Fly-aholic
New member
Hi gentlemen,
So here comes a looong story about Zandvlei. Not that it is a success story but more frustration and comical at the same time and probably a bitching session.
So, I moved from PE to CT. Being an avid fly fisher I was groomed on the Swartkops/Sundays and Gamtoos.
Saw all the beautiful pictures of leeries in the Zandvlei.
Upon arrival I saw the grass and knew this would be challenging as most of the leeries caught are on subsurface lures.
I have been fishing the 'Vlei' for more than a year now with no success.
1st priority was to find the fish, after 4 months I located where they are during the different times of the day.
I have methodically changed my strategy from day-to-day, times of the day and areas. I have noted all the above, collected the data, evaluated patterns and nearly went as far as doing process capabilities on the various scenarios.
Not a damn, nothing happened. No takes although the fish are there and I do see follows, swirls and boils.
Now, as the fly fishers will say, confident is everything and I agree. I have certain lures that have proven themselves, and have stood the test of time. Due to the copious amounts of grass, buck tail jigs were not an option, my most successful lure.
Top Water hard plastics:
So, I resorted to top hard plastic lures. Everything from X rap walk’s, Skitter V’s to Z-killers. 90mm, 50mm, 125mm, different colours, retrieves and finally in desperation adding a tail to the surface lures. This was mostly done by adding saddle hackle feathers. No difference.
Subsurface:
I have, according to me, effectively covered this technique with shiver sticks, X rap twitching minnow and Storm’s sub surface, added tails, colours and NO GO!
Soft Plastics:
I have fished all the soft plastics imaginable. From flukes to paddle tails, different colours, hook exposed, weedless and NOTHING.
Ok, it must be said that I did have my fair share of chases and boils, but no takers. The leeries and elf chase the lure from the channel to the weed bed and then turn away. Increasing the retrieve also does not make a difference and when I stop the retrieve as we would do with trout and hopefully it will engulf the fly, it also turns away.
So, now I am ‘raad op’, gatvol and need to crack the code.
The last resort is to use my float tube and fish the channels.
Any ideas, please!!
Kind regards
Pierre
So here comes a looong story about Zandvlei. Not that it is a success story but more frustration and comical at the same time and probably a bitching session.
So, I moved from PE to CT. Being an avid fly fisher I was groomed on the Swartkops/Sundays and Gamtoos.
Saw all the beautiful pictures of leeries in the Zandvlei.
Upon arrival I saw the grass and knew this would be challenging as most of the leeries caught are on subsurface lures.
I have been fishing the 'Vlei' for more than a year now with no success.
1st priority was to find the fish, after 4 months I located where they are during the different times of the day.
I have methodically changed my strategy from day-to-day, times of the day and areas. I have noted all the above, collected the data, evaluated patterns and nearly went as far as doing process capabilities on the various scenarios.
Not a damn, nothing happened. No takes although the fish are there and I do see follows, swirls and boils.
Now, as the fly fishers will say, confident is everything and I agree. I have certain lures that have proven themselves, and have stood the test of time. Due to the copious amounts of grass, buck tail jigs were not an option, my most successful lure.
Top Water hard plastics:
So, I resorted to top hard plastic lures. Everything from X rap walk’s, Skitter V’s to Z-killers. 90mm, 50mm, 125mm, different colours, retrieves and finally in desperation adding a tail to the surface lures. This was mostly done by adding saddle hackle feathers. No difference.
Subsurface:
I have, according to me, effectively covered this technique with shiver sticks, X rap twitching minnow and Storm’s sub surface, added tails, colours and NO GO!
Soft Plastics:
I have fished all the soft plastics imaginable. From flukes to paddle tails, different colours, hook exposed, weedless and NOTHING.
Ok, it must be said that I did have my fair share of chases and boils, but no takers. The leeries and elf chase the lure from the channel to the weed bed and then turn away. Increasing the retrieve also does not make a difference and when I stop the retrieve as we would do with trout and hopefully it will engulf the fly, it also turns away.
So, now I am ‘raad op’, gatvol and need to crack the code.
The last resort is to use my float tube and fish the channels.
Any ideas, please!!
Kind regards
Pierre