Extreme Dry Fly Fishing

March is a funny time in the UK. The Grayling really need to be left alone to get on with their annual orgy, the Trout are still looking down so I tend not to fish too much around home.

However, this is s great time of the year to dig out the passport and travel for some fishing.

Work lent me an opportunity to have a crack at those crazy Trout in the South Platte below Cheesmans Dam in Colorado. If you have not read John Gierach you should, well you should if you like fishing rivers with fur and feather, he captures better the feel of fishing this part of the world and I for one am hooked!

In March the Rockies are full of snow but there are one or two micro-climates that form below the outlet from the deep dams. Because the water comes from such depths its temperature is constant throughout the year, which means when the banks are lined with snow and ice the flies still hatch and Trout are looking up.

This micro-climate does create a false sense of security and the drive back to the hotel in Denver was a little scary as the snow closed in.

I took a day with my favourite guide, Jessy (see blogs from June 2009). We caught a load of fish, in fact it was nearly a South Platte grand slam of Rainbow Trout, Cuttbow Trout, Suckerfish and Brown Trout...only the Brown eluded me. It was fun fishing tiny size 22 nymphs under a small dry. The air temperature was well down and the hatch, light and sporadic.

The following day I fished alone, hiking up river into the canyon. Here I was closer to the dam and the water warmer. What a great day catching some really nice Rainbows and Browns on size 22 and 24 dry midge patterns.

I look forward to returning next year for some more Trout in the Snow.

There's snow way I'm fishing today....

...read the text message from my little brother, so I'd be fishing alone today. The overnight snow had left the local roads a bit of a mess. Still I have a 4x4 so that shouldn't stop me, or so I thought. There were no other car tracks in the snow as I headed up Marston Lane and took a left toward Hatton, the A50 and Ashbourne. What I had not factored in was the other road users. Thirty minutes later I was turning the car round, a jack-knifed lorry blocking the A515 and my route to Church Mayfield.

As I pulled up on Monks Bridge I was actually feeling quite excited about getting in the river. A new fleece bib and brace for under the waders should keep me nice and warm. It was a quick purchase yesterday, a few hours in the Derwent at Cromford has left me frozen to the core and something I was not keen to repeat.

As I walked up the river, my footprints the first in the snow apart from a fox, it suddenly occured to me that drivers passing on the A38 would glance up river and see this complete head case standing in the river waving a stick; what would they think?

I caught fish from the off. Nice healthy, fat and fit Grayling - nothing big, perhaps 12" the best fish but nice all the same. A team of three nymphs which were all being hit by the Lady of the Stream. I was certainly having more action than the Derwent of Friday. Glen Pointon and a few others are fishing the Upper Severn today, we were due to be fishing there instead of the Derwent but Birmingham airport had been closed Thursday night and I was left stranded in Holland. By the time my flight got in Friday morning it was too late to head to Cearsws, perhaps we will get another chance in a few days.

After half a dozen fish and a freshly brewed coffee it was time to head for home to pack for another few days away with business....it had been worth the effort...

The perfect cure for a hangover

A couple of hours engrossed in the bright orange and black banded leader as it weaves its way towards you, watching for any of those tell-tale twitches that indicate a fish has been tempted by the team of nymphs trundling along the bottom, is good therapy for a hangover; I should do it more often.

A solid performance by England’s brave band of fifteen, to hold off a very determined gang from the valleys, had resulted in a couple more in celebration than was good for me. I had, yet again, spent half the night slouched in my chair, probably shaking the foundations with my snoring; these days I am convinced it's not the pints that give me a hangover but several hours with my chin resting on my chest!!

There was already another angler in the river when I wondered up to the weir at Church Mayfield. A few pleasantries were exchanged and, very kindly, he suggested I fish the lower end of the pool that he had already fished through. Now this beat has limited opportunity for a fly angler, being better suited to maggot drowner’s so this act of generosity was well received.

I struggled to find the right team of flies to get them working hard towards the bottom, after about an hour the other chap came for a quick chat before wondering off down to the bridge pool. Another quick change to a slightly heavier Pink Shrimp on the middle dropper added just enough to get the depth needed and a couple of Grayling in the 12" stamp were hooked an landed.

A phone call from home told me it was time to get a move on as we had 'stuff' to do today and so I strolled back towards the car, stopping for a chat and coffee at the bridge pool before heading for home - minus the hangover.

Happy Days!

There were a handful of trips to Sutton Brook and Wolfscotedale to see my 2009 season out. The last Trout session was towards the end of August but by then the shotgun had been dusted off and I was getting some practice in ready for the start of the game shooting season. The gun takes over from September until the end of January.

The last fishing trip was to see me waving a Salmon rod over the river Tweed, that was at the back end of October and the rods have not been out since. It was a good trip, landing three fish and putting an end to a rather bad Salmon season for me and, by all accounts, most of the Scottish rivers. Hopefully the poor results from 2009 are just a blip and we will see better days in 2010. As I write this blog the first of the rivers are open and 17 fish were landed from the Dee on the first day.

Reflecting on last season's Trout fishing, Sutton Brook made it a very memorable one with a good number of decent fish landed, although I never managed to sort out one of those lunkers. Perhaps 2010 will see a change in fortunes.

If all goes well I may be swapping the Derbyshire County ticket for a Leek and District one. I was a member of the LDFFA for a good few years; this was back in the 90's and early naughties, changing to the Derby Railway ticket in 2002 for no other reason than to fish some different water. That was replaced by the DCAC card in 2004 and after 6 years it feels right for another change.

There's a waiting list as there usually is for good clubs and I won't get all upset if I don't make it this year, whether I keep the DCAC ticket is another matter. I would like to spend some time fishing the Wye and Usk waters through the foundation and with the launch of a similar scheme in the Peaks, this season might be a good opportunity to support its first full year and I would get to fish some new local water; I will certainly be ordering my voucher booklet

http://www.trentriverstrust.co.uk/

I am sure it will sort itself out over the coming weeks. In the meantime the tying bench calls as fly boxes need topping up. This is always an interesting exercise and is a good indication of which patterns took the limelight last season. The usual suspects will need tying:-

Size 14 and 16 PTN's with and without gold heads

Size 14, 16, 18 and 20 Para-Adams
Size 12 and 14 Green Arsed DH Caddis
Size 14 and 16 DHE's
Size 14, 16 and 18 No-Colour Klink's
Size 16 Black Para-Duns
Size 14 G&H Caddis
Size 18 and 20 BWO's
Size 18 and 20 CDC BWO's

Also in need of topping up is the the Mayfly box. It took a bit of a hammering last year but only one pattern really made an appearance and that was my Foam Bodied Para-May in size 12.

I shall be tying at least half a dozen of each, with some of the more highly used patterns needing a dozen to top the box up. It's a pleasant way to spend the winters evenings and one that makes time whizz by until the start of the season. Happy Days!

Trout before breakfast

Dawn can be quiet, tranquil and absolutely gorgeous..but enough about her, let's talk about fishing.

As we reach the, sometimes, sweaty heights of summer fish become less inclined to feed on the surface during the day. I have a couple of theories on this which are probably way off the mark but they work for me.

Firstly, Trout don't like looking into direct sunlight and at this time of year the sun is almost directly above us at mid-day, unlike during spring and autumn; they cannot see properly and probably feel 'exposed' to predators.

Secondly, they are a cold water fish which means their body temperature is governed by the the water around them, they can sense the slightest change and therefore will try and keep out of water that is rapidly changing such as that in direct mid-day sun; this means moving lower down or into the shade.

Obviously there is less food about and fewer flies hatching but I believe that makes the Trout more opportunistic.

If you read many of the old authors they advocate fishing later in the day or through the evening. Not too many of them recommend early mornings but this is probably more to do with wanting to stay in bed and have a nice leisurely breakfast before venturing out; to do this though can mean missing some of the best fishing of the day, although it does have some appeal, especially at 4am....

You don’t have to miss out on a good breakfast either. Fried Trout fillets go well with a poached egg but if that does not appeal you can always carry some slices of pig and crusty baguette - a frying pan and stove are useful as well unless you like your Pork products rare!

Another plus point and probably the most important for early morning fishing is the lack of other anglers. Thinking back over the last few years I cannot recall meeting anyone else before 10am. There is something satisfying about putting the first artificial of the day over a Trout and they are often the better fish, fish that seem completely absent latter in the day will make an appearance for that early morning meal. A recent outing resulted in one of my best fish from Wolfscotedale this year.

Shiny Precious things

Why oh why do I never learn? Why?

I know there is no compromising quality and I know quality comes at a price! So why don't I learn? Maybe it's because I really love getting new 'precious' things ('precious'= anything to do with fishing....., of course!!!).

Perhaps, somewhere in my subconscious I know that I can work my way up to a quality version of some item, something that will last and last, by buying several cheaper versions on route and therefore have more precious things arriving in the post.

This has happened over and over again; my first light trout rod cost about £25, was a Diawa #5/7 (how can any rod have such a range?) fished ok with a #4 and was overloaded with a #6, had the action of a soggy piece of string and weighed about 14lbs.

Then I upgraded, going for a bit of quality this time, to something with a Hardy badge but was the bottom end of the range - the Marquis #3/4. It has (I still own it) a nice build and finish but the foundation, the blank, is slow and well... just a bit of a damp squiff really.

Eventually I bit the bullet and bought myself a Sage TXL (actually I picked it up on a business/fishing trip to South Africa before they were launched in the UK). I have had this for few years now and it will last me a good few more, if not forever because I can’t see how it can be improved on....... no really, I mean it!

This last year I have been on a similar 'journey' with packs. For years I have used vests, owned loads but was never really happy with them. Great for carrying fishy stuff up front; fly boxes, tippet etc. However, the back has always been problem to me. I like my Kelly Kettle - bulky I know but they weight sod all and make a better drink than you can get from any flask. Sometimes I have lunch or dinner or breakfast or all of them with me. Previously I used an over-the-shoulder bag to carry this stuff. Then I discovered packs, well I didn't, the 'septics' came up with the idea for their long walk-in fishing excursions.

Packs are great. You can get any amount of gear in them and still have room for more, especially if you buy a really, really big one!! BUT you CAN also carry them with nothing in the back and they still work just as well, ah - see - always thinkin' me, always thinking!

Anyway, I digress. So I decided, after a fishing trip to the US, to switch to a pack. This was a couple of years ago and I have been through four packs to get to where I knew I would end up; with a Fishpond. I tried Ron Thompson, nice build actually but the design was just off the mark and I struggled to get everything in that I like to carry up-front. Scierra, cack design. Phoenix, a cheap copy of the FP Wildhorse, fell to bits in less than 3 months fishing. A month ago I took delivery of a Wildhorse and since then have been regretting not getting one before.

Mind you, none of it helps you catch more fish!

I have been out a few times recently and had a few nice fish and a jolly nice time. A couple of the trips were in pleasant, warm sunny weather and a couple were in wet and windy conditions; each has its up-side and both are better than sitting watching the telly!

It's a funny old game...

The car park was packed; well there were two other cars, which is pretty busy for Sutton Brook. We introduced ourselves and discussed the general state of the nation in the heady world of Blount Flyfishers. All the time I was wondering how we were going to fish without falling over each other. In the end we agreed that they would take a mile of river downstream from the footbridge and I would take the top three miles; very good of 'em I thought!

After the last outing I was interested to see if I could get stuck into some fish of quality. Conditions were very similar; it was warm and sunny with a light breeze. The water was clear, well as clear as it gets in this brook and a little lower than of late which can make the fish a bit spooky in my experience.

I tied on a size 14 Goddards Caddis and a size 20 Adams. They were just two flies I pulled from the fly patch to help me carry the rod to the water and I fully intended to swap them once I had worked out the best options according the hatches.

It turned out to be a funny old session with about a dozen fish coming to the net. Most of them were 12 inches or more and the best went 16" with a 8" girth, weighting about 1lbs 12oz - big for a brook that you can jump across in places...mind you there are also places where you would get very wet if you tried it; being 30ft wide and 6ft deep!

I never changed flies, even to put fresh ones on and caught equally well on the Adams as I did the Goddards. There was nowt on the water to indicate anything in particular hatching although one or two olives could be seen floating around amongst the Sedge, Gnats and the ever present, well it seems so this year anyhow, Mayfly; although nothing was eating any of them - no rising fish except to my poorly presented fur and feather!

A really nice session and one of my best fish this year left me scratching my head...it's a funny old game!