BASS FISHING IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

There are several questions I am asked repeatedly during my travels across the States. These include:
• Are there bass in Africa?
• What are your lakes like?
• How do you fish for bass in Africa?
• Do you have professional tournaments in South Africa?
• How did you get involved in the WBT all the way from South Africa?

I am going to do my best to answer these questions and hopefully in the process also be able to give you a clearer picture of bass fishing in my home country, South Africa.

Are there bass in Africa?
Most certainly, yes. Colonial fondness for 'bagging trophies' saw the introduction of alien fish species such as bass and trout into former British colonies, such as South Africa and Zimbabwe, as early as the 1850’s. These species were introduced as recreational alternatives to hunting wild animals and game birds...pursuits that today continue to attract growing numbers of outdoor adventurers. Smallmouth bass were first introduced to the Cape Province, South Africa, in 1937 to improve freshwater fishing in the numerous inland lakes and rivers found around the southernmost tip of Africa.

With the growing awareness of the great potential of smallmouth and largemouth bass as a sport fish, stocking programs around the countries were increased until bass were spread throughout dams in South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Mozambique. The countries with the most active bass fraternities are South Africa and Zimbabwe. Namibia and Swaziland have a steadily escalating bass membership; so much so that each year a quad-nations championship between the four countries is held to test each other’s merit.

What are your lakes like?
The majority of the waters we fish are reservoirs; mostly built as water storage for major agricultural irrigation projects or water supply to nearby communities. South Africans refer to their fishing waters as dams and what Americans refer to as dams we call dam walls.

We fish our reservoirs the same way you fish them in the US. Most reservoirs, especially the older ones, do not have an abundance of vegetation growing in them so we have to look for other bass holding structure such as humps, creek channels, drop offs, etc. The sizes of our reservoirs are also significantly smaller than the majority of American reservoirs. A typical example of the size, cover and structure of a South African reservoir would be Lewisville Lake in Texas. When I fished this lake during our 2nd WBT stop, 2006, I was reminded a lot of fishing in South Africa.

There are a few reservoirs with an abundance of aquatic vegetation; various species of pond weed, milfoil-like plants, spotted knotweed we call ‘snotterbella’ and Americans call alligator grass, cane and reeds. In Zimbabwe we have heavily timbered reservoirs very similar to Toledo Bend, Louisiana, and Ray Robert, Texas.

We do not have many systems with current or tidal fluctuations and we do not have power generating plants that use water as you do in America. It has definitely been a learning experience for me to learn to fish as the current dictates. I have not been in a fishing situation where I have had to contend with the tide but know sometime in the near future I will be.

How do you fish for bass in Africa?
We use the same kind of tackle and lures found in the States. Ninety percent of our tackle is imported from the US and most serious tournament anglers keep up to date on the latest lures, presentations and trends as they develop on the tournament trail in America. America is our role model and your heroes are our heroes. We follow the careers and antics of professional anglers such as Kevin van Dam, Rick Clunn and Mike Iaconelli.

Do you have professional tournaments in South Africa?
There is no professional circuit in Southern Africa but we do have several money tournaments and a national federation tournament trail affiliated to BASS.

Our tournaments are all based on and use the same rules and guidelines of BASS. Our federation tournaments act as qualifiers to the National championships toward the end of the season. We have a ranking system which works the same way as the AOY rankings and points from the national tournament accumulate for three seasons. Each year our top ranked angler qualifies to attend the Federation Championships hosted in the United States each year. Anré de Villiers qualified to fish the championships in 2005, Harris Chain of Lakes, won the championship and was the first South African to qualify to fish the Bassmasters Classic, Lake Toho, Florida, 2006. Gerry Jooste from Zimbabwe has qualified to fish the Classic four times before.

How did you get involved in the WBT all the way from South Africa?
I fished the federation circuit in South Africa and qualified to fish at the National Championships several times. The year it was announced in Pittsburgh that BASS would be hosting a professional tour for female anglers the president of our federation, Gerry Leach, attended the Classic to be indicted into the IGFA Hall of Fame as conservationist of the year. Gerry informed me of the announcement when he saw me at the national championships and helped me to get the ball rolling. He sent letters of recommendation on my behalf to Dave Precht, who in turn contacted Bruce Mathis. The rest is history. It had always been my dream to be able to fish professionally so when the invitation was issued to me to fish the WBT I jumped at the opportunity. It has taken a great deal of organization and incredible support from my sponsors to make the dream a reality.

Bass Fishing – SA Style
Bass fishing is a sport in South Africa that is growing in leaps and bounds. Our anglers are enthusiastic and passionate in their love of this sport. There are great programs being developed to assist junior anglers and beginners to the sport.

Unfortunately bass, as an alien species, has become persona non grata in South Africa and the future of our sport fish is under great threat. All breeding and stocking programs have had to be put on hold until further notice from our nature conservation authorities and there is talk of trying to clear out all bass from South African waters. However, a lot of effort and liaison between various bass clubs, the South African Bass Anglers Association and the government has been taking place in an effort to try and make the best out of a bad situation.

Knottingham Estates, Southern Zimbabwe	Knottingham Estates, Southern Zimbabwe	Inanda Dam, Kwazulu Natal, South Africa
Offshore fishing at Inanda Dam, South Africa	Flooded eucalyptus plantations, Inyaka Dam, South Africa	Bass fishing – Zimbabwe
Lake Mteri, Zimbabwe	Alton Jones @ Lake Mteri, Zimbabwe	Sunset in Zimbabwe
Alton and Alton Jr, Lake Mteri, Zimbabwe	Bass fishing is fun for everyone, Inyaka Dam, South Africa