The Galileo One Fly Event

The inaugural Galileo One Fly event, held on the 16th of August 2008, was a first in the country. Based on the prestigious Jackson Hole event held in the USA, the Galileo One Fly event took place on the private estate, Squirewood on the edge of the village of Dullstroom. With seven kilometres of Crocodile River and six magnificent dams including a vast lake of eight hectares, it truly is an alluring place to flyfish. The rules were a little more accommodating than only one fly for the whole day.

Anglers were given four flies of the same pattern. Two wet and two dry versions of the fly specially tied in honour of the main sponsor - the Galileo Highwayman. Anglers unlucky enough to lose their flies could buy another at R500 which was donated to FOSAF's legal battle against the government's preposterous proposal to ban trout. If you're tempted to think that fishing with only one imitation for nine hours could be tricky, you're absolutely right. And a transient cold front didn't make fishing conditions any more encouraging.

Lost flies were not an option

Despite all the odds stacked against the anglers, fishing was exceptional. The first trout was caught on literally the second cast and the fishing remained frantic for the next hour. Things slowed down a little in the afternoon, but a number of fish kept cooperating to keep the anglers scorecards filling up. In fact the trout tally ended at 58 for the day between the 23 anglers.

Donovan Roscoe with a good fish

In the end, there could only be one winner and the angler with the most points at the end of the day, Paul Cunningham, won a fully paid trip to the Amazon. He was clearly delighted with the opportunity he now has to flyfish for the legendary Peacock Bass on a clear water tributary to the Amazon River. His prize includes flights, transfers, guide, accommodation and food for a week. The mouth-watering first prize worth over R55 000 undeniably added to the appeal of the event as did the additional prizes kindly sponsored by Stealth and a superb prize giving dinner on the Saturday evening hosted by Critchley Hackle Lodge. In addition, the twenty three competing anglers were given awesome handouts including branded clothing and flyfishing equipment. If the first event is anything to go by, I'm absolutely sure next years will also be a sell out.

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