1. The nearest town is 40 kilometers from Bass Lodge, make sure you have everything for self-catering. There is a small tuck shop on the farm with the very basics.

2. Fountains originating on the farm feed the pure, clear dams at Bass Lodge, making fishing from the grass covered banks a real joy. To ensure success when fishing in such clear water, follow these tips according to Pretorius (2001: 43).

“Be on the water at first light. Use top water on shallow lures at first, because bass feel free to swim in relatively shallow water under these low light conditions, and also see the lure well. As the light intensity increases after sunrise with the deeper penetration of the sun's rays, the fish tend to shy away by going deeper, or into the shade of structure and cover. At this stage the angler should revert to deeper swimming lures such as crank baits. Later in the morning bass have retreated to deep (darker) water, where plastic worms, grubs, jigs, or deep running crank baits will find them. With the approach of late afternoon and dusk, the opposite can be expected. As the sun's rays diminish and low conditions set in, bass tend to venture out into more shallow water. Deep running lures will eventually be replaced by top water or shallow running lures. Fish well into dusk, because this is really prime time for clear water fishing. Night fishing, if the technique can be mastered, is recommendable, because the clear water fish are then certainly at ease.

One thing the clear water angler desperately needs, is a wind chop on the surface. This breaks the glass clear effect of the water and provides a “blanket” on top which makes the fish more at ease and with a tendency to stay longer in the more shallow, vulnerable areas. What the clear water angler also needs, is less sunlight, and more cloud cover, preferably an overcast sky. Probably the best scenario for clear water fishing is fog (especially in the morning), which is even a better “blanket” than wind or clouds, creating the effect of dark water and putting the bass very much at ease. Whenever fog covers clear water (or perhaps any water) the bass should be pursued in earnest with top water or shallow lures.

The angler should always be very wary when fishing clear water so as not to be seen by the fish. Always maintain a low profile with limited movement, wearing neutral clothing without sharp contrast to the background.

The angling practice for clear water angling is the so-called finesse angling which entails the use of thin, colorless line (6 to10 pounds); relatively small lures (top water, crank baits, plastic worms, spinner baits) with light neutral to translucent colors that wont shy the fish away. Cast as far as possible landing the lure softly on the water to avoid spooking the fish, and retrieve relatively fast and deep, without much vibration (no built-in rattles), but with the necessary twitching movements imitating wounded bait-fish.

Bass are going to see the lure very well, so all the knots should be smoothly finished off, and without extra supplements such as swivels and snap swivels. You should never give the bass a chance to inspect your lure for flaws and fancy-trimmings – it is only going to scare him away. All he has to do is grab the lure in its mouth and – BANG! You pull the trigger!”

3. Please feel free to approach us for more information

“To summarize successful clear water finesse fishing with this ten point plan:

• Thin, colorless line.

• Relatively small lures with light to neutral to translucent colours.

• Cast as far as possible and as softly as possible on water.

• Retrieve relatively fast (and deep) with twitching movements.

• No extra trimmings between line and lure.

• Clean knots.

• Try to seize low light conditions for angling: early morning, late afternoon, dusk, night, windy, overcast, fog.

• Maintain a low profile with limited stealth movements at the target area.

• Wear non-contrast neutral clothing.

• Try to fish against a neutral background.”

  Pretorius, A. 2001. New private bass waters in northwest. Tight Lines – the angler's friend, 42-43, Jan.

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