Roach Archives - Page 2 of 2

Gave the stream a try again last Saturday.
The previous week was quite cold and off course rain was often on the menu.
In the weekend the temperatures would be on the rise so good for fishing.
Once at the water I was unpleasantly surprised at the height and color of the
stream, higher than expected – visibility lower than expected.

My goal was to finally get a trout, after all it was almost May.
To find trout I fished some of the spots I normally do not frequent and tossed
a black streamer through the murky water.
That only resulted in lost streamers as I could not spot any brushes and deadfalls
in the murky water.

There was no response from fish, nothing to be seen on the surface.
I tried many spots, tossed nymphs and dryflies to no avail, almost no bites.
This day started smelling like skunk.
Last option was to hit the upper section of the stream where it was formed
by the junction of two small brooks.

I could not believe my eyes when I actually spotted a very decent trout in this
very tiny stream. My choice of fly for this skinny water was wrong though.
The squirmy made the trout bolt.. should have used the dry fly.
I tried to locate the hiding spot of the trout but did not manage to find it.

I continued fishing the squirmy and actually caught quite a few nice shiners.
Pleasantly surprised about the size of the fish and the aggressive takes.
This upper part was really shallow but any depression or root work held one or
the other fish. It was a good thing I opted for a short short 6.5ft trout bum.

I even crept up into one of the feeders.
A struggle to get even at the water with all the shrubs, brambles and so on.
Alas, only some nibbles there.

Roach

Germany 06-04-2024

7 April 2024 admin

The weather prospects for Saturday where very good.
26 degrees C and sunshine should have counted for lots of activity.
However as on many occasions this season the day before it had rained… heavily.
So once again a blown out stream to deal with.

Looking at the nearest measuring station on the stream I was in doubt to even
go seeing the high level, in the end I went anyway.
As predicted the waters where high and discolored and whatever I tried I just
could not get any hits.

In these high water situations I usually would stick to spots that held fish
most of the times but that did not work out.
I moved up further afield and after a long time I finally hooked a fish be
it for a short while as it came off.

The salvation for the day came when a gudgeon nailed the squirmy and
actually stayed on. Fishing the squirmy normally means that you get a lot
of tail bites where the fish hang on until the last moment.

One fish was good as it saved me from a blank but still it was somewhat
dissatisfying as I had expected more action on this warm day.
After lunch I tried a second stream, this particular stream had a mill pool
which always had fish in it … or had.

Due to a mechanical failure the weir gate of the mill had been removed.
That resulted in an almost dam break situation where tons of sand where
deposited in the already shallow mill pool.
Now the water rushed in a straight flow down the opening of the mill
making fishing very difficult due to the odd current conditions.

I tried the end of the pool and surprisingly got many hits from small fish.
Caught a lot of the small stuff and they all looked very battered so it
could be that those fish came from above the weir when the gates where pulled.
Had hoped to run into some larger stuff but it was not be.

Germany 25-02-2024

16 March 2024 admin

Out and about for another try to catch the first fish of the season.
All that rain still made life extremely difficult, the water now a bit lower than previous weeks
but still too high for decent fishing.

I went to a spot I had not fished in ages, in the middle of a village.
In the first sections the current was so strong and visibility so low that it was highly
questionable that the fly would even reach a proper depth.
It was just all too wild, I moved on to a spot where the current seam looked just
right to make a decent drift with a squirmy.

A jumping fish at the second spot of the day raised hopes, at least some activity.
After trying some different depths I got bites and in short order I landed several
roach and a dace. Action was short and sweet, it died down pretty quickly.

The last spot in the forest did not yield any more bites.
Just too much water and current in my view for a good drift to be able to
get a proper presentation.
Called it a day early and headed for the pub as further fishing made no sense
in these conditions.

Germany 06-08-2023

7 August 2023 admin

With a dismal week weatherwise the weekend promised to be the same.
It had rained extremely for several days and a visit to the stream seemed futile.
Then again if you want to catch fish you have to be on the water.
The slight decrease in the peak flow convinced me to go.

Having said that the ditch at the border carried water which it never does
in high summer so that was not a good sign.
The first stream I came along was fully blown out, dark brown water.

When I entered stream number two I could actually spot some bottom
, still full to the brim but it gave some hope.
That hope was of short duration though as I could hardly get any bites.
Tried the mop fly, squirmy, perdigon nymph and streamer.

In the end the squirmy was the only fly that yielded some small roach
and the tiniest gudgeon of the season.
I had really expected a trout but none of that.

Next it was off to stream number one near the pub but dark skies
afar looked like trouble.
The clouds where thick and dark and I was directly heading towards
them. Did not reach the water in time so I had to shelter in a hut
against rain and thunder.

During a break in the rain I managed to reach the pub and quickly
headed to the mill pool.
The mill pool was full to the brim with duckweed from the section
above the weir floating everywhere.

Still some visibility in the water so I dragged a streamer through the mill pool
hoping for an intercept of a pike, perch or trout.
Not a good fishing day but better than last week because I did not got skunked.

Germany 30-07-2023

31 July 2023 admin

Tried for chub again yesterday despite the off conditions.
Strong wind and cloud cover really made it difficult to spot any fish.
On the way to the first spot I noticed tons of roach in a section above
a mill. It was however smack in the middle of the village so not
I spot I would fish despite the presence of loads of fish.

At the first spot again loads of chub in all sizes but like previous visits
totally uninterested in the hopper I served.
Tried the mop fly but got no reaction on that pattern either.

A little farther downstream I spotted a whole school of common bream
(Abramis brama), not exactly fish that respond well to flies.
Having said that I have caught them in the past so I drifted a squirmy
through the school … the fish ran off.

Spot nr. 3 had three nice chub that where in casting range.
With the rains we had lately the current was pretty strong.
These fish showed interest in the hopper and came up for it but the
current and wind pushed the fly to fast.
The chub veered off in the last minute so no show either.

Spot nr. 4 was the last spot I visited that day.
The wind was now blowing hard, with the ripples on the water and
the lack of sunlight I could not spot anything.
Only on the spots with a clear sand bottom I could see fish.
No hits though, scared all the fish I encountered.

I encountered a few chub in a deeper pool but those where not
surface feeders as they swam pretty deep.
Tried the mop fly, squirmy and small streamers but again nothing
happened.
So in the end I blanked … bummer.

With all the rain and lower temps I think I will leave the chub in
peace for the moment and concentrate on other fish in the
upper reaches of the stream.

Germany 27-04-2023

28 April 2023 admin

Yesterday we had Kings day here in the Netherlands so a day off from work.
A perfect day to go fishing at the neighbors.
With the clear skies the night before temperatures had plummeted to below freezing.
Went late to start my fishing session with some warmth.

A tad windy and not many bugs around but numbers where increasing.
Fished the good spots first with the perdigon nymph to no avail so quickly
changed to the squirmy.

That fly change helped and I got a small roach to show for.
Fish where present but not that eager to bite.
Had the luck to catch two brown trout from the pools where I knew they would hang out.
One of the browns went a few times ballistic, must have thought it was a rainbow.

Stayed not that long at stream nr.1 because I was eager to catch one
of those tiger trout that apparently had been stocked in the mill pool of stream nr.2
First though it was chow time… I was hungry.

Second session only brought a roach, a rudd and a small perch.
When I fished the streamer I had a hit from a pike but the leader was severed.
There where a few bait guys around but I did not see them haul in any trout either.
Left the mill pool late as the clouds rolled in from a rain front.

Germany, 08-01-2023

9 January 2023 admin

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.

Germany 06-03-2021

7 March 2021 admin

After a short glimpse of spring temperatures went down again.
Yesterday the morning started with -5 C.
I went out late in the morning when the temperature rose.

During the week I noticed that a fellow club member had caught a quite big chub on one of the streams I fish.
Normally I would go there only in high summer, catching a large fish however seemed a welcome change.

I checked out the best summer spots but the water was completely dead.
Water was up a bit but clarity was ok, current a tad too fast.
The only action was on land with lots of roe deer roaming around and oddly many pheasants.

Plan B was to fish behind the clubhouse where the stream was wide and
relative shallow.
That spot had to be the day saver but it was completely dead, could not spot any fish activity at all.

Already late in the afternoon the sun was low in the sky and I was still fishless.
Could it be, first skunk of the year … nah … plan C was drafted.
There was one spot where the local council had done some stream restauration.
A formerly straightened part had been changed in a freely meandering stream with a side channel that flooded during extreme high water.

The side channel was my target as it was slow moving to stagnant and functioned as a shelter for the stream fish.
When i arrived I noticed many rings on the water so my hopes where high.
I fishing only a short time but at least I caught a couple of small roach and bleak. Small fish but skunk avoided.

Next week the weather will change to a more wetter and warmer type.
Maybe I will put in some more time at the plan C spot as there are bigger
fish in there.

Germany 13-12-2020

13 December 2020 admin

In the so called dark days before Christmas I was not the only one to hit the river while it was possible.
Pretty consistant action for such a late date in the year.
I spotted a few carp, noticed dace rising to small midges and caught several roach and dace on nymphs and squirmies.
I had many tail bites on the squirmies which again shows how effective that fly can be to generate bites …
Catching fish that bite on the squirmy however is a different story.