Gone With the Wind – KZN Fishing’s 2011 League Finals.
Day 1:
Nic and Andy had managed to not-so-subtly throw down the gauntlet to the rest of the 2011 league finalists with some pretty strong statements about who would finish top of the pile at the conclusion of the two day event. This had most guys out and about at the crack of dawn searching for live bait and ensuring that all their tackle was packed and ready. This was serious stuff.
Cornel and Cameron bumped into Nic and Andy at the Umgeni River early in the morning while out trying to net Mullet. As soon as Andy and Nic realized they had competition for the mullet they implemented a cruel and savage plan. They escorted Cameron and Cornel to the far side of the river where they “guaranteed” Mullet. After forcing the trusting duo down a mountainous slope and across some of the foulest smelling swamp slush ever imaginable they left them to fend for themselves. About two hours later they called it a day with Andy having caught three and Nic 1. This again meant traversing the reeking swamp and climbing the cliff face to get back to the cars. By this stage they had succeeded in totally exhausting Cameron and Cornel who had collected a grand total of …. zero mullet for their efforts. 
The guys were already arriving at Winkelspruit from early on and it was good to see a number of them stopping in at one of chief sponsors, High Tide, in Warner for some fresh bait, (they had the freshest individually frozen small Mackerel.)
Jace, who was recovering from a fairly serious illness, at the last minute decided to join in and even though his hands were in significant pain, jumped in to the thick of things deciding to also do the best he could to secure the top spot.
There was some confusion over the correct starting time as Ronald and Paul had both posted different times but after a speedy briefing the comp kicked off at just after 12. Many of the anglers had already taken their gear onto the beach so for them it was a quick walk back before they would have a line in. Or so they thought….
As soon as we reached the beach Hurricane Magda bored down on us out of the south. The wind was so strong that sand soon covered everything and filled up any open tackle box. And this was just the beginning. Joe hurried around and urged all the guys to join the main body of anglers at the rocks on the southern boundary where there was at least enough shelter from the wind so the competitors could see their terminal tackle without getting a mouthful of sand.
Avesh had opted to head for the rocks on the northern boundary, (Castle Rock) and Sean and Freddie decided to stay at a very promising looking hole in front of the car park.
It was down to some of the hardest fishing in some of the nastiest conditions ever for a KZN Fishing comp. Most of the guys tried sliding out baits, everything from Mackerel and Chokka to live baits. It was soon evident that not even an 8 or 9 ounce grapnel was any match for the wind and guys were walking onto the southern rocks to try and use the wind to get bait in, but it was all in vain. After about an hour Selvan went on with a small Brown skate.
The guys, mostly looking weather beaten battled on bravely but just before three a few said it might be an idea to can the afternoon session and possibly fish for a few hours longer at Mtunzi the next morning. This opened the flood gates and a whole lot of ideas and options were tossed around. It eventually fell to Ronald and Joe, as they were the only two Manco members present not participating, to make a ruling. After a few minutes of private discussion they came back with two options which the rules made provision for –
1) The competitors could choose to call it a day and then only fish the pre-arranged competition hours on Sunday,
or 2) Move over to the northern rock and carry on there.
Given the choice of either losing a session or persevering the guys and their aides were soon moving all their equipment up the 250 meters of beach. This time at least the wind was behind them, although it was now blowing sand at just about shoulder height, and so hard that at times it felt as though surely the skin would be broken.
Once on the rocks and protected slightly from the wind the competitors, assistants and spectators spirits rose visibly and soon everyone had a line in the water. Even though there were a few peckers about, very few were actually landed and of these none made size.
As usual, Leon and his wife went that one step further for the KZN Fishing family and produced a small braai which Nikki tended, and cooked all present an awesome late afternoon meal fully sponsored by them. Something for which all present were extremely grateful for.
We were dismayed to see that the locals were still, very casually using live shad to target Garrick and that they got very defensive when it was pointed out to them that this was against the law as it was in the closed season. This didn’t deter them in the slightest.
A little later, Andy made a foray up on to the higher rocks where he discovered a large Shad in a rock pool. Always up for some fun Andy announced his find to all and sundry and promptly threw the shad back into the ocean to swim free, much to the amazement of the angler who had hoped to keep it. A few heated comments followed but the poaching angler realized that he was far outnumbered and chose to rather back down and accept his loss. This caused another few local anglers who had also been using Shad as bait to pack up and call it a day.
If the disgruntled poacher/angler was amazed at what Andy had done, he was left dumfounded when just before the end of the day’s event Shaun went on with a fish which turned out to be a beautiful Shad of around 4kg’s, which after a few quick fotos and measurements he calmly released back into the sea. The look on the local’s face, as the First National ad says, was priceless. He just stood there with his mouth open staring at Shaun in disbelief. There is no doubt that KZN Fishing will be a hot topic of debate amoung Winkelspruit’s local anglers for some time to come.
The last fish of the day was a Zebra landed by Freddie which was big enough to be measured and to score points.
Day 1 – 2 fish worth points.
Day 2:
The second day began in a much calmer fashion when many of the guys met up at the Shell Ultra City on the way to Mtunzini. The banter was lighter and the coffee good.
As the guys rolled into the parking lot at main beach tackle was briefly doubled checked before a very snappy briefing from Ronald. After the long walk on to the beach the guys quickly spread out over a stretch of about 400 -500 meters.
Baits of every imaginable size and shape hit the water and it wasn’t too long before the days first fish came out. For the most part these were small Milk sharks or as the guys referred to them, Blacktip Milkies. The competitors all fished harder than one traditionally sees at KZN Fishing league events, but in the times they were re-baiting or changing tackle there was plenty of the usual family chatting and laughter.
As the day wore on it became evident that this wasn’t going to be a big fish event either and the guys running the length of the beach to take fotos for the most part reported more milkies.
Around mid-morning Freddy managed to land a small Kob and a short while later Shaun’s reel screamed in three short bursts, but no-one was close enough to get to it on time.
After a few more surprise runs that also ended in no result news came down from the most southerly anglers that Avesh had landed a couple of small Lesser Sandsharks. On the northern side a few Wave Garrick also made it onto the scorecards but by lines out at 12pm most of the competitors were looking a little disappointed. All of the guys had fish extremely hard, most walking up and down the long stretch of beach front trying a myriad of baits and presentations. Some big bloody slide baits lay out untouched for 4 or 5 hours. It was just one of those days.
It must be said that the guys fishing this competition all showed dedication and perseverance under some very trying conditions. The wind on Saturday would have beaten many an angler back and the side wash on Sunday made that day’s conditions no walk in the park either. The winner of this year’s competition will know that not only did he do battle with guys with iron wills but also triumphed over some of the harshest fishing conditions.
After the long trek back to the car park, ice cold beers were handed around and the guys congratulated each other on a fight well fought. Then it was off to the main car park on the Umlazi River where Khani and his family had been fishing and relaxing all morning. Nic arrived with the braai stand and a fire was soon blazing. The weather was turning and the food was soon on the coals.
Laughter and the traditional KZN Family camaraderie filled the afternoon air. Some of the members had lines in the water and were steadfastly hunting some of the fish that Imraan had returned that morning such as a pair of good sized Kob and a few Grunters.
Cornel managed the most fish and the highest number of species of the little fish, but nothing that could compare with Khani’s earlier haul.
Lunch was served and there was enough delicious food to feed a small army. Everything from chicken and spicy mutton sausages through to rare steak did the rounds and no one was left anything but totally satisfied. As always there were some fiery accompaniments suppied by Andy and Nic was doing the rounds with the OBS bottle.
After this some group photos were taken then it was back to the light tackle fishing while others rushed to beat the impending rain to pack up and load the vehicles.
As the rain began to fall many of the KZN Fishing family opted to hit the road home, but some of the diehards who were still surfing the fishing weekends adrenalin chose to stay on with Nic and try for a decent fish. These guys were treated to some interesting sites. In the shallows something chased and smashed at some Mullets leaving one small mullet fleeing towards the banks without a tail. Another treat was watching Sipho’s unique but impressive casting.
For the guys that had headed home, the excitement wasn’t all over either, and a little way down the highway they ran into Arvin and Lawrence who had run out of diesel. While Selvan headed off to get some more fuel, other members of the convoy pulled over and brought out some drinks and kept the guys with the breakdown company and made sure they stayed safe. More of what being a family is all about.
And so draws to a close this year’s league. For those wanting to know who won; well the wait will be a little longer. The final winner will be announced at the year-end banquet which is to be held on Decmber 3rd.
It was a year-long competition supported by not only superb anglers, but by their families and friends too. We had some truly remarkable catches throughout the year and some even more memorable moments together. The KZN Fishing League 2011 has come a long way from last year’s league and there is very little doubt that in 2012 it will be even better.
The management and administration of KZN Fishing would like to sincerely thank all those that participated in this year’s league, even if it was for only an event or two, and all those wives and children who supported, help and nourished us.
To those that fished the finals, you did so valiantly – well done to all of you.
Written By Cameron Johnston.
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