There is No Pattern to Trout Fishing!

Determined to fish a few times this week I went to the lake early this morning. Happy with my last catch on Sunday I thought I'd deploy that same tactics. First fly is the Bronze Fuzzy Thing from a few days ago.

I see Graham in the distance and as he rows nearer he's effing and blinding as usual - this means no fish for him. I must add that he caught his full quota of 6 last week, so he knows a thing or two. He's using a floating/dry fly and had no luck. This makes me think that the fish must not be feeding on the surface. There are almost no jumps and definitely no boiling up at the surface taking insects.

I fish for 30 minutes before my mother-in-law arrives - now the stress starts as she's been catching lately and I would hate to draw a blank today in front of her. What shall I do? Carry on with my tactic or put on another fly? Two people row past having caught 2 trout on a dry damsel fly!! What! Are they lying to me? I'm told fishermen will often mis-lead people.

I go up to a calmer part of the lake and put on a dry damsel, I'm doubtful but hopeful, I love it when the water is flat and I can see the fly floating on the surface. Next minute a big boiling at the surface and I've got a fish!! Now to land it. My record in landing trout with a damsel is abysmal!! I've lost two like this before and I MUST land this - what's more a fisherman is watching me from 20 metres away, I have my pride at stake!

This fish is really fighting, I'm also using 7lb fluoro carbon line so must be careful.. Finally I land the fish - I'm so pleased. 1.12lb and that means I've caught two this week. Cant wait for Saturday to try again... Still I repeat what I said in the title - there is no damn pattern to Trout fishing or is it just me!..

Three Fish Only One Trout

After ten days of not fishing at all - work has been so busy and weekends bad weather - I finally got down to the lake this morning at 8.30am.

Not many people have been catching over the last few weeks so I decided to test out some advise I got a few months ago. The really old man whom I used to have to help out the boat seems to have disappeared - I do hope that he is still with us! He said to me to use a small fluffy bronze shiny thing when fishing times are tough.  This was my first fly and I was fishing from the bank. I was delighted and stunned that hos advise seemed to work - quite quickly I had a beautiful 1.10lb trout.

I changed fly and put on a Dial Bach and got a small Perch - never had that before and they are really beautiful. Further round the lake I was back on the Bronze Fuzzy Thing and got a small Pike!!! Very small - maybe 10 inches long - luckily for me it didn't bite through my line, they have the most ferocious teeth I've ever seen on a fish (apart from a shark!!).

I was so peaceful standing in the sun, watching the beautiful lake and multitude of birds - Ten days is too long a break.. I must make sure I go some evenings during the week.

Got the Droppers so Where are the Trout?

There's not a drop of wind and the lake looks stunning. Two other people there but they are on a boat so I can't interrogate them. I take the small agile boat and head out to the far side of the lake.

I'm testing my new droppers. (a dropper in an extra fly or two or three added to your like)  I've been watching Hywel Morgan on Sky ( Hywel Morgan ) he seems to fish with droppers all the time. So on his advice I create just 1 dropper to start, 8 inches long and 50cm up from the end fly. I'm concerned that I will struggle to cast this without tangles and I prove myself correct, I'm starting to think I need a lesson. No fish with that so I switch to my normal set-up.

There are fish around but they are not taking from me! I use buzzers, dry flies, damsel nymphs and many more - its frustrating and I feel like my casting is very poor today - again I think I need a lesson. This is what happens when you watch a pro like Hywel, I feel like a total amateur.

Eventually a get a take on a nymph looking thing, pulling it below the surface. I'm really pleased and feel that my day has been retrieved.

I row around the corner and there is one of the other people. He says to me that he has caught 3 trout already and they are going mad for his dry Damoiselle fly. 'Just cast it in and they are gorging themselves - go on give it a try'. So I throw out the anchor and put on a dry Damoiselle. These have not worked for me in the past and this didn't work for me today. In the 20 minutes that I was there he pulled out another 3 fish! All on the same fly - what am I doing wrong? I need to know!

Trout Flies have arrived - I'm out to Conquer but am Humbled

Monday morning. I'll go out for a few hours as the weather is supposed to be bad for the rest of the week. So maybe I only fish on Saturday.. grrrrrr

Graham is back, obviously he's been there since 6am and is effing and blinding having no luck at all. The other chap always there early has had one on a black and cream lure.

I put on the smallest fly I've ever used. Its hook is unbelievably small and I wonder if it will work. First tactic, Strip it through the water just below the surface. Instantly a fish is hooked, I'm so excited and all in view of the other two fisherman. I arrogantly call out to Graham that I have one and promptly lose it!! I could cry, serves me right, I need humility!! I'm sure it must be to do with the size of the hook how can that really work to bring in a big fish - I clearly didn't hook it correctly, it was on the line for 2 minutes and then shook itself free and the fly was fine.

Ok, now to try my new Blue Holo Shuttlecock Buzzer from Ebay. Gavin the guy I bought it from hand makes them and has been very helpful with tips for fishing buzzers. These things are so small its hard to believe the a fish will take it. It has a tuft of feathers on the top to make it float on the surface. In it goes and in 10 seconds I have a trout. I must keep this one on the line, I must! I land a beautiful 2.4lb trout! Phew I'm relieved. Again it goes,  I hook another and its lost!! The fly is wrecked, its wont float and I must move to another.



Now the fish are taking Damoiselle flies - I also have a new Damoiselle fly from Ebay - all my others have never worked... I throw it in and lands beautifully on the surface, take, strike, I have another fish.. I'm so happy. Then I lose it! What's happening to me? Why now, I've never lost a fish before, what's going on? Is it because I am using these tiny little hooks?

So I go home with one... I'm satisfied but it could have been THREE!!!!

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!