Larry Johnson
CCA Members
OK by popular request I have a story for you all.I'm sure you will all get a good laugh about this one!
At some point in you're life, someone will be giving advice/warning while you are having fun and chatting away, while on vacation.
This is what can happen when you are having to much fun!
IN 2002 I was leading a Safaris on Lake Malawi,things went well and everyone had a great time. We had even went up into Mozambique where not to many people travel often and immigration was a different experience,eventually costing us about 8000 MK (Malawi Kwatcha) which is about $100 USD,to get into Mozambique,even though we already had visa's!
It was one of those trips where as soon as you say,,,hey watch the shoreline,because there are often monkeys running along the rocks,,,then within minutes the monkeys appear!
So everything was basically spot on and no problems.
On our way back from Mozambique we planned a stop along the way at Fuware Island which is in the area of Mbenji Island.
We anchored and got ready and over the side we all went,going in different directions. This was the second time I had dove at this island and I had an idea of where to go and what pics I wanted to take.
Namely Aulonocara koningsi. So I'm on my merry way snapping pics and then I start to go over a ridge of rocks and WOW, Protomelas spilonotus! So I just lay down on the rocks at the peak of them and start snapping away. It was awesome,there were 5 males protecting their territories ,which at there extreme boundary,went into the next males boundary, each area covered probably 30 feet, so you can imagine the fin wagging and the excitment I was watching.
I was located on the extreme left of the playing field, although the male I was looking at,,,it was the centre of his territory.
This was towards the end of my dive and my flash card in the camera was getting full, so I pulled it in and I was "chimping" (looking back to see which ones I could delete).
Now I had been here at about 60 feet which is kind of a greeny tinge to the water at that depth and not exactly well lite, laying on this rock for about 10 minutes or so and as I started to turn to my right,,,,wholly mother of GOD,out of the corner of my eye was the largest, biggest, blackest fish that I have ever observed and he was coming toward me!
It was in excess of 9 feet long and would measure approx 18-24 inches wide at the mouth of an even larger pan shaped head! Dorsally the fish was at least taller than is was wide!
Within seconds he was about 5-6 feet away from me he was trying to stick his pan shaped head into the long narrow creavices looking for cichlids,,,,, I just shook my arms straight down in his direction,which I'm sure put a shudder through the water!
The fish immediatly turned on a dime and swam off very fast.I was in such shock that I never even lifted the camera to take a picture!
I don't know how I didn't sh*t my pants,,,maybe it was water pressure.
So, being totally spooked,,,I headed for the boat.
I got to the boat and handed my gear up and then accended the ladder and got into the boat. I must have looked like I had seen a ghost as Adrian said ,'what is the matter'?
I told him what happened and I thought it was some kind of a catfish about 3 1/2 mters long (they do metric over there).
He replied, with no hesitation 'Bombay', I said how big do they grow? He said 'I cannot lift it takes at least three men to lift',,,now consider this guy is small but can lift and carry a 25 gallon barrel (2/3 full) on his shoulder for 1000 ft,,,3 men means that they grow big!
Adrian also added that they do not taste that great,,,so I guess no one takes them to eat unless they have to.
When we all got back to Kambiri Point, Ad was still there and I mentioned what had happened,,,he said I told you about those large fish 2 years ago! Ad went on to remind me how he told us back in '99', on the boat while on Safaris,he first observed one of these cats on a big rock and made a note of the length of it,when it moved away,Ad went to the spot and laid down where the catfish had been,,,,and looking at himself and where the cat was he figured it was about 7 foot.
Yes,I remember that story,,,I didn't remember how big,black and ugly it was,,,he never mentioned that part!
He said this fish is called Clarius gigas.Ya GIGAS meaning frigging GIGANTIC!
These cats are generally shy and it had approached me, not by intent but becuase it was hunting for dinner and did not see me because I had been holding still for a long time,,,,being pre-occupied!
In Africa,if you snooze,you loose!
Cheers,Larry
At some point in you're life, someone will be giving advice/warning while you are having fun and chatting away, while on vacation.
This is what can happen when you are having to much fun!
IN 2002 I was leading a Safaris on Lake Malawi,things went well and everyone had a great time. We had even went up into Mozambique where not to many people travel often and immigration was a different experience,eventually costing us about 8000 MK (Malawi Kwatcha) which is about $100 USD,to get into Mozambique,even though we already had visa's!
It was one of those trips where as soon as you say,,,hey watch the shoreline,because there are often monkeys running along the rocks,,,then within minutes the monkeys appear!
So everything was basically spot on and no problems.
On our way back from Mozambique we planned a stop along the way at Fuware Island which is in the area of Mbenji Island.
We anchored and got ready and over the side we all went,going in different directions. This was the second time I had dove at this island and I had an idea of where to go and what pics I wanted to take.
Namely Aulonocara koningsi. So I'm on my merry way snapping pics and then I start to go over a ridge of rocks and WOW, Protomelas spilonotus! So I just lay down on the rocks at the peak of them and start snapping away. It was awesome,there were 5 males protecting their territories ,which at there extreme boundary,went into the next males boundary, each area covered probably 30 feet, so you can imagine the fin wagging and the excitment I was watching.
I was located on the extreme left of the playing field, although the male I was looking at,,,it was the centre of his territory.
This was towards the end of my dive and my flash card in the camera was getting full, so I pulled it in and I was "chimping" (looking back to see which ones I could delete).
Now I had been here at about 60 feet which is kind of a greeny tinge to the water at that depth and not exactly well lite, laying on this rock for about 10 minutes or so and as I started to turn to my right,,,,wholly mother of GOD
,out of the corner of my eye was the largest, biggest, blackest fish that I have ever observed and he was coming toward me! It was in excess of 9 feet long and would measure approx 18-24 inches wide at the mouth of an even larger pan shaped head! Dorsally the fish was at least taller than is was wide!
Within seconds he was about 5-6 feet away from me he was trying to stick his pan shaped head into the long narrow creavices looking for cichlids,,,,, I just shook my arms straight down in his direction,which I'm sure put a shudder through the water!
The fish immediatly turned on a dime and swam off very fast.I was in such shock that I never even lifted the camera to take a picture!
I don't know how I didn't sh*t my pants,,,maybe it was water pressure.
So, being totally spooked,,,I headed for the boat.
I got to the boat and handed my gear up and then accended the ladder and got into the boat. I must have looked like I had seen a ghost as Adrian said ,'what is the matter'?
I told him what happened and I thought it was some kind of a catfish about 3 1/2 mters long (they do metric over there).
He replied, with no hesitation 'Bombay', I said how big do they grow? He said 'I cannot lift it takes at least three men to lift',,,now consider this guy is small but can lift and carry a 25 gallon barrel (2/3 full) on his shoulder for 1000 ft,,,3 men means that they grow big!
Adrian also added that they do not taste that great,,,so I guess no one takes them to eat unless they have to.
When we all got back to Kambiri Point, Ad was still there and I mentioned what had happened,,,he said I told you about those large fish 2 years ago! Ad went on to remind me how he told us back in '99', on the boat while on Safaris,he first observed one of these cats on a big rock and made a note of the length of it,when it moved away,Ad went to the spot and laid down where the catfish had been,,,,and looking at himself and where the cat was he figured it was about 7 foot.
Yes,I remember that story,,,I didn't remember how big,black and ugly it was,,,he never mentioned that part!
He said this fish is called Clarius gigas.Ya GIGAS meaning frigging GIGANTIC!
These cats are generally shy and it had approached me, not by intent but becuase it was hunting for dinner and did not see me because I had been holding still for a long time,,,,being pre-occupied!
In Africa,if you snooze,you loose!
Cheers,Larry
