There are plenty of trout and bass fishing opportunities in the Drakensberg Mountains and within close proximity to the various types of Drakensberg accommodation. It is little wonder that these rivers and dams have become so popular – the scenery is spectacular, and it can be very satisfying to stand on the banks or in the gurgling water with your waders on, casting here and there with this fly and that until you get a strike.
There are both rainbow and brown trout in the well-stocked waterways of the ’Berg, South Africa’s highest mountain range. They reach a good size, put up a good fight, are good to eat, and the experience of it all is so good to talk about at length when you get back to your Drakensberg accommodation. Some of the prime fishing spots are along the Bushmans River in the Central Drakensberg region. From your Drakensberg accommodation in the area you can pick your spot anywhere between the upper reaches of the mountains, close to where the river originates, and the Wagendrift Dam into which the river flows much lower down and which is (also) stocked with bass.
Within reasonable driving distance from your Drakensberg accommodation, it’s recommended that the Bushmans River be fished from either Giant’s Castle or from Moor Park. It’s open from September to May, with March to May being the best time of the year to fish there, and while suitable for beginners, it is also sufficiently challenging for experienced anglers. There are mostly large brown trout to be caught here, although the higher up the river you fish the more likely it is that you will land a rainbow trout. Sometimes yellowfish have been found here too.
Some of the Drakensberg accommodation establishments have their own fly-fishing facilities. The Drakensberg Sun Lifestyle Resort in the Central ’Berg, for example, offers Drakensberg accommodation with access to its own stretch of water, a dam stocked with trout and where the necessary equipment is available to rent. In fact, if you choose to fish here, the hospitality is such that the resort can arrange for a fly-fishing ‘coach’ should you need one, provided that you put in a request well in advance.
Novices need to learn the knack of casting, but once it’s explained to you by the folk at your Drakensberg accommodation, you can become fairly accomplished after a day or two of perfecting the technique and you’ll soon be putting the fly down on the water just where you want it. As some fishermen put it, it’s a matter of swinging the rod “back to 10 o’clock” and then casting “forward to 2 o’clock” while releasing some of the line at the right time and then repeating... Easier said than done of course, and there are definitely some people who get the hang of it much more quickly than others – and just a very few who choose to give it up as a dead loss.
Fly fishing rod, fly reel and tapered fly line, fly-fishing leader and tippet for the end of the line, and of course the flies – these are your basic requirements for this relaxing, rewarding pastime. You might want to equip yourself with some different types of line (e.g. floating versus sinking), a pair of waterproof waders and a net, and there’s no end to the number of flies you can buy or choose to tie yourself. And to think that your Drakensberg accommodation people will put all this paraphernalia together for you if you wish so you don’t have to worry about anything ruining your well deserved fishing trip.