Flyfishing FWSW

Allthough I am very happy with the local stream there are sometime moments when you are
drawn to fish a little more exotic locations.
In my case fishing a mountain stream is one of the things I love to do and luck had it that I
was able to go on a short road trip with my fishing buddies to the Harz mountains.
As usual a lot of fun, survived the thunder and lightning and caught my fair share of fish in
a very beautifull surrounding.

All missions where accomplished but one, I still have to get see one of those black and yellow
fire salamanders whom seem to avoid me like the plague (my buddies always see them).

Since it was raining cats and dogs last week fishing the stream was not possible.
As I looked at the online rivergage I found it odd that the waterlevel had not receeded
even though it had been dry for a couple of days.
So I decided to take a gamble and had to the river anyway, a wise choice as the
stream looked just fine.

My first port of call was off course the roach hot spot and well it did provide some fish
but only for a short while as everything soon went silent.
Soon I found out why my hot spot provided only short time action as a jack pike scooted
past me. I might have a go at that fish later in the season.

I fished a section of the stream inside the village and allthough I caught a fine dace and a really
fat roach I found the spot too crowded.
There where festiveties going on at the waters egde and there is only so much band music I can
cope with on a fishing day especially when they play abba tunes 🙂

Fish where plenty in the village and mayflies where fluttering around attracting both attention from the fish
and the waterfowl and other birds.
With bright sunny skies I and the mayflies around I figured it might be an ideal time to fish a big dry mayfly
and see what it would yield.
I choose a stretch of the stream that was open and slow moving and scouted for targets.
I soon found a school of dace working the surface and allthough they had no trouble attacking a large
mayfly from the surface I could not hook any of them, I guess I was too slow.

My attention got drawn to a fish I saw lying stationary in the sunshine.
The golden color indicated to me that it was a brown trout but I found it rather odd that the fish choose
a lie in the warm shallow section of the stream.
The fish was selectively feeding from the surface but I guess on emergers as it would steadily refuse any dries
I offered the fish.
I did get three strikes though so catching the fish was a possibilty, I put in over an hour before I finally hooked
the fish.
The trout was not big but it was great that persistance payed out this time.
Now I had enough of the village and moved further upstream to the section of the stream that flowed
through woodland.

In the wooded section dace where rising actively to the abundant mayflies but with the lush
foliage and steep banks made a presention impossible.
At a neaby bridgde I watched the water at the “no fishing” section which was off course teeming with
fish as such spots usually though.
What caught my eye was a pretty decent rainbow trout zipping flies from the surface like clockwork.
One proper cast with a mayfly over that fish and an instant hit was certified.
Off course if somebody would see and report me my membership with the syndicate would be
terminated on the spot so I resisted the temptation this time.
To make matters worse and noticed an even larger trout moving about.

It was late in the afternoon so to clear my mind I headed to the pub and enjoyed a good meal
and some cold beers, perfect on a summers day like this.
After my break I tried some of the spots in the forest and had some hits from the dace on the large mayfly.

As it was late in the day I pondered about where to end my fishing day.
With so many mayflies around the otherwise quite tricky task of spotting trout was easier so I headed
to a spot where I suspected trout would be present.
As the stream was shallow and heavily covered approaching wary fish was difficult to impossible.
I noticed a rising fish but when I had finally positioned myself for a cast the fish was already gone.
The deep pool in front of me could hold fish and if they would notice a mayfly overhead they would surely
race to the surface to intercept it.
Unfortunately despite several casts no fish materialized.

There was a shallow spot where I suspected a trout could be lying in ambush.
To get the fly there was tricky though as the tree branches where lying low over the water.
It was a spot where you would get only one shot at a proper presentation.
With some luck the fly landed right at the edge of the treeroots and the fly was immediately
intercepted by a very nice brown trout.

That brown trout was the perfect ending of a perfect day.
On the way back home I noticed that hordes of mayflies where dancing over a ditch that ran from
the nearby hills, quite a spectecular sight.
With all that dry fly action it might be time to inspect some of my big chub fishing spots on other
parts of the stream in the upcoming weeks.

The last few fishing sessions on the stream had been kind of slow even though
temperatures had picked up and insect life gathered more speed.
At the last venue I was out with some of the local flyfisherman and even though it
was more of a social event quite a few fish where caught … but not by me.
I struggled somewhat especially in the trout department.

The last weekend was weather wise a bit dissappointing as it turned out to be
rather chilly. My plan was to scout for surface feeding trout but the overcast skies
and low temperatures cancelled that approach.
Also the water had receeded more that I had thought making fish extra wary and
thus difficult to approach.

I started the day late figuring I made the best change when temperatures had
climbed a bit. A visit to my roach hotspot remained fruitless, it had only produced
once or twice this season and now it was dead again.
Further upstream though loads of fish where hiding in the submerged brushwork.
Seeing fish and catching fish where two different worlds though, I was happy I
had caught at least a small roach.

The next fish I hauled in from the deep was a very nice size Dace.
There where quite a few of those big dace in the stream, at bright sunny summer days they
where excellent fish to be targeted with dry flies.

There where plenty of fish around the brushwork but off course those places where virtually impossible
to fish as your nymph would get lost in the minefield of submerged debris.

It seemed like the countryside got greener by the week.
The barleywheat was coming along nicely and the corn was just coming out of the earth.
Spots that held trout a week or two ago where now vacant, either cleared or the trout had seeked
deeper water as the levels had gone done quite a bit.

I checked out a spot where I knew that a trout was hiding a few weeks ago and to my surprise I
noticed a fish shaped from underneath a treestump.
Flotsam had accumulated in front of the treestump and the trout was barely visible as it sometimes
moved forward to pick up food items.

I first tried the subtle approach by letting a segde drift along the debris but the trout would not go
for that. Plan B was to let a nymph slip underneath the treestump, it was an instant succses.
The problem was however that the trout did not make a run for it but retreaded further into the debris
and got stuck.
I managed to reach the debris without taking on water and pulled the debris loose still feeling
tension on my leader.
Surprisingly though the fish had done a Houdini act by somehow dissappearing and sticking the nymph
into a submerged piece of wood … bummer.

Further searches for trout only yielded small roach and dace.
I had forgotten about the time and noticed it was already long past midday and I did not even had
taken the time for lunch yet.
So it was off to the local pub where I installed myself in front of the fireplace and ordered lunch.
I spend quite a time at the pub and pondered that I could not go home withouth catching a trout.

After I finished my meal I would check out one last spot where I figured trout might be present.
First a few small dace and roach went for the fly but then I finally hooked a trout.
The trout was small but perfectly build, a sure sign of the excellent work done at our syndicates
hatchery.

Even though it was not that warm hordes of little flies where racing over the water.
Just as I though dry fly a trout shot out of the water in front of me and grabbed a natural.
Allthough I was tempted to use a dry fly the deep pool in front of me was maybe better suited
for nymph fishing.
I opted to fish a buzzer pattern fitted with a tungsten bead and drifted the fly close to the
debris on the other bank.
This tactic paid off as I hooked a larger trout, still not a monster but again a perfect specimen.
Mission accomlished, now I could go home 🙂

Despite the colder weather the fish still did cooperate on this day.
I even noticed the first large Danica mayfly on the water so hopefully they will hatch in numbers
soon and fish will key in on them.

With the weather continueing to be exceptionally warm for this time of year I decided to skip work
and head out for the stream in seach of the first chub of the season.
At previous visits I could not locate any chub figuring it might still be too early in the season.

I had high hopes for another hot sunny day but alas the weather changed on my day off, instead
of bright sunshine the skies where dull and gray and it looked light rain might be possible.
A lot of wildlife was out and about on this day, roe deer and notably a lot of pheasants.
Trees where flowering and the first spring canola crop was in full bloom.

My designated chub hot spot had changed since last year.
For some reason beyond me all shade providing trees had been cut down all over the place.
Heavy machinery was at work digging up the field adjecent to the stream and workmen where paving
over a section with large stones.
I ignored the building site and concentrated on the things happening in the water.
The water was off-color and foam was present which I contributed to the farmers who lately battered their
fields with a continous barrage of liquid manure.

A lot of tiny chub where present in the surface, my strike indicator was continuously being attacked by
the little critters.
I tried one of my favorite nymphs and soon caught my first couple of small chubs of the season.
Some fish where rising, a few splashes where of such magnitude that I thought bigger fish where present.
Allthough I had some hits on the segde the fishing was tough.
With the dull skies and lower temperature their where not many insects about and so fish where rising
pretty unpredictacally.
A look at some of my hot spots for the big chub showed they where empty, time to leave.

With the racket going on at my chub hot spot and the lack of big fish I decided to move upstream
and check out some of my other haunts and a few new spots I was recently allowed to fish in.
At one of the new spots I noticed fish in the current.
The fish that stood lined up in a calm section of the stream spotted me and ran off.
The riffle below a brigde also boasted fish and with the fast running water and broken surface my
changes to catch fish where greatly increased.

As soon as the nymph hit the water I got bites, in quick sucssession I hauled in roach and several
small dace.
Fish where small though so I decided to leave this new spot and maybe return later in the season to
check if larger fish where present there.
Next stop would be my old haunts where I knew for sure that big fish where present.

At my old hot spot I did receive a couple of bites but they where hesitant nibbles.
I noticed that the algea bloom had started, no wonder with all the nutrients the farmers where dispersing
on the fields.
The water was now not only covered with debris from the flowering trees but also with patches of algea
that came floating off the streambed.

My hot spot yielded no fish but a bit further afield a roach intercepted my nymph.
The fish was so large that at first I thought I had hooked a rainbow trout due to the size of the fish
in the murky water, that fish was my personal best roach yet.

My next spot to scout was a holding area for large dace.
On previous occasions I had done well with dry flies there but that was during days with bright sunshine.
The dace where still about in full force but I could hardly approach them.
The lack of rain had reduced the level of the stream to such extent that even the landing of the flyline
would cause the dace to scatter in all directions.
As it was late in the day I decided to call it quits and head to the local pub for a meal.

On the way back home I ran into the same roe deer that I had spotted a week before.
At a distance I thought it was a free roaming dog as it did not run off but closer inspection showed
it was the deer.
The critter seemed not in all bothered by my presence and slowly walked off into the forest, close enough to
take a picture.

So that was another nice day out in the great outdoors.
The last for the upcoming time as it is time for the annual visit to the Danish Baltic sea coast in seach
for the elusive seatrout.

My lately not so hot hot-spot finally produced some roach again.
I started out small and then pulled some of the big boys from under the trees.
All on a small gold bead ritz-d nymph tied on a golden hook.
I decided to use a fluorocarbon again as it pays to get the nymphs quickly at operation depth.
Off course all the action would not last and before I knew it the fish where gone.

At another spot the stream yielded a small perch, unusual to catch them on a nymph in the stream.
There are some perch in the stream and I have seen decent size ones but there are only few and
I have yet to catch a big one.
At the same location I noticed an active fish under the trees so I tossed a nymph at it and was instantly
awarded with a beautifully marked little trout.

Further upstream I noticed tons of dace in the shallow water with very respectable fish among them.
I tied on a small barbless CDC segde and made long casts in order not to spook them.
I Got a few nice fish from the school before they left for better pastures.

After the dace it was time for my break so I left for the pub and took some pictures of the flowerbed
on the forest floor.

Before I arrived at the pub I did travel along some potential fishing spots so I stopped and took a look.
What I saw was alarming, far downstream the water was clear – here it was as dark as coffee.
The stream was so dark in color with visibility to zero that I feared the worst – aka liquid manure dumping –
so I called the chairman of the syndicate to take a look.
He came instantly with a warden and went out to investigate what caused the dark water.
I have not heard yet what the cause was but as I can state now no fish have come to harm.

The dangers on such a small stream are manure from farmers or not properly working communal or
private wastewater facilities that can kill-off all life in a stream within a few hours.
To rebuild a stream biologically however takes three to five years.
When shit happens it is in order to find the cause asap to take legal action againts the people who
caused the destruction.

Further fishing was out of the question so I did a bit of sightseeing and planted myself on a sitting bench
on top of the hill and gazed down the valley.
All in all it was a nice day but it left me feeling uncomfortable about the future of the stream.

I had to try and catch larger fish but once again it was tough in the great outdoors.
At a spot that looked like the perfect hideout for a brown trout I caught a few tiny
roach and that was it.
For some reason the stretch of the stream flowing through the open land yielded
just  few fish.

The lack of succses caused me to fish the protected waters of the stream inside the village.
There I spotted tons of dace in the surface, I got the first one on a nymph.
Roach where also present but not in the mood to take any of the nymphs I offered them.

With the fine weather and lots of sushine the dace in the stream where actively feeding
on the surface so I switched from a nymph to a small segde.
I had dozens of hits on the dry fly and finally caught one of the dace off the surface.
Had to cut the visit short due to other obligations but off course I will return.

It was tough going today, instead of going to work I decided to use this sundreched day for a visit to the stream.
The lack of water caused the stream to be a very low level and subsequently the fish where ultra wary.
I only managed to catch a few tiny dace and a small brown trout.
Tomorrow I might head out again and look up some other spots that might provide more action.

The weather was warm and sunny but there was a quite strong breeze blowing about.
Temperatues still plummeted fast at sunset so warm clothing was still required.

The wildlife once again outwitted me as they spotted me first so I missed the deer that was drinking at the stream.
The large birds of prey that where perched up on trees and poles in the fields also got me in their sights
before I could even think of getting the camera out.
Last but not least the magnificent kingfisher flew by like a blue lightning streak, one day I will get a picture of him….

With the opening of the trout season I just had to take a little visit to the stream.
I spotted the black Luftwaffe aka cormorants making a flyby.
The black birds in turn where being overtaken by geese presumably heading north.
Trout where plenty but I just could not get to them, not much cover right now so
the stockies where very wary.

I expected a circus like usual but maybe the strong wind and overcast skies
tempered the enthiousasm of the meat fisherman a bit.
Unlike previous trout openers I spotted only one other guy tossing a small
spinner under the embankment – which was directly intercepted by a stockie.

I did well at one of my hotspots with the dace, I could spot them in the current and they
respondend well to the nymphs I fed them.

With some fish caught and midday arriving I thought it was the ideal time to head to the pub and so I had (as usual)
a couple of cold ones and a meal in front of the fireplace – outside temp. was 12 degrees C.
The remaining task for the rest of the day was to get one of these trout as there where plenty of them so I should at least catch one.

As mentioned earlier it was windy outside, the forecast mentioned something about a break in the cloud
in the afternoon but the windflowers where mostly in their bad weather mode ie closed.
The rains of the previous night had stained the water somewhat which was postive as the levels had
steadily gone lower due to lack of rain.

To get a trout I figured I knew just which spot to hit and tossed a nymph first.
When the nymphs did not yield any response it was time to try a lure, a small beadhead zonker would
have more result for these recently stocked trout.
The lure raised interest as it was hit twice by a trout, the fish missed on both occasions.
Next I see a little brownie race after the lure but again a miss.
Finally I positioned myself at the front of the pool and used a fast sinking polyleader to get the lure deep.
That did the trick as a trout grabbed the fly and put a pretty bend in the 4-weight.

Mission achieved, on the way home I probed a spot where I had seen several trout earlier that day but guessing
by the footsteps around the spot I figured the most stupid stockies have left for the eternal hunting fields.

The day ended with a magical encounter as I ran across a deer in a small forest path.
I stopped and so did the deer, we just stared.
I had the chance to get the camera out and document this rare encounter.

The break in the weather eventually came along but the skies only cleared near sunset.
All in all not a bad day for an early season trout opnener.

With the weather service predicting lousy weather and a temperature drop for this Saturday
I decided to skip work and chartered one of my friends to explore some new waters.
The bad thing about today was that the fog stayed put for a long time, when we hit the water
the air temperature was +1 degrees C.

As you can figure action was slow but I was pretty soon into a small Dace and a Roach.
The new section was costly on the equipment though as I
lost several nymphs to debris on the floor of the stream.

We headed to our regular haunts in the afternoon and the sun came out and temperatures rose.
I spotted plenty of fish but for some reason they where not biting.
With some luck a deep pool yielded one nice Dace out of the fast flowing water.

It was pretty frustrating to toss nymphs amongst 20+ roach and not having a single fish take the fly.
I spotted some very fat dace in shallow water but was not able to present the fly without
scaring the hell out of them.
My collegue came across two trout which he spooked so I guess somebody has been stocking for
the upcoming trout season.

Fish are plenty but they have lockjaw for the moment.
Water is still clear but the surface is now cluttered with debris from the flowering Alder and Hazel trees.

Saturday

The vice chairman of my angling syndicate requested me to shoot some pics of the water of one of
the neighboring syndicates who had recently jointed our collective.
The purpose of this collective was to be able to fish our stream past the sections we had leased
from the landowners.

While I took pictures at every bridge and feature I could find I was on the keen lookout for fish but
I could not spot any live in the water.
Even though the winter had been very mild and the temperatures of this day reached spring values
it did not result in fish activity.
On land it was a whole different story, the migratory lapwings had returned for some time now and I
even spotted the first butterflies of the season.
The elusive white herons that probably overwintered here where still around and I finally got close
enough to take at least a blurry shot.

When I doubled back from my photoshoot and followed the river I noticed that something had
changed.  With the sun now high in the sky I spotted  a lot of silvery shapes in the water at a spot
that was lifeless earlier in the day.
It turned out that the shallow water was inhabited by tons of dace.
Allthough it might have sounded easy to catch it was not, due to the shallow water the fish where
very wary – even the landing of a strike indicator would let the fish scatter in all directions.
In the end I did manage to catch one though – skunk avoided.

I returned to my home waters and fished one of my honeyholes where I landed one roach.
Further upstreams tons of roach had come out from nowhere and where hovering in the current,
none of them was interested in taking my offerings.

A few very big dace where rising at a spot where it was virtually impossible to get a fly served.
I attempted to catch one anyway by letting a segde drift downstream.
The fish hit but came off and the rest of the school dissappeared.

At one of the faster flowing sections I tossed in a heavy nymph that was immediately intercepted by a big fish.
The fish would not come to the surface so I suspected it was a brook trout as they tended to stay deep all the time.
The rod had a nice bend and since I fished a light tippet I did not want to horse the fish to the surface.
When the line went suddenly slack as the hook came out I wished I had used more force, oh well – there would
a rematch somewhere in time.

Last week the home waters seemed lifeless but that had changed now – I spotted tons of fat roach in the stream.
Fish where plenty but cooperative fish where in short supply.

Off course I ended the day at the pub where most people sat outside due to the exceptionally warm weather.
As the sun went down the outside air temperature plummeted fast though – typical for a spring day.
I opted for a spot at the fire and enjoyed a couple of cold ones and a good meal to celebrate the ending of the day.

Sunday

With the weather reaching summerly temperatures I figured that today should be
a good day to go fishing and that fish would be everywhere.
I was wrong since I did not spot as many fish as yesterday – might be the difference as I fished early morning.

I did offer my nymphs to loads of smaller roach stacked under a tree but they would not touch any of my nymphs.
I tried to find out if the mystery fish was still around that put such a nice bend in my #4 rod yesterday
but nothing would bite.
I took a break at the pub and hoped that the sunshine midday would coax the fish out into the open.
Had two fish contacts for a short while but both threw the hook.

As I was pondering what was wrong with me that I could not land a single fish I spotted a school of Dace,
a few fish where actively feeding from the surface so I tied on a small CDC segde.
The fish where hesitant but in the end one of the Dace went for the fly and saved my day.