FISHING THE DIEPSPRUIT RIVER ON ROSSTREVOR GUEST FARM- A PICTURE ESSAY

By  Robin Fick – Photos by Robin and Angela Fick

Spent last week at Rosstrevor fishing the Diepspruit River on low and dropping water. Summer rains were late and the river needs a good flush. Algae covered the bottom of the river and a lot was floating downstream.

Arrived after very cold weather and Tippy Dormehl was shearing sheep and had lost a couple on the Monday night.

This river has major potential to produce some very big fish. The mounted fish is a 9lb 1oz rainbow Tippy took in the river and I saw one that could have been bigger when I lined it casting to rising fish in the evening. Thought it was an otter it put up such a big wake when it cruised off downstream past me into the deeper part of the pool.

Took about 100 fish during the week, always fishing far off and fine. Mostly I took them on size 14 brown nymphs and a dark Elk Hair type caddis dry on a New Zealand rig.

I was told that the yellowfish run up past the bridge to spawn in November when the water warms up - more than 18kms from the Kraai River junction.

I started with a weighted nymph, but was picking up too much algae and had to tie weightless nymphs as the water dropped during our stay. Also shortened the leader from the dry fly to the nymph to 15 inches as I started out at over 20 inches. During periods of strong downstream winds, I replaced the 5X leader to the dry fly (indicator) with 4X mono and only caught on the nymph on 5X. Once back to 5X to the dry, the catch rate was close to 50-50 on each fly again.

No snakes, but walking along the banks with the long dry grass, we put up hares which only took off as one was about to tramp on them - really gives one a scare and this happened six times during the week - real heart attack stuff.

( For details of Rosstrevor see http://www.rosstrevor.com/Rosstrevor_Guest_Farm/Home.html)

(Robin Fick is a seriously good small stream fly fisher who has been responsible for many developments in local fly fishing techniques and in fly patterns. He works in George and his wife, Angela, is an artist.)