Dullstroom streams

[Newby]

Hi guys, I have recently start showing interest in doing some river or stream fishing for trout in and around Dullstroom. I have started to have good success on still waters and decided it was time for something new.
Over the weekend I visited Valley of the Rainbow a few kilometers outside dullies as they have acces to the Witpoort stream. I started of landing 2 nice rainbows in dam 2 and then thought it was time to take on the stream. I spent a good 3 hours trying to fish the stream but with no success mostly due to my lack of skill and knowledge, also the river banks are heavily overgrown which made it very difficult for me. I struggeld to cast and got snagged alot on trees and brances.

My question then is does anybody know of other venues in or around dullstroom that have streams available for fishing? And which might be easier to start of with? And do these venues allow day visitors?

Any advice for doing stream/river fishing in this area would also be appreciated.

[emjaysmit]

This will be a very usefull thread Newbie especially for me. I am also still very new to the sport and have been lucky enough to fish some awesome venues that side. River fishing is all about presentation and drag free drifts....Only on my 4th occasion attempting the sabie river did I get into a fish...small but still a fish...very different to still water in my limited opinion. Maybe we should hook up when you are in the area once again.

[Uli@84]

Hi Newby,

Not a fundi myself nor can I really help you on the dullstream area.

But on your cast problem, I had the same issue when I first when to the Cape streams in January. However I was given few tips which made the worlds difference when I went back to the streams in April:

1. I assume you mostly snagged on your back cast, when doing your back cast try to take the back cast more up than back(Almost like a variant of the steeple cast). So in effect your back cast will go up, and then blast forward as per Normal. This will take a bit of practice but you will feel it works out quite well. But Practice before hand
2. Try to cast at various angles, more to the side than on the vertical plane.
3. Last tip and this was probably the best tip I could receive was try to avoid multiple casts on streams, so in effect try to get your fly where you want it to be in one full casting cycle(One Back Cast/One Forward Cast Done). This is on the assumption that you making short casts on a stream in which case it is very possible to do.

I am also a newbie and this is all secondhand information, but these tips made a HUGE difference for me.

Hope it helps and all the best.

[Newby]

Well done on getting a fish at least emjay...thats always better than nothing! Hope that I can achieved that shortly! I am plannig to go fishing again next week some time, will keep you updated and then we can meet for a session!

Thanks for the tips Uli, i will surely practice my casting techniques! And talking about the cape streams...that is something else i dearly want to do, i first need to get some practice here in mpumalanga!

[Uli@84]

No Worries Newby, just passing on what was told to me by my betters

Dude, the cape streams are amazing, only been on one of the rivers so far but I tell you, when the sun comes over those peaks and the river starts get this glassy shine, that place is pure magic

Cheers man and I hope you get that fish.

[Helios]

Hi guys, I have recently start showing interest in doing some river or stream fishing for trout in and around Dullstroom. I have started to have good success on still waters and decided it was time for something new.
Over the weekend I visited Valley of the Rainbow a few kilometers outside dullies as they have acces to the Witpoort stream. I started of landing 2 nice rainbows in dam 2 and then thought it was time to take on the stream. I spent a good 3 hours trying to fish the stream but with no success mostly due to my lack of skill and knowledge, also the river banks are heavily overgrown which made it very difficult for me. I struggeld to cast and got snagged alot on trees and brances.

My question then is does anybody know of other venues in or around dullstroom that have streams available for fishing? And which might be easier to start of with? And do these venues allow day visitors?

Any advice for doing stream/river fishing in this area would also be appreciated.

Hi Newby, best advice is to get a guide to show you the ropes or to do a River Clinic that Mavungana offers in the Dullstroom area.

Hope you come right and keep that line tight.

[JadeDsantos]

I cant help you with waters in Dullies, I dont really feel that they are proper streams when compared to the NEC or Cape Streams (unless someone wants to show me differently? :tongue: ) Because they are mostly stocked and weired up.

One thing I can tell you is that the more time you spend on the water, the better you get. Especially the casting! My first season on the streams was a heavy learning curve, full of joy and frustration in equal quantities. Leader setup is really important to get your casting right as well as catching fish. you have to find a balance between long leaders for sneaky presentation, but short enough to be manageable and to keep them out of bushes and manage the wind. The more time you spend on the streams the better your spacial awareness will get, before you know it you will take one quick glance behind you when casting and you dont even notice it. Like looking in a cars rear view mirror when driving.

[Grant111]

Thought I'd add to this thread and not create a new one.

Just spent a few days at Field and Stream just outside Dullies. Now let me just clarify, the only time I tried trout fishing was last year at Brookwood, casting to stockies in a dam the size of my lounge,dinning room and kitchen. So that does not count.

So I blanked on the still waters but that was to be expected considering I have no clue about trout. But what I wanted to really add to this was I also tried the Witpoort river that runs through this farm, all 4kms of it, and wow. I've never Fished a small stream before but it was amazing to me.

It's a beautiful gin clear 5-10m wide, ankle to waist deep little river. Ok I also blanked as I've never tried small stream fishing and I was using my still water rod as I don't have anything smaller so presentation was not especially good, but just have a look at the pics and tell me this is not great looking water. Hopefully someone who knows what he's doing will be able to benefit from a trip here.


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[Shamwari]

Looks amazing, very pretty water that...wow!

[Newby]

I'm no expert but that does look good. And it seems that casting in that stream wont be to difficult. Definitely going there soon!!