Spearfishing Reports UAE

Hello everyone!

I'd like to share some of my rookie spearfishing reports!
I hope to use this thread as a way to share my experiences as well as document my exploits in the warm (and often hot) waters of the UAE.
I'll try my best to keep this thread updated with reports from my dives! :thumbsup2:

Today (25/5/2014), I went off the coast of Sharjah (Mamzar area, bordering Dubai waters) to a long breakwater area (Had to hop off the rocks) that holds some good fish at times. Reached the spot at around 645AM and even that early, the temperatures were over 33*C (91*F)!

Vis was not as good as it could be, with around 10 ft vis. VERY green water. I use a Rabitech Stealth Pro 110cm for these conditions. I swam around to some spots that hold some bream, grouper and the occasional king mackerel (I've seen them dart by the deepest spots to feed).
Now that the water's heating up, the only fish to be found here are sardines, juvenile jacks and angelfish.

Spent a couple of hours in the water, knowing that in this weather, the most I'd get to see is probably a barely legal grouper (that I caught the last time i went spearfishing). At around 9AM, I was about to call it a day without getting any fish when i decided to explore the murkier inside areas of the bay. The vis got worse, and the currents got considerably stronger. Lots of bait here though!

JUST before deciding to climb out of the water... this nice large talang queenfish passed by to have a look at what I was doing. After realizing that he (or she?) was a good size, I instinctively aimed and shot it right behind the gill plate, and landed it soon after! Brained the fish, and realized the weight of the fish whilst climbing out of the water. I reckon somewhere over 5 kilo's! Here are some pics (Excuse my shabbiness... i ended up getting my clothes wet trying to wash the blood off of this fish!:laughing:)

Thanks guys!

The talang queenfish is from the Scomberoides family, and tastes very similar to the king mackerel we have in these waters. It tastes almost exactly like king mackerel, just slightly more chewy.

Got out on Friday morning (5 AM) for some spearin' at my nearby rock hopping spot. It's just 5 minutes from my place by car. :thumbsup2:
Vis was pretty okay, 10 - 15 feet at the clearest. T'was a pretty tiring dive mainly due to the ripping current! wind was at around 7 to 8 knots, which is manageable, but really doesn't help with the current already flustering us.
A buddy of mine recently bought a Cressi Geronimo (100cm) and I was wanting to try it out. Loaded the gun,and didid a short breath up, before diving into the murky darkness. No fish (worth shooting). During the second dive, I spotted a grouper that popped out of a hole to check me out. I swung the gun to the right and fired instinctively. Hit it right behind the gills. I put some tension on the line so that it didnt hole up, then slowly ascended. Brained him, and put him on the stringer. I don't know exactly how much he weighs, but I reckon a little over 2.5 kilo's? What do you guys think?

I didn't get to see any more decent sized fish. Saw a lot of twobar sea breams (delicious fish), but they all looked kind of small, so I didn't want to chance shooting a juvenile one.

Gotta say though, the cressi geronimo feels really comfortable in the water! Super easy to swing around, and the handle makes holding it feel very natural.
All in all, an allright day on the water, I hope the current isn't as bad the next time!

Thanks Marco!

I'll be heading out tomorrow as well. Hopefully, I should run into some good fish!

I haven't updated this thread in a while.
I've been diving around though, checking out different spots in Ajman and Ras Al Khaimah. The severe heat of the summer here isn't exactly the best time for spearfishing, but some fish are still around :).
Here as some pics of my recent catches;

Sea Breams:

2 Groupers, a Trevally and a sweetlips:

The weather's getting better, and pretty soon, we're gonna have some kingfish (narrow barred spanish mackerel) in our shallow spots!:thumbsup2:

Thanks!
The most sought after fishes are the Hammour (Grouper) and the Kingfish (Narrow barred spanish mackerel). In terms of taste too, most people here love kingfish!
Sea Breams are delicious as well, but aren't as popular as the above mentioned fishes.

Kingfish are coming soon, as the waters are getting cooler. That's always good news!:)

So the kings have arrived!:)
A friend of mine, Lawrence, recently landed a nice kingfish (narrow barred spanish mackerel) at a spot close to home! The fish was landed using a 90cm cressi comanche (with reel), at around 7 metres depth.

So I went there last week. I noticed that the waters are much cooler now, and the viz has gotten much better!

Shot this Golden Trevally in the face at 7 meters depth!

I'll be going there tomorrow as well! Hopefully, I should be able to run into some nice fish!:thumbsup2:

Thanks Dan!

Dude George, it tastes fairly good. There isn't much 'taste', but the texture of the meat is excellent.
After filleting and cubing the meat, my mum decided to make it 'Indian style', with a lot of chilli powder and spices. I also baked the remaining meat it with salt, pepper, lemon and herbs.

I generally prefer fish with very few ingredients added, but my parents love super spicy marinated fish.