My earliest memories and first experience of Africa was the Kruger National Park. Back in the seventies on the lap of my father in a good old Kombi, inching along the dirt roads, eyes peeled, willing a Lion or Leopard to jump out.
So when Danie Pienaar, head of scientific services for SAN Parks, invited us to join his team on an exploratory study of the Sabie River, my bags couldn’t have been packed faster.
We were to be educated on the challenges that face the management of one of the major rivers that carves a path through the Southern section of the park and to explore some of the serious threats that face its inhabitants. Loss of Crocodiles had recently been recorded due to inflammation of their fatty tissue as a result of water contamination and with fish species being a key indicator, we were asked to assist in catching and analysing specimens.
Our aim was to catch and record the variety of fish species to showcase the unique biodiversity of this invaluable resource and to assess the condition of the fish, observing Aquatic Biologist Robin Pietersen and learning from Dr Danny Govender the possible causes behind this worrisome development.
Needless to say, the prospect of drifting flies through such a wild environment was an opportunity of a lifetime.
We started at the bottom boundary of the park, above Corumana Dam in Mozambique. The sluice gates being built are resulting in the dam being raised, giving rise to justifiable concerns from SAN Parks about the push back into the Sabie Gorge and the resulting siltation that would be a consequence there of. The risk of further contaminants as well as the spread of exotic fish is also a serious threat. Fish farming is on the rise, especially with an imported species, the Nile Tilapia, which can interbreed with the Blue Kurper or Mozambique Tilapia, resulting in a hybrid that would potentially destroy the gene pool of this indigenous fish.
Walking very slowly under the armed protection of Moffat our Ranger and Danie, it was 42 degrees in the shade and we were ladened with as much water as we could carry. Navigating through the riverine bush can be treacherous, as Buffalo, Hippo and Elephant gravitate towards this live giving channel. This was amplified by the current drought being experienced, making every thicket of reeds seem ominous. I don’t want to over dramatize this, but every one we had met so far had given a real life account of a near death experience in these conditions, in many cases having to shoot the charging bull.
The Gorge was understandably lean in water, exposing the braided channels and incredible structure that is ideally suited to all species of fish and their prey. In water no deeper than 2 meters and not wide enough to fit a car in held a surprising number of good fish.
Our first morning was full of missed opportunities as we grasped the subtleties of Tiger fishing in these conditions. The water was crystal clear, giving the big fish ample time to see and asses your fly. Current is what we found most productive, providing lots of oxygen for the fish and less time in which to make a decision to strike. I fortunately had the talents of Craig Thomassen with me, who was throwing a variety of lures, puzzling the colors and size that would dictate my patterns. That and some invaluable advice from Danie on depth and where to drift my fly through, gave me many shots that I just didn’t convert. I was keeping my rod down but not getting any of the 3 kilo plus fish to stick. it was action throughout the day though, which kept me entertained and determined to get one to hand.
Walking through such uninhabited bush keeps you focused, as our Ranger pointed out fresh Lion spoor on the banks along which we were stalking Tigers.
The afternoon proved to be rewarding, with both Tommo and I landing some great fish. I’ve been fortunate enough ( after a decade of trying) to catch a couple of 10 pound tigers, but I’d agree with Craig, when he pointed out that the 6-8 pound Tiger to be found in flowing water seems a meaner fighter and provides great sport on light tackle.
We are halfway through this Kruger adventure, with many trials and tribulations with fishing and game encounters to showcase on our next TV shows, here’s a few of the instant memories that will stay with me for many years to come.
As such, he is included not as a Guide in terms of the someone who can give you any indispensable tuition or direction, but to provide us with some fishing tales from the events that WildFly hosts and of course from the locations that the the WildFly team happen to be filming.
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