Blue Water Charters - Fishing Reports from Fat Girl and Nawty Girl

Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Autumn Game Fish Grand Slam
Fishing Report – Durban – 13.03.2018
With summer behind us we are now in Autumn, my favourite fishing time of the year. What a stunning morning with dead flat seas and a very slight wind we made our way out to the deep to look for a Blue Marlin by the mountain, the deeper water proved to be green and cold so we decided to come back to the ledge. With some good warm purple water on the ledge there was some good action to be had on Fat Girl, lots of squid about, flying fish and birds and so the area was worked well, it started with a double Dorado hook up but both came off and in the end we landed 2 Dorado, 1 Wahoo and 2 Skipjack Tuna. The fish were not committing to the bite and a few more Skipjack Tuna also came off. We were hoping for a Marlin as with all the action around we are expecting another one soon.

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
We got this award
The Angler's Choice Award honours charter operators that deliver consistently great service, and Blue Water Charters fulfils all the requirements.
 

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Baie geluk Mike

Hoop daars nog vele meer.

Hard work out there, heard weather is bad at times so guys not fishing much.
at least it gives the fish time to grow a bit!!!! before we catch them.
 

Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Triple up Dorado
Fishing Report – Durban – 17.03.2018
Launching at 06h00 just as the rain started to lift the day started out wet and turned into a stunning day with crystal clear warm water close inshore and it was not long before the action started and a short 5 hour charter produced 3 Dorado and 10 Skipjack Tuna making for an action packed fun filled morning and everyone getting fish. Lots of happy faces on this trip, which was a 40th birthday gift.

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Good Bottoms in a Strong Current
Fishing Report – Durban – 25.03.2018
Launching at 06h00 the west wind was blowing stiff with a small but choppy sea we made our way out to look for some game fish. The reverse current was screaming at 6 knots, water was blue and warm. We had 2 strikes but they did not stick and the fish came off quickly, after about 4hrs we made our way to the shallows 30-40m depth to do some bottoms as there was no ways our sinkers would stay down on deeper reefs in that strong current. As the day went on the wind dropped making for a stunning sea and whilst we were bottom fishing I watched in dismay as the water went from a stunning blue to green. Bottom fishing was good and in 3 hours we caught about 30 fish and some good size Soldier Bream, Slinger and Englishman came out. We then ran some Rapala X Raps on our way back to port getting back just after 14h00. Am glad the weather held as it got very hot and so I knew there was a storm coming which started at 16h30 long after we got back.

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
5hrs, 4 Countries, 3 Fish.
Fishing Report – Durban – 27.03.2018
We had an interesting group of guys today from 4 countries to attend a wedding. Belgium, Australia, UK. We launched at 06h00 for a short 5hr charter, by 07h30 we already had 2 x Yellowfin Tuna of around 5kg and had dropped one. Water was green but warm. I tried for more Tuna but nothing so we went out to the ledge and managed to find a Bull Dorado which gave a very hard fight and had stunning colours, by this time the NE wind had picked up to 20 knots and we had to turn and head back to shore to be on the dock by 11h00, the water got greener and dirtier the whole time, we had a big strike on the shot gun on the 50m but nothing stuck. We heard a loud bang and then saw a huge log pop out behind the boat, it must have been submerged as I did not see it; fortunately we were trolling at about 7knots so no damage.
After the trip we made the newly married guy kiss the Dorado so he can start getting used to those nights when he will have to share the kennel with the dog. LOL.

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Two Dolly Birds and a Hoo.
Fishing Report – Durban – 29.03.2018
Today I had the pleasure of hosting one of my oldest and longest standing customers and his 7yr old son who has been booking charters with me since my first small charter boat 10 years ago. Over many trips and years we are good friends. It was really great trying to remember all the different trips over the years.
Today we launched at 06h00 for a short 5hr charter using our lighter Shimano Tyrnos rigs and were back at 11h00, early morning as we made our way out the sea was very unsettled with steep swells coming from all directions even though there was hardly a wind, later on when the SW started blowing it flattened out the sea nicely so we had a comfortable ride home. Inshore was still green and the temperature has dropped by 2deg C since my last trip 2 days ago, deeper out after the ledge it was blue and warmer and we had some good action with the 7yr old boy claiming his first Dorado ever on his first deep sea trip ever, daddy was not to be left out and landed a slightly smaller Dorado and a good size Wahoo which was a really good fight on our lighter Tyrnos rigs, we also had another Wahoo on but it came off after a few minutes and we had a very big hit on another lure but nothing stuck. Another great morning out on the ocean.

www.bluewatercharters.co.za
 

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Two Dolly Birds and a Hoo.
Fishing Report – Durban – 29.03.2018
Today I had the pleasure of hosting one of my oldest and longest standing customers and his 7yr old son who has been booking charters with me since my first small charter boat 10 years ago. Over many trips and years we are good friends. It was really great trying to remember all the different trips over the years.
Today we launched at 06h00 for a short 5hr charter using our lighter Shimano Tyrnos rigs and were back at 11h00, early morning as we made our way out the sea was very unsettled with steep swells coming from all directions even though there was hardly a wind, later on when the SW started blowing it flattened out the sea nicely so we had a comfortable ride home. Inshore was still green and the temperature has dropped by 2deg C since my last trip 2 days ago, deeper out after the ledge it was blue and warmer and we had some good action with the 7yr old boy claiming his first Dorado ever on his first deep sea trip ever, daddy was not to be left out and landed a slightly smaller Dorado and a good size Wahoo which was a really good fight on our lighter Tyrnos rigs, we also had another Wahoo on but it came off after a few minutes and we had a very big hit on another lure but nothing stuck. Another great morning out on the ocean.

www.bluewatercharters.co.za
 

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Kids Fishing - 3 Generations and over 200 fish
Fishing Report – Durban – 31.03.2018
We had a short Light tackle Backline Charter this morning on Nawty Girl and had Granddad, Son and Grandson on board with the trip being the very first boat and sea fishing trip of his life. He had a whale of a time and caught 44 fish with over 200 being caught for the morning. We got some Mackerel, Mozzies, Piggies and more than quota of Shad but most were undersize, an Undersize Salmon, and a Soldier Bream, but the bulk of the catch by far was over 100 Sand Soldiers which provided great fun on light tackle for the little guy keeping everybody very busy throughout the trip and some nicer fish in between. He kept 2 Mackerel, 1 Shad and the Soldier Bream so he could have a taste of fish from the sea, all the rest were safely released. With a light South West wind the sea was flat; we started out just South of the South breakwater and then later moved past the North Pier to the area in front of uShaka.

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
The Taxman cometh and taketh away.
Fishing Report – Durban – 03.04.2018
We had a short 4hr mini deep sea trip today with a Family from Jhb, was supposed to be yesterday afternoon by the NE was howling so we changed it to this morning. Typically on a mini deep sea trip we make our way out of port and troll over a few bottom spot and scan the bottom to see for fish and then we stop trolling and do bottom fishing where we found fish. Today had other plans for us, on our way out we first saw 2 pods of Bottle Nose Dolphins and then a little further out I saw schools of bait fish, I had just gone over a known pinnacle when I saw bait fish flying on my right and some big swirls and I swung the boat towards this and it was not long before the shot gun went of at a pace and in no time almost 400m of line was off the reel with a Blue and White Williamson Sailfish Catcher being taken. We were fishing light with the Shimano Tyrnos 30s paired with the light Tiagra rods and this made this all the more fun. 40 minutes later and we had a good size Yellowfin Tuna at the boat, the bird was out the water and I was leaning over to grab the leader with gaffs ready when I saw a big swirl and the water turned red with blood and we ended up with half the Yellowfin. So a big Shark had taken half our Tuna in one bite and we paid our taxes. The sea was calm and flat today but there was a double swell from 2 directions and this made all the children and ladies sick whilst we were fighting the Tuna and so they wanted to go back and we arrived back at the dock 2hrs after we left, I weighed what was left of the Tuna and it was 15Kg. I have been expecting the bigger Yellowfin Tuna to arrive in Durban at anytime. They are here.

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yip, they are there!!!!

got taxed on sunday at umhlanga barge
could not lift it up and knew it was only a matter of time.

ended up with nothing.

Monday had a quick morning session, the wind came up wild and it was not lekker out there.

had 3x pulls.
but boated nothing!!!!

had a nice follow on a popper, but it did not commit!!
sadly!!
 

Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Dorado on the bite today
Fishing Report – Durban – 04.04.2018
We had a trip with a family from New Zealand today on Fat Girl, we started out with the whole family on a cruise out the harbour along the beachfront and then dropped of those that did not want to go fishing and headed out for a late launch and fished for 6hrs (Supposed to be 5hrs) with our Shimano Tyrnos 30 rigs on the light Tiagra rods as per the customer choice of heavy or light tackle. The sea was calm and flat, like glass, it was too nice, it is the conditions we always dream about and when we actually get to fish these days which happen so seldom one has to change ones tactics to get more action on the lures and so we set the whole spread further back and ran at 9-10 knots to get the lures working very aggressively and in the end this paid off. We found nothing in the shallows but with our speed were out deep in no time and went as far as 400m depth; on the way out after we passed the ledge we had a Dorado hook up on the Rapala X Rap and it was the little girls turn and she fought her Dorado like a champion, we also had another hook up on the same X Rap but this came off right at the boat shot out the water and the Rapala hit my head. After this the deep produced no further action and we stated heading back with a course set for one of my favourite deeper pinnacles, before we reached the spot I was heading to we had a double Dorado hook up on a Williamson Sailfish Catcher and a Stripey Tickler and they 2 fish did and aerial acrobatics display jumping all over the show and tangling many lines. The one fish was much bigger than the other and took us well into the backing and after knitting the lines and sorting out the tangles we got them both on board with the bigger one giving an extremely hard fight. I went over my track again and we stayed out a bit longer to try get more fish after we had reset the spread and we managed to get another Dorado hook up on the same Stripey Tickler and with no tangles this time we got it to the boat. Shortly after that we brought our lines in and ran back docking an hour later than we should have.

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Sharks on Light Spinning Tackle.
Fishing Report – Durban – 04.04.2018
We had 2 Light Tackle Backline/Harbour Family trips on Nawty Girl today, a 3hr and a 4hr. These are fun trips for a family outing just to enjoy each other outdoors and have a blast, not serious fishing. We usually target Shad, Mackerel, Salmon and other small species on these trips with light spinning tackle. Today we had some really great fun with some Sharks on the light tackle making for real sport. All Sharks and fish were released.

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Black Marlin 3-2-1 - Released
Fishing Report – Durban – 09.04.2018
What a day we had today, we launched this morning to look for a Marlin into a 12knot NE wind which just got stronger as the day went on until it peaked at about 28knots. Water was warm and light green. We headed about 70km out to our selected grounds and then turned and headed back. On the way out we hooked up a Dorado early but it came off on the jump after a short fight, then it was quiet for some time until we turned and just after we turned we had a small Marlin hook up and after 15 minutes it came off on the jump, we reset our spread and we had a Dorado take the line and again it came off on the jump much to all of our frustration, 3 fish off. Again we set the spread and continued in a following sea that was getting bigger as the wind was picking up and the Shimano Tiagra went off zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz and this time after the jumps it stayed and after about a 20 minute fight we landed a small Black Marlin, as it was small we took the fish out for a pic and afterwards released it safely back into the water. We reset the spread and it was not long before we had a third small Marlin strike but it did not get the hook leaving us with a 3-2-1 tally. 3 Marlin Strikes, 2 Hook Ups, 1 Landed and Released. Frustrating to lose so many fish in one day but ecstatic we got the Marlin we set out for. Well done Bob on your first Marlin ever and your new personal best big fish.

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Fun Family Fishing Trip
Fishing Report – Durban – 11.04.2018
We launched later to try avoid the rain and the wind but the forecast was out and so we had a wet and windy day fishing with some showers that passed by 3 times during the trip. Before we even launched my Costa Sunglasses fell off my head into the Marina and I had to dive down to get them as I was not going to accept losing them, and so my day started out wet, then the sun peaked out and the wind died and we thought what a glorious day this will be, we were wrong. We got out and set a spread and then the wind started blowing, fortunately it was a long period swell and so even in a strong wind the sea was comfortable with a big boat like Fat Girl. We trolled for about 2.5-3hrs but there was no sign of any game fish and so we came in to fish shallow in the 40m as the current was screaming. 1st down and 4 rods got bent and we got some Slinger and so the day went on with Slinger, Snapper, Soldier Bream, Trigger Fish and Rockod being caught. These boys out fished their parents by a long way and got a fair amount of fish with some good sizes and had a blast really enjoying the fishing. The highlight of the day was when the 2 youngest simultaneously had a good hook up, each landing nice sized Remora’s which made them work hard for their prize, it was a treat to watch them struggle and fight these fish up with all their might. In the end the whole family had a great day out with a lot of fun even though there was a little rain from time to time.

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Cpt. Hook

Sealiner
Good Tuna and Wahoo
Fishing Report – Durban – 13.04.2018
We launched this morning into a strong NE wind that the forecast said would die out early and the day was supposed to be stunning, but it did not happen and the NE got stronger and only died out late afternoon, water was green and water temperature is coming down. None the less we got some good fish with a decent Wahoo and 1 smaller and 1 larger Yellowfin Tuna.

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