Bank Angling In The OFS – Soetdoring Nature Reserve

Soetdoring Nature Reserve is situated on the R700 about 40km from Bloemfontein. It provided me with plenty of stress relief when I was still a student at the University of the Free State, so I recently thought it worthwhile to revisit this “place of Zen”. I used to catch plenty of carp and catfish in the Modder River that runs through it. My absolute favourite ‘abnormality’ of this venue is that the catfish readily take your bait, even your Rietvlei carp rig during the height of day when you wouldn’t expect them to. So with my good friend Hannes van Schalkwyk we arrived early one morning with plenty of enthusiasm for the day’s fishing. The only water level fishing area at spot number 13. It took us some time to get to fishing spot number 13, which is a favourite at Soetdoring due to the jaw-dropping photography opportunities along the way. I just had to snap some photos of whatever wildlife that had the decency to pose for a photo. One Black Wildebeest seemed kind enough to strike a dashing pose, but when I jumped out of the car for what I assumed would be an amazing photo, it ran at me threateningly. I did not stick around and I thought the Wildebeest particularly rude. We only started fishing at around 10am and I made sure to wind up my windows and lock my car with all the thieving Vervet Monkeys in the vicinity. They just love shiny keepsakes! A beaming Hannes with his personal best 6,3kg carp. We started out with Quattro floats on our Rietvlei-rigs and for a while we thought that either the carp weren’t on the bite or the bait was the wrong choice, but patience prevailed and the rods became active. Hannes caught the first carp of the day, a tiny yet beautiful 1kg mirror and soon after that I caught a slightly bigger common and the ice was broken. The fish started running like mad for a while, but we landed only a few small carp, having foul hooked the others which led to frustrating break-offs. Then something amazing happened: Hannes’ rod alarm began beeping slowly and I mentioned to him that big carp often took bait like that, and sure enough when he struck the 8ft rod a few minutes later, he grunted under the pressure exerted by the fish. Hannes’ previous best carp weighed a meagre 2,4kg, so this was a whole new experience to him. I coached him through the battle with the energetic beast on the other end, telling him exactly how to use his drag to good effect and some 15 minutes later he landed a beautiful 6,3kg common carp. His smile was irremovable! His luck continued when he caught a 4kg carp soon afterwards, needing no coaching this time. It is always an amazing experience when you can share some of your knowledge with fledgling anglers. I caught no big fish on the day, but I did land a tiny catfish on the same Quattro floats the carp were caught on. My wife, Rozaan joined us a bit later and as is her female luck, immediately caught a good looking carp on her first cast. The force was strong with her! In total we caught 10 fish, including some good sized ones. Hannes with a hefty carp of 4kg. My overall opinion of Soetdoring Nature Reserve is that it is still a beautiful day trip for both anglers and non-anglers, even though the water levels have been influenced by the nationwide drought. For day entry it is only R70 per vehicle with up to five passengers. There are designated picnic areas and some portable toilet facilities, but these are in need of repair. Still, the animal diversity makes it a wondrously peaceful outing. The reserve also has a predator camp where you can easily spot enormous lions. Don’t worry - they don’t wander through the rest of the reserve so you can fish without fear. Unfortunately fishing is permitted only between 07:00 and 17:45. If you want to overnight though, you can always book either a two or a four person self-catering chalet at R550 and R650 per night respectively. Fishing is not allowed from the chalets, but the scenery should be enough to calm the weary mind. I’m sure that Soetdoring Nature Reserve will provide you with great fishing and much needed rest from the hustle and bustle of the city. My wife Rozaan with her beautiful carp. Soetdoring Nature Reserve entrance. Good cover for wary carp. One of the picnic sites that needs repair. This friendly Tortoise crossed the road in Soetdoring. Beautiful Black Wildebeest and Dazzling Zebras grazing on a small hill in the reserve. *To make a chalet booking, call Soetdoring Nature Reserve: 051 433 9002.

Bank Angling In The OFS – Soetdoring Nature Reserve

Words & Photos: Raoull du Toit

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R550.00 per year

R55.00 per month

R399.00 per year

R40.00 per month

R399.00 per year

R40.00 per month

KEEP FISHING ALIVE: If you like our work support For Anglers’ journalism with a digital membership!

Premium Digital

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