Fishing & rivers

South Africa's warm Indian Ocean coast makes it a genuine big-game fishing destination. Deep-sea charters run out of Durban and KwaZulu-Natal towns like Richards Bay, and, on the south coast, Margate and Port Shepstone — chasing black and blue marlin, sailfish, yellowfin tuna, dorado and wahoo as the warm Agulhas Current sweeps close inshore. The cooler Cape adds rock-and-surf and estuary angling for a different cast of species.

The Sardine Run

The country's signature marine spectacle is the KwaZulu-Natal Sardine Run, nicknamed the "greatest shoal on Earth." Roughly between May and July each year, vast shoals of sardines move north from the cold Cape waters into KZN's subtropical seas — shoals reported to run kilometres long — drawing sharks, dolphins, Cape gannets and whales into dramatic feeding frenzies that divers and boat trips come to witness.

Trout country

Inland, cool highland waters make South Africa a surprising trout destination. Dullstroom in Mpumalanga is regarded as the country's fly-fishing capital, with a high concentration of stocked dams and streams, while the Drakensberg offers dozens of rivers and dams for rainbow and brown trout. The prime trout season generally runs through the cooler months.

Rivers & rapids

Rivers shape the country's angling and adventure life. The Orange is South Africa's longest, rising in the Drakensberg of Lesotho and flowing west to the Atlantic — commonly given as roughly 2,200 km, though sources vary. Its largest tributary, the Vaal, waters the industrial heartland, while the Breede in the Western Cape is a noted estuary and wine-country river. White-water rafting ranges from gentle multi-day floats on the Orange to punchier runs on the Ash River near Clarens and technical water on KwaZulu-Natal's Tugela.

Before you cast

Recreational anglers need a permit to fish public waters — the sea, estuaries, rivers and state dams — though not private farm dams. Marine and freshwater permits are issued through the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (including online and at Post Office branches) and provincial bodies such as CapeNature.