Nick Nortje, Author at Baha Adventures

02Dec 2012 by Nick Nortje No Comments

Shad Bashing 101

[caption id="attachment_650" align="alignnone" width="400"] Warren With A Shad[/caption] [caption id="attachment_649" align="alignnone" width="400"] A Small Shad[/caption] Common Name: Shad Other Names: Elf Scientific Name: Pomatomus saltatrix Size: Shad can grow to be 120 cm long with a weight of 14 kg. Habitat: Shad are mainly found on sandy bottoms in clear water. They are also found close to reefs and rocky ledges where there is foamy water. Eating Quality: The fresh flesh of a shad is excellent to eat, but not after being frozen so only keep what you can eat. In this article I'll be touching on some of the things that have worked well for me over the years to target shad. Being an avid fly fishermen of both salt water and fresh water I am constantly looking for…

25Nov 2012 by Nick Nortje 2 Comments

Nick’s Underberg Virginity, Broken

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trip Report, Trout

Friday the 24th finally saw Nick head out to test the much talked about waters of the UHTFC (in Underberg) with Neill in tow to show him the ropes. After a late start due to an issue on the N2 we departed Assagay at 17:15 in high spirits. [caption id="attachment_863" align="alignright" width="226"] UHTFC Sign[/caption] The drive up was uneventful and tales of how the waters were dominated on past trips filled most of the 220km road trip. I was praying silently that I would A) catch a fish, and B) it would be a lunker. We pulled into Undies around 19:30 and headed to “Woolies” hoping to grab some meat. Unfortunately they were closed so we opted for KFC. We pulled into our accommodation, scoffed the KFC, cracked some ice…

30Sep 2012 by Nick Nortje No Comments

Baha/DFT Harbour Outing

Fly Fishing, Salt Water

[caption id="attachment_565" align="alignright" width="300"] Durban Harbour Fly Fishing Outing[/caption] The 30th of September saw DFT head down to Durban Harbour. No less than 20 fly fishermen congregated in the Café Fish parking lot in eager anticipation to lay claim to the many species that can be caught in the Harbour. We made our way onto the banks at 6:30 to fish the pulling tide. Earlier in the week we had heard reports of a shark sighting, so the boys timidly walked knee deep onto the banks keeping an attentive eye out for this elusive shark. On arriving at the drop off we were greeted by a pod of dolphins smashing the fish we were about to target! All of us stood in awe as we watched them no more than…

26Aug 2012 by Nick Nortje No Comments

Rocky Bay

Fly Fishing, Salt Water

[caption id="attachment_532" align="alignleft" width="300"] Rocky Bay[/caption]The 26th of August saw the first DFT saltwater outing run by myself and Baha Fly Fishing. I was a bit apprehensive on Saturday when a huge buster came through and really turned the surf upside down. I was unsure as to the number of attendants, but thankfully on Sunday morning no less than 10 guys pitched up with rods in hand. After kitting up the guys made their way down to the beach and headed off in various directions. Some guys opted to fish the gullies and pools to the south, while a handful of guys walked north to fish the deeper waters along the beach. Conditions were far from ideal with the massive shore break and lots of seaweed off the beach. Nevertheless…

29Jul 2012 by Nick Nortje No Comments

Friends Of Baha At Uitzicht

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_515" align="alignleft" width="225"] Hayden Ellis With A Trout[/caption] Baha Fly Fishing decided to take a FOB (Friend of Baha) fishing for the day. It was a rather chilly late winter’s morning, nevertheless the car was packed with float tubes and rods and the journey began. We arrived at the water’s edge at around 7:30am and were instantly greeted by the polar bears (a mere 1 degree). I knew the conditions were going to be tough when the water we opted to fish was lower than I’d ever seen it and was only 6 degrees. But that said Hayden and I had a cup of coffee whilst rigging up and deciding on the correct method to attack the tricky conditions. I opted to use my Xplorer 5wt with an intermediate…

04Dec 2011 by Nick Nortje No Comments

The Uitzicht Curse

Fly Fishing, Fresh Water, Trout

[caption id="attachment_373" align="alignleft" width="300"] Nick's Uitzicht Rainbow[/caption] So after a slow, shaky start due to the night before being Warren and Sharon’s engagement party, and the Tazz having morning sickness, Tazz and I made it to the customary coffee stop at 6.20am. The weather was not looking too good from home, but hey, I had to collect my jacket that I had left behind on a previous drinking trip (I mean fishing trip). As I had confirmed from Durban the weather was miserable; 10 degrees, rain, mist but no wind! I finally made it to the dam after some 4X4ing through the mud (manly grunt here). I must point out the actual Kamberg tar road is full of pot holes that even a 4X4 feels, it almost felt like I…

Author: Nick Nortje