Winter school holidays and a deadly quiet winter t

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Winter school holidays and a deadly quiet winter trading season and we decide to make a break for the coast.

My dad had made it up to PE and was staying in Trophy's Fisherman's accommodation and took a week to stock up on Bait and Tackle at the TTD and met up with a large number of the PE Sealine crowd and was so impressed he's looking at moving that way.

I ordered 10 tail and 20 mackies which my dad was to bring on up to Mazeppa. Tied up with Fluke for a day's fishing and headed of South.

Almost there and I get a call from my dad, a fanbelt had broken and smashed the radiator pipes and he's stuck on the road, 3 phone calls later and Sealiners in PE and EL had mobilised even before the insurance tow in was arranged accommodation, transport of bait and contacts in EL were ready to get him on the road. thanks Fluke,Trophy, KT, Havoc and many others.

We arrived late evening, what a relief, the road from Butterworth to the Bay is perfect and superbly maintained (don't travel via Cebe)

For the previous 3 days Shark Point was cooking with masses of pickups but few fish landed being the norm but a few big Bronzies 140-170kg were reported as well as a number of Raggies and a 4 hour epic battle on a 90kg Bronzie swimbait swum on a Tiagra 80SW which ended with a dolphin swimming the line off after an epic battle was all but won.

We got there in pumping westerly's and decided to head out early the next morning. 06:00 and Fluke arrives with my bait and we're off to fish.

When you visit Mazeppa you hope for conditions like this

 

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But this is what we woke up to.......6-8m running right up onto the Island, those waves are breaking 80-100m in front of the Island

 

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The only place remotely fishable is Shark Point so off we go. Water colour perfect, sinkers holding in the swell, water is low and starts to push 1 hour into fishing.

Fluke and I set our slide baits with great anticipation, I mean the guys have been on 5-8 at a time so it is surely just a matter of time....................................time......................................................... time...................................................................., NOTHING

My son John-Craig caught himself a Stone Bream close to a Kilo and Fluke's fishing buddy (forgotten his name) got a nice Shad or 2 but no toothies.

It has to happen, we must get something the water and weather is perfect. Here the 3 of us are getting ready as the tide starts pushing

 

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Some others to our left soon picked up a rather large raggie which after a long drawn out fight the fish was lost all the way down at the beach as a result of the leader breaking in the Surf

 

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This is where I saw with a shock, why the guys had had up to 12 pickups a day and not landed anything.

Sliding with a 4-6oz rod with a Penn Jigmaster on with no backing and 0.50mm line with the reel 3/4 full and a 0.70mm leader, no wonder it broke when a 120kg Raggie rolled in it.

I then had a look at what the other guys were fishing, R4000 rod with Tn50 etc' etc but leader tied with Albright (0.80-1mm). 7oz sinkers in water only a 10oz with thick wire will sit.

Result burn off's albright popping as soon as drag is tightened, leaders cast off as albright hits the guides.

Guys with a kite rod fitted with a Tiagra 80 with 1000m of 100lbs Whiplash topped with 0.80mm mainline.................... no leader, I mean WTF sending out a kite with a 5kg Yellowfin tuna on......how will the fish taking that bait ever be landed.

Well we made a decision to tactfully attempt to educate these anglers but the only education they got was being smashed and losing everything they hooked.

All of a sudden huge consternation when our neighbours 12' Loomis gets flattened and he hangs on to the point that I can't believe his rod isn't broken. With the wash he gets the fish on the ledge and just jams the spool, how nothing breaks is beyond me but all ends well with a 6kg+ Poensie being landed on a 3/0 with a piece of octopus as bait

 

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Dad's car is fixed and he arrives late in the afternoon and the kids drag him off to the Island and it's not long before my excited son calls to tell me he got himself a 2kg Bronze bream and we're having a fish braai tonight.

 

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Crabs, crabs, crabs, that's all that's eating our baits so Fluke slides about a 1kg Mullet brought all the way from Gonubie...prepared for cable tie bridle for a big circle

 

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On it's way and 1 hour later out it comes UNTOUCHED so it's time to head home.

 

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I headed out for an evening session on tiny's rock and was soon onto a decent fish that I picked up on a slide in the bay.

After 40 minutes of rock hopping and tricky bridge crossing with the fish on the wrong side of the Island, Akon the gillie held the line while I crossed the bridge. The Island is completely isolated from the mainland as all sand has been washed out and even at low tide the rip is wait deep and deeper making crossing between the rocks impossible.

Landed a raggie measured weight registering at 176kg. Once landed in a gully in front of the houses I realise the camera is still on the island so it's just remove the hook and off she goes.

 

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Day 2 and it's off to the Island, unfishable the current in front is just to strong. Spend the day fishing for Edibles but only small fish were caught and with the tide pushing later in the day we head back to the Shark Point.

Soon Marius calls me over and tells me to get the Swimbait rig ready because his son Danie is onto a small shark.

I arrived ready with the Shark Extreme heavy, 2mm windon and 3m cable swim trace.

 

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Day 2 and it's off to the Island, unfishable the current in front is just to strong. Spend the day fishing for Edibles but only small fish were caught and with the tide pushing later in the day we head back to the Shark Point.

Soon Marius calls me over and tells me to get the Swimbait rig ready because his son Danie is onto a small shark.

I arrived ready with the Shark Extreme heavy, 2mm windon and 3m cable swim trace.

 

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40 minutes later it was quite clear that it wasn't a small fish and turned out to be a serious tug of war between Danie and his opponent.

 

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Eventually' using the swell and the 1.6mm windon we got his beautiful fish up onto the ledge where it was high and dry.

All we needed was for Danie to get down to the fish for his posed pic. He was still clambering down the ledge when the next wave washed into his fish and rolled it down the ledge, his dad and I held onto the 1.8mm leader when all of a sudden pop and off the shark goes (100lbs steel rig cut off on the snell) gues he won't be using 100lbs for sharks again in a hurry, especially off the rocks

Good fish, not measured but a solid 150kg for sure. Here's me saying goodbye

 

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Next my Blade is christened with it's first run and I hand over to John-Craig who's been nagging all day and he's on, Proper................no bucket, he's to small.

Some 25 minutes later the fish is up around the ledge and i take over as it's getting dangerous and I need to maneuver the rod and line betwen the rocks and wash the fish up the ledge, probaly another 15 minutes of hard work but I'll credit him with the fish.......

Hou vas pappa.............

 

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Bragging rights

 

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Bragging rights (Father and Son)

 

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Rigged it as a swimbait using small J hooks to secure the shark to the trace with 2 x 20/0 circles, one above Caudal and 1 at Dorsal fin.

It swam for 20 minutes and got smashed but some how one of the 4 sharks we saw hit it got a mouthful of the leader behind the 3m steel trace and the fight was over before it began

 

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The next day we took it easy all day and by the afternoon the wind had swung west and we might just be able to get a kite out at shark point and drop a bait.

Learnt a big lesson, use a long thin tail on your bait kite rather than a short thick tail as the thick tail keeps the kite flush with the wind and cannot get lift.

Well long story short I managed to drop a 2kg Yellowtail off at 300m. I set my rod and was rigging up my slide rod when I noticed that the rod with the dropped bait wasn't set right. As I approach the rod I hear a slow steady clicking and see the line is 90 degrees to it's original setting.

Pick it up tighten the drag and let the 20/0 Eagle Claw do it's work. It was like striking a brick wall, just solid weight bearing down on me. Man it's not my Bronzie it must be another raggie but it's big.

Some 45 minutes later it's up at the point and won't head to the beach. I tried to bring it up the slope with the water but with it's weight it just cascaded back down the slope with every wave. The next time there were 2 big waves in short succession and the 1st washed it up and the next one simply picked it up and washed it over into the gulley behind the point.

I rushed up the hill to get the line direct to the fish and with the help of gillies Akon and Michael they leadered the fish into the back of the gully.

From 20m up the shark looked disappointingly small and there was just no way of computing what I felt and the size the fish looked to be.

When I climbed down and put hands on the shark I realised just how big it was?

 

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Measured in a 220cm or 209.6kg we couldn't take long because of the water rushing right back into the gully so I cut the hook (it was hooked in the lip) and let her go, was more worried about being bitten in the waist deep foam every 30 seconds

 

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Next day and the swell was pushing hard and time for a last try. Got another Raggie also up into the gully, successfully released