Advice please...

[BenzoV]

Can he not perhaps test for fish by using a throw net? Or take a dive if the water is clear :-D

[FlyCraft]

There might be some fish left, if the water temperature can can sustain trout in that specific dam. Highly unlikely that predators kill all of them, go look at first light for movement, cast a line. Otherwise when it cools down towards autumn and there are fish left you will see them move more often and they will be easier to catch.

[A River Runs Through It]

Philip, I'm a member of the NFFC and we have a number of dams in the Dargle, Karkloof, Nottingham Road and Kamberg area.

They are stocked quite regularly and systematically according to advice from (I think) Martin Davies of Grahamstown (Rhodes University)...Martin is an expert on these matters. They have also followed the advice of the late Hugh Huntley on what he advocated as a sound format of stocking trout dams.

Over November, December leading on the present, I've fished dams in these areas and I'd had little success and have noticed the absence of rising trout...perhaps I leave before sunset but the other day I stayed later (hoping for an evening rise on Marvela (a beautiful well known dam) and another dam Marks Dam recently stocked and noticed no rises at all.

Nothing wrong with dams at all...it's just that weather patterns are somewhat out of step and I believe maybe this has something to do with it...I do not believe the trout have are died...just wait until late March and April...I'm sure they are still there.