Underwater Hunter - The Spearfisherman

Spearfishing - Thailand - Krabi & surrounds

2011-10-04T21:36:00.001+02:00

My mate has been sending me awesome photos of the spearfishing in Thailand. Really has kept me sane considering the terrible water conditions in the Port Elizabeth area.

Here are some photographs to keep the interest and to also display the diverse fish variety on offer in Thailand.

If you are in the area look up Charlie or plan ahead to meet up with him. For Rob Allen gear - he is also the Rob Allen Distributor - Thailand.

Weekend action - musselcracker

2011-06-07T20:51:00.000+02:00

Attended the launch of a new spearfishing club in Port Elizabeth - Gully Jumpers - strange name - but pretty decent bunch of spearfisherman attended. I understand that 25 is the total membership to date. Well done to Nick and Richard for organising.

Went for an early morning dive and bagged a musselcracker (silver steenbras/brusher) of 7.18 kilograms. Water was cool, and rapidly became chopped up with huge amounts of sand being stirred. Well it was good to get into the water.

Just a quick heads up on the speargun I used (as my Rob Allen 1200 was in for repairs) - Rabitech Apex 1100 railgun with the oval barrel. I really like the Rob Allen equipment, but the Rabitech is really a fine speargun - powerful, accurate. Well done to Louis - good work mate!

The musselcracker were in a shoal of about 20 fish, and then 3 or 4 larger cracker followed. I waited as the fish streamed by, and picked one of the last 4. Aimed for the head and got the head.

Blog update

2011-05-18T22:29:00.000+02:00

Wow it has been a long time since I posted anything new here. Apologies. The truth is that I have been spearfishing on occasion, have taken the rod and reel out and cast a line or two from the shore.

Other times, when a busy work schedule has permitted, have been disappointing - very little clean water or equipment failure. Had a rubber snap on the first load-up and lost the mouthpiece of a snorkel fall off (and disappear) on the walk from the car to the sea. Well I check my gear regularly and the mouthpiece is a mystery - well will just order another Sporasub snorkel from Louis at Rabitech and use a spare cheapy snorkel in the interim.

Had a few queries regarding the late Tony Dicks, from George and Herbie.

In response to Herbie's question about the marlin Tony Dick's speared at Robberg and it towing him around. I took this photograph at the Port Elizabeth Museum on 8 March 2009 - in the fish/shark taxidermy section. It tells the story of Tony Dicks and a marlin of 144kilograms. Note the equipment used compared to current modern gear.

Click image to enlarge and to read the full story on the left.

Catch you in the water - safe diving!

Personal best Galjoen

2010-07-01T20:55:00.006+02:00

Mark Jackson gave me a call on Monday and again on Tuesday with a water report on a favourite spot of mine. On Monday, Mark commented that Tuesday would be good as the water had great potential to clear by Tuesday.

My cellphone rang on Tuesday at about 1pm. Mark says that the water is flat, clear and it is paradise. I leave the office and get my gear and am in the water at 3pm. A good afternoons spearfishing and a personal best to show for it.

The water was cool, but there was plenty of fish, often not the prize fish. Bronze bream were around in hordes with other scraps. Unfortunately no baardman - which I expected to encounter.

Mark had suggested that the dive window of opportunity was small and would last for the Tuesday afternoon only. He was right. When I reached the shore the westerly had started to whip the water and a surface chop was evident.

Galjoen - just under 50cms. Weight 2.48 kilograms - gutted. SA Spearfishing record 5.2kilograms.

Anyone in Cape Town have a good recipe for me to do this fish on the coals? Email me please or send me a link.

Thanks to Mark for the water report - much appreciated.

Click photographs to enlarge.

Update - winter is almost here

2010-05-23T08:11:00.007+02:00

For those of you who thought this blog had died a slow death - you are wrong. In Port Elizabeth we appear to have had unusually long periods of completely unsuitable spearfishing water over the past 3 years. Even the most reliable shoredive sites have not been diveable due to the dirty water. I am unsure as to how many hardened spearfisherman have even bothered to take the boat and to launch as the blue water has been non-existent.

I have made 3 dives since the last post - in water I would describe as hardly ideal. For those of you in Port Elizabeth here are some pictures of what fish look like. They are not just dark shapes in the murk. Not a great selection, but fish nonetheless.

Took my daughters fishing to the Swartkops River. The eldest, Micyla, had the best catches on the day. The youngest, Chelbi, has a unique way of fishing. Once the line is in the water, she moves the rod in a circular motion (I assume the bait moves too). She landed a tiny sardine / pilchard. The fish appeared to have swallowed the whole hook and was trapped on the yellow line. Strange.

I have seen Chelbi use her circular rod swirling technique to great effect on another outing where she caught 7 small fish (including 2 juvenile musselcracker), while Micyla only caught 2 fish on that day. The kids seem to enjoy fishing off the rocks in the sea more than the river.

All of the fish that we caught with rods and line were released - we support catch and release for undersize fish. Not sure if I would eat anything from the polluted Swartkops River anyway.

Anyone have a cure for a shoulder that feels out of joint? Before anyone suggests riding a car over it to put it back into place, I will consult a doctor.

Supper - Pignose Grunter (White Steenbras)

2010-03-15T19:27:00.007+02:00

I had some success on Sunday when I did a quick shore dive. Speared a 4.2kilogram white steenbras near to where Gideon got his white steenbras about a week ago. Admittedly my fish weighed in at slightly more than half of his 8.2kilogram fish. Location - Algoa Bay.

South African spearfishing record (1980) for this species is about 21 kilograms.

Picture taken with Olympus camera in underwater housing.
Other photographs of the fish and mouth.

Saturday dive - cold water

2010-03-09T21:18:00.005+02:00

Headed out for a quick dive on Saturday afternoon - perfect weather conditions. The water had a good colour and was quite clear. While driving down to Schoenmakerskop the mist started to be pushed in by the light westerly. Changed into the wetsuit and got into the water. Water temperature - icy, in the shallows, and icy further out.

Not much was swimming in the shallows, and even less further out. I took a few pictures of the land as I swam out. The mist had closed in and was to become quite a bit thicker. Camera - Olympus in underwater housing.
I did encounter a few jellyfish and took pictures of these nasty creatures. Size was about that of a 200ml coke tin - pub size. My reference books refer to the 8-tentacled nasty as a night-light jellyfish. "Not previously recorded from southern African waters. Likely to occur around the whole coast, but only known with certainty from False Bay."

We need a bit of westerly wind to bring in the warmer water. It blew light east for 6 days.

Spearfishing action

2010-03-02T19:49:00.007+02:00

We all were hoping for a change in water conditions and we have been fortunate to get a few days of reasonable water. I had a very quick dive on Saturday morning in the bay and put a decent size leery (garrick) onto the stringer. My underwater camera goes with on most dives now and I took a photo or two of the fish underwater.

On my return home, I had the usual clean up duties and had to gut and gill the fish. While removing the guts I noticed a small tail protruding from the stomach, so while summoning my best breathhold I slashed upon the stomach of the leery. Well I have taken two fish with one spear before - two bronze bream in a cave - this was a rare catch. A whole bambi / strepie / karanteen type fish. Ok - I have no cats and my deepfreeze is reasonably full with fish, so the little dish would not end up on the coals.

I went for a quick evening dive on Monday evening and saw a square float (like a 5 litre plastic oil can in the water). I made my way over to the float and saw the blue fins of a spearo lying on the reef below. Gideon popped up a few seconds later. The sun had virtually set and we headed back in, both with empty stringers as the large fish were not around.

I was busy filming a jellyfish as it pulsed past me and Gideon's cries could be heard. I idled over to him and he showed me a beautiful white steenbras (pig nosed grunter) that he had shot. Weight was 8.20kilograms, length 85 centimetres. Well done. Here are some photographs of a very happy spearo.

Catface rockcod - Algoa Bay

2010-02-21T12:57:00.006+02:00

Managed to fit in a dive on Thursday evening in Algoa Bay. I was pleasantly surprised with the water conditions and the water was warm. Ran into Gletwyn and his family at Humewood beach and he advised that his Suunto dive computer said 22 degrees celsius on the surface.

I swam out and was surprised by the warmth of the water and the amount of fish life on the outer reefs. There were a few catface rockcods about and having not speared one before checked the minimum size on my Rob Allen 1200 speargun. 50 centimetres minimum and 5 as a bag limit. A decent specimen of approximately 60 centimetres was lying under a ledge of the reef and I decided to pull the trigger. The shot was perfect behind the gills on the spine and exited on the side near the caudal fine. The fish took off aggressively. What I did notice was how strong this fish swam with a spear through it. Weight was just under 3 kilograms, well off the SA spearfishing record of 8kgs (approx).

The reference books say it makes fine eating, so it will be done on the coals later today together with 2 jutjaw (milkfish).

It is called a catface rockcod due to the dark cat-like stripes which resemble whiskers near the eye and mouth.

Slow start to the year - Port Elizabeth

2010-02-15T20:49:00.006+02:00

Well one can guess by my low frequency of blog posts that I have not been in the water much. I have been down to the sea, driven along the bay, around to the westside, and even further along to Seaview and Beachview in search of clean water. Not too much good water around, but hopefully conditions will improve.

A boat dive seems like the best option when the inshore area is destroyed, and I have had the odd dive. There have been plenty of scraps around and the odd decent fish. I can no longer say that I have never been seasick. Mark and I were in the choppy cross swell at the Kapodistrias and Thunderbolt Reef last Tuesday. The wind was a steady brisk east, but the swell normally runs south west. Eventually the liquids within my body had to come back out of my throat due to my bobbing on the surface while breathing up for a dive. We discussed the phenomenon and I believe that it occurs when the eyes battle to focus on an object. My sickness occurred in the water, and not on the boat. I was preparing to dive down to a piece of wreck - depth probably about 6 to 8 metres, but could not focus in the murky water. When I did dive down to about 5 metres I felt the need to hurl, after the eyes had focussed on the structure that had come into focus in the murk. A quick return to the surface and relief.

Funny how Mark made the comment earlier - there should be no sharks around. The water was cold, but visibility was good in places, and I dived just off the white water at Thunderbolt Reef. Found some interesting structure and good fish life. Made a dive down to a lively spot, and on the way down a raggie (ragged tooth shark) passed below. Took my Rob Allen 1200 (about 1800 full length with spear) and measured the shark by holding the speargun parallel and almost on it back. It was at least 2 metres, but probably closer to 2.5metres long. Nice. First real shark encounter this year. The shark appeared quite docile though and disinterested. I thought better of jerking its tail and it idled off.

Fish - well got a few that day. Nothing spectacular. I have a special recipe I use for jutjaw (milkfish) on the coals. Tip - never overgrill this fish. Rather use lower heat and cook slowly. Lovely moist white meat is the result.

The second photograph was of the sunset that evening - on the right the light at Noordhoek Ski Boat, our launch site, is evident.

For those of you who do not subscribe to Chris Coates - http://www.ultimatespearfishing.com/ - follow the link and get a free subscription. Well done Chris - excellent magazine. The cover photograph on the last issue I received in the mail with the Poensie on is brilliant.

December & holiday time - Port Elizabeth

2009-12-19T11:24:00.004+02:00

Finally some long overdue leave is upon me, and there is only one real thought - dive.

This afternoon has potential and a gap has opened in terms of family commitments.

Picture of a decent baardman I took in the shallows near Pollock Rock. Interesting fish the baardman (bellman, tasselfish) - silver colour on sandy or light areas and dark brown/bronze in caves or deep shady areas. This specimen was swimming in a pair (they are normally in pairs) and was silver as it was over the sand. After death it returns to the brown/darker colour. Took the picture with underwater camera in very poor light. Baardman make excellent eating.

Keep the spears sharp and see you in the water.

Stalking scuba divers - Port Elizabeth

2009-11-28T10:29:00.005+02:00

Made a quick dive yesterday and fiddled with the underwater camera settings. Made a few mistakes with lighting, settings and the autopower off function on the camera really annoyed me. Sorted that setting out once I had read the camera manual later last night.

Here is a quick video of me stalking some scuba divers who were "buddy breathing". They really churned the sand up and their bubbles destroyed any chance of getting fish. Interestingly my speargun was loaded, but tucked under a ledge, and my orange float was visible on the surface. These scuba people chose to swim right through my diving zone. Anyway, I give them the benefit of the doubt - we are all water users and we must be accommodating. Visibility was not great, so maybe they (scuba divers) did not see me initially.

Port Elizabeth - Sunny but windy

2009-11-22T19:43:00.009+02:00

Well a week of strong easterlies has passed and two days of westerlies have followed. The inshore sea water has been brown and has been destroyed by the howling easterlies.

I was out at Bluewater Bay (which was brown and definitely not blue) and went onward toward Coega. Took a quick snap of the harbour wall with the islands (Jahleel and St Croix in the background behind the wall. Brenton is not in the picture.) I was surprised how far the harbour wall extends and always considered Coega harbour to be a little way out of Port Elizabeth. Coega is really close to the Swartkops River and I would estimate 5 minutes at 120 kilometres an hour. Here is the picture. Not one of my better efforts, but anyway. I have labeled the islands on the picture - note how close Jahleel is to the outside of the harbour wall. The wind was really blowing when I took this photograph and the sea had a haze above it.

Managed to clean the swimming pool while I wait for the sea water to offer a dive opportunity. The children are real water babies or is that water rats. They cannot get enough and will swim 5 dives a day if we allow them. Chelbi (the 3 almost 4 year old) was splashing the paper wasps as they landed and gathered water that had been splashed on the tiles. Chelbi is fearless and I managed to film a few clips of her jumping into the deep end with me lying on my back on the bottom. The clip that is uploaded seems to have lost a considerable amount of quality during the upload - not sure why.

I decided to find the wasps nest as they seem to return ever year for the past 5 or 6 years. Even building alterations appear not to deter these insects.

Picture of the wasps nest - my hands were shaking as I took this from reasonably close. They appeared a bit agitated.

Chelbi - video clip.

40th Birthday - The Bush Camp - Port Elizabeth

2009-11-07T07:33:00.011+02:00

Well last night (Friday) was our staff party. Little did I know that it was a joint affair - my 40th birthday (surprise) and a staff year end function. The theme was 60's, and I did not suspect anything.

My spearfishing senses were alerted to some form of mischief at one point, but then I thought we were at the wrong party. It is no fun walking into a place and not recognising a single face and then the brains neurons fuse and one realises what is transpiring.

I must say that the function was wonderful and I would like to thank all of those who attended and who conspired to arrange the function without my knowledge. It was great to see Mark and Gletwyn and some of my clients who have come a long way with my business (10 years and more).

I really enjoyed the evening and must say a big thank you to my wife, Adele, who organised the wonderful surprise party and to Sonika, the social club chief at TIAM Services. The venue, decor and effort are really appreciated.

Here is a picture of the birthday cake - cool and real hippie like.

Nicky and Karl organised the cake - brilliantly. Make use of their services for kiddies and adult parties. You won't be disappointed.

One reveller at the party - later on at night. He shall remain nameless.

Anyone have a water report - nothing like a late afternoon dive on a birthday.

Recent spearfishing & other activities - Port Elizabeth

2009-10-31T23:08:00.005+02:00

Well I see it is post number 100. It has been a lean time in terms of diving, but I have made a few trips to places long forgotten or that are reasonably new on the Port Elizabeth map. Places and sites like the Seaview Lion Park and Reptile World at the Boma. The children have had a blast while I stack up the credits for when the water is good. Maybe November 2009 holds some potential.

The sun rises early and a 4.30am start is possible with entry via boat or from the shore at 5am definite. The sun sets at around 7pm, but the light remains good for longer. Now the sea must play along and one can dive before and after work.

Well the lean spell consisted of the following dives 10/8/2009 shore entry, 26/9/2009 boat dive and 25/10/2009 shore entry. Is it possible - so few dives? Yes - the water for a shorediver has had potential only to be destroyed by winds switching between strong easterlies and westerlies. With a boat the potential is there to get to the blue water, but even then some spearfisherman who dive from boats have hardly been out.

Managed to get some fish on 25/10/2009. The cold water meant that I headed for some caves and hoped / predicted that baardman would be present. Managed to take two baardman as the baardman were there in numbers.
I drove past the Port Elizabeth harbour last weekend and saw the Glas Dowr ship docked in the harbour. Here is a picture of this rather odd vessel. What struck me was the large number of pipes and tubing on the deck, together with the metal wheels (rims like mine shaft lift wheels) at the end of the vessel.

A bit of information on the vessel. Owner - Bluewater Company - Curacao
Length: 242metres Breadth: 42metres Depth: 21 metres (moulded)
Deck area: 8000 square metres Accommodation / crew: 96
Storage capacity: 657 000 barrels crude oil + 58 000 barrels diesel oil and slop
It is called a FPSO - fuel production storage and offloading vessel
The vessel is a floating storage tank and offloads oil to vessels or ports where it is berthed.

Water report: Saturday 2pm high tide
Wildside (westside) Flat with murky inshore, but blue out at 200 to 300 metres and beyond
Bay - Cape Recife has muddy inshore, which is a bit cleaner as one moves towards Shark Rock Pier. No dive today.

I heard from a fisherman that he and other fisherman had caught 3 great whites (apparently small/juveniles) in the bay recently. Not sure if they were released. The shark is protected and is to be released in terms of legislation. September / October is "their" (shark) time as the blue rays start to make their appearance in the Port Elizabeth area.

Port Elizabeth coast - hijacking & dangers

2009-10-11T21:03:00.007+02:00

The time has come for the South African Police to do something about the situation along our coast. I must admit that I am tentative to dive some of my favourite spots - alone or with a dive buddy. The number of reported incidents along the coast from the beacon at Admiralty Way in Summerstrand (in the Bay) to the other side of Noordhoek (on the westside around the corner) has escalated alarmingly. This danger zone extends further westwards to Sardinia Bay too. I am aware of various unreported incidents at Cape Recife too.

While on the topic of Cape Recife - the powers that be decided to close the reserve to all forms of diving and imposed a ridiculous access restriction. Essentially no-one with a wetsuit may enter - or so we understand. Why - because of poaching and the South African Police not having the ability to curb this practice. Some of the best caves and reef lie off this section of coast and are accessible from the shore.

There are apparently reservists who patrol the Cape Recife area, but somehow these savages (claimed to be Nigerians) still rob or threaten fisherman and other users of the Cape Recife area. Maybe it is time for some fisherman to draw a licenced weapon and blast one of the attackers. This should send a very loud warning to any would be wrongdoers. The policing that does take place seems inadequate. There is also a camera at the access point at Cape Recife - surely it records entry / exit and can produce pictures of vehicles / occupants. One of the reasons for the restricted access was to limit or reduce crime - it is definitely not working.

I heard an unconfirmed report about a german woman that was attacked by some Nigerians along the Marine Drive last year. Apparently the poachers assisted the woman and assaulted and sorted the Nigerians out with some jungle justice. I am a firm believer in the vigilante concept.

Another spearfisherman told me about shots being fired at his float as he returned to shore at Flat Rocks. The culprits were a bunch of drunk coloured revellers. This incident happened more than a year ago.

I am seriously considering only doing boat dives as I do value my safety above enjoyment. The sport of spearfishing is plagued by various restrictions and controls - MCM / Department of Environmental Affairs and a once pristine coastline is quickly becoming ruined. Broken glass / beer bottles / waste and filth are the order of the day and our local municipality has done nothing to improve the fencing and facilities along the coast. What has happened is various access points are now controlled or closed and a fee is charged to enter. Why pay a fee for non-existent facilities and access to the sea? I notice that some of these places are unmanned at times and there is no access at such times. It is a sickening site - the rusty / make-shift cable / chains to restrict access and some yob / bogan (Australian for redneck / hillbillie) coming to take your money - R40 at one spot - no receipt. Wonder when the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality will get off its bureaucratic arse and do something to sort out the eyesore.

Here is an extract from the EP Herald / Weekend Post. This extract is from the latest report after a young man and woman were hijacked and assaulted last weekend. It lists the reported attacks / incidents:
October 2009: Young couple hijacked and assaulted
September 2009: Businessman / triathlete attacked while taking photographs of a whale carcass near Willows. Four men hijacked him and later also targeted another couple. Both cars were stolen but later recovered.

October 2008: Two men were hijacked, bound together with wire and left stranded in the nature reserve for more than five hours. They were tied up and their bank cards and pin codes taken. The hijackers made off with their car.

June 18, 2008: Humewood police station Senior Superintendent Japie Moolman gave a tour of the area, where he said at least six vehicles have been hijacked, a student raped and the body of a woman dumped since April 2008.

June 10, 2008: Five fishermen were held at gunpoint, hijacked and robbed. Both attackers had drawn guns, demanded their cellphones and the pin code for bank card.

February 7, 2008: Two students were attacked by a gang of six men while doing research at Cape Recife. The thugs tied up the students and demanded their bank cards and pin numbers.

January 20, 2008: Port Elizabeth environmentalist and a group of eight UK tourists were attacked and robbed at knife-point while walking at Cape Recife.

Some spearfishing action in Port Elizabeth

2009-10-01T20:57:00.005+02:00

We were up early on Saturday morning and headed out at Noordhoek. The weather had changed for the better and the water was flat and clear. It was a wonderful feeling to be at sea again after so many weeks of waiting for clear water. The sun was rising behind us as we headed westwards and eventually it was time to jump into the water and hunt for fish.

I managed to bag a few fish, but had trouble with my ears and equalising again. The first equalisation is not the problem, but the second at around 10 metres. At one point my nose was completely blocked, but after a few dives it cleared. Frustration.

I must say that I was privileged to be diving with one of the best spearfisherman around, and the day was quite an experience. I had hoped for swarms of musselcracker to be around, but they were not around in huge numbers. Next time possibly. The water was colder than expected, but when one has the chance to dive many new spots, one cannot complain.

I never knew that there was so much decent reef, caves, slabs and prime fish terrain around our Eastern Cape coast. It was an eye-opener. Unfortunately my diving was not at its best. The day and events provided quite an experience and I can only hope to get a chance like this again soon.

Sunrise at Noordhoek taken with my new camera in the underwater housing.

My biggest bronze bream and white steenbras to date.

Thanks to Mark Jackson for the wonderful outing. My energy levels are up and my will to succeed and improve are now stronger than ever.

Any monkey can spearfish

2009-09-23T06:45:00.006+02:00

The long dry spell continues and we have erratic weather and water conditions of late. There was an opportunity to dive on Sunday, but transport arrangements prevented me from heading to Algoa Bay. It would not be fair or pleasant to have returned the demo-vehicle that I had for the weekend with a fishy smell, nor with the odd damp seawater spot.

I planned a late evening dive for Tuesday evening, but the bay had white horses and had been whipped up by the strong east. The best bet looks like this weekend, but Thursday (public holiday) would seem to present little opportunity for spearfishing. It would possibly be better spent amassing family credits for the time when the water is right and every day is dive day.

I picked up this picture on the net a while back. It proves that any monkey can get fish.

My aims and objectives are species and quality driven, while diving safely and maximising my enjoyment. We all make basic mistakes - jumping off the boat into the sea and getting ready to make a first dive and realising that the weightbelt is still on the boat - I have done this twice. Hopefully it will not happen again.

Safe diving.

Hijacking Danger

2009-09-11T22:01:00.010+02:00

Gletwyn sent a message to me that reads "careful of hijacking at the whale". I called him to enquire what it was about. Apparently 4 nigerians are up to their old trick of hijacking people near the Willows, towards Noordhoek where the whale was washed up a few weeks ago. Gletwyn advised of an incident this week.

It would appear that people who stop to view the whale remains are the targets. Normal procedure is for the niggerians to hijack and make the victims drive to the dirt roads near to Lookout (towards Cape Recife) and then take the cash, and bank cards. The pins are extracted/beaten from the victims. Two of the nigerians will remain with the victims while the other two take the car and head for an ATM to draw the cash.

Please be careful out there. This news is not good news, and will potentially limit shorediving in the area. I will make enquiries with some senior police officials and request action and feedback. Hopefully the police can apprehend these villains. Maybe the poachers can sort the problem out, good old jungle justice may not be dead.

Another question: why is this incident not reported in the Herald. Seems like a cover up. South Africa is crime infested, if it is not our locals, then it is some scum from up north.

I found this link - reference seems to be to "Die Burger" an Afrikaans local paper who covered the story.
http://citizenalertza.blogspot.com/2009/09/man-swims-from-robbers.html

Weekend's inactivity

2009-08-30T22:54:00.006+02:00

Not much diving from my side of late. My last dive was on 10 August 2009. The consistent storm swells from the lower south Atlantic have been making there way along the coast. This early spring pattern of high seas seems to be consistent with last year. Remember the wild seas that caused so much devastation on 1 September 2008. Normally there would be a lull of a few days between the swell cycles. At present the cycles are close together and there is no respite from the strong winds which are strong westerly (prevailing) or strong easterlies.

I have been hearing reports from shore anglers about musselcracker being around and a fair number have been caught with rod and reel. I took the camera down to Cape Recife and took a few pictures of some anglers on the flat shelves at Cape Recife. One angler recounted how a musselcracker had cut his line after making a run. The angler believes it was a sizeable cracker. The white water seemed ideal and the 3 anglers (in the photographs) waded out to get their bait and lines in the most appropriate spots. Notice the large number of swells in the photographs. Hopefully the sea settles and we can dive Cape Recife off the boat.

Well the children ran wild, along the beach toward the beacon and the lighthouse (which can be seen in the background).

Let us hope for a break in the weather and that the sea calms down. Maybe this week?

Impressive Humpback whale photographs

2009-08-20T21:44:00.008+02:00

Conditions have not allowed any diving and the office commitments have kept me away from the sea. I am unsure about the prospects for the weekend due to the strong winds and large swells that have been so prevalent during the past 10 to 12 days.

I came across these awesome photographs of a humpback whale with a freediver that were posted on the web. Credits are noted on the photographs. The photographs were taken in the South Pacific, off Hawaii. The whale is estimated to be 15 metres long (50 foot).
Quite a contrast to the humpback whale carcass that washed ashore near Willows a few weeks ago.

We will have to see what the weekend holds for the eager Eastern Cape spearfishermen.

Paddleboarding - fairly new to Port Elizabeth

2009-08-15T13:42:00.011+02:00

Conditions do not appear to be good for spearfishing this weekend. The swell is up and any shore entry (visibility permitting) on the wildside could be treacherous and could well end in disaster.

I dived with Chris "the vis" (the fish) on Sunday and Monday and he recounted the tale of a friend who had an arm broken when thrown onto the back of an outer pinnacle by a breaking swell. This occurred a few days ago at Malay Pools. I understand that the spearo discarded his speargun to return to shore. Must have been tough swimming in with a broken arm, even though the legs are used for swimming.

I took a few pictures of two paddle boarders a few weeks ago. The conditions were ideal in the bay for them to practice their sport. Essentially you stand on a "surfboard" and have an oar to paddle with to catch waves.

I do recall seeing a lone paddle boarder in the surf at Cape Recife 2 years ago while I was spearfishing and have not seen too much activity since then. I had illusions of Hawaii and big waves, not the dinky swell that I had swum through at Cape Recife.

The sport of paddle boarding is reported to have started in Polynesia and Hawaii many, many years ago. Another term for the sport is SUP - stand up paddle surfing. I would suppose a paddle is a more effective way to manoeuvre than two alternating arms with cupped hands, as a larger volume of water will be displaced with each paddle stroke.

Here is a picture of a Hawaiian showing how it should be done. Picture is courtesy of www.hawaiirama.com.
I have no reason to want to start paddleboarding, but this photograph may convince any landlubber that there is merit in partaking in the sport.

Weekend action

2009-08-04T17:27:00.014+02:00

Saturday was one of those strange spearfishing days. The weather reports showed a fairly brisk westerly due, and I was down at Hobie Beach early after waking at 5.30am. Aldo and Lohan had some boat trouble (flat tyre on the boat's trailer), so I jumped at the opportunity to explore the reefs out in front of Shark Rock Pier.

The plan was that they would collect me after launching. So off I went, swimming constantly towards the rising sun. I was in the water for approximately 40 minutes and had progressed quite a way out off the pier. I do recall looking back and wondering if the boat would ever pick me up. I made numerous dives to the flat reefs, and small ledges. The training and routines that Trevor drilled into me provided the required extended breathhold - the only problem was that there were no fish. The largest fish I saw was a blacktail minnow - 5 to 10 centimetres maximum. Visibility was not too bad - and the bottom 3 or 4 metres was clear. I had the police boat draw up alongside a little while later and enquire what I was up to and whether I needed help.

I had seen Aldo's double cab near the launch area when looking back so I knew that my lift was on the way. The shore was looking a bit distant with a long swim back in required (back into the wind). It was not too long and I was collected and we headed off to the first dive spot.

Visibility was not wonderful, but fish life was plentiful. The wind had really started to blow and the sea which was like glass earlier became quite choppy. The visibility deteriorated gradually and we moved off to a spot off Kings Beach. At 10 metres, not a fish in sight on the reefs below. After 5 dives I still had not seen a single fish. Lohan summed it up saying that there was even less than nothing. Visibility was not bad, once the murkier mid water was navigated. We moved to another spot with a tail wind and following swell. The visibility was top to bottom (10 metres and more) with water that was crystal clear despite the large surface swells and strong wind. A few dives to the reef below which had an abundance of fish life. No huge fish or tuna around, but ideal conditions to freedive in.

Added a red roman to my species list. The red roman is an interesting fish. I recall some 10 years ago that I ended up in the flower beds choking on red roman bones that I had inadvertently eaten after a fish braai. The bones were on the side of my plate and I had placed a bread roll on top of the tiny bones. When eating the bread roll I ate the bones. The bones were stuck in my throat and all remedies failed - neat whisky, neat vinegar, neat cooking oil, old bread with mould, and anything else in the kitchen sink. Eventually mother nature solved the problem as I had coughed the bones into the back of my throat and using a pair of tweezers and a mirror extricated the bones.

Back to the red roman. Minimum legal size is 30 centimetres. This one was 32 centimetres. The reference books state that the fish grow to 50 centimetres maximum length (approx). SA spearfishing record 4.57 kilograms. Note the canines (four) in the upper jaw and (two) lower jaw and the blue line between the eyes. Colour is predominantly dark orange with a white bar (saddle) across the upper back / flank and a white bar across the gills.

The roman is territorial and inhabit a specific area for long periods. I recall seeing a smaller roman (while on a shore dive) and it constantly swam out to greet me, then idled back into its crevace in the rocks. It was as though it knew it was undersize and that I would not spear it. I remember the spot well, and must make a shore dive again to see if the fish still inhabits its undersea real estate. That roman was smaller (I estimate 20 centimetres at most), but it had developed its territorial manner.

Humpback Whale

2009-07-29T20:46:00.006+02:00

While driving to work on Monday morning and reading the newspaper billboards I noticed the headline stating that two whales had washed ashore. A quick search online and a few telephone calls and I was set for the afternoon's adventure. I collected my two children, Micyla and Chelbi, at 4.45pm and headed out to the Willows area on the wildside.

The children were in a hurry to see the whale carcass and I had to keep them in check. The whale was approximately 10 metres long and is said to be fully grown. I was barefoot and walked across the rocks near the whale and felt the sticky residue on the rocks. I believe it was whale fat or blubber. The carcass had various deep slash and cut marks on its body. I wonder if these were inflicted by a propeller, collision with a ship or by scientists who took samples of the carcass. Its upper jaw was mangled and looked like it had been cut off.

My eyes also spent some time looking at the condition of the water on Monday, and contemplating the possibility of diving this week. The water appeared slightly milky, but blue. My thoughts were that it would take a day or two to clear.

I received a water report today from Mark and headed out after 4pm. I was not disappointed and managed to fit in a very quick dive this afternoon. I have seen and heard of spearo's getting white musselcracker - largest 13 kilograms and a fisherman explained that another spearo had managed two cracker of approximately 8 kilograms each, a little way east of my dive spot today and an hour earlier. Hopefully this is the start of an early cracker run, which normally starts around late September/October.

Conditions look ideal for tomorrow. The bay is said to be flat and clean, with Cape Recife looking like a most viable option. The wildside (westside) was clean this afternoon and should remain in the same state until Friday at least.

Anyone have a space on a boat for tomorrow?

Weekend action - diving Cape Recife

2009-07-19T20:36:00.007+02:00

Well the weekend is over. Saturday was ideal, and we dived Cape Recife from 9am until 1.30pm from the boat. We swam a reasonable distance as the skipper would drop us off and head out to put a line and some bait into the deeper water. I really was glad that we made the effort to dive. The visibility was brilliant - top to bottom - 7 metres, and in the water probably 10 metres or more. Almost too clear for my liking. I can say that I have explored the Cape Recife area, but not as extensively as I would like. There are some brilliant caves, reefs, wrecks, and generally prime fish-hunting real estate along from the wreck of the Fidela (the boiler that is visible from Pine Lodge) until the point (where the lighthouse is).

Cape Recife is ideal for inexperienced or new spearfisherman as depths range between 0 metres (the sandy / rocky shoreline) and 8 metres. My depth gauge showed a maximum depth of 8 metres after the days diving.

Fish were in abundance, maybe not as large a variety as I would have wanted, but then again it is winter. Notable species black musselcracker [poenskop], jutjaw [milkfish] in shoals 6 to 10 and decent sizes and bronze breams were in abundance. A few sharks joined me for the swim - small ragged tooth sharks (50 centimetres), small bronze whalers (1 metre & less) and a pyjama shark (80 centimetre) idled along the bottom. I also noticed a turtle eating or biting bits off a jellyfish which was drifiting just below the surface. Jellyfish must be a turtle delicacy. Anyone know more?

Oh well, I speared a few fish (poensie, jutjaw, others), but was also victim to some hydroid stings above my lip.

Mark Jackson advised that the outside (Westside / Wildside) was crystal clear too. One cannot be in 2 places at once. There will be a next time to dive the outside.

I found a picture which I took during June 2009 while on the Trevor Hutton course. It was of the police helicopter and somehow I fitted a seagull into the frame too. Anyway - just a bit of harmless photographic fun.

Weekend Prospects & a bit of Port Elizabeth history

2009-07-17T20:54:00.007+02:00

I took a drive down to the sea this afternoon. Algoa Bay was fairly clean with small choppy waves caused by the easterly wind. The Westside was flat and was a blue colour. Weekend prospects look promising for spearfishing.

I am quite pleased to have a spot on a boat for Saturday. There are so many techniques to work on, all learnt on the Trevor Hutton Advanced Freediver course. It will be a pleasure to wake up before dawn tomorrow and to make the trip to the launch. We will see what is on offer and hopefully there is some variety and a few new species of fish to target.

Cape Recife and the breakwater at the harbour appear to be possible options in Algoa Bay. We will see what the water and conditions are like tomorrow. Here is a picture of a "giant" Titan crane which was on rails. The crane was used to create the harbour wall and breakwater. I use the word "giant" in inverted commas, as the Titan crane will probably be dwarfed by some of the monstrous earthmoving and lifting equipment used in the modern day.

Here is an aerial photograph of Humewood Beach, MacArthur Baths (at the top centre), the old slipway, and the area between Hobie Beach and Humewood Beach. The lack of development on the land is evident. Brookes Hill is undeveloped (it used to be a caravan park), the Boardwalk Casino and Barneys/Blue Waters Cafe venues are non-existent. The Davis Club (tennis club) and Dolphin Underwater Club are in the bottom left of the photograph. I wonder what landmarks would have been in use when diving reefs in the bay many years ago.

Well, I am off to get some sleep, and to rest them weary bones.

Spearfishing update

2009-07-05T09:43:00.007+02:00

I managed to squeeze a quick dive or two in on Thursday afternoon. Mark Jackson had phoned me and provided a water report of a favourite spot of mine on the westside (Wildside). The water was flat and blue. I had checked the windfinder.com site and a few other websites and headed for the sea.

The wind had been blowing lightly, but by the time I arrived at the sea a strong north westerly was blowing and the sea had become choppy. The water colour was brilliant blue and I headed in. Visibility was wonderful (despite the large surface chop) and the sea was full of fish life. One of my normal spots was not accessible due to the the large swell that was breaking against the back of the outer offshore reefs, so I swam along the coast towards Noordhoek.

I became a bit concerned when comparing my landmarks and failing to find the reefs / markers on the seabed. The water was deeper than I expected. I came to the realisation that I had been blown out, or had drifted out to sea, or simply had missed my landmarks. So I started the long swim in. Anyway, it was good exercise and good exploring. I eventually climbed out about 300 metres right of my normal exit point.

I decided to do another dive at a different spot. Managed to bag a santer (soldier). This is the first one of the species that I have taken, but it has been on my target list for a while. I have seen many soldier around, but never large enough. This fish seems to like the deeper, colder water. These fish put up quite a fight when speared. The fish has broad light pinky / brown bars running from the dorsal fin down (on the flanks) and is a silvery pink colour in the water with blue tinges. The fish has 4 to 6 outer canine teeth. SA spearfishing record 5.6 kilograms.

Let us hope that the bad weather is gone for a while. I had not dived since the Trevor Hutton freediving course. It would appear as though we may have some decent conditions, at least until the next big cold front hits the coast.

Freediving & Spearfishing Course - Trevor Hutton

2009-06-24T20:21:00.003+02:00

Myself and Aldo recently completed the Trevor Hutton Advanced Freediver course with Gletwyn providing spearfishing coaching and underwater video and still photography.

It was quite an experience diving with such advanced and skilled teachers. Trevor arrived on Wednesday and left yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon after we had a training session in PE Technikon diving pool. The course has provided many new ideas and imparted the correct and proven freediving and spearfishing techniques on me.

I would estimate that my bottom times are improved by 30 to 40%. My deepest dive was to 17 metres, not quite what I had planned. I intended to do 25 metres and felt physically able and willing. My ears were a problem from the start of the course and equalisation proved awkward at times. I have set my own personal goals which I intend to achieve within the next month. I managed a personal best for a specific species of fish while on the course.

Trevor and Gletwyn provided so much valuable insight into safe diving. The course consisted of pool training, theory, sea (boat) dives, safety/rescue training, plenty spearfishing and plenty freediving. In summary, to improve my freediving I need to focus attention on 1 major area: mental attitude and composure in the water. Physically I do believe I can swim with the fish and am prepared to swim for hours to get fish.

If you are looking to make vast strides in spearfishing and freediving then do a Trevor Hutton freediving course and/or a Gletwyn Rubidge spearfishing course. We kind of had the best of both during the past week.

Congratulations to Aldo - he dived magnificently to beyond 20 metres. I saw a comment that Aldo posted on the saspearoranking.co.za site where he states that he moved from being uncomfortable at 12 metres to being extremely comfortable at 12 metres, and extended his deepest dive from 12 metres to 20+ metres within 3 days. I was witness to these achievements and can honestly state that myself and Aldo really have gained a massive amount from the course.

Now, for those of you:
- looking to extend your bottom times
- wanting to get more fish
- wanting to have an adventure
- wanting to achieve personal depth targets
- wishing to experience something new
go do the Trevor Hutton course.

Oh well, the weather prospects look poor for the weekend ahead. Pity - there is so much I would like to work on. Catch you in the water.

Saturday Dive - Hobie Beach launch

2009-06-07T11:03:00.011+02:00

I was looking through my dive records and realised that the last time that I dived was on 24/5/2009. An opportunity presented itself early on Saturday 6/6/2009 and I took it. It was a boat dive and we were the only divers that launched at Hobie Beach in the conditions, other than ProDive who seemed to fit in an early morning dive and had launched a few minutes before us.

It is always a good sign to see lots of boating activity, or the signs of it at least. There was a solitary boat trailer (ProDive's) parked in the boating area. Not a good sign. We parked the trailer on the huge open space. The wind was not up yet, but we expected the wind to blow later on.

We headed out towards Cape Recife. I did the first bounce dive - down to about 6 metres. I found bottom when my spearpoint, which was slightly ahead of me, encountered the sand on the bottom next to the reef. Cloudy water at best, so we tried further out, and other areas that appeared bluer.

We dived a few other spots, but the wind was up and the bumpy ride back to Hobie Beach was not too pleasant.

Anyway - lots of negative / life threatening events / stories have done the rounds lately:
- Cape Vidal drowning of a fisherman last weekend after the skiboat failed to clear the surf when launching (poor sea conditions - big surf). I have seen some of the pictures taken just before the launch, the boat after it washed out and others - the swell was large.
- Young spearfisherman, Brandon Alber, (in his 20's) drowned at The Cutting, South of Durban (poor sea conditions)

On our way down to the sea, we came across the horrific accident on the N2 behind St. Marks Church. The horse, semi and long trailer that hit the bridge column just after 7am yesterday. We were forced to stop, as the car in front stopped in the right hand lane to take a look. We almost plowed straight into this idiot who stopped in the right hand lane. A bakkie and boat are not the most brake friendly. This was quite an horrific accident, and we were on the scene within minutes after it occurred. We made the call that there was little for us to do at the scene, as 3 or 4 others were on the scene, and we carried on down to the sea. The traffic police and emergency services were heading up the highway towards the accident as we carried on down the highway. I understand that the bridge is unsafe as it has moved and is unsafe due to the impact affecting it structural integrity. The N2 was closed (that section) yesterday afternoon.

Tragic loss of human life, sometimes unnecessary, but sobering.

Back to the diving:
Added a 1.8kg cave bass (also called a lampfish) to my species taken list.
Interesting fish this - diet is shrimp, small fry, crab larvae. The colour is blackish-grey with numerous pearly white spots along the body. It has a large pair of eyes to facilitate hunting in poor light. It has a large mouth with pronounced gill rakers inside. Tiny sharp teeth are found on the top and bottom jaws, but no canine teeth are evident. It has a strikingly gold coloured tongue. The books describe this fish as solitary and it is generally found further north east along East London and Durban way. We encountered 3 of equal size on the dive. The flesh of this fish is quite fatty, possibly less fatty than a cape knifejaw (cuckoo bass). The cave bass should make a good meal on the open coals.

Some pictures (click to enlarge).

Crazy wetsuit design

2009-05-26T21:50:00.007+02:00

The wetsuit - created by Dutch designer Diddo Velema - has been printed to create the impression that the wearer has been savaged by a shark. Pretty unique. You decide.

Custom inks are used to add the gory textures which appear like a torn wetsuit, ripped skin and wounds inflicted to the bone.

I saw comments that feared that the sight of a surfer emerging from the water wearing this wetsuit will mentally scar children and will leave the children with a fear of the sea.

The designer found the normal dull old wetsuit boring and decided on these creations. "With that in mind, I took up the challenge to create an alternative. With custom inks and unique printing techniques, I was able to map textures onto the suits to create original designs that evoke the mysteries of the seas." - the designer is quoted.

Diddo has also created other patterned wetsuits which look like a rusted iron diving suit, an anatomic musculature suit and a whale shark patterned suit.

The wetsuits are set to go on sale soon but a price has not yet been fixed. I am definitely not in a rush to buy one of these wetsuits. These wetsuits may find some following among the surfers. Just too gory for my liking and why provoke or promote a rare, but harsh occurrence - a shark attack.

Underwater fright - Giant Manta Ray

2009-05-26T21:21:00.008+02:00

I came across a photograph of a manta ray while browsing the web and pondering the possibility of doing some spearfishing this weekend.

The photograph reminded me of a few comments that myself and another spearo had exchanged about getting a fright while spearfishing. I had recounted a tale of kneeling at the base of a reef, looking upwards at 45 degrees at the upper perimeter of the reef, and when seeing no fish, pushing off towards the upper edge of the reef. When I reached the upper edge and peaked over I was greeted by 4 giant rays heading straight at me. I ducked and they passed serenely overhead and I followed for a few moments before heading up for some air. These rays has wingspans of maybe 80 or 90 centimetres, by no means giant.

The photograph contains the details. One massive manta ray.
The problem with diving in murky water is that identifying objects, reef, fish, poachers and sharks is never easy. I am unsure how I would react if I came across a ray this big. There would be the initial shock, but once identified, it would be an experience to really enjoy. Anyway, the only way to increase my chances of seeing something unique is to dive more. Sounds like a good plan.

Weekend Diving - update

2009-05-24T19:31:00.008+02:00

We have had the big seas, strong winds and the sea is relatively flat. Unfortunately visibility has not been the best and the water is cool.

Did a boat dive on Saturday. Wonderful to have the ability to move quickly from spot to spot. The only problem was the visibility and lack of fish. The surface water was clean until about 3 metres down where it became a bit soupy. Did a few dives down to 12 metres and found (saw) the reef when about 2 metres from the bottom. Very little was swimming around and when looking to the surface while on the bottom there was very little light. Bonus was that it was good exercise. Dived on 4 or 5 landmarks - managed one fish on the last spot. No white steenbras seen, pity.

Sunday morning and I was out early. Wildside (westside) was the location and the possibility of blue water existed. Unfortunately it started to rain and I entered the water unsure as to its exact colour and clarity. The sea was quite lively and a strong westerly sprang up, the water became choppy and the entry back to shore became tricky. There was plenty of fish life, but many undersize fish. The musselcracker were shoaling, 10 to 20 fish in a shoal. The spearing of a fish under 60 centimetres in length is not permitted. A 60 centimetre musselcracker weighs in at around 5 kilograms.

Picture of a musselcracker that I speared a while back.

Time to wash the gear, repair the odds and ends, sharpen the spears and wait. Tomorrow afternoon (Monday) may be an option as the tide will be high around 4pm and a dive just before sunset may produce results on the Wildside.

Stories of poachers & sharks

2009-05-19T19:56:00.005+02:00

May 2009 has not been a great month for shorediving in Port Elizabeth. I have also not had many good reports from those fortunate enough to have boat dives.

The sea has been wild, the water sandy or cloudy, and cool at best. The weather has unusual cycles at times, and the strong westerlies on Sunday and Monday were good news. The large swells and westerly winds should clear out the dirty water from the coast and fish life should be more evident once the high seas subside. Here is a Stormsurf picture of swell conditions today. Click to enlarge. Yellow, orange, red are not good for diving generally. Dark blue and lighter shades are the ideal.

I dived on Friday and Saturday with little success. Friday had its "special" moment. I had been in the water for almost 2 hours and decided to try one more area which normally delivers. My stringer was bare with no fish strung. The largest "fish" I saw was a pyjama shark about a metre long. Nice specimen. Harmless. Second largest "fish" was baby bronze whaler shark also about a metre long. So I moved toward the normally productive reef and find conditions totally unsuitable with strong surge and large plumes of sand. The large swell is breaking repeatedly on the large reef, so I decide to abandon the thought of diving at this spot and head in. The thought of a hot cup of coffee with condensed milk is good motivator to swim in. A decent sized submerged reef is on my way in, and I head toward it. Diving down I kneel on the bottom on the reef with my speargun pointed at the top edge of the reef. The water is murky. I see yellow and grey colours, and silvery shapes just behind the upper edge. My mind says - yellow tail, no could be jellyfish, bubbles. Scuba tanks (yellow and grey) with bubbles, two divers, harvesting perlemoen (abalone). I quick wave at the poachers and I turn the gun away from them and I head in. The were oblivious to my presence until I made my presence known. Suppose the lure of easy money makes them concentrate really hard. I have yet to spear a poacher, and I have no intention to.

Picture of a pyjama shark. Also called a striped catshark. Picture courtesy of discovery.com

The moral of the story - keep your eyes open when diving. You never know what you may encounter.

Pufferfish - Not much diving

2009-05-11T18:47:00.009+02:00

Dive log shows only one dive for May 2009 - 9 May 2009. Water felt cool, and was dirty with plenty sand being stirred up. Fish life - not much of decent size around and even less worth spearing.

There is one fish that always seems to be around in the worst conditions - the pufferfish (evileyed or milkspotted). The fish (or its relatives) is a delicacy in the Far East, in Japan in particular. The dish served is named Fugu and there are very few chefs in the world who are trained in the preparation of this rare treat. Fugu has poisoned numerous diners, and only those carefully trained should even consider preparing it. It is a dish that can cost you dearly.

Note that it is not recommended that you catch, spear or ever try to eat this fish. Its skin, flesh and liver are toxic. It has the protective habit of burrowing in the sand or ingesting water to inflate itself into a ball.

I have seen quite a few of these fish on my more recent dives, and I associate them with poorer, cooler water conditions. Just my general observation, but if there are no fish about, these fish are the exception.

I had a look in my reference books, and Gletwyn's "top list" of species that qualify for record purposes. No pufferfish, no minimum size, no SA Angling record, no SA Spearfishing record. Wonder why?

The fish is a nuisance and is often the only fish to take the anglers bait. I am not aware of anyone who willfully tries to catch this species, as it serves no commercial purpose, is toxic, is small by comparison and generally takes the bait before other more edible or desirable species can.

I will definitely not be trying to add one of these to my "species taken" list, nor do I desire one in my Christmas stocking. Why do I mention the fish? Some shore dives require fairly lengthy swims, and I keep myself amused and try to judge conditions by what I see. One of the items I always look for to give an indication of conditions is the presence of pufferfish. I can draw no definite conclusion, other than to say I have probably speared my better fish when I have seen few pufferfish around (general assumption).

Anyway, some pictures.
Look how cute. Picture courtesy of flickr
Another picture from Andrea Harner.com
and then the traditional South African blaasoppie.

Hoping for clear water soon and no more trips to Johannesburg when the sea conditions are ideal for diving.

Remember Online Spearfishing Open ends 31 May 2009.

Long Weekend Diving

2009-04-28T22:01:00.009+02:00

Port Elizabeth has had some fairly decent weather, but the seawater remains patchy at best. Managed to sneak in a dive yesterday afternoon (Monday), Freedom Day. Had some success and took a poensie (black musselcracker / poenskop) in less than ideal conditions - strong surge, underwater sandstorms in places, large swell. The poenskop is a robust fish and a strong swimmer.

The legal size or minimum limit is 50 centimetres (fork length). Fork length is the measurement in a straight line from the nose to the end of the tail (the centre of the wide V). Weight around 3.7kilograms. The South African record is approximately 30 kilograms.
Picture of its mouth and teeth. Unique arrangement - Four conical teeth in upper jaw and six in lower jaw. Note the two rows of molars in each jaw.

I was out with Riaan at a favourite spot on the westside and decent fish were scarce. Had just seen a large yellow belly rockcod and I was conjuring up a plan to spear it as it had gone into hiding in its hole. I did not have a torch with me, so had to be patient. My breath was up so I returned to the surface. Looking around I see many large fins heading straight toward me. Fortunately the movement tells me that it is a pod of dolphins. The first dolphin passes over the sand, immediately seaward of my position over the reef, and I dive down to watch these magnificent creatures. They pass by within a metre or two, some of them peeling off in formation and pass me on either side. Some turn around and circle then swim off westwards. Must have been their happy day. Riaan and I were quite impressed. A second large pod of dolphins arrive and they frolic in the large swells behind the backline about 30 metres east of our position before racing towards us to inspect. All seem friendly, with no razor sharp shark teeth evident.

I often see the dolphins on a daily migration moving along the coast, and then it would appear as though they return later during the day. Anyone have any research on the daily migratory patterns?

Wonder why all the dolphin talk? Well spearfishing is about relaxing and having special moments and achievements. Shortly after the dolphins passed I said to Riaan I wanted to try one more dive at a spot we have been to previously, about 30 metres away. The water appeared to be more lively with far more fish swimming around after the departure of the dolphins. My first dive at the spot and the poensie speeds past. Anyway, I seemed to be quite relaxed and had been down for a while and the snapshot hit it low. Not a good position, but enough to hold.

I am hoping for some decent water for the weekend. I have decided not to look at any online weather charts, forecasts etc until Thursday, kind of an experiment I am busy with to test reliability/accuracy of certain web forecasts.

Some photos

2009-04-21T21:38:00.005+02:00

Well the sea has been a bit grim for spearfishing so I have done a bit of online research. Tomorrow, Wednesday is election / voter day, so I will head to the sea, and be thankful that I have the day off from the office. I will cast my vote sometime during the day, but I want to see what the sea water looks like. Rather assess with my own eyes than trust the websites providing weather and swell data.

I found a few photographs which may bring a smile or frown to your faces.

Here is what is termed a flying shark.
I still battle to identify this shark - looks like a hammerhead to me.

This really neat photograph caught my eye. I am not into the global warming theory at present, but the quality of this photograph is evident.

A dream place - Dunbar Rock

2009-04-10T14:16:00.006+02:00

For those of you that are feeling stressed and need a long vacation or simply would like to move out of the hustle and bustle of busy city life - here is the place.

The place is Dunbar Rock - situated in Central America in the Honduras.

Offers for this private piece of paradise - please contact me. The price is set at $1 700 000. A steal considering what you are getting.
In summary:
- the villa is unique, so unique it features on the the government's tourism advertisements and it has its own postcard
- size1.2 acres
- it currently operates as a dive resort with absolutely private docks and reefs right on the waters edge
- the famous/infamous pirate Blackbeard used to use the island as a mooring
- the island is said to have hidden treasure stashed away, but the owner of the island has not found any
- when construction of the villa began a cave was found, but no treasure other than pottery
- the island is ideal as a private residence, investment or business operation
- the trees that are evident in the photograph are oak trees and they form a small forest
- there are no sand flies or mosquitoes as the island is made of rock
- the 3-story villa boasts 4 private suites each with private balcony and baths
- some other features are 6 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, 2 half bathrooms, complete kitchen, lounges, dining area, the Jado Trader shipwreck, crystal clear waters, wonderful reef, stunning wall diving.

Just my sort of place.

Rock Salmon (River Snapper)

2009-04-10T07:32:00.008+02:00

We are definitely in Autumn now and the days draw in by a few minutes each day. It is such a pity, as dive time before or after work is really limited. Anyone who leaves work at 4.30pm with his gear packed will be lucky to get an hour in the water, considering the 15 minute drive, the change of gear, walking to the water etc, and the fact that the sun is setting just after 6pm.

I really think that I must move to Durban (like an ex-PE spearo Corry Versluis). It is my unconfirmed belief that he headed to the land of bananas, game fish and traditional rugby purely to pursue his sport. The Natal area seems to always be alive with many warm water species.

One of those species that is seldom found in the Port Elizabeth area is the rock salmon (river snapper). I just happened to bag one of approximately 4.3 kilograms (gutted 3.92 kilograms) yesterday. The South African spearfishing record is 16.6 kilograms.

A coppery-red/bronze colour is evident along the body. This fish has vicious teeth - both jaws are armed with conspicuous canine teeth. I speared the fish through the eyes, hence no entry or exit marks on the body. Speargun used: 900 Rob Allen with 20mm band. Here are some pictures.
Note: I have the Finweek in my left hand to confirm/validate my online spearfishing entry.

I speared a bronze bream of approximately 2 kilograms - the bronze bream is the other fish in the photograph or the fish on the left hand side of the photograph (if you are confused).
Note the canine teeth and the tongue in this picture.
Well it is fish on the fire tonight and to quote my reference "the flesh of this snapper makes excellent eating".

I could just move to Natal to hunt this prey on a more regular basis.

Online Spearfishing Open / SAUFF / Weekend Prospects

2009-04-02T19:37:00.005+02:00

Gletwyn is running the online spearfishing open again in association with the SAUFF (South African Underwater Fishing Federation).

Entry fee is R80. The competition runs from 1 April 2009 until 31 May 2009. The dive area is anywhere in South Africa where it is legal to spearfish and excludes inland waters and estuaries or designated reserves. No scuba or similar apparatus. The entry fee will be applied to assist the South African team that travels to the international Euro Africa Qualifier in Algeria later this year. Note that you do not have to be a member of a club to enter, nor do you have to be a member of SAUFF. Fore more details, rules and requirements look at:
http://southafricaspearfishing.blogspot.com - the relevant blog post date is 31 March 2009.

On to the SAUFF. Almost every sport has a recognised body, union, federation which is affiliated to some international body. In South Africa, we have the SAUFF which is internationally affiliated. Hence South Africa's participation in the World Championships. The SAUFF is responsible for maintaining, validating records, and attends to all issues that affect the sport.

The new SAUFF website is functional and will be added to over time. It is interesting to note that of the over 5000 spearfishing licences sold in South Africa annually less than 10% of those licence holders belong to SAUFF. I would encourage all South African spearfisherman to join the SAUFF. The annual fee is R100. The website http://www.saspearoranking.co.za has the payment and banking details. Look on the left hand side in the menu panel on the homepage. Why do I stress membership? The environment and legislation pertaining to water sports is constantly changing whether it be by government intervention or local authority. Many proposed actions that would curtail our sport have been successfully challenged by this body which represents the spearfishing sports community. There are many brilliant spearfisherman who are members of SAUFF and they are constantly at the forefront of developments relating to the sport. An increase in membership numbers can only bring greater awareness and extend/maintain our ability to practice the sport we enjoy.

Weekend prospects - my best wishes to all of the IronMan competitors. The event is wonderful for our city of Port Elizabeth, but it has its negatives. The roads in the Bay and westside are all closed on Sunday and we are denied access to the sea. It looks like the water will not be ideal for diving, but one never knows. Maybe a drive to St Francis Bay is an option.

Whale Shark at Schoenmakerskop

2009-03-22T15:47:00.013+02:00

I heard about the whale shark that washed up on the west side about a week ago. All reports indicated that the creature had died of natural causes. The theory is that the bitterly cold water may have caused its demise, as the species enjoys warmer tropical waters. The water cooled from approximately 20 degrees to 10 degrees Celsius over the past week or two. It is quite a tragedy when a gentle sea giant meets its end. At least it was not by mans hands.

The red circle represents the Port Elizabeth area and the blue areas the distribution of the species. It is evident that the statistics and records indicate that these giant creatures do not venture too much further west than Cape Town.

I did not get the opportunity to view the creature within a day or two of it washing out on the rocks. I did have a few minutes to spare yesterday and took a few photographs. The municipality had moved the carcass from its original position (as conveyed to me by a local / resident). The whale shark was now on its back. Earlier photographs (Monday) by Gletwyn show the shark on its stomach and beached on the rocks.

Some curious onlookers discuss the scene.
Notice the large gills and large pectoral (side fin). The shark is on its back.
The spots and stripes are clearly visible on the body.
The whale shark can grow to 15 metres in length, but recent maximum sizes sighted indicate 12 metres with a mass of approximately 15 tons. The dead shark was between 6 and 8 metres long.

Pictures of a whale shark. Source - wikipedia and whaleshark.org

Well the sea has not been in its best condition for diving. Have managed to fit in the odd dive. The week ahead looks most promising. Catch you out there.

Large Blue Pointer (Great White) in PE Bay

2009-03-12T19:35:00.006+02:00

Mark Jackson sent 3 pictures to me today. Seems as though there is quite a bit of interest around the presence of a large shark outside the Port Elizabeth harbour wall. The photos were taken by a fisherman, but the exact date, time, location are not known. If and when I have any more information I will post it.

Here are the photographs of this fine specimen. It is difficult to say with certainty whether it is the Port Elizabeth harbour / harbour wall in the background. I will see if I can compare the top piece of the one photograph with a few pictures that I have of the wall from the outside.

Well, I do know that I will be making a few spare powerheads before I enter the water again. I do not want to become shark food.

Shark Bait - Surfer

2009-03-11T18:58:00.018+02:00

The sea around Port Elizabeth has suffered horribly with south-easter after south-easter blowing for the past few days. I have my doubts whether the weather records are that accurate and I personally believe that the south easterly wind is fast becoming our prevailing wind. I might have to phone, my good friend, Garth Samson at the PE Weather office and request some updated statistics on the easterly wind.

Well I am patiently waiting for the water to clear and return to its blue colour again. I took a drive yesterday (Tuesday) after work to have a quick look. Wildside (westside) was brown and choppy, and the bay was equally bad. Reports earlier today would indicate that the bay is clearing, but without viewing the water myself I am not able to comment.

I found some interesting pictures when searching the internet for shark and fish stories. Here are a few pictures from the Daily Mail. The story states that it is recommended that surfers get out of the water when there are large schools of fish in the water. Why should you get out of the water - because sharks will not be far away. It is strange how my spearfishing ideas work - opposite to this advice. I have dived in a baitball of sardines and baitfish on a few occasions and am always looking for the predator type fish to be following the baitball.

In the first picture the surfer paddled out and was in the centre of the school of fish.
This picture shows the wave breaking with a shark or two or three or four evident.
This picture is of the sharks within the school of fish - dividing and in a feeding frenzy.
Just how many sharks? Quite a few are evident in this picture.

Well - let us hope for blue water and many fish by Thursday or Friday at worst, and no shark activity.

Coega Harbour

2009-03-08T17:09:00.011+02:00

Received a phone call at lunchtime last Friday and was asked whether I would like to do a boat dive at Coega harbour wall. My ear infection had not cleared 100% so I declined. There will be other chances. I decided to do a bit of reading on Coega and the deepwater port of Nqura.

The deep water harbour of Coega and the related IDZ (industrial development zone) seems to be quite an erratic stop-start affair. I notice how our newspapers try to create hope for this project by carrying these leading or is that misleading articles of new tenants or new investment at Coega. The Alcan smelter was placed on hold after last years budget, as Eskom could not supply the power for the said smelter. After all of these years the harbour has yet to receive commercial shipping. There was much fanfare a few weeks back when the media announced that Coega had received its first commercial traffic via the port. Not much was said whether the ship was loading or unloading and it is also doubtful whether the port is operational in terms of its container terminal and other infrastructure.

There are many reasons for the building of a new port 20 kilometres away from the existing Port Elizabeth harbour - some financial, some political and some reasons that sound mighty dubious. I read the content on a very interesting website, but am not prepared to place the link here.

One wonders why Port Elizabeth was chosen as a site for the smelter. The environment may suffer heavily due to the hazardous bi-product and waste that a facility of this size may produce.

The positive side of the Coega development - a long east breakwater ideal for spearfishing, and a smaller west breakwater / wall. Here are a few photographs.

Aerial photograph - Glen Meyburgh - December 2004 (notice Jahleel island in the background above the breakwater). Further east lie the islands of St. Croix and Brenton. An area around St. Croix was proclaimed a MPA (Marine Protected Area) and it is a great white shark sanctuary or reserve.

Aerial photograph - photo from Coega Development Corporation - January 2007.

Aerial photograph - photo from Coega Development Corporation - January 2009. A small amount of infrastructure evident.

Upmarket offices being constructed - photo from Coega Development Corporation.

One can only hope that this major project is completed soon and that its economic promise and potential is realised, with little or no impact on the environment.

The Last Sardine

2009-03-01T17:21:00.008+02:00

The Last Sardine - anyone seen the movie clip. Watch the movie below. It features some astounding underwater footage. It was filmed by Dr Terry Maas.

Who is Terry Maas? Those who have done extensive research on spearfishing will know the name well. He has written numerous works on spearfishing and freediving and made many videos. His biography (in short):
- Veteran freediver
- Started diving at 14, been diving for 47 years
- Doctor of Dental Science, Resident in Oral Surgery, Master of Business Administration
- Author of Bluewater Hunting and Freediving, author of Freedive
- Multiple US national spearfishing champion
- Captured 3 world records - for tuna, pacific bluefin and yellowfin.
- His 180kilogram (398 pound) pacific bluefin tuna record still stands today
- He is the principal underwater videographer for the TV series Speargun Hunter on the Outdoor Channel
- Has done extensive research on diving injuries - spearguns and shallow water blackout related
- Accomplished painter
- He is currently working on a freediver recovery vest - to manage shallow water blackout.

Blue Ray - Giant Stingray

2009-02-27T18:47:00.007+02:00

I read the story about a giant stingray that was caught earlier this week in Thailand.

Port Elizabeth is a popular spot for migrating rays (and their friends the sharks). I have seen numerous blue rays in the past few months. So I have posted a photograph of a blue ray. I must say that these rays can be impressive to view underwater, but sometimes they cause a certain amount of consternation as their movement catches one's eye (a grey or dull colour movement is never good). Most times I breathe a sigh of relief, its only a ray. The next thought is then - where are its hungry followers - the sharks.

The freshwater ray that was caught in a river in Thailand weighed in at 55 stone (350 kilograms) and was caught, tagged and released. The ray was female and pregnant. The ray was 7 foot long and 7 foot wide with a 10 foot tail. Here are some pictures.

I have never speared a ray and do not intend to, even though I hear skate wings can be quite tasty.

Water quality - ear infection

2009-02-27T18:06:00.006+02:00

Well weekend is here - no dive this Friday afternoon, although all water reports indicated flat, clean water in the bay and on the westside.

I have had another (my second) duel with ear infection, same left ear. I have taken the necessary medication and will dive tomorrow - Saturday morning. It seems to me as though Cape Recife is becoming my bogie or dodgy spot. My only dive in the last 2 weeks was at Cape Recife and it was not even a lengthy or deep dive. Result - ear infection.

I am well aware of the storm water pipes that flow into the sea at various points in the bay. However there is a sewage / water reticulation plant at Cape Recife which has outlet pipes in the sea. I am concerned as to the water quality in the area. I wonder what the management at the reticulation plants comment would be? Would they make their records available for inspection? The plant is most probably part of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality water purification system.

Those of you who have heard the scary drinking water stories need no reminding. Why do I call the truth a story? Truths about municipal officials pouring buckets of chlorine into the drinking water reservoirs at night to clean it up and make it more fit for human consumption.

Waste is expensive to treat so why not pump it into the sea at night? Anything to save a quick buck. Please let me know if you are aware of the process to have the sea water tested by a reputable company or is the current testing information available somewhere. I would be interested in obtaining any information as to the process, the chain of command, the organisations involved - maybe an idea to go knock on the door or make a phone call to the reticulation plant to discuss the matter.

A lot of the surfers at a popular Durban surf spot were consistently complaining of illness and ear infections. Water tests revealed that certain standards had not been maintained and that raw or insufficiently treated effluent was being pumped into the sea.

I wonder how clean our sea water is?

MCM - Poaching

2009-02-21T10:30:00.008+02:00

Work commitments and poor water conditions have prevented me from having any significant shorediving opportunities lately. Did manage to fit in a quick dive (actually a training swim) yesterday evening in Algoa Bay. Swam out to the wreck and boiler at Cape Recife and back. Water was choppy, with plenty white water, easterly was gusting, and conditions were generally shot and unsuitable.

I was joined at the wreck by a young spearo, wearing a pair of baggies and a red Reef rash vest. He had parked next to me, just before I entered the water and had commented on his obsession for spearfishing. My point here, oh yes, the only other red object I saw was the MCM destroyer, the Ruth First heading back to the harbour. Not much else was out and about, no seagulls were flying, no other people were in the water, but MCM are out and about.

I must say that it has been rather pleasant to go spearfishing on the Wildside of late. Poaching activities seem to have been curbed or the poachers have moved elsewhere. A constant police presence is evident and the MCM destroyer is a frequently seen. I took a few pictures earlier this month while at Country Club. The Ruth First had come speeding along from the west, and made a hard turn to port to collect the orange inflatable it had launched earlier. The crew never seem to be in too much of a hurry or have too much to do.

I wonder what the daily cost to operate a boat like the Ruth First is? One wonders if this vessel is necessary to combat poaching? Maybe MCM would allow some of the public to accompany them for a day of fishing, cops and robbers, and sunbathing. I for one would be interested to know what the crew do all day while the Ruth First steams up and down the coast.

Hidden within the words of this post are commendations for MCM, maybe they are doing something right or making a difference.

Remember: Click pictures to enlarge

Weekend 1 February & 2 February 2009

2009-02-06T13:57:00.011+02:00

This last weekend, Sunday 1 February, saw the annual pain in the butt event for us water users transpire. What event? My cynical thoughts exactly - the annual Herald Cycle Tour. On Sunday the roads were closed from 6am until 1pm to allow the procession of avid cyclists to make their journey around Marine Drive.

I see it every year - organised chaos. Too few marshalls, no direction for motorists and absolutely no respect for other road users. This event is not like the Tour d' France, it falls way short. Wanna-be cyclists kitted out in the best gear and with expensive bicycles. No traffic officials - a marshall is not a traffic official, nor is he imputed with the authority to be one.

Anyway back to my story. I was at the sea by 5.30am and put my wetsuit on. All reports received spoke to blue water and flat seas. I was not disappointed by the site that awaited me. It was indeed blue water and relatively flat seas.

Picture of the sun rise.
Speared various species of fish including a jutjaw (milkfish). 40 centimetres in length and a loner. Here is the picture, together with a picture of its mouth/beak. It has long gill rakers inside its mouth to harvest shrimp and small water creatures. It will be on the coals this weekend and is wonderful eating. In case you wonder where I speared it - under the fin on the side. The mark high on the head above the gills was caused by the reefs on entry to shore as the swell was up and pushing.
The jutjaw I took is small in comparison to this one. We don't see many of these around, if at all.

I managed to spear a bludger on Monday afternoon. Caranx or kingfish family. I can only ascribe their presence in large shoals being due to the warm water. This fish will also be on the coals this weekend.

Water reports have not been positive for the weekend. Sunday may be only option - wait and see.

Zambezi shark and diving update

2009-02-06T06:39:00.007+02:00

My apologies for the lack of recent posts. Work commitments and SARS requirements keeps one so busy. Amazingly I have made 9 dives between 1 January 2009 and 2 February 2009.

The seawater has had its moments with days of flat clear blue water and days which were quite the opposite. Two recent dives Sunday 1 February and Monday 2 February produced diverse results. Managed to take a white steenbras and jutjaw (milkfish) on Sunday from a shoredive, and took a bludger (kingfish) on Monday afternoon. The bludger were around in large shoals. The water seemed to be exceptionally warm.

What is apparent is that the musselcracker are not around in large numbers and the big fish have vanished from the sites I frequent. Bluebottles and jellyfish are more prevalent as well as the odd shark.

Speaking of sharks - I meant to post some pictures are few days ago. Pictures of the 4 metre Zambezi shark (bull shark) caught, tagged and released in the Breede River, Western Cape, South Africa. Weight 550 to 600 kilograms.

The shark was caught during a shark research expedition and was reportedly caught upriver. These sharks enjoy the muddy river water and areas near the river mouth.

Hoping for some diving this weekend. Need to keep wet.

Update - blue water & fish

2009-01-24T21:23:00.008+02:00

Managed to fit in a dive today on the Wildside (westside). I had a few hours available and although the tide was not ideal for the divespot managed to get in through the large swell and get some fish.

The sea was very lively with a variety of fish species around. I saw some fairly large rays (1 metre wingspan and bigger), small blue rays and one yellowtail. Strange how the yellowtail appeared on my right and by the time I had turned the speargun it was out of range. A beautiful sight. The musselcracker were thick too, 3 kilogram to 5 kilogram range, not what I am looking for. I am looking for a capital fish of 10 kilograms or more. Selective nature of spearfishing!

Speared some fish, including this cape knifejaw (beaked galjoen/black parrotfish/cuckoo bass). The fish is silver underwater, but like many fish loses its colour when it is dead. There is no size limit or restriction and 5 may be taken per day. This fish weighed in at 2.2 kilograms, short of the South African record of 5.8 kilograms.

Here is a closeup of its "beaked mouth".

Mark Jackson phoned me as I reached my car having completed my dive. I mentioned to him that the knifejaw's stomach was bloated. He cheerily said that I will see a lot of fat inside its stomach when I gut it. Anyway a while later I start gutting the fish. Wow, I have a strong stomach, but the sight of the fatty layers in its stomach made me want to heave. It may make me think twice before taking another one of this species, but maybe not.

My references state that this fish makes excellent eating and is "highly esteemed" - need a recipe from Gletwyn before I try it.

Time to rant - funny how many fisherman have no respect for size limits. A fisherman came to check on my catch for the day. He had a mooney (kitefish) - probably 15 centimetres (if he was lucky) and a small blacktail - probably 20 centimetres (if he was lucky) and a small elf (definitely way undersize) and a small karanteen (strepie). My references state that a mooney grows to a maximum length of approximately 20 centimetres. It is unlikely that the fish weighs more than 400 grams with gills, guts, head and tail. Minimum legal size for blacktail is 20 centimetres and an elf 30 centimetres. Enough said!

Hungry sea creatures & local diving

2009-01-11T20:55:00.012+02:00

Managed to fit in 3 dives - one on Friday, one on Saturday and one today. The dive today (Sunday) was special. I have said I will dive in pretty much any conditions provided I can see. Today was one of those days that I wondered about sharky waters and that little 6th sense (which I suppose grows and improves with experience) was pinging in my mind.

Look at the pictures below. I worked hard to get fish today, with less than ideal water conditions from a shoredive. Location is my secret, but let me say, plenty surge, lots of sand being kicked up and warm murky water. All the conditions for sharks to be prevalent. Well I had speared a baardman (bellman/tasselfish) in a cave, strung it and measured it on my Rob Allen gun, which has the sticker with size limits and catch numbers. When I saw the fish in the cave (or at least its silhouette) I knew it was size and pulled the trigger. A quick measurement showed 65 centimetres plus a bit which translates into 3 kg to 4kg fish or roughly 50% of South African spearfishing record.

I had taken a decent bronze bream deep in the back of another cave and strung that too, decided to move to a shallower spot with more reef. I always check the stringer, habit I suppose, and all was well. Swam in another 20 metres and reached the reef. The float was not ideally placed and would possibly snare on a bit of reef that was exposed, so I pulled it in (as it was seaward trailing behind) of my position and I wanted to position it so that I could get a few dives in without it snaring. As I pulled the float in and the stringer came into view underwater I noticed that the baardman had been eaten. All that remained was the head. A decent fish given up to a devious oceanic predator. Worst of all, I did not see the shark. The first action was to fit the powerhead and find some reef to cover my back. I had let the float drift off, so cautiously pulled it back in, and examined the bite. Fairly clean, no teeth marks, no teeth left in the fish head. The bronze bream also had a few cuts on it.
It took me about 15 minutes to get back in, 15 anxious minutes. I will ask Mark and Gletwyn for an opinion on the type of shark. What is noticeable - the bite is straight through the spine. Pretty clean and neat - my Shogun knives at home cannot do this, even when being beaten down with a rubber mallet.

Picture of bronze bream with cuts.

It seems to be shark time in the waters. Accounts of the blue rays (stingrays - not DVD type players) being prevalent in the bay and on the wildside are true. I have seen plenty. Sharks feed on the small rays.

Be careful out there, and be prepared.

A new year - new challenges

2009-01-04T19:25:00.003+02:00

Well, best wishes to all for 2009. Let us hope for blue water, big fish and spears that travel straight and true.

2009 should provide more diving opportunities than 2008 did (* see next paragraph - diving lowlights 2008) and experience gained in 2008 should be put to good use this year.

Lowlights:
* weather and water - less than ideal conditions 1 September 2008 until 14 September 2008, limited fish life due to wild seas and dirty water. Note shoredives as opposed to boat dives.
* weather and water - less than ideal conditions 14 December 2008 until today 4 January 2009 (hopefully water clears by 8 January. Inshore continually messy and brown dirty water. December is generally windiest month in Port Elizabeth with a 60% or more chance of wind. I have lived year for 39 years and cannot recall a calm latter part of December for many years. It was calm early December when we had such wonderful water, visibility and good fish. There were many days early in December with the lightest easterlies and light westerlies.
* Ear infection - severe. Ear started playing up on 11 December. Scuba doctor ordered 2 week to 4 week layoff. Had just speared the garrick on the Friday afternoon and get told this by the doctor on the Sunday night. Oh well the water was so crap I would not have been able to dive anyway. So my mathematics says 11 December to roughly 7 January is almost a full month for recovery. Ear was fine after a few days after Mark Jackson gave me some miracle ear cream. Thanks it works brilliantly. My only problem was that I did not bother to have my ear checked when it started troubling me on the Thursday and Friday. I went for medical treatment on the Sunday. The general rule that beer cures all ills is proven false. I am sure that my recovery would have been far faster had I treated the problem with miracle cream or sought medical advice sooner. Now I know.

Highlights:
* Met some wonderful people and have got to know some better than others. Gletwyn and Mark have been massively instrumental in my progress. You won't find anyone with more positive attitude and adventurous spirit than those two.
* Met fellow spearos including and apologies if I forget a name: Darryl, Neil, David H, Johnny, Morgan, Johnny, Chris, Eugene, Wayne, Llew, Gert, Nik (Nektarios), Riaan and others.
* Speared some decent fish across a variety of species.
* Explored underwater areas that I had no idea existed.
* Logged 92 dives (with boat dives counting as one dive even though we may have spent the day at sea diving numerous spots).

Catch you all in the sea.

Hydroids & Fire Coral

2008-12-24T11:48:00.009+02:00

Stinging hydroids and fire coral are two of the venomous sea creatures that spearfisherman are exposed to. The hydroid "fires" stinging nematocysts into the skin. A nematocyst is a type of venomous cell unique to hydrae, jellyfish, corals and sea anemones. The most lethal examples of organisms that are equipped with nematocysts are the box jellyfish / sea wasp. The sea wasp is regarded by some as the most venomous marine creature and its sting can cause death within 2 to 3 minutes. I do believe the sea wasp is more endemic to Australian waters. So if you see a sign that reads like this, beware. Picture courtesy/from wikipedia.
Here are the pictures of the hydroid stings.
First photo is after 2 days - blisters started to form and the area became inflamed.

This photo is after 5 days - blisters, scabs and inflammation still evident.
All in all I would say 10 day recovery time from these nasty organism stings.

Hydroid stings can be painful and can cause large blisters on sensitive skin. Treatment is normally with vinegar or boiling water (yeah right - just throw it onto my upper lip - suppose it is a choice 3rd degree burns from water or little irritation from a hydroid). Some references recommend water, urine or Coke to treat the area, but most recommend using an antihistamine cream as the most effective after using vinegar. Note that a sea wasp sting requires anti-venom, and hospitalisation.

So, best advice, be careful where you swim, be careful where and what you touch with your hands and gloves, and try to avoid using your hands to adjust your snorkel mouthpiece.

I have searched my references for and posted this picture of fire coral. Obviously sea creatures vary in colour and design depending on your location.

Spearfishing success

2008-12-13T08:33:00.007+02:00

Water conditions have been good and the sea has been really lively with plenty of fish life. I have made use of the opportunities and dived as often as possible.

Here are some pictures of my catch during the week.

Monday evening: 4kg baardman (belman/tasselfish)

Friday evening: 8.2kg garrick (leerfish)

I have seen my fair share of sharks in the past weeks; ragged tooth sharks, leopard catsharks, pyjama catsharks, and one baby white (great white) (2 metre). Rays and skates have also been plentiful.

I have also had a first. Painful hydroid stings in last weekends spearfishing competition. Photos will follow in another post. Advice: avoid getting stung at all costs.

Results - Tony Dicks Memorial

2008-12-07T15:21:00.008+02:00

Well my first spearfishing competition has come and gone. The result might not be what I was wanting, but the lessons learnt are worth more than the result to me. Must say it was a long long day.

Brief run down of my day.
* I was up at 4am and down at Noordhoek by 5.30am
* Registered just after 6am. Noticed that Mark (rib injury) and Gletwyn (business commitments) were not competing. Pity.
* All the other divers (except me) were going out on boats. I was offered a spot on a boat and declined.
* I had planned where I would shoredive, and had a 3 hour route planned. I would then move to another site.
* The competition started and drove to my chosen spot, got into the gear and headed in to the sea.
* I had a list of 8 fish in my head and knew (thought) I should be able to add them as I followed my route.
* The swell was a bit bigger than I ideally would have liked and there was considerable surge.
* Speared a butterfish (and bluntened [actually flattened] my spear tip) - 1st mistake I made - spearing a scrap. The last time I partly damaged a spear tip was in January - stupid mistake. Too hasty to add the fish and move on.
* Anyway, no musselcracker at their normal spots, so I moved on, speared bronze bream, zebra, jan bruin (all good sizes). Had to watch a seal that was prowling around near the caves - another scavenger of the sea.
* Strange no baardman, nor poenskop around in the caves, with swell pushing strongly. 3 hours almost up, and I decided to spend another 30 minutes at my normal cracker spot, maybe the cracker have come in.
* 2 leerfish (garrick) come past - no shot taken - I am fish watching. First time I have seen leeries this year.
* Lots of shoaling musselcracker - all undersize- no shot taken
* Head back in, get to the car, drink about 2 litres of energy drink, and decide to head to Cape Recife.
* At Cape Recife, swim out and look for caves.
* Spear a nice baardman in a cave, and have my ultra blunt spear bounce off a huge poensie (poenskop) in another cave (swam around above the cave and into the cave to look for the fish - nothing).
* Headed for the weigh in.
* The boat divers had a field day - some huge yellowtail, bonito, big musselcracker, white steenbras, baardman (tasselfish), cape knifejaw (parrotfish), milkfish (jutjaw) and many other species had been speared.

Overall winner was Dave Hudec with Darryl Hiscock second. Wayne Allin was third. Congratulations. My thanks to Lohan Geel / Dolphin Underwater Club for organising.
Here is a picture of my catch for the day - It was disappointing not to have had a musselcracker and poenskop to add to the other 5 species taken.
First stringer of fish:

Well I did not dive today - family time. Took the family down to the beach - teaching my 8 year old daughter Micyla to dive. She is a very good swimmer and can swim 2 underwater lengths of our pool at home. She has not mastered the snorkel yet, so we practiced a bit in the pool on our return from the beach.

Tony Dicks - Memorial Open

2008-12-02T20:42:00.008+02:00

The annual Tony Dicks Memorial Open is being held in Port Elizabeth on 6 December 2008. You can register online at http://www.saspearoranking.co.za/

Who was the late Tony Dicks? He played a role in the formation of the local Dolphin Underwater Club and Port Elizabeth Sub Aqua Club and had a huge impact on the way that the sport of spearfishing developed. His nickname was "Tony the Kid" because of his fast shooting ability with a speargun. References that I have consulted remark on his energy, drive, determination and fearless nature. His continually strived to discover new reefs and wrecks further offshore. He was one of the pioneers in the development of gas powered spearguns. He represented Eastern Province and Transvaal in SA Spearfishing Championships and won the SA title. He held the record for various species - notably Black Marlin, Red Steenbras 43kgs+, Black Steenbras (Poenskop) 34kgs+ and others. He was an avid underwater photographer and movie maker.

Tony died on 8 March 1968, at the National Spearfishing Championships (Seal Island - False Bay - Cape Town). The cause of death was hyperventilation as he blacked out before reaching the surface on a 20+ meter dive.

Here are two photographs (record marlin and red steenbras) of Tony Dicks from Tim Condon's reference work - Beneath Southern Seas.

So if you are in the Port Elizabeth area and looking to compete please register for the Memorial Open on Saturday 6 December 2008. I still need to register. Water conditions are starting to become more favourable as the wind seems to have subsided and stopped howling. Windfinder is predicting small swells due for the weekend and hopefully the water has cleared and settled by then.

Baardman (belman/tasselfish) & a dolphin

2008-11-30T18:28:00.006+02:00

The sea has been good to me since last week Sunday. Had a quick dive at my cracker spot, and headed to the wreck of the Western Knight and to the caves further east. The sea was full of life with a diverse variety of species on offer. The initial area that I hunted in was lively for all of the wrong reasons - small ragged tooth shark (less than 2 metres long), a pyjama shark (docile and harmless) and a spotted gully shark (docile and harmless), and the usual blend of frenchies, bronze bream, blacktail, janbruin, zebra and juvenile musselcracker (sure I have forgotten a few species).

The abalone poachers were out in force and have never really influenced my spearfishing as they swim in other areas, not where I dive. Today was different and they had a direct impact on my result. There were three fair size musselcracker around (I estimate 10 kilogram plus) and I had not disturbed them, and had worked out where I would try to ambush one of the three from. I heard voices near me, just before I dived down to my ambush spot. I dived down and settled in a crescent shaped piece of reef, aimed the speargun into the zone, and sure enough the cracker came idling in (visibility was not wonderful, but acceptable). Next moment the cracker spook and dart off and I am left wondering what I did wrong. I had not pulled the trigger yet and I look to my right, and about 4 metres away are two poachers with aqualungs merrily blowing bubbles and flapping around. The decent sized cracker were nowhere to be seen and I moved on eastwards to the wreck and caves.

I had an interesting encounter with a dolphin near the caves. The sea was so lively with many large galjoen darting around. Galjoen are now out of season and may not be speared until end February next year. I had fish on the stringer which was out to sea from my position (about 20 metres) and I dived down. I hear a high pitched squeaking and wonder if my ears are messing me around (they should not in about 5 metres of water). Anyway I surfaced after the dive and notice a fin break the surface east of my float and continue to move rapidly towards my float. I first thought it was jaws, then realised dolphin. Next thought was my hard earned fish on the stringer, and I started pulling my floatline in towards me. Dolphins can be scavengers and may have made off with my fish. Anyway, stringer was safely out of harms way and I continued to dive. I wonder if anyone has a story to recount about dolphins stealing fish.

I was hoping to get musselcracker and baardman, but had to settle for baardman only today. The bigger baardman weighed in at 4.2kilograms.
Well it is December tomorrow and there should be more dive time available.

Fish Tales & Supper

2008-11-28T21:16:00.006+02:00

The water was ideal on Sunday 23 November, and I managed to bag some fish. I spoke to Gletwyn and he advised that the Cape Recife area should deliver some fish. So on Sunday I made the trip to the sea and dived for 4.5hours. A lot of time was spent exploring and looking for new caves and ledges, and swimming toward Cape Recife point / lighthouse. After 4.5hours my legs were quite numb from exertion, but it was mission accomplished. Only negative to leg muscle exhaustion was sore knees and chaffed heels/achilles tendons. The high heels of my Omer fins rubbing against 3mm neoprene socks chaffed blisters and raw patches. Anyway it was worth the effort. The sea was full of fish - no decent size musselcracker though and plenty undersize baardman (bellman/tasselfish) in the caves.

I found a nice prize in the back of one of the caves and will try to retrieve the booty tomorrow. Will post pictures if successful, but it will take effort and a bigger float. The swim to the booty is approximately 400 to 500 metres and depth 7 metres.

A dive later this week produced a nice sized baardman too. Gletwyn advised that the wreck of the Western Knight was ideal for a dive today, but I was marooned after a dive at Cape Recife this afternoon when I lost my snorkel. A vagrant was hanging around my car while I prepared to dive and while I was putting the gear on. I must really have been distracted because I almost forgot my fins, but when I got to the water I realised I did not have a weight belt. I am a person of routine, and somehow skipped the weightbelt. So I headed back to the car, unlocked with this persistent pest loitering around. I got back to the waters edge and could not find my snorkel. Anyway I looked in the shallows for the snorkel, on the rocks and sand and walked back to the car - no snorkel. I decided I would do the swim anyway without a snorkel irrespective of the obvious irritation and hassle of not having a snorkel. My bottom times were not too severely affected by not having a snorkel, but it definitely put a damper on my enthusiasm. It is amazing what advantages a snorkel offers and I would not recommend snorkelling or spearfishing without one. Oh well, at least the swim and dive was good exercise. Tomorrow the crappy spare snorkel will be employed and maybe Mikes Dive Shop is open for the purchase of a replacement snorkel.

I mentioned the nuke or giant black mushroom cloud in a post about 2 weeks ago. Here is a picture of the remnants of the burnt out bus.

Western Knight - Photos and history

2008-11-24T06:22:00.012+02:00

The Western Knight ran aground and was wrecked on 8 April 1929. She was a steamer of approximately 5800 tons.

The ships cargo included: Hudson automobiles, car tyres, tram rails and other items.
Causes of the wreck: dense fog, abnormal currents, erratic soundings of the chart, and the absence of any aid to navigation

The wreck (or the parts that remain) are located between the Willows and Schoenmakerskop, or 1 and a quarter mile west of Chelsea Point.

Most of the cargo was salvaged before she sank, by using a steel cable rigging from the rocks on shore to the wreck. If you look on the rocks at the wreck site, the remains of a subsidiary tripod mounting are still evident, albeit well-oxidised (rusted). A portion of the ship remains visible to the land-based viewer and this portion is proudly exposed at the ever popular fishing spot in the large gully. Here is a photograph of the exposed piece. The piece is on the edge of the reef in the foreground, in the bottom centre of the photograph or north west of the two poles in the very foreground.
What remains of the wreck underwater? Near the piece that is exposed are pieces of decking, plate steel, ribbing and general fragments.

Further out, behind the reef that protects the fishing gully and beyond another parallel reef lies 2 boilers, decking, long rods (like telephone poles which may be the propeller shafts), ribs and bones. One actually needs to spend some time surveying the area when conditions permit.

Here are some photographs of the wreck, courtesy of the Port Elizabeth Library.

The ship wrecked in apparent calm seas (I cannot recall ever seeing the water so flat like in the photograph)
The ship being battered by huge waves and at the mercy of the sea.

The ships back is broken (abaft behind the funnel). The two sections separated, drifted apart and sank.

The wreck makes for interesting diving and is a good site for spearfishing when conditions permit.

Freak Wave - Bait Trail

2008-11-17T21:01:00.015+02:00

Sometimes nature provides one with rare visual treats.

On Sunday morning 6.30am, as I headed towards the sea down Victoria Drive to Marine Drive, I noticed many sea birds and a strange frothing in the water. I estimate the distance to be between 1 kilometre and 1.5 kilometres into the sea. My timing was perfect. I reached the yield (to the left) sign at the t-junction / intersection with Marine Drive and the "freak wave" was directly in front of me out to sea - heading west to east. I call it a freak wave - it had the appearance of a wave, stretching from west to east (but moving from right to left - west to east), and about 500 metres long. The participants - dolphins, whales, seabirds, bait fish and probably game fish and probably sharks. It was a feeding frenzy. I must admit that with the naked eye, it appeared to be a long wave with sea birds diving into the wave. Then I realised it was a long baitfish trail or baitball. You will notice whales in the photos (if you look carefully on one or two of the photos), they seem to be herding the pack. The whales appeared to have taken up flanking positions on either side of the baitfish trail and kept the ranks in check. The dolphins (which I did not see with the naked eye) were participating in huge numbers. I have never seen so many dolphins in a single pod before. I only realised that there were dolphins when I downloaded the images and started to look through. (OK - I admit I took about 100 photos in burst mode).

Strange coincidence as Alan, from www.MyPE.co.za asked me a question about seeing or diving with whales and dolphins and I related a few stories about brief or fleeting encounters with small numbers. Here was the contrast, huge numbers of dolphins with many whales.

I was so hoping Mark or Gletwyn would pass by with a boat in tow, and maybe we could head out or catch up with the swirling mass of sea food.

I followed the trail along Marine Drive (took the first photos at Malay Pools) and sped on to the Western Knight where I took additional photographs.

Here are the pictures (remember click to enlarge).

Here is the wave like appearance - stretching across the field of vision - suppose distance and dark water create illusion of a wave. Grey fog / cloud bank in background.
The white dots in the photos are seabirds, and this is the head section of the column.
Did you notice the grey mist/fog sitting out back in some of the photos (due south)? This did not take long to be brought in by the light southerly wind. Hence my dive, just after seven in bright sunshine which turned to an eerie mist with gloomy water. The mist was so thick that one could barely make out the inshore reefs at times.

Dolphins and whales - whale surfacing and blowing (picture 2 and 3 this set)

Well enjoy the pictures. All in all Sunday was a great day at the sea. Variety, action, drama, adrenalin and physical effort that no television station or decoder can dish up. In summary: saw a giant line of baitfish, whales, dolphins, got decent fish, saw 2+ metre ragged tooth shark, saw a baby nuke (while in the sea) - OK it was a burning bus with the smoke cloud billowing like a mushroom on the horizon, dived on the wreck of the Western Knight, dived the caves near the Western Knight, swam a long way, dived amongst some big sets of swells and breakers with no view of land or rocks, and a few other exciting things I cannot remember to mention. Aaah, physical exercise too - almost forgot the most important point.

Musselcracker & the wreck of the Western Knight

2008-11-17T05:36:00.005+02:00

I managed to get into the water on Sunday and had two dives on and near the wreck of the Western Knight. I joined Darryl Hiscock for the second dive and we swam out to some caves and the remains of the wreck.

Here is picture of a musselcracker that I took. These fish are available in large numbers and are shoaling at this time of the year. Minimum legal size is 60 centimetres with a bag limit of 2 fish.

The water had a greenish tinge to it and was murky at times. A mist had drawn in from the sea and at times land was not visible. Strange occurrence of mist/fog considering that I dived from around 7am to 10.30am. One would expect mist to dissipate or not be prevalent midway through the morning.

I did see a fair sized ragged tooth shark - I estimate between 2 and 3 metres, but probably closer to 2 metres. At one point while in the water (before the mist enveloped the area) I noticed a huge black mushroom cloud over the land toward Noordhoek. It looked like a small nuke had been detonated. I later heard that a bus had burnt out near Willows (must have been the tyres and rubber components that caused the black smoke).

Thanks to Darryl for the guided tour of the caves and wreck. The wreck and surrounding areas are popular for spearfishermen. The Western Knight ran aground in 1929 and broke into two large pieces. Here is a photograph of the salvage of the cargo of the doomed vessel with the break in the body evident. The sea can be extremely rough and wild in this area and it did not take too long to break and sink the vessel.
I will post a few other photographs of the Western Knight in the next post together with a bit of history.

Artillery Buildings - Port Elizabeth

2008-11-06T20:24:00.011+02:00

Well we have had a strong south easter blowing for the past couple of days. The wind direction finally changed to west this afternoon. I am hoping that the water warms up and that the sea clears. I saw the bay this afternoon Thursday - water was not looking good, plenty grey water. I did not see the wildside, but I suspect a large swell is running.

In one of my earlier posts I mentioned spent ammunition casings that I had discovered near Noordhoek while diving. I have done a bit of research and include some photographs of the artillery buildings in the Algoa Bay area. Here is some of the background. The history is to be found at The South African Military History Society website, specifically volume 12 No. 3. Researcher Richard Tomlinson has compiled a detailed description of the artillery buildings.

The various artillery buildings and observation posts situated at Amsterdam Hoek, Humewood Hill (now called Brookes Hill), Cape Recife (together with a signal station at Cape Recife lighthouse) and Schoenmakerskop, were added to Port Elizabeth's defences, as the harbour had no defences except Fort Frederick (on the hilltop overlooking the Baakens River - the fort was built in the 1800's I believe). The year was 1939, and South Africa joined the Allied Forces and declared war on Germany.

Humewood Hill
Cape Recife (the sea is to the left, straight across the road - this vantage point gives a wonderful view of Thunderbolt Reef and the exposed engine block of the shipwreck - the Pati)
Schoenmakerskop
Fort Frederick
The buildings were generally artillery radar and wireless stations and fortress observation posts. The sea views from these sites is impressive due to their hilltop positions. The fixed artillery defences are now obsolete due to modern warfare techniques and the artillery rarely fired at hostile ships, but did its usual practice firing sessions. The building designs are square / rectangular with curved, looping parapets and edges to break the shape of the building when viewed from the sea against a backdrop of the bush.

It is a great pity that these buildings (excluding Fort Frederick which seems to be permanently locked) currently house vagrants and that the local authorities do not seem to do too much to protect our local history. The artillery buildings are 60 years and older and qualify for protection under the Heritage Resources Act.

I will explore the underwater area where I found the spent shell casings when the water is good and clear in the Noordhoek area. Hopefully sometime in the not too distant future.

Underwater video and photography

2008-11-03T20:19:00.006+02:00

My trusty camera has recorded a few things in the 2 years that I have owned it and I have added an 8Gig memory stick for those days of burst shooting. Gletwyn's Sony camera with marine pack (underwater housing) has apparently given in. Suppose it did not like the many years of being immersed in seawater and taken to depths around 40 metres. I have my eye on the Sea&Sea DX 1G. Anyone have one of these babies? The alternative is to choose underwater video with photo abilities as a secondary function. I would welcome any suggestions - thanks.

The alternative is to use my Panasonic DMC FZ50 with a Nimar Underwater Housing. Only problem is - I do not own the Nimar housing yet. It is the price of a very very good camera.

Why would I need such a piece of equipment? I like to explore and want to show my kids what I get up to. When swimming into the sea and looking into a cave, scouting a wreck or swimming or diving between reefs and pinnacles, it is always new or different, and many fascinating sights await an underwater explorer. Port Elizabeth has some of the finest waters for the freediving enthusiast or snorkeller (scuba too).

In pursuit of a Vuka scooter

2008-11-03T06:31:00.006+02:00

I had some success this weekend and managed to get a fish or two. Unfortunately no musselcracker on the list, but the deepfreeze is no longer empty. I happened to meet another spearo - Niel on Friday afternoon at Malay Pools and ran into Morgan on Saturday morning at the Western Knight wreck.

Sunday was a wipeout for shorediving, unless one of the readers have a secret spot where light winds and blue clean water prevailed in the Port Elizabeth area. Please let me know. I will make a note to head straight there next time the easterly has howled for 12 hours and the howling westerly has backed the easterly up.

Back to my story of the scooter. I was travelling along Marine Drive (heading home after a trip from the wildside to the bay), and passed the Something Good turn-off (to the right). Had to stop for the red traffic light. A lady on a little black Vuka scooter turned into Marine Drive (headed towards town) from my left. I travelled behind this scooter (and was looking at the red soviet 5 pointed star on her handbag / backpack which was slung over her shoulder) and we stopped at the traffic light where a left turn would see you to the casino. The light turns green and she accelerates. A wallet / purse "flies" / "jumps" / gets flung out of the shoulder bag and lands in front of me in the road. I hoot at her and wave my arms and dodge the item. She carries on riding. I stop at the bus stop about 40 metres to the left ahead, park my car and run back. The traffic light had turned red and a taxi was first in the queue. The taxi stopped in the road and the driver picked up the purse. I was next to his window and demanded that he hand it over as I would pursue the lady. Ok- it was not a mini bus, but a hire company taxi - normal sedan with taxi signage. The fear of having an AK47 pushed in my face would have prevented me from approaching a minibus taxi.

Anyway, the driver handed the purse (black with sequins) to me, and I sped off. I caught a glimpse of the scooter near to the garage / Steers / Hume Park turnoff in Humewood. I eventually caught up to the lady near the harbour turnoff. She was headed into central, and I followed her up Military Road, left, left, left and right into central. She must have wondered why I was pursuing her, waving my arms, flashing my lights, holding up her purse. I eventually pulled up alongside her and managed to attract her attention. She was very happy to have her purse returned and was unaware of having lost it.

It is good to know that I did the right thing, put in the extra effort. I had the option of :
1. handing the purse in at the police station (which I doubt would have had the desired result - why would they look for someone - not worth the time or effort, it is easier to take the contents), or
2. simply not stopping and leaving the purse in the road.
I just hope that I do not receive any speeding fines for my efforts.

Well an eventful weekend is over - I learnt at least 4 things this weekend:
1. certain dive spots are better at or near to high tide
2. the water is often cleaner and calmer outside of the big swells that smash on the reefs
3. big musselcracker (10 kilograms plus) can be really crafty and do not willingly jump onto a spear or hang around for a party with the spearo
4. perceptions of water conditions can be deceiving - Gletwyn / Fanus say - you won't know if you don't go - I found that out this weekend. A new dive spot has become available near to a regular spot of mine - I just never ventured to this specific area - why - incorrect perception.

Interesting Pictures

2008-10-30T20:15:00.006+02:00

Photograph taken with my cellphone of apartment block in Central, Port Elizabeth - The Left Bank.

The balcony area of the circled unit is fully enclosed with chicken mesh and the occupant has made the entire area into an aviary (enclosure for keeping birds in). This can only happen in Africa. I took the photograph a few months ago and wonder how the other occupants must feel with this health hazard on their door (balcony) step. I wonder if the wonderful Port Elizabeth municipality (NMMM) have seen this. I did see quite a few small birds flying around inside. I will try to get a better picture with my digital camera - maybe tomorrow - if I remember and if the aviary still exists.

For those of you wondering what a good size fish to spear is. Have a look at this Jewfish (Meru) / Goliath Grouper / Brindle Bass. 600 pounds = 272 kilograms.

One could probably get at least 400 meal-sized fillets out of this beauty. Don't know how leathery, tough or tasty the flesh would be - this critter must have been around since the dawn of time. One would also probably need a spade to scale this fish, a normal knife would not do. I don't think I would be running a spear through one of these fish too soon, as I have never seen one in Port Elizabeth waters. Fisherman at the North End fishing spots have spoken about the existence of brindle bass in the North End waters. Picture is from www.underwaterhunters.com.

Note: these fish are protected so they may not be captured.

Weekend prospects

2008-10-30T19:48:00.007+02:00

The weekend prospects look reasonable for diving. Windfinder and buoyweather both predict small swells. The bay does not look to hold much prospect for a shoredive as the water was pretty muddy inshore per a report I received today. I have included a graphic from the windfinder site which reflects that the south westerly is the dominant wind in Port Elizabeth. I have my doubts as to how accurate this data is as the easterly wind seems to have been around far more this year than the westerly.

I was looking at images on my cellphone - most were taken earlier this year with little thought on lighting, the position of the sun or glare. Gert and Chris agreed to meet me for a dive at 3pm, but they were fortunate enough to get in the water at about 2pm. Gert bagged a nice musselcracker - 12 to 13 kilograms. I happened to see the fish in the back of Chris's LDV so I took the two pictures with my cellphone. Impressive fish.

Malay Pools - Diving 19 & 25 October 2008

2008-10-26T20:25:00.009+02:00

My apologies for the length of time between posts. There has been little opportunity to dive since my last post on 15 October. I have managed a few shoredives in some very poor conditions and have had the pleasure of really good water on 19 October.

I had another first in my many years of diving - being caught by a fisherman. This is what happened:
Went to one of my favourite spots near Suicide Reef, no-one was around so I entered the water and swam around looking for fish to spear. My float line was completely unwound so I had 20 metres of thick line between myself and the float. The float may have been inside of a 20 metre radius from myself and I swam to a section of reef where there is normally a fair amount of fish life and traffic. Looking back to check my landmarks I see a fisherman with his rod at 45 degrees pointing in my direction. His line is in the water. I am about 50 metres out on the reef and decide to head for the reefs further out. I hear a bit of shouting look and look back at the fisherman who is waving his arm. I have a suspicion that he has cast over my float line, but swim further out. There seems to be a growing resistance on the speargun which is clipped to the floatline and I dive down to about 4 metres and give the float line 3 sudden good pulls. Must have almost pulled the rod from the fisherman's hands. I decide to swim out further, maybe the gut will snap. Why should I head in to sort out the problem? Anyway after a few more minutes of fruitless underwater hunting and the constant drag I head back in to about 10 metres from the rocks. I try to disentangle the mess and almost succeed, but then decided to climb out and let the fisherman sort out his mess. He had managed to hook a small karanteen - 10 centimetres max and his line was around the steel cable to which my fish stringer is attached. I accepted his apology and packed up for the day.

The problem here is: we/they need to respect other water users. I will not dive where someone is fishing. I am scared of being hooked yes, but it is unfair to the fisherman. First in basis. I would expect the same. I have never been hit on the head with a 6 ounce lead sinker, but it was probably pretty close this time. Anything within 20 metres is too close.

I had a wonderful dive on Sunday 19 October at Malay Pools. Visibility estimated at 5 to 15 metres in places. Unfortunately the sea turned ugly afterwards (during the week). I took another photograph of the same spot on Saturday 25 October. Suppose a strong easterly is not good for the water. What was pleasing to see: plenty of baitfish, large shoal of juvenile musselcracker (all under 50 centimetres minimum legal size), plenty of mullet, blacktail, zebra and other scraps. I did come across 2 larger musselcracker on the furthest pinnacles in about 12 metres of water on 2 separate occasions. I estimated their size in excess of 50 centimetres and the weight to be between 7 and 10 kilograms each. Both fish were quite spooky and were out of range before I could plan their capture.

Good and bad water pictures

It is musselcracker season and they should be shoaling in large numbers in the Port Elizabeth area. If the water is dive-able and visibility reasonable I may get lucky.

Seaweed Harvesting - Marine Drive

2008-10-15T20:14:00.012+02:00

For those of you that make frequent trips down to the Marine Drive (Wildside) the sight of people camped in make-shift tented accommodation on the sea side of the road is not uncommon at this time of the year. It looks like a Somali refugee camp at times. These people set up camp for a few weeks and harvest red seaweed from the rocks. Low tide would be the best time to harvest as the water recedes to expose the red seaweed. I have watched, over the years, and always wondered who runs this business, what use the the seaweed is put to and how much do these harvesters get paid.

The answers are:
Taurus Products - The Seaweed People. There website is not a wonderful mine of information and is bug ridden.
Use for the seaweed - hydrocolloids *, botanical extracts, animal feed and Afrikelp (soil fertilizer). A colloid is a mechanical mixture where once substance is dispersed evenly throughout another (Milk is a colloid). A hydrocolloid is a colloid system dispersed in water (hydro). Examples are agar and carrageenan (both seaweed extract based).
Payment for the harvesters - don't think it is too much. They pluck the seaweed off the rocks with the hands, so it is pretty labour intensive. I have not seen a seaweed lawnmower or weed-eater before. Salt water would put it out of action quite quickly. I have consulted my resource base and found the following information regarding seaweed harvesting and exports: in the 1990's between 80 to 100 tons an annum, dried product exported to far east fetches about R750 000. A wet ton of seaweed (unprocessed) would therefor cost almost R10. Sounds like an incredible amount of work in cold water with raw hands to generate little income. Hence the squatter camp dwellings. Assume the price is now R50 a ton (approximately 15 years later), that means that a harvester needs to fill, I estimate, 20 bags of 50kgs each to get a wet ton and earn R50.

One of the pictures show a harvester carrying a bag on his head. When he walked past me I could hear him panting and perspiration covered his brow. He was not too talkative with the bag on his head. I suppose I would also be getting quite warm in a complete yellow rainsuit / southwester. In the picture you will notice the marks on his knees. This looks like back-breaking work with exposure to the elements - sun and sea.

The good aspect about this harvesting is: job creation, legalised (as Taurus apply for permits) and it is sustainable.

Here are the pictures. I wonder how many passers by would have thought these people were poachers and that the bags contained abalone. Taurus have provided these people with bibs to identify them.
Remember: click pictures to enlarge.

Sunday activities - Algoa Bay

2008-10-13T22:24:00.009+02:00

The bay was quite busy on Sunday morning. A few paddlers braved the flat water in the bay to set out on a short course around Bird Rock and back. A handful of more advanced paddlers did the trip to Cape Recife and back.

Picture 1 - the start. Picture 2 - paddling toward Bird Rock. Picture 3 - passing on the inside of Bird Rock, heading toward Pollock Rock and on toward Cape Recife.
The scuba divers - Pro Dive - launched at Hobie Beach and were on their way toward Cape Recife. Would have been nice to hitch a ride to the blue water. The swim back would have been good exercise.

Water conditions inshore were generally not very good and my swim out at Flat Rocks to the wreck, boiler and caves produced no fish. Plenty zebra, blacktail, two-tone fingerfins (butterfish) in the area. Water was dirty, but warm. The caves and wreck have been cleared of sand (by the wild seas) and the hunting should be good in the near future, water just needs to clear. I can only imagine that it is only the most hardy of fish that swims in sandy, dirty water. That goes for silly spearos too.

FIFA World Cup 2010 - Port Elizabeth Stadium

2008-10-13T21:24:00.008+02:00

The sea water has not been good to us shoredivers - then again, it gives us time to ponder and strategise. I was in the Parsons Hill area on 8 October 2008 and thought that I may as well use the hill to have a look at the stadium being built for the 2010 World Cup.
I must state that I was a sceptic a few years back, having attended a Gary Bailey presentation at the Boardwalk Casino. All of the hype just did not do anything for me. I must say that the stadium is looking really impressive and by the looks of the progress should be completed on time.

I must also admit my eyes were focused on the sea beyond the stadium. You can sea the other side of Algoa Bay (the white sand dunes and green vegetation) in the background. The mass of water to the left of the stadium is the North End lake. Must ask Gletwyn if he has dived there. Must be some pretty odd fish lurking in the murky depths.
Well for you spearos out there, the stadium may have a purpose yet. It may provide a decent view of the water on the North side of the bay. Let us hope that we won't have to pay to get a view.

It rained on the 8th of October, and I was late for my 3 o'clock appointment, why? The sun appeared for a brief while and I took the pictures.

Remember: Click pictures to enlarge

Abalone (Perlemoen) - MCM activities

2008-10-08T17:04:00.017+02:00

Let me start off by saying - I am not a poacher and have great concern for the environment. However laws are created to prevent the indiscriminate harvesting of sea life - spearfisherman are limited to specific species, size and numbers. Perlemoen (abalone) poachers have no species, size or bag limits. They do not pay for a permit to harvest from the sea.

I was down at Noordhoek - specifically Lookout, and looking for blue water to dive in. Had the camera with me and decided to walk along the beach toward Cape Recife. What was immediately apparent when I reached the high water mark - many many abalone shells. I presume the shells had all been washed out by the big swells. The shells were empty. The obvious question is why? Well if you are are a poacher and shell the "mollusc" under water (while using scuba gear), the shell is left in the ocean. Wave action then moves the empty shell onto the beach. I have seen live abalone clinging to rocks and all it takes is a pat or tap on the shell to make this sea creature claw or suck itself tight onto the rock. No wave will move this creature. Only way to remove it is with a pry bar or flat metal implement. The shells that were lying on the beach in such vast numbers were clearly the work of poachers. Here is a picture of an abalone shell, upside down and face down. Nicely camouflaged.
I admit that I once (many many years ago) took 2 of these creatures out of the sea. We were having a seafood supper and a friend asked that I collect some to add variety to supper. I managed to collect 2 monstrous creatures, both with excessively green and slimy feet (the fleshy muscle that is inside the shell). Once we had shelled and cleaned the slime off the softening process began. We lay them in vinegar, then milk, then pounded the stiff piece of muscle with the bottom of a 1 litre glass coke bottle. The meat remained as tough as ever and pretty tasteless. I stated that I would never eat this again and to this day have not.

I have posted some pictures of MCM (Marine Conservation Management) and their destroyer. They were out again on Sunday and I took these pictures as the vessel steamed past from west to east, headed towards Cape Recife and back toward the harbour. The futility and waste of money to operate this vessel against poachers who use small rubber ducks and shoredive!

Back to the pictures. It was approximately 1pm on Sunday, and work for MCM was obviously done for the day. The destroyer headed with great speed from west to east, seems the captain was sleeping and forgot about Thunderbolt Reef (I was hoping he had as it would be nice to have another wreck to dive on at Thunderbolt). A destroyer of this size would not function too well in water with a depth less than 5 metres with many reefs lying shallower. At some point the captain or helmsman must have realised the potential danger, and the destroyer made a sharp turn to starboard (billowing diesel smoke). A few seconds later a sharp turn to port. It would have been the most embarrassing modern maritime disaster - all the modern technology and still shipwrecked on a known danger spot. This would have really been a waste of taxpayers money. Well it looked like MCM escaped unscathed this time after their zig-zag. Pity that I was not on top - at Lookout Point - I am sure I could have included the protruding engine block of the Pati in the photos. The photos were taken on ground level unfortunately.

I might sound a bit anti-MCM - yes I am. I have my doubts about their seamanship and swimming abilities. I also know that they choose to fish in marine protected zones (the same areas which they are meant to protect). They do not have fishing permits like every good and legal angler/fisherman should. They make no effective inroads into preventing or eliminating poaching and just waste taxpayers money. I should actually try and become a crew member - benefit is a good laugh and free deep sea fishing charter. I have heard from reliable sources how they damage peoples boats (much much smaller 4 to 6 metre boats) when they bring their mighty vessel alongside and that they have no respect for other water users - the wake that trails behind them creates fair swells.
MCM should not probably not been out on Sunday, as there was only one inflatable out with fisherman on, all wearing their lifejackets. A large swell was running so very limited fishing activities for small boat owners. MCM could probably fish in peace as their vessel rides the swells better than any other that I have seen due to its size.

Mozambique - part 5 - Blue Hole

2008-10-04T08:10:00.017+02:00

I know of 5 Blue Hole dive locations, but I bet there are many, many more around the world:
1. Port Elizabeth (our popular fishing/angling spot)
2. Xai Xai - Mozambique
3. Dean's Blue Hole - Bahamas - 202 metres deep - deepest blue hole in the world
4. The Great Blue Hole - Belize (British Honduras - Central America)
5. The Blue Hole - Dahab (Sinai - Red Sea - Egypt) - approximately 130 metres deep.

Picture: Blue Hole (Blougat) - Port Elizabeth

Pictures: Blue Hole - Xai Xai
A view along the white sand towards the hole - marked with red arrow. Flat reef parallel to shore is evident and extends for long distance. Tide is low.
A blowhole on top of the reef parallel to the shore. Apparently this hole is joined to the tunnel that links the blue hole to the open sea. I never tried to swim in from the shore side as the visibility was shot. Apparently this is a good scuba training spot for the advanced diver.
The stainless steel ladder (set in the reef) on the shore side of the flat reef. The tunnel through the reef is down below (in the water). The blowhole is to the left and seawards of this picture.
A view from the ladder and parallel reef to the shore. The house must be one of the most ideal places to rent for a holiday. Secluded unspoilt beaches with excellent fishing. Tide is rising to create a safe "pool" which is protected by the parallel reef.

Dean's Blue Hole (picture courtesy of Wikipedia)
The Great Blue Hole - Belize (picture courtesy Wikipedia)
The Blue Hole - Dahab - Red Sea (picture courtesy Wikipedia)

While looking at depth's I decided to look for the world's deepest swimming pool. Found Nemo33, Brussels Belgium 33 metres deep.

Strange how this post features the word and colour blue - too many times to count. Must be my positive mental programming and hope for blue water. Oops - type the word "blue" again, and again.

Water report - 3 October 2008

2008-10-03T21:14:00.005+02:00

Well the lack of good clear water in the Port Elizabeth area continues. I took these photographs today.

First picture is taken from the dunes at Flat Rocks - Cape Recife. Inside Algoa Bay. Notice the 3 different bands of colour in the water. The dark blue section behind the boat is very far out. The fittest shore diver would need some time to swim to there. What is the point of swimming to blue water when you have no landmarks for reefs or decent hunting? I have no idea what the depth is out there at the back - my SAN1024 map indicates 5, 8 and 15 metres (approximate).
This picture is of the Malay Pools area. Plenty white water, big swell. The decent water is at the back, far out, and quite a swim through the big inshore swell. Photo is from an elevation of approximately 50 metres.
The situation is becoming desperate - only one fish speared in the online open. Blacktail of approximately 500 grams. Need 5 fish to be a contender. No diving means no fish. Only option is boat dive. None lined up at present. Must ask Gletwyn and Mark very nicely, maybe they have a spot on their boats.

Mozambique - part 4 - Spearfishing Permit

2008-10-03T19:47:00.009+02:00

Mozambique has its ups and downs as a tourist destination. I was looking through my photographs and came across this picture. Most photographs have a story to them, and this one is no different.

The picture is taken of the harbour master's office (the sea is directly behind this building - about 200 metres across beautiful white sand). Notice the deep trenches dug into the soft sand in front of the building. The sand was beautifully raked and manicured before our arrival. Well we kind of got stuck on purpose (revenge one might say).
Here is the story behind the photograph. When we arrived in Xai Xai I was asking around, like any good spearo, where I could get a spearfishing licence. I was told to ask the harbour master at the white building (in the picture). We happened to pass a man in a white safari top on a red motorbike (scrambler) while travelling toward the building on the first day in Xai Xai. This happened on the soft sand road that runs parallel to the Xai Xai beach. The man almost fell off the motorbike and made a miraculous recovery. I thought it quite amusing and must have had a smile on my face. Seems the harbour master was this same man and he had a memory like an elephant. Next day we are looking to go deep sea fishing and while waiting to launch the harbour master arrives on his red scrambler. We greet him and start to chat. I ask how much a spearfishing permit is, he says 500 meticash a day. About R160 a day (which is a totally absurd rate). Anyway,the water was not suitable for shore diving at all, so I did not bother with a spearfishing permit until near the end of our holiday. I did do a few dives to the large reef in front of the main beach, but the water was grim. I never took the spearguns on these dives, so there was no need for a permit.

I decided on the day before a day of deep sea fishing, that I would arrange with the skipper for a boat dive (in addition to deep sea fishing). So all of my gear was stowed on the boat. Never did get into the sea in my wetsuit as the water turned nasty while we were enjoying the deep sea fishing. On our return the harbour master was there enquiring whether I had dived or not - no permit so not permissible. He seems to have spies and informers, so be warned. Anyway skipper advised that I had not dived. Cost of loading the diving gear - had to give the harbour master some compensation - couple of fish that we had caught. Robbery? Extortion?

Anyway - I bought a permit for 400 meticash for two days diving eventually. The harbour master was not at the white building on the day, and I got the fair price. Anyway Barry was driving and saw the soft sand before we turned to park. Barry had a bit of a maniacal glint in his eyes. Well we were caught in soft sand for the 5th time on the holiday and this one was special. It could not have happened at a better spot and while our friend was away. The lady who took my permit money just smiled. Hey maun, this is africa, when in africa, do like in africa, symmetry and conformity do not exist. I just could not ask for a rake, I was on holiday after all.

Our weapon of mass destruction - number plate obscured to protect the wicked.
Relaxing and surveying the damage.
Remember: Click pictures to enlarge

Blue water - right of Blue Hole (Blougat)

2008-09-29T20:17:00.008+02:00

Sunday morning 7.30am headed into the water at Humewood at the Slipway. The water was clearly not clean, but diveable. I was also eager to see what the wild seas of 1 September had done. My suspicion was that a large amount of the sand that had built up around the old slipway over the years had been removed. Why did I think that the sand had migrated? Look at my blogpost regarded the steel foundation that had been exposed on the shore - the alien rock formation.

I spoke to a lifesaver who had parked near to my car prior to entering the water and he commented that the sea water was cold. My reply - does not matter too much to me as I will be warmly dressed. His comment did however make me consider that cold water may make fish life scarce (as one of the possible causes). Only one way to tell - get into the water.

I entered the water on the left of the slipway and headed out for the section furthest out. Visibility was not great on the surface, but as one dived down the structure became clearer and visibility improved. To summarise the dive: saw one small shoal of baitfish (all about 1 inch long) and one klipvis (blennie) about the size of my hand. That was it, no other fish life. Spent about 20 minutes swimming along and under the slipway looking inside the structure. A wonderful site - awaited me. The sand along the bottom sides (on both sides) of the slipway had been removed in places and one could swim under into the structure from the sides. Previously one could only view the inside of the structure from the top or by looking through the diamond/square shaped holes in the sides. The sea had worked its magic on the structure. This spot should be good in warmer water as the summer months approach.

Finished my quick sortie at the slipway and headed back to the car to drive to the west side (the wildside) of Algoa Bay. Passed by Lookout where the swell was large and inshore messy. Arrived at Blue Hole / Suicide and Chelsea Point area. Here is the picture of the view toward Chelsea Point. Notice the blue water in the foreground. A dive was a definite possibility, as the area inshore was sheltered.
The second picture shows the area to the left of the blue water (as arrowed) in the first picture. I would be confined to this blue water area with exploration to the white water zone and reefs marked with red dots. Easy entry through the gulley marked with the arrow.
Objectives of the dive:
1. get fish (hopefully musselcracker in the white water at the reefs)
2. collect a few sinkers
3. stretch the legs
4. test the speargun (had cleaned the spearguns on Wednesday evening, made minor adjustments)
5. not to get mangled by the waves

Objectives met:
1. speared a small blacktail
2. collected about 5kgs of sinkers
3. exercised in the strong surge and swam across and around area a few times
4. speargun works. Left the safety on and missed a shot on a fair sized blacktail. Managed to bag the small blacktail a few minutes later.
5. did not get mangled by the waves.

Overall: few fish about, only the scraps. Plenty karanteen, mullet and klipvis (blennies). Small musselcracker, nothing of legal limit 50cms. Managed to navigate and dodge the large swells that were breaking at the reef at the back. Notice the sand in the swell in the picture marked with red arrow.

My strategy now is to make the trip to the sea at first light and get in before work. Hopefully this strategy will produce the goods. Law of averages - the more often you are in the sea, the better your chances of getting fish. Pretty basic law, but true. No spearfisherman gets fish from his office desk or while dreaming of what the sea looks like. Get in and see type approach is best, provided conditions are suitable.

Storm damage - 1 September 2008

2008-09-26T17:25:00.010+02:00

Well the seawater is not clean enough to dive in. It remains in its pea soup-type state. The month of September has been very unkind to us spearfishermen in the Port Elizabeth area. The wind has blown with incredible force and the sea has been churned up continually. This week, Wednesday and Friday (today), has seen gale force westerly winds 50 kilometres an hour plus. Mark and Gletwyn seem to have managed a quick dive this morning, how? I suppose they made use of a very small window and dived in poor conditions. I unfortunately was trapped in the office with appointments for the morning.

I took a few pictures of the damage caused by the 1 September 2008 storm at various times and places during the month.

First 3 pictures are of damage under Humewood bridge. First picture of concrete slabs with the sea behind me. Note how the sea lifted and cracked the concrete. The sea did rise a considerable way past its normal high water mark.
The second picture is of the "tinfoil" steel gate (under the bridge on right hand side on the land side of the bridge) which is on a roller system. The lifesavers store their sea kayaks etc inside this area. The sea ripped the steel sheeting and left a twisted sheet.
The third picture is of one of the areas which used to be occupied by vendors. In my youth, they sold ice-cream, candyfloss, colddrinks or chips. Notice where the water level rose to - see line on wall and cupboards. This area is on the left, under the bridge, on the land side of the bridge.
I happened to be at Willows about 2 weeks ago and took the picture while standing on the sand in the more westward of the two tidal pools. The wild sea destroyed the stone embankment. Note the sea sand is approximately 10 feet below the top edge of the embankment and the water level further below the sand level.
I took this picture at Schoenmakerskop, near the start of the Sacramento Trail. I am standing at the normal high water mark (or thereabouts). The storm seas had pushed up until the base of the cliff (where the bright green bush vegetation is) and the white stones and boulders had been rolled a good few metres inland. Notice the white stones at base of green bush. The "sea" grass between the base of the cliff and my position has started to turn brown as it has had too much seawater. The dead line and debris area is evident at the base of the cliff.

It looks like the fish will be safe this weekend and I will have to eat tuna from a tin for a while.

Water report - 22 September 2008

2008-09-22T21:12:00.004+02:00

Time viewed 5pm Monday evening. I took a drive in contemplation of a dive tomorrow (Tuesday) and on Wednesday (the public holiday).

Algoa Bay - water is messy, choppy, small swell, the dirty water seems to be dissipating very slowly.

Wildside - Cape Recife, Noordhoek, Willows, Clubhouse, Malay Pools, Schoenies - murky water prevalent, medium size swell, may offer an opportunity to dive tomorrow or Wednesday.

Gletwyn and Mark reported an encounter with a monstrous great white shark near Thunderbolt Reef. They went for a Saturday morning boat dive and some fishing.

Gletwyn is running the online spearfishing open for the month of September. It is open to South African spearfisherman only (unfortunately). Well I have yet to spear a fish and have only been in the water once with a few scraps swimming around to tease me. The water must offer an opportunity within the next few days. I am fiercely competitive and will hunt in black or murky water if "forced" to. There are one or two species that are easier to hunt in the murky water, but these are not exactly trophy fish. Time will tell. Gletwyn always says we can hunt with braille.

Water conditions - 19 September 2008

2008-09-19T18:38:00.006+02:00

The Port Elizabeth area has not had ideal conditions for spearfishing since 1 September 2008. I did my usual Friday afternoon drive (with the intent to get into the water and get fish), but with the knowledge that the water in the bay was un-diveable. I wanted to see for myself and drove from Kings Beach to Flat Rocks (Cape Recife) - filthy water everywhere.

The wildside was the next destination, so my route westwards was from Cape Recife to Lookout to Noordhoek to Chelsea Point to Willows to Clubhouse to Malay Pools and on to Schoenmakerskop. Water is un-diveable. The two pictures that I have posted make the sea appear very blue - the blue sea in the second picture (above the dirty line) is very far out, and very choppy. The photo was taken by zooming on the specific area which was quite a distance out. I added the thick broken red line to show the good and bad.
Well that is it for now. One can only hope for a chance to dive before end September.

Schoenmakerskop - Sacramento wreck

2008-09-17T21:51:00.010+02:00

Well the water has not been suitable for spearfishing so I decided to explore the Schoenmakerskop area. I have recently finished reading the book - The Guns of Sacramento by Geoffrey and David Allen.

I decided to have a look at the Sacramento trail one Sunday afternoon. This easy coastal trail does not require a supreme level of fitness to complete and has many scenic views along the way. I have become quite the historian and like to see shipwreck sites first hand.

The Sacramento was a Portuguese galleon of the 17th century. The ship is described as a man of war, built of teak, and armed with approximately 60 guns (cannon). She carried a cargo of bronze cannon in her hold. The Sacramento ran aground in a freak storm during 1647. The survivors made a remarkable journey of over 1000 miles to Lorenzo Marques, now called Maputo. The bronze cannon were salvaged by David Allen and Gerry van Niekerk during 1977. The book provides wonderful insight into the history of the vessel and the manufacture of the guns in Macao, with an in-depth account of the salvage operation and internal politics surrounding the discovery of the wreck and salvage of the cannon.

The first photograph is of one of the cannon that was salvaged. The second photograph is of the inscription next to the cannon. Click photograph to enlarge.

The inscription states that the cannon points out over the wreck site. Further along the trail there is a small obelisk with a white pillar (a second pillar directly in line and behind me in the 3rd photograph) commemorating the wreck site. So if one drew a line from the cannon at the start of the trail westwards into the sea and intersected this line with the line created by the 2 white pillars one should be on the wreck site.

My questions are:
- is this part of the reserve?
- can one take a speargun into the water at the white pillar, as the entry is via a sheltered bay?
- where does the reserve start and end? I have seen fishermen on the rocks nearby to this area.
- how many irate Schoenmakerskop residents will target the legitimate spearfisherman as a poacher?

Well I see many families with young children and dogs on the trail. It is an ideal family outing for those dirty sea water days.

Spearfishing report - 14 September 2008

2008-09-14T20:17:00.010+02:00

Went down to the sea today for the first dive of September. Gletwyn is running the online spearfishing open and I have to spear a fish to be competitive or at least get into the sea water. Was down at the sea at 7am. Took this picture of the lighthouse from Noordhoek.

Dived near to Chelsea Point. Many perlemoen (abalone) poachers in the water. Not good for spearfishing to have poor visibility and other water users in the area.

The inshore water was murky with visibility at best 3 metres, and at worst - total murk. Not much fish life around - plenty of stingrays (scary prospect when they appear out of murkiness within a metre or two of you - head on). Saw a few small blacktail, zebra, quite a few large shoals of karanteen (strepie) and mullet. The shoals of mullet were accompanied by juvenile musselcracker - undersize so none taken.

Spoke to Mark Jackson earlier this evening - they went for a boat dive. Mark and Gletwyn did not have much success and reported that the fish life was also limited.

It is amazing how many poachers are in the water at their favourite spots - Chelsea Point area and nearer to Clubhouse (Willows / Western Night). I noticed the big red and white MCM (marine coastal management) vessel moving from the west towards Chelsea Point and it launched its smaller faster craft (see photo). This craft stopped at the 3 or 4 boats that were anchored about 1 kilometre offshore. Obviously looking for poachers.
Remember: click photos to enlarge

I was standing on the shore at the roadside and many police vehicles passed by, heading west. Seems the police and MCM were on an anti-poaching drive today. The police were parked at various points along the roadside. At one point the road was strewn with perlemoen (shelled) with 2 empty plastic tubs on the grass next to the road. Maybe someone needed to leave in a hurry.

My personal feeling - it is good to have a police presence and if MCM are taking an active role to combat poaching - fine and well. I cannot say that a poacher has ever threatened or tried to harm me. I prefer to let them be, they must suffer whatever consequence the law decides should they get caught. It just seems to be such a waste of money to have the huge red and white "destroyer" patrolling our coastline for poachers. I understand it costs a few hundred thousand a day - quite conceivable if you consider the number of crew, the speed and fuel consumption etc.

Have a look at this next picture - the destroyer is bearing down on some little boat (to the left of the destroyers bow). The bigger vessel passed on the sea side of the small boat - I think it was close enough to have caused a bit of a wake for the occupants of the small boat.

I do get annoyed with the general public - they drive past and give one the evil eye. Bunch of landlubbers - they don't know the difference between a spearfisherman and a person who uses scuba gear. I would describe the general public as ill-informed. I do grow weary of being stared at - after all I am practising my sport, I have a permit and I obey the law.

Mozambique - part 3 - boat clip

2008-09-09T20:31:00.004+02:00

Here is the video clip of the boat trip back to Xai Xai. I have not edited the clip. The video quality is not good in places. The boat that is in pursuit is skippered by another Riaan from Jeffreys Bay. So we travelled 1986 kilometres to Xai Xai and meet people who stay 80 kilometres away. Riaan, Johan and Jan were on board their boat which they towed from Jeffreys Bay.

Speed was approximately 40 to 50 kilometres per hour and you can see the pursuing boat leap out of the wake on a few occassions. That is me in the Def Leppard t-shirt with Bino on my right. The lady in yellow is my wife Adele. She really did not enjoy deep sea fishing, the sea or the trip at all. She has vowed never to go to sea again.