With my foot on mend, I eventually made way onto the flats and channels of the sprawling Knysna Lagoon. It really is daunting web of channels, sand banks and mud flats that leave anybody who hasn’t it before feeling a little overwhelmed and lost!

I really like having a boat on water as it allows one mobility between productive spots but this season the boat has stayed on the trailer – too cold, too busy, maybe even too lazy; the reasons for the hull not getting wet are numerous. As a result, I turned to the canoe as an answer to getting around the lagoon.

So yesterday afternoon I loaded the canoe onto the bakkie and headed to north side of the lagoon. I refer to the area between the train bridges and the N2 bridge (The “White Bridge”) as the northern side. This web of channels and large deep holes are separated by numerous mud and sand banks that form productive tidal flats.

I had hoped to stalk grunter over the mud flats but once I was on the water, I realised the wind had caused the water vis over the shallows to deteriorate, so instead of turning round and heading to the clear tidal waters close to the Heads, I changed tactics, tied a popper on started working a long bend in the channel. Over the next hour and a bit, I was kept interested by  a couple of swirls behind my mini NYAP, but feeling unconvinced I changed to a silicone mullet. Three casts later, on! And off…

At least it got the blood pumping and, if only for a moment, put a bend in my rod. The wind was really up now but I decided on another 20 min before I’d head over to check Kob Korner, a productive dropoff and back eddy close to Belvedere.

A few minutes later I was in again. It was with a smile that I landed a little juvenile garrick. It wasn’t going to break records, but considering the cold water and weather, I was not complaining.