choose to keep the daily bag limit of one per person but I personally choose to release them.

Be extremely careful when handling these fish,especially on an inflatable boat,as they have a few sharp spines.

Dageraad

These fish are endemic to South Africa and are only found in the waters stretching from the lower South Coast in KwaZulu-Natal to Cape Point in the south-western Cape.They are most common along the Western and Eastern Cape coast.

Dageraad are generally found around offshore reefs between depths of 20m and 100m,and will bite on chokka,sardine and fillets.

They are listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red data list,so the current bag limit is one fish per person per day at a minimum size of 40cm.

Red Roman

Arguably one of the prettiest reef fish on the Eastern Cape coastline,red Roman are also tender fish to eat.These beautifully coloured fish can weigh between 1kg and 3kg on average,and a big Roman provides a fun fight on lighter tackle.

Caught throughout the year,these fish can be caught on red bait,worms, chokka,fillet and sardines.Look for them around reefs or pinnacles in shallow water.

The minimum size is 30cm with a daily limit of two per angler.

Carpenter/Dog/Silverfish

These fish are abundant along the Eastern Cape coastline and are found in waters anywhere between 20m and 100m deep.

They have a vicious tooth structure and will eat almost anything.Adults feed on anchovies,sardines and squid,while juveniles feed mainly on crabs,crab larvae and worms.It can be frustrating when you get into a large shoal of small dogs and nothing else bites.

These fish are underrated as a table fish but are fast gaining popularity among South Africans.The current bag limit is four fish per angler per day,with a minimum size of 35cm.

Geelbek

These fish are sporadic and unpredictable.You might see a shoal on the finder and drop a bait,only for it to be left completely untouched.We call this “bek lockjaw”.The daily bag limit for these fish is two per angler with a minimum length of 60cm.

In the months following the sardine run these fish will be caught around the deeper reefs,but they are often found on shallower reefs as well.

They bite very distinctively,creating slack in the line on their way up,and fight aggressively.Geelbek are great fun on light to medium tackle.Bait options include sardines,fillets and chokka.Due to their big mouths,large hooks (around 10/0) should be used.

Miss Lucy

These beautiful fish,with their banded shades of red and white and large forehead bumps,can be enticed to bite by chokka,sardine and octopus.The bag limit is one daily per angler with a minimum size of 40cm.

Gamefish and billfish

A variety of gamefish including yellowfin tuna,marlin and dorado can be found around the area off Port Alfred known as “the eye”.

For years this area has been frequented by migrating populations of smaller tuna,mostly in the 10- to 30kg weight class.However,in the last year or so there has been a noticeable increase in the number of big tuna in the area,50kg-plus bullets which have offered plenty of fun.

Dorado have spoilt us with their presence for many years.These beautiful fish are found in warmer water (around 25 degrees) and congregate around floating objects in the current. Keep an eye out for small baitfish around floating debris,and the dorado won’t be far away.

Marlin and dorado seem to like hanging around deeper depths around the 100m drop-offs and current lines, where floating debris can be found.

Marlin are definitely more difficult to target,but many have been hooked in this area and some landed.

A big marlin will bully you on a light tuna or dorado trolling setup,so ensure that you are well prepared if you plan on targeting these majestic creatures.

A variety of diving lures and spreads at staggered distances can be used to pick up a bite at a trolling speed of around 12 kph.A good setup for targeting these species in the warmer water is something like a Shimano Tiagra 30/50 stand-up rod with a Shimano

Tiagra 50W reel.This setup provides a fun fight but is powerful enough to wrestle a big tuna or marlin.

TACKLE

Generally,in the shallow waters,a light rod of around 7- to 8 feet can be used, along with a matching reel of your choice and light braid or nylon up to around 20kg.This will give the angler the most fun when fighting a fish.

When dropping deeper,scale up your equipment in accordance with your preference and target species – as long as it still offers a fun fighting experience.There is nothing worse than pulling in dead weight on an ultraheavy setup.

Scarborough reels,multipliers and spinning reels are all good,versatile options for the fishing in this area.

Hook sizes will vary from species to species,but you can’t go wrong with an 8/0 for most applications.You can,however,go as small as a 4/0 when fishing in shallower water for smaller reef fish such as Romans.

Use whichever trace is easiest for you to tie quickly;I use a very “rural” double loop trace which my late grandfather taught me.Believe it or not,with this simple trace you can comfortably handle larger fish.It is,however,a lazy trace and a split swivel trace is ideal.

When it comes to sinkers,I have

used ones as light as 3oz in shallow water,but current can mess you around quickly.Local commercial boats prefer 10- to 12oz sinkers for the 20- to 70m depths.Just remember that when you are dropping deep,you have to pull that sinker up every time peckers clean your hook,so don’t go excessively heavy.

JUDGINGCONDITIONS

Sea conditions in this area can vary dramatically with wind and current variations.As an example,a south easterly to south-south easterly wind can create very choppy seas,and the more southerly the wind,the worse it gets.

This wind also pushes the cold water to the shore.Water temperatures in these conditions can plummet to 12/13 degrees and this brings out critters like the dorrie shark and barbel.

In these conditions,you’ll find tiny shoaling carpenters and baitfish are abundant,so it’s not ideal for most types of bottomfishing,except for stockfish and gurnard in the 50m-plus depths.

Conditions most ideal for going deep off this stretch of the coast,are after a day of light westerly winds.In these conditions the wind drops off and the surface water warms,heading inshore,which improves inshore and deep sea fishing.

MARKS, SPECIES AND NOTES:

1.Boknes: S33°45’ E26°36’ Reef fish such as red Roman, soldier, carpenter

2.Dias Cross: S33°43’ E26°37’ Poensie, dageraad, red Roman, soldier. Good on flat sea days.

3.Mushroom Rock: S33°49’ E26°47’ Kob, poensie, dageraad etc

4.Kowie Breakwater: S33°37’ E26°52’ Poensie, dageraad, red Roman, soldier

5.Rondebos: S33°39’ E26°52’ Kob, geelbek, hake

6.Fountain Rocks: S33°36’ E26°55’ Kob, carpenter, soldier

7.Stockfish Mark: S33°40’ E26°55’ Hake, gurnard. Good during cold water spells.

8.Gumboot: S33°50’ E27°05’ Carpenter, dikbekkie, red steenbras. Best when the current and wind is low because of 80-100m depths.

9.Riet Point: S33°60’ E27°03’ Kob, carpenter, geelbek

10.Lighthouse Point (Fish River): S33°32’ E27°08’ Kob, dageraad, Miss Lucy, red Roman. Great mark when the water is warmer.

11.Waterloo Bay Breakwater: S33°48’ E27°16’ Geelbek, kob, red Roman, soldier

12.Stalwart Point: S33°28’ E27°13’ Big kob, geelbek, red Roman, poensie