Some of my friends have been asking for me to show then how to cast and catch trout, so my wife and I decided to organise a trip to the Dullstroom/Lydenburg area to do just that.
Our group consisted of three engineers, one of which has a Phd and a torn Achilles-tendon, six final year medical students, a vet, a speech therapist, two marketing gurus, one housewife and a physicist. Thus making the total (possible) doctor tally an impressive nine! It is fair to say that we were prepared for any emergency, be they of medical, animal or even academic nature. All that remained was for the trout to play their part.
Most of us managed to get out of the office early in the afternoon and drove the overloaded cars to Crystal Waters, a farm situated in the Mpumalanga escarpment between Dullstroom and Lydenburg. We only arrived after dark and unfortunately could not cast to the evening rise. After some steak, pap, salad and pudding, not to mention some beer and wine we called it a night. Early the next morning I hit the water with my wife, she landed a beautiful hen of 2.5kg, her personal best. I gutted the fish next to the lake, thinking that we can smoke it at home.
Our group consisted of three engineers, one of which has a Phd and a torn Achilles-tendon, six final year medical students, a vet, a speech therapist, two marketing gurus, one housewife and a physicist. Thus making the total (possible) doctor tally an impressive nine! It is fair to say that we were prepared for any emergency, be they of medical, animal or even academic nature. All that remained was for the trout to play their part.
Most of us managed to get out of the office early in the afternoon and drove the overloaded cars to Crystal Waters, a farm situated in the Mpumalanga escarpment between Dullstroom and Lydenburg. We only arrived after dark and unfortunately could not cast to the evening rise. After some steak, pap, salad and pudding, not to mention some beer and wine we called it a night. Early the next morning I hit the water with my wife, she landed a beautiful hen of 2.5kg, her personal best. I gutted the fish next to the lake, thinking that we can smoke it at home.
The morning proved to be quite productive with about five rainbows falling for damsel patters and sunset blobs fished in tandem. Surprisingly once the others joined, the fishing cooled down a bit and we only managed the odd take every now and again. One of the meds landed her first ever trout on fly and even gutted the fish herself. The slippery fish popped out of her hands and she dove into the water after it, the best part... we got it all on camera.
For the remainder of the day the fishing died down but the scenery remained breathtaking. Some decided the catch up on their reading while others soaked up some of the early spring African sun.
The accommodation at Crystal waters was top notch and not expensive. The fifteen of us occupied the old farmstead (de Berg Lodge) which sleeps ten comfortably and one of the chalets which sleeps six. There are at least ten stocked dams on the property with the majority of them situated around the chalets. The fish were in good quality and fought with vigour. I can highly recommend Crystal Waters for beginner fly fishers and nature lovers alike.
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