Browsed by
Category: Germany 2024

Germany 10-11-2024

Germany 10-11-2024

Last weekend the best day to go fishing turned out to be Sunday as the weathercast actually predicted a rare appearance of the sun.
In the morning though the weather gods could not decide between fog or continuous light drizzle.

Temperature predictions where around 8 degrees C, so not particularly comfy.
Opted for inner village fishing as I expected the most fish to be present there.
My old hotspot that used to be a pool of some depth was apparently  filled for the most part with sand.  Having said that I spotted several moving about at the edges where it was a little deeper.

I opted to fish with a double nymph setup and tied on two pheasant tail patterns to gain some depth.  That worked out pretty well and it was the first time ever that I had several double hookups.  The fish species moving about where roach and dace.
Another first was that I caught a little chub at this spot which should not be possible as the
weir in the next village downstream poses an impassable barrier.

Of course, catching so many fish from the same shallow spot soon proved to much and the bite stopped. The upstream section was a straight shallow stretch, lifeless with the exception of one spot where the current had scoured a deeper hole.
A lot of dace were around that even went for the indicator. 

After a while I got tired of all the dog walkers behind me with their barking mutts so I tried the mill pool for pike or perch … nothing to be had though.
In the end I went for the solitude of the forest but not much was moving there with the exception of one small gudgeon and a small dace.

In the mean time the solid cloud cover had finally broken and a glimpse of the sun could be seen.
I fished a small rapid next that usually only produced tiny fish due to it’s shallowness but this time I hooked a solid brown trout. A hanging offence as trout season was closed but interesting nonetheless as the red markings on adipose fin almost made me believe it was a wild fish.

That trout was the icing on my fishing day and with a late start on this day time and daylight
would soon run out so I called it a day.

 

Germany 26-10-2024

Germany 26-10-2024

Some unseasonably warm weather begged for an outing yesterday.
With the shorter days my timing was a bit off as I arrived at the water at first light.
With fall in full progress the clear water and fallen leaves where a challenge.
So was finding fish and it ook quite a while before I finally located some.

The spots that normally produced fish where awfully quiet but some change
in tactics brought some small roach to the surface.
Instead of dragging the squirmy through the pools I opted to fish a team of pheasant tail
nymphs.

With trout season officially closed oct. 20th. I concentrated on fishing for roach and
dace with smaller flies.
That did not prevent me from hooking a rainbow trout that immediately went ballistic,
luckily the lighter tippet held.

My favorite dace spot was empty, with the sunny and warm weather I had expected
to see some fish in the surface but that was not the case.
Fishing the nymph yielded surprisingly a tiny brown trout.
Another dace spot yielded another brown trout but this time larger.

The last spot of the session was a rather shallow pool formed by a small feeder

that entered the main stream.
I noticed dace feeding in the surface and fished a sedge.
I spectacularly missed all the strikes … I was to darn slow.
Switched to nymphs but only got some gudgeons.

I called it a day after scaring all the fish and opted for an early dinner.
Surprisingly not many people where out and about of what could be the last
warm day of the year.
I took my time for dinner and subsequently missed the sunset on the way
back home but the skies colored nicely just after the sun was gone.

Germany 25-06-2024

Germany 25-06-2024

With a late start I opted to fish my secondary water conveniently located next to the pub.
I started with fishing the mill pool hoping that the any pike that had flushed out due to an earlier snafu with the mill weir had returned back. Alas nothing hit the streamer I fished.

Since that weir blowout the already shallow weir pool had become even shallower
so not exactly attractive for pike to hold.
The seasonal clearing of the water made it apparent how shallow that pool had become.

I opted to fish the stream further back and found the usual small fish like roach and
dace although I could swear that I spotted a trout scooting off.
After a while I tried the mill pool again hoping for a perch on the squirmy.
I would think that for a perch the squirmy would be irresistible but that assumption was incorrect.

In the end a pheasant tail nymph with a black bead and a pink crystal chenille collar 
proved to be the perch catcher.
The weather on this day was nice but not as warm as I had hoped so surface action was not visible.

When the light faded I came to the conclusion that the water was not really that warm
so the choice to call it a day and go get something to eat was quickly made.

Germany 22-09-2024

Germany 22-09-2024

The last days of fine weather and pending fall motivated me to give the chub a last shot
before the weather shuts down that fishery.
I opted to fish the most accessible spot I knew but I was a tad early as the sun had not yet
hit the water.

I could not see any fish moving other than some surface action by the very tiny bleak that
even went for my tippet ring.
I persisted fishing the sedge that despite it size was a legitimate target for the tiny bleak.
Luckily some chub where also inclined to eat the sedge.

I soon moved off to another easy spot but when I looked down on the water from a bridge I could not spot a single fish which was kind off unusual.
So off to the next spot where the high banks and the stinging nettles made it difficult to move about.

I spotted large chub but mostly to late and if I had a shot the fish would take no look at the fly.
Larger patterns like big mayflies or hoppers also did not work.
My last hope was to move back to the first spot of the day as the sun would cover that place by now.

The first spot indeed had fish, several sizes and even the odd big one.
Still for some reason, the fish ran from the dries as soon as they landed on the shallow water.
The best I could do was fishing a nymph in the nearby fish ladder that had some deeper pools.
Nymphing yielded the last chub and a roach.

With the sun low in the sky spotting fish became difficult and I did not expect conditions to improve so I called it a day. 
To my surprise I seemed to have a reserved table at the pub as they where expecting me … even a cold one was ready when I entered.
A day earlier my usual spot was occupied due to an event so I had to move what they call the sinners bench at the bar so they wanted to make up for that.

Germany 20-09-2024

Germany 20-09-2024

The project I was working on was on hold and since I had nothing better to do on my Friday home office day I decided to go fishing instead.
With the exceptional fine weather soon ending I could think of no better way to spend the day.

In the bright sunshine it seemed pleasant to hide under the canopy of the trees as they still had leaves. I fished a spot I had avoided most of this season as it just was no good anymore.
Fishing the nymph and getting no bites was a reminder why I skipped this spot.

A glimpse of hope was the sign of a continuously rising fish.
The way the fish rose was for me a sign that it had to be a trout.
A light breeze blew a steadily supply of debris on the water that caused the fish to rise.
My weapon of choice was a spent mayfly due to its silhouette and color and it did the trick
as I could hook a nice brown trout.

With the water being very low I could not find good deeper spots that held fish.
Most of the time I spotted fish moving in front of me in the shallow water.
With a small nymph I was able to get the odd roach or dace.

It was time to move to other spots that boasted deeper water.
My goal was still to catch more trout and at a deeper pool  I thought that I
spotted a dark green back of a rainbow trout.
Again the fish was feeding in the debris lane.
I tried to re-acquire the trout after setting up but could not see it anymore.

Luckily I saw an even bigger fish further downstream actively scouting the debris.
The fish was of such size that I opted for heavier tippet, I also tied on a spend mayfly pattern.
As soon as the fly came into view range the trout hit it and it gave quite a fight with jumps included. Second trout of the day was a fact.

My last shot of a trout came when I spotted one standing right under the adjacent bank.
I figured a 100 percent hooking chance when drifting the spent mayfly over but the fish was suddenly gone.
I could not see where the fish had gone… until I spooked it by wading upstream.

For the remainder of the afternoon I could not get anything anymore to bite.
I still spotted some fish but no trout, with sun getting low I called it quits and
visited my home away from home for dinner.

Germany 07-09-2024

Germany 07-09-2024

I had an early start last Saturday as I had planned another chub session.
The season so far for chub was not good, lots of rain usually made fishing for them useless.
With a dry day and some sun in the forecast I gave it another shot.

On Friday the weather changed from a quite fresh and windy morning to a warm and muggy afternoon.  All that moisture moving in had an effect on the weather this Saturday, fog.
Conditions not good for spotting chub when I arrived at the first spot I visited.

I could barely make out one larger chub but it just would not take the sedge I tossed.
At times it looked like the fish was interested but veered off every time.
The only fish I got was a tiny bleak that was brave enough to pick the sedge of the surface.
I had hoped the sun would clear out the fog and upcoming wind would blow away the moisture but it did not happen.

Time to move, the second spot had a lot of fish moving about.
By now the fog had lifted but clouds blocked the sunlight so spotting fish was not that easy.
I managed to catch a few fish on the sedge and even some on the nymph.
The racket though caused by catching these fish caused action to die down quickly.

The third spot of the day was a longer stretch of the stream where sometimes
chub would travel in groups. 
These fish where very wary and most of the time eluded me.
I spotted several large fish but most bolted as they noticed me first.

At one location a group of four to five large fish more or less stayed stationary in a riffle.
I had some good shots at them with a sedge and mayfly pattern but they just would not
come to the surface to pick the fly up.

At a bend in the stream I finally had a real interested fish and I watched the moment that
big chub mouth opened to suck in the fly.
Just at that moment, the fly started dragging and that put the fish off.

I finished the day at the spot I started the day.
With the sun now full out I figured conditions had to be better.
I spotted indeed more fish but every time I dropped the fly to chub would move away.
Not a good day thus for chub fishing it seemed.

After tossing several flies at a real large stationary fish I called it a day.
The sun was getting at a low angle so spotting fish was almost impossible.
At least I had caught a few fish so all was good.
Leaves where falling … the water was getting clear so fall is definitely around the corner.

Germany 01-09-2024

Germany 01-09-2024

Last weekend boasted exceptionally fine weather.
I choose the Sunday for a trip to the stream.
Fall was in the air, fields harvested … the swifts already migrating back to Africa.
With a relatively dry week I expected the stream to be at a low stage.

The stream was low indeed and it was also pretty clear.
There was a warm breeze blowing with but very bearable when under the canopy of trees
that dotted the stream.
I fished the most accessible section of the stream as I had good results there on previous sessions.

My hope was to catch some fish on the dry fly and maybe the one or other trout.
Despite the clear warm weather there where not many insects flying so top action
was almost non-existent. I spotted some dace and tried a large selection of flies on them.
The best I could do was for them to inspect the fly and then reject it at the last moment.

I spotted a rainbow trout in the surface whom was also resistant to any dry fly I dropped.
After presenting anything from sedges to mayflies I tried nymphing.
The squirmy yield a half hearted attack but the trout was not convinced.
A dragging with the streamer failed to get any takes.

Nymphing finally yielded a trout but it was the smallest rainbow I ever caught.
I switched to fishing nymphs and that yielded some roach and dace at various spots.
At a spot that regular held large dace I tried the sedge again in order to get a fish on the dry fly.
After some heart-stopping takes I finally bagged one on the sedge.

I came along one of my friends and talked shop.
While I was doing that I noticed a consistent rise and knew it was from a trout.
As my friend went on his way I tried to nail that fish but it was rising in a tight spot.
My cast where to clumsy and it resulted in the trout racing past me for safer grounds.

I had one last shot at a trout when I hooked one at a spot where a small creek flows into the main stream.
That creek dumps water from a treatment plant but it is pretty clean water.
A drift near one of the tree roots yielded an instant hit.
The tippet I fished was light though and my attempt to prevent the fish from running in the
brushwork backfired … not at the fly disintegrated.
Called it a day after that breakoff and went for dinner.

Germany 11-08-2024

Germany 11-08-2024

Last Sunday was prone to be a perfect chub fishing day, sunny and hot.
I opted to fish the lower part of my stream and selected one of my hot spots first.
With the banks being mowed access was to the water was guaranteed.
The presence of fish however not, it turned out that the water was pretty empty.

The high banks and clear water where not exactly a good ingredient for stalking.
So the few fish I spotted where aware of my presence and would either scoot or
stay deep. Tried everything from hopper over large dry fly to streamer but nothing worked.

Having wasted quite some time at the first spot it was time to avoid skunk and find a
place where also smaller fish where present.
The smaller fish would often take a sedge or other dry fly with gusto.
The plan worked so I avoided a skunk day.

I was still eager to catch a larger fish.
With the bigger fish staying deep I tried a shallower feeder where I finally spotted a larger fish.
It took about two casts with the spent mayfly before the fish committed, nice size one.

Almost had a second fish of the same size but my handicap worked against me.
Chub, especially the larger ones are extremely wary and inspect the fly first before a take.
I spotted the fish … lost my nerves and struck too early … boom, fish gone.
Next I spotted an even larger fish close to the bank but whatever I tried it showed no interest at all.

Late in the afternoon I tried the last spot in the open fields.
Boy it was really hot and with my drinking supply gone it was tough. Walked a mile or so along the stream and all I found was a rather large muskrat swimming underwater past me.

Germany, August 4th 2024

Germany, August 4th 2024

With thunderstorms and rain predicted last Saturday I postponed my fishing session one day.
As was common this summer, the amount of rain dumped resulted once again in a blown out stream. Sunday morning I checked the stream gauge and deemed fishing might be doable.

At the stream the brown soup did not gave me confidence of catching anything other than gudgeons.
Those gudgeons where the first fish being caught on the squirmy I fished.
Oddly despite the high and murky water I noticed a rainbow trout rising close by.
I tried a spent mayfly first to no avail and then opted to use the squirmy.

That failed also so next was the mop fly, that fly floated at first despite the tungsten bead on it.
To my surprise the trout came up for the fly and took it right from the surface.
It took me some time to coax the fish close enough to net it but it got off at the last minute.
I then switched back to the squirmy and fished some of the shallower stretches catching more gudgeons.
I was lucky enough to run into another trout, again a rainbow and this time I could net it.

I checked a spot where I had previously missed trout hoping they would still be there.
A pool behind some branches only yielded bites of the gudgeons.
In front of the pool I fished a nice run in the bend of the stream was obstructed by branches.
No way to get a cast in there without getting tangled.

The murky water was now a plus as I could wade close enough without being seen to just
dump the fly among the branches.
After a few drifts a trout hit the fly at exactly the spot where I had seen a riser during an
earlier fishing trip.

Other spots where I repeated that tactic brough two nice roach to the surface.
En route to the next hot spot I decided to fish some shallow sections that looked fishy and
surprisingly caught another brown and missed one.

One of the last spots I fished had a deadfall that shifted position during the last blowout.
Instead of laying in the water at a 90 degree angle it was now 45 degrees.
I positioned myself next to the deadfall and dropped the fly over the trunk in the water.
There was only a short drift possible but I had noticed a rising trout.
The trout however did not fall for the trick so I had to admit defeat in this case.

I did scout out one last spot but it was so overgrown that I could hardly reach the water.
Himalayan Balsam growing everywhere and slippery banks due to the sediment deposited from the high water. I could not spot any fish and with only bites from the gudgeons I decided to call it a day.

    Germany 28-07-2024

    Germany 28-07-2024

    After the countless days of rain, flooding and so forth I finally dared to go out and about to the stream.  I picked my streams in reverse order meaning I would visit the one with the normally lowest flow first. I was early and hoped the mill pool would be void of fisherman.
    Luckily it was but I just couldn’t get any fish to bite, water level elevated – visibility not that great.

    I had nibbles of small fish and now and then I even spotted the odd fish in the surface.
    My squirmy presentation however did not lead to any decent bites.
    I even tried streamers in the hope of a lost trout or a remaining pike but to no avail.

    My last hope was the stream further below, with the murky water the gudgeons where out in force so bites plenty.
    I managed some Dace and Roach and had one good fish on that pulled but no idea what it was as the hook slipped.

    I even saw some rising dace in the murky water and managed one on the dry fly.
    All that flooding had pushed grass high in the tree branches so it gave an idea of how high
    the water actually was.
    I still wanted to catch a trout so it was off to the other stream where I fished the end portion first.

    At the second stream the same signs of high water where visible, one of the deadfalls had actually shifted. 
    The last time I fished that spot many trout where hiding but this time I only spotted dace and some gudgeons.

    The next spot was the inflow of a small brook where fish would be located close to the bank.
    That spot yielded instant roach and one rather nice rudd but no trout though.
    A little downstream tree-roots and a deeper pool where the next ticket for my trout search.
    I dropped the squirmy near one of the tree-stumps in the stream and immediately hooked a brown trout.

    Further downstream I could spot large dace in the surface but no place to make an accurate cast. I tossed a squirmy with some roll casts to the adjacent bank and nailed a nice roach. Somewhat later at another spot I hooked a rainbow but it jumped and tossed the hook.
    There was a second rising fish upstream but again on a spot you could not reach.

    At the last spot of the day I noticed a trout aggressively moving in front of a pile of debris.
    I put myself upstream from the rising fish but the current pushed the spent mayfly out of range of the trout. With the murky water I opted for the squirmy and after a few tries the fly reached the proper spot.
    The indicator went under and I hooked the best fish of the day, a nice sized rainbow, icing on the cake as they say.