Re : Vaal Flows

[Scythe]

Yeah PK,

Ag I already saw a post on another forum regarding a "canoe race with flows of 70 cubes happening this week" right after Reveck posted this thread stating that there had been a previous occurrence where this happened.

You know how passionate and concurrently uptight us Flyfisher folk can be, just now you get people happy about the high flows celebrating the death of the weed, then people unhappy about the high flows and unfishable water, loss of viz, etc etc etc meanwhile the Vaal is still putting along rustig @ 15m^3.s-1.

I think I am going to make a call to Kookie @ DWARF and find out if they actually know anything about it.

[Herman Jooste]

Just spoke to Quintin at tha barrage. No way that there is any spike in the barrage release planned. On Saterday, and Saterday only the Vaal Dam release will be increased to 35cumecs to improve the conductivity at the barrage, thereafter back to the 16 - 20 cumecs it has been for the last 2 weeks. Flows from the barrage today are 8 cumecs.

[pieterkriel]

The red tape and bureaucracy in those departments are such that, I have found out a while ago from my father in law that works closely with these people, that the left hand never know what the right is doing until the last moment when suddenly the barrage get phoned and asked to change flow rate immediately to X.

I will only venture this, it is all speculative until you see it happen, Scythe is correct, right now it is all just rumours, tomorrow it might or might not be true and then we will starting to read in this forum about how now the flows have stuffed up all fishing for the next three weeks, while Scythe as ussual gets in is car on Saturday heading for the Vaal and finds a way to still catch fish

[Michael]

Bottom line, they don't give a **** about fly fishers...but they do for canoe races. Go figure.

At Potch yesterday the temp was measured at 18 deg C, the water was murky, the rock snot still prevelant.

[Wade]

I agree with you folks.

I think that if there was more comercial involvement in flyfishing then the sport as a whole would have more political and enviromental "clout". Until then it will take a sympathetic soul in a position of power to make a favourable decision.

It is also true what peter said. No matter the conditions someone always manages to catch some fish almost every weekend. I hope that is the case for this sunday as i am visiting my mom in potch and am hoping to get to the river for an hour or two.

[Gael]

Rumours are circulating that the flows will be increased to around 80 cumecs for a canoe race, then kept at 20 for the Junior nationals later this month. Can anyone confirm this??

I wish we could get some goods to clear out the river but the reality is I just don’t think that there is enough water for this to be even an option.

In the big picture of this country as the government sees it we're just a handfull of people who want to improve our favorite lesure activity.

[Herman Jooste]

Just spoke to Quintin at tha barrage. No way that there is any spike in the barrage release planned. On Saterday, and Saterday only the Vaal Dam release will be increased to 35cumecs to improve the conductivity at the barrage, thereafter back to the 16 - 20 cumecs it has been for the last 2 weeks. Flows from the barrage today are 8 cumecs.

Eiiisssshhhh, will Rand Water ever play "open cards" with us. Ferdie and I decided to fish below the dam on Sunday, hoping that Saterdays increase would have some effect. Well on arrival we immediately noticed the water level was quite a bit higher than normal but carried on anyway. We soon found out why, when the first canoe came whizzing past within 5metres of Ferdie, who thankfully was "parked" on a rock at this stage!
After an hour or so of canoes being banged against rocks, Ferdie having to time his wade back to the bank so as to avoid being run over, the canoists were gone.
Guess what, an hour after the last canoe had passed us the water levels started dropping
I checked the daily report today and found: Vaal dam Release Sunday 35cumecs, Barrage max Sunday 25 cumecs, Barrage at 7:00am Monday 25 cumecs, conductivity change at Barrage NIL.
Vall Dam release Monday 20 cumecs ( normal ).
Time for us to get some serious BIG WHIG at Rand Water into flyfishing, if he's got time to spqare from Canoing of course

[Fingers]

Bloody typical

[pieterkriel]

Eiiisssshhhh, will Rand Water ever play "open cards" with us. Ferdie and I decided to fish below the dam on Sunday, hoping that Saterdays increase would have some effect. Well on arrival we immediately noticed the water level was quite a bit higher than normal but carried on anyway. We soon found out why, when the first canoe came whizzing past within 5metres of Ferdie, who thankfully was "parked" on a rock at this stage!
After an hour or so of canoes being banged against rocks, Ferdie having to time his wade back to the bank so as to avoid being run over, the canoists were gone.
Guess what, an hour after the last canoe had passed us the water levels started dropping
I checked the daily report today and found: Vaal dam Release Sunday 35cumecs, Barrage max Sunday 25 cumecs, Barrage at 7:00am Monday 25 cumecs, conductivity change at Barrage NIL.
Vall Dam release Monday 20 cumecs ( normal ).
Time for us to get some serious BIG WHIG at Rand Water into flyfishing, if he's got time to spqare from Canoing of course

Hi Herman

I have to correct you slightly, we do not need Rand Water BIG WHIGS, we need DWAF BIG WHIGS, see, the final say in opening or closing the barrage does not sit with Rand Water only, in fact there is a lot more to it behind the scenes. Rand Water is only a small part of the process.

PK

[GGY]

This is interesting
http://www.reservoir.co.za/catchment...%20jul2007.pdf

Below the Barrage is the faecal coliform count is low (Slight risk of microbial infection on contact).