NIGHT FLY FISHING EXPERIENCE - Flyfishingtails

Adams
Know your
FLIES
By Tom Lewin
The Adams is one of those patterns that
have stood the test of time and it’s a fly I
always have in my fly-box in a variety of
sizes. The Adams, tied with its traditional
collar hackle, imitates a mayfly adult
or dun and in South Africa this would
specifically be the Baetis mayfly or Blue
Winged Olive. Tied with a parachute hackle, the Adams is also a
very effective mayfly or caddis emerger pattern. I fish the Adams
in sizes 14 to 20 during Baetis hatches and try to match the fly
with the size of the hatching naturals. During a dense hatch I
prefer to cast the fly out and leave it for the fish to find, but during
a sparse hatch I’ll generally target a rising or cruising fish. In the
case of rising fish I try to get the fly to land in the rise ring as soon
as possible. With cruising fish I lead the fish by a metre or two with
my cast.
LET’S LOOK AT WHAT AWAITS
MAGALIESBURG
UNLESS THEY WAKE UP
Slime and
contaminated
mine water mixture
The Manganese operation
between the Golddumps on
Wonderfornteinspruit
Black Midge
Midges are the most prolific food-form
in our rivers and still waters and make up
a large part of the diet of trout and yellowfish.
Furthermore, when midges hatch,
fish get complete tunnel-vision and won’t
look at anything else – it’s the one time fish
genuinely get selective. If you don’t have a
serviceable midge pattern in the correct size and colour you are
going to blank! The Black Midge is a simple, effective pattern that
relies on its impressionistic qualities to fool fish. I tie and fish Black
Midges in sizes 18 to 24 during midge hatches which more often
than not occur at last light. The fly imitates the midge pupa and
I fish it in the surface film. I generally don’t target individual fish,
preferring to leave the fly in the vicinity of the rising fish. Tracking
the fly in poor light is just about impossible so if a fish rises or
bulges anywhere near my fly I strike by lifting the rod. Every now
and then there’s a fish on my line! Once again, it is most important
to match the Black Midge to the size of the hatching naturals.
The cleaning plant
Sparkle Caddis Pupa
Caddis Pupa ascending to the surface to
hatch can trigger a fish feeding frenzy like
no other insect! Fish gorge themselves as
the bugs make their way towards the water
surface but it is when the pupae become
trapped in the meniscus that they become
easy pickings. The Sparkle Caddis Pupa is
a fly that was invented by the late Gary LaFontaine and I have a
whole one side of a fly box dedicated to this pattern in different
sizes and colours. The antron fibres used to create the bubble
shape trap air and reflect light, cleverly imitating the natural
insect. I fish the Sparkle Caddis Pupa during caddis hatches in the
late evening and early morning preferring to cast the pattern out
into the vicinity of rising fish. I occasionally give the fly a twitch to
simulate a caddis struggling to shed its pupal skin. Be ready for
explosive takes and fish with “soft hands” or you will lose fish to
smash takes.
Part of the plant and settling tanks
Eugene Viljoen took PH readings some months ago at various
places for 20 kilometres outside KDP reserve PH 2-3 after the lime
process and again recently at the inflow to the KDP reserve PH 2 -
bring your car batteries - but for the heavy metals still present
Photos taken by Eugene Viljoen