Reeling in Unforgettable Moments in the Heart of the Drakensberg

Nestled in the rolling foothills of the Southern Drakensberg, the Underberg Himeville Trout Fishing Club’s annual Stillwater Trout Festival, sponsored by Xplorer Fly Fishing has become a highlight for anglers and nature enthusiasts alike. This year’s festival, held over the last weekend of September, delivered some thrilling fishing,  perfect weather conditions and great organisation.

The Spirit of the Festival

The Underberg Himeville Trout fishing Club host two festivals each year to raise funds to maintain and stock the club waters. The Stillwater festival showcases some of the clubs prime stocked dams, as well as some local private waters, kindly donated for the weekend. From the moment participants arrive, it’s made clear that this event is not a competition, it’s a festival.  There are no prizes for the biggest or most fish, it’s about having a chance to experience the local club and private waters and appreciating the tranquil beauty of the Underberg region.

Stillwater Strategies and Surprises

This festival focuses on the clubs still waters . The format of this festival is teams of 2 anglers, fishing 3 sessions over two days.

Saturday’s first session starts at first light, and finishes at noon. We drew a club dam Finelands just outside of Himeville. We arrived just past 7am. We had some local inside knowledge of what areas to fish and the structure of the dam.  The fish were feeding actively during our session, we managed to catch a few rainbows  with the biggest measuring around 44cm. It was a good start and en enjoyable morning on the water. We strapped our Xplorer GUIDE Crafts  to the vehicle and headed off to our afternoon session on a private dam, Abington.

We had high hopes for this dam as we hadn’t fished it before. As we got onto the dam the clouds rolled in and everything became very quiet. The dam was covered with midges from a morning hatch, but not one fish feeding, no movement at all. The pressure dropped and the fish went quiet…… that would be our afternoon done. Sadly, No fish.

We headed back to the Polo Club for a quiet drink and a tasty meal as we watched the Springboks smash the Pumas in an Epic battle that will be remembered for some time.

Sunday morning,  Session 3, our last dam for the festival.  Another new private water, Otterburn.  We had been told that some nice Browns were caught and released the day before, so we were excited to get onto the water.  We loaded up our GUIDE crafts, assembled our rods and hit the water.  We worked the structures, sunken trees, rocky drop offs and weed beds. There was some great variety for fish and action on these dam. We fished until 1pm and managed to catch and release 3 nice Brown trout over 50cm each, a healthy Rainbow of 45cm and too many bass to count.  A fun morning session with good results and the end of our fishing.

The weather held out the entire weekend with everyone catching fish. The highlight of the weekend was the 55cm plus Brown trout caught and released on Otterburn and some 60cm plus Rainbows on some other club dams. Some impressive catches.

More Than Just Fishing

In true UHTFC style, the festival concluded on Sunday afternoon at  the Underberg Polo club. Lunch was some freshly braaied fillet Prego Rolls washed down with some refreshments from the club bar.  This would be followed by the Lucky draw prizes and a big round of thanks to all the people involved in making the festival a success. This years prices, valued at over R50,000 of Fly fishing tackle were handed out by Bruce Taylor of the UHTFC . Each angler took home an Xplorer gift voucher and some fly gear kindly sponsored by the UHTFC and Xplorer Fly Fishing.   Everyone walked away with a gift and some fond memories of another successful UHTFC Still water festival.  All proceeds from the Festival go towards stocking and maintaining the club dams.

It’s an honour to be able to involved with and sponsor the UHTFC festivals. Its always a great festival. Bruce and the team from the UHTFC do and amazing job putting these festivals together each year.

With each passing year, the Stillwater Trout Festival grows, in spirit, size, and reputation. Whether you’re an avid fly fisher or simply seeking a weekend immersed in nature and friendly faces, the Underberg Himeville Trout Fishing Club welcomes you. Until next year, tight lines and clear waters!