Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2017 i Trout & Salmon

“If there is a dilution of the netting proposals, the Angling Trust will seek much lower targets for anglers” FOLLOWING THE IMPOSITION of catch-and-release (C&R) on some Scottish salmon rivers and a three-year coastal netting ban, it appears the Angling Trust (AT) may have negotiated a better deal for anglers in England. Draft proposals to be consulted on by the Environment Agency (EA) this month could lead to a huge reduction in unsustainable netting, and the exploitation of mixed stocks at sea, but without mandatory measures for rods unless targets for a voluntary increase in C&R are not met. An end to unsustainable netting was a key pillar of our Save Our Salmon campaign and will greatly benefit English and Scottish anglers. The EA proposes a five- or ten-year ban…

“A consistent stream of olives, black gnats and the odd mayfly were on the water” AS A SPECIES, we are prone to categorising the world around us; we like to know what something is and where it belongs. Placing Nature into boxes helps us to make sense of what looks like chaos, and we anglers have ways of doing this. We talk of rainfed or freestone streams, chalkstreams, spate rivers and spring creeks - the almost infinite variety of the world’s rivers reduced to categories that belie their complexity. Inevitably, some rivers don’t fit this abridged version of Nature and on first sight appear as a watery chimera. One such is the Culm. It flows for the most part through the flat landscape of East Devon and resembles a combination…

Hook Size 10 Fulling Mill All Purpose Light Tail Four or five cock pheasant centre tail fibres Rib Fine oval gold Body 45/45/10 mix of yellow seal fur/natural seal fur/chopped gold Litebrite Body hackle Pale blue dun genetic saddle hackle Head hackles Darker dun genetic saddle hackle and French partridge flank feather LIKE MANY FLY-DRESSERS I enjoy tinkering with established patterns to see if they can be improved. Sometimes it works, sometimes not, but that is part of the fun of tying flies. It’s how many of our oldest trout flies were born. Some traditional wet-flies are grouped in “families”. There’s the mallard family, grouse family, woodcock family and teal family and often the flies are almost indistinguishable from each other apart from the body colour. Therefore, a Grouse &…

WHERE TO STAY Mill of Dess Lodge (above) opened in the summer of 2015. Converted from existing farm buildings and accompanying a renovation of Mill Cottage, it provides Deeside with high-quality accommodation. The lodge is resplendent with distressed mirrors, antler chandeliers and woodburning stoves. Relax in the lounge with a drink before dinner, which is served on a long banquet table, before retreating to one of the extremely comfortable bedrooms – each named after a different pool. Unlike Mill Cottage, the lodge doesn’t have a view of the river, but it does have lovely views of surrounding fields, forests and hills. On-site kennels make it dog-friendly too. Access to the fishing is very good with vehicle tracks to most pools. At the award-winning hut on Upper Dess anglers can enjoy…

Bannister Furled Leaders Made by Luke Bannister and including The Wild Trout Trust Collection (20 per cent of proceeds are donated to the Trust). Made from mono and fine-quality thread, fitted with loops, tippet rings and hi-viz butts. For dry-fly and nymphing. Price: £6.75 Sizes: 3 ft, 3 ½ ft 4 ft, 4 ½ ft, 5 ft, 6 ft Luke Bannister. Web: bannisterrods.co.uk Roman Moser Woven Leaders Wide range made with monofilament or dyneema braid, fitted with monofilament tippets, loops and tippet rings. For dry-fly, nymphing and salmon. Price: from £4.99 Size: 9ft From good tackle-shops and romanmoser.com DL Furled Leaders Made from olive or silver thread or monofilament. Fitted with loops and/or tippet rings. Also, indicator sections. Price: £5-£6.50 Sizes: 1 m-1.6 m David Luckhurst. Web: furled-leaders.co.uk…

CONGRATULATIONS TO Cumbrian Derwent rod John Moses, who caught a marvellous 31 lb salmon from the House pool of the Meikleour and Upper Islamouth beat of the Tay on March 15. John had booked a day’s bank fishing on his first visit to the beat but had struggled to cover the pools with a fly-rod in strong winds, so head gillie Calum Roberts and gillie John Ross suggested harling after lunch. Within a few minutes the fish had taken a red-and-gold Kynoch Killer. John said: “The fight didn’t last long and Calum didn’t think it was very big at first. But then, when it came to the top … it was a monster. What a wonderful feeling. Just to hold the fish while it was photographed and then to see…

“It is very important that we all submit a catch return to the EA, which is a legal requirement of being a rod licence holder” THE ANGLING TRUST’S successful bid to front Trout & Salmon’s Save Our Salmon campaign in 2015 led to the government organising a Salmon Summit in November of that year. Defra issued a very unhelpful press release during the summit threatening to impose catch-and-release on anglers. More positively, the Environment Agency announced a Five Point Approach to addressing the issues facing salmon, pledging to improve marine survival; reduce exploitation by nets and rods; remove barriers to migration/enhance habitat; improve water quality; and safeguard sufficient flows. The Angling Trust has been leading on the work to reduce exploitation by nets and rods in England. Our aim has…

ON THE ITCHEN I WRITE in response to a letter published in the April issue from Richard Baker. I am the water manager for the Portsmouth Services Fly Fishing Association (PSFFA) on the Itchen and Meon waters. The PSFFA is a fly-fishing club run for serving and ex-service men and women of all ranks. My keepers and I work hard to provide quality fly-fishing for the membership. I am a volunteer keeper and do not get paid for this work. We lease the Compton beat from Hampshire County Council and the section between the M3 Motorway bridge and the Compton lock has suffered for many years from locals and anglers misinformed that this is a free stretch. My keepers and I are continually turning away anglers who think they have…

FEW THINGS IN fly-fishing are more irritating than a dry-fly that sinks. Faced with a sinking fly we reach for our floatant, but with more than 100 different products available, what should we use? Water-repellant floatants work by using surface tension. This is formed by the attraction of water molecules to each other, resulting in a surface that acts like an elastic membrane and is capable of supporting our flies.However, if the fly penetrates the water surface, it will sink. Water soaking into a fly will increase its weight and also cause it to sink. Floatants waterproof flies. They also make the materials hydrophobic, so they repel water. This increases support from surface tension, causing the fly to float higher. The greater the area of the fly in contact with…

 Body Silver Mylar piping Underwing Yellow fox Wing Black fox Overwing Peacock herl or swords Throat Hackle Light brown bucktail Head Black “…a silver body stood for the frosty field; and a brown bucktail hackle was chosen for the earth” ALTHOUGH MY COLUMN may appear meticulously planned by a keen mind, I’m afraid this is a façade. The process is entirely random, like my response to the editor’s deadlines. This month’s pattern popped into my head on Burns Night. As I enjoyed traditional haggis, neeps and tatties and the chatter of my family, something was nipping away in the background. About two days later, my brain revealed the source of the niggle, a feature written in T&S more than ten years ago about a fly called the Neep. I couldn’t…

CASTING THE rods side by side highlighted how far the market has come in terms of rod design. There was not a single rod in the test that failed to put out a decent line. Most anglers would be more than comfortable fishing with any one of these rods, and every one would enable you to catch fish. Nevertheless, the purpose of the test was to discover which rods we felt had an advantage, however slight, over their competitors. That we disagreed on our favourites shows the subjectivity involved in choosing a rod and we hope that our comments will help guide you if you’re considering a purchase this season. We were really impressed with the Shakespeare and Wychwood, which cost less than £100, so much so that we didn’t…

BESPOKE FLY-TYING DESK, £3,500 If you’re fed up with your wife nagging you for messily tying flies, maybe you can convince her that buying a fly-tying desk will help you to keep materials and tools out of sight. This was the strategy of a tyer who asked Cumbria-based M J Cabinet Makers to design a beautifully made tying bench that would also serve as a stunning table when not in use. The table is made from Cumbrian elm and ash, but other hardwoods can be used. It is fitted with brass fixtures, numerous drawers (including a waste drawer with table-top chute), wells for beads, hooks and varnish bottles, pins for bobbins and a folding lid to keep everything out of sight. The desk is 850 mm tall, 850 mm wide…

England & Wales BORDER ESK FISHING BEGINS on April 1 on the private beats. The river has had a few big spates but nothing like the bank-wrecking torrents of a few years ago. Conditions were looking good in March, with plenty of water to get early fish running. Early sea-trout can be in the pools during April and May and some of these are real beauties. The Border Esk and Liddel Angling Club continues to welcome new members and visitors and several local accommodation providers offer discount rates for visiting anglers. For fishing enquiries and river conditions contact Iain Blackett, Lundavra, Woodslee, Canonbie DG14 0TF. Tel: 013873 71301; Mob: 07796 005 240; e-mail: iain.blackett@tiscali.co.uk For spring fly-fishing for brown trout on Esk’s lowest tributary, the Lyne, the following patterns are…

WHEN MOST ANGLERS think about salmon fishing in Scotland, the first name that comes to mind is undoubtedly “Spey” - and for good reason. I can’t think of another place or region on this planet that uses its name to describe so many of its wonderful attributes. A genuine global brand, Spey is lent not only to the wonderful river, but to the water of life itself. Speyside is home to the world’s favourite whisky brands and single malts. The quality of its water and air have inspired song, dance (the strathspey), rhyme and amazing food. It should come as no surprise that two of Scotland’s most famous food brands, Baxters and Walkers Shortbread, are also based on Speyside. Quality also describes the fishing. From February 11 to September 30,…

Fix the hook in the vice then run on the tying thread. Carry the thread to the bend and catch in five fibres of cock pheasant tail plus a length of fine, oval gold tinsel. Secure the waste ends of pheasant tail and tinsel. Take a pinch of the natural and yellow seal’s fur blend and dub it on to the thread using finger and thumb. Having dubbed the fur to form a tapered rope begin winding it along the shank. Starting at the tail base apply the fur in touching turns so no gaps are left. Stop once the dubbed fur has covered three-quarters of the shank. Next prepare a short-fibred blue dun saddle hackle and catch it in at the front of the body. Secure the hackle end…

“Coils unravelled without a trace of memory. This was the sort of limp I’d been looking for” I KNOW WHEN and where it started. It was a day of sunshine and high clouds on the eastern slope of the Lake District above Haweswater. Higher still, under the crags of Harter Fell, is a small tarn. And between the tarn and the lake a tiny stream slips down the rocks of the fell, little more than a silver smear where the mountain wiped its nose on a sleeve. But in places the trickle finds a cleft in the rocks where it gathers as a small pool. And in each of these there lives a trout. Which explains why I was standing in the sun, casting a fly over something the size…

FOLLOWING news (April issue) of the extraordinary £19 million that is to be invested in improving fish passage on the River Severn, the Westcountry Rivers Trust has announced that £2.2 million is to be spent restoring the Cornish rivers Camel and Fowey. The Trust has secured £1.6 million of European funding for its Water for Growth project, which will “focus on improving habitats for declining salmon and trout”. Up to 20 barriers will be removed to connect almost 100 miles of river. Working with volunteers, the Trust will also “clean gravel to restore spawning grounds, increase light on shaded gravels to increase invertebrate life and create habitats in the rivers and on the banks to ensure they can support all stages of fish development.” Laurence Couldrick, chief executive of the…

“The financial resources of the salmon industry enable them to employ highly active lobbyists and lawyers” IN 2013 THE Norwegian government introduced the so-called “quality standard for wild salmon”. After the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA) collected genetic samples all around the country, the scientists came to a shocking conclusion and a sobering factual situation: of 104 wild salmon stocks, 81 are not fulfilling the quality standard, which requires that salmon are not genetically influenced by escaped farmed salmon, that rivers have a sufficient stock that can spawn in the river, and that there is a surplus of salmon which can be harvested. Only 23 Norwegian stocks can be described as “good” or “very good” and only 36 stocks have not been genetically affected by farmed salmon. In other…

HIMALAYAN BALSAM What’s the problem? With distinctive pink or purple flowers, Himalayan balsam is the tallest annual plant in Britain, with stems up to 3m high. It often forms massed stands along rivers and streams, and may reduce the diversity of native plants by two thirds: first by shading them out, then out-competing them for the attention of pollinators with its long flowering season and plentiful nectar. It also has strong allelopathic effects, releasing substances that inhibit other plants’ germination and growth. Even a single plant can quickly dominate a new site, producing over 800 spring-loaded seeds which can be fired up to 7m away. When the shallow-rooted plants die back in autumn, river banks are left bare and vulnerable to erosion by winter floods, suffocating river gravels with silt.…

THE SINGLE SPEY is arguably the best presentation cast in the speycasting family. It causes minimal disturbance of the water’s surface during the setting up of the D-loop. In one continuous motion, line is lifted from the dangle and repositioned slightly upstream of your position to form a loop of casting energy. Once the line momentarily anchors on the surface, the forward cast is applied and the weight of line stored in the energised back-loop loads the rod. Though this sequence appears straightforward, a common fault is the crashed anchor, where the line bunches on the water prior to the forward delivery. This issue can be traced to one aspect of the upstream casting cycle. As the rod is lifted to release the line from the water in preparation for…

Q LAST YEAR I watched anglers catching on static Buzzers yet other anglers trying to copy them caught far fewer trout or none at all. Do you think these successful anglers were using secret Buzzer dressings? Mark Grubb, via e-mail A: I CAN say with some certainty that the successful anglers were not using “secret” flies. While the fashion is for varnished quill-ribbed Buzzers, I know experts who have not changed from their old silver-ribbed, thread-bodied patterns. It’s also true that nearly all modern patterns used by the best Buzzer anglers are widely available. They can be bought from tackle-shops, or from websites and Ebay pages created by commercial fly-tyers. Where Buzzers vary most is the wing buds tied on each side of the thorax. Some are fluorescent floss, others…

■ Tackle prices set to rise The price of fishing tackle is set to rise following the drop in value of the pound. The rising cost of building or importing tackle from overseas following the UK’s decision to leave the European Union will be passed on to customers through increased prices. While a low pound benefits British exports, much of the tackle industry depends on imports and higher prices are likely to be a feature so long as the currency remains down. ■ Fawcett's have moved Popular tackle retailer Fawcett’s Country Sports have moved from their Lancaster premises to a new location near Carnforth in Greenlands Farm Village, located just off the M6. The new site has plenty of parking and benefits from having a nearby café and farm shop,…

"Hodgman will not sell its waders and apparel until they have been field tested to the extremes" HODGMAN IS recognised throughout the world as one of the oldest and most respected names in waders and outdoor gear. Importantly, it was probably the first company in the world to make waders and over the last 175 years it has continued to perfect its range of products. In 2017, Hodgman launches in Europe. The American wader and clothing manufacturer, established in 1835, leads in the design and production of high-end breathable waders, outdoor wear and accessories. Offering a combination of a long heritage, expertise and an ongoing commitment to product innovation, Hodgman received the prestigious EFTTEX award for the Best New Clothing in 2016 with the introduction of its new H-lock interchangeable…

FISH, SHOOT AND THEN TAKE A SAUNA Cammie House at Strachan is a small estate on Lower Deeside that provides fishing, shooting and opportunities for low-ground stalking. Four miles from Banchory and 20 from Aberdeen, this modern country house, built in the 1990s to replace the original farmhouse, provides three reception rooms, a sunroom, an office, five bedrooms, of which two are ensuite, a bathroom and a shower room. There is a tennis court, indoor swimming pool, jacuzzi and sauna. Farm buildings include barns, stores and a greenhouse, as well as nearly 99 acres of farmland, and more than 102 acres of woodland, ponds and release pens, providing shooting over eight drives. Typically, there have been up to eight days of shooting a year with 100 head of pheasants and…

“It was the work of an instant to execute a pirouette worthy of Nureyev and plonk fish and rod on to the grass” SO HERE WE are way up in the Highlands of Scotland. Actually we are beyond the Highlands. Right up at the very edge of this sceptred isle and a very long way from home indeed; and the line has just started to make stately progress away from us in an acutely fishy manner. I say we, much as I say us, in the true spirit of collaboration, readers dear, because we are on the same side, the same team. I know that we may have our differences from time to time where, for example, speed limits intrude into the conversation. Or perhaps when the ethical dimension of…

IT’S A STRANGE thing but I often think fishing in the UK is a very solitary thing, even when in company. It is as if one is undertaking an activity ignored by the rest of a totally uninterested community. Fishing seems to be considered a weird, unattractive, esoteric business by the vast bulk of society. Perhaps, not surprisingly, I never feel that way in Ireland. I always seem to have the belief that everyone around is willing me on to success, that everyone I meet is somehow involved. Is it simply because UK fishing is a minority interest whereas across the sea its Irish equivalent is considered a laudable, justifiable endeavour, something well understood by everyone? Sit in a bar and mention a lough, and someone will appear out of…

WHEN I THINK of last May’s fishing my mind turns firstly to the Tees, reassembling a scene that bears little resemblance to our ideal of a morning in May. There should, of course, be sunshine and a blue sky, best of all a sky with floating clouds bringing to the land beneath it that slow-moving patchwork of shadow and light. There should be a gentle southerly breeze drifting up the river and the air should be soft, a kind air with no nip or chill to it and with no suggestion of the sweaty grip of high summer heat. It should, in short, be a temperate and shining day of the sort that May does better than any month of the year, with blossom bright along all the hedges and…

INLAND Fisheries Ireland, the agency responsible for protecting Ireland’s fisheries and angling resources, seized 301 illegal nets in 2016 measuring 14,782 metres, as well as 1,487 fishing items used illegally, including rods, spears and hand lines. Only 31 fish kills were reported by the agency, which "initiated" 103 prosecutions for fisheries and environmental offences. The agency made 31,180 patrols and “inspected” 35,979 anglers. However, the Federation of Irish Salmon & Sea Trout Anglers suggests the agency has room for improvement as it points out that 90 of 148 salmon rivers are closed in 2017 and that in its annual statement the IFI failed to mention the thousands of voluntary hours provided by angling clubs whose members patrol rivers, report poaching and pay a 100 Euro rod licence.…

RECORD TROUT BIDDING The annual Wild Trout Trust Ebay auction raised £94,255, a big increase on the 2016 total of £72,000. Notably popular among the 300 lots were artist Sam MacDonald’s artwork, and fishing days with Jon Beer on Coniston Water, Ross Brawn on the Itchen, and Charles Jardine on the Lambourn. The money will be used to help fund the Trust’s work to provide practical advice to fishing clubs and landowners to improve habitat for wild trout across Britain and Ireland. Find out more at www.wildtrout.org. HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF Dr Ronald Campbell of The Tweed Foundation has introduced scientific clarity and historic evidence to the hotly debated topic of changing salmon runs. In a presentation about how the Tweed’s runs have changed over centuries, Dr Campbell explains that the…

“To arrive at the river, to chat with the gillie and old friends, to breath in the fresh air – it has to be life’s best medicine” IS THE BEST part of fishing the anticipation? I just called a friend about our spring week on the Tweed and he was full of optimism. “Is your glass half full or half empty?” he asked, as he always does. I’d read the fishing reports online and catches were scarce. “But you don’t know how lightly the beats are being fished,” he said. “Besides, you’re looking at this week and we’re fishing next week. Just now there’s a lot of snowmelt coming down but next week the temperatures will be falling so that will hold them up, and we have spring tides.” He…

THE IRON BLUE is an unmistakable upwinged fly. Even those new to fly-fishing can’t fail to identify it. Its colour is such a giveaway, even though to my eye on the river it appears inky black rather than iron blue. There are two species in the UK, indistinguishable with the naked eye: the southern iron blue (Baetis niger) and one that’s more prevalent further north on my local rivers, simply called the iron blue (Baetis muticus). There are no borders in nature and not surprisingly, both species can be found side by side. Identifying iron blues might be straightforward, but being aware of their presence is something different. They hatch in the foulest weather and can be tricky to spot, especially if you’re on the bank, peering down and across…

Q I’M PLANNING a trip to the Highlands in May. Please can you give me a few tips about tackle and tactics? From what I’ve read, I suspect that I will be using a floating line and medium-sized flies – probably size 4 or 6. Is that correct? David Gellibrand, via e-mail A: I RECENTLY read an article by a former Spey gillie in which he compared April and May tackle and tactics on his river. He made the assumption that in April the water would be high and cold, and that in May it would be low and warmer. Of course, the problem with making such assumptions is that the weather and water conditions are anything but predictable. I can recall May weeks on Scottish rivers that were a…

“The real Ireland, her people and her fishing are the stuff of fairy tales” CAST YOUR MIND back to Saturday, May 18, 1991. Struggling? Let me help: Paul Gascoigne lays down the blueprint for Mixed Martial Arts, scything down Nottingham Forest’s Gary Parker and Gary Charles in the opening 15 minutes of the FA Cup Final. Unfortunately for Gazza, the cruciate ligament in his right knee was decidedly less tolerant of the latter lunge than the referee. I missed the live action, catching the gruesomely spectacular highlights later that evening in the bar of the Pontoon Bridge Hotel. This was my first trip to Ireland, and Saturday, May 18, 1991 had been my first day afloat on County Mayo’s most resplendent of all its jewels, Lough Conn. We were there…

"The rod that is right for you will depend on your casting style, experience and ability" WHETHER FISHING the mayfly on an Irish lough when a regular five-weight rod struggles to cast larger, wind -resistant dry-flies or stepping down from a seven-weight to better present dry and nymph patterns to cruising reservoir trout, a 9 ft 6 in six-weight is a useful tool that will pick up and deliver flies quickly and delicately. A six-weight line will land with less disturbance than a seven-weight, which is desirable when targeting fish at close range and in calm conditions. If you already have a seven-weight rod then one of the softer-actioned six-weights will offer finesse, but if you want a six-weight as your main stillwater fishing rod there are faster models in…

CHOOSE from three different models of the popular Greys GR30 fly-rod. The 10 ft 7 wt is a good choice if you prefer to fish mostly from a boat where the extra length is useful. The 9 ft 6 in 7 wt is a great all-round option, capable from both boat and bank. The 9 ft 6 in 6 wt allows a stealthier approach with a lighter line, which is ideal for fishing the dry-fly and nymphs. Included with the rod is a matching Stillwater Fluke 7/8 wt reel with an Airflo Super Dri G-Shock 7 wt floating line in peach, not to mention the Shakespeare Royalty Game Bag to carry all your kit and the Large Trout Net to land your catch. Plus: 50m of 30 lb braided backing,…

“Slickness means less friction, which in turn means a line that casts further and is easier to pick up” SEVEN WINNERS of this month’s competition will receive a Scientific Anglers Amplitude MPX single-handed fly-line in their choice of line rating. The Amplitude lines are the first to feature Scientific Anglers revolutionary new AST PLUS slickness additive. These lines will shoot further and last longer than any other line on the market. Amplitude lines are 70 per cent slicker than any line from a rival manufacturer and last an average of 862 per cent longer. Slickness means less friction, which in turn means a line that casts further and is easier to pick off the water. The AST Plus coating is built all the way down to the core of every…