This much sought after fish is hunted eagerly during the period from October to April, although fairly
good catches of smaller kob are also made during winter, depending on conditions of course.

Although kob, particularly the bigger ones, are not the greatest of fighters on the hook, I still have to see an angler who is not excited, thankful and proud when he has landed a kob.  The amazing colours on the head and the perfect big scales, shining like new coins, often leave bystanders speechless!

The bigger kob are known as “boerkabeljou” and “kwaggas” in the Mossel Bay/Still Bay area, whilst in the Knysna/Plettenberg Bay area they are called “rietbulle”.

Where to search for kob and which bait to use:
The water condition associated with kob is the so-called “ginger beer” or “pea-soup” water, that’s to say discolored water which results from a disturbance of the seabed which is caused by inshore currents.  These conditions are typical along the coast at Gourits Mouth and occur after two or three days of mild to strong south-easterly winds.  The kob, unlike other fish, flourishes in these conditions thanks to its strong gills. They easily catch their prey in the discolored water with the help of their sense of smell and their lateral line, which is able to pick up the faintest vibrations of baitfish.

The following strategy is recommended for the angler in the Southern Cape region who specifically wants to fish for kob:  Fishing from a sandy beach at night, you look for a fairly calm sea without too many undercurrents.  Furthermore, watch out for deep gullies.  Note that the waves do not frequently break into these gullies, but next to them.  Sometimes the kob are found in the gullies, but more often than not you will find them next to the gully on sandbanks in fairly shallow water, chasing mullet.  Fresh chokka, octopus, sardine and fish bait such as mackerel and karanteen are the best bait, while a combination of chokka and fish bait works well too.  Although kob venture into very shallow water at night, the hour before and after high tide produces the best results.  Occasionally good catches are made during low tide when you can walk over sandbanks, enabling you to cast into deeper water.  Otherwise, the best time is from sunset to about ten o’clock and again from 4 a.m. to sunrise.  During daytime, while fishing from sandy beaches, you must look for foamy or discolored water.

In the sea near river mouths:
A good example is the rocks on the Kanon side of the Gourits mouth, where unbelievable catches have been made over the years.  The ideal time is when the discoloured water from the river reaches your fishing spot during the outgoing tide.  With the kob following the shoals of mullet to the sea, the angler merely has to be at the right spot at the right time to make sure that he returns home with a bag full of fish.  The best bait to use here is an octopus tentacle, as well as live mullet.  Fish bait such as karanteen or mackerel also work well,  but barbel can be a real nuisance and usually get to the bait before the kob do.  When the incoming tide pushes the discoloured water back towards the river and past your fishing spot, you must be ready for action again!

Fransmanshoek near VleesBay s an excellent spot for kob fishing, but can become unpleasant when all and sundry gather in a very small area called “die Saal” to exploit the ideal conditions.

These conditions occur when the sea is too rough at other fishing spots, during or after strong south-westerly or westerly winds, with the colour of the sea a light dirty brown.  Lovely kob, averaging between 10-20 kg, are regularly  caught in these conditions.  Chokka, octopus, mackerel, strepie (karanteen), sardines, pinkie (gor-gor) and elf (shad), with the latter also used for live bait, are the most efficient bait.

Tackle:
You need a medium to heavy rod, suitable for casting a fairly heavy bait, and a matching reel which may be any of the proven, well-known reels with a line capacity of at least 250 meters.  For beach angling, nylon line with a breaking strain of 12-16 kg is sufficient, but when you are fishing from rocks on a rocky bottom, 17-18 kg breaking strain line is recommended.  Depending on the kind an size of bait, Kendal round hooks (6/0 - 9/0) or a modern chemically sharpened hook of the same size is most effective.

How to catch the kob:
Special care should be taken to present an attractive bait on the hook.  The hook must be very sharp!  Sometimes a kob will fool around with the bait, picking it up and spitting it out before taking it properly.  The experienced angler will allow the fish to pull the rod down before the strike is made.  When fishing with live bait, count to ten before you strike.  Many a kob is missed or lost because the excited angler strikes hard against the run in which case the hook is inclined to rip open the fish’s jaw which means that the hook is likely to be thrown in the course of the ensuing struggle.  Apart from this, the line can snap when the angler strikes too briskly.  The kob will shake its head vigorously in an endeavor to throw the hook, so keep your line taut all the time.  By the way, these typical shakes of the head are a sure indication for the angler that he’s got a kob at the end of his line.

Miscellaneous:
The flesh of a kob is extremely palatable.  Occasionally worms are found in the flesh, but although this doesn’t look at all appetizing, scientists assure us that these worms are quite harmless and the flesh is quite fit for human consumption.