The African night stretched to infinity beyond the tip of my 12-weight. Our fourth night wading this untamed beach had yielded nothing but a steady stream of blood leaking from my right heel, the rich plasma broadcasting my presence to patrolling sharks like an overzealous waiter trying to sell the evening special. 

“Hey Teddy,” I said. “One of those damn snail shells sliced my heel open.”

Teddy replied, unfazed, “Just bury your foot in the sand, mate, and keep casting. The tarpon will show soon.” Teddy Coulter is the head guide at African Waters’ camp in Sette Cama, Gabon. He is a passionate native Irishman that grew up in South Africa, and he was hell-bent on watching us get wrecked by massive tarpon from the beach. As the inky black waters of the Ndogo Lagoon lapped at my waist, Teddy scampered off into the night. I pondered how best to tell my wife I’d lost a leg to a bull shark.

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above Tim Lewis casts his 12-weight into the Atlantic Ocean as the sun sets on another adventure-packed day in Sette Cama, Gabon. When darkness falls, the predators activate. Our crew of anglers met the approaching dusk each evening with both apprehension and the thrill of large saltwater species activating for an evening’s feed.