Innholdsfortegnelse for October 2002 i Trout & Salmon

I SAW A PARAKEET FLY OVER MY GARDEN THE other day. Its squawk alerted me — and my terrier. It’s the first time I’ve seen one in Rutland. My mother-in-law, who lived in Twickenham (useful for the Six Nations) used to see flocks of them flying over her garden. Ring-necked parakeets are the UK’s only naturalised parrot. Escaped birds found a stronghold in the warmer Home Counties and now it seems they’ve moved further north, unless the lady down the road is missing Polly. A family friend used to give me feathers from his parakeet — they made good apple-green buzzer bodies. There was a proliferation of birds in my garden during the spring lockdown. It sounds odd, but I miss that time. It felt like a simpler, quieter way…

SILVER LINING TO LOCKDOWN Fourteen-year-old Connor Elliot of Hawick, Scottish Borders, caught this 7lb 8oz brown trout from Bank House Fishery, Lancaster. Unable to play football due to covid, Connor started fly-fishing with his father, Craig, to get out of the house. Craig has taught him how to cast and tie flies and Connor says he has really enjoyed it. He not only caught this fish but tied the successful fly, a red-cheeked olive buzzer. The family were holidaying in Blackpool when Connor and his father visited Bank House Fishery. “I was watching when he hooked the fish and I could see it was a good one, but Connor played it on his own. I landed it for him when it was ready. It’s his biggest fish by far. In…

“At one point there were so many flies scooting around that they looked like bumper cars trying to dodge each other” THE SALMON CATCHES ON THE URE from the end of July to mid-August have been few and far between but the trout fishing has been consistently good, particularly beneath the surface using weighted nymphs, jigs, gold-heads and North Country spiders. One day I received a message from fellow guide Beni saying: “I’m so upset, I’ve just lost the biggest brown trout I’ve ever seen on the Ure — it had a huge head and it must have weighed more than 3lb — the one that got away.” I really enjoy reading the comments in our fishing book, which lives in the hut at Nutwith. On July 11, a guest…

1. CAMERA RUCKSACK Photographing fly-fishing has afforded me the privilege of visiting many of the most beautiful fisheries in the world, from Arctic Russia to the Bolivian jungle. My trusty Think Tank Airport Accelerator rucksack carries all my gear. It is home to three camera bodies and lenses for every eventuality. A small carbon tripod and locking cable release allow me to make “selfies” fishing down a pool or presenting the fish I catch. One new addition is a Mavic Pro 2 Drone. The Mavic not only offers a fascinating new perspective for image-making, but it allows me to see if upstream pools are occupied by other anglers, spot fish in clear water, and map and understand salmon pools and permit flats. Hugely instructive and utterly addictive — it is…

PARTNERSHIPS ARE A recurring theme in fly-fishing. Not all are as famous as Swisher and Richards or Goddard and Clarke, but out on our rivers and streams there are anglers who particularly enjoy sharing the experience of catching fish and developing new fly patterns. One such pair are Gareth Lewis and Liam Walsh, who hail from Merthyr Tydfil, a town in the shadow of the spectacular Brecon Beacons. Gareth and Liam have known one another since their schooldays when, as 16-year-olds, they were guitarists gigging with their respective bands. They had in common a taste for beer and music; both were into the grunge and metal scenes, in particular bands such as Nirvana and Metallica. (If you’re struggling with this previous sentence, remember you can always use Google.) And, as…

IT’S 25 YEARS SINCE DONALD “DABBLER” McLearn unleashed his eponymous fly on to an unsuspecting stillwater scene. The impact was seismic, making massive waves around Ireland and the UK in a few short years. There’s now a dabbler for each day of the year. Big, brown and bushy; sleek, skinny and shiny; and every permutation of style and colour in between. It can get confusing so I shall try to demystify. It’s a wet-fly and wet-flies need movement, either imparted by the angler, running water, or both. As the dabbler is a stillwater fly the movement is imparted by the angler: anything from a slow figure of eight to a fast strip or roly-poly retrieve. Secondly, wet-flies need “the look”, that je ne sais quoi that says “chase me, eat…

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.…

In the event of it being difficult to buy a print copy of Trout & Salmon in a newsagents, your favourite magazine is still 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 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: greatmagazines.co.uk where clear updates will be given. We appreciate your support and readership during this period of…

IN THE EARLY 1990s, A SMALL GROUP OF RIVER Wye owners resolved to turn the fortunes of the river around. Frustrated at the lack of an effective strategy to reverse declining salmon stocks, they needed an individual whose weight of personality could cut through the politics and inertia that bedevilled river management at that time. Fortunately, they knew just such a person. Stephen Marsh-Smith was born in Warrington in 1951. After studying at Bristol University he forged a successful career in dentistry. His passion for fly-fishing began at an early age and he competed internationally for England (although he always gave the impression he would have much preferred to represent Wales). In the late 1980s Stephen’s deep affection for rivers was cemented after buying an upper Wye beat and it…

TICKETS An excellent website details the RDAS waters and the options for day and season tickets including OAP, disabled, student and junior discounts. A full season membership is only £43 and a day ticket only £7. Season membership can be purchased online, but day tickets must be obtained from outlets in Richmond, Darlington and Bedale. We bought our tickets from the Harvest Filling Station opposite the cricket ground in Richmond. This has a convenience store open 7am-10pm, seven days a week. S G Petch Harvest Service Station, 21-23 Victoria Road, Richmond, North Yorkshire DL10 4DW. Tel: 01748 821 383. The other two outlets have shorter hours and close on Sundays. SEASON Trout: March 25-September 30. Grayling: June 16-March 14. It is essential to check river levels when planning a visit:…

Run the tying thread to the bend then catch in a few Coq de Leon fibres and a length of Body Quill. Apply turns of superfine natural dubbing. Add turns of the dubbing to create a slim body, leaving a small space at the eye. Wind the Body Quill over the body in evenly spaced turns. Secure the loose end of the ribbing then trim the waste. Catch in a furnace cock hackle, tearing off a few fibres from the base of its leading edge. Take a pinch of roe deer hair and trim it to length. Wax the thread and apply a couple of positioning turns a short distance from its base. Add further tight turns to lock the hair in place — this will cause the fibres to…

THERE AREN’T MANY FISHERY management positions that involve looking after not only a series of fishing lakes but also a yurt village, a complex of shepherd’s huts, woodland and bushcraft courses, and a clay shoot. But there’s more, for Meon Springs in Hampshire has taken rural diversification to a new level. With a working farm at its heart, this remarkable complex also offers a fishing school and club, a busy instruction schedule, bicycle hire, storage facilities, a conference complex, corporate hospitality and team-building events. Consider also that the popular South Downs Way passes right through the fishery, attracting a constant stream of walkers and cyclists, and it’s little wonder that operations manager Greg Adlam has his hands full. The timbered fishery lodge, overlooking Whitewool Lake, is where Greg masterminds the…

BLUE-FLASH DAMSEL Hook Size 8-12 Kamasan B175 Thread Green 8/0 Bead 3mm-3.5mm brass or tungsten Tail Olive marabou, twice the length of the hook shank Tail flash Blue Mylar tinsel, two strands on each side Body Olive marabou, twisted and wound Rib Blue Mylar tinsel, reverse ribbed with tying thread Hackle Olive Chinese cock, palmered This is one of my first-choice patterns, fishing well all year. Its subdued appearance and natural size are effective when fish have seen a lot of large, gaudy patterns but still want to chase moving flies. The natural damsel nymph swims like a crocodile with a lashing tail action that the bead-head and marabou tail imitates perfectly. I find it outfishes an all-green damsel. It may be a confidence thing, or perhaps the fish are…

Peacock shows its true colours Super-fine, flashy synthetic dubbings — and particularly those with peacock hues — are wonderful for bodies and thoraxes on trout and grayling bugs. So popular in fact that Veniard now has a range of six peacock shades designed to replicate the dyed natural peacock herls these dubbings mimic. Why so many, and do such subtleties make a difference? Those who use peacock regularly will tell you that the subtle variations make a difference when mixed with other colours and materials. Some natural peacock herls transmit bronze colours, as well as different shades of green, and have a light or dark tone that dictates the overall effect. With modern dyed herls, the colour spectrum has expanded even further. Will the fish notice these subtleties? Probably not…

The River Seiont in Gwynedd, North Wales has provided exceptional sea-trout fishing this summer, the largest fish being a ten-pounder to Llanberis angler Ian Williams (below left) from the y Finiog (Crawia) section. Ian caught the fish on his own fly, The Seiont Special, at 11pm. Ceirion Owen (below right) caught this 6lb sea-trout, also from the River Seiont, in high water on a bronze No5 Mepps with red spots. This solid brown trout, estimated to weigh 5lb, was caught at the point of the Rookery at the Lake of Menteith by Craig Cowan from Fife. Craig was fishing a Green and Black Cat’s Whisker using deep pulling tactics with a Di7 sinking line. The fish was returned. Ten minutes is all it took for Jack Wilford to hook his…

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, a Senior Bronze badge is awarded to Matthew Devine, from Morpeth, for catches at Chatton, Knitsley and Thrunton. A Youth Gold badge goes to Alex Aamer, from Aberdeen, for success at Lochter, Wellsfield, Kinross, Raemoir, Mill of Kellas, Delgatie, Glen of Rothes, Chatton, Sharpley Springs and Thrunton. A Youth Bronze badge goes to Cameron Craik, from Perth, for catches at Kinross, Wellsfield and Moffat.…

HISTORY IN THE MAKING If you’re fishing in the Borders this autumn, set aside time to visit the River Tweed Salmon Fishing Museum, which opened on September 3. Three years in the making and costing more than £70,000, the museum celebrates the unique role that the Tweed and town of Kelso have played in the history and development of fishing for salmon with rod and line. More than 2,000 objects have been gathered, including tackle, film, photographs, maps, books and illustrations. Highlights are a replica 19th-century fishing bothy with an old Tweed boatman puffing on a clay pipe; and T&S contributor Ronnie Glass’s replica of the Eighth Earl of Home’s 69lb salmon, landed on a horse-hair cast in 1743. Funding was sourced from an environmental charity, local council grant and…

BOOKING All fishing must be booked in advance. Tel: 01899 308 697. Tickets: £15 per session. Catch-and-release only. Summer sessions are 7am to 4pm and 4pm to one hour after dark. Winter sessions are all day. Lyoch is open all year; Cleuch from mid-March to mid-October. Tinto Trout Fishery is only 30 minutes from the M74 near Biggar in Lanarkshire; one hour from Glasgow. TACKLE Lures work but matching the hatch will bring the best results. The dry-fly fishing can be spectacular. Sedge, various Buzzers, Bibios, Heather Fly, Daddylonglegs, Hoppers, Muddlers and F Flies will all produce depending on what’s hatching, as will Ace of Spades, Alexandria, Blae and Black, Soldier Palmers and traditional wet-flies. Black flies generally do well. Fin took the majority of his fish on a black…

While governments fiddle In August, almost 50,000 salmon escaped from the Mowi North Carradale farm and the response from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency was: “Whilst we are confident that marine pens have been returned to their authorised positions and there was no significant pollution, we are liaising with Mowi and Marine Scotland, who have responsibility for fish escaping and their reporting.” So, that’s alright then. SEPA clearly don’t regard the escape of this number of fish as pollution. Pollution is something introduced into the environment that has a harmful effect. This was a large-scale pollution incident in the eyes of everyone except SEPA, Mowi and Marine Scotland. The attitude of SEPA is only matched by the views of the Environment Agency (EA). Sir James Bevan, chief executive of the…

A MERICA HAS THE Continental Divide, a roughly north-south line dividing rivers that empty into the Pacific from rivers emptying into the Atlantic. I’ve always wondered if Britain had something similar. It turns out that it does, and the “British watershed” lies barely ten miles to the west of my home near Buxton in the Peak District. Further north it follows the backbone of the Pennines. Kirkby Stephen in Cumbria lies in the watershed of the Eden, which flows west towards the Irish Sea. Travel just a few miles east and you cross the divide to find the source of the Swale where Birkdale Beck and Great Sleddale Beck meet. Falling over 400ft in its first 12 miles, it flows east, joining the Ure to become the Ouse before passing…

Add a plastic liner and a length of silicone tubing to the brass Stanton tube, then fix it securely on the tube mount. Run on the tying thread. Wind the thread as far as the silicone tubing then catch in two bunches from the dark part of a red bucktail. Work them evenly around the tube. Take a bunch of dyed red boar bristles and line up the tips. Divide in two, catching in each half either side of the tube so the tips of both diverge. Secure the waste ends of the boar bristles along the tube, a process that starts to build the profile of the body. Catch in a dyed claret cock hackle. Take hold of the hackle by its tip and apply four or five turns…

ONE OF THE FIRST instructions I was given when learning to become a fly-fisherman was, “Don’t speak too loud. The fish will hear you!” Sound created in the air doesn’t travel well into water, but sound created below the surface, or even in the surface, can travel for hundreds of miles in water. Whales are renowned for being able to communicate over vast distances with sounds they create subsurface. These are abilities they have developed over millions of years as they adapted to their unique environment by means of evolution. Such talents are primarily mammalian, and rare in aquatic species. Fish tend not to communicate via sound, but they are very aware of “water noise”, or, to put it another way, subsurface vibration. As we learned in science classes at…

THIS SUMMER’S HOT WEATHER LED to rapid weed growth in the shallow areas of reservoirs. Water that was 8ft-12ft deep in early season shrank to 3ft-4ft deep. Many anglers avoid these areas, based on the premise that if they can’t see fish, then there are none there. But you should never discount shallow weedy areas as they can provide exciting sport. Established weedbeds are a haven for corixa, shrimps and fry. They also offer shade and cover for fish, especially grown-on resident trout, which do not “switch off” like newly stocked fish. They are more accustomed to high and fluctuating water temperatures in the reservoir and will feed naturally around the weedbeds. While they are challenging, these larger fish are worthy of extra effort. Areas of weed are not affected…

Q When recently gutting a trout, the stomach contained more than a handful of gravel and a dozen stones, each the size of a large grape. I can understand how a trout may ingest small gravel while feeding, but why on earth would it swallow such large stones, and so many? Bruce Foskett A trout ingesting stones is more common than you might think. Small stones found in its stomach might be the result of it eating caddis larvae, some species of which make their homes from tiny stones. I think bigger stones could be the trout mistaking them for snails. Some pond snails are easily grape size and trout do eat them. Their stomach juices digest the snail and then the shell is passed. Often, trout are caught with…

HAVING LANDED MORE than 50 salmon already this season, Paul Davidson is a fisherman whose advice is worth heeding. The chairman of the River Eden and District Fisheries Association and Carlisle Angling Association, in his spare time Paul manages the Park Broom beat of the Eden. I first met him a few years ago when he was after spring salmon at Taymount on the River Tay. I was enjoying a few days at nearby Islamouth and we met in the pub. I discovered that Paul is a friendly guy, who’s always happy to share his knowledge. JIM When did you start fishing? PAUL My father was in the textile industry and we moved to Nigeria with his work when I was a young child. He introduced me to fishing, we’d…

During a saltwater fishing trip, American angler and reel maker Wes Seigler watched his fellow fishermen using leather gloves to palm their fly-reels while fighting powerful GTs and tuna. “There has to be a better way of accurately controlling the pressure applied while fighting a big fish,” he thought. So, on his return Seigler took the lever-drag system from his original multiplying reel and designed it into a fly-reel, creating a drag that can be easily and accurately altered, at any stage of the battle. Seigler’s engineering mind didn’t just stop at the drag. A single C-clip holds the spool in place, while the large, ergonomically machined handle and dovetailed reel seat — which slides into the reel body like a hot shoe on a camera — are held in…

TROUT MASTERS Plus this month’s badge winners from Europe’s largest fly-fishing competition See page 128 England & Wales BORDER ESK THE Burnfoot Beat on the Border Esk below Longtown has been in good form with a salmon catch to August 17 of 212, plus a further 79 sea-trout. Sport has been consistent throughout the last couple of months. I heard of one rod catching seven salmon in a day. I would remind readers that this river is categorised as “At Risk” for salmon. Figures like this make a mockery of those who play around with data to suit their needs! The Buccleuch Estates beats had some decent sport. On the Mid Irvine House beat regular Drew Murray caught an 8lb salmon. David Duffy landed a 13lb salmon in the Boat…

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.troutandsalmon.com/troutmasters SENIOR BADGE WINNERS England ■ BRANSFORD GAME FISHERIES, Bransford, 01905 830548 1 Alex Collins, Droitwich, 8lb 7oz rainbow, Cat’s Whisker. 2 Ross Keightley, Childswickham, 7lb 12oz rainbow, Cormorant. 3 Calum Lawson, Stourbridge, 5lb 5oz rainbow, Goldhead Daddy. ■ BRICK FARM LAKES, Herstmonceux, 01323 832615 1 Robert Barden, Bexhill, 6lb 10oz rainbow, Sparkler Booby. 2 Patrick Bowles, Hastings,…

ENGLAND ALBURY ESTATE FISHERIES, Guildford, 07976 810737 ALDIN GRANGE LAKES, Durham, 0191 384 6090 AMPORT FISHERY, Andover, 07775 953273 BESSY BECK TROUT FISHERY, Cumbria, 01539 623303 BLITHFIELD ANGLERS, Abbots Bromley, 01283 840284 CHALK SPRINGS TROUT FISHERY, Arundel, 01903 883742 DRAYCOTE TROUT FISHERY, Rugby, 01788 812018 HIGHAM LAKE TROUT FISHERY, Ponteland, 07950 428159 HOLLIES TROUT FARM & FISHERY, Honiton, 01404 841428 INNIS FLY FISHERY, Nr St Austell, 01726 852382 KILNSEY PARK FLY FISHERY, Skipton, 07765 688780 LAKEDOWN TROUT FISHERY, Burwash, 01435 883449 LANGLEY DAM, Langley, 01434 688846 LENCHES LAKES, Evesham, 01386 871035 MARSTON WYSE TROUT FARM, York, 01904 738383 MOORHEN TROUT FISHERY, Warnford, 01730 829460 NARBOROUGH FISHERIES, King’s Lynn, 01760 338005 NEW MILLS TROUT FISHING PARK, Brampton, 016977 41115 NORTON FISHERY, Stapleford Tawney, 01708 688525 PATSHULL PARK FISHERY, Wolverhampton, 01902 700774…

Made from lightweight Climatex, this stylish Greys wading jacket (RRP £159.99) can be worn as an outer shell under insulating layers or packed down and stowed in travel luggage or a fishing bag when showers are forecast on warm days. It has a durable water-resistant (DWR) coating and water-resistant zips. CHOOSE YOUR SIZE • GR2502 Medium • GR2503 Large • GR2504 Extra-large • GR2506 Extra-extra-large HOW TO ORDER When ordering please quote “T&S Greys wading jacket offer” code “115TS” and choose your size. Free P+P. Tel: 0141 212 8880. Fax: 0141 331 6340. E-mail: sales@fishingmegastore.com Order online: www.gac.fishing/0115TSPost: Glasgow Angling Centre, Unit 1 The Point, 29 Saracen Street, Glasgow G22 5HT.…

Sharpe’s of Aberdeen Fish of the Month competition celebrates your great fishing achievements. If you’ve caught a big fish, you could be one of our monthly winners. But it’s not always the captor of a big fish that triumphs — other factors that make the catch special are considered: where the fish is caught, method and circumstances (perhaps it’s your first fish. Perhaps you’re a young rod). There are two categories — salmon and trout (brown, rainbow or sea). The trout winner receives a Sharpe’s single-handed rod. The salmon winner receives a double-handed rod. Both winners also receive a landing net or wading staff of their choice. View Sharpe’s tackle at sharpes.net. If releasing a fish, keep it in the water, in a net. Keep handling to a minimum. September…

WE LIVE IN STRANGE TIMES. I WAS sitting in a friend’s garden enjoying a socially distanced glass and a mardle when the conversation turned, as it often does, to the topic of fishing. I have known this fellow for a goodly number of years and while many of those have been spent striving in different directions we now find ourselves wending our ways back towards common ground. Which is to say we both inhabit the same village and have a bit of time on our hands. And he has taken up fishing. To which end he has accumulated a bunch of gear and a boat. And because he knows I fish a bit he wondered if I would care to join him and share my wisdom in matters of the…