The Mission Fly Fishing Magazine

28/08/2026

GREEN AND GOLD TROOTS!
Alien in our neck of the woods? Yes. Adored? Absolutely. Designed by and in collaboration with Justin Webber (Justin Webber of Headwaters Fish Art in Australia) we present the Green and Gold Trout T-Shirt (known as the Gold and Green Down Under on Justin’s store). 100% cotton and 78% likely to convince any stranger that you’re a fishy person.

Get yours through the link in bio.

26/08/2026

FLIES FOR ST HELENA ISLAND (PART 3)
As part of the build-up to the launch of issue 59 (September/October 2026) and our cover story on St Helena island, Leonard Flemming has been sharing blogs on the most effective flies he, Jimmy Eagleton and Matt Kennedy used on that trip.

This was a truly special (and we think possibly a world first) expedition that saw them catch crazy species either completely different to anything we have seen before - or weird versions of species we know like the triggerfish, parrotfish and trevally endemic to this part of the Atlantic.

Prepping for the unknown generally means filling your boxes with tried and trusted all-purpose patterns, but also doing internet deep dives to learn about baitfish and crustaceans found on a rock in the middle of nowhere.

Curious? Read more through the link below.

You never go to a saltwater destination without Clousers, ever! Clouser minnows may work better in some places than others, and the African coastline is

19/08/2026

THE STERKFONTEIN ANTI-POACHING UNIT
Poaching at Sterkfontein Dam had been going on for 25 years before Craig Hill, manager of Qwantani Resort, intervened.

Spawning yellowfish were being scooped from the shallows in crudely made weld-mesh basket nets, and syndicates were loading 500 to 600 fish at a time into bakkies in broad daylight.

Today, the Sterkfontein Anti-Poaching Unit operates with three dedicated rangers and a Belgian Malinois named Phoenix. The team patrols the mountains above the dam on foot, covering up to 12 kilometres each way to intercept poachers before they reach the water. Shifts run randomly, for days at a time, with teams camped out overnight during peak season.

For more on Sterkies, read Salad Daze from issue 58 at the link in bio. It’s free!
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18/08/2026

STERK GERTJIE
“Sterk Gertjie resulted in my first ever reef mission where I fished one fly all day, and smacked fish. I found I could feel the fly hit snags and react in time to not lose the thing. The weight of the fly means you can keep contact in very rough water, while the heavy mono eyes help to keep the hook-point clear of danger. Ah, man, and it swims just so that a blacktail can’t say no. Whether or not they take it for the big, bright Palaemon and Processa shrimps abundant in the area, or not, I suppose matters less than the fact that they do.”��

LeRoy Botha and Jurg de Jager got the blood pumping and the fly-tying juices flowing when they discovered an alternative to freezing their asses off waiting for shots on the grunter flats this winter: a remote and treacherous reef fishery patrolled by big, hungry blacktail. They walked, they bled, they broke gear, and they still froze their asses off. One of LeRoy’s flies bested them all... Shawn’s rock and roll loving cousin, Sterk Gertjie. Read all about it at the link below.

In the Sterk Gertjie, LeRoy Botha's found a lethal pattern for large model blacktail and other reef species

17/08/2026

GET TICKETS FOR RAUFFFF HERE: https://www.quicket.co.za/organisers/91784-the-mission-fly-fishing-magazine

Well… the first show of the RAUFFFF tour sponsored by Epi-max Man happened last week in Cape Town and it was brilliant. While we are stoked with how well it went, don’t listen to us. Here’s what other people had to say:

“Went to The Mission's Raw African Unfiltered Fly Fishing Festival last night here in Cape Town and it was a banger. Authentic to the bone from the event to the quality of the films. We really loved it and well done to the film makers, they were all excellent and so f #*king real.” Jerri Mperdempes

“Went to RAUFFFF last night. Take a bow all involved. That was fantastic, local South African fly fishing stories told authentically and beautifully. Do yourself a favour, if you haven't booked a ticket yet, do it! You'd be a poephol not to.” Gordon van der Spuy

“The industry and the culture and the world as a whole is lucky to have you chaps. Woke up this morning reignited to get out there again. That really means something. So thanks." James Leach

We have six cities left to visit. Paarl sold out weeks ago. If you live in Durban, Hilton, Johannesburg, Pretoria (only 10 spots left) or Knysna, you can still grab a ticket. Not only will you have an excellent night of fly fishing entertainment, but buying a ticket also puts you in the running to win some epic prizes (e.g. R250 000 trip for one to Alphonse Island or a trip for two to Ichingo Chobe River Lodge to go for tigerfish).

Seriously - what else are you going to do on a random winter evening in August? Don’t be that di**it who wakes up too late.

🎟️ Durban — Northlands Bowling Club — Tuesday 18 August
🎟️ Hilton — Hilton College — Wednesday 19 August
🎟️ Johannesburg — Bryanston Country Club — Thursday 20 August
🎟️ Pretoria — Zwartkops Country Club — Friday 21 August - 10 SEATS LEFT
🎟️ Knysna — Knysna Hollow Lodge — Thursday 27 August

17/08/2026

RIVER
“We settle with backs against a yard-high vertical bank at the top of the slope. Here we can sit in the clear winter sunlight, yet out of the crisp southerly breeze. With a soft groan of pleasure, my father takes out his pipe, tamps down the bowl with a broad thumb, lights – with difficulty – and puffs, his lips making the smallest popping noises. We are surrounded by the blue haze of Dinglers No. 5 to***co, which swirls gently in the eddy of the earthen bank behind our heads.”

In a biographical short story, New Zealand-based author Alex Stone writes about his youth and time spent fly fishing on the Umzimkulu with his father.��Read the full article from The Mission issue 58 at the link below. It’s free!

New Zealand-based author Alex Stone writes about his youth and time spent fly fishing on the Umzimkulu with his father.

11/08/2026

WHAT OFF SEASON?
“I realised the other day that there isn’t really an off-season at all. There’s just a very large number of people, scattered across a very large number of coastlines, solving the same handful of material problems in whatever weather happens to be outside their window that week.”

Jazz Kuschke has been having some deep thoughts this winter.

Read the full blog at the link below.

Why fly tyers worldwide keep inventing the same patterns independently, and what collective consciousness in fly tying really means for tyers.

11/08/2026

CREATURES FROM THE BLACK LAGOON
The problem with having great photographers on a trip, is that there’s not enough space to run all their photos in the magazine. In this blog from Leonard Flemming featuring shots from both him and Jeff Tyser, you get a real sense of what fly fishing in Gabon is like.

Read the full thing in the link below.

(Pic dump of a saltwater fly fishing trip to Gabon – photos by Leonard Flemming, Jeff Tyser and Conrad Botes) Gabon is strange saltwater fishing

11/08/2026

RAUFFFF LINEUP
Between our baby RAUFFFF (Raw African Unfiltered Fly Fishing Film Festival), F3T and IF4, do you find the fly fishing film fest scene somewhat confusing?

To help make sense of it, we have an explainer covering what the difference is between the fests and what you can expect from the RAUFFFF 2026 lineup.

Read all about it in the link below.

RAUFFFF is touring the country over the next three weeks, and mega-fans should book before all the seats are filled.

RAUFFFF touring schedule:

Cape Town – Thursday, August 13 – (SOLD OUT)
Durban – Tuesday, August 18
Hilton – Wednesday, August 19
Paarl – Wednesday August 26 – (SOLD OUT)
Joburg – Thursday, August 20
Pretoria – Friday August 21
Knysna – Thursday, August 27

RAUFFFF (pronounced 'rough') is The Mission's Raw African Unfiltered Fly Fishing Film Festival (sponsored by Epi-Max Man).