Kenya Coast Fishing Safaris
Lamu, Shimoni and Watamu Fishing Tours and Safaris
Introduction:
We run fishing safaris from Watamu, either to Lamu on the north coast of Kenya or Shimoni on the south coast of Kenya.
Lamu is an old Arab town steeped in history that is on the south end of archipelago of islands.
Further North of Lamu is the Robinson Crusoe style islands of Kiwayu and Koi.
Lamu is a day’s fishing north of Watamu and has many exciting reasons to try one of these once in a lifetime trips.
The in-shore fishing in these waters can be rewarding.
There is the chance to fish for bone fish, mangrove snappers, trevally, barracuda and an African tarpon or pompano.
Further out the sailfish fishing can be quite extraordinary in the early part of the season.
At the peak of the marlin season, many of the big fish fishermen like to hunt for that chance of a thousand-pound blue or black marlin.
Shimoni is a day fishing trip off the South Coast.
On a good day it is an amazing area for striped marlin.
There have been days with over ten striped marlin tagged on a boat.
In the deep water between Pemba Island and the mainland there is always the chance of a blue or black marlin.
Fish species for Big Game Fishing:
Kenya’s best asset as a big game fishing destination is the variety of fish available.
There are billfish, including black marlin, blue marlin and striped marlin. Sailfish, broadbill swordfish and short billed spearfish are also present in these waters.
Kenya is one of the few places that has had some fantasy slams over the last few seasons. These include a catch of five species of billfish in one trip.
There have also been record catches of black, blue & striped marlin, broadbill swordfish and sailfish.
There are two methods used to catch marlin. Early season, the vast majority of marlin caught are black marlin.
The best way to catch them is to live bait, frigate mackerel, bonito or tuna.
Some of the biggest black marlin catches on record were off the coast
of Watamu Beach. The best catches included 860lbs, 840lbs and 810lbs.
Later in the season, when the blue and striped marlin arrive in decent numbers, artificial lures are good for securing a catch.
The best of the blue marlin caught off the Watamu coast weighed in at 800lbs, 550lbs and 521lbs.
The best striped marlin weighed in at 213lbs. Small lures with a strip of bait fish work well to catch sailfish and broadbill swordfish during nighttime hours.
There are many shark species available off the Kenyan Coast.
These include tiger sharks, bull sharks, hammerheads, makos, silver/black/white tip sharks and spinner sharks.
Sharks get caught as you live bait for other fish such as marlin. To see a big mako cartwheeling through the air has got to be one of the greatest sites in big game fishing.
Watamu offers some of the finest deep-sea fishing in the world with a huge variety of different species close to shore. Black, blue and striped marlin, sailfish, broadbill, wahoo and yellowfin tuna are just some of the species available. All the boats operating out of Watamu have a tag and release policy.
If you are interested in fly fishing this can also be arranged. Many people have broken records for fly fishing in Kenya. It is recommended that you book with us in advance as the boats do get booked up early.
You can fish throughout the year. The Kenya coast is famous for its large variety of fish. Wahoo, Yellowfin Tuna, Dorado, Kingfish, Barracuda, Giant Trevally are frequently caught. Of the Billfish, Sailfish and Striped Marlin are the most common, also possibility to catch Black and Blue Marlin as well as Sharks.
There are days when the fish doesn’t bite as wished, but you could be a lucky one to see Dolphins doing their acrobatics or Humpback Whale splashing its enormous body in water as they migrate along the Kenyan Coast as well as Sea Turtles.
Soft drinks and mineral water are provided as well as all first-class fishing gear and bait ideal for a successful fishing trip. We recommend you have good sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat to protect from the sun.