Our waters

The fly fisherman has a excellent choice of fishing waters to choose from in our area. Be it fresh or salt water, we have it all....river, dam, estuary, and surf. Interested fly fisherman can contact the club for more information.

Dams

The club actively stock two large dams, as well as some selected rivers in the vicinity, with Rainbow and Brown Trout.

Mabeleni Dam (48 ha), the biggest of the two dams , is 30 minutes drive from Umtata on the R61 in a north westerly direction. It is stocked with Rainbow and Brown Trout. Only fly fishing is allowed on this waters. Mabeleni Dam is the venue for the annual Transkei Trout Open held in September each year. Access to the dam is controlled by Forestry and a nominal recreational fee is charged per visitor. Basic picnic and camping facilities is available next to the dam. Click here for a map (70kb) of the dam and surrounding area. The dam was stocked with 30 000 fingerlings (Rainbow & Brown Trout) during 2000. The previous year (1999) 100 000 fry and 6 000 yearlings was stocked.

Aerial view of Mabeleni Dam (viewed from the North)
Photo by Marius Jonker © 1999

The other dam, Nqadu Dam (15 ha), is a 30 minutes drive north of Umtata, situated on Nqadu Plantation. The dam is stocked by the club with Rainbow and Brown Trout. Largemouth Bass is also found in the dam. The dam was stocked with 20 000 fingerlings (Rainbow & Brown Trout) during 2000.

Other dams in the area include:

Umtata Dam - 8 km from Umtata.
Owen Dam - In Umtata
Nqora Dam - Close to Cofimvaba
Lubisi Dam - Close to Cofimvaba

These dams mostly offer bass, carp and eels.

Rivers

Wild trout can be found in a number of tributaries of the Mtata river along the KwaMatiwane mountain range, a 30 minute drive north of Umtata . Limited stocking with rainbow and brown trout takes place in selected rivers and streams.

Other rivers within the area include:

Tina
Tsitsa
Umzimvubu
Bashee

Bass, Carp, Trout, Tialapia, Yellowfish, etc can be found in these waters

Saltwater

Excellent saltwater fishing can be experienced on the Wildcoast. This pristine coast line offers many challenges to the prospective fly fisherman. Many of the areas are remote and only accessible with decent 4x4 vehicles. Recommended sites along the coast includes:

Umngazi River
Umzimvubu / Port St. Johns
Preseley Bay
Hluhleka
Tshani
The Haven
Coffee Bay
Hole in the Wall
Mazeppa Bay
Wavecrest
Umtentu

Some fish that can be caught on the fly on the coast include:

Skipjack (Springer, Lady Fish)
Garrick (Leerfish)
Mullet
Spotted Grunter
Cob
Kingfish
Snapper

Milk Fish
Blue Fish
Yellowtail
Shad
Pompano
River Roman
Pike

For more photos of our waters visit our Photo Gallery.

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