The Bell River has it’s origins on the escarpment near the south-eastern border of Lesotho. It flows from there past the historic village of Rhodes to join the Sterkspruit at Moshesh’s Ford. This confluence is the begiining of the Kraai River, the main drain from the Eastern Cape Highlands that flows into the Orange River upstream of Aliwal North. It is home to wild rainbow trout (Oncorhyncus mykiss)and several indigenous species such as the smallmouth yellowfish (Labeobarbus aenueus) See: http://www.yellowfish.co.za/index.php/yellowfish-species/91-smallmouth-yellowfish

The yellows are seasonally migrational, heading up from the Kraai River to the Rhodes area to spawn in summer and are a popular species that can be taken on a fly. The rainbows remain in the Bell from Moshesh to the headwaters year round spawning in autumn or winter, depending on prevailing weather conditions and are also a popular fly fishing species.