Private paradise

Living where I do does have it's perks. Among those are knowing people that know people. A friend of mine invited me to a private piece of Ash river very few people will ever see.

I love fishing the Ash. But what I experienced yesterday tops everything else I have seen so far.

Have you EVER seen anything like this in South Africa:

Got this beautiful specimen within the first 5 minutes post arrival

Fishing pockets

It is always a good idea to fish small pockets of water in between the rapids. you will be surprised how much those pockets can produce. It is definitely worth spending time on. I once saw a guy pull a 3kg yellowfish out of a crack on the rocks with what I thought contained a puddle of water.

Rule number one:

STAY LOW!!!!

I chose to sit down here behind a big rock while working the pocket of water behind it. More difficult than it looks.

Nice Action shot (Thanks Neil)

Although I fell in the freezing river, drowned my phone, wallet, lost a fly box containing about 250 plus flies, it was so awesome to be in this paradise and fishing the most beautiful piece of water I can remember, I will gladly do it again.

Prior to landing this young man, I had two hits which I missed. I can say I was lucky that this Rainbow cock fish still honored me with quite a battle. He got into a piece of water under a rock face where I did not even know he would be able to swim and he went deep. Took quite a bit of rod flicking and switching hands to get him back out. The fish here are very strong due to ideal conditions and very oxygenated water,

Close to victory:

  

I enjoyed this outing immensely even though I had a few losses due to lack of balance my side. This also reminds me to take the time to zip lock valuables before getting to the waters edge. If you do fall into freezing water just concentrate on breathing and don't fight the current. Just go with the flow until you are close to the edge and get yourself out there. I fell into really deep water. I fell in feet first with some velocity and I never hit the bottom, I had to let go of my rod and use my hands to swim back up. Once I got out I dusted off my ego and took everything out to dry. While everything was bathing in the sun, wallet, credit cards and a few notes, smokes etc I got in a bit more fishing time with my bare feet on the rock face. I could not help but laugh at what just perspired.

I hope to be doing this again some time next week, (without the swimming I might add) and will report back, as I have a few new ideas on flies that need to be tied for those pocket waters. I also have to re-tie some streamers and dries since I drowned my prime fly box.

Until next time.

Clarens and surrounds

Wow, I can't believe it has been this long since I've slapped ink on parchment. Fishing is slow due to the cold weather creeping up on us bit with it the trout fishing is improving. I went up to the Ash earlier this week and we got a few on attractor patterns and streamers. It is nice to see that the fish are breeding naturally and it is very important that should you fish the Ash river, that you practice a strict catch and release policy.

This is a very sensitive area and breeding is difficult due to very few spawning beds and very fast water all over. With the breeding season approaching take due care when catching and releasing fish. Wet your hands before handling fish.

This goes to show that natural breeding is taking place:

There are some nice large fish around and this hen took to a Crystal flash bugger at the edge of the white water:

The fish are in excellent condition and let us keep it that way by taking due care. If you do fish this river please do so with someone that knows the water and report any misconduct to local authorities.

Should you be interested in fishing the Ash river you can contact me at flyfishfreestate@gmail.com

A last word of caution to newbies on the Ash: DO NOT TRY AND WADE THIS RIVER!!!!

The river flows at an intimidating pace. Other than the fact that the water is freezing cold and would incapacitate you instantly, the flow of the water is scary. If you submerge you are going to drown. Nough said yes? Do not stand too close to the sides as the ground is loose and you could easily find yourself taking your last fall. If your wife see's a video of how this river pumps she is not going to let you go. Don't bring the kids unless there is supervision and preferably bring a guide with you. I have been fishing this river for some time and I am still very wary when fishing alone.

The Ash in its full splendor:

A new Fly fishing book coming soon

Since winter fishing have been very slow, I've spent most of my time on a fly fishing book which takes place in the African bush. Mostly satires with some funny things that happened along the way.

Not intended as a book at first, I started jotting down some things that happened to me over the past three decades thinking that it would be a good read. I was really writing it for my son's so that they could see that there are more to life than iPod's and Computer games. Written Herman Charles Bosman style I am told by a local authority on the matter.

Unbelievably, Pegasus publishing accepted it for publication. Watch the press for more details in the months to come.

Flies for Free State still waters in March

My initial estimates of fishing twice a week was way off. So far I've been able to get in a session 5 days a week on average. With winter approaching, darkness sets in at about 7 but that will not keep. So the winter trips will most likely be less, considering the fact that the trout waters are a little further away than quickly dashing out for a few bass or yellows.

But, alas with things as they are, one is still able to sneak in an hour or two after slaving for clients this time of year. The following are a few flies I managed to cook up in between fishing trips. One can after all, not fish every day, although that would be the goal.

From left to right, ant flies of my own making, caddis/moth imitations of my own, Dr Hans's Flying Ant and finally, Dr hans's foam hopper.

These are very very effective this time of year. You will not find a yellow falling prey to a beetle pattern in March but hoppers seem to do the trick just fine. There are also frequent flying ant occurrences now so be sure to have some of those in your box come this time of year.

An ant pattern is always a good fly to carry with you all year round and the caddis patterns are an absolute must this time of year.

I will try and post some better pictures in the near future. I took these with my phone.

Saulspoort - A Quick afternoon session

To say that Saulspoort has easy fishing, would definitely be a lie. I have found this time of year that conditions are very tough, reaching end of season and consider yourself lucky catching two fish or more. Presentation and stealth, like at Sterkfontein is at the order of the day. If the fish see you, you can shove an earthworm in his mouth and he wont eat it. On this particular piece of water not being seen is easier said than done. There is very little cover so other method have to be employed. Be sure to bring along a large bag of patience. There is no way the fish will not see you when you arrive. You will have to pass the prime water, go elsewhere for a while and then return, keeping very low, moving very slowly and then hiding behind rocks. 

This time of year, GO MICRO. Caddis dries and mayfly droppers in size 22 - 32 is at the order of the day. Forget Beetles this time of year. You might get lucky, as we saw yesterday with a size 12 hopper pattern but you have to put her down on the water like a dandelion. Line the fish and it's game over. You will have to do the whole shebang all over again.

This time of year, these smaller fish are what you can expect, unless you can sight fish to a bigger one. But if you are not down on perfect presentation, don't bother. These fish are way too clever for the average fisherman. 

All in all Saulspoort is not for the impatient or lazy among us, but if you are willing to put in the effort, she will reward you accordingly.

Behold, the majestic Sterkfontein

My first Sterkfontein Yellow. A lifetime of memories

Went to Sterkfontein last Saturday for a session between 7am and 2pm. All in all we got 20 fish between Neil and myself. Neil have been fishing Sterkfontein for years and with this being my first trip to Yellow paradise, I had no idea what to expect. We arrived at a beautiful Sterkfontein with, behold, no wind what so ever.

It took me the best part of three hours before I got the presentation right and landed my first Sterkfontein yellow.

In the second session i did much better and cracked the code. What I can tell you about end of season Sterkies fishing, is go small. We got all our fish on a size 22 green PTN and size 22 Zak.

Below Neil Schuld with the fish of the day. Caught on a Zak nymph slow strip retreive. We were standing waist deep casting towards the shore line.

What you should know about Sterkfontein, are two very important things, stealth and presentation.

On top of the normal things you have to do at the waterside, like cracking the code for the right fly, these two factors will determine whether you have a great day, or go home utterly frustrated.

Oh and one more thing, DO NOT STRIKE. These guys take off at such a speed they "strike" themselves. Don't grip the line when retrieving either. Be sure that when the fish does take, that the line can easily be stripped out from your hand at any time. By doing this I was able to land all my fish on a 5X tippet.

Neil and I started on the west side of the bank about 200 meters apart, working our way towards the east. In the afternoon session the wind started picking up and, to our dismay changed direction as well. We worked our way back from the East but by 2pm the wind was pumping and one could not effectively launch a fly on a 5 weight. We decided to call it a day and headed back.

I had loads of fun and this was truly a trip of a lifetime. Granted it will get better. I do stay only an hours drive from the mighty Sterkfontein, after all.

Got a few of these at "Die Gat". Yesterday conditions weren't ideal so I reverted to purple Wooly Buggers and Booby flies. What can i say, I was desperate. Besides, they are still great fun.

Very interesting that at the moment these guys are at the order of the day. One will have to use a tube to out into deeper water to catch anything bigger. Methinks I shall do as such in the morrow. :) :) :)

Yesterday afternoon I went to check out the waters at Saulspoort dam below the dam wall. There was no water flow which made conditions challenging to say the least.

After trying numerous different leeches, terrestrials and such I finally cracked the code. Managed this little specimen on a dry and dropper configuration. The fish were feeding sub-surface on buzzers. This little guy fell victim to a grey PTN size 18. Micro patterns seems to be most deadly around these parts.

I also managed a hookup of a 5kg+ bus on a size 16 Adams but with the 6X tippet I was using he broke me off. Alas no photographic evidence.

The area in and around Bethlehem have wonderful fly fishing opportunities for Bass, Yellowfish and Trout. I will be spending a lot of time scouting new locations and getting to know the aquatic life. It looks like I have cracked the code for still waters in this area. I will be concentrating on the rivers to the North and South of town this week. We are already in the process of planning a few Sterkies trips and a trip to Lesotho. I have built up some contacts for access to waters in Lesotho not currently available to anyone. Very exciting times ahead.

As soon as I have some concessions secured, I will start guiding in the area which would probably be in about a month or two.

Traffic at the water's edge

A very revealing trip to Loch Athlone this afternoon. Arriving at the water's edge this afternoon, we found two people fishing on the wall. With them covering the left bank, we decided to go over to the other side. With the wind coming from in front of us and some trees behind us, I walked back to 4x4 to fetch the bass rods. Again, after casting and working lures for about 25 minutes, I once again confirmed that lure fishing is not really for me.

It was at about this time that in small groups, hordes of fisherman arrived at the wall, with one group even settling to our right on the bank and casting across, from where we were fishing. Another fisherman moved into the spot where I was standing a mere 2 meters from where I was standing tying on some new flies, since I decided to switch back to fly since the wind calmed down.

After targeting small bass for a while, we decided to call it a day as there were now more lure fisherman around, than fish in the water.

Note to self: Avoid Loch Athlone like the plague, on weekends.

Tomorrow I will be trying Saulspoort (Saulplaaitjies). I was told today that we can expect to find bass and trout in said waters.

Will keep you posted.

Yesterday

The rain caught up with us yesterday and cold weather combined with some serious wind, I decided to rather tie up some dry flies for Sunday's evening rise.

Ok, the blog is back. I have just arrived in the Free State in the town of Bethlehem. I will try and check back with every trip, which it seems it would be at least twice a week.

Today I spent most of the day getting the nest in order, carrying large heavy boxes, cleaning and unpacking, moving stuff around and re-arranging. My wooden cabin is something else and I have complete privacy.

But, in the afternoon I went to the local dam Loch Atlone. The dam is extermely overgrown with water grass up to about 15 meters out on the entire edge all around the shore line.

Had success on dry fly today with a PTN dropper. They left the floater alone and all went for the Pheasant tail nymph. Very interesting, I noticed that the Mayflies here are white. Tomorrow I'll set aside some time to tie down a few and see how they fare on the evening rise.

If all goes well i'll be hitting Sterkies in the next couple of weeks. I'm told that you can get both Yellows and Trout from the shoreline so lets see what happens when the time comes.

In the mean time when things calm down I'll try and post some drawings and technical information as well.

I'll be trying out Bosparadys, 'n little place for trout and bass fishing out on the Koster road, in the north West. I am prospecting the venue as a possible guiding destination. Although claimed, I find it hard to believe that you catch any trout as the North Wests Warm climate does not cater for such. Bass fishing on fly is very under utilized in South Africa and can be loads of fun. Large flies such as mouse and frog imitations as dry fly tactics is a blast and leech imitations and even fingerlings for different depths is very effective.

Here are some flies of my own design that have proved very successful.

So after some research and a little effort, I am now officially a (Qualified) fly fishing guide. I will concentrate mainly in the North West for now but will guide on the Vaal in other provinces as well. Time to start fishing specific venues and get some ducks in a row.

I've finished Learn to Flycast in a Weekend and I have to say this book is a must have for every fly fisherman whether you think you're casting is perfect or not. It will help you get rid of all of those bad habits and teach you a new way to better your casts, timing and eventually distance accuracy. if you are a new caster this book is for you. You can have the technique down in four sessions and believe me when I tell you, you won't need any lessons afterwards. A true find and as I said a must have.