African Blessings

[Courtney99]

Jacques1982 wrote:

I was that guy on swim 3 this weekend. So no luck after i left..... I was lucky with the 9,3kg common i caught. anyway apparently the bottom lake didn't have much more luck than us. The place is nice and the ablution is quite nice there. Just be on the look out for snakes, the ladys on swim 2 had a puff adder in one of the bathrooms. Other than that great place that will see me again soon. Bottom lake only has portable toilets and no power.top lake has ablution and power. And yes it was the manager Johan that pointed me in the right direction for the 9 kg beauty,very helpful. Great weekend.

Hi Jacques,Nice to see you on the forum!

Yes no luck further unfortunately,did have two more runs in the morning. Both let go before I could stumble out of my tent and get to the rod. One on boilie and one on pop-up,both different rigs and presentations. I will definitely be going there again soon,this time with a boat and better end tackle.

Yes the snakes are an issue,keep your eyes peeled.A small one casually swum across the dam on got up onto my swim and another scared the s***e out of me when I nearly stepped on him and slithered off,no idea what kind of snakes they are but can never be good!

 

[Jacques1982]

I would try swim 4 the next time, there looks to be a bit more structure and feature on that side, sure maby a bit more snags and will need to do a bit more feature finding, but there are reads shalloWer water and you have more space to fish. I would definitely take a boat for that swim too as there is more that can go wrong than on swims 1 2 and 3. Ja thats definitely my next spot, the fish i coulght was from swim 4 as there was no-one there so i dropped one of my rods way left and wam. Thanks to Johan. That will have to wait though cause im saving up for my Klaserie trip in September with the wife anf kids that will be my wifes first time specimen fishing. She wants to start now that the kids are getting easier. I was there two years ago and blanked just barber and one small carp of about 1,5 kg. I did learn alot from a guy fishing there Johan Donald who was there at the time and cought quite a few monsters. So this time i will be better prepared.

 

[Jacques1982]

I would try swim 4 the next time, there looks to be a bit more structure and feature on that side, sure maby a bit more snags and will need to do a bit more feature finding, but there are reads shalloWer water and you have more space to fish. I would definitely take a boat for that swim too as there is more that can go wrong than on swims 1 2 and 3. Ja thats definitely my next spot, the fish i coulght was from swim 4 as there was no-one there so i dropped one of my rods way left and wam. Thanks to Johan. That will have to wait though cause im saving up for my Klaserie trip in September with the wife anf kids that will be my wifes first time specimen fishing. She wants to start now that the kids are getting easier. I was there two years ago and blanked just barber and one small carp of about 1,5 kg. I did learn alot from a guy fishing there Johan Donald who was there at the time and cought quite a few monsters. So this time i will be better prepared.

 

[HennieB]

Courtney99 wrote:

So yes,particles allowed at top lake. They do catch fish,however I am personally not convinced.

Particles work for sure, mielies and tigers are probably the most widely used specimen bait in this country.

If you take dams like Tzaneen, DDD, Klaserie etc. easily 95% of carp are caught on particles because they work and the babers would annihilate you on boilies.

What I can add is keep your end tackle simple, don't unnecessarily over complicate rigs and presentation, a lot of new guys fall into this trap. There are a lot of nonsense tackle that shops try and sell you that you absolutely don't need.

 

[Courtney99]

Fishpaste wrote:

I didn't fish this past weekend...instead I visited some family in sunny 'ol Witbank...needless to say it was bloody freeeeeezing!!!
Courtney99 I suggest you look at your rig mechanics as it seems likely that that is where your issues originate. Keep it simple and don't overcomplicate things with fancy rigs etc. etc.
When I had a look on the SACS venue regarding the particles I must admit that I was disappointed in the venues offered or should I say available to SACS. I mean there are only 3 venues exclusive to SACS

Thanks @Fishpaste. I think a combination of poor hook choice(and dull hooks),improper hooklink material(too stiff,doesnt alow hook to turn),and general rig mechanics at play here. Lesson hard learned.

 

[Courtney99]

Jacques1982 wrote:

I would try swim 4 the next time, there looks to be a bit more structure and feature on that side, sure maby a bit more snags and will need to do a bit more feature finding, but there are reads shalloWer water and you have more space to fish. I would definitely take a boat for that swim too as there is more that can go wrong than on swims 1 2 and 3. Ja thats definitely my next spot, the fish i coulght was from swim 4 as there was no-one there so i dropped one of my rods way left and wam. Thanks to Johan. That will have to wait though cause im saving up for my Klaserie trip in September with the wife anf kids that will be my wifes first time specimen fishing. She wants to start now that the kids are getting easier. I was there two years ago and blanked just barber and one small carp of about 1,5 kg. I did learn alot from a guy fishing there Johan Donald who was there at the time and cought quite a few monsters. So this time i will be better prepared.

Awesome,they will also see me again after hunting season. I reckon I am not done with swim 1 yet,will be fishing there again next time if possible. I do believe all the swims there are good though,you just need to find the right spot within your swim.

 

[Courtney99]

HennieB wrote:

Courtney99 wrote:

So yes,particles allowed at top lake. They do catch fish,however I am personally not convinced.

Particles work for sure, mielies and tigers are probably the most widely used specimen bait in this country.

If you take dams like Tzaneen, DDD, Klaserie etc. easily 95% of carp are caught on particles because they work and the babers would annihilate you on boilies.

What I can add is keep your end tackle simple, don't unnecessarily over complicate rigs and presentation, a lot of new guys fall into this trap. There are a lot of nonsense tackle that shops try and sell you that you absolutely don't need.

Thanks @HennieB,I do believe you are right with the particles. Plus the fish have been fed mielies and mieliebomb for years now in all the public dams so they must recognise it as a food source.

I think my problem is too much time spent researching on the net and asking guys in the shops etc and not enough time actually fishing and building confidence in my presentation and watercraft. I need to find a good dam nearby that I can prefeed,fish often and experiment with my presentations until I am satisfied.

 

[Jacques1982]

I also read alot and tried everything that others said worked and nothing, but what works for one doesn't necessarily work for the other. It took me very long to actually get it right, it was alot of hours and blanks. I will admit that i have alot to learn, but at the moment things are moving in the right direction. Managed in the last two sessions to improve my pb 3 times. 8,6 then 9,2 and now 9,3 kg. I try to get to a dam at least once a month even if its just conventional to keep the kids entertained.

Fishing is a pasion of mine, and its hard cause nobody i know has the same passion only the odd conventional angler friend. My wife is now getting into it, so thats great. My kids are growing up so one of these days i will have to get a farm to supply us with enough feed. Anyway all hobbies are extremely expensive, but oooooo its so nice... When i am at the dam i forget the 1000 bucks i just spent on stuff i may or may not use. Its great to find nice venues in my area, and african blessing is safe nice venue i can ad to the list.

I hope the next time you go you can land a 10+er cause they are there.

 

[Fishpaste]

The biggest edge next to the water is confidence! You can fish with whichever rig or whichever feed that worked for someone else...but without confidence you are already at a massive disadvantage. Each session on a water will give you a little more confidence.

 

[Jacques1982]

I agree 100%. I know that what works for one can work for another. What i mean is what works for me is tigers, i am yet to catch on boilies. My fathers friend catches all his carp on boilies at rietspruit, and all i could catch was barber on boilies. So yes it hasn't been my bait yet, not saying that I won't get one on it soon.

I have confidence in what i use now, and had to learn everything by myself. I was fortunate to meet Johan Donald who helped me with a few small errors on my hooks and traces. Hr told me that it is small things that make the difference, and yes now that i sorted those small things the confidence is getting better and i am moving into the bigger fish. I have alot to learn but have no-one to learn from, and that is why this sight is so great. I may have only joined a week ago, but i have been reading sealine for a long time.

And some of the guys here help alot even if they haven't helped me directly, they have helped me alot.

 

[HennieB]

Found some pics of carp caught at African Blessings
http://www.anglershaven.co.za/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=271&p=1927&hilit=african#p1927

 

[Jacques1982]

HennieB wrote:

Found some pics of carp caught at African Blessings
http://www.anglershaven.co.za/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=271&p=1927&hilit=african#p1927

Very nice fish there, thats bottom lake without the ablution block or power. At least toilets, still nice lake to fish i would think, i would love to try that one just a bit hard now with wife and kids.

Apparently they have cought a 16+ carp at that lake recently. So there are some nice carp.

 

[Jacques 159]

African blessings is a truly remarkable venue,and it is with great regret that i dont get to fish these waters very often,but it is the go to venue for our winter fishing.Primarily only fished the bottom lake from swims 2-4 and had success on boilies,particles(hemp,tigernuts,koo kernel,maples)and single hookbait pop up presentations.Had a good session last time round catching a few fish in the 7-9kg range,a 10.3kg and a 15.58kg.Mid water the lake is quite silty but found that using smaller gripper leads and softer hooklink material theses areas are easily fishable using wafter type,slow sinking boilies or balanced bait presentations..Fishing closer to the reeds is also effective,but the fish once hooked shoots straight for the reeds and you tend to lose a few.All and all it is great to see anglers supporting the venue and having success,and sharing their experiences and information so we can all learn from one another..