{"id":11939,"date":"2021-02-24T09:28:16","date_gmt":"2021-02-24T07:28:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/?p=11939"},"modified":"2021-02-24T09:28:42","modified_gmt":"2021-02-24T07:28:42","slug":"targeting-tigers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/?p=11939","title":{"rendered":"Targeting Tigers"},"content":{"rendered":"
\t\t\t

Unlike the upper reaches of the largest river that empties into the Indian Ocean, as you cruise down stream, fishing in the lower Zambezi is more focussed on what you can see and throw at. Below Kariba the river spreads into many channels, with the largely controlled flow rate from this tailwater creating permanent islands, and as the water gradually erodes the banks, it fells the mighty trees that litter the bank.<\/p>\n

The net result is a tremendous amount of structure providing the ideal habitat for ambush predators.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>

\"\"<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\t\t\t

 <\/p>\n

There are two main target species, one being the impressive Vundu, a catfish that you want to tick off that list and the other being what has really made this river famous for game fishing, both of which will readily engulf a fly.<\/p>\n

If the superb game viewing isn\u2019t reason enough to visit Baines River Camp then the Tiger fishing certainly is. Situated in the GMA, it allows you to fish both the main river opposite Mana Pools and the Lower Zambezi National Park. You can literally throw a line from this luxury lodge.<\/p>\n

Our recent trip taught us a few lessons that are worth remembering when you embark on this adventure.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>

\"\"<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"\"<\/div><\/div>
\t\t\t

You\u2019re going to be doing a lot of casting, at times in intense heat, so make sure that you practice with your 9wt or a severe case of tennis elbow might be all you get for your efforts. It\u2019s important to be able to put your fly tight up against the structure, so accuracy is more important than length. You also want to be able to load your line with ease, so don\u2019t go under gunned, we put the the GR80 Greys stick thoroughly through it\u2019s paces and it did not disappoint. A lot of fly fishers tend to overload their rods with a heavier line than the AFTMA, but we found the 40 Plus Airflo 9S7 proved to be ideal for the task.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\t\t\t

As you drift down, the aim is to \u00a0bang your fly just above the oncoming structure and swing it past the break that the fallen tree has created from the current. You\u2019ll get a lot of pretenders to the throne harassing your fly but pretty soon you\u2019ll encounter the title holder that inhabits these waters.<\/p>\n

Where ever you find converging water created by the channels flowing through the sandbanks and islands you should find some fish holding, especially if these meet with the main river. It\u2019s easier to sit and wait for that passing meal than have to expend unnecessary energy swimming around looking for it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>

\"\"<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"\"<\/div><\/div>
\t\t\t

 <\/p>\n

Back waters will hold the Tilapia and Tigers in proverbial nappies, so in these outflows you could also stumble across a decent fish waiting to pounce on the brave youngster who ventures out of the nursery.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s the drop off \u2019s that most people tend to overlook, as they don\u2019t immediately jump out at you but with the amount of sandbanks that this braided section of the Zambezi has, there is no shortage of them.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\"\"<\/div><\/div>
\t\t\t

 <\/p>\n

A drop off affords the big Tigers the break from the current and as they are not particularly worried about any other predator, they will sit in the open river on said drop off, ready to ambush whatever comes overhead. To target these areas properly you have to try and anchor up or drift slowly over them, casting above your drift, so that your line has time to get down to the zone.<\/p>\n

There is no gentle enquiry with any Tiger strike, a big fish will almost wrench the rod from your hand! So, hold on and stick it like a pig. Always line strike, never lift your rod and give it no quarter. The more string you allow this fish, chances are they will put you in the structure and leave you ruing the opportunity lost.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

\t\t\t

Tigers are renowned for their spectacular jumps, trying to throw your hook, but don\u2019t give them any slack, horse them in and feel that line burn!<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re out at the crack of dawn or fishing to last last then enjoy the surface action. You need a good line to throw a popper \/ flipper, and we find the SuperDry Tropical Airflo perfect for the job. Same strategy in terms of structure targeting, just remember not to strike right away…easier said than done\u2026but try let the Tiger really eat before line striking. You\u2019ll lose more than a few on the surface, but watching the smashes makes it all worth while.<\/p>\n

Hooks that do the job their are many, I prefer the Gamakatsu B10S and when it comes to flies, we favour dark brush flies that push a lot of water as well as Whistlers or a heavily weighted Clouser to punch through the water on a quicker drift. Although we\u2019ve caught on a variety of colour combinations, Black and Red \/ White is a firm favourite.<\/p>\n

But quite frankly I don\u2019t think a Tiger is all that discerning, if you put it in it\u2019s path it\u2019s have a proper go.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>

\"\"<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\t\t\t

Do remember that in the lower Zambezi you\u2019re not top of the food chain, in fact you are very much on the menu as the population of flat dogs defy belief, so don\u2019t be putting your limbs in the water when you release fish.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Unlike the upper reaches of the largest river that empties into the Indian Ocean, as you cruise down stream, fishing in the lower Zambezi is more focussed on what you can see and throw at. Below Kariba the river spreads into many channels, with the largely controlled flow rate from this tailwater creating permanent islands, and as the water gradually erodes the banks, it fells the mighty trees that litter the bank. The net result […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":11940,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[288,226,287,303,304,302,228],"class_list":["post-11939","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-airflo","tag-baines-river-camp","tag-greys","tag-lower-zambezi","tag-tifer-fishing","tag-tigerfish","tag-zambezi"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Untitled-1-1.jpg","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3541,"url":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/?p=3541","url_meta":{"origin":11939,"position":0},"title":"Zambezi River God Adventures","author":"Craig Thomassen","date":"November 24, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"When conditions present a challenge, then sometimes we have to adjust our focus and our techniques, in order to make the most of our trip.This happened to us recently on a fishing trip to the lower Zambezi, where we had been invited to fish with a new operation called; Zambezi\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2565,"url":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/?p=2565","url_meta":{"origin":11939,"position":1},"title":"Wlldfly Crew revisit the Lower Zam & Tsika Island","author":"Gareth","date":"December 4, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Video - Tsika Island - Lower Zambezi River The Wildfly crew managed to get back to our favorite destination down on the lower Zambezi in early November\u2026.. We took our local Notties publican, Clive Foss, along to keep things lubricated and on his first day on the river he landed\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Destinations"","block_context":{"text":"Destinations","link":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/?cat=51"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3239,"url":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/?p=3239","url_meta":{"origin":11939,"position":2},"title":"Lower Zambezi Tiger Fish Under Pressure","author":"Craig Thomassen","date":"January 4, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"In the last few weeks of 2013 I did a few trips into some different parts of Africa which really highlighted the issue of our fish resources being decimated by unsustainable fishing. The areas I visited were vastly different in many ways, but one thing that every one of them\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"b2ap3_thumbnail_DSC_5628.jpg","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.fishbook.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/b2ap3_thumbnail_DSC_5628.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3157,"url":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/?p=3157","url_meta":{"origin":11939,"position":3},"title":"Matoya Lodge, upper Zambezi","author":"Craig Thomassen","date":"June 7, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Just back from an awesome trip to the upper Zambezi. Winter is definitely the best time for that part of the river, where the floodplains are drying up and baitfish are being forced back into the main river. It seems that all the big tigers gather there and are hungry\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"b2ap3_thumbnail_IMG_0281.jpg","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.fishbook.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/b2ap3_thumbnail_IMG_0281.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2746,"url":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/?p=2746","url_meta":{"origin":11939,"position":4},"title":"Zambezi Attack","author":"Gareth","date":"December 6, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"It\u2019s hard to fathom a river system as vast as the great Zambezi. Traversing six countries, it\u2019s epic 2500km journey ends by giving the Indian Ocean it\u2019s largest injection of fresh water from any river in Africa.\u00a0There are several hundred species of fish throughout the Zambezi system and it\u2019s tributaries,\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.fishbook.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/b2ap3_thumbnail_Jeremy12cu.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3167,"url":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/?p=3167","url_meta":{"origin":11939,"position":5},"title":"Return to Matoya","author":"Craig Thomassen","date":"July 12, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Having visited Matoya in June, I was surprised to get the opportunity to head back there a month later. The water levels had dropped by at least a metre and there was an open spot on a trip going up there. The lodge owners contacted us and asked if I\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"b2ap3_thumbnail_Matoya-009-2.jpg","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.fishbook.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/b2ap3_thumbnail_Matoya-009-2.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa8sv9-36z","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11939","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11939"}],"version-history":[{"count":60,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11939\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12012,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11939\/revisions\/12012"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/11940"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11939"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11939"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishbook.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11939"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}