Lots of KZN carp action
Some excellent catches of carp has been reported in KwaZulu-Natal over the last week, with the sheer numbers of fish being reported something to behold. It seems as though the Gauteng anglers have brought their A-game as we have been getting our reports mostly from the tourists.
Inanda has been producing some excellent fish all at around 2am on sweet baits such as Honey and Tutti Fruity. There have been a few fish caught on Banjo baits as well. Inanda has seen very few big fish over the past week unfortunately, but the numbers of smaller fish hopefully is a good indication of what the next few years may hold. Nagle has been producing the bigger fish on sweetcorn floaties as well as attracting them with the Super Cast SVB ground bait. Anglers are mixing this with Super Casts Hemp Seed to create an incredible high protein feed that these fish just cannot stay away from. The high protein percentage in this feed keeps them feeding in this area for longer, allowing a better chance of them picking your bait. This feed also attracts the much bigger fish, as they are more likely to eat as much as they can. Hazelmere has produced some good fish as well over the past week with fish sizes ranging up to 12kg. There have been lots of carp coming out in this area, but unfortunately most being very small. Midmar Dam is producing excellent numbers of fish, but again the size is not there. You can fish almost anything at Midmar and you will have a pick up, but the bigger fish over 5kg have been very scarce.
Inanda has been producing some excellent bass on paddletail flukes rigged with the Mustad Ultra lock 3/0. The colour of preference seems to be the Watermelon Red colour. There are bass of over 3kg coming out at Inanda at the moment, but anglers are urged to take special care of their skin as it really does get hot in that valley and more and more guys are sporting the sunglasses and farmer tan. Nagle Dam has been producing some absolute pigs around the bushed up areas over this past week and seem to be only accessible to the guys on kick-boats. There have been a few fish caught from the side, but nothing worth a mention. The colour of choice seems to be the Watermelon Red or the Chartreuse Pepper. For some reason the fish really do like the contrasting colours. Hazelmere is still producing fish in the sunken grass areas, although not as many as before. The sizes are still not huge, but do seem to be improving. Colour of choice here would be the McCarthy Wazza, as the dark and silver flake would be the best to be spotted in the chocolate-coloured water. If you are fishing a lot of structure around the edge of a dam, throwing a surface Frog under the trees will entice some movement from the bass sitting under and waiting for something to fall out. In the deeper waters of Albert Falls there seems to be a lot of bigger fish taking the smaller crankbaits. Anglers are having a few issues getting these baits down deep, but the fish only want them. One angler suggested a down rigging system by adding a piece of split shot to the front of the lure to get it down deep. This seemed to work well.
At the moment most of the trout are coming out on a streamer type pattern with lots of colour in the feathers. As the heat really starts to bake our dams, you should find most of our fish lying very deep and under the weed beds. This is where a sinking line will be essential. A heavily beaded fly will also increase your chances of catching as the fly will drop much faster. The Fritz Bugger seems to be the best for this as the darker pattern with the brighter head has been very productive lately.
(File Photo: AFP)
Inanda has been producing some excellent bass on paddletail flukes rigged with the Mustad Ultra lock 3/0. The colour of preference seems to be the Watermelon Red colour. There are bass of over 3kg coming out at Inanda at the moment, but anglers are urged to take special care of their skin as it really does get hot in that valley and more and more guys are sporting the sunglasses and farmer tan. Nagle Dam has been producing some absolute pigs around the bushed up areas over this past week and seem to be only accessible to the guys on kick-boats. There have been a few fish caught from the side, but nothing worth a mention. The colour of choice seems to be the Watermelon Red or the Chartreuse Pepper. For some reason the fish really do like the contrasting colours. Hazelmere is still producing fish in the sunken grass areas, although not as many as before. The sizes are still not huge, but do seem to be improving. Colour of choice here would be the McCarthy Wazza, as the dark and silver flake would be the best to be spotted in the chocolate-coloured water. If you are fishing a lot of structure around the edge of a dam, throwing a surface Frog under the trees will entice some movement from the bass sitting under and waiting for something to fall out. In the deeper waters of Albert Falls there seems to be a lot of bigger fish taking the smaller crankbaits. Anglers are having a few issues getting these baits down deep, but the fish only want them. One angler suggested a down rigging system by adding a piece of split shot to the front of the lure to get it down deep. This seemed to work well.
At the moment most of the trout are coming out on a streamer type pattern with lots of colour in the feathers. As the heat really starts to bake our dams, you should find most of our fish lying very deep and under the weed beds. This is where a sinking line will be essential. A heavily beaded fly will also increase your chances of catching as the fly will drop much faster. The Fritz Bugger seems to be the best for this as the darker pattern with the brighter head has been very productive lately.
(File Photo: AFP)
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