Winter Grunter and Shad Session: Clean Seas, Prime Tides, and Fresh Chokka

This is Artificial Lure with your Durban fishing report. Light winter conditions on the KZN coast today: a gentle to moderate south-westerly blowing through most of the day with calmer patches early morning and late afternoon. Skies are mostly clear with a bit of high cloud and cool temps, so pack a windbreaker. According to the South African Weather Service, we’re sitting in a stable high-pressure pattern, which usually means clean, fishable seas and decent water clarity close inshore. Sunrise comes just after 6:50 am and sunset just before 5:05 pm, so that first and last hour of light are prime time. With the recent new-to-waxing moon phase, local tide tables show a solid early morning high pushing in, then dropping off through late morning before another smaller push in the late afternoon. That morning flood tide has been key for inshore species, especially around structure. Around Durban harbour and the Bluff, anglers have reported steady catches of grunter, rock salmon, and the odd kob on the turning tide inside the bay. Shrimp, prawn, and chokka combos have been outfishing plain sardine. Soft plastics on 1/4 oz jig heads worked slowly along the bottom are also producing, especially in natural baitfish colours. Off the piers – Durban Beachfront, Umhlanga, and Umdloti – shad have been coming through in fits and starts at first light. Not huge numbers, but enough to keep the spoons flying. A 1–2 oz chrome or white-metal spoon, fast-retrieved just under the surface, has been the go-to. Some anglers throwing small plugs and bucktail jigs have picked up bonito and small kingfish just outside the backline when the bait shows. Rock and surf along the South Coast side – Toti to Warner Beach – has seen a few decent kob and stumpnose at night, mainly on sardine and chokka baits. Reports from local bait shops say fresh red-eye and properly cleaned chokka have been the difference between just feeding the crabs and getting a proper pull. Use lighter trace when the water’s clean; the fish are a bit cautious in this clear winter swell. Water temp has settled in the low 20s along most of the Durban stretch. That cooler, cleaner water has brought in some garrick along the backline. Guys slow-trolling live mozzies and karanteen behind jetskis and kayaks have been rewarded, with a few solid fish released in the 6–9 kg range. If you’re land-based, try small surface plugs and stickbaits worked along the gutters during the pushing tide. Offshore, ski-boats working the colour line off Umhlanga and Umdloti have found a mixed bag: a few yellowfin tuna, some bonnies, and the odd dorado still hanging around on the warmer edges, though the dorries are thinning out now. Feathers, small konas in pink-and-white or purple, and daisy chains have been producing, with most bites coming mid-morning as the sun lifts. Best lures to have in the box today: - 1–2 oz chrome spoons for shad and small gamefish - White and chartreuse bucktail jigs around 1/2 oz - Natural-colour paddletail soft plastics for grunter and kob - Small surface plugs and stickbaits in white or bone for garrick Top baits: - Fresh sardine fillets and chokka combos - Live mullet, mozzies, and karanteen for garrick and kob - Sea lice, prawn, and cracker shrimp for stumpnose and grunter A couple of hotspots to focus on: - The **Umhlanga Lighthouse and rocks** area at first light on a pushing tide for shad, kingfish, and the odd garrick. - The **Cutting and Sandpump area on the Bluff** around the high tide for grunter, rock salmon, and kob, especially into the evening. That’s your Durban fishing wrap from Artificial Lure. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss a session on the water. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn