Catfish on the forum

[Scythe]

Anyone willing to spend a lazy day chasing barble around with me?

For sure, one thing to remember however ... when you SEE and SMELL Hartebeespoort dam, you won't want to insult your tackle by putting it into that water !

[chris williams]

Just out of interest, how accessible are the barbel in Harties these days?
Last I heard, there was no public access to some of the better spots and most of the water was private property. Was just telling Chris Williams about the good old days with some of the huge barble we used to catch with Louis and some of the 'older guard'.

There is a real possibility that I may well be in good old SA early next year, and was wanting to have a go again. Just need to know I'll be safe and not end up as catfish food where I'm fishing.

Anyone willing to spend a lazy day chasing barble around with me?
Will know closer to the time when things start to happen.

Cheers

There are other special 'Venue X' places a lot more pleasant around Joeys for barbel. As/when you're coming give us all a shout and I'm sure the Gauties will organise a local 'safari' for you!

[Ron Clay]

In my local dam, the barbel there regularly take ducklings and goslings in one gulp. I only really measure the barbel roughly in terms of length, but I've got many guys there probably going on 1.5 metres or maybe even more. A good 10 weight with 15 or 20lb Maxima tippet and a 3/0 black neutral-density Zonker or similar often seems to work the trick at dawn or sunset. I managed one last night I guess about a metre long that was cruising round the margins looking for stray animals/birds/whatever.

The big boys reputed to live at the Harties dam wall (if pollution from all the overdevelopment there hasn't also killed them off...), vundu and the catfish in some parts of USA and Europe make our barbel look like minnows..

How well I remember the sessions me, Oom Louis, Rod Cross and on odd occasions Anglo Komis had on a bay on Harties many years ago. We not only caught sharpies, we caught kurper too. Best time of the year was early spring, August and September. We caught them up to say 15 kg and boy did they scrap. Although I used an 7 weight outfit, Louis used a 10 weight with a dirty great Hardy salmon reel and at least 300 metres of backing.

Yes Chris, African Sharpies do not reach the weights that Vundu and the European Wels catchfish do. The River Ebro in Spain is the place for big Wels catfish where they reach 100 kg on a regular basis. The regulars use small carp as livebait for these monsters.

The biggest cats I ever caught in SA were on the Orange River and the Vaal river near Kimberley. Not on the fly rod either but on the head end of a small carp.

[Ron Clay]

In my local dam, the barbel there regularly take ducklings and goslings in one gulp. I only really measure the barbel roughly in terms of length, but I've got many guys there probably going on 1.5 metres or maybe even more. A good 10 weight with 15 or 20lb Maxima tippet and a 3/0 black neutral-density Zonker or similar often seems to work the trick at dawn or sunset. I managed one last night I guess about a metre long that was cruising round the margins looking for stray animals/birds/whatever.

The big boys reputed to live at the Harties dam wall (if pollution from all the overdevelopment there hasn't also killed them off...), vundu and the catfish in some parts of USA and Europe make our barbel look like minnows..

How well I remember the sessions me, Oom Louis, Rod Cross and on odd occasions Anglo Komis had on a bay on Harties many years ago. We not only caught sharpies, we caught kurper too. Best time of the year was early spring, August and September. We caught them up to say 15 kg and boy did they scrap. Although I used an 7 weight outfit, Louis used a 10 weight with a dirty great Hardy salmon reel and at least 300 metres of backing.

Yes Chris, African Sharpies do not reach the weights that Vundu and the European Wels catfish do. The River Ebro in Spain is the place for big Wels catfish where they reach 100 kg on a regular basis. The regulars use small carp as livebait for these monsters.

The biggest cats I ever caught in SA were on the Orange River and the Vaal river near Kimberley. Not on the fly rod either but on the head end of a small carp.

[core fly]

Soon Ollieowen.I took the photos on a dv cam of another guy,so its up to him to send it to me.I myself have not even seen the photos yet.Cant wait.
For those looking for them in rivers,find the shallows bays that were created after the heavy rains.They move into these warmer areas around 10:00 in the mornings until about 17:00.They can be taken in deep open water but chances are slimmer and you will have to get the weight of your fly just perfect.

[FlyFanatic]

hey guys, i once found this photo on the site www.fearnofly.co.za. I dont have a clue who caught this, and neither if it was actually caught on fly, but damn this is a monster!! At least 40kg's if i could guess. Given the area on the photo, as well as the size of this snorbaard, my guess would be orange river.

Could anybody maybe shed some light on this photo??

[Troep]

I may be wrong but if im not mistaken and if I remember right that fish was/is the biggest barbel caught on pap I think in 2006.??

Im almost sure that photo was on the cover of stywe lyne or some other mag.

Its something along that lines...

Maybe someone else knows the story better.

[Troep]

Another thing I remember is that it weighed something like 42kg's!!

[Troep]

O ja en John ek dink daai een is ons nuwe target!!!!

[core fly]

It was caught by Joe Lategan,the guy in the left of the picture.It was an unofficial SA record of I believe just over 50kg.Joe guides people for these monsters on the Orange,I think he said below Augrabies falls.They use those shorter deep sea rods if I recall correctly.
Imagine hooking into that on your 5wt.I think even my 10wt would be screaming for mercy.