Germany 2022 Archives - Page 2 of 3

With the weather going downhill and rain forecast in the morning I started late.
I opted for a short session at river nr.2 where the mill pool was always interesting to fish.
My goals for river nr.2 where a. catch a trout b. catch a large pech c. get one a large pike.

When I arrived at the pool nobody was fishing.
Water flowed over the weir so the turbine was out of action.
I floated a squirmy along the current seam and got a tiny perch as first fish of the day.
Despite the shallowness the water was murky, I could barely make out the debis and stone
on the mill pool bottom.

What I did notice was a really massive pike swimming just in front of me.
Like a submarine it slowly glided past me … a big sucker.
Just I was about to switch to a streamer the landlord of the pub switched on the turbine.
The water level suddenly rose and tons of debris came floating down.
Visibility was now almost zero … could not spot the pike anymore.

I fished a small streamer in perch livery with a trace but had no hook ups.
Just once I noticed a large perch pursuing the fly but at a secure distance .. not fooled.
I figured maybe the trace put the perch off so I tied on another streamer straight onto the
tippet.
Off course the next thing was that a small pike hit the fly and severed the tippet.

So trace went on again this time with a nice small streamer with some flash.
I tossed the fly in the same area where I had lost the pike and behold a second strike.
I was pretty sure it was the same pike due to its size.
A few moments later I noticed the large pike again, it had returned to the end of the pool
and was right in front of me.
I fished the streamer right past it but the fish moved slowly backwards upon seeing the streamer.
Guess that size did not come because the fish was stupid.

With the pike not cooperating I tried the stream itself with the squirmy and the perdigon
nymphs but besides a small dace I only got bites from the pesky gudgeons.
I had hoped for a trout but those where a rarity in that stream.

Before I called it quits I tried the head of the pool right under the mill weir.
By now the water had dropped and some clarity had returned.
A cast perpendicular to the turbine outflow yielded a strike from a bigger pike.
The pike missed but I was hoping the fish would still be around for a second try.
A few casts later the fish was on and it fought pretty well for a pike.
Off course fun on a 4-weight glass rod.

The work had been done and so it was early off to the pub which conveniently was
located next to the mill pool.
There was a lot more action going on than at the African pub even though the
weather was pretty poor.

I opted to sit at the bar with one of the regulars and decided to do a little beer tasting.
I started with the Benediktiner Weizen dunkel.
When I saw a tray leaving the bar with an unfamiliar beer to me I asked what it was.
Rolinck Westfalisch Alt … so I had one of those.
As it was chow time I switched seating to a table and ordered the soup of the day.
It was the so called wedding soup and it went down well.
Main course was the Chili burger and happy to say that it had the nacho’s and peppers.
To flush away the main course I opted for the Th. Konig Zwickel Keller beer just to make
my beer tasting complete for the day.
Off course I could not go home without the obligatory cake and koffee (cheesecake).

Germany 28-05-2022

29 May 2022 admin

After a warm week the weekend started chilly and windy.
Conditions were not ideal to go tossing mayflies around in the morning but I tried.
I spotted one rising fish early morning and it responded directly as the mayfly landed
on the water.

Unfortunately the fish missed and as I struck the fly went up high in the trees, lost …
With no insects around I tried the squirmy and that yield a roach.
I also fished with the perdigon nymph which yielded some of the small dace and
gudgeons.

At one of the spots I fished the nymph yielded not a single hit, an indicator for me
that a predator was around as there had to be other fish in the pool.
Fishing a streamer can make the difference of night and day and so a black woolly
bugger entered the top of the pool.

I was right … a trout intercepted the bugger but came off after a short fight.
Maybe later in the day I would return to this spot for a second try.
I continued upstream using the perdigon that yielded small roach and dace.
It was tight fishing amongst submerged tree roots and debris when I suddenly
hooked in to something larger … behold trout nr.1

With trout nr.1 under the belt it was time for nr. 2 and that would be at a spot
where I had seen rising fishing every week I went fishing there.
First though I fished a small fast flowing pool in the hope to catch a larger roach.
I spotted the roach but a small trout was faster to grab the nymph.

Now it was time for trout nr.3 but the spot that showed so much activity last
couple of times was totally dead.
Next it was into the forest … no signs of insects on this windy day so the bugger
was tied on again.
One spot looked like it could hold trout and boy it did.
A massive trout grabbed the streamer but although I thought the hookset was
solid the trout came off … spot remembered for next time.

I had one other hit in the forest but no solid hookup.
There was a rising fish under a tree and I tried to get it but my approach was
too clumsy so I scared the fish off, time for an early break in the pub.
Ever since the old pub was taken over by the Africans it was quiet, on
a cold day like this it was nearly deserted.

I was early so I could only opt for the small menu and I chose the simplest dish,
curry sausage with fries.
After my quick lunch I tried a long shallow stretch as it was now afternoon and
mayflies where on the water.
The water was shallow though and with no rising fish I tried a small nymph.
Every time the indicator landed on the water the fish scattered.

A brown trout raced past me so my efforts where in vain.
I switched to a big mayfly pattern and moved upstream hoping to see a stationary
brown somewhere.
With low light conditions due to cloud cover it was difficult though to spot fish.
A big bow wave in front of me was a sign that my approach did not work.

In the end I opted to try for the trout that I had missed early morning.
The woolly bugger was once again put into action.
I immediately felt a tug on the streamer and on the second cast the trout
nailed the streamer, a good day.

Germany 22-05-2022

23 May 2022 admin

On Sunday it was off to the stream again.
As mayfly season had started the goal was to catch a trout on a large mayfly.
In the early morning though nothing was flying to I tried nymphing first.
The tactic did not work and as I suspected a trout at the spot I fished I tied on a streamer.

The streamer once again did the trick as I battled a pretty nice trout.
I managed to land the fish and for good order I measured it at 43cm / 17 inch.
Storms of the last week had downed quite a few trees and a few had landed in
the stream causing different fishing conditions.

With no signs of trout I headed upstream where I had seen some rising fish earlier.
The problem as usual on such an overgrown little stream were the trees.
Somehow those branches reached out to grab your fly.
The fish I spotted rose steadily but I just could not drop the fly accurate enough
without hooking the one or other branch.

With the spot ruined by my lack of skills I tried the forest an although I had not
seen many of the naturals buzzing around fish where feeding.
Off course feeding meant under spots so tight that I could never land a fly there.
I was almost at the end of the stretch before private land began when I noticed
a shape in the shallow water.

A downed tree in the water disappeared with in angle of 30 degrees in the stream.
A narrow stretch allowed water to flow over and just behind that sat a trout.
It was difficult to spot as it had the same colour as the sand but the tail movement
gave it away.
My second cast landed at the right spot and the mayfly imitation drifted though the opening.
The trout did not hesitate and took the fly instantly.

My friends were also out fishing and about also and we intended to meet at the pub for some
drinks later.
As I had to double back I downstream I came across the spot where I had bungled with
that rising fish.
When I left that place I did some tree trimming so now I had some more space to
make a cast.
Fish where still rising and I nailed a small brown on the mayfly, I was sure there was a larger fish in there but it did not surface again.

At the pub the understaffing was noticeable with a long wait before you could order.
My friends complained about too much salt and small portions so it was not a success.
It all just took too long so I even skipped the usual coffee and cake and called it a day.

Germany 15-05-2022

16 May 2022 admin

And off course next day we did the same … sort off.
I actually overslept and when I came at the water I encountered all kind of
flyfishing riff raff … well I knew them by name.

A lot of debris from the trees on the water and since it had not rained for
a considerable time the water was low.
Did not get a bite until I dragged a weighted woolly bugger through a pool.

It yielded a nice little trout so at least I avoided the skunk.
In the woods I spotted a rising fish and as the rings where small I assumed
it was a dace.
I tossed a small fly near the fish and bang fish on, it was not a dace as they do not jump.
Turned out to be a very acrobatic brown trout but it eventually threw the fly.

The plan was to meet up with the riff raff at the pub but apparently one of them had to get home early so I had the place for myself.
Off course there where plenty of folk sitting outside but I preferred the
quietness of the inside dining to the noise of motorcycles and farming equipment of the main road.

This time I went for the Bruschetta as appetizer with as main course
the pork chops with mushrooms.
Finished all off with a Cappuccino and icecream … with cream.

Germany, 14-05-2022

16 May 2022 admin

It was nice weather so I tried chub once more.
At my hotspot there was not a single fish to be seen.
But I noticed some of the big chub at spots where I could not get to.
High steep banks made casting impossible as you got stuck in the high
grass on the backcast.

Furthermore it was almost impossible to land a fish without getting
wet = jump in the drink and then figure a way to get out.
I tried the open field and found some fish but they where all cruising to
somewhere and not inclined to take a surface fly.

I was almost about to give up when I spotted a few mayflies buzzing
around which made me stay and visit another spot.
From a bridge I spotted a big chub and it was stationary moving about
in the pool looking for food.

Again steep banks but it was possible to slide down the bridge embankment
and find some footing on the rip rap in order to land a fish.
I went down to the bank and hid behind the high grass but could not spot the fish anymore.
I feared he was on to me but suddenly I spotted him right under the bank where I was standing.

A quick flip with the rod and the mayfly dropped on the water, the chub instantly moved
forward and grabbed the fly.
Managed to fight the fish and keep it out of the weeds, 50cm prime chub … happy.

With the first big chub under the belt I went to the upstream section to try for trout.
I noticed that the big trout was still present but when it spotted me it shot off downstream
to be never seen again.
Luckily I got another nice fish further upstream.

With the work of the day done it was time to hit the pub.
Went again for the feta cheese appetizer and the noodle main coarse.
Topped it of with Cappuccino and a piece of chocolate mousse cake.

Germany 07-05-2022

8 May 2022 admin

The plans to go trout fishing today where ditched as an acquaintance had posted
a pic of a large chub recently caught on a dry fly.
So it was off to the chub stretch hoping I could spot one of the big ones.
En route I had looked for fish in the surface but every spot I checked was empty.

I had hoped to spot mayflies but did not encounter a single one.
Chub fishing was best with mayflies or hoppers around.
I went directly to what I figured would be the best spot to encounter chub.
When I arrived I spotted two chub just moving out of range in the shallow water.

Lucky for me one of the fish doubled back and came into range.
I dropped a small dry fly in path of the fish and it went for it.
The fish moved to the fly stopped for inspection and then inhaled it.
This time I was patient enough to strike just at the right time.
Not a monster fish but a nice one on the four weight rod.

The weather had been nice but clouds where accumulating.
In the afternoon showers where forecasted so I had to seek shelter in advance.
I went to my old watering hole which I now called the African pub because the
cook named Flora came from there.

Just as I entered the pub it started raining, perfect timing.
I had done some fieldwork and had noticed that the menu was online so I knew
what I wanted to order.
The menu was a bit pricey for the hillbillies of the village (including me) but what
the heck … we had to try.

I opted for the feta cheese hidden in puff pastry and covered by honey based sauce as starters.
The main course was a pasta dish.
To finish it all off I had the gooseberry cake with a cup of cappuccino.
And it was good … I liked it.

When I went out again the rain was heavy and thunder could be heard in the distance.
Ideal conditions to sneak out to a place where fishing was not allowed.
And yes … I hooked that trout but it came off.
I soon was back in legal water and with the rain falling the bite was on.
Nymphing yielded no fish but the squirmy did the trick on the roach as the water filled with
debris flushed in by the rain.

As I was fishing a shallow pool I suddenly spotted a large fish racing into my pool from
very shallow water downstream.
It had a brown colour and I was pondering what the heck it could be.
A large brown trout in that shallow stream … hard to believe.

The fish hid somewhere in the pool and the squirmy was not intercepted so I had to try something else. One of my friends had a lot of success recently with streamers.
I tied on a heavier tippet with a big black woolly bugger and made a cast into the pool.
That one cast was enough to get a hit from the trout and oh boy it was a big one.

The fish took me all over the place and many times I believed it would come off.
Miraculously the trout stayed on and after several hair raising runs I could beach the fish.
60cm of brown trout, my personal best ever and that out of the local stream.
You could not wish for a better end of the day.

Germany 01-05-2022

2 May 2022 admin

I had pondered to visit the chub section on Sunday as the fishing on the upper section
of the main stream did not fish well.
Plans changed when I got a notification that brown trout had been stocked in stream nr.2
So I went to stream nr.2 instead and apparently the news had spread as there where already
two other anglers on the premises.

I figured the end of the pool might be the place to be.
The turbine was out of action and water flowed over the weir.
Unfortunately nobody was catching anything.
I tried downstream from the mill pool but all I could muster was a tiny perch.

When I came back at the mill pool the other anglers had left, not a good sign.
I made a few more casts and got another perch but no signs of trout.
With the first of May being a big thing in Germany I expected the pub to be
crowded any minute.

This was the day for the ordinary Joe’s to walk around the countryside with a cart
full of booze and get drunk … or sit at the pub in the beer garden with the same m.o.
I moved off further downstream and spots I had not been in about 10 years.
Only bites from small bottom feeders though.

At one spot I actually saw a rising fish, not sure what it was but it rose steadily
so I could have been a trout.
The spot was difficult to reach though, high banks , shrubs and so forth.
I managed to reach the stream more or less graciously and made a few casts
at the head of the pool where I spotted the fish.
The fish struck but it was not the trout I had hoped for, a small dace which was
the first fish on dry fly of the season.

Plan C … to stream 1, I chose a spot which I thought saw not that much angling
pressure but the tracks of boots showed otherwise.
One measly roach was all that I found there.
I had to go deeper in the woods and finally got to a spot where no tracks where found.

Late in the day the question arouse what plan D would be, try another spot downstream
or go back to stream nr.2 and visit the pub.
It became the pub off course.

Germany, 27-04-2022

28 April 2022 admin

April 27th 2022 … a public holiday in the Netherlands as the king had his birthday.
I decided to hop over the border as I was more interested in catching fish than join the party crowds back home. The Germans had a normal working day so no crowds at the water.

The last couple of weeks the whole fishing thing did not really work out as I wanted.
I had not caught a single decent trout since the season start on March 15th.
The mission for the day was to catch a decent trout.

With a cold night there was no necessity to go early.
I was at the water at 09:00 and still had the place all for my self.
But… no fish … oddly I tried all the spots and riffles and no bites at all.
At a deadfall I finally hooked a little brown trout.

I worked my way upstream and only got a few small bottom feeders (gudgeons) and one single roach.
I moved a few miles further upstream and tried some of the deeper holes.
At one of them I launched a squirmy at the start of the pool and the indicator went down with force.
Finally a good fish and not a brown as I had expected but a feisty rainbow trout.

My day was made but just for good order I tried some more spots upstream.
The water was lifeless although I had spotted the first occurrence of a Danica mayfly (Ephemera danica). When I finally spotted a fish in the surface I wondered if it would be a trout.
I still had the squirmy tied on and dropped it near the fish but no reaction.
In hindsight a dry fly might have been a better choice but it was done.

Next I dropped the squirmy at the start of the pool and had a lot of bites.
The bites came not from trout but from Rudd aka Golden shiners.
Those where not usual stream fare but I suspected they came from the clubs pond where
the surplus population of shiners where sometimes relocated to the stream.
With their upturned mouth the Rudd where keen on surface food and probably cruised
in the surface for midges or stuff that came down from the trees.

I tried one final spot for a brown trout but no action was to be had there.
It was late afternoon so what better way to end the day than have dinner at the pub.
Off course the new location was at the other stream so I took some interesting backroads to get there.
The pub had a good crowd out on the terrace.
I soon traded my outside spot for inside as the temperature plummeted rapidly with the sun low in the sky. There where some supply chain problems but I did not leave the place hungry.

Germany 23-04-2022

25 April 2022 admin

Another session at the mill pool on a very windy day.
I was not the first fisherman at the mill pool, a heron was perched near the weir.

Surprisingly the turbine had been put into action so no water fell over the weir.
At first I thought it was a good thing as I could fish the deeper water behind the weir but nothing showed up, not a single hit.

Off course I tried a streamer with trace this time and guess what … no pike
to be seen in miles … as if they knew.
I changed plans and entered the end of the pool and slowly made my way towards the turbine outflow.
That yielded two small roach and a perch but not the trout I had hoped for.
The highlight of the mill pond was the stoat that came by and crossed the weir with a show of acrobatics.

With the mill pool no good I tried the river and probed some of the deeper pools but only got some small perch and gudgeons to show for my efforts.
To make matters worse when I walked back to the pub high on the bank I noticed a felt sole floating downstream.. I only realized later it came from my el cheapo wading boots.

The only thing to do was to flush away my grief at the pub.
It had been dead all morning but in the afternoon bikers came in droves
with cyclists mixed in … it was packed.
It was also understaffed so I chucked a way a couple of cold ones and
a cheeseburger and called it day … wel almost.

I made one more stop at a bridge downstream as the spot looked so fishy.
Still no trout but at least I could two dace out of the riffle.

Germany 18-04-2022

19 April 2022 admin

Another day of spring fishing, mill pool take 3 …
I started with tossing a streamer for larger perch early in the morning.
At the first cast I had an instant hit of a pike .. got off.
Then I tried again and another pike hit and took the fly.
No wire trace since I was fishing a small streamer intended for perch or trout.

I switched to the squirmy hoping to avoid any encounters with pike but even
that was not guaranteed as a pike hit the worm fly.
The spot at right at the mill weir looked promising but I got zero hits.
I took quite some time to find out where the fish where hiding.

At the end of the pool I noticed fish in the surface, a first for me this year.
I finally found the right current seam and depth and started fishing a perdigon.
In the time from morning to early afternoon I had hit after hit from mostly
small roach with some perch mixed in.
I even hooked a trout but it was a lively one taking to the air.
The barbless hook came out during one of the jumps.

Later in the afternoon I decided to scout the river as I had noticed that the
warm weather of recent days had changed the game.
There where a lot of midges and segdes about but just a few small dace
that where rising.
In the river I stumbled over a trout, good size but I spotted it too late so it
took off.

Fish size again not that great but action had greatly improved since the last
time I fished the spot.
Spring is in full swing and the great outdoors is finally getting some green hues.