Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2020 i Trout & Salmon

I’VE JUST BOUGHT MY SEASON TICKET. I usually wait until April, but, as I write in mid-March, who knows what restrictions coronavirus will force upon us in the coming weeks? I thought I’d be able to self-isolate on the banks of Rutland Water. It would keep my family in fresh trout while the supermarket mayhem continues. I can think of no better place. But will I be allowed? The restrictions are moving at such speed. For now, the reservoir is brimful following winter’s unprecedented rainfall, so with a fresh ticket and a box of small Buzzers I thought I’d make an early cast. I kept it simple: deep water, a full floater, 20ft of 7lb fluorocarbon, and three flies. I cast, took up the slack and did nothing. Static buzzers…

ONE ON BOB’S FAVOURITE Alistair Sheach caught this 17lb Tay springer during a period of high pressure, falling water and colder conditions in March. Alistair was fishing a 650gr Skagit with a 6ft T14 tip and a black-and-yellow tungsten turbo tube at Woodside on the Catholes beat. The fly is a favourite of the gillie Bob White. Alistair said, “Bob took the boat down to Woodside and anchored so we could fish the Stanley bank. At about 3.30pm, after three hours of fishing, I had a solid pull and as the fish hit the surface Bob said he thought I was into a springer. I still wasn’t sure as it didn’t do much and I played it hard to get it in as quickly as possible. It wasn’t until it…

AFTER STORMS DENNIS AND Ciara wreaked havoc across the UK, with their widespread flooding having dramatic affects on the lives of so many people, the weather Gods finally abated, and things began to settle down in Yorkshire. In late February I met Rob Mitchell, head of forestry and grounds at the Swinton Estate, to see what storm damage had occurred during the chaos. We wandered down to the Nutwith Beat on the River Ure and were delighted that so few problematic branches and debris needed tending to. There was a fallen tree at the bottom of Roman Ford that had been niggling me for a while, even though it wasn’t a byproduct of this year’s storms. Thanks to Rob and his team it has been removed and we will now…

We start them early in our family. Great-granddaughter Emily is 18 months old and fish-mad, just like her brother Jacob. She reads Trout & Salmon with me every Sunday. Jacob started fishing at two, the same age at which he became a member of the Angling Trust. I started fishing in 1946, began game-fishing in the 1960s on the Eden at Appleby, and then later and for many years I fished on the Tay at Aberfeldy, as well as the Hodder, Ribble and Tyne. I’ve been reading T&S since 1970.…

JOINING THE CLUB Full membership of Invicta is £19 (under 18s, free). Visit the Invicta website for details: invictaffc.org.uk Or contact the membership secretary Steve Harding. Tel: 01525 854 683. STOCKING AND RECORDS More than 50,000 rainbow and brown trout are stocked in Grafham each year. Until recently, the catch rate was 3.5 fish per angler per day. Recent improvements, coupled with more anglers releasing fish, have raised that rate closer to five fish. In 2019 the rate was much higher in peak months. Grafham’s record fly-caught brown trout weighed 17lb 2oz. The record rainbow is 13lb 3oz. TICKETS AND INFORMATION Day permits vary from £15 to £29. Boat hire varies from £13 to £27. There are a range of season tickets and three-day holiday options. The fishery has an…

Any large cardboard box will do. Our new mattress arrived in this one. A couple of dowels pushed through the sides near the top support a couple of cake cooling racks. Two more dowels lower down support a sheet of cardboard to spread the smoke a bit. You can’t go lighting a heap of sawdust in the bottom of a cardboard box. In recent years a rash of cunning “smoke generators” has appeared on the market. They consist of a raised spiral channel of steel mesh along which the sawdust can smoulder its way for several hours. They work better with fine sawdust than with wood chippings. Mine works perfectly with oak chippings ground fine in an old electric coffee grinder. The burn is started with a tea light candle.…

THESE AREN’T EASY TIMES FOR stillwater fisheries. Many are reporting a decline in visitor numbers. But there are no such concerns at Narborough lakes where attendance is steadily increasing. It’s always nice to receive a warm greeting when you arrive, and that was certainly the case when I arrived at Narborough’s well-stocked tackle-shop to meet fishery manager Tim Cowlard. Tim explained that the 26-acre complex of two trout lakes and three coarse-fishing lakes was taken over six years ago by the Peberdy family. Since then Ian Peberdy and his son Russell have completely rejuvenated the previously tired location. “They have a simple and straightforward business ethos,” said Tim, “in that anyone coming to the fishery should have every chance to enjoy themselves and want to come back again.” Narborough’s trout…

THE MODERN WASHING LINE technique has advocates and critics, but there is no denying that it has become the most dominant method in the competition scene on big reservoirs. The method combines a fly-line (often a mini-tip or full sinking line) and a leader with a buoyant fly on point and nymphs on the droppers. The buoyant fly (usually a Booby or Foam-arsed Blob) is used to suspend the nymphs at a certain depth, depending on the sink rate of the fly-line and weight of nymphs used. This blend of lures and nymphs allows you to fish two methods on one cast and can attract and deceive both resident and newly stocked fish — resident, or grown-on, fish are often attracted to the lure, but take the nymphs, while newly-stocked…

Garynahine has 3½ miles of double-bank fishing on the Blackwater with 23 named pools and more than 40 trout lochs. Salmon and sea-trout are mostly caught from late June to the end of the season in mid-October, though it is possible to catch fish in the spring. July is the best month for fresh grilse. The Blackwater fishes well in low water, providing there is wind. A spate will open the upper river, which would not otherwise hold fish. September can be good for resident salmon in proper Lewis weather — south-westerly gales and torrential rain. TACKLE Stoat’s Tails, Park Shrimps and Calvin’s Shrimps are hard to beat as point flies. Muddlers are consistently good on the dropper. Most fishing is done with a single-handed 9ft-10ft rod and a floating…

Making a difference Adhering to its principles of sustainability and innovation, most of the fabrics in Patagonia’s Swiftcurrent range of waders are made from 100 per cent recycled materials. The top-of-the-range Expedition zip-front chest waders are made from the firm’s heaviest fabric. The lower half of the Expedition is four-layer, 9.4oz high-density taffeta bonded to polyester. The uppers are a lighter, more flexible 6.6oz blend. Its list of features is long. It has a quick-release suspender system, waterproof YKK front zip, exterior hand and storage pockets (unusual on zip-front waders), interior pouches, a valuable bag and padded knees. The single-seam construction, gusetted crotch and articulated legs help you to walk and kneel without restriction (if you get the right size). The stocking feet are shaped left and right. The top-hem…

Maggie Sims, often called the Salmon Queen of Connemara after 40 years’ fishing in the West of Ireland, died at home in Oxfordshire on February 25, after a long illness, aged 79. A former member of England’s Ladies International Fly-Fishing Team, Maggie was famous for her elegant casting and ability to find trout where many men failed to do so in competition fishing in the 1970s and ’80s. Invited by Ireland’s Bord Failte to fish the sea-trout loughs and rivers of Connemara in the early 1980s, Maggie became a devotee of the Co Mayo loughs Beltra, Furnace, Tawnyard and the River Erriff and then Ballinahinch in Co Galway. She was then a syndicate member of the Delphi Fishery for 30 years until 2018. Following the sea-trout collapse in 1989, she…

Junior ENGLAND • ALBURY ESTATE FISHERIES, Guildford, 07976 810737 1 Ivan Bettles, Guildford, 9lb 8oz brown, on fly. • HOLLIES TROUT FARM & FISHERY, Honiton, 01404 841428 1 Sam Shepherd, Exeter, 2lb 4oz rainbow, Damsel. • THORNWOOD TROUT FISHERY, Epping, 07588 669255 1 Noah Hubert, London, 1lb 10oz rainbow, Blob. • THRUNTON LONG CRAG TROUT FISHERY, Alnwick, 01665 574400 1 Lewis Longstaff, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 3lb 0oz rainbow, Black Fritz. • WOOLASTON COURT TROUT LAKES, Lydney, 07979 761123 1 Dylan Preece, Cheltenham, 4lb 2oz rainbow, on fly. SCOTLAND • ALDERNEUK FISHERY, Dumfries, 07901 602020 1 Lucas Anderson, Dumfries, 3lb 8oz rainbow, White Snake. WALES • BIGWELL FLY FISHERY, Monmouth, 01600 772904 1 Wilbur Leoviriyakit, Bristol, 4lb 4oz rainbow, Yellow Blob. • TAN-Y-MYNYDD FISHERY, Abergale, 01745 826722 1 (BAIT) Zac Hay, Conwy, 1lb…

I WAS BROUGHT UP ON BIG STILLWATERS. Well, I say big. Grafham was then probably the biggest body of water in the country after the lochs when I was a nipper. The most exciting thing about Grafham in those days was that the boats had motors, which meant that I got to drive a speedboat. Well, in my mind it was a speedboat — actually, a powerboat. No! An MTB hunting down killer submarines in the Channel. At Eyebrook, on the other hand, there were only oars and that meant trying to keep pace with the late Ageing Progenitor as we “In-and-Outed” from A to B and back to A for another drift and then off to C for a spot of lunch followed by more drifting. And then more…

In the event of it being difficult to buy a print copy of Trout & Salmon over the coming weeks, we are doing our best to ensure that your favourite magazine will still be available on digital platforms. So, if you can’t find us in stores, or if you’re stuck inside, please consider: • Downloading our Trout & Salmon app from the iOS or Android app stores. We have some superb one-off subscription offers with discounts of up to 50%. You can also purchase single copy issues if you wish. If you’re a Kindle Fire user, you can download our magazines from Amazon Newsstand. • If you are a print subscriber and we cannot deliver issues to you owing to the Covid-19 situation, please visit: www.greatmagazines.co.uk where clear updates will…

MATERIALS Hook Size 10-14 Kamasan B170, 175, or 160 Thread Fluorescent red or orange Body Peach or “Orkney peach” dubbing of choice (seal’s fur preferred) Wing Bunches of natural roe THE HOG IS A TRUE SUPERFLY: super-versatile and super-effective wherever trout swim. “But wait!” I hear the newcomers cry. “What are these Hedgehogs, Sedgehogs of which we hear?” Well, in brief, a Hedgehog has a small, muddled head, but a Sedgehog does not. Instead, it has a hen hackle. A simple “hog” has neither. There are those who insist on a specific type of hog for specific situations, but I am yet to be convinced that the muddled head of the Hedgehog, or the hackle of the Sedgehog makes the slightest bit of difference. Your time and resources will be…

1. WADING STICK The days when I would cheerfully wade across the River Spey with nothing more than my 15-footer held across my chest like a tightrope walker’s balancing pole are long gone. Age brings both timidity and reduced agility, and these days I wouldn’t dream of wading a big salmon river without my stick. Hundreds of times it has spared my blushes, and probably my life. If you are thinking of buying a stick, I beg you: please make sure it has a quick-release clip. If you fall in and your stick is caught between rocks, you will be dragged under unless you can quickly shed the thing. 2. THERMOMETER As one who believes water and air temperature dictate the size of salmon fly almost as much as water…

MOST CADDIS FLIES don’t emerge until darkness in summer, when only the keenest anglers get a murky glimpse into their lives. Thankfully, a few species are happy to go about their business in broad daylight. The grannom (Brachycentrus subnubilus) is one of the better known and most widespread. It’s also an early bird in the trout fishing calendar — around the third week of April here in Cumbria. When it hatches, you’re more likely to witness a dense haze of fly rather than a pathetic trickle, making it a priority for both trout and anglers. Like most flies, weather determines the timing of the hatch. Grannom are sun-worshippers, so when there are blue skies they will come off in one great cloud. While the surface action that follows beggars belief,…

TICKETS Willow Lake: Five-fish catch-and-kill is £40 (includes five-fish c&r). Four-fish catch-and-kill is £35 (includes four-fish c&r). Three-fish catch-and-kill is £30 (eight-hour ticket with three-fish c&r). Two-fish catch-and-kill is £25 (six-hour ticket with two-fish c&r). Add unlimited c&r on Meadow Lake to any of the above tickets for £15. Meadow Lake: £25, unlimited c&r. Four-hour evening ticket from 5pm is £17.50. Narborough also has three coarse-fishing lakes, touring pitches for caravans and a tackle-shop. It can provide corporate days with tuition and tackle hire. CONTACT Tel: 01760 338 005. E-mail: info.fishing@ narfish.co.uk Web: narfish.co.uk DIRECTIONS Narborough Fisheries is located halfway between King’s Lynn and Swaffham just off the A47. Sat-nav: PE32 1TE.…

1. SURFACE TO 3FT DEEP Co-polymer leader When fish are just sub-surface, I choose 8lb co-polymer (degreased). Co-polymer is thin, supple and sinks incredibly slowly so my flies stay in the right “zone” for longer. Middle droppers With flies close together I fish size 12-14 nymphs on the middle droppers, so the cast doesn’t sink too quickly. Extra buoyancy I may add a second buoyant fly as a top dropper to create initial fish-attracting disturbance when I straighten the leader. It also keeps the cast even higher in the surface film. I use a FAB as a Booby causes the cast to spin. Fly spacing When fish are high in the water their angle of vision is 18in-2ft, so there's nothing to be gained from long leaders and widely spaced…

ROB EDMUNDS Highly successful competition angler, reservoir bank and boat specialist. RONNIE GLASS Tweed Commissioner and a Scottish national champion on rivers and stillwaters. STEVE CULLEN Guide, instructor and all-round game angler with a wealth of knowledge. PETER GATHERCOLE Photographer, expert tyer and chairman of the Fly Dressers' Guild. PAUL PROCTER Cumbrian-based AAPGAI instructor. Prefers the imitative approach. GARETH JONES Welsh international and stillwater expert. Has fished all over the world. PETER COCKWILL Small water expert with more than 60 years’ fly-fishing experience.…

Hook Size 10-12 Fulling Mill 1550 All Purpose Medium Thread Olive 8/0 Uni Tail Grey squirrel Rib Glo-Brite No12 floss Body Olive seal fur or similar Wing White calf tail Hackle Red game dry-fly saddle…

If you’re less agile than you once were or you’ve a bad back, you may consider getting in and out of cocoon-like waders to be the toughest part of the fishing day. In which case the Expedition’s front zip may be hugely appealing. It’s obviously useful at other times, too, particularly after a wet lunch. But the Expedition has even more to offer. Releasing buckles on the shoulder straps allow you to slide the chest material down to your waist to keep you cool in hot weather.…

TROUT MASTERS Plus this month’s badge winners from Europe’s largest fly-fishing competition England & Wales BORDER ESK WHILE the Border Esk does not have many spring fish there is nearly always a few in the river from opening day. Burnfoot, Longtown Bridge Fishing and Westalls are all likely areas to produce early-season salmon and some sea-trout. Areas such as Willow Pool, Canonbie and the Lower Liddel are also likely to produce early fish. The famous Willowpool and Cauldron Fishings below Canonbie are offering season rods, daily lets or three-day or weekly lets from September. Contact David Laidler (07768837372) or Willowpool fishings on the Fishpal website. Angling pressure in the early weeks of the season is often light but in recent seasons some early fish have been caught. By the time…

HOW TO ENTER TROUTMASTERS All you have to do is visit a registered Troutmasters water and catch a fish. Fill in the official form, which you will find at the fishery, and then post the form to T&S. Senior, Youth and Junior forms are available. Captors of the three biggest fish from each fishery each month win an exclusive Troutmasters badge. For a full list of entry details and rules go to: www.troutfisherman.co.uk/troutmasters SENIOR BADGE WINNERS All fish listed were caught during the period January 21 to February 20, 2020. England ■ ALDIN GRANGE LAKES, Durham, 0191 384 6090 / 07957 831711 1 Malcolm Proudlock, Stanley, 3lb 2oz blue, Eggstasy Worm. 2 Duncan Elliott, Durham, 2lb 8oz brown, Apps’ Bloodworm. ■ AVINGTON TROUT FISHERY, Winchester, 01962 779312 1 Steve Spencer,…

ENGLAND AMPORT FISHERY, Andover, 07775 953273 BLITHFIELD ANGLERS, Abbots Bromley, 01283 840284 DRAYCOTE TROUT FISHERY, Rugby, 01788 812018 HIGHAM LAKES TROUT FISHERY, Ponteland, 07950 428159 LAKEDOWN TROUT FISHERY, Burwash, 01435 883449 LEIGHTON RESERVOIR, Ripon, 01765 689270 MEON SPRINGS, Petersfield, 01730 823134 NEW MILLS TROUT FISHING PARK, Brampton, 01697 741115 PATSHULL PARK FISHERY, Wolverhampton, 01902 700774 SIBLYBACK LAKE, nr Liskeard 01579 346522 SPRINGHILL TROUT WATERS, Pembury, 01892 826041 SYON PARK, Brentford, 07956 378138 TEMPLE TROUT FISHERY, Bodmin, 01208 821730 WASHBURN VALLEY FISHERIES, Harrogate, 01943 880658 WEST HOUSE TROUT LAKES, Bishopton, 07836 330157 SCOTLAND BORLAND TROUT FISHERY, Cumnock, 07935 809756 DELGATIE CASTLE TROUT FISHERY, Turriff, 07894 835232 DUNLICHITY TROUT FISHERY, Inverness, 01808 521442 GLEN OF ROTHES TROUT FISHERY, Aberlour, 01340 831888 GLENQUICKEN FARM TROUT FISHERY, Newton Stewart, 01671 820593 JERICHO LOCH, Torthorwald,…

GEORGIAN GRANDEUR Fron Heulog in Gwynedd is a grade II listed Georgian house overlooking the Dee with views down the valley to the Berwyn mountains beyond. In addition to 58 acres of land there are sporting rights over a further 297 acres for the possible development of a shoot, and a licence for just under 1,500 yards of single-bank fishing rights on the River Dee. Once owned by the second Duke of Westminster, the house provides three reception rooms and a study, nine bedrooms and four bathrooms. There are also a two-bedroom lodge and three-bedroom cottage, large walled garden, swimming pool in need of restoration, kennels, former coach house, double stable and new wooden buildings for potential equestrian use. Bala is more than four miles and Chester 39. £1,595,000 R…

IT’S GOODBYE FROM PAUL The longstanding chief executive of Salmon & Trout Conservation, Paul Knight, is to retire in June. During his 18-year tenure, the organisation has evolved from being the governing body for game angling into a fisheries charity (2008) and changed its name from Salmon & Trout Association to Salmon & Trout Conservation (S&TC) in 2016. Paul has been a relentless campaigner for the conservation of wild salmon and trout, lobbying politicians and holding polluters to account. He said, “I have been extremely proud to work for this organisation for a quarter of a century, during which we made substantial changes to the way we operate. Despite our hard-won achievements over the years, there is still much to do to protect wild salmon and trout and the water…

The Suir is only one hour and 20 minutes’ drive from Cork airport or one hour and 40 minutes’ drive from Rosslare ferry port. SEASON March 17 to September 30. TICKETS Some beats of the Suir can be fished on a day ticket for around €30. Andrew Ryan’s private beats are available with or without a guide. Visit Clonanav Fly Fishing’s website for details and prices, including weekly tickets and accommodation packages. Tel: 00 353 5261 36765. Web: flyfishingireland.com. Address: Ballymacarbry, Clonmel, Co Waterford.…

THE CHEMISTRY OF THE thing is not perfectly understood. Not by me at any rate. But lots of culinary stuff is not perfectly understood. No one knows why the bottle of retsina which tasted wonderful with stuffed vine leaves beside the Mediterranean should taste so awful with shepherd’s pie in Banbury. It just does. So it’s only mildly surprising that more or less the same stuff that makes a disgusting gurgle in the bottom of an old man’s pipe can transform a bland fish into delicate smoked salmon or a tasty kipper. It just can. And anyone can do it. Anyone who has unpacked a boy scout after a week’s camping will know the power of wood smoke to penetrate and permeate. All that home smoking requires is a source…

ALTHOUGH STILL IN HIS early-thirties Luboš Roza has earned an enviable reputation as one of Europe’s most accomplished competition fly-fishers. While organised competitive fly-fishing is not to everyone’s taste, it’s difficult to ignore the high degree of skill that it demands, especially at World Championships. That skill translates not only into dexterity with rod and line but also into the development of very effective fly patterns, all of which are tied on barbless hooks. The list of all Luboš’s fly-fishing achievements are too numerous to list here but they include the title of Individual World Champion in 2014. As a junior he was individual World Champion in consecutive years, 2004-2005, though he’s most proud of the fact that he’s the only holder of a gold medal as both an individual…

GORGEOUS GEORGE (VARIANT) Hook Size 10-12 Kamasan B175 Butt Glo-Brite No5 Tail Glo-Brite No11 or Artifly sunburst multi yarn Rib Oval gold tinsel Body Golden olive seal fur Body hackle Light ginger cock, dyed in picric Shoulder hackle Golden olive grizzle hen Throat Hot orange guinea fowl and blue jay Legs Paired and knotted cock pheasant tail, dyed hot orange I first spotted the Gorgeous George in a tackle-shop in Clifden, Co Galway. It seems to catch the eye of the trout as much as it caught mine that day. A gaudy fly as far as traditional wet-flies are concerned, it has universal appeal for brown trout, rainbows and migratory fish. Good for the middle dropper, behind a Muddler, or as a bob fly. I’ve had good days with it…

I find the washing line most successful from May to October when the water is warmer, and the fish are on the move. At this time of year, the weed beds have become established, holding corixa, shrimp, buzzer and fry — fish are feeding naturally as food is plentiful. Unless there is a period of prolonged hot weather then the fish will predominantly hold at a depth of around 3ft–8ft on the majority of reservoirs. The washing line simply allows the angler to hold all the flies on his cast in this band of water, increasing the chances of success. On overcast days during the summer and autumn, it is the most consistent method for catching stillwater trout. It is “the” method in almost all major competitions on both reservoirs…

A HIGH SPOT OF LOCH-FISHING IN late spring is the olive hatch. The trout go crazy for them and we are often driven crazy by the trout. The life cycle of olives (Cloëon sp.) is interesting. Pregnant females lay their eggs on the water surface, which immediately transform into nymphs and dive for the bottom. When its time, the nymphs swim quickly as they rise to emerge – an important feature. On quiet days, the duns rest on the surface. As their wings are upright, it doesn’t take much breeze to make them drift. They leave the water to pass into a sexually mature phase, and then breed. The two most important phases for fly-fishers are the nymphs’ journey through the water column pre-emergence, and the brief dun stage. Frequently,…

“Great tail and lots of power,” said Jason Williams after landing this 10lb 11oz rainbow from Tyn-y-Graig Farm. It was his personal best from the South Wales fishery and was tempted to a size 14 Buzzer. The catch wins him an Airflo Superflo line. WHAT YOU CAN WIN Each month Trout & Salmon will award an Airflo Superflo floating fly-line worth £69.99 to the captor of the best fish of the month caught from a Troutmasters water. Trout & Salmon will judge the catch based on fish quality and tactics used. The winner will be the pick of those submitted for that month. The Editor’s decision is final. E-mail your catch pictures to troutandsalmon@bauermedia.co.uk or post to Troutmasters Fish of the Month, H Bauer Publishing, Media House, Lynchwood, Peterborough PE2…

In addition to the monthly Troutmasters badge, anglers can also win Gold, Silver and Bronze badges. Gold is awarded to anglers who win monthly badges from ten different fisheries during the Troutmasters season, Silver to anglers who win badges from five different fisheries, and Bronze for badges from three different venues. This month there are two Bronze badge winners in the senior category. Jim Watson, from East Kilbride, earns his for catches at Burns, Moffat and Wellsfield, while Phil Green, from Leadgate, Co Durham, collects his for success at Aldin Grange, Knitsley Mill and Thrunton Long Crag.…