Well the Bear has recovered from the dreaded Rona but only after all the action it looks like! Sheew from cracker Poensies out deep with slab Tail thrown in the mix to the shallows and size Brusher, Stumpies, Grunter and Snoek itlooks like I missed out this last week. Conditions have seriously improved from last week with the SW Dr wind blowing ATM. Viz is being reported mainly South and Durban this weekend and with decent weather we should see some good fish coming out.
In the fish pic’s this week we have Alistair Jones with his PB Tail 16kg plus change and 8kg Green Jobfish boat dive South, Ashly Mays with a decent Tail ski dive North, Chad with a Garrick shore dive North, Connie Hallowell with his 1st Poensie 15.2kg boat dive South, Franco Van Biljon with a Garrick shore dive North, Guy MW scholar group with his 1st Spadie 4.12kg shore dive North, James (16) and Dad Sean Burns with a Garrick and Bronzie shore dive North, Kevin, Clyde and Leo with Garrick shot in the DUC compo shore dive South, Lincoln with a decent Garrick shore dive Durban, Master Don Solomon with a decent Daga salmon boat dive South, Master Pete Jacobs and Alistair Jones with a cracker Poensie and slab Tail boat dive South, Master Richardt and Master Louis with decent Brusher and a GT shore dive South, Noah MW scholar group with a decent Stumpie and Grunter shore dive Durban, Noah MW scholar group with a Grunter Bronzie and Goatfish shore dive Durban, Rory with a decent Garrick shore dive South, Rudie with a Yellowtail Kingfish shore dive South, Stuart Green with a slab Brusher 11.35kg shore dive Durban, Teegan with his 1st YFT 16kg shore dive South, Tyron MC Adam with a slab Snoek boat dive far North and Zander with a decent Snoek shore dive Ballito.
Saturday early bells a light S wind blows switching to a light E wind at lunch time. Swell starts at 1.9m and drops off steadily during the day to 1.5m in the arvo at 10 seconds from the South. Sunday a light SW wind blows most of the day dropping speed by the arvo. Swell is negligible at 1.2m 9 seconds from the South.
So get those double pink slips out fellow divers it’s on like Donkey Kong this weekend.
Will this week has been a rather slow one spearfishing wise due to conditions and viz availability but the fish are there for the taking. Garrick are in full swing return mode with bigger Brusher around in the shallows. Daga Salmon out deep with a smattering of Wahoo on the South Coast and the odd deeper pinnacle working with the Tail and Ambers. Tomorrow for the 1st time in two years the DUC Garrick compo will be held with the weigh in at PWSC 3pm sharp. There are over 30 entrants and some decent prizes so it promises to be a cracker event. I would say see you there but the Bear has the Rona and is in his cave busy recovering so at least there is a chance for you peeps out there to win…hahahaha. May the best diver get the honours!
In the fish pic’s this week we have Heath MW scholar group with his 1st Stumpie shore dive Durban, Master Juggs Holzman with a Garrick boat dive Durban, Master Louis Schourie with a decent Malabar shore dive Durban, Master Louis Schourie with a Tassel and Marbled grouper shore dive Durban, Master Richardt Botes with a decent Wahoo boat dive South, Master Richardt Botes with a Wahoo boat dive South, Melvin Pillay with a slab Tassel shore dive Durban and Noah and Guy MW scholar group with Grunter shore dive Durban.
Saturday A light to moderate SW blows til lunch time swinging to a S wind in the arvo. Swell runs at 1.7m 14 seconds from the South. Sunday a very light SW wind blows till lunchtime when it swings around to a light SE wind. Swell runs at 1.6m 13 seconds from the South.
So Saturday is doable but Sunday is the business all day long for a dive.
Garrick (Lichia amia) spearfishing tutorial double up CRYSTAL VIZ.
Hi peeps and welcome to another Master Watermen tutorial brought to you by the Bear and masterwatermen.co.za.
The Leerfish or Garrick (Lichia amia) is a species of marine fish in the family Carangidae (kingfish/trevally), and is native to the Mediterranean and the coastal waters of western Africa to the coastal waters of eastern South Africa. They have also been recorded in the Black Sea. These fish can reach 2m in length and 50 kg in weight. They inhabit the coastal wave zone where they form small shoals to hunt other smaller fish, favouring Shad and Mullet as prey.
They breed and aggregate on the KZN coastline to Zululand in the North from early May through to October and return to the Cape waters by the beginning of December. They hold off key river mouths on the North coast of KZN namely Tugela river, Mtunzini, Richards bay harbour and St Lucia.
Key spots to hunt these fish are deep midbreak runs with gullies, backline surf along sandy beaches and prominent points on the coastline from May to end of November in KZN. Stiebel point Umzumbe KZN South Coast is a great example of a good point for Garrick.
Daily catch limit is 2 per Permit holder of minimum 70cm Total length. It is highly dependent on estuaries which serve as a nursery area for juveniles. Garrick were nationally listed as Vulnerable in the 2018 National Biodiversity Assessment. Due to the current state of our local estuaries (pollution, bad catchment area management and illegal gill netting) Garrick numbers have dwindled over the last 15 years or so plus now there is more pressure due to more people fishing and spearfishing.
Garrick have and will always be one of my favourite fish in the Ocean, the way they just cruise in and surround you is an experience every spearo should have at least once in their diving careers. During recent years I have not been targeting them as much and only shoot a handful of them a year now. If everyone takes it easy on them then there should be Garrick around for future generations of spearo’s to enjoy.
Be wary though because big Garrick are spear destroyers of note and can and will snap your spear at the load notches when lined after shooting. There are many tales of the big one that got away when it comes to campfire stories at spearo meet ups. 7.5mm Rob Allen spears seem to fare the best against beast size Garrick. This I can attest to on a personal experience level having seen many 7mm spears break at the notch over the years.
In this video I am diving with my buddy Dylan Koekemoer on the North Coast of KZN South Africa and the mission was to get Dylan a Garrick of 10kg or over. I will not let on too much before you watch the vid but Dyl get’s his fish!
The annual DUC Garrick competition is being held next weekend the 6th of Nov 2021 and promises to be a cracker event. I have attached a PDF entry form on the website for those that would like to enter. All the banking details and rules etc etc are on the form. This year that trophy is MINE!!! Hahahaha…hope to see you all at the weigh-in next weekend! May the best diver win!
Here is the link to the video on YouTube give it a watch it is well worth 10 minutes of your time! Please remember to hit that like button! https://youtu.be/yEVv_MHa48E
As always Dive Safe and Straight Spears from the Bear…
Well this past week it has been all about choosing the right gaps in the weather and capitalising on decent viz and conditions while it’s good. Howling NE winds have dominated the last three days with today being the blowout of the week. Poensies and Tail are out deep on the South coast with plenty small Garrick and Brusher in the shallows. The big question on the North coast is when is the sea temperature gonna rise past 23deg C? This will bring the mackerel down from the far North in numbers and start the summer mayhem off on the North coast. Please remember that Sunday is the last day of crayfish season so you better get A into G if you want some last buggalugs for the season!
In the fish pic’s this week we have Connie Hallowell with a Garrick shore dive South, Grant Laubscher with a brace of Garrick shore dive South, James Purcell with his 1st Garrick boat dive South, Master Joe Mulder and Johan Boshoff with Tail 18,25kg and Poensie 18.2kg boat dive South, Rudie with a brace of Garrick shore dive South, Rudie with a decent Stumpie shore dive South and Timothy White with a decent Grunter shore dive Durban.
Saturday the howling NE finally gives way to a moderate SW wind from early bells dropping off towards late afternoon. Swell runs at a solid 2.5m dropping off late arvo to 2.1m. Sunday a light offshore blows early bells switching to a light East wind in the arvo. Swell starts at 1.9m and drops off to 1.6m late in the day.
So Saturday would maybe be doable late arvo and Sunday all day is definitely go day for a dive.
Last night we had a beautiful full gibbous moon (Buck/hunters moon) rise at 7pm. Only problem with this combined with the spring tides plus the Usual buck moon NE wind has chopped up the inshore quite a bit. General sea conditions today were a little dismal with left over East bump and white caps out to sea at 9am this morning. Ja the beastly easterly blew for three days and the North coast was showing signs of improvement, now it is toast. Viz has been reported out deeps down the South coast! There are Cape tail around even as far as the lower North coast with 8 to 10kg shoal models putting in an appearance. Garrick are in full swing return mode heading back South for the summer and the Grunter have started to arrive. Brusher are also knocking around but nothing really on spear this week due to the abysmal inshore conditions.
In the fish pic’s this week we have Heath MW scholar 1st Stone bream shore dive Durban, Kezley Fitzgerald with a 10.2kg Garrick shore dive North and Master Don Solomon with a decent Cape tail boat dive South.
Saturday a light W offshore wind blows earl bells till midmorning when it switches to a light NE wind which does not pick up speed towards the arvo. Swell is average at 1.6m and 9 seconds from the East being bigger South and smaller in the North dropping off to 1.3m later in the day. Sunday a moderate to fresh SW wind blows from early bells and only drops off Sunday evening. Swell starts chunky at over 3m and builds towards lunch time and drops off late arvo.
So Saturday pink slips are required for permission to dive! Sunday there may be a gap early bells (the weather sites have been getting the SW timing wrong recently) before the SW turns the sea on it’s head again.
Arone Mangoele Subsistance Fisherman and deck hand Bilene Mozambique charity drive
Arone started fishing and spearfishing from age 13.
He had been working around Highlander fishing lodge for a while then he got his own boat and started subsistence fishing in the area to support his family .
So for last 2 years he been catching fish for market and providing Highlander fishing lodge with fresh fish.
He has a wife and 2 children, two daughters, the first is 1year and 8months old and the other one is 1month and 15 days old whom he is the sole provider for! Through lodge deck hand work and subsistence fishing he was managing to support his young family well but due to being bed ridden for the last 2months with his legs being paralyzed from what we suspect could have been stroke related he can no longer provide for his family!
The lodge organised transport to Maputo to get him into hospital and get scans done and Specialist support but was turned away due to COVID restrictions.
He has always been assisting Spearos that visit the area with trips and showing them the spots .
Apparently one of the most helpful guys around that area for visitors and locals alike!
Christo Muller from KZN based SPEARO group has offered to do a Mercy charity run up to Bilene in Moz on the 28th of October taking with Nappies and Baby formula donated from a local Spar retailer here in KZN. He has also run a raffle locally and managed to generate about R5k in cash to take up with him to buy urgent food etc that the Family needs and to deliver the donated goods. He will also asses when arriving there if he can help get Arone to a specialist for the medical attention he needs.
Apparently Arone has been moving around on crutches but obliviously has a lot of muscle atrophy and needs rehabilitation to get his legs working again.
Looking for any food and nappies size 3 and formula Nan 1 for his kiddies…Any other food or cash donations are welcome to say the least!
Please if you can spare anything get hold of Christo on +27 61 455 6380 before the 27th of October!
Spearos always help other Spearos out! Let’s get Arone back on his feet and providing for his family!
As always Dive Safe and Straight Spears from the Bear…
Well this week has been all about hunting the shallows and decent viz. Some lovely size shoals of return Garrick are around heading home for summer in the Cape. Just remember that return Garrick are not gonna hang around so get your shot in quickly when you see them. Average size Brusher are thick at the moment in the middle to upper South coast drains and gullies. One or two beast sizeBrusher have been seen but nothing landed as of yet. Offshore South coast one or two Cape tail are starting to come out on the deeper pinnacles with smaller Ambers around in shoals.
In the fish pic’s this week we have Kevin with a return Garrick shore dive Durban, Kezley Fitzgerald with a lovely Garrick and Brusher combo shore dive South, Master Louis Schourie with a decent bag Garrick, Stumpie and Grunter shore dive Durban and Troy Ellof with a Splitpaint Parrot shore dive Durban.
Saturday morning early bells a moderate SW wind is set to blow freshening before lunch time and blowing into early evening. Swell starts at 2.2m and picks up to 2.7m late in the day. Sunday the SW wind continues to blow dropping off towards the afternoon. Swell is chunky at 2.8m and 11 seconds from the South.
So its touch and go for early bells Saturday morning all depending on how accurate the predictions for the SW blow is. Sunday lunchtime on might be doable for a boat launch.
As always Dive Safe and Straight Spears from the Bear…
Rain, rain and more rain was the story of the week with plenty rivers popping their banks and spewing super moo brown water into the ocean. So finding the gaps in the river water to get viz is the trick at the moment! On the bright side the rivers opening up has brought the Garrick on thick around the river water areas and some big Snoek are around on the North coast as well. Brusher are around in the shallows and the deep with some shoals being sighted as well. The muddy water should bring the big Daga salmon into the shallows to feed in the ginger beer coloured sea water.
In the fish pic’s this week we have Clive Honiball with a Brassy kingfish shore dive Durban, Heath and James 1st Marshmallow fish shore dive Komatipoort and Master Chris West with a decent Brusher boat dive Durban.
Saturday early bells a light offshore wind blows switching to a moderate to fresh SW wind by midmorning. Swell starts off at 1.3m jacking to 2m later in the day with the SW wind. Sunday the SW buster continues to blow from Saturday dropping off in the late afternoon. Swell starts chunky at 3m and drops off to 2.5m in the arvo.
So it looks like a dive Saturday morning early bells otherwise the weekend is set to be a blow out with the SW wind dominating.
So we are still being lambasted with Spring Equinox weather with minimal gaps to dive in-between all the wind and swell. Plenty rain fell from the heavens this week and so far not too much damage has been reported with the odd river popping and putting super moo into the sea. There are fish around though if you persevere and have plenty patience. Brusher are around with the bigger models moving in. The Garrick seem to have moved up far North with a few being shot in Zululand at Sodwana!
In the fish pic’s this week we have Danie Cilliers with a Garrick shore dive far North, Diving Diva Christal Botes with her 1st Garrick shore dive South, Grant Laubscher and Alex with a 17.5kg Wahoo boat dive far North, Guy McCarthy MW scholar group with his 1st Garrick shore dive far North, Master Juggs Holzman with a Garrick and Shad combo shore dive Durban, Master Louis Schourie with a 3.5kg Catface rockcod shore dive South and Master Louis Schourie with a 9.6kg Brusher shore dive Durban.
Saturday a light SW wind blows from early bells and picks up speed late in the arvo. Swell runs at 1.7m and 11 seconds from the South. Sunday a buster SW wind comes through early bells and puffs out in the arvo. Swell starts with power at 3m plus at 12 seconds from the South early bells and only settles down in the evening.
So Saturday looks good for a dive and Sunday is most likely a blow out with the busting SW wind.
As always Dive Safe and Straight Spears from the Bear…
Dylan Van Tonder and the Car key thief Great White shark.
Clickbait headline some would say but this one is definitely a true story from Port Elizabeth, South Africa. I have had a proper buzzing from a Great White in the shallows before and these sharks do not play games! It is all well and good when you have a boat to call to hop onto but when you are shore diving there is no escape till you hit dry land again…
Over the years I have heard some harrowing stories from divers about their encounters with these fearsome sharks but quite often it is just a looky loo at each other and exit stage left by the diver and the Great White shark swims on to terrorize someone else at a later date. I have heard of one encounter similar to this one but there were no fish shot when a Great White swam up to one of the diver’s buoy and ate it swimming off with the buoy in its mouth ripping the speargun out of the diver’s hand.
Dylan Van Tonder and his diving mate Kyle Hiscock were shore diving off Beachview when they had a brush with a 3.5 to 4m Great White shark near Port Elizabeth South Africa recently. Dylan says the diving conditions were awesome besides being a bit cold (17 deg C) for that time of year with plenty of activity fish wise in the area on their second dive for the day.
They were out about 150m behind the backline (breaking waves) and Dylan had lost a White Steenbras (Pignose grunter) of about 5kg and had managed to bag a decent Cracker (Brusher) of about 12kg when Kyle saw a large Bronze whaler shark.
Not wanting to lose their catch to the Bronzie they then swam in a bit shallower to get away from the pesky fish stealer when Dylan felt two almighty tugs on his floatline and thought that the Bronzie had taxed his Brusher on the stringer attached to his buoy.
Next thing he was having to hold onto his speargun for dear life and there was huge splashing and commotion by his buoy and he saw the size of the sharks fins and realised it was a Great White shark that had taxed his fish and was now attached to his buoy via the stringer and heading for the horizon at ski-boat speed!
Try as he may he could not get his gun off the floatline and Kyle’s rig and line plus buoy also got tangled up and towed out to sea with such speed it removed his fins! In the end they both had to let go and beat a hasty retreat back to the beach and safety minus spearguns, buoy’s and fish!
When they hit the beach they could see the shark at the one buoy going mad and eventually submerging with Dylan’s rig in tow. Dylan had left his car canopy key on the buoy so had to break into it to get back home.
They came back an hour or two later and could see Kyle’s rig and Buoy a couple of hundred meters out to sea and bravely swam out together and retrieved it. They are very lucky diver’s to still be around un-injured to tell the tale!
As always Dive Safe and Straight Spears from the Bear…
As you can see by the title of the report Spring Equinox was this week (21-09-2021) and not much diving was to be had between a downpour, loads of wind and every beach from North Pier to Saltrock being closed. This is due to sewage spills (town beaches) and chemical toxins via UPL and the Umhlanga river opening to the sea again. What a disaster of note for the long weekend and the poor critters that inhabit those waters. Not much in the way of fish reports due to the lack of diving but the usual suspects, Brusher and Garrick, should be around on the backline with Daga salmon and Cape Tail out deeper off the pinnacles and wrecks. Well done Team South Africa on placing 5th at the Spearfishing worlds in Sardinia this last weekend. And well done Champ Jaco Blignaught on placing 7th overall in the Individuals.
In the fish pic’s this week we have James and Noah MW scholar group with a Stone bream and Bronze bream shore dive Durban, Luke Bester with a lovely Couta and Tropical tail boat dive far North and Noah MW scholar group with his 1st Natal knifejaw shore dive Durban.
Saturday early bells there’s dead calm until a moderate NE wind starts blowing just before lunchtime. Swell is negligible at 1.4m at 12 seconds from the South. Sunday a moderate to fresh SW wind blows from early bells till the evening with a 2m swell running from the East till it gets pushed from the South by the SW wind.
So Saturday is GO day if you can find some decent viz and Sunday early bells if you can squeeze in a dive before the SW wind pulls through.
This Bear Pro tip brought to you by LE’Com Safetyjames.
No more mask fog!
We have all had the dreaded fog in our dive masks and it is the pits…literally.
Today’s dive masks are made with silicone skirts which require a release agent (type of oil) during the moulding process. This in turn gets on the lenses of the diving mask and needs to be removed before wearing a new diving mask for the first time. Mask fog! Over the years I have seen various “solutions” for sale or being used with mixed results and have found out the hard way what works or does not work. Please note various sun block lotions\creams and makeup also have oils in them which can cause a previously defogged mask to fog up again the same as a new mask will if not treated with the process below.
In the video I show my tried and tested method of defogging/degreasing using a brand new Rob Allen Snapper mask. https://youtu.be/u2vaTg6-oUk
Here are the 10 steps to a happy defogged Dive Mask…
1st you remove any stickers once it is out of the retail packaging.
2nd Now you burn the inside of the lenses using an ordinary lighter eg: Bic, taking care to not touch the lenses with the flame and to move the flame out wards from the centre of the lens towards the skirt keeping the heat away from the skirt. A “fog” will be seen moving towards the edges of the lenses.
3rd Give the whole mask a rubbing with liquid dishwashing detergent while it is still dry.
4th Rinse in warm water in a container.
5th Using a dry new sponge and dishwashing liquid give the lenses and whole mask skirt a rub\cleaning.
6th Rinse the soap off under warm running water.
7th Dry the whole mask with a clean dish towel.
8th Cover the inside of the lenses in toothpaste (avoid spearmint or menthol flavours) using a toothbrush to get in all the corners and leave to dry overnight.
9th Once the mask is dry, rinse off with warm tap water and a toothbrush.
10th one drop of dishwashing liquid on each lens inside and rinse off before use.
Works a charm and has never let me down.
As always Dive Safe and Straight Spears from the Bear…
Well with neap tides this week and full swing spring Equinox weather this week has been below average diving conditions wise. Wind from the North East then wind from the South West throw in a golosh of rain and that’s the week in a nutshell. So you have to be on it to get dives in this time of year unfortunately but some divers were and the Brusher have definitely arrived and the Garrick are still around with large shoals of Pickhhandle Barracuda on the South coast deeper pinnacles. It won’t be long and the steam train Cape Yellowtail will also be on the deeper pinnacles down South coast. While I am writing this the South African Team just walked onto the stage in Sardinia for the parade before the Spearfishing World Champs starts tomorrow (Saturday 09-2021) at 08H00 CET. Wishing the lads best of luck and a safe championship! Goooo Bokke! Live feed here … https://web.facebook.com/Apneapassion/
In our fish pic’s this week we have Master Gavin Nell with a giant Pickhandle Barracuda just over 19kg boat dive South, Melvin Pillay with a decent Brusher 9.2kg shore dive Durban, Rudie with his PB Brusher 7kg and a Garrick shore dive South, Scholar Guy Mcarthy with his 1st Stone bream shore dive Durban, Troy Elof with a decent Brusher and Grunter shore dive Durban and Troy Elof with a decent Natal stumpie shore dive Durban.
Saturday the SW wind that has been blowing the last two days drops off around 6am and switches to a light NE wind late in the afternoon. Swell is chunky at 3m early bells dropping off to 2m late in the day at 14 seconds. Sunday a moderate NE is on it from early bells picking up speed after lunch to a proper buster. Swell starts just over 2m and builds to a mooshy North 3m swell late in the afternoon.
So prospects of a shore dive this weekend are looking very slim to say the least. Saturday looks good for a launch for the boaties either Durban side or down middle South coast.
This week we got our 1st spring rains and there was some damage river water wise but not as bad as originally suspected with some heavy downpours on the North and South coast. Bad news is there is a buster NE blowing right now as I write this! These rains normally herald the start of the Brusher run and one or two shoal size Brusher have been coming out. Some good catches of Garrick with sporadic Snoek action here and there when you hit a luck and they are feeding. There are still loads of Sardines around and this is messing with the inshore game fish action at the moment.
In the fish pic’s this week we have Bruce Jackson with a 25kg Daga Salmon shore dive South, Chase Mair with his 1st Daga salmon and Seapike boat dive Durban, Clinton Stiglingh with a Brusher boat dive Durban, Connie Hallowell with a fat Garrick shore dive South, Dane Chittock and Devesh Debipersadh with lovely brace’s of Garrick boat dive Durban, Elton with a 9.9kg Garrick shore dive South and Kurt Bunge with a beauty of a Splitpaint Parrot boat dive South.
Saturday the NE continues to blow from Friday night picking up speed as the day goes on with a proper 2.6m East swell on the water turning it to mush. Sunday a light NE still blows early bells switching to a light SE wind late in the day. Swell starts at 2.7m and drops off to just over 2m in the afternoon.
So peeps diving wise this weekend is just for those hardcore individuals who like diving in a washing machine. No word of lie it will be horrible. Meh!
As many of us spearo’s know there is about to be a who’s who showdown when it comes to Master level competitive spearfishing. South Africa has a great team consisting of Master Jaco Blignaught, Master Don Solomon (1st Worlds) and Master Gerhaad Vosloo (1st Worlds) with team Captain Veteran Master Angelo Spada.
Arabatax is a port town on the east side of the Island of Sardinia in the Tyrrhenian Sea (39.936166, 9.702712) and is the Italians home ground. The viz is normally very good with most Mediterranean fish species occurring in the area. Sea temperature varies but at the moment it can be up to 26 deg c on the surface and down to 16 deg c on the floor at depth and air temp up to 36deg c!. The depths that the guy’s will be diving is insane in any divers books with the shallowest spot in Dive zone A being 23m out to 70m! Master Don said to me that the shallowest he has dived so far during scouting is 40m! Let that sink in…
Here is a link to a best of Sardinia shot in 2016 and it gives a great idea of the species found there and types of structure and drop offs around the Island showcased in a highlight reel… https://youtu.be/aRaZnMu5yvs
So as you can imagine our lads are at a bit of a disadvantage as far as it comes to local knowledge of the dive area and finding the fish. So in order to be competitive Master Jaco and Master Don headed out for scouting at Arbabtax over a month ago. It is absolutely insane the hours and money that goes into competing at one of these events and that’s just the boat hire and daily fuel costs etc for the scouting. Never mind the flights and accommodation plus time off work. To say it is over half a Bar (R500000) is not an exaggeration at all. The one team has 12 (twelve) scouting boats!
As we know these lads do not get a Springbok fee like our Rugby lads do …hmmmm maybe one day in the future! So bux is tight and obviously any help would be appreciated by the Team. The guys have a raffle ticket page with all sorts of great prizes to be Won Please see details in the flyer I have included. There is also a whatsapp group you can Join for a nominal fee that has all the inside info from the guys in Sardinia and Q an A sessions as well.
Gooooo Bokke!
As always Dive Safe and Straight Spears from the Bear…
This past week has had below average diving conditions with only two or three days being diveable in between the August winds blowing and some larger swell left over from winter. There are some bigger Garrick around on the backline with the Brusher starting to make an appearance in the Durban area. The NE wind pumped the last two days turning the sea into a big washing machine but the good news is the SW wind arrived early this arvo (Friday) and is blowing now as I write this.
In the fish pic’s this week we have Devesh Debipersadh with a great brace of Garrick shore dive South, Keaton with his 1st Brusher 5.16kg shore dive Durban and Zander with his PB Garrick 13.18kg shore dive North.
Saturday morning the SW wind continues to blow dropping off just after midmorning switching to a light NE wind in the arvo. The swell starts chunky early bells at 2m plus but settles by lunchtime to 1.7m. Sunday morning early bells the light NE starts to drop off and switches around to a light to moderate SW wind just after lunchtime. Swell is slightly bigger in the South at 1.8m than North at 1.5m with not much power at 8 seconds from the East.
So it’s quite hard to predict the SW accurately at the moment which means I am not too sure on what the dive conditions will be like on Saturday and there may be a gap in the afternoon. Sunday morning is definitely green for GO dive wise depending on where it cleans up first after the SW on Saturday.
Since I started spearfishing (1985) till today Wahoo have been my nemesis fish! I just do not see any small Wahoo, only TANKS, and manage to plant fairly good shots (x 3) which they just seem to shake off with nonchalance and swim away unscathed!
In this video from Master Watermen we catch up with Master Richardt Botes on a boat dive on the South coast of KZN South Africa. On board we have Skipper Brett, PADI freediving instructor Charl Marais, Tyron Hunt, Zander and diving Diva Chrystal Botes. Chystal is busy getting in her practical dives in for the PADI course she is doing with Charl. The other lads are in it for the Wahoo!
Master Richardt is using his custom 1.2m Carbon cuttlefish Roller gun which you will see is an absolute machine for those long range shots on the sneaky Wahoo. The gun is made up to spec using a Rob Allen roller head, 7.5mm spear, handle and reel. Freedivers new 16mm outer and 1mm inner diameter roller bands are powering the gun. The carbon cuttlefish 1.2m barrel is imported from overseas.
Range is everything normally when it comes to actually getting a spear in a Wahoo and this gun has that in Spades. Quite often big blue water guns are overbanded woodies (wooden guns with 4 or 5 bands even!) just to get the range and the accuracy is dodgy to say the least! And the recoil is next level hence the two handed braced approach on the shot to secure the fish. As you will see in the footage the cuttlefish carbon barrel negates most of the recoil and the gun is still very accurate using one hand. And ONE band and at half the cost of an imported woodie gun!
I am sure with some more fine tuning these guns are definitely going to find their place (if they have not already) at the top of the Blue water hunters list of “I need” guns!
Well it has been quite a tough week for diving with loads of surge from well spaced winter swells and online predictions being out on quite a few days by up to at least a few hours. Some fish did come out though with Daga salmon North with dome big Garrick in the shallows. Wahoo were around when there was less traffic down South in the afternoons. As we start getting closer to the spring Equinox conditions normally get worse but the silver lining is the fish numbers increase as they start coming off the Sardine feed and head inshore for the Shad. Shore anglers have been having a blast when the Sardine remnants on the North coast have been pushed in by predators in the afternoons. Snoek, Yellowspot Kingies and Blacktip kingies have been caught in the shore break and mid break on spoons!
In the fish pic’s this week we have Fritz with a decent Rock salmon boat dive South, JP with a Yellowbelly rockcod shore dive North, Kurt Bunge with a Couta and daughters boat dive far North, Master Richardt Botes and Tyran Hunt with Wahoo boat dive South, Master Richardt Botes with two decent Wahoo boat dive South and Master Watermen scholars Noah and Guy with Master Jason Heyne shore dive Durban.
Oh but the weather god’s are not smiling on us this weekend at all. Buster SW blowing right now as I type this on Friday evening. Saturday from early bells the mega SW buster continues with some size swell up to 4m during the day. Sunday the size swell continues at 4m through to the afternoon when its starts dropping off as the SW blow from the cold front drops off.
So Boaties maybe launch Sunday arvo from sheltered launches and shore dive limited to the protected Durban bay area.
The Border Open Spearfishing Challenge 2021 took place on the long weekend of 6th-9th August 2021
This competition is one of those legendary events that most divers here in KZN South Africa would love to attend. But entries are limited and go to Border Club members first for two weeks before opening up for the general public to enter. And if you do not enter the same day (read hour) that open entries start its game over.
Held in South Africa at Transkei Hole in the wall in winter there are bound to be some Class fish around and this year’s event was no different from previous years with some decent fish coming out even though most divers reported fish being scarce on the day. Some class fish came out before the comp during scouting and Gareth Brockett lucked a 32kg Daga salmon the day after the compo.
“A day late on the Daga salmon but bru you do not get a chance on a decent fish like that often. Ja the compo was great as usual this year really missed it last year due to COVID etc. Dived this year with skipper Master Gavin Nell and we placed well 9th and 8th respectively seeing as we arrived late on the day before the event and took a guess which way to go in the morning. Jumped in on the point and hit a luck with my 1st two fish! A Garrick and then a shoal of Tail whilst re loading with the Garrick on my belt! Managed 9 fish but unfortunately my Brusher did not make the minimum weight of 5kg after gutting and gilling it at 4.6kg” says Gareth via WhatsApp call.
Skipper Alistair Jones hit a big luck when there was a last minute cancelation and was able to squeeze in his boat Mr Grinch with crew Master Luke Mollison and Liam Mullany…
“Finding fish on the day was not easy without having scouted any real sweet spots but we got fish. Cherry on top for me was winning the biggest fish comp trophy with a Class 13.5kg Brusher. I was lying on the floor for a while watching the ledge in front of me looking for Poensies when I thought to check over my left shoulder and two Class Brusher were right behind me moving away to my left. Got in a good shot on the trailing fish and all hell broke loose! But I managed to get it on the boat and I am super chuffed with a new PB brusher (New USC record as well) and winning the Trophy for biggest fish.” Alistair said talking about the comp day at USC (Umhlanga spearfishing club) braai night.
Andrew Trevathan managed to place 4th in his 1st Border open ever! He says it was like a dream come true as he has been amped for years to enter the comp and dive Hole in the Wall Tkei. Also helps when your skipper is Master Guy Le Meme who has now won the Border open for the umpteenth time hey Andrew? And Master Guy managed to win the Trump Trophy with a Billy Bartle (Two tone fingerfin) of 0.83kg. Trump species get double points. But give Andrew credit as Guy didn’t shoot the fish for him! There is even video evidence! Thank you Scott Campbell for taking the time to film the lads in action and post to YouTube for us to get a POV on Master Guy’s boat and the trip as a whole. And thanks Andrew for the chat the other night via WhatsApp and taking the time to give the inside story below. Class! Safe travels with your big move!
“Got the go ahead on Monday afternoon just before the event that I would be attending border open but it was only the next day that I found out I would actually be able to participate in the comp, excitement level through the roof as this has been a dream of mine for a few years now.
Border event day by day account
Day 1: Early morning missions (PT) and arriving at the Hole on Thursday only to be greeted with some crystal clean water. Boat launched and ready to get wet, we got to our first spot and 2nd down I was surrounded by a wall of Cape Tail, lined up and plugged one, lekker (great/awesome) hard fight and coming in at 17kg! That got me lekker warmed up and ready to hit the next spot and do some scouting. The day went on and my skipper The Great Glem (Guy Le Meme) found us a sizey (big) shoal of Piggies (Pignose grunter) and I managed to get my spear into a decent one. Then off to the next spot and I shafted a lekker Poensie, some big Bankies (Bank steenbras) and a whopper Bronze bream of 4kg and I have never seen one so big,I thought they had all been shot… hahaha. The smile on my face was definitely from ear to ear. Lekker day!!!
Day2: Definitely a turn for the worse, kak (bad) visibility, cold water (surface 18°c – floor 15°c) fish were few and far between so had to prepare for the worst for comp day.
Day 3: Comp day, all boats lined up on backline, a quick divers briefing and at 7.30am sharp we were all off! We were cruising at about 65kph (not even full taps, sh1t that Yamaha 70hp flies) heading south and leading the pack we got to the point first only to discover it was not looking very inviting, so its full taps again and off to the next spot. Guy and myself jumped in the water, conditions improved ever so slightly from the previous day so that was at least a good start. We both did one or two downs and then I heard Guy shoot! I couldn’t believe what I saw, this owe (lad) finds a lost Grey Bankie, like wtf… hahaha. Diving was game on and I got a Bankie and found a decent weighing Slinger, then back on the boat and off again.
As the day goes on we pick up a few species trying to get maxi points here and there, Guy gets a bus Brusher and obviously I’m over’s (really) jealous but hey that’s how it goes. I lucked a new species, a John brown and that added another fish to my 10 species tally.
At about the 5hr mark I was still scratching for one decent fish and out the blue (well greenish water) at 20m I look to my left and see a decent Piggy just sitting stupid looking at me, I slowly turned my gun and boom in the hatch it went, definitely a game changer for me. We hit the shallows in the last hour looking for some double point fish and got what we needed. Comp all done and dusted we headed back for the weigh in. There were some nice fish but also some very small bags and I could definitely see diving conditions played a big part! Fortunately for me I had a brilliant skipper and best mate to put me on some quality fish allowing me to get my 10 species which secured me 4th place!!! I couldn’t believe it, super stoked and thankful.
I just want to give a shout out to Scott Campbell, our team captain/topman and personal photographer (better watch out Barret Harvey, you got some competition hahaha) and Guy Le Meme for being an amazing skipper and finding the fish. It was an awesome trip and good laughs were had.
Lekker boys!!!!
Results
Final standings top 10 Men below. Well done Master Guy le Meme on taking the honours this year with 1st Place and Taking the Trump trophy as well!
Border Open 2021 – Men’s Results
Place
Diver
Points
1st
Guy le Même
39.76
2nd
Darren Hanner
35.34
3rd
Angelo Spada
33.43
4th
Andrew Trevethan
30.70
5th
Martin Victor
29.85
6th
Don Sims
27.52
7th
Kurt Roberts
27.44
8th
Gavin Nell
26.65
9th
Gareth Brockett
25.72
10th
Owen Huxtable
25.64
Ladies Mariette de Jager (14.47 points) and Taylor-Rose Toich (12.04 points) placed 1st and 2nd in the women’s division so Mariette keeps the Trophy this year as she won it in the last event. Well done Mariette!
This year’s winner of the Gregg Audie biggest fish at the Border Open trophy went to Alistair Jones (KZN) for a Brusher of 12kg.
This year’s most improved diver at the Border Open went to Borders youngest diver Sean Audie(14yrs) from placing last in 2020 to placing 35th out of 48 divers at this year’s Border Open. Well done young lad!
So some cracker diving and a great event by all means! Maybe, just maybe I can also hit a luck and attend next year’s event! Well done KZN divers for cleaning up at the Open in the men’s division. KZN diving Diva’s hope to see some of you there next year and give these Cape ladies a run for their money!
Taylor and hubby Paul Toich have handed over to Ivan Wienk for the running of the next Border Open Challenge his details for contact… Ivan Wienk +27 74 589 9531 borderopeninfo
Congratulations
Well done Taylor and Paul! Organising this type of competition is no small task! Ivan you have big shoes to fill!
I have attached the hand written complete final standings as a picture for viewing and a list of all the Sponsors for the event (pdf) as these Competitions would not happen without community and local businesses support. Thank you one and all!
As always Dive Safe and Straight Spears from the Bear…
Andrew Trevathan on Day one of the Border comp
Garreth Brockett with a Cape tail and Garrick comp day
Garreth Brocket with a slab 32kg Daga salmon after the compo
Kyle Richter day before compo 15.3kg Cape tail
Diego Pizzimbone with pre Border Open Poensie and Yellowbelly at 2021 Border event
Border: Mariette de Jager 1st place ladies and Master Guy le Meme 1st place men
Master Guy le Meme with a decent Brusher comp day
Master Guy le Meme with a Natal and a Grey Banksteenbras comp day
Border comp: Taylor-Rose Toich 2nd and Mariette de Jager 1st ladies
This week’s diving was definitely below average conditions wise with the August winds and moving into spring equinox when the sea conditions can change unexpectedly. There are some great Garrick coming out North coast with the Snoek and one or two Daga salmon came out on the South Coast. Diver Liam Mullaney managed to bag himself the bus GT of a lifetime in 24m on a boat dive down South. At 47kg it is the biggest I have seen local in quite a while!
Please be aware that DAFF (Department Fisheries and Forestry) have issued another warning about the chemical spill on the North coast to not harvest and eat Marine life from Umgeni to Salt Rock. They have also warned that swimming in the sea at beaches adjacent to the Umhlanga estuary can lead to personal harm.
In the fish pic’s this week we have Liam Mullaney with a bus 47kg GT boat dive South, Martin De Jager with a decent Garrick shore dive North, Master Joe Mulder with a beaut 35.8kg Daga salmon shore dive South, Master Louis Schourie with a Couta shore dive North, Master Richardt Botes with a lovely brace of Garrick shore dive North and Tanya Nadauld with a slab Tassel fish shore dive South.
Saturday a light N wind blows till lunchtime when it swings around to a light NE wind lighter in the South and fresher in the North. Average winter swell of 2m greets us in the morning mellowing slightly throughout the day coming from the South at a 13 second period. Sunday a SW blow from Saturday night is still on the sea till mid morning when it puffs itself out to leave glassy conditions in the late afternoon. Swell greets us mushed up with power from the SW blow at 2.5 to 3m mellowing to 2m in the afternoon.
So Saturday is go day weather wise for a dive if you can find viz and towards high tide should be the best bet there. Sunday is a blow out till later in the day if the prediction holds true.
Margate FLASH FLOOD! With VIDEO Margate FLASH FLOOD! In another mighty display of nature’s anger at the system, Margate on the lower south coast of KZN received an absolute hammering last night. With a fantastic accompanying light and sound show – the storm was extremely intense. But, not lucky for Margate, but lucky for the […]
Nathan Warlosz 52kgs King Mackerel 15 kg line Nathan Warlosz 52kgs King Mackerel 15 kg line: this fish might be 25 years old! Or more! Imagine what it has seen and learned during all that time in the ocean. But it certainly ain’t gonna get bigger any more. Taken on a light spinning stick, this […]
Death by Shark Net? Death by Shark Net? Before we embark on this quick journey into the operations and goings-on at our very own Kwazulu Natal Sharks Board, we have a questionnaire for you! You don’t have to make public your answers. Your answers, are for you to digest. Questionnaire Shark food for thought? Funding […]
Rock Salmon vs Estuary Perch Showdown feat Matt Wainright at Mgazi Rock Salmon vs Estuary Perch Showdown feat Matt Wainright at Mgazi: Matt Wainright is on a mission this year. To make up for the last two years of lost fishing time. Due to the flood conditions that virtually wiped all fishing out for months […]
Mattski getting worked by the Kingfish of the Umzimkulu Mattski getting worked by the Kingfish of the Umzimkulu KZN, South Africa. We don’t even take photos of the grunter and kob we catch at the jetty anymore. Clean water This was mid-March and the early dry season conditions that we are experiencing look to be […]
About This Site
Jason Heyne and Sean Lange have teamed up to bring you the Master Watermen Collection. Of stories, galleries, video, information, conditions, how-to, and a shop full of products and services. And all other things underwater.
