Makhangoa

With winter approaching its end, things are ramping up for the start of the new season at the Makhangoa Community Camp. With this in mind, Chris King (a new addition to our guides team) and I headed up to Lesotho to do some maintenance, bring along building supplies, and offer our assistance with camp upgrades. Of course, one can’t venture to Lesotho without fishing tackle and without making a few casts.

Revamping Comfort: Crafting a Dedicated Ladies’ Bathroom

A new bathroom is under construction—a dedicated ladies’ bathroom, complete with a bath, shower, fireplace, and other essentials. It’s really starting to take shape, and by the time we departed on Sunday, the roof was being installed. The man cave also received an upgrade with a new ceiling. Chris and I began adding the finishing touches, enhancing the overall aesthetics, and acquiring another skill to our growing repertoire. Our dreams of transitioning into construction after guiding were promptly dashed when we received a message from Keith stating (and I’m paraphrasing), “I realize that precision in building isn’t everyone’s strong suit.” Well, I suppose sticking to guiding is the plan.

Twilight Tranquility at the Makhangoa Community Camp

Our evenings were spent next to the dam twitching nymphs on a floating line and long leader and sipping beers as the shadows grew longer and the temperature dropped. The yellows were surprisingly active near the river mouth, and the nice hot, sunny days are clearly already affecting the water temperature because the fish seem to be waiting to head up river. The yellows are only active in the afternoon after a day of sun, but we had some surprisingly good fishing and caught some surprisingly big fish, with yours truly getting a yellow of 61cm on a diawl bach and Chris getting a 57cm fish the next cast. The average size was around 50cm. From the trout side, there are millions of minions, but I think the big girls have felt the beginnings of spring and have head back into the depths. If you would like to visit the Makhangoa Community Camp, please click here!

Cheers for now,

David Taylor