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FRESHWATER ANGLING => Fly fishing => Trout fishing => Topic started by: Bwana on December 11, 2013, 12:51:36 PM
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Bwana's Leeuwkloof Report – 2nd to 5th December
After a long wait I finally had the opportunity to link a visit to Leeuwkloof Estate into my December holiday itinerary, we had to trek up to Joburg from Shelly Beach to visit the in-laws so I persuaded my better half that we needed to go to Leeuwkloof for a few days. Initially I may have given her the impression that it wasn’t a “fishing only” trip, but seeing that her dad is also a keen fly fisherman we managed to get the approval as it would be good “bonding time.” We left Joburg on the morning of the 2nd December and drove past Witbank and Middelburg on our way to Belfast. The road was really busy, but we took it slow and turned off onto the 12km dirt road that leads to Leeuwkloof. There had been heavy rains the day before and the road was nice and muddy and slippery which was great fun, although Peter battled a bit in his BMW 3 series. We were greeted at the farm by Maggie who supervises the accommodation and she checked us in to our bungalows. First off I must say the accommodation is top notch. There are 3 face-brick bungalows looking out over the dams, each one has very comfortable finishes with a large kitchen with appliances, lounge with fireplace, 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. The bungalows have wrap around plaas-style verandas with a braai and a lekker view of the dams. We quickly unpacked and settled in to the accommodation by about 3.30pm, hoping to wet a line for the evening rise. The weather gods were not on our side however and within half an hour the wind picked up and there was a huge thunderstorm which lasted until dark. We chose to rig our gear, braai and have a few settling-in beverages.
Pics - The accommodation and view at Leewkloof
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The next morning we woke at 5am as planned, to have coffee and then get on the water. Unfortunately the mist was wall-to-wall and there was a 10knot wind pushing through the valley. We waited until 6am and then made our way to the top “trophy dam” as advised by Big Van. We fished the top dam using floating lines and damsel nymphs, woolly buggers, and Hare’s Ear nymphs but no takers and also no visible activity around the dam. We took a walk to the middle dam which is the biggest of the dams and has the nicest layout and structure, with reeds, weed beds and rocks. We fished this dam hard, but after the rain and cold wind it seemed the fish had lock-jaw. We saw only one rise and it wasn’t interested in the small buzzer imitation that I cast at it. We took a break for breakfast and planned our afternoon tactics. The nice thing about the Farm is there is a lot to keep you busy during the day, the kids had a great time playing on the jungle gym, exploring and following the cows around.
Pics - Fishing the main dam
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At 4pm, with the rain clouds building again we headed down to the middle dam to get a few casts in before the thunderstorm. There were a few rises which I covered with a DDD and a suspended buzzer but they wouldn’t eat. I went through about 5 fly patterns with no result before deciding to go big in the hope of luring one of the bus Rainbows or Browns that hang out in this dam (Stephan mentioned a few 4kg+ specimens!). I selected one of my rabbit zonker streamer patterns that imitate a small brown trout, tied it onto my 8lb leader and cast it up along the drop off next to the spillway. After a decent countdown I started an quick, steady retrieve. I saw a large boil about 15m away to my right and quickly recast to cover the rise, the fly sank for about 3 seconds and on my 3rd strip I had a solid take and hook-up on a strong energetic fish that took me well into my backing! After a short tussle the strong fish came to the net, with much excitement from my 4 year old son Ryan. It was a good cock rainbow around 2kg which was confirmed when I weighed the fish on my hand scale at 2.1kg. It was a heavy set fish with large shoulders and a big head with a hooked jaw. My son did a great job of taking some pics before we released the fish safely. Leeuwkloof has a strict catch and release policy, fly fishing only using barbless hooks and I respect this philosophy as it is my style of fishing. Peter had however planned to keep one trout for the table from the trip and had been instructed by Maggie that you may keep a fish at R100/kg. Maybe it was overconfidence but Peter was satisfied that I release this fish because “we’ll definitely catch more….” Well Murphy is a bugger because the weather had other ideas…..
Pics - The first Rainbow of the trip, I got it on the streamer pattern on my 5wt
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The next morning was very similar to the day before, very misty and cold conditions that kept us off the water until 6.30am. This session was also very slow, with no takers and only two rising fish seen. I did however have a surprise catch of a massive Platana which ate my black and red woolly bugger as if it was a snack! We headed back for a lekker breakfast and to discuss new tactics. We decided to take the wives and kids into town for the day and headed for Dullstroom which was a nice experience exploring all the touristy shops, restaurants and of course the pubs. We visited Mavungana Fly Fishing which was a really nicely set up store and my son really enjoyed seeing the bass and trout in the little pond in front of the shop.
Pics - The platana that ate my woolly Bugger and the streamer pattern that worked the day before
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We had a few conversations with the locals about which fly patterns usually produce in the area and it seems the ticket was small flies (I had been fishing #8 and #10 nymphs) but the guys suggested going down as small as #12 marabou-type damsel nymphs. I had also phoned Greg (Shag ‘n Release) who had fished Leeuwkloof before with great success and he said he often fished a tandem rig to cover more water. Once back at the Farm from town we quickly re-rigged our leaders and I tied up a few #12 olive damsels. I rigged a #8 weighted brown woolly bugger as my leading fly and a small damsel as the point fly and we set off. I chose to work the area where I had caught the rainbow the day before, along the ledge next to a weed bed near the spillway. There was a lot more activity on this afternoon and I had rigged my 3 weight with a small flashback nymph to cast at rising fish. I covered a few rises with this fly but no takers. After a while I went back to my tandem rig and after about 5 casts with 10 second countdowns, got a solid pull next to the weed bed. The fish was very energetic and gave a good account for itself before coming to the net. Once again Ryan was my trusty photographer and then we quickly weighed the fish, it looked a lot bigger than the 1.2kg that the scale showed, another fine specimen cock fish. Peter shouted across to me that he would like to keep this one, so we dispatched it and kept it for the pot, not forgetting to pay Maggie the appropriate fee. That evening we had a serious thunderstorm that chased us off the water and forced us to have a potjie and many beverages……
Pics - The second rainbow trout and a rainbow of a different kind…
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The last morning dawned with an icy wind and cold front, we got on the water by 6am, and there was no activity. We tried all our tricks but unfortunately had no further success. I decided to use the remaining time to teach Ryan how to fly fish and within half an hour he had worked out the strip retrieve, although I still had to cast for him. I was hoping he’d get a hook-up so he could get his first trout, but it will have to wait till next time. We packed up and headed home after a very comfortable and relaxing time. The fishing was a bit slow due to the poor weather, but I will be back to settle the score with the big boys. The quality of the accommodation, friendly welcome, and nice sized trout make Leeuwkloof a great bet for a family holiday and I definitely recommend it!
Pics - Ryan working the 3wt and posing with the “keeper” trout
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Great report thanks a lot (clap)
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Great report!
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Great stuff Mark! Nice to see the lighties getting fish!
(clap)
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Super report and some nice fish! :clfoto:
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Great report and fish
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Very good report and photos. (clap)
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Nice report old Chap (clap) . Rather pleasant place Big Van has there , will go every weekend if I can .
Gooi :trout:
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Great report Bwana!!! (clap)
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Awesome report and pics Mark.
:+ cred:
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Stunning report! Well done :+ cred:
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Nice report Mnr!!
Congrats on some proper size trout!
Cant wait till Mid Jan to go home and cast a fly line at a hungry trout in a green environment!!!
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Very good report thank you Mark
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:win: Thanks for a great report Mark. Interesting you mention the tandem rig, I tried it with some success 3 weeks ago. Hope you get Ryan into his first Trout soon. I goto be patient till the 28th before I get to wet a fly again
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Nice Mark, some good fish there! Love the challenge of trout fishing. Your son looks like he had a ball!
Interested in your damsel fly pattern? Marabou tail, wrapped into a body?
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Nice report thanks for sharing
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Awesome catches there !!!
Well done !
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Nice report Mark and as always excellent photos. Wished you could land some of the big mamas. Hopefully can I be with you at the farm when you visit. Sharpen the hooks for Sadsaa February comp. cheers mate