Anybody who reads the UK FORUMS on international shore venues in the past year,or just takes an interest in worldwide shore fishing cant but have noticed Namibia.We all know about its famous Bronze Whaler Sharks caught from the beach,on out TV's and in the fishing magazines,Henry Gilby and John Wilson have well documented the shore scene.Only then for the area to have a below average season as normal results go last year,and the forums are all full of 'the place is finished',the place is fished out,would never go back doom and gloom comments from anglers whose hopes of a huge catch disappeared with unseasonal weather.
We went last season,end of November,early December 05 in the middle of the most barren period,and caught fish,not as many and not as big as usual,but we caught fish to 200lbs from the shore.Where else in the World produces results like this in bad times,certainly not my local patch in the North East of England.So the Hacks on the forums wound themselves up into a frenzy on how it was and what was to blame,Who was to blame even,and we will never go back and waste our money.
Well to the title of this Post, "BACK WITH A BANG",it has an interesting connection to Namibia.You see the local Guides and Shore Anglers when they have really special catch's and specimens in numbers have a saying,"Hey Man it was FIREWORKS here today! ".,And FIREWORKS is what Namibia's beach's have producing all season this year.,
Granted Im sure some guys have not hit the high spots this year,but the fish have been there,in incredible numbers and absolute top draw awesome size.January saw the best Big Cobb run inshore in ten years,to spawn as they do every year,in huge numbers,big strong and fighting fit fish in the 8/12kg class as an average size.Yes thats right 25lbs fish,and some specimens went well over 20kg and bigger.The kids were catching them at thirty yards distance.Makes you want to weep that you dont live on the beach here.
With the huge influx also of other edible fish,including species such as Big Steenbras,the local sea brean,thousands of small sting rays,the Big Apex Predators always follow.The Bronzies(Bronze Whaler Sharks)returned inshore to feed on the feast,and with the wind staying from the south west the conditions have been near good if not ideal.Most importantly the sea temprature has stayed down this year, with the cool currents running up along the West African coast the fish love so much.
As for the Sharks,well the small sharks if 60lbs is what you can call small,have also been around again.Spotted Gully Sharks,Smoothhounds,all to specimen size in numbers.What about the Bronzies that so did a vanishing act last season for most anglers,well thats the real story and when the Fireworks really got started.Big Numbers of smaller male fish have raced onto baits cast out,up and down the whole coast,fish in the 50kg to 80kg region.Then there was the Iceing on the cake for the lucky few Bronzie Anglers who managed to avoid these rampaging males.
Massive female Bronzies,in good numbers,Im talking 120kgs and bigger.Want specifics,a dozen or more recorded 150kg plus fish in only two weeks of fishing in February.Colossol fish of 160kg,170kg,190kg in one afternoon to some UK anglers,Roger Gates,being one,guided by local Johan Burger.Another top guide Henry Lubseer guiding regular clients from the Isle of Man,UK,Robbie and Michael Cowin,and their mate Barry had a great week,with 21 fish beached to over 300lbs.Including Barry,a first time client bagging quality fish of 140kg and 130kg.Then we are not finished there,because the Cherry on the Cake is always saved till last but not at all least.
My own Group,I joined up with two married couples from York for the first four days of my fishing trip,Glenn and Val Carey along with their friends Rob and Miriam Bachman,guided by top Namibian International shore angler Terence Clark of Mola Mola Angling Namibia.We had struggled with the Bronzies for three days,losing fish after fish,they were there but we lost so many I lost count.No real reason bar they were big fish that ran us ragged and put us on our knees.,but we managed five out eventually.After four previous years of fishing with Terence I could tell he was frustrated at our sorry attempts to land fish.So as it was the two York couples last day Thursday 22nd February 07,it was decided to fish a easy mark,open water,no reefs for Bronzies to smash us up on.This was to be Long Strand,a beach ten minutes drive south from where the couples were staying,in
Swakupmund the local tourist resort.
Terence and myself,met the rest of the party on the beach at 8.00am,baits were cast,no chum(ground bait)to attract the Sharks,but as they had been about the evening before we cast in hope they were still around.Ten minutes and Glenn was into a fish,only to lose it after a 15 minute fight.Robs rod went next all in the first half hour,we were into the fish and had the beach to ourselves.This fish stayed hooked and proceeded to drag Rob off down the beach at a rate of knots,Terence in tow giving advice and Glenn on the camera.
I was by my own rod,and the spare one in the meantime with the two ladies.When the spare rods tip bounced and pulled over hard in the stand toward the sea.In a split second line was screaming out against the set drag,so I pulled the rod out of the stand under pressure and gave the fish three hard strikes as the fish raced away..As the run progressed seawards steady the rod was handed over to a very reluctant looking Valerie.Custom and practice says this was not my rod,hence not my fish.The look on Vals face as she was told to hang on and not let go was a picture.This fish then proceeded to drag the Girls in turn,up and down the beach for the next 90 minutes.In the meantime Terence returned and took over the coaching,after Rob had landed a nice Bronzie of 80kgs.End to this story,well how big do you want it to be,well it is probably is the biggest shore fish any UK women have caught in history any where in the world.
Overall length was 3.75 metres,a female and estimated to weigh 220kgs and a new Mola Mola Angling Namibia record.The Shark was tagged,video and photographed before being released unharmed back into the water,where she swam strongly away back through the surf.It also is one of only five recorded fish over 200kg in Namibian Angling History by anyone,the first to be on video we think.
A happy ending,so as the story began,the truth is the fish are there on the beach in Namibia as they always were,they never went away,my thoughts for an Angling Holiday of a Lifetime at a reasonable price,seek out a top guide and go try for yourself you will not be unhappy you did.
Our pictures of the rest of our Trip and that 220KG BRONZIE can be viewed on
www.namibiasharkfishing.com
regards Davey.
We went last season,end of November,early December 05 in the middle of the most barren period,and caught fish,not as many and not as big as usual,but we caught fish to 200lbs from the shore.Where else in the World produces results like this in bad times,certainly not my local patch in the North East of England.So the Hacks on the forums wound themselves up into a frenzy on how it was and what was to blame,Who was to blame even,and we will never go back and waste our money.
Well to the title of this Post, "BACK WITH A BANG",it has an interesting connection to Namibia.You see the local Guides and Shore Anglers when they have really special catch's and specimens in numbers have a saying,"Hey Man it was FIREWORKS here today! ".,And FIREWORKS is what Namibia's beach's have producing all season this year.,
Granted Im sure some guys have not hit the high spots this year,but the fish have been there,in incredible numbers and absolute top draw awesome size.January saw the best Big Cobb run inshore in ten years,to spawn as they do every year,in huge numbers,big strong and fighting fit fish in the 8/12kg class as an average size.Yes thats right 25lbs fish,and some specimens went well over 20kg and bigger.The kids were catching them at thirty yards distance.Makes you want to weep that you dont live on the beach here.
With the huge influx also of other edible fish,including species such as Big Steenbras,the local sea brean,thousands of small sting rays,the Big Apex Predators always follow.The Bronzies(Bronze Whaler Sharks)returned inshore to feed on the feast,and with the wind staying from the south west the conditions have been near good if not ideal.Most importantly the sea temprature has stayed down this year, with the cool currents running up along the West African coast the fish love so much.
As for the Sharks,well the small sharks if 60lbs is what you can call small,have also been around again.Spotted Gully Sharks,Smoothhounds,all to specimen size in numbers.What about the Bronzies that so did a vanishing act last season for most anglers,well thats the real story and when the Fireworks really got started.Big Numbers of smaller male fish have raced onto baits cast out,up and down the whole coast,fish in the 50kg to 80kg region.Then there was the Iceing on the cake for the lucky few Bronzie Anglers who managed to avoid these rampaging males.
Massive female Bronzies,in good numbers,Im talking 120kgs and bigger.Want specifics,a dozen or more recorded 150kg plus fish in only two weeks of fishing in February.Colossol fish of 160kg,170kg,190kg in one afternoon to some UK anglers,Roger Gates,being one,guided by local Johan Burger.Another top guide Henry Lubseer guiding regular clients from the Isle of Man,UK,Robbie and Michael Cowin,and their mate Barry had a great week,with 21 fish beached to over 300lbs.Including Barry,a first time client bagging quality fish of 140kg and 130kg.Then we are not finished there,because the Cherry on the Cake is always saved till last but not at all least.
My own Group,I joined up with two married couples from York for the first four days of my fishing trip,Glenn and Val Carey along with their friends Rob and Miriam Bachman,guided by top Namibian International shore angler Terence Clark of Mola Mola Angling Namibia.We had struggled with the Bronzies for three days,losing fish after fish,they were there but we lost so many I lost count.No real reason bar they were big fish that ran us ragged and put us on our knees.,but we managed five out eventually.After four previous years of fishing with Terence I could tell he was frustrated at our sorry attempts to land fish.So as it was the two York couples last day Thursday 22nd February 07,it was decided to fish a easy mark,open water,no reefs for Bronzies to smash us up on.This was to be Long Strand,a beach ten minutes drive south from where the couples were staying,in
Swakupmund the local tourist resort.
Terence and myself,met the rest of the party on the beach at 8.00am,baits were cast,no chum(ground bait)to attract the Sharks,but as they had been about the evening before we cast in hope they were still around.Ten minutes and Glenn was into a fish,only to lose it after a 15 minute fight.Robs rod went next all in the first half hour,we were into the fish and had the beach to ourselves.This fish stayed hooked and proceeded to drag Rob off down the beach at a rate of knots,Terence in tow giving advice and Glenn on the camera.
I was by my own rod,and the spare one in the meantime with the two ladies.When the spare rods tip bounced and pulled over hard in the stand toward the sea.In a split second line was screaming out against the set drag,so I pulled the rod out of the stand under pressure and gave the fish three hard strikes as the fish raced away..As the run progressed seawards steady the rod was handed over to a very reluctant looking Valerie.Custom and practice says this was not my rod,hence not my fish.The look on Vals face as she was told to hang on and not let go was a picture.This fish then proceeded to drag the Girls in turn,up and down the beach for the next 90 minutes.In the meantime Terence returned and took over the coaching,after Rob had landed a nice Bronzie of 80kgs.End to this story,well how big do you want it to be,well it is probably is the biggest shore fish any UK women have caught in history any where in the world.
Overall length was 3.75 metres,a female and estimated to weigh 220kgs and a new Mola Mola Angling Namibia record.The Shark was tagged,video and photographed before being released unharmed back into the water,where she swam strongly away back through the surf.It also is one of only five recorded fish over 200kg in Namibian Angling History by anyone,the first to be on video we think.
A happy ending,so as the story began,the truth is the fish are there on the beach in Namibia as they always were,they never went away,my thoughts for an Angling Holiday of a Lifetime at a reasonable price,seek out a top guide and go try for yourself you will not be unhappy you did.
Our pictures of the rest of our Trip and that 220KG BRONZIE can be viewed on
www.namibiasharkfishing.com
regards Davey.
