Tiger Shakes on the Zambezi |
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Page 1 of 5 Tiger ShakeS on the Zambezi
It was not exactly clear what first woke me. Was it the melodic sound of the Lozi Tribe’s women humming as they prepared fresh coffee in the pre-dawn hour, or the peaceful gurgling of the Zambezi River as it glided not more than three feet from the door of my safari tent? In any case...I was awake. Opening the door, allowing the smells and sounds of a restless African morning into my room, I grabbed the flask of coffee that had been quietly placed on my tent veranda a few minutes earlier. As the sun crept over the Zambezi Riverine Forest, tendrils of steam swirled on the water's surface. I sipped my coffee - enjoying the solitude and time it offered me to reflect on the day ahead - before raising my clients. It was the kind of solitude, calmness, and general tranquillity that I knew would be shattered and torn to shards at the first savage strike of the infamous tigerfish.
As is most often the case on fly-fishing trips, my clients were up and ready, eager to get onto the water to test their skills on the mighty Zambezi River. Hydrocynus vittatus, directly translated “Striped Water Dog,” and commonly known as the tigerfish is arguably one of the world’s strongest and definitely the most savage fresh water fly-fishing target. During the months of June through November, fly-fishermen in the know, make their way to the Zambezi and Okavango Rivers in Southern Africa to target these fish, along with a host of other species which call these river systems home. Tackle readied and primed the evening before, and after a quick bite to eat, we boarded our motorized boats. We would be fishing a stretch of productive water 30 minutes upstream from our secluded island camp. From June through August (the dry winter months), the warmer waters of the upper Zambezi flood plains recede and flow back into the main Zambezi channel, bringing vast quantities of recently spawned baitfish flushed from the relative safety of their nurseries. Tigerfish and numerous predatory bream are aware of this phenomenon and feed aggressively during these months. Over the past 10 years, we have developed a range of flies that accurately imitate the predominant baitfish in the area, these being mainly barbs and minnows. By tying flies that accurately imitate the baitfish washed-off the plains, fly-fishermen commonly out-fish lure-fishermen by 10 or more to one. As with most baitfish imitations, size, colour and profile are the key factors considered in fly design. Variations of Clousers, Rabbit Zonker baitfish patterns and Whistlers are the common patterns used. Most flies are tied on #2 stinger hooks. Productive colours are black, black over grey, black over red, grey over yellow and fire tiger. Most commercially tied patterns are tied far too full with excess flash. Sparsely tied flies with minimal or no flash are the order of the day here.
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Circling Victoria Falls, a natural Wonder of the World, the afternoon prior, I was pleased to notice what looked like a healthy drop in water levels. Gauging by a mark left on the submerged tree stump outside my tent, my aerial observations were affirmed. From a nearby Ilala palm, the unmistakable call of a Huguenots robin brought me back to the present. I rose from my veranda chair and made my way toward the client’s tents. The glowing red light emanating from the “Donkey-Boilers” (wood-fire heated geysers) along the pathway, cast shadows on huge crinkled tracks in the sand. It was clear the island’s resident elephants had passed during the night, most probably snacking on the nutrient rich Acacia tree seed pods. 
