St Lazarus Banks - An adventure of a lifetime

[CRANKMAN]

Not so much a fishing trip, more of  a life changing adventure!

Months of research, planning, shopping and packing finally  all came to a head at the end of October.

Our group of six met early at OR Tambo for an easy check in  on LAM to Pemba via Maputo. Our  combined luggage was about 50 kgs over limit, but this caused no problems and  we were not even charged for excess baggage.



By 2 pm we were  sipping cold beers with our skipper as he outlined our plans for the next seven  days of fishing. For the first leg we would travel a couple of hours north and  anchor in a sheltered bay for the night, this would give us time to unpack, set  up rods and generally get a feeling for the boat. The next morning (Sunday) we  would head out to the Banks, a trip of about 7 to 8 hours, trolling Rap's along  the way. With a bit of dodgy weather forecast to move in on Wednesday night, we  would fish the banks for 3 days then head back to the islands for a bit then  finish up back on the Banks for the last 2 days.

Well, that was the plan.

Quite soon into the trip across to the Banks the skipper  told us we were fighting unusually strong currents. The 7 hour trip was going  to take about 18 hrs, with the winds meeting us head on, hoisting the sales was  not an option. The current was pushing up a big swell, the going was slow but  we didn't mind; the ice cold beers and an occasional YFT and a nice Dorado on  the trolling gear kept us entertained.



It had been dark for a good few hours before we reached our  overnight spot, a permanent buoy in a calm patch (normally) on the reef. The  current was so strong that the buoy had been dragged underwater and we could  not locate it in the dark. We dropped a light anchor on a rope but this kept  pulling out, so a very tired skipper reluctantly dropped the big chained  anchor, this held and we all got some much needed sleep.

I am fairly new to the offshore scene, so when I woke I was  blown away by the speed that such a massive amount of water can move at. I felt  like I was on the Zambezi during  a hundred year flood. The boat was creating a massive wake and the Rapalas were  bending our trolling rods - and we were still at anchor! Unfortunately the  force of the current had wedged our anchor into the reef, try as we might we  could not budge it. Our deck hand Willem pulled on his scuba gear and we  attached a safety rope to him, he pulled himself down the chain against this  ridiculous current to go and trip the anchor. The surging boat causing the  chain to slack then snap taught like a whip. On his second dive the chain snapped  taught, hitting Willem in the chest and cracked a couple of his ribs, but he  continued to drag himself down and get a good look at how the anchor  lay.  A  brave man indeed! Willem, all the time tethered with a safety rope, got back to  the boat and described the lay of the anchor to skipper Brent, and we were able  to drive the boat free by motoring above the anchor then bearing hard to port.



Some of our crew were dead set on targeting dogtooth tuna,  apparently swimming a live yellowfin  of  around 6 kgs is the way to bring up the big boys, so we set about trolling the  north eastern edges of the banks for suitable bait. The place is teaming with  tuna, most too big for bait, but whenever we got a suitable size one, it was  rigged and sent back. The monsters that lurk in the depths savaged our  offerings, but the guys only managed to set the hooks on two occasions, both  turned out to be sharks. Niel and his gear got a serious workout; it must have  taken him an hour to bring up a monster shark from about 200 metres deep.



The rest of us used the time to throw poppers, stickbaits,  spoons, bucktails and paddletails from the front of the boat while this was  going on. It didn't seem to matter what you cast out, the tuna hit everything.  At one point we had six tuna on, absolute chaos, but great fun, especially as  it was all on our flick sticks. Marty (Fishstyx) hooked into a slab of a tuna  on his Berkley Air / Stella 5K setup that gave him a hell of a fight.



It took  him about 40 minutes to tame the 30 kg fish. Sean O proved to be the master of  dropshot, bringing out a fish with almost every cast.



Back on the troll - after several Rapalas got bitten off we  changed to wire trace and added several Couta and Wahoo to our bag. The tuna  were not put off by the wire either. In a mad rush to get to a screaming real,  Richard slipped and squirted off the back of the boat. It was scary to see how  quickly the current carried him away. If no one had noticed, I think within  minutes he would have been lost out there. After getting him back on board we  tied safety lines across the back of the boat, I think we all had images of  being carried away by the current while the rest of the crew were too busy  boxing fish to notice.



At some point Marty found a fair sized tuna attached to his  toe by way of a treble hook! As he was landing it a wave surged into the back  of the boat, propelling the fish towards him and burying the hook deep into his  toe. His yells alerted me, looking back all I saw was Marty desperately trying  to subdue a very scared tuna (anyone who has seen Marty's toes will understand  why it was scared). It looked like a scene from Jaws. The pool of blood forming  was more Marty than Tuna I think. The skipper calmly separated the two with a  bolt cutter, then after a few injections of something that had Marty smiling  like a stoned hippie, cut open his toe and removed the remains of the hook.



Soon we were underway again. We cruised passed a massive  black GT which had us all scrambling for our popping rods. Poppers rained down  around the fish and although interested he refused to strike. The boat had now  drifted over the shallows and as we were about to move on Marty's popper got  smashed. The GT hit his lure then continued into the air, a spectacular sight.  Apparently fighting a Gt is the best pain killer ever. His toe forgotten, Marty  worked the fish to the back of the boat and landed a beaut of 101 cm. I could  not believe it, the fish had managed to severely distort the 13/0 JM on the  back of the lure. Sadly no photo was taken of the fish, but it was caught on  video which we will get sometime in December. Both Richard and Marty managed a  couple of smaller GTs on popper before we went back in search of the doggies.



It took me a while to get confident wielding the massive  popping gear on a boat that was getting pushed around by a very angry sea.  These catamarans are tricky to fish off, the decks are narrow with only a thin  cable at knee height to stop you going overboard, there are several stay wires  to the mast that you have to negotiate when getting your fish to the back. It’s  exhausting even before you've hooked a fish.



Later we tried some vertical jigging. For those who have not  done this before, it's like eating soup with a fork, very unrewarding in a  strong current! Our experienced crew members assured me that normally it is a  very effective way of catching fish, but with the unusually strong currents we  were having, it made it almost impossible. I was the only one to get a hit, my  jig was battered with deep bite marks in the metal - and I didn't even feel it!



On our second day on the Banks we missed an obvious warning  from nature about what lay ahead. The conditions continued to improve, so did  the fishing, but suddenly there was not a bird anywhere. The fish were still  smashing bait at the surface, but the birds were absent. Some of the crew  pointed fingers at Marty, who had inadvertently knocked one of our feathered  friends out the sky with a weighty Pelacus spoon the day before - but the truth  is the birds had a better weather forecast than we did.



Our skipper woke us at 3 am; the  boat was taking a pounding. We had dragged our mooring over a mile and it was  getting dangerously close to falling off the top of the reef. The wind had  picked up to force 7, directly opposing the current. It was time to head to  Matemo, the closest island to hide behind. The elements had other plans for us.  The wind picked up to over 100 kmh, this fought the currents and soon we were  getting chucked around in 8 meter high waves. Randomly, these would curl over  and smash over the boat. With the deckhand down with broken ribs, our crew  scrambled around trying to secure tackle and tie up torn canvas. The 47 ft boat  was climbing up waves, pivoting then surfing down the other side, broaching  scarily as it went. The breaking waves kept knocking us off course and the  skipper struggled to correct our direction before the next one hit.
After a few hours of this torture we realised we were  fighting a losing battle and we swung the boat North towards Medjumbe. This  allowed us to tackle the winds and current at 45 degrees, but would take us a  further 70 miles off course. For 20 hours we took a beating. I seriously  doubted we would get through the storm. Twice I had to crawl down into the  engine cavity past spinning propshafts to check that the bolts securing the  rudder arms had not been beaten loose by the storm. The confined space, diesel  fumes and surging hull almost brought on a bout of sea sickness.
Just before sunset we tucked in behind the island of Medjumbe, safe  from the wind and waves at last. After dropping anchor we poured a round of  stiff gins and surveyed the damage. Nav lights had been knocked off, canvas  blinds shredded, the beds and cabin interiors flooded, our diesel tanks were  almost on empty, but we were knackered. Tomorrow we would make a plan, now we  needed sleep.



In the morning we noticed a TLB at work  on the island – this meant there must be diesel ashore. A few of the crew went  to investigate while the rest of took a stroll around the island trying to cast  spoons into a howling gale. This proved quite rewarding with a mix of small  trevallies, snapper and garfish keeping us entertained.







It was also magic to be  on solid ground for a while. A kind contractor on the island helped us out with  150 litres of diesel; just enough to get us back to Pemba if the  wind would only give us a break.



Mindful of our slim supply of fuel we did a  short stint out at a 300m drop off known locally as “The Edge of Reason.” Again  my jig got hammered, again I felt nothing. Apparently I was getting hit on the  drop?! We did manage some young Couta which made a fine supper.



After a 24 hour wait the wind was still pumping. We knew we  had to start pushing towards Pemba or we  would miss our flights. Using the islands for cover we managed to travel as far  south as Quilalea Island by  nightfall. Along the way I picked up a beautiful Bluefin Trevelly measuring 77  cm.



We had some fun on dropshot around the island. An unfortunate gar swallowed  a leadhead and got hooked in the throat, I had to chop it’s head off to get to  the hook. Tim lost a bit of blood when playing with the head - the nerves  caused the jaws to snap shut on his finger, he squealed and yanked his finger  out, slicing them up in the process. Needless to say, a straff dop was handed  to him while we all laughed at his expense.



On Sunday the wind had died, the sea had flatten out and as  we cruised through the islands towards Pemba I sat at the front of the boat  soaking in the stunning sights – turquoise water, tropical island paradises,  the odd dhow and huge open spaces. I felt totally relaxed. For 8 days I had not  thought of work or money. I had made some great new friends and learnt some new  skills. My body was bruised and sore – but in a good way. I had been exhausted,  elated and terrified, all within the same day.

It dawned on me again – sometimes you need the fear of death  to really make you appreciate being alive!

Before disembarking, the plans were made – Premerias watch  out – we are headed your way in July.
                                                                                               
I must say a big thanks to our team, Marty, Niel, Sean,  Richard and Tim – that was a blast. To our deckhand Willem, thanks for putting  your body on the line for us, I hope the ribs heal soon, I can’t wait to see  your video of the trip. To our skipper Brent (read surgeon, cook, councillor,  cleaner and general dogs body), thanks for a magic trip in trying conditions,  for the countless hours you toiled behind the wheel to get us home safely, for  keeping our spirits up and totally taking care of us. I hope you are ready to  do it all again in July.

[isivuba]

Awesome report and  for sharing.

[colin]

  great report 

[FishStyx]

Great report mate... thanks for that 

[Shaun17]

Cracking report 

[hrogers]

Thanks for the great report !! 

[Cam Mundy]

Great report sounds like you guys had the winds that just about flattened the North Coast sounds like a pretty hairy trip back but everyone made it in one piece! Credit to to the charter operator they sound like a good operation.

[FishStyx]

Credit to to the charter operator they sound like a good operation.

Brent is a very seasoned and clear thinking sailor.

[ianf]

Fantastic report! Great pictures too. Trying (in my mind) to work out how I can justify a trip like this to my family!

[peterblace]

great report...what a trip

[Rory mundy]

great report with some serious adventure

[Hammer]

Awesome report mate, one day is one day 

[glynnkent]

Thanks for the great report! Thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

[Seventenths]

Great Variety, awesome pics and report...Thanks.

[Charles]

Shees you guys sure had an adventure of a lifetime! Thanks for sharing. 

[Debbie]

  for sharing you experiences.  Sounds like an experience of a lifetime.

Lovely catches by all

[Prego]

Great report and  thanks Shaun 
 That must of been one hell of a scary night in the wind and 8m swells  .


Great YFT on that tackle Martin 

[Bwana]

Excellent trip report and very exciting reading. Congrats on the variety of fish you guys caught. 

[L Hooker]

Shaun very lekker report, been looking forward to this one congrats on the catches. Chatted to other Sean he said you guys had a blast (Pity about the weather thou) and he's convinced me to put my name down for the Premerias so hopefully if work allows will be joining you guys next year.
 
 
 

[GiantGT]

EPIC JOURNEY... CAN NOT IMAGINE WHAT YOU GUYS WOULD HAVE Caught with good weather....