Drakensberg Archives - Page 5 of 6

17Dec 2011 by Warren Prior No Comments

Kamberg Bliss

[caption id="attachment_384" align="alignright" width="300"] Another Rainbow Trout Release[/caption] Having spent the morning stocking some of the club waters Sharon and I decided to spend the night at the Kamberg Nature Reserve. We drove through the gate at 12am and I immediately became aware of the storm clouds which were already forming overhead. Worried that I wouldn't be able to fish later that day I cut a deal with Sharon which allowed me to fish while she unpacked the car. I fished the usual spots around Erskine for about 30 minutes with no luck. It was midday in summer and I wasn't expecting a lot so I continued fishing while enjoy the pair of Crested Eagles nesting in a nearby tree. It was at this point that I noticed a few…

13Nov 2011 by Warren Prior No Comments

Kamberg, Catch, Repeat

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_369" align="alignright" width="225"] Clinton Nortje's First Trout[/caption] On Sunday morning I woke up at around 5:30am to far more light than I expected. By 6am I was at Nick's place where Clinton picked us up and we headed for Kamberg, stopping of course for a cup of coffee and a doughnut. We arrived at Kamberg at around 7:30am in thick mist and a little drizzle. From afar conditions were looking good and we quickly spotted two other fishermen on the water. A brief chat to them revealed they were staying there, had been fishing for a while, and had caught no fish. Not a good sign but nothing to worry about. Since the other fishermen were fishing Eland Dam we headed down to Erskine and got to it. Both…

24Sep 2011 by Warren Prior No Comments

Lotheni’s Sneaky Browns

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_364" align="alignleft" width="300"] First Wild Trout On The New Rod[/caption] At 5am on Saturday morning we climbed out of bed, packed the car and headed for the Drakensberg. Stopping for petrol proved annoying when the standard garage told us they were out of diesel and we were forced to head into Pmb to find some. Otherwise all went well until we reached the Underberg turn off when I forgot that it was shorter through Nottingham Road and we headed for Underberg on my 111km worst road. After passing through Himeville the road turns from tar to dirt for the last 40kms. The dirt was in good condition bar the fact that they seem to be working on it. This meant large piles of rubble for long stretches leaving only…

18Sep 2011 by Warren Prior No Comments

The Mooi River, Kamberg

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_359" align="alignleft" width="300"] The Mooi River[/caption] Sunday morning started at the normal 5:30am for me when I packed the car and headed for the Kamberg Nature Reserve. Nick was heading up Sani Pass and so I'd decided to take the opportunity to explore the Mooi River which we'd always ignored for some unknown reason. Sharon was originally going to join me but ended up working at a golf day her company was sponsoring and hence I explored alone. When I arrived at the reserve I parked at the picnic site near the gate and walked down to the river. My first impression was "WOW, what a fantastic water!" Carefully I climbed into the crystal clear water, which was flowing steadily, and began the trip upstream. The upper Mooi River…

28Aug 2011 by Warren Prior No Comments

Old Faithful, Kamberg Nature Reserve

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_346" align="alignleft" width="200"] Warren Prior With A Kamberg Trout[/caption] On Sunday morning I picked up Nick and Clinton and we made our way (via the coffee shop) to Kamberg for some Trout fishing. It was Clinton's first time with a fly stick so we were all hoping he'd pick it up quickly and get into at least one fish. By 8am we were all on the water. I headed for the shallows where I'd dominated on a previous visit while Nick and Clinton fished our famous jetty where it was easiest for Clinton to cast. Thankfully he picked it up amazingly quickly and, despite not having a long cast, he was definitely getting far enough to pick up a fish. Conditions seemed good for Trout. The pressure had been…

15May 2011 by Warren Prior No Comments

Bushmans Battling

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_314" align="alignright" width="300"] Fly Rods At The Bushmans[/caption] Thankfully, on Sunday, I woke up feeling somewhat better than I had when I fell asleep. I packed up my kit, got into the car, and headed for Nick's place. Two hours later and we were pulling into Giant's Castle Nature Reserve. It was 6 degrees and the water in the Bushmans River looked chilly. After quickly kitting up we opted to give the bottom section of the river (from the gate upwards) a fish since we’d never fished it before. It certainly looked promising, but would it produce? Stepping into the water immediately confirmed our earlier fears...it was FREEZING. In fact, it was the first time I could remember where my legs were actually burning while wading upstream. Thankfully this…

20Mar 2011 by Warren Prior No Comments

Pholela Rainbows

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_295" align="alignright" width="300"] Warren Fly Fishing The Pholela[/caption] With a long weekend upon us Sharon and I planned a last minute trip to Cobham. Why Cobham? Well I wanted to fish a river and this was the only venue available on such short notice. That said I'd fished the Pholela in the past and had gone home empty handed, so this seemed to be the perfect opportunity to change that. We arrived at Cobham on Saturday morning and set up camp. By the time we'd set up and eaten lunch the weather was looking somewhat ominous. None the less I opted to head out for an exploratory trip up the river while Sharon relaxed around camp. The river was flowing both high and quickly but was definitely fishable. As…

30Jan 2011 by Warren Prior No Comments

Kamberg Sight Fishing

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_279" align="alignleft" width="200"] Warren Freeing A Fish From The Reeds[/caption] On Sunday my 5am alarm was followed by the normal cries of "Why Warren, Why?" Thankfully Sharon and I were soon on the road and had quickly filled up with the normal cup of Wild Bean coffee. We arrived at the Bushman's River at around 7:30am and even though I'd been looking down at the river and had seen how fast it was flowing, I was still optimistic. After quickly kitting up we headed down the path to get the fishing under way. When we arrived at the swing bridge where I usually start fishing it became quite clear that the river was flowing far too fast. However despite the heavy flow it was still crystal clear and this…

19Dec 2010 by Warren Prior No Comments

Reekie Lyn And Kamberg Bashing

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_235" align="aligncenter" width="900"] An In Flood Reekie Lyn[/caption] I picked up Bruce and Nick at 5:30am and we began the long journey to Reekie Lyn, a 5km section of the Mooi River just below Kamberg, which we would be fishing for the day. Sadly things got off to a bad start when the rain started bucketing down before we'd even reached Cato Ridge. None the less we pushed on, stopping only for our regular cup of very average coffee from the Wild Bean Cafe. An hour later, and nearing Nottingham Road, the rain was still pouring down. Bruce had taken to dropping hints about stopping for a cooked breakfast and Nick was starting to nod in agreement. [caption id="attachment_236" align="alignright" width="300"] Warren Fishing Erskine[/caption] Thankfully, just as the two…

16May 2010 by Warren Prior No Comments

Baha Bushmans

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_196" align="alignright" width="225"] Warren Prior With A Bushman's Brown[/caption] With only two weeks remaining in the river season I was beginning to feel the pain of having only had one outing, mostly due to a snapped Achilles. Thankfully I managed to get a pink slip on Sunday and recruited fellow Baha Boy Nick Nortje for a trip to the Bushmans. I picked up Nick at around 6am in Pietermaritzburg and continued the long drive to Giant's Castle. We arrived at 7:30 and started kitting up. It was Nick's first time on the rivers so this took a bit longer than usual. We whipped off his intermediate line and wound on a new floating line, eager to get onto the water. The river was flowing at a good rate as…

Tag: Drakensberg