FISHING NEWS

Once in a Life:

Firstly I would like to congratulate you and a fantastic venue. I will certainly be returning and cant wait to spend more time on your fabulous water.

My family and I recently went up to Underberg for a long weekend at Lake Naverone to celebrate my fathers 60^th birthday. It turned out to be one of the most thrilling and wonderful weekends we could have had. I would like to thank the staff and all involved with Lake Naverone for there hospitality, the homely atmosphere of the cottage and the pristine water condition.

We caught plenty of trout throughout the weekend. All of which were extremely strong and in fantastic condition…

One afternoon, whilst floating around the dam, I noticed large swirls up against the far bank. Unaware of what was making the swirls I cast a fly ( Green strip leech) in amongst the swirls. I was fishing with a 5 weight TFO with an intermediate line and an 8 pound tippet. I allowed some time for the fly to sink and started a slow retrieve. The line went tight and at first I thought I had snagged the bottom. The “bottom” slowly started to move off in the opposite direction and a titanic battle ensued. The battle lasted over half an hour by which time both the fish and myself were exhausted. I too had also been towed around the dam by this stage.

When reaching the shoreline I  caught my first glimpse of the reason for my battle. A large grass carp was attached to the opposite end of my tippet. It is a beautiful fish to catch, extremely strong and a very clean fighter. A few photographs were taken and the fish released back into the dam to fight another dam.

Besides being a wonderful weekend away, it was a  great way to end it with a fish of this size and strength….and what a lovely way to celebrate my fathers 60^th, who I am certain was more excited at the catch than I was.

Catch and release and the preservation of dams like these should be a priority for all of us. Releasing all the trout and the carp was far more thrilling than killing them. The thought that some day, just as I was there floating side by side with my father, that Connor, my 9 month old little boy will someday be floating there with us excites me. Releasing the fish for him to one day be able to experience the same excitement is all the thought I need in order to continue practicing catch and release…..and the thought of three generations floating and fighting trout is a goal I wish to achieve shortly.

Once again, thank you for a fantastic site. I do look forward to my next visit and do hope that others in the area will follow your example.

Regards

Richard Porter