Witvis at Jonkerhoek

[Ryan Weaver]

on the permit issue: You are required to have a freshwater angling permit to fish ANY freshwater in South Africa (as with the sea permit). R45 for a full year isn't much to ask. These are bought from CapeNature (not the flyfisheries). CapeNature are putting pressure on the commercial fisheries to start requesting permits before selling or allowing access to day visitors. I buy one each year out of principal along with my sea angling and diving permits and hope that the money is being put to good use!

[Ryan Weaver]

Hi Ryan,


This makes me very hopeful that the other stocking/relocation & preservation efforts by CNC will enjoy the same kinds of success.

Hi Scythe.
I do to, though I also hope they keep conservation in mind. One of the issues raised at the Yellowfish working group conference was that we mustn't forget that a fish moved out of its endemic catchment range is also and alien and can be an even greater threat to other fish populations in areas where it didn't previously exist. I just hope the farmers and other conservators don't go mal in the name of conservation and move yellows and witvis to places they shouldn't be. The Twee river in the Cedarberg is a key example. CNC moved Clanwilliam yellows above the waterfall barrier to try to keep them out of reach of bass lower down, as a result the Twee River redfin in that section has now almost been wiped out completely!

[izak]

on the permit issue: You are required to have a freshwater angling permit to fish ANY freshwater in South Africa (as with the sea permit). R45 for a full year isn't much to ask. These are bought from CapeNature (not the flyfisheries). CapeNature are putting pressure on the commercial fisheries to start requesting permits before selling or allowing access to day visitors. I buy one each year out of principal along with my sea angling and diving permits and hope that the money is being put to good use!

If they want people to have fresh water permits they must make it easier to get them. Why cant they sell them at the post office same as saltwater? Untill then its a losing battle.

[Ryan Weaver]

We're encouraging them to make them available at all tackle shops and they sound amenable to the idea...do you think that would work?

[izak]

I would buy one strait away if its at a tackle shop. Why bother is its so difficult to get and no one ever checks anyway?

If they want to really get people's blood boilling, it should be like a tv license, show the license if you want to buy gear. Maybe thats a bad idea.

[Scythe]

Hehe, maybe that is a GREAT idea, providing all shops are enforcing it. They should implement legislation along the lines governing the Scrap Metal dealers & the purchase of copper wire.

I agree they should make it so that one can buy the permit from the angling shop, then there really is no excuse that it's 'too much of a schlepp to go to the post orrifice'

Ryan, ofcourse. With relocation I was merely referring to relocating threatened species to 'safe havens' such as stillwaters to ensure viable brood stock while the relevant EIA's are being done on which streams should get what, when, how and how many of them.

[Jasper]

We're encouraging them to make them available at all tackle shops and they sound amenable to the idea...do you think that would work?

YES .. I think that would be perfect!

[Ryan Weaver]

I have a feeling that the whitefish are gouging themselves for the coming spawning season. Every year around this time we see huge dark schools of them cruising the bottom dam and feeding either amongst the rocks at the inlet or in the middle of the dam. As evening arrives and it begins to get dark they split up into smaller groups of twos and threes and seem to feed more freely hitting the fly aggressively. I reckon this is the ideal time to catch them (from what I've seen) and the main reason I'm missing so many takes at the moment is because the flies we have on offer are almost all too big!

[Chris Shelton]

If they want people to have fresh water permits they must make it easier to get them. Why cant they sell them at the post office same as saltwater? Untill then its a losing battle.

I couldnt agree more!!

[Booger Rose]

Hi Ryan

I think the winterblues are over. I'm also picking up on fish starting to move again in our area. The Bass is starting to take on top and the carp is also going around in shoals. I've never taken a Witvis, yet, so must maybe make a plan to visit Jonkershoek. What is the tarif to fish Jonkershoek only in late afternoon. that is after 17:00 seeing that my boss won't be to happy if I would leave the office early to catch a fish! (I work in Stellenbosch, so easy to stop over)