FlyTalk Trip to De Mond

[fishall]

Hi, to give you an idea of my skills, Trout & Vaal Yellows excellent! Have never been successfull at Salt, need someone desperately to take me under thier wing and show me some basics and the lay of the land please. I am nuts about Allfishing but since moving back to the coast my flyfishing has been non existant as i have no clue on salt. Have Quality gear gathering dust!38 year old male - Sean 0833267487 Anyone feel like helping another enthusiast but rookie on salt?

[Conrad Botes]

Fished De Mond yesterday. I was targeting white steenbras (on the wrong tide - outgoing) and didn't get anything. My buddy, Matt Lourens, got a small leerie. See pic.

The river is looking very healthy with lots of mullet and small baitfish around. The mouth is open and I suppose it will stay open.

Went to Arniston at low tide and I got, amongst others, my first wildeperd (zebra) on fly.

[chris williams]

Great stuff Conrad, I also love pottering around estuaries and interesting bits of coastline at low tide purely seeking out the little small guys like wildeperd which on the right tackle are an excellent fight! To catch ANYTHING round your neck of the woods with your weather conditions at present deserves some bonus points on the Forum! White steenbras are also a pleasure in the surf. Real ffishing!

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Hope you didn't bump into Sean 'Fishall' (see prior post to yours) with his quality gear gathering dust advertising himself as a 38-year old male with his cell number? Am sure Sean's a good lad but what he typed up looks a bit of a worry to us guys who scan 'The Star Smalls' for interesting 38 year-old ladies and get exactly the same come-on lines!

[Conrad Botes]

White steenbras are also a pleasure in the surf. Real ffishing!

Hi Chris

Have you ever caught a white Steenbras in the surf? Or estuary?

I read in an old Piscator (2001) that Gerhard Barnard recommends a small chartreuse over white clouser as a pattern that he has a lot of sucess with. And obviously the JAM fly has proved very sucessful for MC and his buddies.

Me and my mate Tom have been trying at length to catch one of these critters, but no luck. Suppose it's only a matter of time, since we have the determination of a pack of jack russels attacking a bus. Looking forward to the opening of the Hermanus lagoon - apparently a good time to hook into white steenbras.

[draadkar]

was there this weekend, quite close to opening about 100meters +/- althought the bank it must get over is about a meter high, maybe not so close.

[Conrad Botes]

Yo Draadkar

I Noticed the same. I posted a thread cause I fished it last friday. I recon the mouth could get blocked soon. I saw a strong pushing tide about thirty minutes after low tide.

Did you catch anything?

[draadkar]

Hey Conrad
I took the kids to the lagoon to walk around, had to spend some quality time with them so no fishing stuff went with. A very hard thing to do!!! There was no one on the water or fishing anyware. It is amazing to see the lagoon so full especially in its width. Pumped some prawns for the kids to have a look and feel. In the end i was glad that i didnt take my stuff it would have been a Moerse walk to elf point and all the other spots. Fished there about two months ago and got some elevens between two of us. We were out on a fish duck so we could get everywhere with ease. I want to try and time it right this year for the opening i missed it the last two years by a week or so but the guys were still catching, as far as i know the rule of thumb is to wait a day or so for all the muck to wash out.

[Conrad Botes]

Yo Draadkar

I was there last year with the opening, didn't catch anything but as far as I can remember there were some big elf coming out. Think it was beginning of October. Where is elf point?

[cptfly]

De Mond was always an open estuary but has closed in recent years. The last time the water level was a the steps of the foot bridge

[draadkar]

hi Conrad
further up the mouth, a rocky bank to your right, cant miss it. Moerse way to walk, easy with a boat.

I went the last two years but quite a while after the opening and the conventional guys were still getting the odd steenbrass but i also saw and caught nothing. That water really shunts out of there!