“The February Room” Podcast, Episode 19 with Juan Coetzee, Just What is a Garrick?

Juan Coetzee came into The February Room and blew us away with stories of swimming across shark-infested waters in pursuit of a quarry we’d never heard of.

South Africa quickly jumped to the top of our hit list after Episode 19 of The February Room, when angler-adventurer Juan Coetzee shared the extreme lengths that he goes to in pursuit of this unique species https://thefebruaryroom.com.

The garrick, or leerfish, is native to the Mediterranean and the coastal waters of South Africa. The garrick is an esteemed member of the carangidae family, alongside jacks, pompano, and permit. Based on Juan’s accounts, this species presents a fly rod challenge on par with the latter. In South Africa, the garrick is an esteemed fish, highly prized for both its sport and table qualities. Obviously so, as Juan has been known to swim solo, at night, through the channels of the Indian Ocean (if you’ve ever seen Shark Week, its no wonder why this guy doesn’t have a lot of fishing buddies).

While we won’t be joining Juan in that respect, casting flies off a skiff for this elusive critter is now on our ever-increasing life list. To learn more about garrick on the fly, click here: https://themissionflymag.com/2020/01/28/dream-dream-dream-about-big-garrick-on-fly/