Flyfishing FWSW

It was not so long after the flash flooding at my fishing spot and the water
was still very murky.
As usual the banks of the river were slippery as hell as the deposited mud had
the consistency of grease …
My descent from the bank to the waters edge  was rather uncontrolled and ungraceful.

Grey skies and drizzle dampened the mood somewhat but despite the murky
water a very decent dace decided to take the nymph … amazing.
Today was the first test of the recently purchased Bloke glass rod build and oh what
a joy it was to cast and catch fish with that rod.

I got everything from Dace over Roach (or a hybrid) to a very decent trout and
the rod handled all situations exceptionally well.
The skies got friendly at the end of the day and even the sun appeared.
My stopover at the pub was well deserved and I ended the day making a visit
up on the hill to gaze over the land below and thinking about what a great day it was.

Another hot day and as those hordes of fish in the stagnant water above the mill haunted
me I tried for them this morning again.
Unlike yesterday the fish were not stacked up on top as the day before … it took a while
before I spotted them.

The fish where not cooperative … whatever fly I used it was in vain.
Carp where spawning and making a lot of racket, they ploughed through the schools
of shiner scattering the fish in every direction.
Further upstream some dace where moving in the surface and were willing to take a
sedge.

The heat and humidity were unbareble so I headed for some sheltered spots in the
forest but even there nothing was biting.
A break at the pub seemed like a good idea.

The afternoon session was cut short after the skies darkened and an eerie wind
started to pick up.
A weather warning was issued for areas to the south predicting thunderstorms and
hail … I did not wait for that to happen and left early.

It has been hot around here for the last couple of weeks and with the absence of rain the
stream I fish is slowly reduced to a trickle.
The big mayflies are still around and allthough fish are on them I usually prefer to fish a small
sedge as these are more often accepted by the fish.

The big mayfly pattern came out when I spotted a nice brown trout.
I made a sloppy cast which resulted in a dunked mayfly … the darn thing sank … lucky for me
the brown trout did not mind and just zipped in the submerged fly.

Tomorrow will even be hotter so I will make the most of the day again hoping to encounter
some more willing fish that fancy dry flies.

After my last attempt to go fishing was torpedoed because of perks of the new job
I was able to get out at last.
The fact that Mayflies have appeared has not gone unnoticed, not by me … the birds or the fish.
Quite some hits on the dry fly today although the nymph worked its magic like usual.
The stream was low so at some spots I just could not get the fly to rising fish without spooking
them first.
For the next outing the mayfly box has to come out …

A bright sunny warm day … very nice to be outside.
The water table was low, tons of small flies on the water but not a lot of surface action.
At my former hot spot I managed one roach and wondered now that the water was low where

the heck all the fish had gone.
Fished the end of the pool last and noticed a big swirl in the water of a hunting fish.

I had seen that fish before and thought it was a big brown trout … at least for this stream.
It took a few drifts with the nymph but then it hammered the nymph and as I was fishing with
very light tippet I feared it would all end it tears.
The massive fish went ballistic but whatever it tried the barbless hook stayed put and in the\
end I could land the fish … chuffed.

Fished the stagnant higher channel of the mill next as I spotted tons of fish in the surface.
Carp, roach, European bream, Yellow perch and even a small Northern pike where present.
My flies and presentation though … no good.

After my pub break I scouted some spots in the forest and caught a few more fish amongst
them a very nice rainbow trout.
Lots of insects about and I spotted one of those big mayflies … first time this year.

As my time of leisure ended I went out for a final time to the stream.
In the night before a front of thunderclouds and rain had passed and made way for
a low pressure system with lots of wind and showers.

At the place formerly known as my hotspot I did not see any fish, somehow it seemed
that all fish had disappeared.
Only after a long time I finally got a hit and caught a roach on the ptn.
I tried other spots both with nymphs and streamers but nothing showed up.

After the pub break I tried hard to catch fish but it was tough going.
The temperature was six degrees lower than the day before, rain showers fell and
the wind dumped a lot of debris from the trees in the water.
There were some breaks in the clouds and when the sun came out thousands of
insects would hover over the water … no rising fish though.
In the end I scraped a few small roach and dace from the stream with as highlight
a brown trout that was hiding behind some submerged branches.

Tomorrow it is the start of my new job and as it is a totally different role than
the work I did the last 17 years it is kind of a gamble.
The landlord of the pub said “if it doesn’t work out I see you Wednesday” …
I hope not 🙂

Today the weather service warned of severe thunderstorms at the end of the day as a cold front
and warm air would meet in the general area I was fishing.
To get my timing right I skipped some of the downstream spots and headed straight for the place
where I had done well on the previous days.
And again the fish turned up, but I have to say they looked rather familiar …

After my lunch I decided it might be wise to check up on some old spots  I had not been to for some time.
It was a jungle out there and some of those deadfalls where leaning pretty awkward against other
trees … big trees …
Fish where rising but in the jungle getting in a right position to toss a fly under a tree is difficult.
The banks were steep and with only boots there was not a lot of wading you could do.
Dries where out of the question but drifting a streamer down a pool did yield a small brown trout.
It is always interesting to see how a river can change in time when downed trees create new pools
while old ones fill in with sand.
Spotted plenty of rising fish but could not get a decent cast out to most of them.

When I left the water light rain set in, only at home I noticed rumbling in the sky and now the lightshow is on and sometimes it rains.
One more day left for bumming around at the stream so I hope the rains will not be to bad on
the stream … it will be cooler though.

And yes … another day spent fishing … to put it in the words of my friends … they can’t take that away from you.
The day started bright and sunny … the stream surprisingly clear and lower than the day before.
The fish … dormant … did not spot any at my hotspot and had to revert to dirty tactics to get something going.
The tactic consisted of tossing a streamer through the water … that streamer tailed a nymph.
It worked just as planned as a small trout raced after the streamer and then took the nymph.
Bigger fish where absent or not willing to show themselves.
Further upstream at a “no fishing” section I spotted an army of dace in the surface but they
where not moving at all.
Tried other spots but nothing going on.

As the fishing was slow I had planned an early pub session but before that I tried the spot where
I got the stockie yesterday.
This time the nymph coaxed another brown trout out of its lie and as it pulled hard and ran all over the
place I was not sure it would stay connected, luckily for me it did.
That brown trout was a day saver so I could happily enjoy a meal in the pub.
In the mean time one of my buddies was en route to the stream and we met up at the pub.
His plans were to visit a downstream section of the stream, I on the other hand would move further
upstream.

After my break I checked out the upstream sections and noticed a lot of surface activity … the kind
of racket that trout make.
I tied on a sedge and made some clumsy casts under a tree but in the end it worked, brown trout.
Apparently the stockists had put out a batch of trout as I caught a few of them at places that where
void of life before, just a pity that all the fish where small.
I informed my buddy about the status of the upstream section and met up with him later at the water.
With the low and clear water sneaking up on the trout was difficult so I am not sure how effective our efforts were.
Fish remained small and as my buddy was on a tight schedule he left early.
I tried one other spot for half an hour hoping the setting sun would trigger some activity of the fish but I came
no further that one bite from a small dace.
I ended my fishing day half an hour before sunset when the temperature was already notably lower.
Two fishing days left ….

As my time of leisure is coming to an end as my new job starts soon I had to make
the most of the spare free time that is still left to me.
As it had rained cat and dogs last night I was anxious about the state of the stream
as I had seen a sharp rise in the level at one of the online gages.
A strong wind was blowing, the temperature was low and at times showers rained
down on the land.
The stream looked ok though with only a slight murkiness to the water.

The nymph was the weapon of choice but just as during the last weeks it did not yield
many fish.
A small trout was the first fish of the day followed by a dace and small roach.
I was wondering what happened to the legal size trout that I had encountered in the
past at my hot spots.
I soon found out as one was racing behind a dragging nymph.
I mended the line to slow the drift and would you believe it the trout actually took the fly.
The rod was in a nice bend … the trout jumped and voila the hook came out.
Since that trout was so eager I figured I would have another go at it with a streamer.
The streamer did coax the trout out for an attack and again it jumped … and threw the hook.
A third go in a row seemed to me a little far fetched so I decided to take a brake first for
a drink and something to eat.

When I was finally done with my break the sun had broken through the clouds and insects
where flying in masses of my spot.
Surface action was minimal with one small fish constantly rising.
I served a sedge to the rising fish but all I got was one take which I expertly missed.
During all this action I did however noticed a disturbance in the water that must have been
a trout and most likely it was the same I had hooked twice … must be a stockie was my thought.
So it was back to the nymph, a PTN with a black tungsten bead and a pink spectraflash hotspot.
After a few small roach something solid took the fly and as predicted it was the trout.
This time there was no escape and eventually I landed the fish, the tail of that trout was a telltale sign.
Nevertheless it was nice to once again have a fish at the end of the line that put a good bend in the rod.

The rains and cooler weather raised the stream a little and the clarity was quite a bit down.
Could not get any fish on my regular spots but found one in the end that produced small dace and roach.
Also got one of the larger roach, have not seen those for a long time.
Alas it did not end so well as the camera took a dunk in the drink … looks pretty dead now but might come back to life once it has dried.

Still working my way through the new menu at the pub ….