More moans from the old fly fisher!

I can just hear you all saying "I thought this blog was meant to be about fly fishing and all we are getting is some old codger moaning about his hospital experiences!" Well this old codger is conscious that he is missing one of the best times to fish, with the water cool and the rainbow trout feisty at Bewl and the Wiltshire brown trout remembering their attraction to lunching on mayflies.  Oh to boat fish the drift at Bewl or to stalk brownies in the crystal clear waters of the Avon! Just being there will be a tonic. So what is stopping me, because lots of people have offered to take me and I know they all mean it. Currently the situation is that I am in a lot of pain from my right lung, the chemotherapy makes me feel a bit bilious and I get out of breath.  If I take the prescribed morphine for the pain then I am very light headed and could probably walk on the water!  Casting right handed would be painful but I can cast left handed, not as well but good enough to tempt a trout.  So my short term goal is to master the chemo and the pain and to get on or near the water with a helpful pal as soon as it is possible.  

Meanwhile, my lovely wife puts up with me being irritable and she drove me to St Christopher's Hospice yesterday, a friendly cheery place, where a lovely lady called Ann spent an hour reviewing my situation with me and introducing me to the services they can offer.

I am amazed at the support I get from the health and other services, key nurse workers call to see if I am OK, a dietitian wants to see me, the district nurse comes to check on me and the urology dept at the hospital want to see me (I am not sure I want to see them).

Apart from calls and e mails from friends and family my biggest comfort is my ipad tablet because it lets me watch catch up TV on BBC iplayer anytime night and day.  The BBC have such good programmes hidden among some popular rubbish.  The really good ones distract me completely from the discomfort and pain, so well done BBC!  

Anyway if you are fit and healthy please make the most of it and get out and do something exciting, I really believe that as well as helping others, we are meant to enjoy the journey!

American Trainee Fly Fisherman Uses Carp Fishing Technique!

 

We all know how carp fishermen set up their rods complete with bite buzzers and then retire to their tents and camp beds and sleep!  Here is Bryant applying the technique to reservoir fly fishing! Not having a bite buzzer, Bryant is relying on the movement of the rod and reel across his stomarch to advise him that he has a fish on, or maybe the splash as the rod and reel hit the water will wake him? Either way he is in for a bit of a surprise but then that is what fishing is all about, lots of relaxing and a few surprises!  Nice one Bryant!

Total Contrast at Bewl Water

One of the amazing things about living in the UK with its temperate climate is that the weather can change completely in a short space of time. In my last post I told of the strong winds and heavy rains experienced whilst fishing at Bewl, a week later and it was blue skies, gentle breezes and "sun burn"!  Yes I came away with 5 rainbows and rosy cheeks.

I was boat fishing with my pal Chris who had not fished Bewl before and who casts a modest distance.  In spite of that he had 3 fish on a single cats whisker before I had caught my first fish!  I was fishing a 3 fly team with a booby on the point and a couple of black buzzers on the droppers (known as the "washing line method").  Eventually it dawned on me that the fish were deeper, well below my flies but in range of his cats.  I switched to a lure and caught up with his total.  Then I thought I would experiment a bit so I fished 3 black buzzers approximately a metre apart under a "strike indicator" with the heavier gold headed  buzzer on the point. That technique caught me 2 more fish but both were caught on the point fly. I think the bright sun was keeping the fish deep. When we both left at around 5pm we each had 5 Superb rainbows and a suntan!

Tough Day at Bewl

Well the company was good, Malcolm, Bryant and Gerald, the latter being a seasoned fly fisher.  It was Malcolm's first bank session at Bewl (he boat fished last week)  and the waders I loaned him fitted a treat.  It was Bryant's 3rd fly fishing session and his first on a big water.  He found out the snag of trying to wade deep whilst wearing my thigh waders!!  Fortunately he is a tough cookie and didn't complain about his wet foot.  The weather was over cast and cool but mostly the water was flat calm.  We fished both banks at Rosemary's Lane and right round into Tinkers Marsh with hardly a touch.  The only action was Malcolm pulling in a pike.  There seemed to be a lot of fry disturbing the slight ripple about 40 yards off of the north bank of Rosemary's but there were no trout disturbing the fry!

 

One chap had a pull whilst dragging a lure along the bottom but didn't keep it on.  We saw another catch a trout from a boat but apart from that it was very quiet. We started a bit late (10:00) and finished around 16:00. 

 

The night before I had been watching the World Fly Fishing Championships on You Tube and was amazed to see that even the experts sometimes "blank"! So that's why they call it fishing and not catching.

 

Now that's a nice Pike Malcolm!!!!!

Bewl Water:Temperature dips so change of tactics required!

My friend Rowland and I were fishing Bewl and I thought that the floating booby and hopper techniques of a few days earlier would still work.  However, after an hour on the water drifting over the recent "hot spot" there was no sign of action.  So we motored round to the upwind side of the cages and tied up to a buoy.  We soon noticed that another fly fisher was hitting fish.  Not being proud and wanting to make sure Rowland connected I called across and asked what they were on.  He kindly replied that it was gold head daddies a few feet down. 

I switched immediately and on my third cast was rewarded with a fish.  Then I went on to have some more takes and I got broken and lost my last Daddy.  Rowland kindly gave me one.  I think he gave it, but he might only have lent it!  Anyway I have still got it! 

 

This is the gent who kindly tipped me off as to what to use and how to fish it.  By this time another boat had moved on to a buoy the other side of us and they were immediately into fish. Then a chap with his girl friend turned up.  She must have been very devoted to him because it was quite cool and a bit breezy and bumpy!

 

I came away with four good fish and Rowland had his share.  Back at the car I spoke to the guys from the other boat, one had eight fish using a cats whisker and the other had four.  Thinking back I realised that the fish I had caught had all taken the daddy when I was retrieving quite fast.  I think if you retrieve a daddy fast it tends to look more like a lure imitating fry, so maybe I could have caught simply using lures.

 

A cats whisker fly

Latest Fishing News and Action from Bewl Water

My old fishing pal Richard suggested we fished Bewl together today, so how could I refuse having remembered how well it fished this time last year.  He kindly offered to provide the transport so we had a good catch up chat on the way down. 

The great thing about fishing with Richard is that he just loves being there and doesn't complain if he is not catching.  The challenging thing, for me, is that he sometimes out fishes me!

 

In preparation for the trip I had read the latest fishing report from Janet in the Fishing Lodge.  Here it is:-

Fishing has been a bit more difficult this week . Very strong winds and heavy rain have made conditions on the water uncomfortable.  However, rod average for the week still a reasonable 2.34.

The fish have remained in the top 1-2 feet of the water. Best areas for boats have been Chingley, the Main Bowl and Hook Straight and for bank fishing have been Bramble Point, Ferry Point, Ward's Lane and Chingley. Successful flies are again Minkies, Minky Boobies, Cormorants and Daddies. (We have sold out of all Minkies and Minky Boobies in the Bewl Fishing Lodge).  Vince Brooks' Annual Charity Competition took place on Saturday in high winds. 83 anglers caught 168 trout giving a rod average of 2.02. The winner was Keith Lawrence with 7 fish weighing 13lb 1oz.  £1,307 was raised

for Fishing For Forces.  Boat fishing runs to end of November but part of fleet is now off the water for winter maintenance so a reduced number are available. To avoid disappointment and a wasted journey, prior booking, especially at weekends, is strongly advised. Lodge open through November 0830-1030 only.

So I imagined the fishing would be a bit challenging, but having been briefed on a few tips by my personal Bewl mentor (RB) I switched to fishing a minky booby and a couple of black hoppers on droppers using a 6lb leader.  I was still tying on my droppers when there was a tremendous splash and Richard was into his first fish.  Sadly after a brief encounter it shot away to live for another day.  Shortly after that I took a fish on the minky booby and having played it very carefully coaxed it into the net.  It's rainbow colours were stunning.  We motored the boat round to drift over the same spot.  I like to drift from a known position, usually a buoy, so if I find fish I can repeat the drift and hopefully find them again.

 

I then experienced a savage take, so savage that the line parted at one of the dropper knots and I said farewell to fish and most of the leader!  Fortunately I had used the dodge mentioned in a recent Bewl Angle Magazine and brought with me some fresh leaders, complete with flies, carefully wrapped around a length of foam pipe insulation as shown.  Well actually not as shown because I used the flies and leader!

 

 

Within a minute or two I was back in action.  We both rose several more fish and had "takes" but we did not hook up and then the breeze dropped and the surface activity stopped.  We did all the usual things, changed location, Richard used an intermediate line with lures and all the time we were watching the other boats.  Then we did a bit of a tour, got drenched by the odd shower and even tried the dam where the waves were a bit uncomfortable.  Finally we went back to where we had started and as the sun dropped towards the horizon the fish started to move again and we had some swirls and follows.  Sadly we had to be off the water by 3.30pm as we are now on GMT and it gets dark quite early.

 

Walking back to the car we chatted to another boat fisher, who said in the afternoon he had seen 15 fish showing on the top.  Using a single sparkling booby on a 15 foot leader he had managed to catch 5 of them!  So obviously Richard and I just need more practice!