17/04/2014 - More spotties and a bar of silver

Tried a different section of river today that I'd found on Google Earth, this time several miles upstream of where I was previously and therefore quite different in nature - a faster, shallower channel hemmed in between a steep wooded bank and the site of an old trout farm, with the only access by wading down the river itself from a ford upstream.

Into the valley

Fished the pockets and the deeper, steadier sections with same team of flies as before. First fish was an 8", solid bar of silver that spent more time in the air than the water. Unfortunately it wriggled out of my grasp before I got a photo, so I was left guessing whether I'd caught my second ever sewin, or my first ever salmon. Was spotties after that, including best fish of the holiday so far that punched well above its weight in the fast current.

Fin perfect

Again it was the goldhead GRHE on the point that took the honours, with just a single fish coming on the top dropper.

One on the Partridge

There was some good news when I got back to the house - Angus had decided that he'd had enough of being hungry and mobbed by crows, buzzards and squirrels and had allowed Alex and and his wife, Emma, to finally catch him after four days on the run.

The wanderer has returned!

Found him safely installed on the lawn looking like butter wouldn't melt in his mouth, but then again who'd argue with him?!

16/04/2014 - Welsh spotties

Packed the trout and bass gear for our latest trip down to the in-laws in Pembrokeshire. Was particularly looking forward to catching a few Welsh Brownies again. Often used to pop down to the local river with the fly rod but, for one reason or another, had just got out of the habit. However, first job was to assist with "Operation Angus"! My brother-in-law, Alex, had recently purchased an immature White-tailed Sea Eagle for his falconry business and was in the process of training him to fly to the glove, but on his second free flight he decided to go AWOL. Fortunately he had a radio transmitter on, so the majority of our first day was spent helping to track and keep an eye on him until he was in the mood to come home. By late afternoon he seemed to have settled down on the roof of a barn at a local farm, so we left Alex to babysit him and await reinforcements. Took the opportunity for a quick trip down to a free section of river I'd fished regularly in the past - about 400 metres of nice riffly water sandwiched between a high wall alongside a road and some private gardens.

Nice!

There wasn't much in the way of fly life visible when I got there (it had been sunny, but with a cold breeze all day), so set up a cast of three wet flies consisting of a gold head GRHE on the point, a Greenwell's Glory on the bottom dropper and a Partridge and Orange on the top, all size 14. Waded in at the top of the section, aiming to run the flies down the line of trees on the far bank, and had a take second cast from a little Welsh Brownie that scrapped in the current all the way to the net.

Welsh Spotty

Fished on slowly downstream for an hour or so taking eight more as I did so, including a "double shot" on the point fly and bottom dropper. 

Two at once!

Caught on all three flies, with the gold head marginally taking the honours. Didn't quite make it down to the bridge as a chap and his lad appeared and started casting from the wall just downstream of me. That's the trouble - "free" sections of river in this neck of the woods don't stay free for long! Called it a day at that point, but was pleased with my first recce.

13/03/2014 - Last gasp double

Had booked the day off with all sorts of fanciful notions of it being a multi-venue, multi-species affair. However, an incident at work meant that I didn't get to the tackle shop as planned and was too knackered to get all my stuff together from the four corners of the shed, garage and attic. Instead, I cobbled together as many dead baits I could find from the freezer, grabbed my pike gear and headed out into the freezing, foggy darkness. Was just about getting light when I got to the venue and walked up the towpath to the same area I fished a couple of weeks ago. Stuck to my vow of "don't ignore the margins" and duly stuck a rod down the side, along with one on the far bank in the crease formed by the back end of a houseboat (the old dear that lives there must love the sight of me when she opens her curtains in the morning!). Clock had just ticked around to 7 o'clock when the near bank rod set off. Hit it and felt some weight. Turned out to be a short, but very fat fish that, at 10lb 7oz, was my first double from that particular section of river (after eight sessions and forty fish to be exact!).

A double at last!

Re-baited with another joey and dropped it in the same spot. A few minutes later that trundled off as well resulting in one about 8lb. Sorted that one out and was just thinking that it was time the far bank rod saw some action when the float started to head off towards the boats. Unfortunately, it was back to one of the run of the mill jacks this time. Moved upstream after these fish and had a couple more on the same bit of lamprey, again from the far bank. The fog had started to lift and I could just make out figure in the gloom at the sat at the end of the access road (was that you, Leo?), otherwise I still had the section to myself. Things then went a bit strange as I had three dropped runs and completely failed to connect with a fish that steamed off with a lamprey section. Had to wait a good hour for the next one, but at least it made some old chap's day for him as he stopped for a chat. He said he'd never seen anybody catch anything before and insisted on taking a photograph to show the wife! The sun had finally broken through by now, burning off the remains of the fog and forcing me to shed a layer. 

Sunny

Was down to one roach dead bait at this stage and was thinking I'd had it for the day when the drop off smacked the rest on the near side rod as the float disappeared without any prior indication. 

  

Last fish of the season

Stayed on for another half an hour or so, but that really was it for the season. The sun had started to bring the boats out again and I was nearly caught out by low flying Canada Geese on two occasions and had to rush down to drop the rod tips as they came skimming up the river. The smell of frying bacon from the cafe on the other side of the river was the final straw. My co-angler had already left by the time I got back to the car, having "not had a nudge" according to two dog walkers, so my season had ended better than some and at least the wife will be glad I've made some room in the freezer!

07/03/2014 - Back to deepest Derbyshire

Was itching to have another go for a big grayling before the end of the season so, after making the necessary arrangements with my friend Tim, I was off up the A52 towards Ashbourne again. Was wet, cold and windy on the way up, but thankfully it had started to clear up by the time we came to head upstream from the car park to the first section and eventually it turned into a nice Spring day. Once again Tim pointed out the likely lies as we went and I have to say now that throughout the day his advice was bang on the money, with every spot indicated yielding a take, if not a fish in the net. 

Had a few casts in the first spot we came to, then switched to a heavier team of flies to cope with the flow. Next cast in, literally where I'd been wading around a few minutes earlier, a small male duly obliged and got me off the mark.

Just a little 'un

Had an out of season spotty from the same swim before we moved down to the next section. Tim was then quick off the mark with two grayling, including a 43 cm male that really got my interest going. However, it was just another small male and an oos brownie to me before we were off again downstream. Started at the top of a long glide and, under Tim's instructions, dropped the flies into a small pocket behind a mid-stream boulder. Unfortunately, I lost the resulting fish after giving it a bit too much line to play with in the flow. Tim then left me to work down the rest of glide myself and I had nearly reached the bottom when I had a good clonk on the tip. Saw the fish twist in the clear water and knew immediately that it was a good one. Gestured the fact to to Tim who was also occupied downstream (in fact he hooked and landed two female grayling in the time it took me to get mine in!). Played it with my heart in my mouth and sank down on my knees in the shallows when I finally got it in the net - a 45 cm male fish of 2lb 9oz and a personal best.

Clonker!

Took a quick snap before holding him in the shallows to recover, but to be honest I think he was in better shape than me after our joint ordeal!

 Back he goes

Once I'd got my breath back, Tim suggested I moved down and try just upstream of where he'd just been as he suspected that the males would be hanging in the shallower water above the females in preparation for spawning. Again, he left me to it and headed off to try elsewhere. Second cast I lifted into a fish that again twisted under the surface, giving me a glance of a long silver flank. Had a hairy moment when my landing net fell to bits and I had to scoop the fish up minus the handle, but was soon looking at another clonking male of 44 cm.

  

And another!

Got even better as next cast saw another take and another 40 cm+ fish, a male of 42cm with a dorsal fin like a sailfish, which was then followed by a small female. Caught up with Tim shortly after this and we carried on downstream, taking a few more fish between us as we did so. Having reached the bottom of the beat we walked all the way back upstream to try another glide where Tim suspected a few fish might be gathering pre-spawning. Second cast in the line hesitated, literally where my head was casting a shadow on the water, and I bent into what turned out to be a fat, deep-bodied female of 41 cm.

   

My fat hen

The sun had disappeared behind the hills at this stage and it started getting distinctly chilly so, after one more oos brownie to me and with aching backs and joints from being in the river all day we headed back to the car. A great day all 'round and the perfect antidote to what's been a pretty dire winter. Thanks mate!

26/02/2014 - Back on the river at last!

Apart from a couple of sessions with the lure rod, this winter has been very lean indeed when it comes to fishing. The constant rain hasn't helped, often dashing hopes just as conditions were looking suitable and I became all but addicted to XC Weather and the Environment Agency river level graphs. Finally, after a period of relatively settled weather, the local rivers started fining down to "normal" winter levels, so I decided to take advantage of a favourable window in the weather to do a spot of piking and blow away a few cobwebs. Luckily it seemed I chose a day when they were "having it"! First light saw me heading up the towpath to a section where I'd had a few in the past. Set up the two float-legers as usual, both baited with joeys to start with, but instead of chucking both of them over to boats on the far bank I dropped one in quietly down the near side next to an old reed bed. It was this rod that went off first about 15 minutes later. I was still playing this one out when the rod on the far bank also decided to trundle off. A hectic few minutes of rod-swapping later and I had two pike safely in the landing net. A quick snap and they swam off happily together.

Brace #1

Sorted out the gear and got two more baits out into the same spots. Didn't have to wait long before a better fish picked up the bait down the side. Had just popped that one back when the far bank rod went off again - this time a jack sporting a decent set of jaw marks across its back. Went a bit quiet after this, so leap-frogged the rods down to the next peg. This time the reaction was instantaneous and simultaneous! The drop-off indicator smacked the rear bank stick on one rod just as the tip bent over on the other as fish made off with both baits. Another hectic few minutes of juggling saw two more pike grace the net at the same time, one sporting a head that really should have belonged to a much bigger fish. 

Brace #2!

By now I was glad that there was no boat traffic and that I was using semi-barbless trebles! However, I wasn't done there. After half an hour I moved down to the next peg. After a short wait the lamprey section on the inside rod trundled off. As I was playing this one I kept half an eye on the other rod just in case.......and yes, you guessed it!  Soon brace number three was in the net, which included a short, fat, spawny fish of 9lb 1oz.

Brace #3!!

At this stage I'd been fishing for a little over two hours and had eight fish, four on each rod (I won't be ignoring the nearside margin in future). However, amazingly the next two hours passed without another sniff. Not that I was complaining - I was grateful for the rest! A gusty, downstream wind had got up during this time, which had made presentation over the far bank a bit tricky anyway. Also, the appearance of a few boats saw me having to play hokey-cokey with the rods, so I headed home for a well earned and early lunch.

22/11/2013 - Somewhere in Derbyshire

Finally managed a break from work, decorating and building kitchen cabinets! Arranged with my friend Tim to go for a "grayling masterclass" on his syndicate water in Derbyshire. The landowner had imposed a fly only rule since the last time I went with him, so it was going to be a day of Czech nymphing, a method I'd never tried before, instead of the float and maggot. Got to the venue to find that the river was dropping nicely after the rain in midweek. At the first swim Tim got me set up, explained where the fish were likely to be lying and then gave a quick demo of the technique before I had a go myself. Soon got used to pitching the two weighted flies upstream then watching the line for any unnatural movements as they bumped back along the bottom towards me. The first spot proved fishless, so it was off downstream to try the next one. Tim pointed out where there was a hole scoured out in the bed, which was likely to hold a fish or two. More by luck than judgement I managed to drop the flies right on the spot first time, the line twitched and I lifted into fish, not huge, but my first grayling on the fly.

Hello Lady!

Moved down to the next swim and again Tim's local knowledge was spot on as he pointed me towards a flat spot in an otherwise pacey section of water. A couple of trots through and everything went solid. Thought I'd hooked bottom, but then felt the throb of a better fish on the end of the line. Played it into the side under Tim's instructions, keeping the rod tip low until it was time to net it. Turned out to be a nice male around the 2 lb mark.

   And the lady's other half!

After a quick coffee it was down to the next spot, a deeper glide at the tail end of a pool. Had been chatting away with Tim, fully into the rhythm of casting when I had another take in front of me. Lifted into a fish that shot downstream towards against a fully bent rod and then just hung on the end of a taut line in the faster water. Knew it was big fish as I could do nothing with it other than just keep the rod tip low, keep the pressure on and pray that the hook didn't pull out. Eventually I started to make headway, the pressure of the rod and some scare tactics by Tim, wading into the river downstream,  forcing the fish back up towards me. However, it soon became apparent there was a problem as the angle of the line into the water was all wrong. Lifted the rod tip to find the line festooned with leaves, there was a judder and the fish was gone. Tim's expression said it all,  I'd lost a very big fish.........Oh well, onwards and upwards! Carried on for the rest of the afternoon, trying a variety of spots, picking up a few more grayling between us and three out of season brownies to me before the light faded and we made out way back to the cars.

Thoroughly enjoyed the day despite losing that fish and the fact my right shoulder was in agony by the  time I got home (Czech nymphing is hard work!). Will certainly be a method I'll be using again and hopefully I'll be back after the "one that got away".

Bits and bobs - 05/11/2013

Work, buying a new kitchen, weekends away at friends and relatives......I could go on! Needless to say there hasn't been much fishing done lately. A trip down to Saunton with the lads was an opportunity for another crack at the bass with the lures. However, day one on the coast near Woolacombe drew a blank. The next morning saw me on the estuary just after dawn for a social with Joel Squires (http://www.joelsoul.co.uk/). Conditions seemed perfect - the light was good, the wind had dropped and there were even birds feeding on shoals of bait fish, albeit tantalisingly out of casting range most of the time! Worked hard with surface lures, following the incoming tide up the gullies and making sure we didn't get cut off in the process. 

Joel on the estuary

Retreating back onto the beach I tried "trotting" a soft plastic on the current but, apart from a tiny "basslet" to Joel, our luck just wasn't in. Bit frustrating given such good conditions and the fact that the following weekend in Pembrokeshire (and the last chance for a bass) was completely blown out. Never mind - next year! Back in Nottingham, a couple of trips with the light lure outfit following up a "hot tip" about some big perch just resulted in a few small pike before the heavens well and truly opened and flooded rivers brought things to a halt.

Jack on a Big Hammer

At least I've caught up with my reading, not least the great blogs and online magazines that are out there. One of the latter is http://www.esoxworld.com/, which is currently available as a download, an iPad App and PC/Mac App and has some great articles on pike and muskie fishing in the UK, Ireland, Europe, Canada and the United States. Another good fireside read is http://www.catchmagazine.net. Even if you're not a fly fisherman, you can't fail to be impressed at the amazing photography and visually stunning locations. It's certainly got me hankering (on a less global scale!) after some fly-fishing for grayling once the rivers have dropped back to normal. If you're cack-handed like me and can't tie the simplest fly to save his life, http://www.islandflies09.co.uk/ are well worth looking at for value, quality service. Just hope the weather improves a bit now!