Flyfishing FWSW

A hot and sticky weekend was predicted with local thunderstorms.
I went outside at 0500 hrs and looked at a cloudy sky which looked like
rain was imminent.
The clouds moved west, I headed east so I was good.
I planned was to visit the chub section of the stream and try for the big ones. The clouds however changed my plan, I did not trust the weather.
No fun in walking in the open landscape when all hell would break loose.

I crossed the upper section of the stream and noticed rising fish.
I stopped, got in the waders and tried to catch fish in ultra shallow water.
A sedge pattern yielded only a tiny dace, the perdigon did better.
I managed to get a mixed bag of roach, dace and trout.

When  I spotted the big brown from last week again I just could not resist to toss another big mayfly under the tree, same result.
After the pub lunch I continued to fish for a trout that I missed last time.
I scared off the fish at first but lost track of where it went.
I figured it might have hidden under some submerged brushes.
The mayfly landed near the bank and as it drifted close to the brushes
the trout came out and nailed the fly.

With the unstable weather I watched the radar from time to time.
When I saw a big red spot moving in my direction I called it quits.
It stayed dry with these thunderclouds it is better to be safe than sorry.

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Another week, another weather type.
The hot and dry weather changed to wet, cold and windy.
I felt a little underdressed in the morning as it was quite chilly.

The rain of the past week had caused the water of the stream to rise.
Visibility was limited and with the clouds, winds and temperature
fish activity was non-existent.

During the first couple of hours only a few roach fell victim to the perdigon.
I moved to a sheltered spot of the stream where my friends had
failed to catch the resident trout during last weeks session.
A deep fished perdigon was the ticket for the first trout of the day.

In the afternoon I went to the pub where the beer garden was empty … Too windy and chilly for the towns folk.
I was fearing the pub would be closed due to the weather but I smelled
the fireplace so I went in.
I had lunch and warmed up at the fireplace before I went out again.

I had hoped for some rays of sun and mayfly activity later in the day.
Mayflies where indeed about and some fish where rising.
I went to a shallow section where I had seen trout last week.
En route I spotted a big trout from the high bank in shallow water.

Every time I would peek over the edge of the bank it would scoot off.
Very difficult to get at due to tree cover and shallow water but
worth a try on the way back.
The shallows yielded one solid hookup from a trout but not solid enough as the trout came off.

I noticed more than one trout when I waded out the pool but I would leave that for another time.
The big trout was now a target for me.
I sneaked up to the trout from downstream I saw that it was stationary
waiting to pick up mayflies.

The challenge was that overhanging branches from a willow would make
it very tough to land a fly near the fly.
I failed at the first attempts either catching the shrubs behind me or
falling short in distance.

I persevered and finally landed the fly next to the trout.
A little twitch and the trout noticed the fly and came to intercept it.
I set the hook and used maximum force to keep the trout out of
the treeroots near the bank.
A good end of the day with the best en prettiest trout of the season so far.

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A late start and a late end.

The stream almost dried up and fishing was slow in the blazing sun.
Managed a few dace and a nice roach.

Near sunset fish where rising but as it was late I did not bother to put on the waders.
Plenty of deer about in the field, always funny to see their eyes reflecting the light ​​​​​​​of the flashlight I carry with me.

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Another early outing over the border in bright conditions.
We have a drought in spring for the third year and the stream is at it’s lowest flow possible.
The perdigon yielded the first trout of the day while the squirmy pulled a small perch from under the tree roots.
Trout nr. 2 got away and since I spotted another angler near the spot I fished I moved to a quieter place.

At the spot where I had seen several trout last week I encountered only
the dace.
The stream was so shallow that I had the notion that any trout would take off the moment my dry fly would land on the water.

The deeper pools that once existed had been filled in with sand in winter when there was longer period with high water.
While walking on the high banks I spotted a trout running for cover insome brushwork.
Since the fish was surface feeding I moved down to the water and found
a spot where I could make a proper cast.

I waited a while and observed dace starting to feed on top.
Something larger lunged at a mayfly flying over the water so I knew the
trout was also surface feeding.
It took a few casts to drop the mayfly at the right spot but then it was an
instant hit.

The shortage of water made visiting spots further upstream rather pointless so I went for an early lunch.
The pub’s beergarden was crowded as the weather was warm and sunny.
I had the porkchops with mushrooms today and for dessert the strawberry cake with plenty of cream.
I am afraid this year could be the year that the stream runs dry if it does
not start to rain sometime.

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Despite rain, chilly conditions and lots of wind the mayflies where out in numbers late in the day and fish eager to feed.
In the morning surface action was non-existent so the perdigon did its magic. 

Next weapon of choice was the squirminator which yielded a trout from within a maze of sunken trees and debris.
Further use of the squirminator brought anything from gudgeon, dace, roach to trout. 

Late in the afternoon when it started pouring the mayflies where appearing en mass and fish where rising.
A large mayfly pattern yielded a good hit from a larger brown trout.
The trout went ballistic but somehow the hook came out. 

It was an interesting day with some casualties in the perdigon and squirminator department so some replacements are required.

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Another early outing to the stream yesterday.
I only saw a brief glimpse of the sun in the morning as the weather was changing.
The weather change had impact on the insect life.
It stayed quiet on top for most of the morning.

The Perdigon did a good job but I lost more to the trees than I liked.
At least I had the materials to tie my own which would be required soon.
A passing cold front made the weather let’s say interesting.
At times it looked like it would rain and as it was still warm and

sticky I thought the thunderstorms where imminent.

Late in the afternoon I went to the pub and settled in the beer garden.
The menu these days down scaled so I settled for a curry sausage with

fries and the mozzarella tomato side dish.

All flushed away with dark wheat beers.

I even managed to get the mandatory coffee and cake to top it all off.

The cold front was blowing through in force and those dark clouds

finally erupted in a heavy downpour.
Luckily I could shelter inside the pub, within half an hour it was all over
and I went for my last fishing session of the day.

After landing a nice trout near the grounds of the pub I headed

into the forest to see if I could spot trout feeding on mayflies.
The downpour had filled the stream with debris from the trees so surface

action was non existent.
The Perdigon yield a gudgeon, certified bottom feeder.
Lots of bites from these little fellows but not the fish I was looking for.

At the end of the day the light was fading and with the strong wind and

falling branches of the trees I thought fishing was over.

Some big dead falls where leaning against the still standing trees and made
a pretty awful noise.

If one of those old trees would give way it would sure be a bad day.

On the way out of the forest I heard a loud splash in the water.
At first I thought it had to be another falling tree branch hitting the water.
As I was not sure and had spotted several mayflies on the water I went to investigate.
A swirl in the water indicated to me that maybe something else was going on.

I broke out one of the big mayfly patterns and looked for a good position to make a cast.
It took a few cast before the fly landed near enough to the tree where I suspected a fish.
As the fly drifted near the tree the trout came up and nailed the fly with vigor.
A good way to end the fishing day with as last fish a trout on the dry fly.

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An early start trying to find the trout I spotted while fishing last week.
Insects where on the water early but no fish where rising.
I did a field test with some newly bought Perdigon nymphs and they worked well.
The roach seemed to like them and one small trout came for them.
The nymphs where heavy so no subtle entry in the water but they got deep and caught fish.

I had planned a break at the pub as it reopened last Monday under
new strict covid measures.
The word had spread under the bikers which arrived in hordes.
A long line of customers had formed in front of the ordering booth .
It looked like a waste of time to join the line and wait for a couple of
fries so I skipped lunch and continued fishing.

I visited a place where I had not been in ages.
The usually trampled paths where overgrown which was a good sign.
Mayflies where out in numbers despite wind and clouds.
Trout made their presence known as they aggressively pursued the mayflies.

I was tempted to toss a large mayfly at the trout but faced a problem
Casting was impossible duo to high banks and foliage.
When I spotted a trout under some submerged logs I tried to coax it out.
First with a nymph and then when that did not work with a streamer.
Both actions failed and I finally scared the trout away.

In de pool behind the logs I spotted larger roach so I concentrated on
catching them.
The bite I got was from the trout which had retreated in the pool.
I was pretty sure I could land the fish but when he went in the submerged roots of the tree it was over.

Downstream I finally found an interesting pool where I could wade.
I dropped the perdigon in a fast flowing deeper stretch.
I spotted small fish but then the indicator went under and something 
larger showed up, a nice trout.
Other trout where still rising and so eventually I tried dry fly fishing.
My presentation was not good enough though so I called it a day.

During the day the weather had changed from sunny to cloudy with lots of wind and back again.
I pondered of going to the pub for dinner before leaving for home.
With the late hour and lower temperatures I figured most bikers would be gone home.
I met up with some friends at the pub who where also out fishing today.
It was a tad chilly in the beergarden for the outside dining.

At least it was good that some normality had been regained in these
trying times, it was a good day.

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Today’s fishing session was to become a short one.
The nice weather we had would come abruptly to an end.
Predicted was a drop in temperature and an increase of the wind.

I started on the stretch where I missed so many trout on the previous session to no avail.
I later found out from reliable sources that they had been cleared out.
The only fish I managed was a small brown trout on a woolly bugger.

The second spot I fished had feeding fish, violent rises indicated trout.
With all the foliage fishing the dry fly just did not work out.
Figuring a streamer might do the job was correct, instant hit.
I had a fight with a good trout but when a run into an submerged tree caused the leader to part.
With the trout scared away I concentrated on nymphing for the roach.
The good spot from last weeks visit was reliable and yielded several roach.

Before leaving I returned to a spot where I had earlier seen a rising fish.
This time I positioned myself downstream as the fish was again rising.
I got one hit on the sedge but the trout missed the fly and action was over.
Last hope was fishing a small nymph upstream.
That worked as the trout hit the nymph.
The last good fish of the day was a nice brown trout.

When I left the premises late in the afternoon it was still warm.
Within an hour however I found myself in rain and cold weather.
The weather forecast was correct and it felt like summer had been replaced by fall within a few hours’ time.
Luckily I picked the right time slot to go fishing today.

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Yesterday was a public holiday around here and with the promise of good weather I crossed the border to my fishing haunts.
Goal was to catch a trout and it turned out better than I had hoped.

The first mark I fished was the barren sand pit as usual but the third position yielded a solid hookup of a big fish.
I was still fishing with my usual guppy setup aka roach setup tossing a size 16 nymph on light tippet.
The trout nailed the nymph and immediate shot into a submerged tree stump and as I could not exert to much power I thought I would loose the fish. After several runs by a sort of miracle I could land the fish.

On the same stretch I hooked two other large trout but the hook came out in both instances.
From that point on I was on a roll and several small roach and trout fell to the nymph.
At the end of the day I visited my secret spot where the number of flies on the water surprised me.

I noticed a trout feeding continuously in one spot and from the size of the rings in the shallow water I figured it had to be a decent one.
My small sedge pattern was however ignored and when I tried nymphing the indicator was attacked several times.
A small woolly bugger also did not yield the hoped reaction.
I checked my fly box and found one big old mayfly pattern in it and decided to fish that instead.
It took just one drift and the fish nailed the fly as it went downstream.

Best fishing day this year and I guessed the local club had stocked fish
as I encountered so many.

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Last Sunday I crossed the border to visit the chub section of the stream.
The recent warm weather motivated  me  to check out if the fish where starting to appear at their summer haunts.
My first trip to that section this year remained fruitless so maybe things had improved.

I made a stop along the way as I crossed the upper section of the stream.
The particular spot outside the village had been improved with some fish passages a few years ago.
I was not impressed with the results as the overall effect was that the water level had dropped.
The result was as a sort of underwater desert, only sand.
With no variation or depth I could only encounter small stuff.
At a bridge I spotted some small roach and caught a few small fish on the nymph.

At the chub section all was quiet, the aquatic vegetation had not yet reached the surface .
Big fish you could spot in the summer just where not there.
I took a while to find a school of chub.
The fish stayed deep in the water and rejected all my offerings.
The last hope was the feeder stream where with sheer luck I hooked a small chub on the dry fly.
I guess too early in the season after all.

On the way back home I came by a lake used for sand extraction where you could often spot geese on the adjacent fields.
Usually you could spot the common graylag geese with a mix of non-native Canadian and Nile geese.
This time I spotted something new, I contacted one of my palls that studied wildlife to see what it was. Turned out to be a Bar headed goose native to central and southern Asia.

On Monday I had set another goal, to catch a trout in the upper section of the stream.
I had noticed that fish had been stocked as people suddenly began to catch trout.
These actions where usually very short lived as word would spread quickly.
The trout would be clobbered  out of the stream as fast as they had been put in.

Since it was warm and sunny I tried dry fly fishing in the village for dace first.
As I had discovered on previous visits the surface action was mega slow.
Fish where cruising but only sporadically would they take something from the surface.
I dropped the fly near some of the fish that where moving in the upper layer of the water.
A few dropped takes and just only solid hookup where the result.

Since the dry fly fishing did not work out I tried the nymph.
The spots that usually delivered fish stayed eerily quiet.
Next I tried for the trout in the forest and probed some of the deeper holes where deadfalls and other debris provided some cover.
Fishing the pools only resulted in lost flies.
I did not see fish running from me so I figured no trout or other fish remained.

It was late in the day when I fished the final stretch, again a spot with very shallow water.
Flies where hovering in the hundreds over the water but not the sort that would bring trout to the surface.
I fished a nymph near the bank where a tree created a little depression in the otherwise shallow water.
Small dace where surface feeding, I caught one while dropping nymphs near the tree.

Further upstream a small stone dam provided some turbulence and depth in the water.
 I spotted a feeding fish at the beginning of the pool and tossed in a nymph.
The result was a little brown on the nymph, size wise not that great but a trout after all.

As I moved upstream I noticed a fish aggressively feeding in the surface.
I could not spot what the fish was feeding on so I continued fishing the nymph.
It could only be a trout and when I got a hit on the indicator I was sure.
The fish missed the indicator but it did get the nymph and so I got my second brown on the fly.
A larger fish which managed to wrap my leader on a sunken tree branch.
I had luck with me as I could untangle the leader and land the larger brown trout.
The last fish of the day was again a small brown trout from below a small dam.

Fishing remains though in the home water as the lack of water and fish.
difficult.
At least that larger trout made up for the miserable fishing we had till now.

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