We're off the see Clare and Alba today for the weekend. I'm just popping down to the lake for a quick one hour - that means 2 hours in fisherman language!
I'm on the bank in the far left had corner. On goes the little bronze nymph and the next moment i have an enormous take. It fights like its a shark and finally I have a 3.2lb trout - my biggest yet!!
I tell you this little nymph is proving to be deadly in this lake..... I must remember all of this for next year!!
What a beautiful day! I just had to go for a quick fish this morning. The lake is busier than I've ever seen it, six people! The big question is always 'Which fly to I start with?' - I decide to put on a small green nymph. I'm off to the top of the lake, the wind in north westerly and my casting is not good enough in the wind yet.
I'm practising the double haul and really struggling, I just cant seen to get it right. Been trying to get the muscle memory for the actions (see video above) but when I attempt to put the rod in my hand all the line just ends up in a pile at my feet. I think that I should practice away from the lake, maybe in the garden.
Anyway, back to the fish. One cast and the green nymph is in and I've got a fish! So fast I hardly felt it take. I move round the lake to different spots, dry flies, CDC Buzzers, sedges - nothing.
Now at the bottom side I see a chap just pulling out the fish, 3 in 5 minutes - he's using a bronze nymph. Its really tiny and he's just jerking it through the water. The fish are going mad for it! I try for a few minutes and eventually settle for my 1 trout. Two hours, a beautiful setting and one fish - how lucky I am.
PS: The lake was restocked last week so fishing should be good for the rest of the season now - well in theory!
Decided to take Ben fishing today. It's 8am and we are ready to tackle the lake, its calm and a warm stunning morning.
We decide to take a boat for a while and see what happens. This is only Ben's third Trout fishing trip and I'm really hoping that he'll catch something. First we try the south side of the lake, he's got a damsel nymph on his rod and I've got a CDC Buzzer. Nothing, quiet, no action.
We move to the centre of the lake just past the island, the fish are jumping and swirling but no takes, we're on dry flies now. Ben is really casting well and it seems his determination as an athlete has helped him visualise his cast technique. Graham rows over and has also caught nothing, he also comments on Ben's great casting. Then.... right in front of us Graham hooks a fish!! I couldn't believe it and this makes me even more determined to catch. Graham moves away and Ben suggests we move the 20m or so to where he was fishing. I put on a small (tiny) dry brown thing - so does Ben. I've got one!! Just shows that if they don't take it in the first few minutes they are not going to take it at all. And another, then Ben gets one, I get another and loose yet another. That's 4 fish in 30 minutes! Amazing, I cant tell you how happy we were, right place, right time. All on that tiny little brown thing!!
Just got back from fishing from 2.00 to 5.30. Absolutely no luck!
I went to the far end to start with, as you suggested, but the fish must have moved because there was no sign of them. After about an hour I moved down to the far side of the island. No luck. Then moved to quite close and right of the island and the pier. There were plenty of leaping fish – but none wanted my varied choices of flies. I followed a tip from Bill who gave me a floating sedge; he said it was a definite catcher, and if that didn’t work to use a dropper of a buzzer as well as the sedge. I did both – and not a sausage! So you see, everybody has their own suggestions, but they don’t all work all of the time!
There was no sign of anyone else at the lake until I was just leaving, when two cars arrived (5.30-ish).
While I was at the far end of the lake in the boat, I saw a red deer on the path moving toward the gate. When it got that far, it started to pace back and forward as if it felt trapped. I then lost sight of it. Also, I am probably well and truly burned on my face in spite of my hat. It was a stunning afternoon.
I just couldn't resist a trip to the lake today. Its calm and cloudy - perfect for me to catch!
I took a boat right up to the far corner of the lake - no mean feat in itself I have to say. Lots of fish were jumping and taking insects from the surface. The two people who had just fished before me both caught a small black dry flies. I asked myself why would this be the case when once again there are so many damsel flies around. Counter the advice I decide to start with a damsel - the same as I had used earlier in the week. I wish I new why, but they just don't like my damsels!! Last visit was a fluke...
The water is flat and clear - I can see the damn things swimming straight past my fly, I try two more different damsels - nothing not even a sniff. OK, time for the small black dry fly recommended earlier. As always, in a few minutes I have a fish, it really is fighting and at first swims directly for the boat. I couldn't pull in the line fast enough! Oh no I dont want to loose it, I recover the situation and after a few minutes manage to land the beautiful thing. It was my first Brown trout and at 2.2lb is pretty big. Its so stunning with its spots and square dorsal fin. I was always afraid that I wouldn't recognise if I had one or not - but there is no mistaking this - its definitely a Brown trout. So easy to make me happy!! I'm told they taste better than Rainbow trout too -so you know what we're eating tonight.
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!..
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.
We're off the see Clare and Alba today for the weekend. I'm just popping down to the lake for a quick one hour - that means 2 hours in fisherman language!
The water is flat and clear - I can see the damn things swimming straight past my fly, I try two more different damsels - nothing not even a sniff. OK, time for the small black dry fly recommended earlier. As always, in a few minutes I have a fish, it really is fighting and at first swims directly for the boat. I couldn't pull in the line fast enough! Oh no I dont want to loose it, I recover the situation and after a few minutes manage to land the beautiful thing. It was my first Brown trout and at 2.2lb is pretty big. Its so stunning with its spots and square dorsal fin. I was always afraid that I wouldn't recognise if I had one or not - but there is no mistaking this - its definitely a Brown trout. So easy to make me happy!! I'm told they taste better than Rainbow trout too -so you know what we're eating tonight.
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.
