Ski-Boat September 2015 by Angler Publications

CONTENTS September/October 2015 Volume 31 Number 5 COVER: Go for Gold! Matthew Defillipi with the 39.4kg amberjack which earned him first place at the 2015 Shelly Beach Ski-Boat Festival. See page 50. Photo by Erwin Bursik.

FEATURES 10

Gone Fishin’ Grabs Elusive Double 2015 Guinjata Species Bonanza — by Erwin Bursik

Guinjata Game Plan! Tips from the top dogs — by Daryl Bartho, Herman Wolf and Frans Labuschagne

Maintenance Musts How to keep your trailer in tip-top condition — by John Frankiskos

Rare Catch! Albino ’cuda landed off Moçambique — by SKI-BOAT Reporter

Wind On!

Part 1: What is a wind-on leader? — by Paul Borcherds

Mighty Amberjacks Take Gold and Silver 2015 Shelly Beach Ski-Boat Festival — by Erwin Bursik

Breathtaking Bazaruto Savouring the spirit of the archipelago — by Sheena Carnie

Tussle for Top Spot 2015 Three Ships Inhaca Challenge — by Brad van Zyl

Nhonguane Lodge Enjoy a beach holiday in paradise — by Lyn Adams

Breede River Brawlers Estuary fishing in the Western Cape — by Craig Thomassen

Let Go! Port Edward C&R Species Competition — by Andrew Patterson

Stick it to ’Em! Local lures that really work — by Edward Truter

On Show Durban International Boat and Lifestyle Show

DEPARTMENTS 8 9 49 73 83 84

Editorial — by Erwin Bursik Postbox Subscribe and WIN! This issue’s Kingfisher Awards Mercury Junior Anglers Reel Kids

91 91 92 96 97 98

Smalls Advertisers’ Index Where to fish in Africa Business Classifieds Charters & Destinations Directory Rapala Lip — Last Word from the Ladies

The official magazine of the South African Deep Sea Angling Association

Publisher: Erwin Bursik Editor: Sheena Carnie Advertising Executive: Mark Wilson Editorial Assistant: Vahini Pillay Advertising Consultant: Joan Wilson Administration Executive: Anne Bursik Accountant: Jane Harvey Executive Assistant: Kim Hook Admin Assistant: Sunny Kandaswami Boat Tests: Heinrich Kleyn Contributors: Lyn Adams, Daryl Bartho, Paul Borcherds, Erwin Bursik, Sheena Carnie, John Frankiskos, Frans Labuschagne, Andrew Patterson, Craig Thomassen, Edward Truter, Brad van Zyl and Herman Wolf. Advertising – National Sales: Angler Publications Telephone: (031) 572-2280/89/97/98 Mark Wilson cell: 073 748 6107 Joan Wilson ADVERTISING – GAUTENG & MPUMALANGA Lynette Adams (011) 425-2052 or cell 083 588 0217; lynadams@mweb.co.za; skiboatgauteng@icon.co.za Publishers: Angler Publications cc PO Box 20545, Durban North 4016 Telephone: (031) 572-2280/89/97/98 Fax: (031) 572-7891 e-mail: angler@mags.co.za Subscriptions to SKI-BOAT: R160 per annum (six issues). New subscriptions and renewals: SKI-BOAT Subscriptions Department, PO Box 20545, Durban North 4016. Telephone: (031) 572-2280/89/97/98 Fax: (031) 572-7891 • e-mail: safety@mags.co.za • Through www.africanangler.com, or • E-zine digital subscriptions — visit www.africanangler.com > SKIBOAT > SUBSCRIBE, then choose your option. • Click the E-zine short-cut on the magazine’s home page, www.africanangler.com, or visit www.zinio.com/SkiBoat. Reproduction: Hirt & Carter, Durban Printer: Robprint (Pty) Ltd, Durban Full production is done in-house by Angler Publications & Promotions on Apple Macintosh software and hardware for output directly to plate. SKI-BOAT Magazine, ISSN 0258-7297, is published six times a year by Angler Publications & Promotions cc, Reg. No. CK 88/05863/23, and is distributed by RNA, as well as directly by the publishers to retail stores throughout South Africa. • Copyright of all material is expressly reserved and nothing may be reproduced in part or whole without the permission of the publishers. • While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the contents of this magazine, the publishers do not accept responsibility for omissions or errors or their consequences. Views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the publishers, the managing editor, editor, editorial staff or the South African Deep Sea Angling Association.

8 • SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

EDITORIAL

HIS year the SADSAA Junior Nationals tournament was hosted by NDSAA at Shelley Beach on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast in July. It was great to see the juniors in action and see how well they did and how much enjoyment they glened from the event, but I was completely blown away by the way in which social media came alive around the competition, with the continued buzz and exposure of the “li’l guys and girls” with their catches, scoreboards and comments. Many viewed with great interest, the day by day angling experiences of the Under 16 and Under 19 divisions of this very serious tournament. Yet, there is another extremely important aspect of this event that needs exposure. In virtually every aspect of life, the youth of Erwin Bursik today are instrumental in laying the very foundaPublisher tions for the future. Basically if they’re not interested in something it has no future. The participation of juniors in the sport of offshore angling is by far the greatest challenge for SADSAA’s administrators. Development in its widest sense is paramount, so when it all comes together and incredible results are achieved, as happened during the 2015 SADSAA Junior Nationals, those responsible can pat themselves on the back; their efforts are producing results. What really struck home for me was an extensive Facebook tribute by an extremely accomplished Under 19 provincial angler. His tribute was not only to his team mates, but also to all the other competing anglers. He also thanked, by name, a great number of senior people, both at Provincial and National level, who had played a role in assisting and inspiring him on his path to receiving Under 19 colours. He also announced his goal to achieve Senior Provincial Colours and possibly Protea Colours, while acknowledging that he would require the help, advice and support of many to reach these set goals. It’s not easy for aspiring juniors to become involved in offshore angling unless they have access to a craft on which they can go to sea on a regular basis. Unless the aspirant young angler has a father, uncle brother or friend with a boat, the chances of them having meaningful excursions to sea to pursue this sport are slim. Herein lies the dilemma for those administering deep sea angling in South Africa and who have a great desire to develop this sport. How can we make it more accessible? We at SKI-BOAT have, over the years, tried to assist in developing young anglers by giving boys and girls a platform to show off their catches on the Junior Anglers and Reel Kids pages. We hope that exposure encourages them to pursue angling and encourages others to follow suit. Nothing else we cover in SKI-BOAT brings us as much pleasure as sorting through the dozens of photographs and letters we receive from young anglers hoping to get a spot on the Junior Page. The look on each face conveys the thrill of the catch and gives us great joy and indeed hope for the future of deep-sea angling. Looking at the participants at the Junior Nationals I believe that our sport has a great future, but these young anglers still need our help. If you’re in a position to take a youngster fishing I implore you to do so. Yes, it may be inconvenient and it may infringe on your own fishing, but you will be ensuring the future of our sport. Till the next tide.

Erwin Bursik

POSTBOX MEMORIES OF LES AND SPOONS Dear Editor The article by Erwin Bursik in your July/August 2015 issue, Spooning, brought back a whole load of memories of my father, Les Hoy (pictured alongside), and his involvement in spoon making. My dad was born in 1922 and passed away on 4th August 2009 in Johannesburg at the ripe old age of 87. He had fished all his life and, as a hobby, manufactured and repaired fishing rods, spoons and lures. He also promoted and gave lessons on casting Penn multiplier reels. One of his many life-long fishing companions was a fellow named Chris Buys who worked in a local Pietermaritzburg foundr y. With Chris’s knowledge of metal casting and mouldings, they were able to regularly develop perfectly crafted spoon and sinker moulds which Les used and kept in his possession throughout his fishing years. Les started producing spoons seriously in the early 1950s whilst living in Pietermaritzburg and supplied Kings Sports and other local retail fishing tackle shops. During this time he developed many different shape and size spoons, including the “Les Killer” S spoon. He also mastered the art of “sweating” brass and copper plate backings to spoons which were then known as copper backs. Les regularly experimented with various metal “recipes”, using Hoyt 11, tin, white metal and different alloys in an effort to improve the already nearperfect shapes, actions, shine and hardness of his spoons. Although he sourced tin and various other metals from all over the country, he purchased most of the raw materials from the NonFerrous Metal Company. After retiring early at the age of 57 due to a work related injury, Les and his wife decided to fulfil their life’s dream and move to the South Coast. They stayed in Scottburgh and Pennington for a short while, then finally settled in Illovo Beach. At all three locations Les had his spoon manufacturing workshop set up in his garages. His reputation for producing high quality, innovative and productive spoons afforded him an opportunity to supply many retail fishing outlets up and down the coast, and even out of the country. Back in 1980 he had also developed a relationship with Mike Philip and Robbie Maharaj of Kings Wholesale Fishing Tackle (now The Kingfisher) in Durban. This was his favourite and most important customer right up to 1996 when he gave up spoon making due to ill health. His reputation for producing high quality spoons, rods and rod repairs was

Letters to the Editor Something on your mind? Write to The Editor <sheena@mags.co.za>

recognised by all who met him and for many years the local fishermen in Warner Beach and further afield would spend hours in his workshop chatting to him about fishing and spooning. Being a particularly generous person, he would regularly give spoons and tackle to those fishermen who could not afford to purchase items. Les had occasionally discussed the necessity to pass on his skill and to teach someone what he had learned and developed over so many years. This led to a relationship with a young South Coast fisherman, Evert Kleinhans, who spent many hours in the workshop with Les being taught the skills of fine fishing spoon manufacturing.

Evert eventually took over the process and most of Les’s equipment when he was forced to give it up and relocate to Johannesburg. Evert continues to produce spoons today using most of the original machines, equipment and techniques that Les taught him. Anyone who’s interested in getting spoons from him can phone 083 472 5844. We fondly remember Les as a great husband, father and fisherman who taught his family and those around him that the best things in life were free for all — particularly if you were at the sea with a rod in hand. KEVIN HOY <kevinlionelhoy@gmakil.com> SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 9

COMPETITIONS

2015 Guinjata Species Bonanza

Team Gone Fishin’ excitedly took possession of their first place prize from Bradley Kuhn of Vanguard Insurance and Ryan Hansen from Durban Yamaha.

10 • SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

by Erwin Bursik

Ryan Hansen from Durban Yamaha handed over the first place prize in the jet-ski section — a Yamaha VX 700 — to Ricus Bateman and his teammate Kobus.

SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 11

Daryl Bartho with the 31.9kg GT which won the 2015 Guinjata Bonanza.

LL men have dreams, especially anglers and the nature of the sport itself thrives and is continually nourished as anglers pursue these dreams. Team Gone Fishin’ has dominated the species section of the Guinjata Sportfishing Club’s annual Species Bonanza held at Guinjata Bay on the Moçambique coast since the early 1990s, but up until this year’s event, the Barthos have never managed to “crack the double”. For Daryl Bartho’s team and many others, catching the biggest gamefish in terms of the competition rules and being the top boat is a dream they chase on an annual basis. Bringing that dream to reality still eludes most of the anglers, but Daryl and Brett Bartho together with Chris Hamel did just that during the 2015 Guinjata Species Bonanza, with a 31.9kg giant kingfish (GT) and a total of 1 271.70 points in the species section. Yoking together Lady Luck and species angling skills to achieve this much-desired double takes some doing, and I for one do not believe we will see a repeat of this feat for many years to come. The Guinjata Sportfishing Club’s committee cut a stiff rod for its back during the run-up to the 2015 Guinjata Species Bonanza. Firstly they had to bring a different outboard motor company on board as a major sponsor, but Yamaha quickly stepped up and fitted twin 100hp Yamaha 4–stroke motors to Z-Craft’s sponsored KingCat F200 ski-boat to make up the fantastic top prize for the largest gamefish weighed in during the event. Secondly the club decided to create a jet-ski section to run parallel to the existing ski-boat event. This alone almost doubled the organising committee’s work load, not only in terms of running the event on the beach, but also in obtaining sponsorship and substantial prizes to encourage participation among jet-ski enthusiasts. Durban Yamaha’s sponsorship of a Yamaha VX700 on a road trailer was the carrot that enticed 20 jet-ski anglers to enter this section of the competition.

Major sponsorship from Casper and Lizette Walker of Action Panel Beaters also assisted greatly in bringing the 2015 event to fruition. Guinjata, situated on the Moçambique coast about 500km north of Maputo, clearly has a lot more to offer the offshore anglers of South Africa than just the bountiful prizes on offer, because despite the challenging economic situation we’re in, the area continues to attract dedicated support from this group. For me personally — backed up by conversations I’ve had with many participating anglers — it boils down to two major attractions. To begin with the infrastructure around the incredibly beautiful Guinjata Bay can accommodate and support the teams and their followers in comfort and allows them easy access to the launching area. In most instances the bay also offers an extremely easy launch. The next big plus is that the demarcated competition fishing area offers possibly the greatest array of angling opportunities of any competition held in Southern African waters. Firstly the area includes extensive shallow reef structure for light- and medium tackle species fishing. Secondly there are excellent middle-depth reefs from 20- to 40m where anglers can target the larger of the many species on the competition list. Then there are the numerous small but productive deep reefs at 70- to 100 metre depths where skippers are challenged to hold the craft in place so that the deep jiggers can target the incredibly powerful amberjacks and GTs that these reefs produce. Finally there’s the deep blue water beyond the 100-metre mark for the dedicated big gamefish anglers, who specialise in targeting billfish, tuna and wahoo. These options allow every team to develop a game plan that suits them. This year the crew aboard Tsunami targeted billfish, specifically marlin, and released two on the first day of this year’s competition, raising a few more during the following days before the competition ended. Sailfish tend to freSKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 13

With Gone Fishin’ excluded from the top boat prizes because they’d won the prize for biggest fish, first place prize went to Wolfie (above, left) and second place to Lawwerskaai (above, right). quent the shallower water and 16 were released this year with many more being lost. Most of these strikes were experienced by anglers who were actually targeting gamefish. Guinjata is also a great venue for a holiday, so many of the teams combine the competition with a family holiday, enjoy the pressurised fishing and, like taking a Lotto ticket, hope that one of the fish they catch will enable them to take home a Kingcat F200 powered by 100hp Yamaha motors. Of course the spectre of the hazards and irritations encountered when travelling in Moçambique always raises its head. I personally experienced absolutely no problems on the roads nor at the border posts we had to go through and I know the same holds true for many others who fished the 2015 Guinjata competition. We were towing Mr Ski-Boat and were not stopped once, and it seemed that all those who totally obeyed the speed limits and rules of the road enjoyed a hassle-free passage through Moçambique. As for the road itself, I having travelled that road every year since the competition’s inception and it’s nigh perfect. Once the roadworks in and around Maputo are finished the roads will be even better. To all those on both sides of the border who have worked tirelessly to make the journey to Moçambique’s coastal resorts hassle-free all I can say is well done and thank you — we enjoyed the ride. Fishing-wise the 2015 Guinjata Bonanza was a tough one — at least on our boat. Quentin Clark, the official weighmaster and recorder, told me that the total catches recorded in 2015 closely resemble those of 2014, but it was noted that the total catch was far more widely spread amongst the fleet. The first two days of this event produced some very nice

catches, with the leaderboard at the end of day one having some serious targets for the rest of us to attempt to surpass. At that stage Daryl Bartho was in the lead with a GT of 31.9kg and Joost van Heerden second with a 24.6kg amberjack. Both were extremely good fish, but in real terms not unbeatable — or so we thought. Right up until the last day Daryl admitted he could have been ousted from his top slot, with a number of big fish being hooked and lost. Our team watched Paddy Venske aboard The Bear fighting a very big fish for 45 minutes on heavy tackle, right next to us at Le Gogo, before the fish found a reef and chafed through the heavy fluorocarbon leader. The last three days saw a substantial drop in the numbers and species of fish, with all the major contenders for the coveted top ten places weighing in a lot less fish than we would have expected. The heavy thermocline showing on our sounders indicated that the reverse current on the bottom was probably a lot colder than the warm upper layer. That could have contributed to the fish not feeding or just knocking the jigs presented and not hooking up. However, if one witnessed the number of boats all jigging furiously on well-known hot reefs, it’s also possible that the fish donned crash helmets and hid in caves and crevices to avoid being beaten to death by weighted jigs! Without doubt, the Guinjata Species Bonanza must take the honours for being the biggest jigging extravaganza on the eastern seaboard of Africa and that technique produced the vast majority of the 13 different species weighed in during this event.

Third place at the 2015 Guinjata Species Bonanza went to Queen Pine (above, left) and fourth to Gloria da Manha. SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 15

All the anglers who released billfish at the 2015 Guinjata Bonanza.

After the announcement that the scales had closed at the end of the fifth day of fishing, the proverbial die had been cast. It didn’t take a brain surgeon to work out that Daryl Bartho and his team aboard Gone Fishin’ had won the Z-Craft Kingcat F200 powered by twin 100hp Yamaha 4-stroke motors. However, a lot of mental arithmetic was still being done to figure out which teams had made it into the Top Ten of the species section of the competition and in which order; the final results would only be announced at prize-giving. This year’s prize-giving was held in a marquee adjacent to the Santa Fe Restaurant on Guinjata beach. What an enjoyable event it was, combining the excitement, team spirit, camaraderie and good-natured banter that epitomises the incredible vibe prevailing throughout the finale of Guinjata 2015. With the competition rules stipulating that the winner of the Kingcat F200 ski-boat could not be eligible for any other prizes, those further down the leaderboard all moved up one place among the top ten. Wolfie, followed by Lawwerskaai, Queen Pine and Gloria da Manha were the final front-runners. A close inspection of the final results and scores shown below will provide one

with a clear picture of how this competition is run, and gives a fair indication of the competitiveness of the event as a whole. The jet-ski section of the competition was also hotly contested, but Ricus Bateman’s 21.7kg GT won him the Yamaha VX700 on a road trailer sponsored by Ryan Hansen of Durban Yamaha. Guinjata Sport Fishing Club’s chairman, Jan Hoffman, and tournament director, Brett Padoa, together with the club’s entire competition committee form the group which undertakes the enormous task of organising this event in a foreign country — with apparent ease. Their hard work and infinite patience — as well as some innovative changes they’ve come up — with have resulted in an event that’s extremely well run and yet relaxed in execution. All you ski-boaters who have adventure running in your blood, mark early June 2016 in your diaries with the words “Guinjata Bonanza”. You’ll be pleased you made the effort when you attend the most enjoyable fishing competition on the South Africa deep sea angling calendar. Until Guinjata 2016, practice your jigging and I hope to see many new teams entering this very special event.

FINAL RESULTS TOP FIVE FISH 1. 31.9kg Giant kingfish 2. 24.6kg Amberjack 3. 18.4kg Wahoo 4. 18.1kg Yellowfin tuna 5. 17.7kg Yellowfin tuna

Daryl Bartho, Gone Fishin’ Joost van Heerden, II Wicked Gerhard van Dyk, Impi Mitchell Joseph, Little Hooker Onjon van Staden, Platsak

TOP TEN BOATS 1. Gone Fishin’ 2. Wolfie 3. Lawwerskaai 4. Queen Pine 5. Gloria da Manha 6. Umlungu 7. Footloose 8. Bleskbok 9. Jamludi 10. Ski-Boat Gauteng 16 • SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

1 271.7 points 954.1 points 549.3 points 547.2 points 410.2 points 391.2 points 361.9 points 307.1 points 298.6 points 282.4 points

TOP FIVE ANGLERS 1. Daryl Bartho, Gone Fishin’ 2. Brett Bartho, Gone Fishin’ 3. Clinton Forte, Gloria da Manha 4. R. Graaf, Tsunami 5. Andre Erasmus, Footloose TOP LADY ANGLER 1. Jeanette Smith, Aphrodite TOP JUNIOR ANGLERS 1. Wiarnie Mew, C-Mew

167.3 points 124.5 points 98.2 points 97.4 points 81.1 points 52.1 points 5.7 points

20 â&#x20AC;¢ SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

TACTICS

by SKI-BOAT Reporter

Tips and tactics from the top dogs

N all sports, particularly at the highest level, it is said that after the calibre of skills of the participating players, the next most important aspect is the game plan. The sport of offshore angling is no different. In any competition participating teams need many factors to be synergised if they’re to come out on top. With fishing these factors include weather conditions, intimate area knowledge, local knowledge of prevailing fish feeding habits and tackle preferences — and then we throw in the game plan and Lady Luck. Following the 2015 Guinjata Species Bonanza, we at SKIBOAT magazine managed to get three of the most successful teams to share their ideas and knowledge with our readers by answering a set of ten questions pertaining to how they “played the game” during this year’s competition and how that enabled them to achieve fantastic results. Those of us who fished the event can identify with the TEAM GONE FISHIN’

pearls of wisdom contained in their answers and hopefully more of us can put them to good use at next year’s Guinjata Bonanza. The advice and tips on the following pages come from the “best of the best” and should be studied and filed away to be used or adapted when suitable circumstances arise, whether you’re fishing socially or in a competition under similar conditions. Before we get down to the questions, let’s introduce you to the teams: • Team Gone Fishin’ — Skipper: Daryl Bartho Brett Bartho, Chris Hamel • Team Wolfie — Skipper: Herman Wolf Bob Wolf, Martiens Wolf and Ruan Fourie. • Team Lawwerskaai — Skipper: Frans Labuschagne Johan Herman, Ken Leach, Markus Potgieter, Pieter Broodryk

TEAM WOLFIE

TEAM LAWWERSKAAI

QUESTION A: Did your team have a prepared game plan going into the 2015 Guinjata Species Bonanza? Briefly outline your plan and highlight what changes had to be made due to varying circumstances like weather conditions. Initially we had planned to put together a few consistent point scoring days and leave ourselves a bit of time to try to puzzle a big fish should we have a sufficient buffer of points. We opted to fish each area for a longer period of time this year. Some years we target one specific species at one specific reef, often running 15km solely to target that species, but that means more time spent running instead of fishing. This year we opted to run less but still try to target a few species while fishing for bigger fish. Our points and species count were a lot lower than in previous years, but at least we landed the biggest fish.

Yes, we had a game plan, but due to the bad weather conditions before the competition we weren’t able to put it into practice. Our revised plan was to work the shallow water in the early mornings for livebait and because it was a pushing tide we tried for species like kingfish, queenfish, ’cuda and greater barracuda. From there we moved a bit deeper to the southern reefs where we jigged and set out our drift baits. Our game plan had to change on day three because we couldn’t find any livebait or other good fish in the shallow water.

A game plan is critical to doing well in a species event, so the whole team sits down each night before a day’s fishing to identify the species of fish we need to target, where we need to target them and, of course, which tactics to use.

SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 21

TEAM GONE FISHIN’

TEAM WOLFIE

TEAM LAWWERSKAAI

QUESTION B: What arsenal of fishing rods and reels do you have aboard your craft when you put to sea? Do you add to or change this arsenal as weather conditions change or targeting specific species changes direction? This year we had the following rods and reels aboard: • 5 x Shimano Tyrnos 30 loaded with 50 lb mono topshot and 300m braid backing. These were on Daiwa Powerlift and Shimano T Cur ve rods. We use these for trolling skirted lures or fishing live and dead bonnies. • 2 x Shimano Tyrnos 16 loaded with 40 lb Maxima Ultragreen mono top shot and 350m 50 lb braid. These are on Kingfisher Tuna Ski 12-15kg rods. We use these for targeting ’cuda and light trolling. • 1 x Daiwa BG Saltiga 50 loaded with 35 lb Maxima Ultragreen mono top shot and 50 lb braided backing on a Kingfisher Poseidon jet-ski rod. This is also used for targeting ’cuda and light trolling. • 1 x Daiwa Saltiga 40 loaded with 40 lb Maxima Ultragreen mono topshot and 50 lb braided backing on a CD Viper rod also used for ’cuda and light trolling. • 1 x Stella 18 000 loaded with 100 lb Jigman braid on a Shimano 8’6” popping rod. We use this for throwing the Halco Rooster Poppers. • 1 x Stella 20 000 loaded with 100 lb Jigman braid on a Blue Rose XX heavy used for heavy jigging with 100-400g jigs. • 1 x Torsa 40 loaded with 100 lb Jigman braid on a Trevala XX heavy rod. Brett uses this for heavy jigging and it’s his preferred amberjack setup. • 1 x Daiwa Saltiga 6 000 loaded with 100 lb braid on a Blue Rose XX heavy. This was Chris’s heavy jigging stick. • 1 x Stella 10 000 loaded with 100 lb Jigman braid on Blue Rose X heavy used for med/heavy jigging with 6-8 oz Squiddies and 100-200g jigs. • 2 x Stella 8 000 loaded with 55 lb Daiwa braid on Trevala 6’6” med/heavy rods. We use these for light jigging, dropshotting and throwing Halco 135 Rooster Poppers. • 2 x Stradic 5 000 loaded with 30 lb braid on Trevela 7ft med/fast rods. We use these for casting small Twisty lures and catching live bonnies. They are also good for light dropshotting. • 1 x 9ft KP Scarborough reel loaded with 18kg Double X Platinum line with a Kingfisher Ski Whipper rod. We use this for whipping spoons.

We use different rods and reels for different methods of fishing. • For trolling we prefer the sweet, old-fashioned Beastmaster rod with the Shimano TLD 25 reels. • For the heavier lures as well as setting out livebait we use Fenwick rods combined with Tiagra 30 twospeed reels. • For jigging we use Jigmaster, Shimano Blue Rose as well as Shimano Trevala rods combined with Alutecnos Gorilla V8, Quantum Cabo and Jigging Master reels. • We also keep a couple of lighter spinning rods such as Shimano Trevala med/light combined with Quantum Cabo 50 and Shimano Beastmaster Special Tiger combined with Shimano Stradic 5 000 reels for dropshot, stickbait and spinning purposes.

This changes if we’re targeting a different species each day, and we’re all guilty of having too many outfits on board, but we normally have the following bread and butter gear: • 3 x trap sticks 30 lb ’cuda rods • 2 x spinning rods • 1 x meduim 50 lb jigging outfit — or three • 1 x heavy popping rod • 2 x heavy jigging rods • 3 x 50 lb stand up outfits.

SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 23

24 â&#x20AC;¢ SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

TEAM GONE FISHIN’

TEAM WOLFIE

TEAM LAWWERSKAAI

QUESTION C: List the primary “must have” terminal tackle onboard your craft as well as those you have on standby to use if the need arises. We have three tackle stowage hatches on our F200 which each house six Plano tackle trays/boxes. We always have a master hook tray with all the swivels, single hooks and treble hooks we’ll need. A few Plano trays carry a wide range of Halco lures ranging from Giant Tremblers to the smaller Laser Pro 120DD lures. Another two trays are used for all our skirted lures and softies used for targeting billfish. One thing we always make sure of is that we have enough livebait traces already made up in different sizes so that when we get livebait there’s no time wasted in getting the correct size trace on the rod for the bait caught. We also carr y a tray of rigged spoons in various sizes and shapes. One Plano tray is a dedicated assist hook tray and we have a range of different sized hooks and snoot lengths for the different jigs we use. In our cabin we carry a selection of leader lines and fluorocarbon because sometimes when the bite is slow you need to scale down on leaders.

For jigging our top choice would be Squiddie jigs, fluttering jigs and the long pencil jigs. For trolling we like to make use of the Williamson Speed Pro, Rapala X-Raps, Halco GT Maxis as well as small konas. For spinning we use small stickbaits, bucktail jigs, dropshot, Onda Ondas and poppers.

This varies depending on what species are around.

QUESTION D: How much of your daily fishing time is spent: 1) Jigging; 2) Conventional bait trolling; 3) Pulling artificial lures? 1) Jigging — 40% 2) Conventional bait trolling — 30% 3) Pulling artificial lures — 30%

Due to the fact that we are sold out on jigging we spend about 80% of our time jigging — depending on the weather conditions, of course. However, while jigging we always try to keep at least one or two drift baits in the water. We mostly troll artificial lures while searching for showings, moving from one reef to another when the weather conditions are poor or the current is too strong.

Work rate is critical and, as they say, line in the water catches fish. 1) Most of the time someone is jigging. 2) We almost always have a bait or two out the back of the boat. 3) We hardly ever pull lures unless we are targeting bonnies or tuna.

QUESTION E: 1) When jigging, how reef-specific are you and how much time do you spend there if the first few downs don’t produce fish? 2) How far do you drift when crossing over a likely-looking reef? 1) If the showing on our trusty Lowrance HDS 8 is good then we will spend more time on a reef despite the bite being slow. Sometimes it takes a slower action or a different jig to get the fish to turn on. We normally persevere until we catch the target species — if there is sufficient time. 2) It all depends on the showing. Most of us don’t like jigging in the “desert” with little showing on the finder, but sometimes you hit a luck and get a good GT or amberjack in the “bush”. However, I prefer to keep the drifts short and above the pinnacle or good showing.

We’re very reef specific; we focus on jigging the showings and don’t spend a lot of time on the reefs if there are no showings. After catching a couple of the same species we move to other reefs in search of different species.

1) Sometimes the fish are on the reef but aren’t biting, but I feel you need to give a spot or a good showing a chance before moving on. 2) It’s a tough question to answer because the drift changes each day depending on the current and wind and where the fish are holding.

SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 25

TEAM GONE FISHIN’

TEAM WOLFIE

TEAM LAWWERSKAAI

QUESTION F: Do you carry natural frozen bait onboard and, if so, what bait species? For sure! We catch our own mackerel, bonnies, red eye sardine, silkies and sea pike. It’s vital to have top quality deadbaits to use should the action be a bit slow on the artificial lures.

Yes, always. We carr y sardines, mackerel, bonitos and half-beaks.

Having the freshest bait possible is critical. We use mixed baits caught in Durban like mackerel, red eyes and sardines as well as local bait from Moçamibque like half-beaks, wolfies and bonnies.

QUESTION G: When bait fishing do you: 1) All troll; 2) All drift; 3) Drift baits and jig at the same time? It all depends on the sea conditions. We sometimes vary all three options above, but I have learnt that sometimes trying to cover all your bases isn’t the best option. If you are looking for a ’cuda then I feel you need to be target specific and work to try catch that species. Sometimes trying to cover too many bases while drifting or slow trolling results in tangles or compromises all your techniques. This also depends on how many crew you have onboard. If you have four or five crew then it’s easier to give one guy a dedicated job like handling the surface bait while the other guys jig, but we normally fish three-up so it’s a bit more difficult to try cover too many bases.

We drift baits and jig at the same time.

It’s critical that the bait swims right and often the current is too strong to troll in Moçambique so most of the time we drift. Sometimes we drift baits and jig at the same time because it gives us more time in the water and we can target different species at the same time.

QUESTION H: When trolling artificial lures do you: 1) Pull all the similar size and style of lures; 2) Pull an assortment of size and colours; 3) Pull skip baits with deep diving artificials? We generally pull smaller skirted lures with stripbaits or half-beaks as well as two deep diving Laser Pro 160 XDDs close in the prop wash.

We pull a wide assortment of sizes and colours as long as the lures’ action is good.

1) Definitely not. 2) Yes — an assortment that swims at the same speed 3) We mix it up a bit for sure, but watch the speed to make sure all the lures swim well.

QUESTION I: With regard to sailfish and marlin lures: 1) Do you troll these? 2) What time or under what water conditions do you troll these lures? 1) Yes. 2) Depending on the sea conditions and bait activity we may pull lures in the early morning while covering the area we wish to jig or slow troll for gamefish. This allows us to cover good ground while seeing where the fish are sitting on the reefs.

No, we don’t just focus on billfish; we troll for a wider range of species.

1) Nope most of the billfish we catch are hooked on the trap sticks. 2) We hardly ever troll these lures unless billfish are on the list for the day.

QUESTION J: Is there one specific tip you use very successfully that you are prepared to share with our readers? Go prepared! There’s nothing worse than not being ready when the bite hots up and you lose out because you weren’t prepared.

26 • SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

What we find most successful is to enjoy ourselves and keep on jigging as much as possible. It’s not always easy, but hard work pays off in the end.

Work rate, being able to adjust your tactics on the water and having a game plan — these three things have been the keys to team Lawwerskaai’s success each year.

SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 â&#x20AC;¢ 27

NUTS & BOLTS

by John Frankiskos

Refurbished brake calipers with stainless steel sleeves and plungers.

How to keep your trailer in tip-top condition

HE ski-boat trailer is, without doubt, the Cinderella of our fraternity’s fishing paraphernalia. We all tend to spit and polish our boats, lovingly service and clean our outboard motors and keep our rods, reels and terminal tackle in mint condition. After all, inoperative boat motors or rusted tackle means no going to sea and no fish. However, trailers are also crucial to our fishing outings and when they give up due to a lack of maintenance, it’s often at a time or place that is highly inconvenient. This puts the captain and crew of the boat under a great deal of stress and can result in hours or even days of inconvenience while repairs are being done. Every time you use the trailer it’s almost fully immersed in saltwater in the shore break or on the slipway, then it’s sun baked for a day before going back into the saltwater to retrieve the boat, after which it carries a heavy load home.

I can’t think of a better way to promote rust and yet, what do we do after fishing? We dutifully wash and polish our pride and joy — the boat — and then, as an afterthought, squirt the hose under the boat to remove any sand and saltwater. In real terms it’s a disaster in the making. A few months back I noticed my trailer was looking a tad worse for wear so I decided to launch my beloved boat onto my driveway and totally refurbish the trailer. One of my big worries was the rusting of the hydraulic pipes running to the brake calipers which I’d already replaced multiple times in the past, along with the calipers and discs which weren’t looking too good. This refurbishment was a big job, one that I didn’t want to repeat in a hurry, and I tried something new with the hydraulic brake pipes — each segment of the new hydraulic pipe was slid into a snug fitting clear plastic tube; 1mm wall SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 31

Pic 1: Rusted hydraulic pipes and brake flare nuts.

Close up of rusted hydraulic pipe.

Close up of new hydraulic pipe with plastic tube covering.

The same coupling as shown in Pic 1 but refurbished with new pipes and brake flare nuts, covered with plastic tubing and showing joins wrapped in heat shrink tubing.

thickness, 5mm inside diameter. In order to do this I purchased the tubing from a general hardware store and then went to CBS on North Coast Road in Durban where the hydraulic pipes were cut to length. We then flared one end of the tube, fitted the correct securing brake flare nut, fed the hydraulic tube into the plastic sleeve and cut the plastic sleeve a bit longer than the hydraulic pipe to ensure there would be no gap between the plastic sleeve and the nuts on each end of the hydraulic pipe. Next we pulled the plastic sleeve further down the tube to a point which allowed us to put the securing brake flare nut in place and flare the tube end. When all the new hydraulic pipes were encased in the plastic sleeves they were ready to be fitted in place on the trailer. While I was positioning the pipes on the trailer I made sure that there were no sharp areas where the tube came into contact with the trailer. In areas where vibration could chafe and damage the plastic sleeve I cut a piece of hosepipe and placed it over the plastic sleeve to protect it. Once this was done I threaded a piece of heat-shrink tubing onto the pipe at each connection point, long enough to cover the connection point between the tube and corresponding hydraulic pipes. This was done to prevent water ingress into the tube as well as to protect the metal brake flare nuts from rusting up. When all the connections were tightened and checked for leakage and the brakes had been bled, the heatshrink tubing was pulled over the connections and heated so that it shrunk. A cable tie was used to secure the heatshrink in place and to ensure that no water could seep in between the heatshrink and the tube. Clearly the extra effort was worth it because after more than 12 months the hydraulic pipes visible through the clear plastic are still silver, with no apparent indication of rust, and the brakes are still working effectively. This year Erwin Bursik and I were towing Mr Ski-Boat to Guinjata and during our preparation we decided to have the trailer serviced professionally, along with the boat and motors. Our concern was primarily the brake calipers which were sticking. New calipers were not available in Durban prior to our departure, so we had to make another plan. We had the calipers revamped with specially remade plungers and barrels of stainless steel by Stephen Fry of About Trailers in Durban. This was done at fair expense and we presumed all was now perfect for the long trip. We even checked the wheel bearings of the LA Axle and they were perfect. The day before departure I drove SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 â&#x20AC;˘ 33

Pop Rivet hosepipe to trailer frame to hold hydraulic pipe and Coupling to hydraulic master cyclinder protected with heat trailer lights cable. shrink wrap and plastic tubing. the rig to my home for final packing, but after parking the boat I noticed brake fluid on my driveway. During a long and frustrating repair job that delayed our departure by eight hours, new brake pipes were fitted which ensured our brakes were optimal for the 2 000km return journey. Once we were back in Durban I cut all the temporary holding cable ties and refitted the hydraulic pipes and flexible hoses, cleaned the hydraulic pipes and fitted them into plastic sleeves like I’d done on my rig. In my opinion, based on the repairs I did to my own trailer, Erwin will only have to consider replacing these hydraulic pipes if there’s water ingress into the sleeve which will be easily visible through the clear plastic. After the trip, a close inspection of the refurbished calipers with new stainless steel plungers showed minimal signs of corrosion and the discs were nice and shiny. That proved that the brakes were working perfectly, a fact we had fully appreciated while driving the tow vehicle. The rusting of the calipers is a very real problem and many ski-boaters who regularly launch their craft from slipways totally disconnect the hydraulic calipers and store them for use during the occasional long trip. I don’t agree with that because efficient trailer brakes are as important, if not more so, when towing one’s rig through the city. Preventative maintenance of a galvanised boat trailer is more easily described than actually undertaken. We all know that a simple hose down after use — be it the boat, motors or trailer — does little to remove the sun-dried salt particles sticking to all surfaces. It’s far simpler to soak down the boat

and outboard motors with one of the detergents or salt-diluting chemicals on the market than it is to crawl under the boat and trailer and get the same solution onto the axle, springs, shackles and braking systems that will have copious amounts of salt crystal adhering to them. I have been warned that spraying one’s trailer, especially spring shackles and calipers, with the commonly used mix of petrol/paraffin and two-stroke oil is not recommended as it apparently affects rubber seals in the calipers and rubber bushes. From the numerous enquiries I have made it seems there is no easy solution. With access to the parts of the trailer that really need attention being heavily restricted because of the craft on the trailer, it seems that a good wash with soap and warm water is the best solution, followed by something like Tectol being sprayed on exposed metal. From my perspective there seems to be no short cut to wiggling on one’s back over an already wet parking area and seriously washing down the trailer and spraying it with a coating that will help prevent rust from taking hold. If any readers have practical advice for a ski-boater who parks his craft and trailer at home, to obviate the heavy maintenance load or constant deterioration by rust, please let us know. Write to SKI-BOAT magazine <sheena@ mags.co.za> so that your recommendations can be published in order to help the many other boaters who experience the same frustration.

STRENGTHENING YOUR BREAKNECK TRAILER There’s one other thing I did when I reconditioned my trailer that may be worth a mention. I found that the breakneck pin and the two parts where the trailer sits together also get worn; as a result the two halves of the trailer are loose and tend to bounce around when you tow it over long distances. This puts a lot of stress on the shackles that secure the boat to the trailer as the shackles secured to the hook on the bow of the boat tend to take the brunt of the “scissor effect” of the trailer moving and can break. To overcome this I drilled a 10mm hole on each side of the breakneck and when I tow over long distances I bolt the two halves of the trailer together. In essence the trailer is no longer breakable and becomes a solid one-piece trailer. This stops the possible “scissoring” of the breakneck and reduces the stress on the shackles and boat-securing hooks. Considering some of the rough roads along which we tow our boats I have found this works well and it only takes a couple of minutes to remove the bolts once you reach your destination.

34 • SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

GAMEFISH

by SKI-BOAT Reporter

Albino ’cuda landed off Moçambique

FTER a busy July school holiday season in Barra, Inhambane, the Barra Ocean Adventures sportfishing guides, Paul Lourance and Delano Goldberg, decided to head into the deep blue for some of their own fishing fun. Shortly after first light on 15th July, with a crisp north-westerly blowing and a sea temperature of 26°C, the four anglers on Delano’s Deep Fr y’d, approached one of their favourite reefs located off Barra Point. The Supercat powered down and the two local guides prepped their jigging rods. The Garmin fishfinder indicated the waters below were teeming with fish, and on their first drop both reels started singing. Within minutes the fishermen had landed two yellow spotted kingfish and the action continued at a steady clip for most of the morning. All the fish caught averaged between 6and 12kg, a good start to a fun day on light tackle. It wasn’t too much later that things really began to get interesting as the Shimano Tiagra 30, rigged with a drift bait off the back of the vessel, started screaming. Delano was closest to the rod, and quickly passed his jigging stick over to Paul while doing his best to haul on the reel that ran for over 100m. The excitement of a good fish on rippled through the team, with Delano declaring it was either a big wahoo or ’cuda — king mackerel. The fish surfaced about 20m from the boat, showing a distinct yellow shine. “Big bull dorado!” yelled Paul, “But it’s not breaching.” Dorado usually breach the instant they feel the lure, but this fish was exhibiting some decidedly unusual behaviour. As it came closer to the boat, the anglers got a better look and realised this wasn’t a dorado, but rather a decent sized ’cuda. Momentarily thrown by its unusual colouring, it took Delano a few moments to grasp what he was looking at before he shouted, “It’s an albino!” That’s an extremely rare catch, by anyone’s standards. According to Dr Olaf LF Weyl, (Principal Scientist, South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity, SAIAB), the yellow colour of the ’cuda

Delano Goldberg with the albino ’cuda he caught off Barra Point, Moçambique.

caught by Delano off Barra Point, Moçambique, is an interesting case of xanthochromatism — an unusually yellow pigmentation on the animal. “Xanthochromatism, which is found in fish, birds, amphibians and reptiles, is

extremely rare,” he said. “For this reason there is little information on this phenomenon in fish, but occasionally yellow largemouth bass, rockcods, anglerfish and sole are reported. As a result of this rarity we have accessioned the SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 37

Paul Lourance and Luige Moses closely examine the 15.2kg albino ’cuda. photograph of Delano’s ’cuda as a specimen, in the South African National Fish collection as accession number 200084.” Once Delano managed to get the fish within striking range Paul neatly gaffed it behind the head, bringing home a truly unusual fish weighing in at 15.2kg. The morning’s catch yielded 11 yellow spotted kingfish, of which seven were released, plus the exceptional prize of the day. Back on the beach there was plenty

38 • SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

of interest from locals with regard to the fish’s strange markings before the ’cuda disappeared into the kitchen at Neptune’s Beach Bar. Lunch was served not long after. “We found the meat to be slightly darker and with a smidgen more texture, although it tasted pretty much the same as any other ’cuda,” commented Paul. “Suffice it to say it was almost as succulent as dorado.” Interested readers can view footage of the catch on Barra Ocean Adventures (Mozambique) Facebook page.

BACK TO BASICS

by Paul Borcherds

Part 1:What is a Wind-On Leader? WIND-ON leader is basically a length of monofilament or fluorocarbon leader line that is inserted into a smaller section of hollow core Spectra/Dyneema (braid) or Dacron with a looped splice on the end. This looped section is then attached to the double line at the end of the reel’s main line. The double line on the main line is made up by using a Spider Hitch, Bimini Twist or Aussie Plait as demonstrated in the two previous issues of SKI-BOAT. Typically the double line is connected to the wind-on leader via a loop-to-loop connection, allowing the angler to

Diagram 1.

6m wind-on leader with snap swivel, 2m end trace and lure.

reel the leader through the rod guides and onto the reel. A swivel or snap swivel is connected to the end of the wind-on leader which, in turn, is connected to the end trace and the lure. (See diagram 1.) When used while bait fishing, the wind-on leader may be connected directly to the hook for the ultimate stealth presentation without visible swivels close to the hook which might spook skittish fish. For example, when fishing for tuna on the drift or stealth fishing — live baiting for tuna or marlin — a hook may be connected directly to the end of the wind-on leader via a knot or crimp. (See diagram 2.)

Diagram 2.

Wind-on leader with hook for live or dead baiting. SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 41

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Putting pressure on a fish through a rod is far smoother than by hand, and leadering the fish through the rod by using a wind-on leader will reduce the number of pulled or straightened hooks.

Cat’s Paw loop-to-loop connection.

The “Martin Visagie” loop-to-loop connection. LOOP-TO-LOOP There are two loop-to-loop connections used to connect the wind-on leader to the main line double line. Both of these are very secure connections that will not fail if all the steps are adhered to. The first is the Cat’s Paw which is commonly used in heavier monofilament and fluorocarbon line classes — 50- to 130 lb. The second one, which I commonly refer to as the “Martin Visagie”, can be used for all mono-, fluorocarbon and braid line classes. I will describe how to do both of these connections in part two of this article which will appear in the November/December issue of SKI-BOAT.

WHAT TO CHECK Many failures are attributed to wind-on leaders, but as with many other failures in fishing, that’s usually a failure on the part of the angler in preparing, maintaining and checking tackle. Wind-on leaders should be checked regularly along with hook sharpness, drags, roller guides, line and every other facet. There are many makes of wind-on leaders available on the market — some good, some average and some not worthy of being attached to the main line. Some of the more expensive makes could also have flaws, so eliminate the flaws by checking the following: As mentioned above with the “Chinese Cuff” effect, the more pressure that’s applied to the mono- or fluorocarbon, the tighter the Dacron or hollow core braid will grip the line. Always check that the leader moves very little inside the Dacron or hollow core braid when you push the Dacron or hollow core up the leader. A well made wind-on leader will have very little play. Do not use or purchase it if it moves considerably more than other makes. Check whether the Dacron or hollow core loop was spliced properly — a well made wind–on leader loop will be spliced at least ten times. This splice — a Tanaka Splice — ensures that the loop will not close when pressure is applied by hard fighting fish.

TRAPPED BY THE HOLLOW CORE The Dacron or Hollow core braid section of the wind–on leader basically traps the mono- or fluorocarbon line when pressure is applied. The more pressure is applied, the tighter the woven fibres of the Dacron or hollow core braid will grip the mono- or fluorocarbon leader line. This is commonly referred to as the Chinese Cuff effect. A 10 x Tanaka Splice. WHY USE A WIND-ON? Wind-on leaders are safer to use because if you use one and hook a big fish like a marlin it no longer needs to be handlined by a leader man. Conventional leaders force the angler to stop reeling when the swivel tied directly to the double line reaches the rod tip, leaving the remaining length of leader in the water, but this is not the case with a wind-on leader. Once you’ve wound the leader through the rod guides, the fish is close to the boat and the angler has better control over the fish. This is especially important as a safety aspect on smaller boats or with an inexperienced crew where the chance of a long coiled leader on the deck may entangle the angler or leaderman. Wind-on leaders also allow the angler to precisely tailor the end terminal tackle to the required length without wasting too much end trace leader material — for example a 6m wind-on leader and 2m end trace. Wind-on leaders work particularly well as a shock tippet in casting and jigging outfits, enabling anglers to cast or jig objects without snapping the main line. They are also easier to change and re-connect to the doubled mono- or braid line than crimps and knots. When it gets hectic on the boat you can easily store a rod with the leader attached, saving you the hassle of taking off the lure, finding a place for it out of the way and then getting the rod out of the way as well. Using the wind-on system means that once you get a few turns of the wind-on around your reel you can lock up the drag and put a lot more pressure on a deep fighting fish in order to raise it. A wind-on is far stronger than double line.

Ensure that the leader tip is not protruding through the Dacron or hollow core braid; do this by bending this section a few times. If it protrudes do not use it because steps in the manufacturing process were probably skipped. A well made wind-on leader will have the leader section covered by two layers of Dacron or hollow core; a single layer will weaken this section and if the leader tip protrudes it will further weaken the Dacron or hollow core, leading to failure.

Note the tip of the leader protruding through the Dacron. This will weaken this section and will lead to failure.

A well-made wind-on leader will have two layers of Dacron over the leader line. In this picture the leader is pushed into one section of Dacron and secured, and then the second section will be pulled over to ensure that the tip of the leader cannot protrude through the Dacron. SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 43

A fly-tying bobbin (left) or bow hunting serving tool (right) can be used to finish the end section of the Dacron.

A completed finish made using a bow hunting serving tool with 30 lb braid, covered with UV glue. Also check the joins where the mono- or fluorocarbon enters the hollow core or Dacron. If there are frayed ends fix them by adding another layer of thread. Use either wax thread or waxed dental floss in tight half hitches over the fray. Alternatively spool a length of 20 lb or 30 lb braid onto a flytying bobbin or bow hunting serving tool and spin it tightly around the frayed edge, then finish it the same way you would do with a Bimini as demonstrated in a previous issue of SKIBOAT magazine. Whether you are using wax thread or braid, run a bit of Ply-o-Bond, UV knot sense, flexible super glue or flexible nail varnish over this section to seal it off, thus reducing the chance of it fraying again due to water absorbsion and other abrasion factors. If you make your own wind-on leaders, roughen up half the length of nylon with 200 grit water paper at the leader tip that goes through the Dacron or hollow core braid; this will reduce the chance of slippage. Also taper the leader end tip for the last 20cm to reduce the chance of the leader end wearing through the hollow core or Dacron. Always check the join by trying to pull the mono or fluorocarbon out of the hollow core or Dacron — if you can pull it out then it’s a sign of future failure; a well-bound join will not fail. When purchasing commercially made wind-ons put them through the checks or simply add your own bind and protective covering to make sure it’s ready for use. JOINING THE MAIN LINE The most common way to join a main line to a wind-on system is by tying a short double and using a loop-to-loop join. Check this connection regularly and make sure the loops are fully pulled down. Lubricate the connection to reduce friction when doing this. In the next article I will demonstrate the Cat’s Paw and Martin Visagie loop-to-loop connections to the double line. SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 45

OVERHEARD

COMING UP!

2015 Durban Ski-Boat Club Jet-ski Bonanza

HE 2015 Durban Ski-Boat Club Jet-ski Bonanza is being held over the weekend of 21-22 November and SKI-BOAT magazine caught up with Shaun Laver y, Regional Sales Manager of Yamaha, and the Vice Commodore of the Durban SkiBoat Club to get further details.

SB: This is the second time this event is being held; tell us a bit about last year’s event and about the plans for this year. SL: Last year’s event was put together in record time and was run along the lines of a species competition. We had 80 jetskis entering, which was a good start to a new event. This year we have changed the rules substantially in that the winner will be the angler who weighs in the heaviest gamefish. We believe this will encourage the broader jet-ski community in that it levels the playing fields. We are looking to host 150 jet-ski anglers and their families. SB: How will this encourage a broader buy-in from the jet-ski community? SL: A species competition favours the local anglers who know the waters better than visiting anglers. It also favours those anglers who like targeting different species and who know where they generally feed. This time, with the prize going to the angler who weighs in the biggest gamefish the competition is wide open to any angler. SB: The Durban Ski-Boat Club has a reputation for offering amazing prizes at the Ski-Boat Festival that’s held in April each year. What prizes do you have lined up for the Jet-ski Bonanza in November? SL: The first prize is a Yamaha VX 1100 jet-ski valued at R195 000 and there will also be an array of secondary prizes that the anglers will compete for. We are very fortunate to receive support from companies like The Kingfisher, Accessories Spares Centre, Lowrance, CMH Datcentre Pinetown, Wesbank Natal, Ice Cool, GW Industries, Racetech Yamaha, R&R Traders, Garmin, Lucozade and SKI-BOAT. Our members are also

generous in their support. SB: Besides the fishing, what attractions will there be for the families? SL: We’ll be laying on a variety of interesting things for the families to enjoy, including a jumping castle and water slide for our up and coming anglers. As is customary we’ll have a lot of sponsors’ products to give away during the day which always gets the crowd excited. There will also be demonstration rides on jet-skis supplied by Racetech Yamaha for those interested in taking up this discipline. SB: It’s no secret that it took a lot of convincing to get the Port Captain and his team to allow jet-skis to launch at the DSBC. Give us some background on that issue. SL: Indeed, it took us six months to convince the port authorities that we are serious anglers and that we require a safe launch site just like any ski-boat angler. We don’t differentiate between jet-ski and ski-boat anglers, they are just anglers who chose to fish off different platforms. Today we have over 130 jet-skis registered at the club and from the Port’s point of view, they are very happy that through membership at the DSBC there is control over safety in the same way there is safety control with ski-boating. SB: So how do people enter this event? SL: Anglers can visit our website <www.dsbc.co.za> to download an entry form or else phone the club on (031) 337-9506 and we’ll send them a form. They need to make sure they get in early to qualify for a full goodie bag and to be included in the lucky draws. Our banking details are as follows: First National Bank, Branch code 2201126, Account number 5088 1899 990. Anyone making a deposit must please make sure they send all the payment details through to <accounts@ durbanskiboatclub.co.za> or fax them to (031) 337-7673. SB: We wish you and all the anglers a safe and enjoyable event.

SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 47

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COMPETITIONS

by Erwin Bursik, photos by Erwin Bursik and Justin Klusener Photography

2015 Shelly Beach Ski-Boat Festival

Top to bottom: Brett Bartho with a 31.6kg yellowfin tuna, Weasel Coetzee shows off his 34.1kg ‘cuda, Garth Richardson’s wahoo weighed 34.1kg.

X C I T E M E N T, tension, disappointment, ecstasy and anticipation were but a few of the emotions that ran high on the penultimate day of the 2015 Shelly Beach Mallards/Mercury Ski-boat Festival as the weighmaster closed that day’s weigh-in. Friday afternoon’s weigh-in certainly was an event to remember for all the anglers and spectators who crowded the marquee attached to the Shelly Beach Ski-boat Club’s clubhouse to view the magnificent Mallard’s Cobra Cat 525, powered by twin Mercury SeaPro 75hp 4-stroke outboard motors, which was floating in the blue, blue water of the club’s swimming pool. A truly magnificent ’cuda of 32kg, weighed in by Jonathan Bakos, fishing aboard Billy Jude, was heading the leaderboard after Day Two and everyone present wondered if his fish would indeed land him the beautiful Mercurypowered Cobra Cat .... The 2015 Mallards/Mercury Ski-boat Festival got off to a great start on Wednesday 8th July with 65 craft carrying 250 anglers launching along the east coast, from Port Edward in the south to Durban in the north. They had a very good day, with a number of yellowfin tuna and ’cuda being weighed in that afternoon. However although some reasonably large fish were weighed in, there was still plenty of scope for bigger fish to be caught. The second day was also a great fishing day, and during the weigh-in a number of good fish filled the top five or six places on the leaderboard, notably Jonathan Bakos’s 32kg ’cuda and Brett Bartho’s 30.1kg yellowfin tuna taken off Durban. These fish set a very high benchmark because at the 2014 event fish that size had taken the main prize. However, the fleet wasn’t ready to give up yet and the anglers were determined to fish hard to knock Jonathan off his perch ... Late on Friday afternoon in came Andrew Stewart with an amberjack that had the crowd surging around to get a better look. It weighed 36.1kg and was the new leader on the board. Sadly for Andrew, his glory was very short-lived; while his prize-worthy fish was still hanging on the scale, another magnificent fish of the same species was carried into the weigh-in area. Lying in its cooler box it certainly looked big, but the question on everyone’s mind was whether it was big enough to eclipse the big amberjack still hanging on view. Matthew Defillipi stood waiting anxiously as his big amberjack was hoisted onto the scale. He suffered further anguish as the Tournament Director, Anton Gets, called for estimat-

Below: Luke Nielsen won the first and third prizes in the junior category, Sharron Bennett was the top lady angler.

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ed weights from the huge crowd of spectators while the weighmaster kept the digital scale covered. The consensus was that it was bigger than Andrew’s fish, but the scale would have the final say... Eventually Anton announced that Matthew’s amberjack weighed 39.4kg! His announcement was followed by cheers of delight from the crew of About Time as well as the entire crowd surrounding the gantry, all acknowledging the phenomenal catch. The guys aboard About Time — Matthew, his brother Nathan and his dad, Greg — were now firmly in top position. However, there was still one more day’s fishing to go before they could claim the Cobra Cat 525 powered by Mercury. Matthew, who is only 16 years old, had to wait another 24 hours to know whether the fantastic prize would be his. Two other excellent fish — a ’cuda of 34.1kg caught by Weasel Coetzee aboard Man Size, and Garth Richardson’s wahoo of 25.7kg — were weighed in after the big amberjack, but although both were potential winning fish, they had to accept a bridesmaid status at the day’s weigh-in. I must reiterate that an 87 lb (39.4kg) amberjack, one of the strongest fighting fish in the ocean, is an extremely difficult fish to catch in the 90 metre deep water where they prowl. In addition, they’re dirty fighters and have a terrible habit of reefing the line during the initial couple of runs in their search for freedom. Young Matthew showed outstanding skills as an angler to land this prize fish; skills he no doubt acquired from fishing with his very experienced dad. PLACE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Top to bottom: Jonathan Bakos shows off his 32kg ‘cuda, Craig Tutton with his 22.8kg ‘cuda, Andrew Stewart was very happy with his 36.1kg amberjack.

DAY 3 3 3 2 2 3 2 1 2 3 3 1 1 2 3

On the final day big swells and a strong north-easterly wind eventually closed the Shelly Beach launch site after a few boats had some “interesting” launches. Durban Harbour was also closed due to heavy swells that day. Those anglers who had ventured out to sea saw out the time, but arrived back on the beach sore, very wet, and mostly fishless. Only about ten small yellowfin were brought to the scales. I must mention here that six-yearold Pieter Bodenstein junior, fishing on his dad’s boat, Bliksem, not only stuck out the awful day on the ocean, but also landed a lovely 10kg yellowfin that earned him much applause from the crowd, both for his plucky determination and because it was a fine fish for a little man his size. The Shelly Beach club’s decision to centre the competition’s festivities at its on-the-beach clubhouse like they did last year once again proved to be the right one. Throughout the event — whether on the ramp, in the clubhouse

BOAT & ANGLER About Time, Matt Defilippi Bakgat II, Andrew Stewart Man Size, Weasel Coetzee Billy Jude, Jonathan Bakos Gone Fishin’, Brett Bartho Game Over, Garth Richardson Billy Jude, Jonathan Bakos Aqua Brat, Cameron Palmer Hooker III, Craig Tutton Watt 4, Peter John Botha Game On, Digby Smith Flippenice, Anton van Zyl Man Size, Richard Moir Gone Fishin’, Brett Bartho Thunderchild, Roy Jackson

SPECIES amberjack amberjack ’cuda ’cuda yellowfin tuna wahoo ’cuda ’cuda ’cuda amberjack ’cuda yellowfin tuna ’cuda yellowfin tuna ’cuda

WEIGHT 39.4kg 36.1kg 34.1kg 32.0kg 31.6kg 25.7kg 23.1kg 23.0kg 22.8kg 22.1kg 21.6kg 20.7kg 20.5kg 20.5kg 19.2kg

WOMEN WINNERS 1 2 Too Kaotic, Sharron Bennett 2 4 Stunning, Bernice van der Merwe 3 3 El Pescatore, Corne Brits

yellowfin tuna yellowfin tuna yellowfin tuna

16.1kg 15.9kg 15.5kg

JUNIOR WINNERS 1 1 Frenzy, Luke Nielsen (15 yrs) 2 1 Watt 4, Gregory Botha (10 yrs) 3 1 Frenzy, Luke Nielsen (15 yrs)

yellowfin tuna yellowfin tuna yellowfin tuna

17.3kg 16.7kg 15.1kg

SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 55

The winner, Matt Defilippi of Team About Time with his father, Greg, and brother Nathan receive their boat from Mike Barnes of Mallards and Myles Osborne of Mercury.

Lowrance’s John Minnie hands Andrew Stewart his second place prize of a Lowrance GPS and sounder. or out in the marquee — one was surrounded by anglers. This and the great spirit and camaraderie that prevailed during the 2015 event made it a great festival, facilitating conversations about fish, fishing and boats between new angling friends and old mates — in my case some going back 30 years! This situation was a great deal more pleasant than when the anglers were being over-ridden by the general public as happened at other venues in the years gone by. I’m lifting up a silent prayer that the Shelly Beach Ski-boat Club’s organising committee sticks to the formula that was set last year and which worked so well and was so greatly appreciated this year too. When the final bell tolled at 4pm on Saturday, 11th July 2015 and the scales finally closed for this year’s Shelly Beach Festival, About Time’s three crew members who had sat by very patiently and very anxiously during the entire two-hour long weigh-in started to breathe again. However, it was only when Anton Gets called time-out and no fish could knock Matthew Defillipi’s 39.4kg amberjack from the top of the 56 • SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

In third place Team Man Size needed all the crew to help carry off their prizes.

leaderboard, that Matt finally knew the Mallards Cobra Cat 525, powered by twin 75hp Mercury 4-stroke Sea Pro outboards was his. That’s a dream come true for anyone, let alone a 16-year-old teenager! Witnessing his ecstasy was the cherry on top for all of us present at the time. As has come to be the norm during the prizegiving of the Mallards/ Mercury Ski-Boat Festival, the array of prizes awaiting presentation to the winners was absolutely outstanding. All those who witnessed the eventual hand-over by John Riley must have felt a tad jealous if they were not stepping up to claim some of the bounty. Sponsorship, for which John was largely responsible, was remarkable and everyone was reminded once again of the amazing support this competition receives both from the local lower South Coast business fraternity, and also from the national and provincial businesses which continue to support this excellently run event. As per tradition, the three top juniors and the three top lady anglers were all awarded wonderful prizes,

then the heaviest of each species of gamefish (excluding fish that took major prizes) received a substantial prize. Thereafter the major prizes were awarded, beginning with the 15th biggest gamefish and ending with Matthew being handed the key to his brand new boat. This year’s results were extremely pleasing, with the top 15 fish all weighing over 19.2kg which shows just how good the fishing is off this stretch of the South African coast. What a great competition! A big vote of thanks must go to Anton Gets, his entire committee and all the staff of Shelly Beach Ski-boat Club for the immense amount of work and dedication that goes into arranging and running this outstanding event. Assurances have been made that next year the festival will take place at the same time, in the same place, and hopefully all who attended this year will return. Those who know what a fantastic event this really is, please persuade other boat owners to attend so that they too can experience the fun of this annual event.

Grateful thanks to all our SPONSORS for their outstanding support! A B D CONSTRUCTION ACE PLANT HIRE AUTO BREAKDOWN & PLANT MOVING AUTOZONE BACCUS PROJECTS TILING SPECIALISTS BATES GM BATTERY CENTRE MANABA BATTERY-TEC SHELLY BEACH BAY VIEW LODGE BEARING MAN BRANDHOUSE BUSHTEC ADVENTURE C P MOLDT JEWELLERS COCA COLA FORTUNE COMFORT COOL AIRCONDITIONING COUNTY FORD COYOTES SPORTS BAR CRAIG TREHERNE DESROCHES HOTEL MARGATE DGB DIRK TERBLANCHE DISTELL EDRICH ENGINEERING EDWARD SNELL & CO EMERALD COVE HOLIDAY RESORT EUREKA FARM EXPRESS REFRIGERATION FATHER TIME FIREHOUSE FIREQUIP GALLAGHER STEEL ART

GETSEA SKIPPERS TRAINING GRIPPLE SA H.I.P PRODUCTS HALEWOOD INTERNATIONAL INJECT-A-MOULD JEFFS PALM RESORT - GUINJATA JUAN VAN TICHELEN KENCRETE KERN & PARTNERS KULUCRETE KURT RUTTER KVR PROJECTS LOWRANCE LUCKYS MALLARDS BOATING MARGATE CONSTRUCTION MARGATE FURNISHERS MARGATE PANEL BEATERS MARTINS ELECTRONICS MERCURY MARINE MICHAEL JAMES ORGANISATION MP ELECTRICAL MUST BYT FISHING CHARTERS & PLEASURE TRIPS NATAL PORTLAND CEMENT NATAL POWERBOATS NATIONAL DRILLING NUFORM SCAFFOLDING OCEAN MARINE BOATING PALMER STEEL FABRICATIONS PARADISE BEACH LODGE

PAYMASTER PAWN SHOP PG GLASS POWERFLOW EXHAUSTS PRINTCO PULSATOR LURES RENASA INSURANCE RISK SURE INSURANCE BROKERS S.A. OLYMPIC HEALTH WORLD SAB CASTLE LAGER SADEC TRADE SAN MARTINHO BEACH CLUBMOÃ&#x2021;AMBIQUE SKI-BOAT MAGAZINE SOUTH COAST BUSINESS MACHINES SOUTHERN AMBITIONS SPANJAARD SPAR - PORT EDWARD SPEEDYS MARGATE STATUS GARRUN INSURANCEBROKERS STOLTZ ELECTRICAL THE TACKLE BOX THE DURBAN SHOP MATATIELE TYREMART UBER LUX SPA & HAIR BAR UGU SOUTH COAST TOURISM UMTHUNZI HOTEL & CONFERENCE UMZIMKULU MARINA VANGUARD INSURANCE VODASHOP SHELLY BEACH WURTH SA ISANDO

PLACES ESCENDING through the cottonwool clouds to Vilanculos, Moçambique, as you spot the turquoise water off the coast and the numerous palm trees clustered around homesteads below, you feel the stress melt away ... the holiday has begun. Technically I was in Moçambique for work, having been invited to review Anantara Bazaruto Island Resort and Spa, but it’s difficult to remember you’re working when you’re surrounded by luxury and the warm, clear Indian Ocean waters. Just an hour after I stepped off the ferry which had transported us across from Vilanculos to Bazaruto, I walked into the spa. If the view from the entrance deck isn’t enough to wipe away the last vestiges of stress, the magical fingers of one of their masseuses will be. I was treated to the spa’s signature full body massage and was so oblivious to the outside world I completely missed the spectacular sunset happening right outside the window. The spa is situated on the resort’s highest point to take advantage of the incredible view and to ensure that guests enjoy peace and tranquillity far away from the main buildings. That night I feasted on a wide array of dinner options from lobster and freshly caught wahoo to roast beef, fresh salads and everything in between plus a number of dessert options. Once I was fully sated it was time to take a slow walk along the beach with my way lit by galaxies of stars and the thin sliver of the crescent moon, before retiring to my luxurious beach villa.

by Sheena Carnie The rooms are stand alone units but are all linked to one another and to the common areas by a wooden walkway, so although you have all the conveniences of a hotel it feels more like you have your own 5-star beach cottage. Although the resort can accommodate up to 100 people and they were almost at full occupancy during my stay, there’s never a feeling of being over crowded — the beach is always peaceful, the pool is never over subscribed and there are always more than enough staff around to tend to your every wish. The hotel is situated in the Bazaruto Archipelago National Park which encompasses the six islands in the archipelago and a large expanse of ocean, so the impact of the hotel on the surrounding land and resources is kept as low as possible. It’s a pristine area and there are loads of water- and land-based activities to expose visitors to the beauty of the area. My first morning on the island began with a sumptuous breakfast offering more options than you’ll get through in a reasonable length holiday, then I forced myself to relax by the rimflow pool before heading to the dive centre to pic up a snorkel, goggles and flippers for a trip out to Neptune Reef. The smallish collection of coral outcroppings is located just a five minute boat trip from the hotel but can also be reached by walking along the beach and swimming out about 100 metres to the reef. Angelfish, triggerfish, honeycomb eels and a host of other species were all prevalent, flashing their bright colours at us

Savouring the spirit of the archipelago

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as we swam through the crystal clear turquoise waters. Aquarium water couldn’t possibly be clearer. The clear water may well be because there are no rivers on the island, only lakes, so there’s no runoff into the ocean when it rains. If you want better sightings and bigger reefs you can book day trips to Paradise Island or one of the other reefs around the islands. If you have time you can even take a PADI scuba diving course at the resort and do some more serious diving. After returning to the resort for a laid back lunch and some time spent relaxing with my book in my personal hammock which had a view of the ocean, I wandered down to the stables for an afternoon ride. My riding companion, Chloe van Til, and I asked our guide to take us on a tour through one of the villages on the island before ending off with a beach ride to view the spectacular sunset from horseback. It’s interesting to see the rural way of life that still exists for most of the island’s inhabitants and makes one appreciate all our modern conveniences, although I still maintain that the modern conveniences just allow us to fill our days with far more busy-ness than is good for us. There’s no need to rush when you’re on holiday though and there was plenty of time to enjoy a cocktail or two before heading to dinner. If you’re at all concerned about the amount of eating that goes on at this style of resort which could lead to expanding waistlines, there’s a fully equipped gym that guests can make use of. If you prefer outdoor exercise long walks or runs along the beach are an option, or else you could paddle 2.5 hours across to Paradise Island as one family did. That will work off enough kilojoules for at least one more big dinner — and dessert!

After another blissful night’s sleep I had an early morning wakeup call to ensure I was on the beach in time for my half day fishing trip. Skipper Aminose directed Ibo, a 31ft Gulfcraft walkaround, around the southern tip of Bazaruto to the open sea side of the island and deckhand Lourenco set out the lures and skipbaits once we reached Five Mile Reef. Young Declan Gibbon wasn’t feeling all that sure about this, his first deep sea fishing trip, but all that changed when one of the reels started singing and Lourenco handed him the rod. Declan fought the fish valiantly, bringing in all the line it had taken and then it made another great run for it before the line suddenly went slack — shark attack! The Rapala and wire trace had been taken along with Declan’s catch. Despite changing lures and trolling the area for another couple of hours we saw very little sign of marine life aside from the spinner dolphins which provided some entertainment. Winter is usually sailfish season at Bazaruto but for the few days I was there I didn’t hear of any sailfish being caught. On the way back to Bazaruto we stopped off at Pansy Island — a beautiful little sandspit where visitors can have a picnic or even a wedding if they are so inclined. It’s not hard to guess where the island got its name — the outside edge of the sand spit is literally covered with pansy shells. One could spend hours there just sifting through all the shells littering the sand, but it was time to head back for lunch and a well deserved rest. For people who think this type of holiday might be too sedentary and boring, rest assured there are many other more vigorous activities you can participate in including dune

boarding, horse riding on the sand dunes, various beach activities, water-skiing or you could even try fishing the way the islanders do — using handlines from a dhow. Late that afternoon I was back on the ocean in a more traditional form of watercraft — a dhow — to get a different view of the resort at sunset. There really is no more peaceful way of watching the sun go down than from a dhow. The flap of the sail and the gentle slap of waves against the wooden hull were the only sounds we heard as we watched the ball of fire sink into the ocean in the west. Did I say I was on the island for work? That hardly seems true now, does it?. • A special thank you to Guest Services Manager, Valentine Kameza, for arranging a host of activities for me during my stay — always with a smile. • For more details on booking a trip to Anantara Bazaruto Island Resort & Spa email <reservations.jhb@anantara. com> or visit <www.bazaruto.anantara.com>.

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HOW TO GET THERE Airlink, the regional feeder airline, offers a wide network of regional and domestic flights within southern Africa and operates as a franchisee to SAA. Direct scheduled flights are available between Johannesburg and Vilanculos as well as from Nelspruit to Vilanculos, offering a same day bush and beach experience. Through their alliance with SAA, Airlink travellers connect conveniently with SAA, their partner airlines and other carriers throughout Southern Africa and the world. Airlink is also a member of South African Airways’ loyalty programme,Voyager. For flight bookings visit <www.flyairlink.com>, contact your travel agent or call SAA Central Reservations on +27 11 978-1111.

MARKETPLACE

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severe pressure. To top it off, Penn have also sealed the drag system, ensuring water stays out while anglers are on a long fishing expedition. The Clash drag system allows for up to 25kg of drag, so whether you target sharks from the shore, dogtooth off the boat, or just enjoy general gamefishing and spinning, these reels are for you. This “Full Metal Body” reel means no body-flex when it’s under severe pressure, and the best corrosion resistance in its class. To add to this, the Clash reels have eight sealed stainless steel ball bearings as well as an Infinite AntiReverse bearing, giving no backplay, even under big pressure. Lastly, Penn’s carbon infused aluminium spool gives the reel a lightweight feel, meaning anglers can fish all day long without wearing themselves out. The high density EVA round handle

knob also gives comfort to the angler under all conditions. These reels will be available in sizes 2500, 3000, 4000, 5000, 6000 and 8000. STEALTH BRAID Spiderwire Stealth braid is the perfect match for all Penn spinning reels and is available in green, camo and the all new blue camo. This eight carrier braid is super strong, super round and casts like an absolute dream. Spiderwire’s Colour Lock technology means the braid not only holds its colour longer than competitors, but also its strength and shape, resulting in a longer lasting, stronger braid. Spiderwire uses Dyneema, the world’s strongest fibre which is used in bullet proof vests, so if you need a braid that is as strong as anything, Spiderwire Stealth is for you. Available in 10 lb up to 100 lb, there’s a braid suitable for every fishing application. For more information on Penn products, ask your nearest tackle dealer, or contact Penn’s South African distributors, Pure Fishing, on (011) 0235100.

SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 63

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COMPETITIONS

by Brad van Zyl

Top team for 2015 – Gone Overboard.

Three Ships Inhaca Challenge 2015

S the sun set over the city of Maputo, the 19 boats that had been invited to the 2015 Inhaca Challenge lined up on the beach at Camp Carlos for the skippers’ briefing and final words of welcome. Our Three Ships Whisky sponsors entertained us royally as we were briefed about the competition rules, including which species had to be released. There were some changes to this, the 18th Inhaca Challenge. For a start, 80% of the boats were being accommodated at Santa Maria itself instead of at the Pestana Hotel Inhaca, and the competition would be started by boats launching through the notorious Hell’s Gate, the small gap between Inhaca island and the mainland. Many boats and fishermen have come to their water y end through this hazardous stretch of water, but that did not deter any of the brave lads fishing this event — after all, there were fish to be caught! As usual stories of pre-competition activities spread through the camp like wildfire; quite a few sailfish had been released and a number of good-sized gamefish were already filleted and frozen in the chest freezers. After

the briefing, team plans and strategies were finalised and then everyone went their separate ways, hoping they’d be able to entice the big fish to take their baits. The Monday morning sky was lit up by the starting flare that rose gracefully into clear Moçambique air — the Challenge was on! The majority of the boats carefully snaked their way through Hell’s Gate to open water while the rest raced northwards, planning to go around Portuguese Island. Coded reports of good fish being caught in the north crackled through on the radio during the course of the day, and all too soon the day was over. Weigh-in at Camp Carlos showed some nice catches of good sized ’cuda. Gordon Bradford’s Swazi boat, Sgumfemfe, had set the week’s challenge after weighing in a beautiful 22.9kg’cuda. Judging by the size of some of the other fish weighed in, we were in for a good week. Competition rules allocate one point per kilogram of fish regardless of species, so first place was still there for the taking. Gone Overboard and Big Blue were securely in the Craig Henkel shows off his running thanks to their fish of 18.3kg and 22.4kg wahoo. 17kg respectively. SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 67

Sam Botha (right) congratulates Gordon Bradford, Pierre Pienaar and Greg Chapman on coming second. On day two we were greeted with a gusty north-easterly wind that created very uncomfortable conditions on the sea. The smaller boats battled to keep their crew dry, but fish, we did! By the time weigh-in was concluded that day, it was apparent that two of the island’s boats were engaged in a titanic struggle for victory. Again Sgumfemfe and Gone Overboard had the largest fish, with Shane Myburgh’s ’cuda only 400g short of the 22.9kg leading Calcutta fish. Sam Botha’s team aboard Grande Pe took top honours for day two. It must have been a day off for the big fish on day three because the largest fish weighed in was a 14.6kg yellowfin tuna caught by Pierre Pienaar on Sgumfemfe. Surprisingly, quite a number of billfish had also been released alongside all the kingfish, jobfish and even greater barracuda. It is most encouraging to see more and more anglers wanting to release fish as the rules allow for it. When Thursday morning dawned all the stops were pulled out and it was time to get serious with a lot less talking and a lot more fishing! The hard fishing conditions turned into a good day for the top boats —Sgumfemfe, Grootbek and Gone Overboard. Good-sized fish cluttered the gantry, with Craig Henkel fishing off Supremasea only 500g short of the best fish of the week. His wahoo tipped the scales at 22.4kg and was the best of the day. It was still pretty much a two horse race, but by Thursday night Gordon Bradford and his team aboard Sgumfemfe were marginally ahead of Grant Thorpe’s Gone Overboard by a mere 11 points. There was still one day’s fishing — who would come out tops? The deafening silence by these two

Bennet Visser with a lovely GT.

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boats during the day conjured up all sorts of scenarios in the minds of the other fleet members. Where were they? What bait were they using? How much had they caught? At lines up eager eyes watched closely as the fish were loaded onto the scales. It was very close. A released sailfish added to the tension and the maths boffs scratched figures into the sand to make sure the preliminary congratulatory handshake was not awarded to the wrong boat! Soon we realised Gone Overboard had won! A mere 21 points was all that separated them from Sgumfemfe in second position. Grootbek took third place honours. At the final prize giving, it was all set in stone: Top gamefish team overall: Gone Overboard — 354 points Sgumfemfe — 333 points Grootbek — 221 points Grande Pe — 189 points Fishing Myself Single — 157 points Individual points overall Shane Myburgh, Gone Overboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .146pts Pierre Pienaar, Sgumfemfe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135 pts Sam Botha, Grande Pe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87 pts Best junior Marius Smit Jnr, Fishing Myself Single Most meritorious fish — senior Greg Chapman, Sgumfemfe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22.9kg ’cuda Shane Myburgh, Gone Overboard . . . . . . . . . .22.5kg ’cuda Craig Henkel, Supremasea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22.4kg wahoo Fish released Giant kingfish — 3 Green jobfish — 3 Greater barracuda — 3 Sailfish — 11 Marlin — 1 To Gavin Martins and his team, we salute you on a job well done! It takes hours of work and great sacrifice to put together a successful competition such as this. The rewards that were presented to the winning anglers are solely the responsibility of the sponsors, and for this we would like to thank you sincerely. Everyone of the participants is enormously grateful for the overwhelming support of these generous sponsors. See you all next year!

PLACES

HONGUANE LODGE is a luxury self-catering lodge right on the beach on the Machangulo Peninsula in Moçambique. It is 3km from Santa Maria village and a stone’s throw from the marine sanctuary at Inhaca Island which boasts excellent snorkelling and fishing grounds. The lodge is situated on the sheltered bay side of the peninsula with the calm waters of Maputo Bay lapping on the doorstep, while the open sea and surf of the Indian Ocean are on the other side of the dune. The lodge consists of six luxury houses, each with it’s own unique layout. There is also a secluded tented camp with three luxury safari tents with en-suite bathrooms. The tents are serviced by a large lapa containing the kitchen, bar area and a braai under the marula trees. The lodge sleeps 60 and each unit is fully furnished and features mosquito nets and aircon. FISHING Deep sea fishing in the area is excellent, with Santa Maria reef only 1.5km offshore. Other well known spots like Baixa Danea,The Wreck and Ponta Abril are also all within easy reach. All the warm water species are abundant and can be caught year round. For rock and surf anglers, nearby Hells Gate with its strong current is renowned for its monster giant kingfish. Reliable gillies are available to help clean boats and fish, and experienced skippers are able to assist fishermen who are unfamiliar with the area. The bay is sheltered and boats are anchored right in front of the lodge, so you only launch your boat once. FOOD Fresh seafood can be obtained for rea-

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by Lyn Adams

Enjoy a beach holiday in paradise 26° 05’ 33” S 32° 57’ 05” E sonable prices from the locals, and includes prawns, clams and delicious giant mud crabs. For those who prefer to eat out, Bemugi’s Restaurant in Santa Maria Village offers excellent seafood at reasonable prices. A new restaurant is being constructed right on the beach next to the lodge and will soon be operational. Basic necessities can be purchased in Santa Maria Village, including pao (bread), 2M beer and an emergency toothbrush if you forgot yours at home. The area is sparsely populated so there is no harassment by beach vendors like one finds in many other areas. Crime in the area is also unheard of since the small village of Santa Maria is the only town around. ACTIVITIES Fishing of all disciplines is the order of the day, while swimming, kayaking, sailing, snorkelling and kite surfing all take place in the sheltered bay. There are also a number of spectacular dive sites that can be explored. Ski-boat and dhow trips to Inhaca Island and Portuguese Island are memorable experiences, and there is also a deep water channel that meanders into the heart of Inhaca where the pelicans and flamingos nest that makes for a lovely visit. With Inhaca so close, sundowner cruises can even be done on a kayak. From July to November the humpback and southern right whales mate and give birth just off Inhaca Island and the peninsula. They can be clearly seen

from the dunes or from a boat if you are lucky to be close enough. Motorists and quad bike enthusiasts might enjoy the scenic routes to Ponta Abril and Ponta Mucombo, two popular beaches in the area. The lodge also features a very popular beach bar built from an old dhow which is situated on the beach next to a shaded pool. There are no open freshwater lakes close to the lodge and since the lodge’s inception in 2005 there have been no reported incidents of malaria among their guests. GETTING THERE From the Kosi Bay border post Nhonguane Lodge can be reached along a 100km sandy track through the Maputo Elephant Reserve. This is a true off-roaders delight, with the route through the park requiring navigational skills as well as sand driving experience. From the moment you’re through the border you are immediately on holiday in the bush. Please note that the route through the Elephant Reserve is not recommended for larger boats. Alternatively, the route from Komatipoort to the Elephant Reser ve is approximately 209km. It is essential to have a good 4x4 vehicle for this trip. Nhonguane Lodge can also be reached by boat from Maputo. The crossing over the bay is a 40km stretch during high tide and can be negotiated during low tide by skippers familiar with the channels. Vehicles can be safely stored at any of the marinas in Maputo. For the brave, a 90km open sea trip from Ponta do Ouro to Nhonguane Lodge can be done, weather permitting. For further information visit <www.nhonguanelodge.co.za> or email <trynie6@gmail.com>.

SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 â&#x20AC;¢ 71

OUR favourite offshore angling magazine, SKI-BOAT, in conjunction with The Kingfisher and the South African Deep Sea Angling Association, is proud to offer all South African skiboaters the unique opportunity to win awards for excellence in angling. All deep sea anglers who achieve laid down prestigious standards of excellence will be entitled to apply for the KINGFISHER AWARD. Upon ratification by a panel of adjudicators, the angler will receive a handsome certificate, suitably inscribed, PLUS a hand-embroidered cloth badge – both confirming the catch achievement.

Complementing this section is the second award category: 2) Kingfisher Award - Outstanding Catch To satisfy the requirements for this award, anglers can catch any recognised fish and the weight of that fish must equal or exceed certain laid down fish weight:line class ratios. Awards will be made in the following ratio categories: 3:1 – Bronze Award 5:1 – Silver Award 7:1 – Silver Award 10:1 – Gold Award. Applies to IGFA line class 1kg , 2kg, 4kg, 6kg, 10kg, 15kg, 24kg, 37kg and 60kg. Certificates Certificates will carry all the information about the catch (fish, weight, line class and ratio), the successful angler's name and the date on which the catch was made. Digital emailed photographs should be high-resolution.

RELEASED BILLFISH AND GT (Ignobilis) KINGFISH With the strong trend towards releasing these and other fish, we have decided to amend the Kingfisher Award rules to provide for acknowledgement of all released fish. All we need is a photo of the fish being released or prior to release (e.g. GT held on boat) and the approximate weight of the fish which should fall in line with the stipulated weights set out below.

SPECIES Gamefish: Barracuda Dorado Kingfish (Ignobilis) Garrick (Leervis) King Mackerel (’Cuda) Black Marlin Blue Marlin Striped Marlin

NOMINATED WEIGHT 20kg 15kg 20kg 15kg 24kg 225kg 150kg 75kg

SPECIES Gamefish: Prodigal Son Sailfish (Pacific) Spearfish (Longbill) Spearfish (Shortbill) Tuna (Big Eye) Tuna (Longfin) Tuna (Yellowfin) Wahoo

RULES: 1) There is no restriction on the number of awards which can be applied for. 2) Award-applicants must submit a photograph of the relevant fish with the application form, preferably a photograph of the angler holding the fish. 3) SKI-BOAT reserves the right to use the photograph as it sees fit. 4) Entries must be on the official form which is included in all issues of the magazine. 5) Entries must be received within 45 days of capture. 6) Certificates awarded will be as follows: Meritorious Fish - Gold

Kingfisher Award Application Form I hereby apply for the Kingfisher Award in the category:

Meritorious Fish

Outanding Catch

Tick the appropriate box and supply us with the following information. Please remember to print clearly.

Applicant's Details: Name: .................................................................................. Address: .............................................................................. .......................................................... Code: ........................ Tel No: ................................................................................. E-mail: ................................................................................. Club (if member): .................................................................................... I, the undersigned, agree to abide by the rules of this award. Signature: .............................................................................

NOMINATED WEIGHT 18kg 35kg 20kg 20kg 30kg 25kg 50kg 20kg

SPECIES Gamefish: Yellowtail Shark (Hammerhead) Shark (Mako) Shark (Thresher) Shark (Tiger) Bottom Fish: Kob (Daga) Musselcracker (Black)

NEW!

The Kingfisher Award will be made for fish caught in two sections: 1) The Kingfisher Award - Meritorious Fish To satisfy the requirements for this award, anglers are required to catch a fish included in the list detailed hereunder, equal to or better than the nominated weight. Tackle used is of no consideration here, the fish's weight being the main criterion. The different eligible fish and their corresponding minimum nominated weights are as in the accompanying list below.

A gold certificate and a hand-embroidered cloth badge will be awarded for this achievement.

NOMINATED WEIGHT 18kg 200kg 80kg 110kg 200kg 30kg 27kg

Outstanding Catch 3: 1 - Bronze; 5: 1 and 7: 1 - Silver; 10:1 - Gold. Cloth embroidered badges will be awarded in all categories. 8)

No witnesses of the catch are required. The award is made in the true spirit of sportsmanship and relies on the integrity of the angler to make a just claim. 9) A selection of award winners’ names will be announced in future issues of SKI-BOAT, along with relevant photographs. 10) Award applicants should allow 30-45 days for processing of applicants. 11) There is no charge for Kingfisher Awards.

Meritorious Fish Species: ....................................................................... Weight: ........................................................................ Date of Capture: .......................................................... Where Caught: ............................................................ Skipper's Name: .......................................................... Outstanding catch Category applied for (tick appropriate box): 3:1

5:1

7:1

10:1

Species: ...................................................................... Weight: ........................................................................ Line class: ................................................................... Date of Capture: ......................................................... Where Caught: ........................................................... Skipper's Name: ..........................................................

74 â&#x20AC;¢ SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

PLACES

by Craig Thomassen

Craig Thomassen with a 15kg Breede river kob caught on a soft plastic.

Estuary fishing in the Western Cape

HAD heard many good things about the Breede River in the Western Cape, so I was very excited when the opportunity arose for me to stay at Mudlark Riverfront Lodge and fish the Breede for three days. This was my chance to see what this iconic river was all about. I packed a bunch of lures and some estuary rods and reels and set off in my bakkie for a long and scenic journey. The Breede is the largest river in the province and seems to be where most

Cape-based estuary fishermen go to when they need a fix. The estuary offers excellent grunter fishing as well as opportunities to catch kob and garrick. When I arrived I was immediately struck by the size of the river. It’s really big which can make for difficult fishing, but fortunately I had some information from friends on where to get started so I wasn’t going in totally blind. There were a lot of boats on the water, mostly fishing for grunter by the looks of things. It reminded me a lot of St Lucia

in the old days, with lots of small boats anchored in various spots and guys relaxing with lines in the water. There is nothing better than estuary fishing in a system that has plenty of fish! I wanted to target grunter on surface lures because I’d enjoyed some success in Eastern Cape rivers with that technique. I also hoped to catch some of those famous Breede kob on soft plastics and maybe a garrick or two on surface poppers. On my first morning at the Breede I

Keith Tait with a Breede River grunter caught on a surface lure.

was fortunate to bump into some very good Cape Town-based anglers — Keith Tait, Sean Rafferty and Mike Dolhoff. Keith was kind enough to offer me a spot on his boat and I jumped at the chance. Local knowledge is always very welcome and these guys had plenty of that! We fished the low tide periods over mud prawn banks, using floating lures in the form of Rapala X-Rap Walk 9cm stickbaits. Keith and I both landed some grunter on these, which was fantastic. We also caught grunter on mud prawn baits which we fished live, hooked onto a number one VMC Sport circle hook with no sinker. We allowed them to drift along the bottom with only the weight of the swivel and hook, and found the technique to be very successful. As soon as the tide started to push more strongly we moved to the big sand bank near the rivermouth to fish for garrick on the incoming tide. I was impressed with the action that Mike got on his white foam poppers and flyrod. He had a lot more chases and catches than the rest of us who were fishing with conventional gear. We did have plenty of fun though, using small Rapala Skitter Pops and Storm Chug

Bugs. The garrick were excellent value and gave us great fights on light tackle. The more the water pushed, the better the fishing became; we had our best garrick fishing when we were standing in deep water and getting pushed along the sand bank by the tide. Having caught grunter and garrick, I wanted to catch a kob or two to complete my Breede experience. I had spotted a couple of little rocky points with deep channels nearby and I decided to fish those on the full tides which fell perfectly around dawn and dusk while we were there. For this fishing I used soft plastics — McCarthy 6” Paddletails and 7” Bullhead Minnows. I rigged these on 34⁄ oz jig heads with a large hook. When dropshotting I wouldn’t use a hook smaller than 6/0 for kob as they have big mouths and shake their heads vigorously during the fight which can easily dislodge the hooks. I fished the lures slowly, allowing them to swim right along the bottom and had some good success, landing three kob and losing a few others with hooks pulling after a while. The biggest of these was around 15kg and none were smaller than 7kg. I found that the

kob were most active in the low light periods, as is usual with that species. The soft plastics colours that worked well for me were red mullet, orca and baby elf. I think most would work, but these have a nice contrast between light belly and darker back and produced plenty of bites. I was ver y impressed with the Breede River, and sorry to have to leave after only three days. I think the Capebased estuary anglers are very fortunate to have such a large and productive system to fish and I hope that they look after it. I see that the laws have been amended to help protect the kob in the system, by banning all night fishing and trolling in the river. While these laws are probably not popular amongst many of the fishermen, they will ensure that the quality of fishing in the Breede remains excellent, and that our children can also enjoy some productive estuary fishing in their lifetimes. If you’re heading down to the Breede consider staying at the Mudlark Riverfront Lodge, it is a brilliant little guest house right on the water offering fantastic food and estuary boats for hire. For further information contact Hilary on (028) 542-1161.

COMPETITIONS

by Andrew Patterson

2015 Port Edward Catch and Release Species Competition

ORT Edward Ski Boat Club maintained its commitment to catch-and-release when they hosted their second Catch and Release Species competition in April. The competition has grown in popularity and the support and interest has been hugely encouraging. This underlines the importance of the change that needs to take place with regard to current fishing competition rules. Each boat was tasked with catching and releasing ten different species — five bottomfish and five gamefish. A special ruler designed by Roam Free and Rapala was used to measure the fish and, once measured, a photo was taken and the fish released. The targeted species were ’cuda, yellowfin tuna, little eastern tuna (bonito), Cape yellowtail, dorado, yellowbelly/catface rockcod, musselcracker (poenskop), Englishman, Scotsman and dagga salmon. The competitors all attended the briefing on Wednesday night where the rules of the competition were explained and all questions answered. A great deal of time was spent explaining the rules to make sure all aspects of catching and releasing fish were covered. Anglers were also taught how to use a downrigger to release fish so they did not suffer from barotrauma.

On the first day of the competition, surf and weather conditions were perfect; 28 boats launched and five boats came back with five species. On day two, the conditions were also near perfect and the competition started hotting up — five boats were on seven species and one boat had eight species. On the third perfect day in a row, Gaffer caught another species meaning Gaffer and Bliksem 4 were tied. With 90 minutes to go Bliksem 4 sent through a photo of their crew with the elusive dorado. They were sitting with nine of the ten species and were in first place — they’d won a boat valued at R230 000! That night all the fishing photos were up on screens in the tent and there was much reminiscing about the antics of the day and the difficulties some of the anglers had measuring the toothy critters. The beauty of this competition is that nobody knows where they stand in terms of placing because if two boats catch the same number of species, the heaviest weight across the board wins. Only the data input committee knows that information so it keeps things interesting until the end. Prizegiving commenced with a jam packed tent and prizes were awarded for the biggest of each species, followed by the prizes for the top three boats. The dagga salmon was the only species

not caught. In third place with seven species and a gross weight of 60kg was The Kingfisher, in second place was Gaffer with eight species and a gross weight of 92kg, and the winning boat with nine species and a gross weight of 77kg was Bliksem 4, skippered by Piet Bodenstein and crewed by Mansie De Beer, Elmar Basson and Dewalt van der Merwe. Well done guys, your perseverance paid off. Their prize was a Seacat 465 with two Yamaha 40hp engines. Once the formalities were over a live band, Rubber Duc, and a DJ entertained the crowds, rounding off a memorable competition. This event would not happen without the many generous sponsors and the anglers who enter, so a big thank you to all of you for your support. The Port Edward Ski Boat Club committee would like to thank all the entrants for all their extremely positive feedback. It really was overwhelming and just goes to show that anglers are concerned about the sustainability of our fish stocks and enjoyed the concept of a catch and release event. We would also like to make special mention of the Roam Free initiative from Inside Angling which inspired the club to run the event. For more information visit <www.fishtube.tv>. SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 79

TACKLE TALK

by Edward Truter

Guy Ferguson with a threadfin from Sette Cama lagoon mouth, Gabon.

A Goosestix popper specifically developed for big GT fishing hooked this Socotran (Yemen) GT. Pic: Arnaud Pauliac.

Local lures that really work

T was a dark and stormy night. Seriously, it really was. Lightning scuttled across the sky like gaggles of ghost crabs scurrying over the beach on a spring high tide. God’s fire in the heavens was the only source of light as big rain drops thwapped into my face. I couldn’t see a thing. Breaking waves were on my right, the beach scrub on the left, all I had to do was keep my feet on damp sand and keep walking. I kept my headlight off, worried that its beam might unsettle the monsters I hoped were stacked up in the wild tidal rip just ahead. I imagined them lying there, holding beneath the current, their senses focused on finding prey caught up in the wash cycle of current and pulsing sand. I couldn’t see the sweet spot but I could hear it and that’s where I lobbed my lure. I gave the sinking stickbait time to nose down into the topsy-turvy flow a little, and then brought it to life with a slow twitch-twitch-pause. Somewhere between a zig and a zag the chunk of wood and lead with eyes on it got deadended. My Stella sang her sweet song, but just for a little while before the tarpon on the other end contorted into the air, morphing my rod tip into spastic spaghetti as the violent headshakes telegraphed down the short line lifted high above the water. The lure, a Goosestix 90g sinking stickbait, landed right next to me; game over. I could have started this piece with the question: What do dolosse, Danie Gerber and Goosestix lures all have in common? Answer: Eastern Cape exports that have a place in the world. I like Goosestix because I’m positively biased towards anything that is handmade quality, South African and that really works. There’s plenty that’s made in South Africa that doesn’t really work, so it’s reassuring to find a happy-ending story like this one. Goosestix Lures is the brainchild of Guy Ferguson and Etienne Goosen, two

rabid (I nearly wrote ribald) anglers, fishing mates and all-round naturalists. Note, naturalists are people who are students of nature not nudists. Guy is somewhat of an international man of mystery and all-round angler with more fishing talent than should be legal. And by all-round I mean from mountain trickle trout to bluewater brutes. Having that kind of background helps one in every fishing endeavour, including understanding fish triggers and lure design. Etienne is an artist who knows detailed handiwork and painting techniques a lot better than most of us. In a nutshell, Goosestix lures are made in Queenstown in the Eastern Cape at one of Etienne’s workshops. The designs developed by the team so far include sinking and floating stickbaits from 50g to 160g and poppers up to 220g. Most of the lures are big lures designed for medium-heavy to heavy spinning and are made big-fish tough. They don’t offer the usual made-inChina bewildering range of models, but it’s not necessary because the R&D that has gone into and continues to go into these lures means they are made to catch fish not fishermen. There is, however a proper palette of colour combos to choose from and Etienne gets a kick out of playing with patterns and finishes. He’ll custom colour orders if you feel that your berry-red polka dot on tangerine combination is the best breakfast for Hell’s Gate GTs. The lures are made from wood, which is one thing I really like and don’t like about them. Wood is wonderful in that it’s organic and, though it may seem esoteric, wood does seem to have special fish-attracting qualities. Plus it’s just nice that it’s handmade and wood. Less nice is that wood gets chewed to bits once the likes of Cubera snapper and their hoodlum chums start snacking on these things.

Wood can get waterlogged and it can be hard to set the hook once a fish has its teeth gum-deep in the sides. Etienne’s finishes are good, but no finish short of being dipped in stainless steel is impervious to king mackerel, groupers, and such. That said, isn’t it fun coming back from a trip and dropping a couple of lures chewed FUBAR on your mate’s desk? When it comes to spinning, especially with heavier lures on heavier gear, many anglers struggle a bit with working lures as it requires intuition, practice, and muscle memory to get it right. Stickbaits all need work on the part of the angler to walk the walk and trigger strikes. However, most of the Goosestix stickbaits, and especially the 90g subsurface model, have a certain amount of any-monkey-can-do-it built into them. That alone justifies their price tag, which is higher than the barcoded, Oriental sweatshop stuff, but lower than is the norm in the lost-the-plot GTcult world. The sinking stickbaits can even be trolled, a nice plus for those quick run-arounds between drifts. I often get the idea these days that the people who designed and built the products I test don’t fish enough to really know how to make them properly. This is not the case with Etienne and Guy who have fished extensively — these really are products by fishermen for fishermen. I have fished Goosestix lures in the saltwater on the mostly murky west coast of Africa and in the clear-water tropics elsewhere, and they have a permanent slot in my lure boxes. I’ve yet to fish them in the fresh, but they certainly will work for the guys with big-match mentality. Top quality, medium to heavy-spinning lures are not always the easiest to find in South Africa, so if you are doing any kind of gearing up or, like me, are always on the hunt for good lures, go and check them out. Visit <www.goosestix.com> to learn more. SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 81

82 â&#x20AC;¢ SKI-BOAT September/October 2015

MY NEW FAVOURITE HOBBY by Keeghan Pienaar (12)

LIVED in Johannesburg for 11 years and then my family and I moved down to Cape Town. I used to wakeboard at the Vaal River and knew no other watersport aside from wakeboarding. Wakeboarding was my life and my friends and I spent all our time at the river; and then we sold our wakeboard boat and bought a fishing boat. I was really upset until I went on the boat; it felt like I was meant to be a junior fisherman. The first time I went out on the boat was when we went to Mossel Bay for our December holiday. We’d heard that there are giant kob there and we entered a kob derby to try to win but nobody caught any kob in the bay that day. Two or three boats went around the point to target kob, but even they only caught about four fish due to the bad weather conditions. We kept try-

ing to catch kob, but nothing! When we came back from our holiday we decided to go fishing off Cape Town to see if it was any better. On the day we went out the sea was horrible — it was like a washing machine; waves everywhere, but I just held on for my life and we made it back to land. Sadly still without any fish! The next time we went out we launched at Millers. We started trolling and within two minutes the reels almost got spooled. Two rods were on and my dad and I brought in two yellowtail, and an hour later we caught another one — my very first deep sea fish. That day the boat was carrying the maximum number of people it could take and I told my dad that was the lucky day because the boat was full of passengers. My Dad and I went home

to clean the fish and that night we ate a yellowtail — it was amazing. It was those three big ones that put a huge smile on my face. In my opinion we have some of the nicest equipment on our boat; we have two Shimano TLD25s, I have a Shimano Stradic 5000 for my spinning reel and my dad has a Saragosa SW6000 for a spinning reel. Our boat is an 18ft Kosi Cat named Cutlass. Although I still miss my wakeboarding I truly love fishing — hook, line and sinker! Next winter I hope we can go to Dassen Island for the yellowtail.

INDUSTRY

NCE again, Durban proved that it is the warmest place to be in winter, with the Durban Boat and Lifestyle Show being blessed with three days of glorious sunshine and typical tropical temperatures. The crowds came in their thousands and thoroughly enjoyed the wide selection of boats and outdoor equipment on show, which was proudly sponsored by the City of Durban and Trade and Investment Kwa-Zulu Natal. There were attractions aplenty, amongst them wild rides on the SAS Raptor for the adrenaline junkies, massages courtesy of Spa D’Sulis for those who needed them, demonstrations of ski-boats and other craft, casting competitions, Segway rides, a kids play area and a food court offering tasty treats to those who needed a break from the excitement of the show. A new sailing section showcased the best boats in the

Items of Interest

Point and Royal Natal Yacht Club fleets, and afforded many a glimpse of what yachting has to offer. During the cardboard boat race event contestants had to construct a boat using only cardboard and duct tape, and paddle it around a set course. That proved to be great entertainment for contestants and spectators alike. The star of the show, though, had to be the incredible Sea Breacher, a semi-submersible in the shape of a great white shark, that thrilled crowds with its speed and fantastic leaps into the air. This truly is a must-see! It was a very proud moment for SKI-BOAT magazine at the Trade and Investment KZN Exhibitor Awards breakfast, when Erwin Bursik was awarded the Enertec Floating Trophy for “propelling the industry forward”. Erwin’s commitment to ski-boating and angling over 30-plus years has been justly rewarded.

Erwin Bursik with the award he received for propelling the industry forward.

SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 87

A D V E R T I S E R S ’

SMALLS

BOAT FOR SALE

YELDCAT 21ft centre console, pristine, nine years old, fitted with 2 x 140hp Suzuki counter-rotating motors (under 1000 hours each). Includes GPS, fishfinder, autopilot, 29mHz radio, VHF, stereo sound syste, power steering, fighting chair, outriggers and all safety equipment on trailer — double oil-sealed LA Axles with braking system. Available to view at Monzi Boat Builders, Mtubatuba. Price: R400 000 Contact: Jon on 082 881 3668

BOATS FOR SALE

2007 VCAT 22ft with 2 x 115hp Suzuki Lean Burn 4-strokes (2013 — 25 hours), new hydraulic steering system, T-top with rod holders, 2 x centre hatches, large fish hatches, 29 meg radio, livewell, covers and double-axle trailer. Price: R349 500

2015 ACE GLIDER 530 with 2 x 90hp Mercury 2-stroke motors (2012 — 100 hours), Sterling gauges, s/steel T-top with rod holders, raised fuel hatch upholstered for seating, 2 extra large fish hatches, 2 trolling boards with s/s rod holders, boarding platform, livewell hatch and pump, covers and single axle b/neck trailer with spare wheel. Price: R395 500 Contact: Paul at Boating International Edenvale on (011) 452-8280 or Stefan in Cape Town on (021) 511-0220, email <info@boatinginternational.co.za> or visit <www.boatinginternational.co.za>.

2004 PROKAT 2860 fitted with two brand new 200hp Mercury Verado motors. Includes Garmin 720s, Garmin 3010c, Furuno f/finder, Raytheon autopilot, Raytheon VHF, Sony radio and shuttle, GME waterproof speakers, Fridge, stove, toilet, 2 basins, freshwater tank, 2 x 400 litre fuel tanks, auto bilge pump, hydraulic steering, newly fitted carpets and cushions, double axle trailer — just been serviced. All in excellent condition. Price: R780 000 Contact: JP Vinagre on 082 411 6052

SODWANA BAY PROPERTY LOOKING for partners to complete a ten-bedroom holiday house with big rondawel and a five-bedroom outside building. The property is 1.5ha in size and borders Sodwana Bay Lodge on two sides. The property is fully paid for with a 40 year-plus lease with the Inkonyana Trust. Own equal shares in the property with only the completion work applicable. Ideal for the serious ski-boat enthusiasts — be part of a once in a lifetime opportunity. Contact: Chris Boshoff 082 608 3644 or email <management@gabbata.co.za>

DEADLINE for the November/December 2015 issue of SKI-BOAT magazine is 16 September 2015. BOOK YOUR SPACE NOW! Phone Joan on (031) 572-2289 or Lyn on (011) 425-2052

INDEX Accessories Spares Centre . . . . . . . .44 Angler Apparel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 Ballistic Sunglasses . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Barra Ocean Adventures . . . . . . . . . .38 Billfish 15 000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 Boat Masters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32 Boating International . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Boating World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42 Boating World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74 Casa Vieja Lodge Guatemala . . . . . . .74 Club Marine Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . .4 CT Boat Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89 Durban SBC Jetski Bonanza . . . . . . .46 Durban Yamaha . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 Eikos Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 Fish Gillz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74 Fishtube.tv . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85 Garmin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36 Goosestix Lures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82 Guinjata sponsors thanks . . . . . . . . .17 Halco Lures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Honda Knysna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58 Inhaca Comp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69 Jonsson Clothing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64 Justin Klusener Photography . . . . . .54 Komatipoort Boatel . . . . . . . . . . . . .82 Lowrance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Lucky’s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 Mako Eyewear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 Marinco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48 Marlin SB Club Competition . . . . . . .78 Maxel Trading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 McCrystal Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 MDM — Raymarine . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Mr Winch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 Natal Caravans & Marine . . . . . . . . . .2 Natal Powerboats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .99 Nhonguane Lodge . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71 Ocean Trading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38 Pulsator Lures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28 Pure Fishing - Penn . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63 Radio Holland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .86 Rapala Hooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66 Richards Bay Billfish Classic . . . . . . .80 Rutherford Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . .100 Rutherford Marine Retail . . . . . . . . .52 Shelly Beach SBC Thanks . . . . . . . . .57 Ski-Port Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71 Solly’s Angler’s Corner . . . . . . . . . . .66 Supercat for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71 Suzuki Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30 The Kingfisher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24 TOPS @ Spar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 Turboformance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82 Two Oceans Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . .60 Vanguard Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . .90 Volvo Penta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62 Wildfly Travel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92 Williamson Lures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24 Yamaha motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Yamaha Seacat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77 Z-Craft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 SKI-BOAT September/October 2015 • 91

BUSINESS CLASSIFIEDS

90 â&#x20AC;¢ SKI-BOAT September/October 2015