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!