The Demons of Durban- Part IV

The End of Days

   A shark struggles against the side of the jetty, as countless anglers hold onto ropes that have grapple gaffs attached to the other end digging deeper and deeper into the unlucky specimens flesh as it gives one last violent struggle to try to save its own life.......But the struggle has exhausted the fish, and its day has finally come. The anglers would normally try to drag the shark up onto the jetty, but in some cases, they would allow the shark to suffocate and die, until it was wore out enough to drag it around to the beach side. Once a fish had been brought up onto the jetty or beach, they would enlist the help of as many willing anglers and bystanders possible to help get the shark to their home made weigh station on the jetty adjacent to the railroad tracks. The weigh station was constructed of three metal beams in a pyramid like structure, with a scale attached to the centerpoint to accurately weigh the fish.

Unknown man weighing a small white shark on the clubs homemade scale

 The peak of the fishing season lasted only for a few months each year, but by the 1970's the whale population had declined greatly, therefore the act of whaling was outlawed in the early 70's, ending the era of a style of fishing that we may never see again in our lifetimes. These men and their accomplishments have been lost throughout the burrow of time, which is incredible to even consider due largely inpart to the fact of not only the size of the specimens they were capturing from the jetty, but also the gear these anglers used, and their innovative styles to help them pursuit some of the biggest fish ever caught from a shoreline in history. We have enjoyed being able to bring this multi-part expose to the public to read, and we hope with what we have just done here, that the legendary achievements of these fisherman will live on through many others now as well, and they may not be forgotten once again.

Wyn Moxley with a 1490lb White Shark taken from the jetty

R. Harrison with a 1660lb white shark, the largest ever taken from shore

The Demons of Durban- Part III

Club Member Johnnie with a grander Tiger Shark in 1951

"The Battle"

   The noise of endless scuffling and panic now echoed up and down the confines of the usually quiet jetty, fear and anticipation was now thick in the air amongst the anglers, as a large shark had just taken one of the baits that had been patiently awaiting a trip to its final destination, deep within the jaws of hell. The lucky angler quickly springs into action and promptly responds to the line being taken off the wooden reel by throwing the rod over his shoulder while palming the reel to not allow anymore line to escape from the spool temporarily, he then ran across the jetty in the opposite direction of the denizen attached to the other end. By employing this technique, the angler had now set the hook firmly into the mouth of the shark at the other end, which then solidified the commitment the angler had just made to see this battle out until the end, win or lose.

 

An unknown angler applying pressure to a shark with a leather pad

 The beast was now beginning to drag the angler at the other end of the line back toward the wall of the concrete jetty, where other fellow anglers awaited to help assist the man fighting the shark assume the battle position. Due to the style of rods and reels these men were using, the fighting technique was much different than that of which we use today. The angler sat on the ground in a position similar to the cross-legged "Indian Style" children sit like during early grade school. The angler would then proceed to place the bottom of the rod under one of his buttocks, and place the fore grip of the rod, just above the reel, on his left thigh for support and leverage. This sounds uncomfortable for most people, but this tactic was not only necessary, but a key part in helping to stop these giants of the inlet. Because the reels had no anti-reverse or drag system, the reels operated more or less as spools, which were free flowing at all times, unless slowed or obstructed by some sort of object.In the heat of battle and during the sharks initial run for safety, the anglers would use thick pads of leather and cowhide to palm the spool of the wooden reel with, and to have some sort of chance to apply enough pressure for a long enough period of time to break the sharks will.

A skilled angler could apply pressure with leather pads using both hands

The battles with some of these monsters could last from 6-8 hours, and these anglers would not take any breaks during this time period, it was not considered a catch within their club unless the angler fought the shark the entire duration of the battle himself, this process also included securing the first rope onto the unlucky specimen, to be drug up onto the jetty or beach and weighed after a short photo session. The anglers in the shark club may have also been the first anglers to ever use the modern day "bridge gaff" as a tool to help secure the catch, thus sealing the sharks early demise. But not all of these sharks were able to be pulled up by ropes onto the jetty, sometimes, it was a lot more complicated than that....

 Anglers subduing a small White Shark with grappling hooks better known as "Bridge Gaffs"

"The Demons of Durban- Part I"

"The Demons of Durban- Part II"

The Demons of Durban - Part I

   With the popularity of Land-Based shark fishing again reaching a point of interest, which hasn't been seen since the late 1970's, I figured it was time to release some information I have diligently worked on gathering and researching over the past few years. We do not just participate actively within the sport of land based shark fishing, but we also like to pay homage to the history of the sport, to get a clear picture of how this revolutionary style of angling began, and if we can learn anything from the fore fathers of the sport. So it brings us to this day and age, its the year 2010 and do we know who really was responsible for the beginning of land-based shark fishing? Well, now you are all about to find out who these visionaries were and what their accomplishments consist of. It's truly amazing that not many have heard of this group of anglers from Durban South Africa, for their accomplishments were nothing short of amazing. This is the beginning to a multiple part series that we will be spotlighting the anglers and their achievements, along with how they executed these miraculous feats, that I can honestly say I didn't believe were possible until enough research was done, until I finally got to see it for myself, as you are about to witness first-hand with your eyes, so sit back and be prepared to be left aghast with the stories and pictures of "The Demons of Durban".

Part-I

"The Beginnings"

 Early in the twentieth century, in a town which is now known internationally for its history of violent shark attacks, a group of men would fish on the legendary South jetty of Durban South Africa just off the edge of the shipping and whaling lanes for grunters and various other pan fish for table fare. But over the course of the years during the South African whaling season, the anglers would constantly see numerous large sharks that entered the lanes to feast upon the whales scraps that were useless to the whalers, and tossed aside into the harbor's dead end. Every year between May 1st and September 30th, the south jetty of Durban, would be littered with the anglers that formed a small group called the Durban Shark Club.All these anglers congregated here during this time for the sole fact that this was the time period allotted for hunting the Baleen whales that migrated down the African coast, and that was the signal that the demons would be entering the harbor to feed. When the whalers would arrive back at port with their catches in tow, the sharks would be nipping at the heels of the boats and their prize harvest. Many accounts have even recorded that up till the moment the entire whale carcass was drug up the whaling chute, that there were Zambezi (Bull) sharks, hanging onto the carcass until the last possible moment to get one last chunk of the rich blubbery flesh before they awaited the return of the next whaler in the fleet.

With the assistance of the railway that ran offshore on the south jetty, which was placed there to lower large rocks into the water around the jetty for repairs after rough seas damaged the structure, the anglers would head over to the whaling slip and gather their bait for the afternoon. They would then proceed to place a hundred pounds or so of discarded whale blubber on the railcar and begin the trek to the end of the jetty, where the demons patrolled the channel,looking for yet another opportunistic, and easy meal to be presented toward them. But the task ahead was a tall one, with many of these sharks eclipsing the 500-1000lbs mark, how could these men hook these fish, never the less have a shot and landing one of these giants..........