This past Sunday the 15th of May I convinced my wife to come with me to Sundays River to go fishing. As per usual, everything was packed, checked and ready by Saturday afternoon to leave bright and early on Sunday. Day broke and we were off. It was like Ace Venture would have said a B-E-A-U-tiful morning, no wind or cloud cover; the red lava of the sun washing over the ocean.
Having fished here with Jayson a few weeks earlier, we drove straight to the mouth where we had most of our success. We had filled my car with more things than humanly possible to carry, but I looked my wife in the eye and told her I am not walking twice. I had checked the tide times and the sun was almost breaking through the horizon, I needed to get my lure in the water now! With cooler bags in hand, umbrellas under the arm, camp chairs over the neck and fishing rods somewhere in between, we walked as fast as we could to the spot where I wanted to be for the day.
First off, I started at the mouth flicking some surface lures and plastics but with no success. Now that golden hour was over without a bump I walked back to my wife and set up her rod so that she can also enjoy the days fishing with me, a little piece of pilchard on and in goes the line ready to catch some fish.
While putting on bait I noticed just next to the mouth on the first bend to the right the water was pushing over a sand bank and then into a good looking drop-off. I worked my way to the spot and started casting into the current that was pushing in from the sea. On about my fourth cast I had a nice hit on my olive and white “Boemvas” bucktail, but missed it. A little further right from where I was, the water was a little choppier and it made a very deep channel into the river (It is important to take note of your surroundings as the perfect structural area might be right next to you. You will also find that sandbanks and channels often change, so where things worked today might not be the same tomorrow). I cast into the shallows just over the channel, my first jerk with the bucktail made the lure drop into the deeper water, second jerk…. nothing, third… nothing, fourth… doef doef doef VAS!!!!
The moment it picked up and took off I knew I had finally hooked into the one I had been chasing for some time, a nice size LEERIE. It was taking line off my new Shimano EXAGE at the same speed I had put it on the day before. I whistled to my wife and shouted, VAS PAPPIE! The excitement on her face and being able to share these moments with her made it all the more special. OK so back to the fish…
I was struggling to turn its head as it was over the bank on the other side, but eventually managed to get it around the bank and into the current. As it hit the current the drag screamed and my sparring partner for the morning took off. Now the problem was getting it out the current. I started walking along the bank just trying to keep up, not wanting to put too much pressure on the line. After about 15 minutes and almost a 1km walk up-river from the mouth I began winning the battle. It came closer and closer and two or three times just as I see my fluorocarbon, off darts the garrick. The fish continued pulling me upstream almost like you would take your dog on a Sunday stroll, my Vengeance being the leash of course. This was the first time I could actually see the Leerie and what a sight It was; the big tail fin, the aero dynamic body. The leerie turned its head back to the mouth and I saw my chance to land it…
Thankfully it went perfectly!
After a few smiles and photos, the fish was safely released and swam off strongly into the blue crystal clear water to fight another day.
As I sit reliving the wonderful experience, I am thankful for the memory that fish created for me, hopefully it will do the same for someone else one day.
