put the Journey II on the water and
through its paces.
Once in the water, the boat is easily
accessible through the front, and sitting
on the boat you feel 100% safe. We used
normal chest waders but these were not
really needed as the height of the foam
seats had you sitting well above the water
(this may vary depending on your weight
as we averaged 80kg - 100kg). One of
the best things we observed was the new
stripping apron, a strong net mesh edged
with a rigid wall to make line control easy
and a great farewell to the days of line
ending up around your legs and fins.
Added to the stripping apron is a mesh
pocket, which is neatly tucked away so as
not to catch any fly line. It’s also a great
little pocket to hold quickly needed items
like nippers and forceps, while still keep-
ing them out of the way. The crossbeam
pole has Velcro straps for quick and easy
exit when nature calls, or basic in and out
access. There is a mesh pocket behind
the seat that will hold almost any type
of clothing or heavy jacket, or even a net,
which is secured by a drawstring system.
An added bonus is the drinks holder,
which is great as one tends to consume
a lot of liquid when kicking around on a
dam all day.The boat paddled effortlessly through
the water with seat height being an
absolute winner. No more line around
your legs when the wind picked up and
we could get rid of our warmer clothingbehind the seat as soon as the day heated
up and vice versa. The boat manoeuvres
with ease, even in a stiff breeze, and with
the seat straps pulled tight we were in a
great casting position and very comfort-
able. The boat is highly stable and even
when leaning at all angles we couldn’t
tip it (don’t try this for the first time in
the middle of the dam). It was quickly
decided that one could stay on the boat
all day with ease as it offered such a
pleasurable experience all round. The
tube’s weight capacity is 150kg, and it
comes standard with a patch kit and a
summit valve adaptor and valve spanner.SRP: R6550. Available from select
dealers countrywide, or contact
Jandi Trading on (031) 564-7368.TCFF | AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2019 | 79Of course, all my fish went back into the
water. I caught so many fish that I de-
cided to leave after a few hours and let
someone else take my spot. My dream
fishing trip had materialised. I went back
in the afternoon hoping to have a re-run
of the morning’s events. Well, I was
amazed to see 27 fishermen, shoulder-to-
shoulder, in this tiny spot bringing in
shad after shad. By now the fish coming
in were much smaller than the ones I’d
caught earlier. Talking to one of the skip-
pers who was also looking on, he told me
this was usual as the bigger fish are taken
first leaving the young ones, till eventu-
ally there are no fish left. As I left the area
disheartened, hardly a fish was coming
out. A complete shoal of shad gone; so
much for the bag limit of four fish. There
was no policing to be seen. We should
not underestimate the damage local
shore fishermen do, and I wonder how
many of these chaps had fishing licences?
I was sad to have witnessed this disregard
of fishing ethics, realising that if it con-tinues, my grandson will not be able to
experience the pleasure of catching shad
on fly. Geoff Lotter (Letter shortened.)Confessions of an ignoramus
Until four years ago, I had never really
been interested in taking up any kind of
fishing. My perceptions of fishing were
that you attach something a fish would
eat to a hook, which was tied to the end
of fishing line and then you cast it into
water. And voila, sometimes you caught
and sometimes not. All of that changed
when I began dating a keen fly fisherman
four years ago. I first got a glimpse of the
depth of his obsession when I saw the
range of flies Pierre owned. I had always
thought fly fishermen used an imitation
of a fly – the one that you swat. Pierre
took out a specific bag from his enormous
fishing cupboard and out came a rat fly.
When he explained this range of flies, I
suddenly understood why his eyes lit up
when I had previously said I’d love to visit
Mongolia. When I saw all his fly-tyingparaphernalia I realised you actually
needed a degree in entomology to under-
stand what you were trying to do. Woolly
Bugger, Papa Roach? Emergers and ag-
gravators? It went on and on. The learn-
ing took hold, so Pierre took out years of
TCFF magazines he has collected and we
worked through them together. Baro-
metric pressure? Phase of the moon? My
learning continued on our first camping
expedition to Sterkfontein Dam and we
had to visit Dr Hans for a supply of his
beetles. Little did the patients in his
waiting room know, we were there for the
best medicine. It was at Sterkfontein,
while watching Pierre catch fish for an
extended period of time, that I saw the
obsession play out. It was a soul at its
happiest. Now I’ve also started fishing,
not fly fishing, but with a traditional bow
for bass. Oh, by the way, it’s not just any
fishing line, or one single piece of it like
other fishing, and the term “If you don’t
know knots, tie lots” also doesn’t apply.
Francess Hutton. (Letter shortened.)“Letters to the Editor” continued from page 6