Adventure on the high seas

The IPL tour itinerary is hectic. But finally there was a welcome break between matches and it was time for all of us to get down and dangerous with some adventure sports; some action to get out of cricket mode

We had heard a lot about shark fishing in South Africa. Now, being American and having been to Florida many a time, I know a bit about sharks - Florida's beaches have had their fair share of shark attacks, hearing about those had definitely left a mark in my mind. For a long time I didn't venture out into the open sea on a boat or skiff. However, in South Africa, the overall atmosphere, and the friendliness of the people, made it a lot easier for us. The beaches here are very safe and nice, and they made me lose my fear of venturing onto a boat. So finally me and the gals decided that going high-sea fishing would be a great idea. Away from stadiums and fans, amidst the salt water and the spray. Ah, the balmy sea breeze and the whiff of nature. It was almost romantic.

Once decided, there was no looking back. In no time we were on a skiff, away from the bay into the ocean. But it turned out to be more than we had bargained for. Jeez, this was no balmy breeze! The water was darn choppy, the sky was overcast, and the waves were rolling. It was a matter of moments before most of us were seasick in varying degrees. There we were, clinging on for dear life to the guardrails of the skiff, trying to absorb the scenic beauty along with the sickening feeling in the pit of our stomachs. Not the most enviable position to be in. But we can't complain - we signed up for it.

With every wave we would scream and giggle and helplessly fall over each other. Fishing was the furthest thing from our minds, our only objective being to hang on to the ride. However, all was not bad. We did manage to reach a place where the waters were not that choppy, and once there we got our fishing rods out, all excited. But that was as close to fishing as we got that day. However hard we tried, none of us could actually fling the bait in the water and get a hook. The twine would get tangled up, we would hook each other's clothes… to cut a long story short, it was absolute pandemonium on the high seas.

It was Mbeki, our guide and navigator, who actually got a few snared, and golly, those were prize catches. These fish were big. I don't really know what they were - they looked like cod or salmon, but I'm not sure. Having failed to actually do it ourselves, we tried to bask in the reflective glory of Mbeki's exploits.

Overall it was a blast - if you can ignore the seasickness and the hanging on for dear life. We laughed, we cried (we even threw up!), and got some pictures posing with the fish. This was one great fishy affair. And it was conquering a fear after a long long time.