OK so I know its not hunting but after a few days of hunting, I will be in Botswana for a few days going Tiger Fishing (the fish not the mammal). I know people catch them with spinning tackle, but I haven't used a spinner in years. I pretty much fly fish, so I was wondering if anyone has an links, experiences or any useful info on Tiger Fishing using a fly rod or any colors that would be good.

Thanks,

You can catch them on fly, spinners, lures and bait - live or dead. Whatever you use, I'd recommend a wire trace and single hooks. - trebles don't seem to work very well as they seem to have a tendancy to slip out of their mouths. If you're using artificial lures, start with something red and go from there.

you can expect to catch catfish and various tilapia species and black bass as well.

Regarding lures, I find those rattlin' rapalas work especially well........

If you use a fly set up, I'd recommend a fairly heavy set up - around 8-10, a sink tip or floating line, wire traces and something like a streamer fly. As I said, either single or tandem single hooks.

FWIW, I'm going to fish the Limpopo from the Tuli bank this year and will be taking a shark fishing set up to try to catch me crocodile on rod and line.........

Steve is right. Get the largest Mepps spinner you can - yellow seems to work for me. Replace the treble hook on the tail with a single large hook. Use a small file to sharpen the hooks. And never trawl (sp?) the spinner - it winds up your line. Be careful of the snap-on traces as they are often not strong enough. Live bait and floating fish fillets also work well. (Catch a small tiger to fillet with a yellow mepps #4) Also take a golden/red spoon and a selection of green/yellow, orange and silver rapala. Only use deep divers where you know there's space below.

And remember to strike and strike and strike when it hits ... Good luck!

FWIW, I'm going to fish the Limpopo from the Tuli bank this year and will be taking a shark fishing set up to try to catch me crocodile on rod and line.........


My experience with Botswana's Tuli Block consists of two trips, but both times the Limpopo was reduced to small, shallow pools with lots of sand between them. There were crocs in the pools, to be sure, but are game fish able to survive such droughts?

Incidentally, the first time I fished for tigers was in Zimbabwe in 1983 and it took me a while to figure out what my companions meant by "traces." For those as dumb as I, they're what we call "leaders."

Bill Quimby

Bill,

The camp I use has a dam downstream of the camp and it causes a year long waterhole about a mile long, fifty or sixty yards across and I'd guess about 20 feet deep. It's always stuffed full of crocs and fish....... I've tried to catch a flstdog there for the last 4 or 5 years and although I've hooked into quite a lot of them, they've always broken me up in the past....... hence the shark fishing outfit this time.

Shakari: Now that's what I call fishing!

Yup, it's great fun - God knows what I'll use if the shark outfit doesn't work..... maybe a vehicle winch!

If you want to do some really exciting fishing Goto the site www.fishingski.co.za and book trip with Don.You can see some of the photos in the gallery. This is great fun.

do yourself a huge favor and purchase some quality ball bearing swivels. not those cheapy brass one vbut the stainless steel ones that cost about a dollar a piece. While you're at the tackle shop buy some 20# Berkley Fireline any heavier and you won't cast it as it is stiff. Most anything in Red, Red & Silver, Orange and White that you'd toss for a salmon will catch them. Tie a few threads of mylar to the skirt sure won't hurt either. Take a bunch cause they'll rip them up quickly.

quote:

Originally posted by shakari:
FWIW, I'm going to fish the Limpopo from the Tuli bank this year and will be taking a shark fishing set up to try to catch me crocodile on rod and line.........

I've caught a few 100-pound-plus makos and brown sharks in the Sea of Cortez five hours south of where I live in Tucson, and had to cut the line when I got them to the boat because we had no way of handling them. I wish you good luck, of course, but have you considered what you'll do when you do wind in a croc?

Bill Quimby

Yup,

I'm not so bloody silly as to try to unhook it!I'll cut the line as close to the thing as I deem safe and let the natural corrosive acids etc do the rest........

I wasn't worrying about the croc. Good luck. Have someone around to take a photo. Sounds like fun.

Bill Quimby

Thanks, will do....