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With weekly updates provided by Captain Andy's written by David Slater, as well as daily updates during competitions, here you will find all you need to know about whats happening on the Kenyan Coast. 

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4th April 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Signing off for the season - last article for the 19/20 sport fishing season.

 

The official fishing season for record purposes finishes end April, but many of the charter boats have already stopped fishing with the virus precautions sending overseas anglers home, and hotels shut. But the weather is still mild, with the sea windless yesterday and flat calm.

White Mischief went to the Centre Mlima, where they found a Sailfish, and while there were good sized Yellowfin in the 50kgs category rolling on the surface they did not raise a bite. A couple of deep drop attempts for Swordfish also did not raise a strike.

Bamara from Hemingways tried an overnight trip but had no strikes from Swordfish and returned with a single Dorado, while the same boat caught Snappers and Dorado with Giorgio Cefis. Blue Marlin, on a half day, caught a Barracuda, a Kingfish and a Blue Snapper of 10kgs.

Bryan and Danny went after Squid in the dinghy and caught twenty six! Also some small fish on light tackle.

This will be the last article so a brief summary of the season for the record.

Black Marlin and Sailfish were around in late July and August for the early boats, and some big Yellowfin were caught. Neptune won the Malindi Festival, with a Black Marlin and ten Sailfish.

Tina Harris and her African Billfish Foundation team were awarded the IGFA World- wide annual award for Conservation, a great honour.

Black Marlin were caught September and October, while the wind changed to northerly after vacillating in November. December found Blue Marlin beginning to appear, leading to the best ever run of this species here in January to March, while a Yellowfin Tuna of 116.6 kgs was caught at Lamu. The Delamere Trophy at Kilifi was won by Elusive.

The Kilifi Classic was won by Instedda, and February also saw five Blue Marlin caught in a day on Alleycat from seven strikes, thought to be the best ever for Blues locally.

Twenty three Marlin were caught in the Watamu Festival, probably another ‘best’ . The ‘Friends of Kenya’ yielded thirty-two Marlin, 61 billfish total, and was won by Unreel.

The weather suddenly changed for the Malindi Festival and rough weather made fishing difficult.

The weather improved and swung south, then back north, and Blue Marlin were still being caught.

Most of the boats have stopped fishing now, so we are signing off for the season.

April

2019/20 Season

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28th March 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Alleycat ended a very good season with a total of 84 marlin, leading the field from Tarka which had 66.

 

The wind, which had reverted to the north-east, and had been blowing firmly changed back to south-east again last Sunday, and appears set hard now. But it did this before, and brought the Marlin back again – will it change again?
However most boats have decided to end their season, hastened by cancellations by visitors eager to beat travelling bans in their home countries.
Alleycat ended a very good season with four Blues and three Sail last week, This gave them a total for the season of 84 Marlin, leading the field from Tarka which had sixty-six Marlin. Tarka shares second place for Sailfish with Eclare, with Neptune the top Sailfish boat.
Russell Brumby followed his blue Marlin in his small boat Pintail with a double header strike of Striped Marlin, and with his crewman Abdul on the other rod they managed to catch and release both fish – quite an achievement in such a small boat.
From Hemingways, Bamara has been out twice and with Dicky Evans fishing, tagging both a Striped Marlin and a Sail on the first trip, and a Sail the next, they also had some Dorado. The same boat, with Giorgio Junior Antonio and Carlo Borella, had an overnight trip to the the Rips where they tagged two good sized Swordfish of 50 and 90 kgs
At Diani, Raymond Matiba reports that Nilesh and Ronan were out with the latter tagging a Sail estimated at 35kgs, and another day Tom and Leo Wahome , live-baiting frigate Mackerel, caught fifteen Dorado with the biggest weighing 16kgs – this sounds a fun day.
Elusive, fishing from Watamu has had a good season with a royal slam, a grand slam , a good number of Sail and some very big Yellowfin Tuna. Skipper Callum points out some of the best catches of the season, Alleycat with five Blue Marlin a a day, Tarka with five Marlin in the period, Unreel with an estimated 324 kg Blue released as well as two Black Marlin, Simba with a Blue Marlin on fly, Kenya’s first?.

March
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Photos courtesy of Sean Darnborough, Alleycat

21st March 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

The wind, which appeared to have set in the south-east, veered back to north-east again a week ago and has continued to blow that way firmly. This is unusual behavior as it tends to vacillate over the change period, but the renewal of the north winds has brought the Marlin back to the surface and some good catches have been made, while other days have been empty.

From Watamu, Alleycat has led the way with six Blue Marlin and two Sail released over the past week, They have also been catching some good sized Dorado – these are probably he fastest growing fish around and at this time of he season, one can catch specimens of 20 kgs or more. They fight very well - a Dorado of that size can be equivalent to a Sailfish almost twice the size, and are also very good to eat!

Pintail, a very small private boat went out with Russell Brumby and his crewman, and caught and released a Blue Marlin, as well as a Sail. All angling here is stand-up, the boat is not big enough for a chair!

Hemingways report Seastorm, fishing Melvyn and son Steven Ewell who are first time anglers from UK, had a double header strike from Striped Marlin, and hooked up successfully to both. Duly tagged both were released, and the Marlin bell rang twice in the bar that evening! Bamara, with Dicky Evans fishing tagged a Stripey and a Sail, while Seastorm went bottom fishing with Giorgio Cefis and had a good catch of Snapper.

Kingfisher boats have been catching well, Neptune had a grand slam with a Blue and two Striped Marlin and a Sail, followed later with another similar grand slam. Snowgoose released a Blue Marlin, while Eclare had a Sail and a big Yellowfin Tuna of 84kgs.

At Diani, White Dove lost a Stripey and released a Sailfish with Andres, from Germany, but no other reports from the south coast this week.

The Malindi Festival followed the Friends of Kenya competition, but the sudden change in the wind combined with rough seas made for poor fishing. Some smaller boats retuned early, while only six Sailfish were caught over the two days. Albatross was the winner, with Peter Hoffman and Sean fishing, while Tarka was second also with two Sail, and Instedda third with a single Sailfish.

14th March 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

The wind turned into the south-east over a week ago and blew firmly, generally a signal for the Marlin to move on, wherever they go next, and so it has proved with the much reduced catches. But they have not vanished completely, as the wind yesterday went a bit easterly, and a couple of boats flew marlin flags that evening.

The ‘Friends of Kenya’ tournament, always a popular event with it’s two days and one night format, was a great success with 22 boats taking part.

Thirty-one Marlin were caught, all Blues except for one Black and two Stripeys, nine Broadbill Swordfish were released during the night phase, and twenty-one Sailfish released – a total of sixty-one billfish.

Unreel came first, fished by Russell, Richard and Rob with a catch of three Blue Marlin and two Broadbill, putting them ahead of the team on B’s Nest, Peter, Evie and Daniel Luyt, who scored three Blue Marlin.

Third came Bingo, fished by Muhsin, Galib and Ali who caught two Blue and one Striped Marlin and a Broadbill, and they won the 15hp Yamaha outboard motor donated by Captain Andy’s. Fourth was Seastorm with two Blue Marlin and three Sail.

Other prizes were Penn rods and reels, donated from Hemingways and Peter Hofman – the winning anglers can choose their prizes from the packages. Crew prize, donated by the George Allen Foundation was a bicycle and food hampers.

Last week I reported David Boulton at Kilifi as catching three Blue Marlin on Corsair, the correct figure was one Marlin from three strikes, and the mistake entirely mine – the brain a bit addled by all the reports of three Marlin then coming in!

Neptune had a great overnight trip with a super grand slam – a Blue and a Striped Marlin, a Sail and two Broadbill - good fishing.

Sean Darnborough reported the story of a huge Blue Marlin which after nearly four hours of fighting, obviously died on the line, Angler Peter was exhausted, so Sean took over and the dead fish was eventually pumped to the surface – it weighed 327 kgs.

Reports from Diani indicate very few billfish around, but some big Dorado are being caught, while at Watamu, Eric Taylor and Bryan Matiba released a Sailfish and had nine Dorado in White Mischief.

The Malindi tournament was won by Albatross with two Sailfish, more information to follow next week.

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Friends of Kenya winners

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Friends of Kenya prize giving

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Sean Darnborough's huge 327kg Blue Marlin

7th March 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

The Watamu SFC Festival was fished over two days last weekend, and proved to be one of the best competitions ever, with a total catch of twenty-three Marlin and four Sailfish. Twenty-four boats competed, and fourteen of these caught a Marlin.

Winner was Eclare, fished by Peter Hoffman and Arran Paul, the former catching three Blue Marlin, one of which was weighed in at 159.5kgs to give them extra points over the tagged weighting of 150 kgs. This gave the team entry to the Offshore World Championships in Costa Rica, and made Peter Top Angler.

Runner-up was Elusive, fished by Gina, Callum and Dale Scott for a total of three Blue Marlin, Callum catching two and Dale a single

Third came Sand Dollar, fished by Adrian Puddy, who caught two blues, Simon Venn, who had a blue, and Gordon Bunting, their total also three blue Marlin. Fourth was Alleycat, with Tom Cunningham getting two Striped Marlin, and fifth was Tarka, with Phil Revett finding two Blue Marlin. Sixth came Tamu with a Blue and a Striped Marlin. Pintail, fished by Russel Brumby and Ritchie Moller, won the Small Boat prize, with a Blue Marlin and several Dorado.

An amazing tournament, with the first six boats all finding two Marlin or more. The Marlin Championship was not awarded, no fish of four hundred pounds being weighed.

Good fishing reported from Diani. White Dove, out testing engines had two Striped and a Blue Marlin. Joint Venture released a nice Black Marlin around 230kgs, and also a Stripey the same day. White Otter has had one or two Marlin daily, and Shuwari the same.

At Watamu, a group of Ukrainians at Hemingways in four boats released three Blue Marlin and six Sailfish, while Kim Smith on Bamara tagged a Striped Marlin. Ray and Kathy Noble on Seastorm found three Blues and a Sailfish and on the same boat, Chris and Christian Inns had three Broadbill on a night trip. On Blue Marlin, Douglas Brunton released a Black Marlin estimated at 120kgs, and they landed a Yellowfin Tuna, which was foul hooked which weighed at 83kgs.

At Kilifi David Boulton in Corsair released three Blue Marlin fishing with his father, and on a night trip the same boat released a Broadbill, from the three strikes they had.

Tega had a report from the Billfish Foundation in Florida that one of the Broadbill tagged here had been recaptured.

29th February 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Amazing fishing!

The Kilifi Classic was fished last weekend out from the Kilifi Boatyard, with twenty-one boats competing. Main sponsor was Captain Andy’s with plenty of other prizes, stays in camps and lodges etc. The weather was fine and the fish plentiful with eleven Marlin and eleven Sailfish caught.

The winners were the anglers on Instedda, Ndolo, Imran and Kai with two Blue Marlin, three Sailfish and two Dorado, all their fish being caught on the second day. Runner up was Unreel, fished by Nick Conway, Graham Lee and Rob Hellier, with one Black Marlin and a Sailfish, while the team on Pussycat, James Taylor, Mike Forsythe and Steve Wad were third with a Blue Marlin and a Sailfish in the professional stream. Tarka was fourth and Iron Barde was fifth in the pros.

In the amateur stream, White Mischief, fished by Andy and Jodie Thomas and Bryan Matiba, came first with two Blue Marlin and a Sailfish. Second was Jodari, fished by Saleem Ghalia, Gabriel and Rama, with Nguru third and Minerva fourth. Anne Taylor with her Blue Marlin won the Lady’s prize on the latter boat.

At Watamu, Alleycat had an amazing day, releasing five Blue Marlin from eight strikes, as well as a couple of Sailfish. This is thought to be the highest total on a boat in a day for Blue Marlin on the coast.

Elusive also had a good day, with three Blues released from five strikes, including one huge fish, estimated at 360 kgs, caught by Dale Scott. Snark, fishing from Watamu, had four Black, two Blue and a Striped Marlin, plus two Sail in the week, and fought a huge Blue Marlin which died on the line, but eventually the hook pulled while they were handling it up. Simba, fishing the Smith family annual regulars, had four Blue and a Black Marlin, as well as a Stripey and seven Sailfish, with eating fish up to 30 kgs.

From Hemingways, Seastorm with Chris Inns and son on a day/night trip, released a Blue Marlin, around 140kgs and in the night they tagged four Broadbill from eight strikes. A group from the Ukraine, in four boats, released three Blue Marlin and a couple of Sailfish.

At Diani, White Dove landed a 173kgs Blue Marlin for Jan, and another day they had two Striped and a Blue Marlin for Jason Colette and Issa Buckle, their first Marlin.

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February

Photo courtesy of Imraan Moosa

Photo courtesy of Callum Scott

Photo courtesy of Mark Allen

22nd February 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

The good run of Marlin continues, and all three species are being caught in all areas along with some Sailfish so anglers are happy with the boats busy, as this is the peak month for billfish with the bigger fish coming in as March approaches.

Blue Marlin, fished by the Elusive crew while their boat was being serviced, took Tom Cunningham out for a memorable day, a super grand slam with a Blue, a Black, and a Striped Marlin, and a couple of Sailfish, all released. Alleycat, also out from Watamu, were raising plenty of fish but ran into a lean spell for a few days when they all fell off, but their luck changed with a Stripey on Sunday and a Blue and a Striped Marlin released on Monday. The boat has reached a total of sixty Marlin for the season now – a good tally!

Tega has had a good run, six Blue Marlin in five days, plus a Sailfish, which included one big Blue on 24 kg line which died after three hours, weighing in at 266kgs. Instedda found thee Blues from six strikes in two days, releasing one of 230kgs while one died on the line , weighing in at 160kgs.

At Che Shale, Snark caught a huge Yellowfin Tuna of 87kgs - strong fighters these big Tuna and not a lot of this size caught these days,

Whatever it Takes reports a Striped Marlin on Monday, followed by two Blue Marlin and a Sail on Tuesday, and another Blue the next day, so fish busy around Mombasa also. No news from the south coast this week, perhaps everyone too busy fishing!

The Kilifi Classic will start this Saturday, and with all the reports of Marlin from the Rips there should be some exciting fishing. Weigh in at the Kilifi Boatyard and all boats start from Kilifi the second day. With sponsorship from Capt Andy’s, including a 15hp Yamaha outboard engine and a great range of prizes, this will be a popular event.

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Photo courtesy of Justin Aniere

Photo courtesy of Sean Darnborough

15th February 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Marlin fishing has been good everywhere this last week, with the weather continuing dry and seas calm. The water is blue with reports of a weak northerly current in the Pemba Channel, so prospects favourable.

With his boat Unreel temporarily being worked on at Watamu, skipper Rob Hellier sent his clients out on Little Toot at Lamu for some amazing fishing. On Thursday they released a Black and a Blue Marlin and a Sailfish, a grand slam, while the next day James Francis released a huge Blue Marlin, estimated at 320kgs, while Simon Francis released another Blue estimated at 160kgs. They also had a smaller Blue and a 90kg Black Marlin and a Sailfish – an amazing couple of days. Back at Watamu on Unreel they then had a Blue Marlin on each of the next two days, for a holiday to talk about!

Alleycat at Watamu has been active with four Blue and five Striped Marlin, four Sailfish and some mixed bags over the last week, and there have been marlin flags on some other boats. Malindi boat Tega found two Blue Marlin from four strikes, and two Sail the next day while loosing a Blue Marlin, along with a Wahoo and a Dorado. Eclare over three days, found two Blue and two Striped Marlin and a Sailfish.

At Shimoni, White Otter had a Stripey on three consecutive days, and also had some Sailfish and lost two very big Marlin. Clueless has been fishing at Shimoni, with a Stripey and two Sail and a Blue Marlin another day before leaving for Lamu. Shuwari has caught some Sailfish, one of which had a previous tag in it, but sadly the old tag fell out beside the boat before the crew could grab it. Some very big Dorado have been around, White Otter catching one weighing 20kgs and Shuwari another of 16.5kgs. Good fun on light tackle!

At Mtwapa, Delta released a Blue Marlin, while Katisa had two Sailfish, and Joint Venture at Mombasa, released a Black Marlin while running home with a seasick passenger. They later had a strike from a huge Black Marlin which spooled them on 60kg line and broke the hook!

The Kilifi Classic is on 22nd/23rd Feb, sponsored by Capt Andy’s with a 15hp Yamaha outboard as first prize, together with a great range of prizes from lodges and camps-with the Marlin around don’t miss this.

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Photo courtesy of Calvin Du Plessis

8th February 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Blue water & marlin running - let’s go fishing!

Cleaner blue water has moved into the Rips and Marlin continue to be caught, together with Sailfish and the smaller fish, Dorado, Wahoo and Tuna. February is the peak of the Marlin season and the boats are busier now.

Tarka has had a very successful week, with a Blue and a Striped Marlin and a Sail on Friday, a grand slam, next day they had a Stripey, followed by a Blue marlin and a Sail on Sunday, another Sail on Monday and a Black Marlin on Tuesday –a very good run.

Alleycat has also been busy the last week, with three or four Blue Marlin, a couple of Striped Marlin, two Sailfish and mixed bags of Dorado, Wahoo and a Barracuda.

Bamara, from Hemingways, found a Black Marlin estimated at 100 kgs, with Dippan Medinata, on a short day, while they had missed out on a Blue Marlin and a Sailfish the previous day. Seastorm, with Robert Buxton and Phil Revett tagged a Sail and boated a mixed bag, while Peter Adam and son on the same boat tagged a Blue Marlin, their only strike of the day. Next day they found a Sailfish near the Boiling Pot, but missed another Sail and a Black Marlin, but boated four Wahoo and a Kingfish.

Fishing has been good in Shimoni, Simba visiting with fly fishing enthusiasts catching Sailfish, but the Marlin have evaded them so far. White Otter found a Blue and a Black marlin one day, with a Stripey and a Sail then a Blue and a Sail on other days. Two of the strikes were fish estimated at over 250 kgs.

Shuwari found a Sailfish each for Jason from China, and Rudiger from Germany.

A fish estimated at 250kgs fell off after half an hour so some big fish down there!

At Mombasa, Whatever it Takes found a Striped Marlin and a Sailfish with the crew fishing. Corsair, at Kilifi, with David Boulton and Jack Macintosh fishing, released a Blue Marlin.

Earlier, Eclare released two Blue Marlin and a Sail, while Neptune released a Blue Marlin estimated at 230kgs, and Elusive had a grand slam with a Black, a Blue and two Sail.

The Kilifi Classic will be fished on 22nd/23rd February, followed a week later by the Watamu SFC Festival, and the Friends of Kenya two days after that, with the Malindi Billfish on 7th/8th March – a busy schedule.

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Photo courtesy of David Boulton

1st February 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Elusive wins the Delamere with 2 blue marlin released.

The Delamere Trophy competition was fished last weekend from Kilifi Boatyard. Boats could start from any port the first day, and twenty boats were entered. Four Marlin were tagged and released the first day, together with a couple of Sailfish, but the fishing on the Sunday deteriorated due to a calm windless day with low cloud and only two Sailfish were caught that day.
The overall winner was Elusive, a large boat fished by Gina Scott, Doug Rundgren and Eric Taylor, with two Blue Marlin released, one caught by Eric & the other by Dougie, and a Wahoo and a Dorado boated.
Second in the Large Boat class came Clueless, with a Blue Marlin tagged, caught by Pam Duff, and a Wahoo caught by Phil Revett, with Delta in third place, with anglers Rene and Gina Faber, the latter catching and releasing two Sailfish, and Joanna Verey.
In the Small Boat class, No Way was first ( & second overall) with Dany Haller, who tagged a Blue Marlin, David Boulton and Justin Walters adding a Yellowfin Tuna and a Dorado. Second was Minerva, with a Dorado and a Barracuda, caught by Anne Taylor, which won her the ladies prize in the Small Boat class, and John Cavanagh. Furaha was third and the David Partridge Trophy went to Red Fish Blue Fish, with a tagged Sailfish caught by Payan Ole Mole .
The tournament was sponsored by Sean Garstin Motors, with a magnificent array of crystal glass trophies.
At Shimoni, White Otter has had good fishing , releasing a Striped Marlin and a Sail one day, and a Stripey and two Sail another day. Shuwari found a Blue Marlin each for Dom and Gerry from Switzerland, a great day for the anglers who still strike their own fish at eighty years old.
At Che Shale, Snark went out far beyond the Rips, but still found green water, missing a strike from Blue Marlin but releasing a Sailfish.
From Watamu, Elusive tagged two Blue Marlin for Gina a few days before their success in the Delamere, while Bamara caught a mako shark of 78 kgs with Dicky Evans and Andrew Brown. Seastorm tagged a Blue Marlin one day, and a Sailfish the next for Ponchel Stanchev.
Alleycat has had a good run, with four Blue and a Striped Marlin, as well as a couple of Sailfish last week, but with green water everywhere we hope the conditions will improve.

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Photo courtesy of Clare Taylor

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Photo courtesy of Justin Aniere

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Photo courtesy of David Boulton

25th January 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

A particularly good run of blue marlin this season.

The current season will be remembered for the good run of Blue Marlin all along the coast since the wind changed into the north-east.
There has been particularly good fishing in the Rips, and despite the green water which is pushed down some days by particularly strong winds boats continue to raise these fish.
Tarka, from Watamu, has been fishing for a week with Peter Hofmann, a regular visitor and very keen marlin angler, with a total catch of twelve Marlin, ten Blues, one Striped and one Black, all released and with the biggest estimated at 180kgs, plus four Sail and some Wahoo and Dorado, very good fishing indeed.
Instedda also has had a good week with eight Blue Marlin tagged in five days, plus three Sailfish, while Alleycat has released a Black and four Blue Marlin last week along with mixed bags of Dorado and Wahoo. All these boats are fishing the Rips and further out and there are several other boats fishing out of Watamu now due to the sheltered anchorage from the strong north winds.
At Kilifi, Iron Barde released a Sailfish, and from Mombasa, Whatever IT Takes released a Blue Marlin.
From Diani, White Dove released a Blue Marlin estimated at 100 kgs, for Jeffery Tedmari, while Shuwari released a Sailfish each for Dominique and Gerard from Switzerland, their first for both anglers who are eighty! never too late to start!
The Delamere Trophy Tournament starts this Saturday at Kilifi Boatyard, and the boats will be chasing those marlin, we’ll have the results next week.

January
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Photo courtesy of Sean Darnborough

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Photo courtesy of Imraan Moosa

18th January 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Reports of lots of marlin all along our coast but they’re proving very hard to catch!

 

The Marlin run in the Rips continues with boats raising plenty of small Blues, and Marlin of all species are being caught all up and down the coast. The wind is blowing firmly from the north-east now, making the water choppy in the afternoons, but this is good for the fishing, and with February usually the peak fishing, there should be plenty of overseas anglers chasing the Marlin.

Anglers on Alleycat will have some good stories to tell after a day when they raised seven Blue Marlin and a Stripey and only one of the Blues stuck to be released at the boat! But the difficult days balance out, and the boat has had a busy week, with big Blue, estimated over 250kgs, fought for two hours before escaping, plus several Sailfish and two other Blue Marlin released.

Unreel, with Frank Tundo fishing, had a brilliant day with three Blue Marlin and a Sail tagged, while Clueless on her first trip in the New Year, tagged a Blue Marlin and two Sail for Pam Duff.

Tarka last week released two Blues one day and two Stripeys the next, and has had several more trips with Marlin and Sailfish flags, while Bamara tagged a Sailfish.

At Che Shale, Justin and his brother Alex released a Black and a Blue marlin one day, with Eric releasing another Blue the next day and seeing three more on Snark. Justin raised three Blues another day, but none of them stayed hooked.

At Kilifi, Katisa had three Blue Marlin, while a forth Blue fell off the hook at the boat when it jumped. At Mombasa, Sashimi found a Blue and What it Takes released a Blue and a Sailfish.

Fishing has been good at Diani, with Furaha releasing two Blues, while Freetyme released a Blue and a Striped Marlin, with Shuwari scoring the same for Alex Thomson, a visiting yachtsman. White Dove tagged a Sail for Jonas from Sweden.

With the north wind reportedly blowing strongly in most areas now, anglers can brace for some choppy waters in the afternoons, but this generally helps to bing the fish up.

The Delamere Trophy will be fished from Kililfi Boatyard on Jan 25th/26th weekend. With the Marlin running as they are in the Rips at present there should be plenty of fish caught and a good entry can be expected.

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Photos courtesy of David Boulton

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Photo courtesy of Justin Aniere

11th January 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Moon Dancer Too, fished by fished by Denham and Josh Vickers, Jaarpie van Niekirk, Giles and James, won overall at the Diani Samaki Classic, taking the first prize a Yamaha 15HP outboard engine donated by Captain Andy’s.

Marlin have been plenty in most areas of the coast, mainly Blues but with some Stripeys, so boats have been kept busy and the New Year has proved good fishing so far.
At Diani, eleven boats fished the Classic tournament over the 4th/5th January in calm seas, easier for the small boats. The first day, Bingo was the first to score reporting a Blue Marlin released, while Shuwari also released a Blue, Furaha a Sail, and some good Wahoo were caught. The second day, Moon Dancer Too released both a Striped and a Blue Marlin, with Shuwari also releasing a Blue Marlin, a first for Tai Wahome, and Furaha and Bingo also catching Blue Marlin .
Moon Dancer Too, fished by fished by Denham and Josh Vickers, Jaarpie van Niekirk, Giles and James, won overall, taking the first prize a Yamaha 15hp outboard engine donated by co-sponsor Captain Andy’s. They also won the Small Boat prize, and took the Junior Angler award, a great two days for them. Second came Shuwari, with Bingo third.
A much enjoyed competition, and good to see the small boats doing so well.
Freetyme, at Diani, had a Blue Marlin and a Sail, then next day released both a Blue and a Striped Marlin.
At Watamu, the Rips have been producing good action, with Alleycat releasing two Blue Marlin from three strikes, and a Stripey, as well as a Sailfish for a grand slam – a good start to the year. Unreel had two Blues from four strikes on the 2nd Jan, and another Blue from two strikes a few days later. Furio released three Blue Marlin, and lost another just near the boat, and had a Sailfish as well.
Bamara has had a good run, tagging two Blue Marlin with angler Jimmy Wanjigi and his brother, his first marlin. Another trip produced a Blue Marlin for Anton and Daniel van Zyl, while an overnight yielded two Blues, a Broadbill and a Sailfish for a grand slam.
Eclare, fishing from Watamu, had two Blue and one Striped Marlin, while Neptune found a Blue Marlin and two Sail last time out here. On a trip to Lamu, jigging and popping bought them a huge Giant Trevally, estimated at over 60kgs, which must have been well above the official record.
At Lamu, Nils Korschen caught a huge Yellowfin Tuna of 116.6 kgs – this must be one of the biggest of this species ever landed here.

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Photo courtesy of Jodie Thomas

4th January 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

There were plenty of billfish around for the Watamu SFC Christmas tournament, and with 25 boats entered, a total of eight Marlin and thirteen Sailfish, all released, made it a fun day for all the hundred anglers who competed.

This is always a popular competition, and the handicap system, by which the points caught are divided by the length of the boat gives those in small boats a good chance against the big professional boats. Sponsored by Captain Andy’s, with a great range of prizes, topped by a 15hp Yamaha outboard engine for the winner, ensure it is one of the best competitions along the coast.

The first day, Saturday, saw a Marlin released by each of four boats, but this left the result wide open as on the second day four more Marlin were released, by four different boats!

Tega, fished by Karl Heinz, Jochen, Dieter and skipper Calvin, finally came in an easy first as they added a Blue Marlin and a Sail to the two Sailfish they had scored the first day, to take the outboard motor prize. Runners up were the crew on Elusive, Gina, Callum and Dale Scott, with a nice Black Marlin released, caught by Callum. Third came Instedda, fished by Imran Moosa and family, with a Blue Marlin and a Sailfish.

Kipapa, fished by Barney Engels and friends with a Blue Marlin, was fourth and fifth came Pussycat, who shared points with Alleycat but caught their Marlin earlier. Best angler award went to Daniel on Furio, for his Blue Marlin, the first one caught earliest. Junior Prize went to Connor McCann for his Blue Marlin, while the Ladies prize was shared by Holly Darnborough and Jodie Thomas.

The Kilifi Xmas competition had eighteen entries, with Tarka first, fished by J C Durand, Callum Looman and Amini, with two Striped Marlin and a Sailfish.

In the large boat class, Iron Barde was second, with Corsair third, while Bingo with two Sail was leader in the small boat class, with Vipingo second and Sijui third.

AT Mtwapa, Delta released a Black Marlin and at Mombasa What it Takes had a Sailfish, while from Diani Furaha found a first Striped Marlin for nine year old Liam Glaser. Shuwari released a Blue Marlin for UK visitor Hugh Swaby, also his first game fish!, and Joint Venture released a Black Marlin.

From Watamu, Alleycat released two Blue Marlin and two Sail, while at Malindi Snowgoose found a Black and a Blue Marlin, and Neptune released small Blue Marlin.

Photos courtesy of Calvin Du Plessis & Karla Bunting

28th December 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Marlin are running, let’s hope they stay around for the Watamu tournament this w/e & our junior anglers have been out practicing for the Mida Creek kids comp’ on the 31st - we look forward to catching up with you all over the next few days . Fishing update from David Slater:

The weather has been good for fishing over the holidays and boats have been finding Marlin in the Rips off Watamu. With the current running north and clean blue water, there should be a good turnout, and this Saturday is the first day of the Watamu Xmas tourney.
Tarka has had a great couple of days in the Rips and Outer Mountains area, releasing a Blue and a Striped Marlin on the 23rd, then topping this the next day with a grand slam, a Blue and a Striped Marlin and two Sailfish, as well as some Dorado – good fishing. Alleycat, with 12yr old Lochy Murray fishing, caught a Striped Marlin, Lochy’s first Stripey, and Jamie Watson released a Sailfish.
The next day the same boat was not lucky, when they lost a Sailfish and missed a Marlin, but that’s fishing! Seastorm, from Hemingways, on a short day, tagged a Sailfish and had a couple of Dorado in the Boiling Pot area.

December

Fishing at Diani seems to be improving, and with the holiday season here there have been more trips out. Dream Catcher has been finding some good sized Wahoo on Halco lures, and recorded a first Sailfish for David Schlatter, while Jon Ziegler on Shuwari caught a 27kg wahoo, a big fish for this species. They had a pack of Sailfish attack all the baits and followed the baits and lures right up close the transom, but they were not able to hook any, but what an exciting experience to see these beautiful creatures so close! White Dove has been catching a Sailfish every few days, and with the bait fish close to the reef, the boats have not been venturing further out to look for he Marlin, but this must happen soon.The seventh Diani Samaki Classic tournament will be held on the fourth and fifth of January, from Nomads beach bar, with Capt Andy’s and Base Titanium providing very generous sponsorship. With a Marlin scoring as much as four Sailfish the boats will surely be out chasing marlin here.

Imran Moosa Kid.jpg

Photo courtesy of Imraan Moosa

21st December 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Several boats have been seeing quantities of Blue Marlin in the Rips off Watamu which augers well for the Watamu SFC Xmas tournament on 28th/29th December, which is sponsored by Captain Andy's. The top prize is a 15hp Yamaha outboard engine, and boats are handicapped according to size, giving small and private boats a good chance against the professionals. A good turnout is expected as this is always one of the most popular of the season.

Malindi skipper, Calvin du Plessis, has been awarded the annual Top Tagging Captain for Swordfish in the Indian Ocean by the Billfish Foundation, a prestigious international award. A great honour for Kenya, this is the second consecutive year in which the skipper has been given this award – a great achievement, well done him!

From Diani, reports are of much better fishing over the past few days, with White Dove catching and releasing Sailfish on several days, including one for DJ and Molly, along with good catches of Wahoo and Dorado. Another day the boat scored one sail from three strikes and an 11kg Wahoo, while Joint Venture caught one Sail from a multiple strike. Dream Catcher, with Hiten Kumar, caught a Black Marlin of 55kgs on 15 kg line which had swallowed a Halco lure with the hooks in its throat.There are some big Wahoo further south, but the Striped Marlin have yet to show.

At Mombasa, What it Takes, with skipper Jameel Khan, released two Sail in two trips, while at Mtwapa, Stingray released a Blue Marlin on 15kg line after an hour and a half fight.

The Malindi SFC held two light line competitions last weekend, with the Churchill Trophy going to Clueless, with Roger Sylvester releasing a Sailfish on 6kg line to take the Top Angler award. Second place went to Tarka, also with a Sail on 6kg line. Snowgoose were unlucky to arrive late at the finish with two Sailfish, but were time barred. The next day, the Morson Cup, also with maximum line allowed at 10kgs, went to Tarka, fished by Karl Heinz, Jochum and Callum Looman, with Callum catching a Sail on 6kg line to take Top Angler award.

At Watamu, Alleycat had a good day releasing two Blue Marlin, while Unreel found a Blue Marlin on two separate trips with Brett Ayton, and on another trip they missed a much bigger Narlin. White Mischief was on the Rips for a morning trip, and saw three Blue Marlin, while Tega out from Malindi, tagged a small Blue Marlin.

Phil Gschwend on Stringray.jpg

Photo courtesy of Phil Gschwend

14th December 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Not many trips out this week but conditions seem good and those boats that had clients were catching, but it is usually quiet just before the holiday season starts and we can expect more activity in the coming weeks. Heavy rain has sent huge quantities of muddy water down the Sabaki river, which dirties the fishing areas north of Malindi so boats are having to search far afield for the Sailfish.

Simba has been on a trip to Shimoni, and fishing out of the Pemba Channel Fishing Club, they tagged a Blue Marlin estimated at 140kgs their first day, and then three Sailfish the next day, two of these caught on fly tackle. The third day a Striped Marlin was raised on teasers for the fly tackle but they were not able to hook the fish – but with the water a clear deep blue and temperatures about 34C with baitfish around the conditions were looking very promising. White Otter has also been out, catching Sailfish most days.

At Watamu, Seastorm from Hemingways had three days with Andrew and Libby McDonald, and they ran to Ngomeni the first day, catching a couple of Dorado and a Wahoo, but missed the only Sailfish that struck. A couple of Wahoo and a 20kg Kingfish were caught the next two days, and a final short day found them a Sailfish near the Boiling Pot, which was tagged and released, as well as catching a couple of Wahoo.

Instedda has had a good week, with seven Sailfish and a BLack Marlin released, while they also tagged a Blue Marlin last Monday, catching two Wahoo as well as missing another Marlin. Unreel released a Blue Marlin, estimated at 45 kgs with Brett Ayton fishing on a short day, while Eclare from Malindi, saw two Striped Marlin but failed to raise a strike from them.

No news from the south coast this week, but expect they will be busy down there over the holiday period so we will look forward to hearing next week.

Instedda Marlin.jpg

Photo courtesy of Instedda

7th December 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

 

The wind seemed to have changed to the north-east, but over the last few days it was back in the south-east again, confusing for the fish but there have been some good catches regardless, with reports of more activity along the south coast.

Furaha, at Diani, has been out a few times, and on a successful overnight trip, they caught and released three Broadbill Swordfish from five strikes. A busy night and a very good hook-up rate for this species which are notoriously difficult to hook successfully. The largest was in the 50-60 kg range. Two other day trips resulted in a couple of Sailfish daily, plus some Wahoo averaging 15kgs so some good fishing here.

Freetyme, fished by Abbas Samji, found a Wahoo and a Yellowfin Tuna, both over 20kgs, while Dream Catcher, fished by Hitem Kumar, found a Wahoo of 21kgs – there is definitely a run of good-sized Wahoo in the Tiwi-Diani area.

Off Watamu, Alleycat released a Black Marlin and a Sailfish, and has been doing some bottom fishing, getting a variety of Snappers and Grouper. Seastorm, from Hemingways, tagged a Sailfish near the Boiling Pot and caught some Baitfish.

White Mischief tried an overnight trip, running down to the Vipingo ledge where conditions seemed good on a moonless night, and missed a Sailfish en route. The night yielded only one strike, a small Swordfish, duly released, and the next morning the boat tried the Rips, which looked good with clean, blue water, but sadly no fish were raised, despite the promising looking conditions.

Kingfisher have had a boat run up to Lamu for a five day safari, doing a lot of jigging for a variety of bottom species, on the return trip to Malindi, they found five Sailfish - a satisfying end to their trip.

With the holidays approaching, more trips will be made in all areas and we should be getting a wider range of reports – while hopefully the wind will settle into the north.

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Broadbill 2.jpg

Photos courtesy of Furaha Fishing,

Diani

30th November 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

With the north-east wind, the kaskazi, blowing firmly now, fishing generally has looked up with cleaner water, and Sailfish are being caught in most areas.
The ‘Eye Go Fishing’ tournament was held last Saturday at Kilifi, for the first time, and eleven boats took part. Boats were raising Sailfish, and two Marlin were also raised, but the fish were hard to hook. However Instedda, fished by Mr Denim, caught a Sailfish which was released, and this won the first prize.
Second was Roxann, fished by Justin Walters and Jameel Khan, with a nice Wahoo and a Kingfish, while Delta was third with a mixed bag. An enjoyable competition, and a good sum was raised for the Kwale Eye Hospital which does so much good work for those with eye problems.
At Malindi, Tega had good fishing on Saturday with a client from Hungary, catching two Sailfish, seven Dorado and a Wahoo, while the following day four Sail were released, plus five Kingfish, two Wahoo and a Trevally for a client from Italy. Kingfisher boats have also all been catching Sailfish, and there is a good run of these at Malindi at the moment.
Alleycat from Watamu had had a couple of trips, releasing a Striped Marlin and losing a Sailfish, while Seastorm from Hemingways fished off Ngomeni with Stefan Kruger, and caught a Sailfish which died on the line, as well as two Wahoo and a Dorado – they also had a Marlin on the line which was played for two hours before he hook pulled. Instedda had five Sail and mixed bags over three days, including winning the Eye Go Fishing tournament
At Diani, Furaha found two Sailfish on a short day, while Neferiti, a sesse canoe, also found a Sailfish and a Barracuda. Dream Catcher, live baiting with Hiten Kumar caught a nice Wahoo of 17 kgs. The water here has been much cleaner and the fish more active with the north wind blowing.
With the holidays approaching and the kaskazi blowing firmly prospects look good in all areas.

November
Imran Moosa Sail.jpg
Eye Go Fishing.jpg

Photos courtesy of Imraan Moosa, Instedda

23rd November 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

The wind swung suddenly to blow from the north-east last weekend and for a couple of days seemed fixed, but then veered back to the south-east again and now seems to be vacillating, which is quite normal before it settles down to the regular ‘kaskazi’ season which lasts till March.

This should improve fishing and signals the main season for Sailfish and Marlin, with the latter, especially Blue Marlin, coming into the deeper water areas like the Rips.

The Eye Go Fishing tournament is being fished this weekend out of Kilifi on Saturday and Sunday. This annual competition raises funds for the Kwale Eye Centre, which does so much good charitable work for those with eye problems, and good entries are expected.

At Watamu Tarka released a Black Marlin, and on two other days they found a pair of Sailfish, while Alleycat released three Sailfish and had a mixed bag with Wahoo, Yellowfin Kingfish and Dorado. Unreel had a couple of trips, with mixed bags, including a Wahoo of 20 kgs.

From Malindi, Tega had successful trips popping and jigging, with Yellowfin, Kingfish and smaller Trevally species, while on another trip while deep dropping for broadbill they caught a Pomfret and an Escolar or Oilfish of 23kgs. Both these species are rarely caught , only being hooked on the bottom in deep water. Snark, fishing from Che Shale, is back in the water and had a busy start with four Sailfish, two Wahoo, a Dorado and a Yellowfin, a great day.

Eclare had four Sailfish a couple of days ago, and the fishing off Malindi continues to be active, with popping and jigging popular methods of catching Tuna and other species.

On the south coast at Diani, White Dove on a sea trial after sorting engine problems, released a nice Black Marlin, while Furaha boated 100kgs of Yellowfin Tuna on a morning trip, keeping the anglers busy. Gitau Matiba reports clients Issa Bockle and daughter Neraha released a Black Marlin of 60 kgs with the latter on the rod, and they also raised a Sailfish which escaped,

So the fish are active both north and south, and once the wind has settled the fishing should improve, so prospects good everywhere.

Soolyman Escolar.jpg

Photo courtesy of Calvin Du Plessis, Tega

16th November 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

The boats have been been catching!

Although not a lot of trips were made, boats have been catching Marlin and Sailfish along the coast, despite reports of the water being green. There have been heavy rain storms in most areas, adding to the green colour of the seas, and the wind is still south-east with no sign of swinging yet.

Elusive, with skipper Callum Scott, went up to Kiwaiyu from her Watamu base for a week and caught a wide variety of fish. Sailfish were caught using the ‘ bait and switch’ technique with unhooked teasers bringing the fish up near the boat, when a bait with circle hooks is tossed out on suitable light tackle. The circle hooks tend to hook the fish in the corner of the mouth, so they can be released without damage, while the right size tackle can be selected when the size of the fish is seen, useful for Marlin on light lines. A highlight was landing a 35kg Yellowfin Tuna on a light spinning rod by Simon Kenyon. Plenty of Kingfish, Wahoo, Tuna, Dorado and various species of trevally were caught with poppers and jigs, while an unusual achievement was the catch and release of a Shortbill Spearfish - a rare species in our waters.

At Shimoni, White Otter had a good trip releasing a Black Marlin and a Sailfish despite the water being dirty, but it has been quiet at Diani. At Mtwapa, however, Princess Mariya released a Black Marlin.

At Malindi, Eclare caught five Sailfish and good mixed bags in two trips, while Tega fishing around the Boiling Pot area found dirty water but caught a Kingfish and a Dorado in the morning. Later the water cleared and they raised two Sailfish, releasing one while the other escaped, and then released a Black Marlin, estimated at 85kgs. On the way home they released another Sailfish, so plenty of action after a quiet start.

Not many trips at Watamu this week, but Tarka found and released a Black Marlin, and they caught some Yellowfin, which seemed plentiful but proved hard to hook up, while Alleycat lost a nice Black Marlin estimated around 200 kgs but caught Tuna and Wahoo.

So the fish are there, and with cleaner warmer water things should improve.

Soolyman Sail.jpg

Photo courtesy of Calvin Du Plessis, Tega

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Elusive 2.jpg
Elusive 3.jpg

Photos courtesy of Callum Scott, Elusive

9th November 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Simba, usually based at Watamu, had a great day fishing from Peponi Hotel at Lamu with anglers Ken and Martin Lawrence on holiday from UK. The water inshore was green and while some Sailfish were seen they were reluctant to strike so skipper Mark Allen put out his big marlin lures and went further out. On the outer drop-offs he found nice blue water and tagged and released a small Blue Marlin and a Sailfish, before hooking into a very big fish.

After a long fight of nearly three hours a Blue Marlin was played to the boat and tagged and released, with the weight estimated at 300 kgs – definitely the catch of the week!

Few trips were reported at Watamu this week, although Unreel had a day with a mixed bag, including a good Wahoo of 30 kgs caught by Kathy Stevens.

A boat from the Malindi Kingfisher fleet has been on a five day trip to Lamu, popping and jigging with good catches of Giant Trevally. This style of fishing is popular with many anglers, who cast their lures from a stationary boat, either using surface plugs that splash along the top or heavy jigs that are lowered to the bottom near reefs and drop-offs and jigged up and down. Giant Trevally are the usual target, along with Rock Cod, Amberjack and a variety of Snappers.

At Diani it has been quiet, with Furaha out a couple of trips catching small fish, but the water was green and cold and the fish not active,.

The water should warm up soon with the change in the wind not far away, and make the fish more active, while the holiday season will bring more anglers as well as those small private boats which appear over the Xmas break, especially at competitions.

Simba Marlin.jpg

Photo courtesy of Mark Allen, Simba

2nd November 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Good weather continues along the coast, with some heavy rainstorms mainly at night or early morning, then sunny with gentle winds, nice conditions for fishing but not a lot of trips have been reported.

Alleycat found a good Black Marlin on two separate days, both around the 140kg mark, but while one was released the other was attacked by sharks while on the line. Sharks are always a problem in the Watamu area, and the longer fish are on the line the more likely are the sharks to attack them, so the bigger fish are more vulnerable. A nice Giant Trevally was also released and some Yellowfin boated. Two more days with the same boat were quiet however.

Unreel has also been out, with good Wahoo action, the largest at 27kgs , a big one for this species.

Tega found a small Blue Marlin in the Rips, which was duly released and boated a mixed bag of Yellowfin, Wahoo and Dorado for a busy day, while on another trip they caught and released a Broadbill during the day using the deep drop method with baits lowered to 300 metres or more – when hooked the fish has to be pumped up to the boat from that depth, so hard work for the angler!

Tarka, following on her success with second place in the Malindi Festival, had three Sailfish on the Monday, followed by six Sail on the Tuesday and the rest of the week yielded some Giant Trevally, Tuna, Wahoo and a small Shark which was released.

Down south at Diani, White Dove on a short trip caught a 16 kg Wahoo on 10kg breaking strain line as well as a mixed bag with Yellowfin Tuna and Dorado.

As November progresses, we would expect to hear of the arrival of Striped Marlin in the Pemba Channel, particularly if the wind starts to switch to the north-east, the kaskazi. This also is the signal for Striped and Blue Marlin to appear in the Rips off Malindi/Watamu, while bigger Black Marlin are usually caught along the Watamu Banks.

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Calvin Marlin.jpg

Photos courtesy of Calvin Du Plessis, Tega​

26th October 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

The Sailfish were around and biting at the Malindi Festival last weekend, when a total of 49 Sailfish and two Black Marlin were caught by 10 boats and 29 anglers over the two days. This was the 60th anniversary of this tournament, the oldest along the coast.

The first day was a close contest between Tarka, with 1266 points and Neptune, with 1132 points, the former having released a Black Marlin and three Sailfish while the latter had released seven Sailfish, but on the second day the positions were reversed when Neptune released a further seven Sailfish to give their team, R Brumby, Phil D’Olier and Angus Paul the first prize. This also qualified them for entry in the prestigious International Offshore Championship in Costa Rica.

The Tarka team, Phil Revett, P. Worthington and skipper Callum Looman, released four Sail the second day and this gave them second place, while third went to Wambam a small private boat fished by Arran Paul and Kitana with their overall total of ten Sailfish. Arran Paul was awarded the Herbie Paul prize for the Top Angler, a notable achievement as this was the only small boat among the entries.

Alleycat, fished by J Andrews, J Taylor and Pete Darnborough came fourth with a Black Marlin and two Sail released.

The tournament was sponsored primarily by G A Insurance and Optima Insurance Brokers and a dozen other sponsors to whom many thanks.

At Watamu, Alleycat has caught two Black Marlin this week, one of which was attacked by Sharks, along with some Sailfish, Wahoo, Kingfish and Tuna, while Simba tagged two Black Marlin on the Rips, caught on lures on her first outing this season, so a good start to their season.

With the good catches of Sailfish at Lamu and Malindi, and with Black Marlin showing on the Banks and the Rips at Watamu, the fishing outlook looks good for these areas. There has been no news this week from southern waters so let’s hope next week to hear of more activity.

October

Malindi International Festival Results - DAY 1

19th October 2019

The first day is over, which saw boats catch quite a good number of fish. Tarka is in the lead with 1266.5pts closely followed by Neptune with 1132.5pts. WamBam is third with 651pts. Over 20 Sailfish were caught between all the boats! Let's see what tomorrow brings. Tight lines.

19th October 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

More heavy rain last weekend along most of the coast does not seem to have affected the fishing, particularly at Lamu where the Sailfish run has resulted in good catches.

Neptune, fishing from Manda bay on a five-day trip up from Malindi, found twenty-five Sailfish, with their best day showing ten Sail released. November is usually the peak month here, and the annual influx of dedicated fly fishermen should be well rewarded if the fishing continues like this.

At Watamu, Unreel made the catch of the week with a large Black Marlin, estimated at 160kgs on 24kg tackle, with Mikey Carr-Hartley on the rod. Hooked on a live bait, the fish took two hours to bring to the boat. They also had a good mixed bag with Kingfish, Wahoo and Yellowfin for a memorable day.

Alleycat had a couple of short day trips, releasing a nice Giant Trevally, and boating some Yellowfin and Wahoo, while Tarka has also been catching, Yellowfin, Kingfish and Wahoo around the Watamu banks.

At Diani, there has also been a lot of rain but fishing has been quiet. Some Wahoo are being caught on live baits, and Furaha had a nice Kingfish of 20 kgs, also on live bait .

The Malindi Festival starts Saturday so with more boats out there should be more news next week. If the Sailfish are in short supply then skippers have the option of trying for Marlin on the Banks or a Broadbill Swordfish with the deep drop technique.

12th October 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

Next weekend, the 19th/20th Oct, the Malindi Festival will be fished with boats starting from any port on the Saturday and from Malindi on the Sunday. This is the first tournament of the season, and the winners qualify for the prestigious Offshore World Championship. Both overseas and local anglers will be entering and the prize giving will be at the Malindi SFC .

From Watamu, Bamara has done a couple of trips, and with Rodney and Jack from South Africa they had a good catch of Yellowfin Tuna with three fish of 35, 29 and 27kgs and three smaller ones. They released a small Blue Marlin estimated at 30 kgs, a good sign that the run of Blue Marlin in the Rips might be starting. On another trip, the same boat had another good bag of Tuna with the the biggest at 35 and two more of 30kgs, plus several smaller ones.

Also from Watamu, Alleycat found good mixed bags with Yellowfin Yuna, Kingfish, Wahoo and a Giant Yrevally, while Tarka also had mixed bags. Tarka skipper Callum Looman was away in Tanzania fishing in the Latham Island tournament, which his team won with a load of Yellowfin up to 33kgs. The same team also lost a Broadbill Swordfish during the night, while fellow Kenyan skipper Rob Hellier was in the team placed third.

At Mtwapa, Tin Tin Tu hooked into a small Black Marlin off Vipingo and the fish was fought to the boat side with the crew holding the leader. This scores as a catch, although the marlin itself then dived under the propellers and cut the leader, thus releasing itself!

This last week has seen some heavy rain along the coast, which will result in green water for a while. On the bright side, dirty water lines can point out the areas where Sailfish congregate, especially off the Sabaki river which may help anglers as the Sailfish, which have been seen finning have been reluctant to come up to the baits, so we hope for the best over the coming tournament.

5th October 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

The fishing scene is very quiet at the moment, and the absence of clients is particularly noticeable. Fish are around, but billfish and sailfish in particular are showing but not coming up to the baits.

The Marlin which were around the Watamu Banks in August seem to have moved away but good sized Yellowfin Tuna are being caught.

Skipper Calvin du Plessis on Tega welcomed his brother Darryn from the Seychelles for a few days fishing, and moving the boat up to Malindi they found a Giant Trevally estimated at 35kgs. The next few days resulted in mixed bags of Kingfish, up to 20kgs, Wahoo up to 16kgs and more Giant Trevally released in the 20-25kgs range. Sailfish were seen daily, but they were not feeding and the anglers could not induce them to strike. A Broadbill estimated at 60kgs was caught one day with the deep drop method.

Alleycat went out from Watamu and saw plenty of Yellowfin jumping around, but they were difficult to hook, although they ended up with four in the 30kg range. Cold green water is one of the reasons suggested for the fish not striking more.

Broadbill Swordfish live far out in deep water in this area, and are usually fished for at night when they come nearer the surface on dark nights from the depths which they prefer. During the day, they can be caught by the deep drop method where baits are lowered to the bottom in 300 metres of water on heavy concrete weights in areas 20 miles or more offshore. An amazing catch was recorded fishing from the rocks on shore near Che Shale when a local commercial fisherman, caught a small Broadbill of about 7kgs on a handline. A photo shows this fish clearly and this is the first instance I have heard of in Africa of such a fish caught from the shore, although there are one or two instances of such catches in other parts of the world. What was such a fish doing in shallow water so far from it’s natural habitat, one wonders.

Saturday and Sunday,19th/ 20th October, which is the holiday weekend, sees the Malindi Festival kick off the tournament season. There is usually a good entry of both local and overseas anglers so let’s hope the fishing becomes more active.

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Soolyman Broadbill.jpg
Soolyman Wahoo.jpg

Photo courtesy of Justin Aniere

Photos courtesy of Calvin Du Plessis, Tega​

28th September 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

It has been another difficult week for fishing, with very few trips made and billfish in short supply, although the weather remains fine with an occasional shower of rain. Most areas report green water, not the clean blue water that turns the fish on, so conditions are not ideal.

At Watamu, Tarka went out on Tuesday and caught a nice Giant Trevally estimated at 32 kgs. They also scored several Kingfish, with the biggest at 19kgs, a Wahoo and some Yellowfin Tuna for a busy day. Alleycat also found some Yellowfin Tuna and Wahoo, plus a Kingfish and raised a couple of Sailfish which they failed to hook up with. Sailfish are around but they are proving difficult to catch, and few marlin are being seen.

Seastorm, out from Hemingways, took Laura on her first outing and caught a Yellowfin of 10 kgs. Most boats are reporting Yellowfin Tuna around, but they seem hard to catch.

At Diani, White Dove caught and released a Hammerhead Shark estimated at 70kgs, and they also found a Wahoo and a Yellowfin, but no other trips reported from this area, nor from the boats at Shimoni.

No reports from Malindi this week, nor from the boats at Lamu, so it looks as if business is very quiet everywhere.

The tournament season starts with the Malindi Festival over the holiday weekend of October 19th/20th, so we hope the fishing gets more active by then. The sailfish run at Malindi usually starts about this time and there is normally a good entry so with more boats in action soon we will have a better idea of the fishing.

September

21st September 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

It has been another quiet week for fishing, with not many trips made and billfish hard to find. Tuna and Wahoo have formed the main catches, often the case in the late September to October period, but these species can keep anglers busy, and Wahoo on light line are exciting fish to catch, with their reputation of being perhaps the fastest fish in the seas! A multiple strike of Wahoo can result in fish on the line far behind the boat as well as on both sides and up ahead simultaneously, presenting problems to both anglers and skippers.

White Dove, from Diani, went out on trials after repairs, and caught a Sailfish, while missing strikes from Wahoo on live bait, plus a load of Frigate Mackerel, The latter make excellent live baits, which ensure action when lures fail, even if many don’t hook-up! There have been reports that big Yellowfin Tuna are running in the Pemba Channel this year, but it needs some boats to investigate. At Mtwapa, Justin Walters and Jameel Khan on Rosanne released a Sailfish

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At Watamu, Tarka found a Wahoo, six Kingfish and a Giant Trevally last Sunday, while Alleycat reported lots of Yellowfin on the Banks, but was finding them hard to catch, landing some and some Wahoo as well.

White Mischief ran up to the North Kenya banks, where they saw plenty of big Yellowfin, but they were hard to hook, and they landed three between 25 and 30 kgs. The water was green out there, not the best conditions for fish. The night was spent fishing for Broadbill Swordfish, but the full moon was a handicap, as the fish stay deep in strong moonlight, with only a few strikes which did not hook up. They will no doubt be trying again when the moon is dark.

No reply from Malindi this week but I heard that Eclare had a good catch of Tuna on the North Kenya bank, and no news from Lamu either – most areas short of clients as business usually goes quiet mid September and October.

Tim Collins and his team is back out here, looking for Whales in his research- he would be interested to hear of any sightings along the coast, but the whales seem to be fewer this year than recently.

14th September 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

It has been a quiet week for trips out fishing, and most skippers have been short of clients, but there have been plenty of smaller fish on the Watamu Banks, and Marlin are being seen but are not feeding and coming up to the baits. This can change overnight, but what activates the fish is not well understood, currents, water temperatures, weather all play their part.

Tarka has been the busiest boat this last week,, out on Saturday and releasing a Sailfish, while adding Wahoo, one of which scaled at 32kgs, a big fish, plus some Yellowfin Tuna. On Monday and Tuesday they boated some Wahoo and Tuna, and saw Marlin finning on the surface most days, but these fish did not come up to the baits! There is not much one can do about that!

The same boat had a busy day on Wednesday, with four Giant Trevally, eight Kingfish up to 18kgs, six Yellowfin and three Dorado to keep the anglers busy.

Alleycat was out for a half day on Tuesday, which was a really miserable day weather-wise with winds and rain squalls most of the day, Live baiting produced strikes from Wahoo and Kingfish, but luck was not on their side and all the bigger fish fell off the line – a day more suitable for hot rum toddies in the bar later, rather than cold beers!

Tina Harris, who with her team have been running the tagging program for many years, has been awarded the International Game Fish Association’s (IGFA) World-wide Annual Award for Conservation , a great honour as this is a major prestigious prize. Well done Tina, well deserved and Kenya salutes you and the team. We hope more skippers will tag their billfish, as nearly all these are released, but not all with tags. Tagged fish from Kenya have been recovered many thousands of miles away, yielding valuable information to scientists.

Peponi at Lamu and Diani have had nothing to report this week, so we hope business will improve and there will be more reports next week.

7th September 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

There have not been a lot of fishing trips made in the last week but good fishing conditions prevailed and catches of marlin have been reported in the area of the Banks, while there are still some bigger Yellowfin Tuna further out in the Rips.

Fishing out of Watamu, Tarka caught and released two Black Marlin last Friday, together with some Yellowfin, then followed this with a busy day on Monday with a mixed bag of two Wahoo, three Kingfish, two Yellowfin and a Barracuda. On Wednesday they caught and released a nice Bull Shark estimated at 175 kgs, as well as boating a Wahoo and a Kingfish so a good week for this boat.

Alleycat trolled some big baits around the Canyon and the Mountains looking for a big marlin but no luck there, so went closer in to the Banks where they caught two smaller Black Marlin, estimated around 80 -90 kgs, which were duly released, as well as boating some Yellowfin, for an active day. Experienced regular anglers, don’t just want to catch a marlin, but want a big marlin!. August and early September are good months for marlin off Watamu, and there are usually some big ones caught, but the average runs about 80 -120 kgs. Blue marlin normally arrive later in the season, generally being found further out in the deeper water, January to March being the best time.

From Hemingways, Bamara had three yellowfin with Dicky Evans fishing, and Seastorm found some Kingfish another day. The latter boat with Mr Maneesh and family found a Yellowfin Tuna and three Kingfish, and the boats have also had the extra thrill of seeing the Humpback Whales around the Banks.

Kingfisher boats at Malindi had a website report of Neptune releasing a Sailfish and landing a 27kg Kingfish, a good sized one for this species, over a week ago but no other reports for this week, while from Diani there was nothing to report this week. So not a lot of fishing this week, lets hope for more action next week.

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Photos courtesy of Alleycat

31st August 2019

Written by David Slater for Captain Andy's

The new fishing season has been under way for a few weeks, with initially rough weather which has calmed down recently. There were good catches of Black Marlin late July and early August in the Banks area, and some big Yellowfin Tuna were caught around mid August onward in the Rips. Not many trips were made but business is expected to perk up with the calmer weather.

Tarka, with skipper Callum Looman, is always one of the first boats to get going, and had an active three days out with regular angler Peter Hofmann. They released three Black Marlin from the four that were raised, and five Sailfish were also released from seven strikes. They also had good mixed bags of Wahoo, Yellowfin and Kingfish, so a good start to the season.

Alleycat was out in the Rips and made some good catches of Yellowfin Tuna, running to over 30 kgs in mid August, while Eclare from Malindi, found Yellowfin with the biggest making 62 kgs one trip and 48kgs another.

Neptune, from Malindi, has been catching Sailfish, two one day released and singles on other days, and released a Shark as well. Most boats are catching good mixed bags of Wahoo, Yellowfin and Kingfish around the Banks, while the bigger Yellowfin are further out in the Rips.

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August

Photo courtesy of Danny Thomas - White Mischief

Later in August, Tarka fished by Martina and Ronald for several days, releasing a Black Marlin and fighting another on light tackle for over two hours before losing the fish. Alleycat had three days with Ben Finger, and caught a nice Marlin which was released after a very acrobatic display, and the same angler caught a good Giant Trevally, but eventually half of his catch was eaten by sharks. Sharks are always present on the banks and present a risk to bigger fish which take time to bring to the boat. Tarka’s score so far is four Marlin and ten Sail, with several Marlin spotted tailing but not coming up to the baits. We hope they get hungry and star feeding on baits soon !

There are also humpback whales around the Banks, an additional thrill for anglers, while some boats take out parties of whale watchers who are not fishing.

A good catch of four Sailfish was reported from Manda Bay recently but no details. No reports from Mtwapa, Mombasa and south yet this season. 

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