Flyfishing FWSW

Went on the first session of the year last Sunday.
After a dry summer and fall the weather finally brought some much need rain.
The border stream out of the moor carried water for the first time since spring.

The first larger stream I crossed carried a lot of water so I opted to fish a stretch
where I knew I could catch fish in high water conditions.
Fly of choice was a pink squirmy that performed well in these conditions.
Takes where plenty and although the catch consisted out of small roach and dace
I was happy catching the first fish of the year.

The partly blue skies did not last and at noon light rain started.
Combined with the wind it was not exactly comfy but temperatures where pretty
high for January.
I headed for a more sheltered spot in the forest and suddenly got a take from
something bigger.
When I noticed the size I figured trout and as it was light in colour I wondered if
it was a rainbow trout … it was.

Knowing the stream and the fact that those trout could only be recently stocked
I figured there might be more of them.
I checked out an eddy near some fast flowing water and immediately hooked
another fish, again good size.

The party continued until I had caught four nice rainbows, extra fun when
getting them on a 3-4 glass rod.
With the sun setting I called it a day and ended this fantastic in the pub.

Netherlands 28-12-2022

31 December 2022 admin

As usual we ended the season with our “oliebollen snoeken” where the oliebollen stans for “deep fried raisin buns” and “snoeken” for pike fishing.
Five people dodged the wind and rain and caught a total of 8 pike.
Rod weights ranged from #8 to #4 with everything from switch rods to glass rods.

I tossed small streamers with the #4 Hardy glass rod and managed one little pike in front of a weir.
The only spectators where a couple of horses who showed quite an interest in flyfishing.
At the end of the day the tally was 3, 2, 2, 1, 0 – not bad for a late season session.
Around 4 pm it got dark so we called it quits and headed to a local restaurant.

FL 2022

20 November 2022 admin

With the USA finally open to EU citizens after 2 years of covid entry blockades
a trip to Florida was once again possible.
The destination would be Naples in SW Florida.
Unfortunately hurricane Ian ruined the lives and property on the SW coast and
my plans to travel there.
It all happened a day or two before my departure so I was not able to arrange a plan
B on short notice.

It took me more than a week to figure out that plan B.
Having read a forum post on SOL about NW Florida I arranged a trip to Pensacola beach.
The area was totally unknown to me so I expected fishing to be a struggle.
For a change that assumption was totally correct.

I cursed the place many times for the lack of fish or my inability to track and catch them.
But as I explored more of the area I made a little progress in catching fish.
I had high hopes of sight fishing the beach but on most days the surf was too rough
for flyfishing and not much was moving.

My choice for Pensacola beach being a barrier island and next to a national park
was a good choice.
The bay in the back was fishable most of the times albeit lacking bigger fish.
In the end the largest fish came from the bay and it was exactly as I had
envisioned it, getting a large redfish on sight from a big school.

The goals of catching seatrout and flounder where also met with the
seatrout appearing after a cold front passed the area.
The letdowns where the bluefish (not present) and the pompano from the beach.
The only pompano I got where the small ones.

So all in all mixed emotions about this trip but the area has enough potential
for a return trip with the insights I have gathered.
I did best at Ft. Pickens in the national park.
And since Pensacola NAS is adjacent to the Fort you can watch the Navy’s
Blue Angels on their practice twice a week if weather and season permits.

Pensacola beach — Santa Rosa Island, Pensacola Beach, Escambia County, Florida

Germany 06+07-08-2022

10 August 2022 admin

The dog days of summer, hot weather and low water meant chasing chub again.
Weatherwise Sunday was the best day with smaller clouds and enough sunlight all day to spot the fish.
The cooling tower plume of one of the last few remaining nuclear powerplants in Germany
was clearly visible from miles.

My hotspot at the feeder had such low water that the chub did not venture there anymore.
Luckily the main stream still had some deeper parts that where fishable when not completely overgrown with waterweed.

The waterweed caused trouble, lost two good fish in there as they dove in it for cover.
Even my telescopic landing net of 3.6m could not coax them out.
All left to do was pull on the leader and the hook came out.

With that skinny water the fish where even warier than usual but I still caught a few fish
with one close to the 50cm range which I consider big for a chub.
Most banks where mowed with plenty of fish around, all chub off course.

Germany, 31-07-2022

1 August 2022 admin

With the drought continuing I went for another chub session at the lower end of the stream.
Conditions where not exactly favorable with overcast skies.
Sunlight was lacking for proper sight fishing.

I started late as some showers where predicted early on.
Luckily it stayed dry so I headed to a good spot near a bridge to scout for chub.
One chub I spotted was particularly big but it just did not respond to the fly.
Even a school of medium sized was unfazed by my offerings.

Clouds soon became thicker and it actually started to rain.
I sheltered under the bridge and noticed some fish moving about.
As the hopper did not seem to entice the fish I tried a sedge and tossed it to a school of fish.
Surprisingly a dace hit the fly instead of the present chub.

With not much happening I went on my way to spot nr.2
As I crossed the bridge I noticed fish moving at the other side.
I stopped and found a large school of smaller chub, perfect for a hopper presentation.
As soon as the hopper landed on the water one of the chub grabbed it.

With the banks mown I moved downstream and spotted a slightly larger fish moving
right under the bank.
All I had to do was to drop the fly over the edge and it was hit by the fish.
The school was gone now so off to the next spot.

My hotspot had many fish but without of sunlight I could not spot the fish with
their dark backs over the dark weed.
Only at the sections with sand bottom you could see moving fish, I scared most fish away.
At one of the more fast flowing riffles my fly suddenly disappeared in the current.
It was not the current though but a chub … noticed it too late and so the fish was gone.

It rained on and off during the day with light rain in the morning through some
heavy showers in the afternoon.
To bad I could not elude them all but there where plenty of fish around so still a productive day.

Germany, 24-07-2022

25 July 2022 admin

I went out on Sunday to the lower section of the stream once again chub fishing.
Blue skies and hot weather provided ideal conditions for this species.
On the last trip I fished a section where I spotted a lot of fish but this time I spotted
just a few small fish.

I went further downstream and checked out the cascade dams that replaced an
inaccessible weir.
I spotted a big chub but there was no way I could present a fly there due to the
current and plant growth.

At the end of the cascades a tree provided some shade at a small pool, it just looked fishy.
The bank was steep though, about 10ft sheer 90 degree drop off.
I tossed a hopper blindly under the tree and boy a big chub nailed it instantly.
Now I had to figure out how to get down to the water.
Only way was to slide down through the shrubs to land on the rocks.

In the meantime the chub had managed to dive under a deadfall and the leader
was tangled in a branch.
When I tried to untangle the leader the chub bolted and bend out the hook, bummer.
I found some other fish but none where inclined to take the fly.

At what I figured was the best spot I finally caught the first fish of the day on the hopper.
It was not a monster but at least a fish.
Soon I came across a larger fish and it took the hopper with gusto.
The problem I faced to land the fish was once again the steep bank and my silly trout net.
I slid halfway into the water and could land the fish … but I could net get back onto land.
The steep muddy bank just gave way so all I could do was to wade to the nearby bridge and
crawl up to the shore.

I spotted many chub and managed to loose two big fish in the process.
And again I suffered from that early strike syndrome jerking the fly out of the chub’s mouth.
Many times chub would inspect the fly first before gulping it slowly down and then
anxiety would get the better of me.

The last spot of the day was at the feeder stream where the shallow section in front of weir
boasted hordes of chub including two big ones.
I tossed the hopper near one of the big fish and it came cruising for the fly.
This time I waited but too long as I allowed it to spit the fly out before I could strike.

The banks at the last spot where fully overgrown so you could hardly walk let alone spot
the potholes made by the rat population.
I made it a couple feet upstream when I spotted once again a big chub.
The bankside vegetation shielded me so the chub did not see me coming and nailed the hopper
as it landed on the water.
The nearby gauge station boasted a nice stairway down to the water so I could land the fish easily.
All in all a good day for chub hunting.

Germany 17-07-2022

18 July 2022 admin

As we were on the road to an epic heatwave with unprecedented temperatures I opted to go after the chub.
With clear blue skies, hot weather and the rise op the hopper population it seemed like the thing to do.
Early start was not required for this fishing so I went en route late in the morning.
The plan was to visit the hot spots in reverse order.

While passing a high bridge I took a look down and for sure big chub where moving about.
I made and early stop at a spot were I figured fish would be present.
Unfortunately the high grass on the banks still had not been mowed so access was impossible.
I tried a few casts from the bridge but the chub did not fall for it.

The next mark was a short riffle where some small fish roamed the shallow water.
Although the hopper caused some interest amongst the small fish it was to big for them.
A small palmer dry fly did the trick on the largest fish of the school.

Further downstream a bridge was the next target and it held some big fish.
But again the hopper and even the large mayfly could not draw the slightest interest.
When I finally arrived at my hotspot I was happy to see that some mowing had been done.
The bad thing was they had not collected the hay and it was slippery as hell when you
had sandals as footwear.

I spotted some big fish lying inside a bend of the stream and figured my approach from
downstream was optimal.
As goes for assumptions … a recipe for disaster … the fish spotted me and bolted with
a huge bow wave through the shallow water.

With little wind and the burning sun it was hot at the streamside.
The horse flies had found me and I ended some of them.
On my stroll along the stream I spotted many chub but the best I could muster was that
a fish would slightly look up and inspect the fly.

When I finally spotted a pod of six big fish I thought I had hit the jackpot.
One of them would surely go for the fly but again the fly yielded only a hesitant look.
My last ditch effort to get one of the big fish was to splash the hopper hard on the surface.
It would either scatter the fish in all wind directions or yield a response. Luckily the latter happened and one fish out of the group rose to the surface and sucked
the hopper in.
Now I was connected to a big fish and it immediately took me into the weeds.
The only way to land the fish was to slide into the water from the bank and boy it was deeper
than anticipated.
Then again it was high summer so in the end I could land the fish, mission accomplished.

I tried some other spots after my success but the water was so low that even the landing
of the fly would scare the fish.
Only thing to do was to get some chow, when I finally arrived at the pub it was about 20.00 hrs
with most of the patrons already left.
The ladies of the kitchen had some fun with me was they made my Mexico with an overdose
of jalapeños … just for fun.
Needless to say I needed a lot of extinguishing fluids.
I made it tough and even managed the obligatory cheese cake with coffee to end the day.

Germany 10-07-2022

11 July 2022 admin

Sunday I went in search for trout.
The weather forecast predicted clouds but no rain and as I left the sun was just out.
The clouds overtook me though and as I entered the water it was completely overcast.
Main target was trout but at the first pool I only got a tiny golden shiner on the nymph.

I noticed some rising fish under a bridge where I suspected trout so I tied on a small dry fly.
The fly yielded two fish but again small golden shiner.
I ventured further into the no-go zone but even there no trout to be found.
The water was extremely low so I assumed any large fish would flee and produce a wake
but alas nothing to be seen.

The next stop was the so called guest stretch open for the public that bought a day ticket.
Maybe they had dumped some fish in there.
With the nymph and squirmy not getting anything I tied on a heavier tippet and tossed
a tiny weighted streamer downstream through a deeper pool.
That streamer made the difference and I caught a nice brown trout.

I switched between dries, nymphs and streamer at various other spots.
Most bites came on the nymph from the tiny bottom feeders, the gudgeons.
Since the first pool on the guest stretch had delivered trout in the past I tried
the streamer there again.
And it worked like a charm on the resident rainbow trout.

In contrary to the forecast it began to rain and not only lightly.
I had relocated to another part and without raingear with me I feared it would be
a wet fishing session.
Luckily heavy foliage made it possible to stay more or less dry while fishing.
No more luck though for the reminder of the session.

Late in the afternoon the rain let up and as I was early at the pub I figured I could
spent some time in the mill pool.
Here it was the same as in the other stream, extremely low water.
A film of dirt was covering the surface which did not look inviting.
The water was almost stagnant and nothing was moving.
I pulled a streamer a couple of times through the pool with no results.
A squirmy yielded just a little perch so I called it a day.

Germany 03-07-2022

4 July 2022 admin

I planned on day two to hit all the spots were I had missed trout a day earlier but
somehow it did not go to plan.
Bites where less and I only spotted one bow wave from a fleeing fish.
It was also Sunday meaning the crowds for out and about, you could encounter
everything from dogs in the water to shady eastern European fisherman aka Ruski’s.

Seemed like the trout where gone and only the small stuff was biting.
To make matters worse I had forgotten to take refreshments with me.
It was in the afternoon that I figured I had to make a plan B and off course it involved the pub.
The pub was crowded, at least the outside dining area was packed with day trippers and bikers.

The staff was running their legs of and some of the inpatient patrons where
whining about the waiting times of their orders.

For me it was pretty obvious that when the place is packed you have to wait
but some folks just have a too high expectancy pattern (I used that phrase a lot at work).
I sat inside … was noticed and soon had a cool wheat beer before my nose.
With the hot weather I went for the green stuff with as a starter a refreshing tomato / Mozzarella dish.
Main coarse was the bake feta cheese with a salad, topped off with bread and honey/mustard sauce.
And when I heard something about ice cream being available I choose that as dessert.

In the meantime the crowds diminished and the sun stood low in the sky.
Since the mill pool was adjacent to the pub I hopped into the waders and tried the pool.
The water was even lower than the other stream and pretty turbid.
I fished a streamer hoping to intercept a pike or a lost trout but it was dead.
Even the nymph hardly got any bites.
Last hope was to fish directly under the mill weir with a squirmy but that only yielded a small perch.

Fishing wise not that great but all in all an enjoyable day.

Germany 02-07-2022

4 July 2022 admin

High summer and the water table was really low.
Choice of venue was coupled to the weather forecast as it seemed unsuitable
for chub sight fishing on the lower part of the stream.
My destination of choice was the upper part of the stream hoping to get a trout.

I blew the first chance as I felt the take but missed the fish, the hook came out
so that trout was not going to bite again on this day.
I did get fish be it mostly dace and oddly rudd on perdigon nymphs, squirmy’s and dry flies.
Fish were feeding both on surface and sub-surface.

The shallow water made fishing tough, lots of debris and off course no cover.
It had not decently rained for ages so extreme low water and slow moving current.
The lack of cover was pretty obvious when I noticed a trout making a run
for it well in advance of me trying to make a cast.

Third chance came at a pool where a sunken tree formed a dangerous snag.
I fished a nymph amongst the branches and again caught rudd.
I assumed the rudd came from the syndicate’s pond in the village which
was full of these fish.
That a decent trout was lurking in the branches was a suprise and with
the light leader I could not bully it around, the hook came out… bummer.
I then tried another approach and tossed the tiniest of streamer through
the pool and behold I caught a trout, not the same but nice anyways,

The last stop of the day was in the forest where it was again rudd and
roach that hit the nymph,
I tried the little streamer for a second time and again a hit of a trout but
also a quick exit of the hook.

It was a warm day so what better than to cool down in the pub.
I opted for the inside dining … closer to the bar so the glass stays full.
Menu of choice this time was the Chili cheese burger … pretty hot.
Dessert was the bee sting cake, with surplus strawberry’s.