Duration:8 Hours
Tide: No Idea
Weather: Sunshine and loads of wind
Bait: Full Mackerel, Full Bonito & Yellow Fin Tuna Heads
Rigs: Sliding Traces
Results: One 26kg Bronzie to Paul....
Report:
Fishing for Bronze Whalers sharks has long since been a dream of mine. I have been longing to do some fishing for these sharks for years and have contemplated trying to organize trips to Namibia several times, each time aborted because costs just kept growing. While trolling the net for some fishing info for an upcoming holiday to Hermanus, South Africa I was surprised to see that Bronzies could be caught in False Bay, just outside Cape Town. Hermanus is about 90 minutes drive south from Cape town, so a drive back towards Cape Town wouldn.t be a problem. I was talking to the guys at [url=http://www.extremeafrica.net]Extreme Africa[/url]. Here were a couple of guides that had recently set-up, taking people out on fishing trips for Bronze Whaler Sharks in false Bay
I was chatting to the main guide Greg Kellermann. I just had to double check that there was indeed actually Copper Sharks there. I couldn.t believe that I.d never heard this before. Greg is the current SA record holder for the Bronze shark with a fish off 227kg. Greg mentioned that November is the start of the season for the shark fishing with the fishing getting better as the summer went on. I think Feb / March is the best time of the year, but they are there all through the summer.
I booked a day (18th of December) and couldn.t wait for the holiday. At last I was going to get a chance to fish for these sharks.
A Word on Safety, as this will always be raised when travelling to SA.
The beaches of False Bay are beautiful and isolated. You will need to Travel past Khayelitsha Squatter Camp on the way to them. If you have never seen one of these camps before it can be a little daunting and Khayelitsha is one of the bigger ones in SA. It is quite safe to drive past as you will be on the main road, but it's not a place to be at night time.
As with any trip to an unknown area use common sense. The guides know these areas well and incidents of muggings are very low. The biggest concern for the guides is parking, as sometimes your car can be messed with on these isolated beaches. Pay your guide upfront and keep enough cash for tips and a few beers on you. Keep the rest of your belongings back at the hotel. The day we fished I never even seen another soul on the beach we were on.
Back to the holiday,
In no time at all I was driving back across the mountains towards Cape Town at about 6am. The fishing for Bronze Whaler Sharks is more prolific in False Bay area. I think the guys there have about 50km or so of shoreline that they can fish, depending on conditions.
I met with Greg and Robbie that run Extreme Africa at 7am. After a quick chat myself and my buddy Paul & Greg were off to have a look at the beaches. The weather seemed ok a couple of kilometres inland, but the guys knew it was going to be howling wind on the shoreline. You pick your days, not the weather, so off we went anyway in search of a decent spot.
Here are a few of the marks we looked at.
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0148.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0149.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0151.jpg[/img]
This is the mark we settled on. This mark had some deeper water in front and less surf pounding in, so it would be easier to fish with a chance of the Bronzies being close enough to cast to.
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0155.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0156.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0161.jpg[/img]
The Guide Setting up.
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0162.jpg[/img]
The guys in SA .Slide. bait for these sharks. This involved casting a heavy grip lead (from 8oz up to 12oz or so depending on conditions and the size of the bait) out into the surf. Then the bait is clipped onto the main line and .slid. out to the lead. It.s like a flier rig, but the guys here fish BIG baits that you would not normally be able to cast. I am thinking this might be a nice method for Tope from the shore in Ireland, more on that later though.
Here is a few pics of the Guide, Greg casting from the rock platform above the beach. Given the 40 . 50km winds that were howling left to right and the fact that he was casting a with a boat reel and 0.55mm main line, I was impressed to see the lead fly well past the 100 meter mark every time.
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0172.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0173.jpg[/img]
Here is the bait set-up and sliding pics
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0166.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0191.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0193.jpg[/img]
With two baits in the water it was now down to waiting for a run and taking a few Pics.
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0198.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0177.jpg[/img]
Baits were changed every 30 . 45 mins depending on what they looked like when they came in. After about 2 hours and only a couple of minutes after the last pic above, Paul.s rod started to move off. The fish was taking line quickly and Greg set the hook and passed the rod over.
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0179.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0180.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0181.jpg[/img]
Paul is a complete beginner when it comes to sea fishing. He.s an out an out Trout fly fisherman. To see him attached to a decent fish that was ripping line from the reel was fantastic. I was worried he was going to let go of the rod during the first couple of runs..
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0182.jpg[/img]
A nice fight ensued with the fish running well. We got a feeling that it was not a huge fish, but it was really fighting well so close in, especially with all that deep water so close. This made landing the fish difficult. Even with the shark only a few feet away from you it was hard to see it. Greg had his work cut out trying to tail it. After about 25 minutes a beautiful Bronze Whaler was pulled up the beach by Greg. Only a small one, but just as beautiful and they really pull back, no matter what the size. This one was about 26kg.. It really made me think about how hard a 120kg would fight.
I think Paul was glad it was a smaller fish, because his back was in bits.. [img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0185.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0186.jpg[/img]
After a few pics the fish was measured and tagged and returned to fight another day. As soon as the fish was back in the water, it gave a flick of it.s tail and was away, no problem at all. I didn't even manage to get it in the photo below.
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mcclean2k/SA%20Shark%20Trip%20Dec%2007/DSCF0188.jpg[/img]
Time to get the baits back in the water, and next fish was to be mine..
Baits were cast out and again we waited. The wind was starting to get worse kicking up the surf and we were starting to loose hope. Greg decided to get a bait in the water that would have bigger scent. Half a yellow fin Tuna head was on the menu. This bait was leaking blood as it thawed, so I was hopeful of a bite if there was a shark close enough, in the heavy surf.
Within 10 minutes of sliding the tuna head out there was a run on the rod... Greg lifted in and SNAP.. The fish burned off. After looking as the trace, it looked like the bait didn.t slide all the way down to the metal rubbing trace next to the lead. As the slide clip is metal, it burned through the nylon... This can sometimes happen in heavy swell conditions, if the bait is moved around.
The rod was set up again and another tuna head was slid out.. Greg was sliding the bait for ages, to make sure it made it all the way to the metal section near the lead.
With everything set, it was time to wait again... About 30 Minutes later, we got another run.. The fish moved off and the hook was set and the rod was passed to me... I wound in and couldn.t feel the weight.. The fish had shed the hooks.
Shite.. 
It was not to be my day. We fished on for a little longer, but the wind was gusting to 60km and it was just getting too tough. We called it a day at about 4:30, and considering I done feck all I was exhausted..You Pick your days, not the weather and on thinking back I think we done well to get 3 runs in such harsh conditions. My buddy Paul shattered his PB fish which previously was a 3.5kg Salmon. I have to recommend the guys at [url=http://www.extremeafrica.net]Extreme Africa[/url] to any of you guys thinking about this trip. They are very professional, with excellent Tackle and the guide on the day, Greg, worked his socks off all day to trying to get us into the fish. I have asked him to join up, in case any of you guys have any questions...
Not my day on this trip, but in the immortal words of Arnie.. .I.ll be back.
Oh, the cursing that was done....