Originally Posted by
Johandre
Hi hi
Just want to find out if anyone caught some largies this winter In this stretch of water? I tried almost all the pools and islands below the bridge in christiana. No luck!!!!!
Hi Johandre.
You are about 10 years to late on that stretch of water. Marius Rousseau from Klerksdorp fished that section many years ago, especially the state grounds AKA Wolwespruit. I have seen the pictures and there were a lot of double figure fish, even a few monster smallies. But due to the massive sedementation floods of 2002-2004 saw massive yellowfish kills in that area, the constant pollution of the Vals River from Kroonstad flowing in there, and of course the massive increase of grasscarp from Bloemhof dam itself. We have given up on the section from Klipplaatdrift Weir up to Bloemhof dam. You will start seeing yellows from Leeudoringstad bridge upstream and increase steadily up to Brandhoek and Regina area.
p.s. Sorry must have read your message wrongly. But I think below the damwall it would be the same. There were massive bluegreen algea booms in the dam, and the dam now acts like a duffer for some serious pollution, but I do think that for the first few kilos under the dam it would not be ideal for largies. I also remember about 7 years ago there were massive netting taking place in that area do to the local Chinese/ Bangladeshi shop owners giving locals nets to catch fish.
You should contact Dawie Ras, as he stays and fished that area. He is a resident in Christiana and I know he works with cultivating potatoes and experimenting with them, if I remember correctly, something about "mini-tubers".
Plus side, I have a carp specimen angler friend who regularly complains about massive schools of smallmouth yellows "pestering" them, as the Free State law says none under 45cm can be weight and most of them are in the 15-25cm range. Maybe the river and dam will recover but with yellows slow growth rate and competition from aliens like grassies, and our helping hand sending down turds and fertilizers it would be a constant uphill battle :frown:
Last edited by Barbus13; 09-07-15 at 09:35 AM.
Dirk Human
Flyfishing for yellows...the most fun a man can have, with his clothes on, while standing up, holding a bar of gold in your hands.
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