Monster grunter in Durban harbour

North - It has taken long enough, but St Lucia and Maphelane have been on fire over the last week, with massive shoals of Snoek and dozens of Couta. Reports from Maphelane indicate that the catches of Couta over 15kgs have sky-rocketed. Most fish are being landed on Walla Walla or Bonnies. Snoek have been taking almost any bait in the water, but the bigger fish have been landed on Redeye fillet traces and once again the trusted Strike Pro Magic Minnows. Zinkwazi has also produced good catches of Couta over the last week. There have been bigger Couta of about 16-25kgs over the last weekend which is good to see. Live Bonito seems to be the best bait for these bigger fish, with Walla Walla being the second choice. It is often difficult to catch live Bonnies as they are feeding on tiny Sprats, and in order to imitate the Sprats, anglers have been very successful using Kingfisher Sprat spoons. These spoons can be retrieved at lightning speed and are extremely effective.

Central - Durban has been very good to us with Tuna, many of which have been over 20kgs, Snoek and only recently, bottom fish such as Geelbek and Daga. We have had more reports of Geelbek as the days pass. Hopefully we will have a good season. Good catches of Snoek reported from the Umhlanga area, most of which include reports of fillet being the go-to bait.

South - No results have come in as yet from the Hibberdene Couta Classic, but we understand a bus of a Couta of around 36kgs took the top prize. Some sizey Couta and Tuna have been landed and also some nice Yellowtail. Aliwal Shoal has produced many Tuna on trawling lures such as Rattlers.

Durban Bay has fished extremely well over the last two weeks. Last week I saw some big fish being landed, including some Grunter of over 5kg. The amount of bait at the harbor mouth seems to be drawing fish into the bay, resulting in some awesome catches. Charter boats have seen good catches of Grunter and also some nice Stumpies. Many top anglers have recommended Mustad Chinu size 4 or 6 for a general presentation with the use of Cracker as bait, as these hooks keep the Cracker alive longer and are less detectable when the bait is taken.

For the anglers on the piers, Rock Cod and Perch have been plentiful. Catches of Kingies have also increased, more towards the Coaling terminal and Grunter on the gully side. With the colder water moving through day by day, make sure to get in on the Garrick action this year, but remember, the Garrick do not stay in the Bay for long so keep reading the report for signs of activity.

(File Photo:Gallo Images)

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