Marabou Whiskey the best at Gunyatoo – without the shadow of a trout

After much anticipation, the day of the inaugural Gunyatoo Ladies and Gents Fly-fishing Classic finally arrived.

The morning session on August 12 was held on the beautiful Sabie River. Although it was misty, the anglers could already tell it was going to be a great day.

Teams began to arrive as set-up was completed and marshals received their clipboards and whistles. The participants were in good spirits as the anticipation for this enjoyable event increased.

The anglers were required to dress as flies in accordance with their team names, and the male participants were obliged to wear pink to show their support for the deserving cause, CANSA.

Before the whistles blew for the opening session, everyone had time to enjoy coffee and doughnuts while setting up their fly lines.

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The two-hour morning session produced some fantastic fish, and everyone had a blast cheering on the opposing teams and rushing up and down each beat to catch as many fish as possible in the allotted time. As “lines in!” was called, the air was buzzing with anticipation as the teams drove to the gorgeous Gunyatoo Trout Lodge for the afternoon session.

The anglers had some time to change flies and practise some dance moves while lunch was being prepared.

The participants were fuelled up for the next stage of the day with a delicious chicken prego and a Sabie Brewery cider.

The afternoon session was divided into four half-hour beats, with two members of each team fishing at a time.

Cheering and laughter filled the air as fish were being caught one after the other. While some were landed and some were lost, morale remained high.

The day’s fishing was concluded when “lines in!” was called, and teams gathered for the prize-giving ceremony.

Many businesses supported the event and some amazing prizes were donated.

First up was the best-dressed team, and everyone was raving about the winners. Marabou Whiskey won for their beautiful outfits and thoughtful props.

The Mrs Simpson team won the prize for best team spirit thanks to their loud cheers and encouragement of one another.

Then came the moment everyone had been anticipating.

With their fantastic catches of the day, Marabou Whiskey took home the honours for the longest bag.

Several other prizes were given out, and everyone was in amazement at the sponsors’ generosity. The day came to an end after a brief word of thanks and several photos being taken.

The experienced and some not-so experienced anglers cannot wait for the next Gunyatoo Ladies and Gents Fly-fishing Classic.

“We want to express our gratitude to all of the sponsors who went above and beyond to make this event a big success, and furthermore for supporting CANSA through fishing. We had the incredible honour of contributing R6 000 to this wonderful charity, and we are confident that this sum will continue to increase over the coming years.

“One thing we learnt while planning this event is that there is still a lot of love and support in this nation, and everyone who participated, whether as an organiser, supporter, marshal, helper, sponsor or competitor, helped raise money for a very worthwhile cause. Your generosity will have a significant impact on many people’s lives. So, keep an eye out for information about the dates of the upcoming Gunyatoo Ladies and Gents Fly-fishing Classic. You don’t want to miss out on being a part of it,” said the organiser, Jani Wessels.

Longest bag
1st: Marabou Whiskey (Lucinda van Niekerk, Mariette Klopper, Allet Kinnear and Tracey Russell)
2nd: White Death (Ben Wessels, Marloux Breitenbach, Frans van Aardt and Kyle Dehrmann)
3rd: Mrs Simpson (Jani Wessels, Sanet Nolte, Marina Good [1st session], Amè Quinn [2nd session] and Emma Wessels)
Best-dressed team
1st: Marabou Whiskey
2nd: Mrs Simpson
3rd: White Death
Best team spirit
1st: Mrs Simpson.
2nd: Marabou Whiskey
3rd: White Death.