Popping from the shore

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Dhirtan

New member
Hi guys

Exploring whether popping for GTs is worth it from the shore/rocks in the cape vidal/sodwana/ kosi bay areas.

Would the distance from casting (say 3-5 oz) poppers on an 8'6 rod be sufficient or would a 10ft rod like the Berkeley venom cottonmouth be a better option?

Thanks
 
Ben REINERS

Ben REINERS

Sealiner
Staff member
Hi there Dhirtan.

To answer 1 of your questions, Yes, Yes & Yes again it is absolute worth popping for GT's in those areas.

I almost wanna say its GT paradise you enter.
Patience, time, lotsa hard work, sore arms, lotsa walking will pay off & you will reap the rewards.

On the Forum & Net there is pretty lots to read up on wrt the basics of targeting them especially amongst the bricks & the tackle you require.

Obviously the bigger the GT you target, the stronger the outfit, & all I say its a personal choice when it comes to tackle, nl. The rod, reel, braid & lures you gonna use.

As long as it can deal with the bus GT's that might jump onto your lure & will snap crackle & pop your braid in a jiffie.....there are some serious monsters out there.

Just a bit of a advice, always gear up with backup braid & lures as & spare rod & reel.....you just might find yrself driving to the nearest t.shop to stocks up & return.

A friend of mine recently visited Bhanga neck, used 11' outfits & in only 1 eve was busted 4 times.
Now one can say or ask was he properly geared or ready as an angler ? Answer is Yes, but you never expect the worst scenario.
 
D

Dhirtan

New member
Awesome thanks for your reply, you got me frothing for a trip there!!! I know popping can be tiring, especially with the bigger lures and longer rods, and there's not many 10/11ft rods that can handle the bigger poppers. Hence the question pertaining to whether a popping rod around 8-9ft would suffice - are there a lot of ledges with deep water, or channels that are fairly close where say a 50m cast would put you in the zone?
 
M

Mikea

New member
a cotton mouth is one of the bests rods you can get at this time. i took a tarpon on one of those rods last year and i was using a popper off the beach
 
L

Limpopoking

Sealiner
Anything longer than 9' will wipe you out very quickly... Though it's less to do with throwing than it is about generating a good pop on the retrieve. Bear in mind though, it's difficult getting a popper to do it's magic in the surf. They are really made for flatter waters.

The humble GT Ice cream can be deadly with geets, throw further and can be worked very well with a longer rod. I use a 10'6 Blackhole Nano when targeting geets from the side and I almost exclusively throw Ice creams.

The other serious consideration is structure. Geets being the dirty fighters that they are, search out structure in the fight which will often leave you with lost tackle. Targeting them by boat always gives you the chance of getting on top of the beast and turning the fight into a vertical one. This isn't possible from shore. So rig your lures with good quality singles so the fish can get rid of its' bling easier when he breaks you off.

The only place I've ever landed a big geet from the side on popper was on the sand spit at Linene. It's a magical place that has geets tackling baitfish as they're washed out of the estuary through the mouth and there's zero structure... Just sand and a channel. The required casting distance was only about 30m and a very short window of opportunity, usually at sunrise on an outgoing tide.
 
D

Dhirtan

New member
Mikea wrote:
a cotton mouth is one of the bests rods you can get at this time. i took a tarpon on one of those rods last year and i was using a popper off the beach
Click to expand...

That's awesome, would love to get a feel of this rod, but unfortunately not many stores (or if any) have stock of them here in KZN.
 
W

willem wikkel spies

Moderator
Staff member
the heavier the outfit the more muscles you need and being casting fit.

we did target some geets at mission rocks.
we could actually see them swimming, and just by looking at them, you know when you are under gunned!!!!

with the light outfits we could cast for a long time as we were elevated on the rocks.
we did manage a nice bluefin kingie.

the 8ft okuma and penn clash 6000 with 55lb black velvet was on stand by, but we never managed to get a pull on the heavy out fit.

if fishing vidal bay and ledges and missions a short rod will work.
but when going north on higher tides the short heavy outfit might be a bit short getting into the right waters.

enjoy it, its a great area to fish.
very clean water
just make sure terminal is right!!!!
and you need to have trust in your tackle
 
Z

_zaahid

Member
would a modified og shimano exage 110h work for this purposes ?
I had one rebuilt for grinder, had the grip slimmed down as well so it's more comfortable in your hand and pretty light now. Throws a mile, and i mean we all know what the backbone of the blank is like
 
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