Last Friday I spoke about the window of opportunity that Saturday would provide and it was exactly that, judging by the photographs I have received. Sadly, contributors failed to provide the angler’s name and makes publishing some terrific photos problematic.
I received excellent quality spotted grunter photographs of fish caught from the surf off Swartkops River mouth, including today’s picture, but without the names of the anglers included. I estimate the fish in the accompanying picture to weigh in the 7kg bracket.
There appears to be great opportunity in the estuary at present, with the colder waters of the Bay trapping warmer water in the estuary. Some grunter of 75cm have been landed too. A variety of species have taken the bait of late and some fine musselcracker have also been caught on the “wild side” of the bay as well as at the Coega Harbour areas.
The Gamtoos debacle has also reached a level of frustration now for many who live and fish there as the situation is really not good, as reported last week. It has been made very clear that any attempt to open the river mouth will be dealt with by the full might of the law. From an authoritative perspective, it appears nature must run its course but I fail to see the logic here, when problems breach public safety issues now and will only escalate.
There is a steady degeneration of the river’s ecosystem as prawns are dying from the lack of tidal influence. There is no natural process at play here as the damming of water has largely created this phenomenon. Great trouble was taken to create estuary management forum initiatives throughout the country, where the authorities and public could effectively manage estuaries that are recreational assets and great environmental tools in the life- cycle of the threatened species such as the dusky kob.
The Kabeljous River has silted up completely and we know where the name came from, as great numbers of Kob were caught years back in those surf zones of Jeffreys Bay and Paapiesfontein. The loss of the Gamtoos at present as a haven for juvenile fish will only be felt in a few years’ time. All conservation work done at various levels will go up in smoke just because there is no will to deal with the issue at hand.
The St Francis Bay area only has one effective breeding ground now – that being the Kromme River. In that case the beach driving ban has led to over-crowding of the most easily accessible spots and the depletion of the fish stocks there.On to the weather: Saturday has clear skies with a relatively light westerly wind prevailing along with a low barometer.
Sunday has a strong possibility of rain as the barometer climbs. Low tide is at 12.43pm with the sea temperature below 16°C in the Bay. The warmer water for game fish anglers is not far off the coast either.