Trout Fishing is Getting Tougher - But I Caught Anyway

Thursday 30th June

I havn't caught anything for 10 days.... I need my fishing fix. I've been busy doing lots of research and buying new flies. I met a couple last week, they caught 6, I caught 0 - both in 2 hours! You can imagine how I pounced on them as they came back from the boat. They had caught all on a Blue Holo Shuttlecock Buzzer - new to me, I'd never heard of that before, and magic floatant powder so it floats on the surface. Ebay.

Anyway, I'm fishing like a blog suggested. A small furry thing, just below the surface, pulled in short, fast tugs. I have a trout, the blog was right! people are so clever. Few other fisherman around, no Graham he's away, but they're all not catching anything at all.

Everyone wants to know what I'm using, I tell them its a furry brown thing. Two hours later I have another, this time on a similar fly to the first both one of my new purchases! Very pleased indeed.

The day was good and the fishing very different - need more blog tips...

Just before I leave I had a strong attack on the fly below, also pulled fast through the water. This is so exciting as the takes are very powerful..

Trout Belated Birthday Party

Today is the only day this week that will be decent weather I'm told, so I'm off to beat the lady of the lake!

Its a day off for me today and I'm going to correct the tragedy that happened last week, when I caught no fish and even worse NOTHING on my birthday. I know that catching is not everything, in theory, but I find it very difficult to be satisfied with just the view, gorgeous as it is.

When I arrive at 9am all the boats are being used and there are more people there than I've ever seen before. It was crowded! Maybe 5 people in total, where the hell did they come from?

I have to fish off the bank and I'm kind of pleased to hear that they have not caught anything since 6am. Graham is cursing, its a good sign that he hasn't caught either.

Next minute I here him shouting from the boat - 'I'm on!' Apparently that's fishing code for 'I've got one you fuckers!'. I shout over the lake from the bank (bad etiquette I know but I've got to know what fly he's using). He says its a little brown thing. Then the lady in the boat nearest me has one too!!! Its like they're spitting in my face ;-). Buy now I'm changing fly madly - dry fly, wet fly, lure, fuzzy coloured thing, pink thing, Fantastic Green Monster - still nothing.

Graham gets another!! Lady in boat gets another! Oh god, what's happening. Graham finishes and comes over for a chat. He asks for a cast on my rod and says he really likes it. (£21 on Ebay - I love it). He kindly gives me the fly he's been using - a tiny little brown dry fly that almost looks like a moth. Straight away I get action on the line but no takes, its amazing how much difference the fly makes.

Now its 2pm! Sunburned, hungry, thirsty, I decide to pack it in and pick on last fly to try. I've used this one before and has some success. Instantly a trout is on it!

I strike and have a 2lb fish on my hands. I'm happy now, I can leave and feel that my day has not been wasted. I throw the line out again and again, its fish number two!! How can this be happening to me? Again I throw the same fly in, another! I have three juicy trout in 20 minutes! 2.11lb and 2.2lb. Why that fly? What does it think it is? There were millions of damsel flies around again and this doesn't look anything like a damsel.

So I get home and while gutting the fish decide to open up its stomach and see what's inside. I could not believe what I was seeing. Hundreds of damsel flies and also maybe one third of the contents was a white or cream looking damsel like creature, this is what the fish thought my fly was. Have I stumbled onto the secret of June fishing on this lake? I hope so. You can clearly see them in the last image below. Now all I need is a decent imitation of the damsel - none of the ones I've got so far have worked.

Birthday Fishing with Tennis Elbow

Saturday the 18th, its my birthday and I'm determined to fish no matter what. The weather is shit and wind is howling but at 8.30 I'm on the boat.

Back to lots of fish swimming straight past my fly, I'm changing fly every few minutes and there is no way they are taking my offering!

Cut to 5 hours later, I'm done. For the entire time I was alone on the lake, not a soul to be seen anywhere and it felt like just me and mother nature - and she was winning!

I get home and find I have the aching in the left wrist back again. Luckily we have Clare and Alba staying the night, Clare is an osteopath. She explains that I have the beginning of tennis elbow due to my retrieval technique... I have to develop more style in my casting and retrieving.

As for the trout, they eluded me today and the whole of last week - I ask myself - how can a fish outwit me? What does that say about me!

On Saturdays I Do It Twice

6am I'm awake, may as well fish.

Coffee, shit, car, lake - my needs are simple. Graham is there already, he's caught nothing since dawn. I have to catch, he's a pro and I want to impress. Boat to the nearest buoy, having learned my lesson I put on Fantastic Green Thing - everyone at the moment is insisting that dry flies are the only thing working. I know better!

In ten minutes I have a fish! ! I'm a god! Right in front of his nose, I even shouted over ' look graham, I've got one' - I'm such a bitch!

By ten I'm done, give Graham the 2.4lb monster and go home.

2.30pm Laura watching tennis, I think I'll fish. Now Mr friend/enemy is there - whenever I arrive, he's there with his son and ALWAYS got a fish on the line. (actually he's always nice and friendly, the enemy bit is I my head! ). He's on the bank by the clubhouse, I'm on a boat on the orange buoy. On goes Fantastic Green Thing, in 5 minutes I've got a fish, again right in front of him! I love it, so happy, happy, happy. God, I'm a child!

One interesting thing, on my way out chatted to mr bmw 5 series, he's been catching on a dry fly daddy long legs the last 2 times and caught 2 each time. Shows me the fly on his rod so I know he's not bullshitting me. Must try next time.

PS. Graham shouted over to me this morning, ' you have the most beautiful casting style Grant' - made my day, I'm slowly learning..

Bring Home The Bacon Trout

Thursday.. Friend coming from london for dinner. Trout would be nice! But can I cope with the performance pressure?

Today I'm fishing from the bank. Dry flies. As usual with me, the trout are swarming in my area, looking up at my offering and then pissing off! They were all in the far corner by the gate feeding on damn damsel flies.

3 hours later, I'm sun burned, arm is paralyzed, no fish. I give myself 5 mins, one more fly, and I have to admit defeat and go back to Laura and Carm empty handed. I move to the bank by the straw barrage, put on old friend, The Fantastic Green Thing, instantly I have a fucking fish! ! Joy joy joy..

Fishing with a Pro

I was invited to fish with Graham, a trout & fly fishing veteran. So late yesterday afternoon we met and went out on the boat. Three 'top' flies were recommended and the perfect anchor spot was identified.

My first shock was that for the first time ever, I hooked my fellow boat mate with the fly! Luckily for me it was in his arm. I noticed that he very quickly put on his hat, having already been to A&E that week to have a hook removed.

Fished for 2 hours, not even a bite or an ounce of interest!!

Shows that even with a pro around you cant be assured of a fish. I was disappointed and secretly pleased at the same time. I would have been horrified if we had caught loads, it would have meant that I was a true amateur - now I know I'm a lucky beginner..

BTW - I tried 12 flies in total - all dry flies (daddy-long-legs, spiders, moths, may fly, damsel) and in desperation the Killer Green Monster - still nothing. Still I met an interesting person, who gave me good tips and whose brain I can mine in the future.

Freaky Friday with Mother-in-Law

At the crack of dawn my mother-in-law and myself decided to do a joint fishing trip. Armed with a few new flies and the cool morning breeze to assist us in casting -we took a two man boat and moored ourselves to a buoy.

We first tried with a dry fly to see if the trout were taking from the surface, but I think it was too early in the morning. I should have known as there were no damsel flies to be seen anywhere.

After around half an hour of no action we decided to put on a long green thing that I hoped looked like a hatching damsel fly nymph. Instantly we both got big takes and landed two fish.... Joy of joy, now we have the one under our belts we can relax and enjoy the fishing. (As soon as I catch one, I'm happy to chill and enjoy the scenery).

Now we carried on fishing for another hour and no more bites!! Damn! By this time we could see the Damsel flies hovering above the surface so it was back to the trusty old dry fly. It was my day, I landed a 2lb fish straight off the surface.. So happy!!!

After 4 hours and way too much sun with no protection at all, we called it a day and went back to the jetty. M-i-L saw fish literally swarming around our feet, so we threw in our lines again, I got a take and lost one, but generally they swam right by the flies, turned up their nose and carried on their merry way. Why?? I cannot work out why a fly will work once or twice and then be useless.

It was a fantastic, exciting 5 hours and a great way to end the week.. and how fortunate I am to have a M-i-L that fishes with me..

Dry Fly Day

Today it was suggested that I try a dry fly for the first time. The trout were swarming at the surface to eat the thousands of Damsel Flies that were either on or just above the surface.

I, as usual, sucked the knowledge from the brain of a long-time member, got him to show me a suitable fly and went out on the boat. To keep the fly from sinking I added some floatation liquid to the feathers and this worked well. The trout took the fly in 5 minutes and I then proceeded to loose two, I struck too early and pulled the fly out of the month of the poor fish. I was later told that I should watch the trout take the fly, count to 2 and then strike. I can see how this would work better.

It was so exciting and for the first time I could actually see them swilling around the fly and pop their heads out the water to take a look. Again my heart was pounding and excitement growing as I hoped for a feeding frenzy. At one point I had a take, struck, lost it, threw the fly back in, it took it again, struck too early and then broke my line by being too enthusiastic. Oh well, you live and learn!

My Trout fishing frenzy

During the last week of May, I experienced a feeding frenzy for the first time in my life. I used a fly suggested by a member and it was a Damsel Nymph. (I had never heard of this and went out an bought one immediately)
I cast this fly and within two minutes a fish had taken it, I continued to catch 4 fish in 30 minutes and had I not reached my limit that day I could have caught 4 more. It was amazing and I could feel my heart pumping and excitement building as the fish swarmed around the fly.

May Trout Fishing

Well, May turned out  to be more challenging than April. (one long time member commented that the fish would take a brick if I threw it in the water in April). I had to start to understand what the trout wanted to eat and when. It was interesting to talk to different members who all had opinions on what to fish.

April Flies

April was my first month of membership and I had a lot to learn about the art of trout fishing and fly fishing. I have fished for trout in the past in South Africa, but this was a new situation that needed new knowledge.

Many members have been extremely generous with their knowledge and shared with me some techniques and flies to use.

Here are some that worked in April for me.