I've put myself into the hands of a professional today and am on the River Dee at Corwen with Gwilym Hughes, former welsh international fly fisherman and all round nice bloke. Find out about fishing with Gwilym at www.gwilymhughes.com.
I've booked a day's guided grayling fishing and also a lesson to give at least some structure to my potentially traction inducing double handed salmon rod casting.
We're on the Rhug Estate waters and there's salmon literally everywhere getting frisky as they ready to spawn. It's enough tough day weather wise though with a plummeting barometer and a wind that feels like it's straight from Siberia.
No point whinging so I'm straight into it trying heavy bugs which interestingly are nowhere near as heavy as the ones I normally use and also a much lighter set-up with two of Gwilym's rat flies (small bead heads) under an orange dry. It's tough going but I manage a small graying at the head of a pool on a rat fly. It really is fookin cold though and perhaps a few more layers might have helped.
Thankfully, the sun came out for a short time and some quick instruction on the merits on the reach cast and a change to a small paradun dry produces 4-5 grayling to 0.75lb in quick succession. Not bad for late November.
We plug on with the nymphs when the sun goes and the biting wind comes back but it's tough. Dogging it out produces two late fish on the heavy bugs (Pinkie) though to give me eight fish to 12 oz on all methods and to be honest I'm pretty chuffed with how I've fished on a hard day.
Great fun day despite the weather and I'll be back in the New Year if my new methods learnt don't dig me out a 2lber in the lower sections of the river. Give Gwilym a call if you want to learn from 50 years of river fishing experience at the highest level.
Lastly, to totally spoil the week, some low life has nicked my 30hp Honda outboard from my boat on the River Dee. Given it is stored 4ft above the water level on a boat lift and weighs about 10 stone; it was some feat of skulduggery requiring a good sized boat; drill; angle grinder and at least three people to nab it. Someone must have seen them lugging it out of the river but I'll not hold my breath...
Mr Fish
Showing posts with label Grayling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Grayling. Show all posts
22/10/2011
Big Grayling - Attempt No 11 (River Dee, Wales)
Yet another go at cracking a grayling PB today on the Dee and another learning day after trying out all the methods I have picked up so far.
The water had dropped a bit and looked spot on - weather also good with nice bit of cloud cover and the odd warming ray coming through. Surprisingly, it was tough initially though going through the runs with heavy czech nymphs without a peep then eeking out three small grayling and a salmon parr over four hours on a Prince Nymph goldhead; a grey Klinkhammer and two on a Coachman dry. The small fish rose again and again to the "Klink" but just kept nudging the big fly. A change to a much smaller size 14 coachman did the trick and the first grayling I think I've ever caught on a "Proper" dry fly.
Still, even with four fish, it had been hard going and they would all have comfortably sit in a sardine tin!
A change to a big indicator with the team of a hydropsyche; raco green thing and a cased caddis cast upstream into the faster water on the very edge of the seam produces a take straight away which I contrive to miss. It's hard work wading the fast water and staying in contact with the indicator straight upstream but a few casts later and I'm into a much better fish in the fast water. A nice grayling of just over 0.75lb goes back and not being used to this type of fishing I miss a few more before the hard graft drives me to the bank to think it all through again.
With only 45 mins or so till dark and despite it being late October; I go for a team of three spiders - Waterhen Bloer, Stewarts Spider and a Partridge & Orange to finish the day with a nice pleasant run through.
I was just being lazy in honesty but it's a revelation, with one run through producing five fish, four grayling and one parr, with one of 0.75-1lb and a good larger one of about 1.25lbs. Three to the Stewarts Spider; two the Warterhen Bloa and one on the Partridge & Orange. Good stuff...
Tricky day, but I've still banked nine fish so I must finally be getting half decent at this game but I'm still not even threatening the PB of 1lbs 8oz. I've booked a guided day with Gwilym Roberts on the Dee at Corwen though to see how a top drawer river fisherman does it, while hopefully putting me on to a big rascal so I can finally move on and get the pike fishing gear out!
Mr Fish
The water had dropped a bit and looked spot on - weather also good with nice bit of cloud cover and the odd warming ray coming through. Surprisingly, it was tough initially though going through the runs with heavy czech nymphs without a peep then eeking out three small grayling and a salmon parr over four hours on a Prince Nymph goldhead; a grey Klinkhammer and two on a Coachman dry. The small fish rose again and again to the "Klink" but just kept nudging the big fly. A change to a much smaller size 14 coachman did the trick and the first grayling I think I've ever caught on a "Proper" dry fly.
Still, even with four fish, it had been hard going and they would all have comfortably sit in a sardine tin!
A change to a big indicator with the team of a hydropsyche; raco green thing and a cased caddis cast upstream into the faster water on the very edge of the seam produces a take straight away which I contrive to miss. It's hard work wading the fast water and staying in contact with the indicator straight upstream but a few casts later and I'm into a much better fish in the fast water. A nice grayling of just over 0.75lb goes back and not being used to this type of fishing I miss a few more before the hard graft drives me to the bank to think it all through again.
With only 45 mins or so till dark and despite it being late October; I go for a team of three spiders - Waterhen Bloer, Stewarts Spider and a Partridge & Orange to finish the day with a nice pleasant run through.
I was just being lazy in honesty but it's a revelation, with one run through producing five fish, four grayling and one parr, with one of 0.75-1lb and a good larger one of about 1.25lbs. Three to the Stewarts Spider; two the Warterhen Bloa and one on the Partridge & Orange. Good stuff...
Tricky day, but I've still banked nine fish so I must finally be getting half decent at this game but I'm still not even threatening the PB of 1lbs 8oz. I've booked a guided day with Gwilym Roberts on the Dee at Corwen though to see how a top drawer river fisherman does it, while hopefully putting me on to a big rascal so I can finally move on and get the pike fishing gear out!
Mr Fish
16/10/2011
Big Grayling - Attempt No 10 (River Dee, Wales)
Another quick session today and a chance to try out some monster Klinkhammer flies that I have tied up on size 8s. I've returned to the stretch where I caught a good grayling a couple of weeks ago and start with the usual size 12 Klinkhammer in orange/brown which raises fish straight away. It's micro grayling and salmon parr again though despite running down the whole run from bubbling head of the pool to the deeper more glide like stretches at the bottom.
Working up the stretch produces agood solid rise and take from a fish which dives right to the bottom and stays there. The over powering 8wt is really applying some pressure when there is a head shake and the hook pulls. Rats...
Time for the new flies and working up from the bottom of the run again I constantly cast to cover the seam and faster/slower water either side. A third of the way up in the faster water and the monster Klinkhammer is engulfed in a slashing rise. No real need to strike as a good brownie of about 10 ins hooks itself and fights well to the net. I've not drawn a fish out of the deeper fast water before so the bigger meal seems to be required for them to make the effort.
Unfortunately the fly keeps drowning now and I have to switch to the smaller shop bought model which produces but small fish and not from the deeper water.
My less than subtle Klinkhammer is below...
Working up the stretch produces agood solid rise and take from a fish which dives right to the bottom and stays there. The over powering 8wt is really applying some pressure when there is a head shake and the hook pulls. Rats...
Time for the new flies and working up from the bottom of the run again I constantly cast to cover the seam and faster/slower water either side. A third of the way up in the faster water and the monster Klinkhammer is engulfed in a slashing rise. No real need to strike as a good brownie of about 10 ins hooks itself and fights well to the net. I've not drawn a fish out of the deeper fast water before so the bigger meal seems to be required for them to make the effort.
Unfortunately the fly keeps drowning now and I have to switch to the smaller shop bought model which produces but small fish and not from the deeper water.
My less than subtle Klinkhammer is below...
07/10/2011
Big Grayling - Attempt No.9 (River Dee)
I've had time for a short session on the River Dee today because the girls have gone to see the outlaws. My old man comes with me to check out the beat, which is the same one as last week, when I had 9-10 small grayling on klinkhammers.
This week the method of attack is a bit different using a set-up I've put together on the last baby feed shift. It's a very long braided line (15 ft)with black permanent marker stripes and a three czech nymph set up with the holy trinity - hydropsyche; peeping cased caddis and rychophilia. Hardy are on the case with the repair of my main rod so an old 8wt Malcom Marshall reservoir rod has the cobwebs blown off it and is brought on off the bench.
There are no fish rising and I wade upstream through the same productive run as last time over an hour or so and whilst there are a some bumps I am not convinced any were fish because the cased caddid has a bb shot on it's head and is hanging on the bottom quite a bit. A second run through and the caddis snags up leading to a break and all three nymphs gone - 9lbs Stroft leader has landed barbel for me and is very very thin but if you get the knots even slightly wrong it's good night Vienna.
Shorn of my one and only leader with droppers on goes an old tapered dry and leader and first cast with a klinkhammer produces a rise from the same run I've just meticulously covered with the nymphs. I'm downstream dump casting and the presentation is drag free leading to rise after rise.
A couple of salmon parr are "landed" before a slashing rise produces a better fish which dives into the current and has the stiff 8 wt in half and takes line. A few aerobatics and a nice male grayling of about 1.25 lbs is in the net. Time to go and more lessons learnt - the Klinkhammer has to be the first line of attack until the air temp cools and I need to tie some much bigger ones because even the shop bought size 12s are getting drowned a lot in the stronger riffled water.
Off to Scotland tomorrow night to try to beat my salmon PB of 7.5lbs. Fingers crossed...
Mr Fish
This week the method of attack is a bit different using a set-up I've put together on the last baby feed shift. It's a very long braided line (15 ft)with black permanent marker stripes and a three czech nymph set up with the holy trinity - hydropsyche; peeping cased caddis and rychophilia. Hardy are on the case with the repair of my main rod so an old 8wt Malcom Marshall reservoir rod has the cobwebs blown off it and is brought on off the bench.
There are no fish rising and I wade upstream through the same productive run as last time over an hour or so and whilst there are a some bumps I am not convinced any were fish because the cased caddid has a bb shot on it's head and is hanging on the bottom quite a bit. A second run through and the caddis snags up leading to a break and all three nymphs gone - 9lbs Stroft leader has landed barbel for me and is very very thin but if you get the knots even slightly wrong it's good night Vienna.
Shorn of my one and only leader with droppers on goes an old tapered dry and leader and first cast with a klinkhammer produces a rise from the same run I've just meticulously covered with the nymphs. I'm downstream dump casting and the presentation is drag free leading to rise after rise.
A couple of salmon parr are "landed" before a slashing rise produces a better fish which dives into the current and has the stiff 8 wt in half and takes line. A few aerobatics and a nice male grayling of about 1.25 lbs is in the net. Time to go and more lessons learnt - the Klinkhammer has to be the first line of attack until the air temp cools and I need to tie some much bigger ones because even the shop bought size 12s are getting drowned a lot in the stronger riffled water.
Off to Scotland tomorrow night to try to beat my salmon PB of 7.5lbs. Fingers crossed...
Mr Fish
05/10/2011
Big Grayling - Attempt No 8 (River Dee)
Having recently had the arrival of my second daughter, Lola Fish, fishing time has been in short supply and I've had more time tidying up tackle in the late hours when waiting to get the final feed done for the new little miss trouble.
I have had a few hours on the Dee trying to get some kind of respectable spey cast going because I have a trip to Kelso, Scotland on 10th October to fish the Teviot for salmon and I've not cast a double handed salmon rod for 15 years.
Anyhow the Oliver Edwards fly fishing DVDs (Essential-skills.tv) have been on again while waiting for nappy changes and feed and encouraged me to give the dry fly a go for grayling rather than the deep nymphs while the weather is still good and insect life prolific. I've never caught one on a dry and anyone who has read these blogs will know that my nymphing experience for grayling is only 18 months old and still on a steep learning curve. I have caught trout and coarse fish on Klinkhammer emerger patterns though so that was the line of attack today at a stretch near Bangor on Dee.
10 small grayling caught on black and brown Klinkhammers so my first "Dry(ish)" sorted and a PB of sorts. No size though with the biggest only going 6 ins but I'm now getting an idea of the water to target - the seam just off the main tongue of water going into a pool seems to be the hot spot. Slower glides didn't produce and interestingly running a heavy czech nymph through the same area didn't cut the mustard either.
I did try to get another session in near Corwen on 3rd October but it lasted 15 minutes including a 14 minute walk from the car to the beat. For some reason my pride and joy Hardy Angel decided to clean snap the second section after merely threading the fly line and putting a modest bend in the tip. Not really what you expect from a £600 rod (A rare treat to myself) and after owning it for 5 years it seems a strange time to go. I can only think that a heavy nymph has clacked the blank but I'm hardy powering them out.
The internet forums are worryingly full of vitriol as regards Hardy, in particular Angel rods and customer service but it's been a fabulous tool so hopefully they are actually a helpful bunch and fix/replace it for me promptly so I can get out there and find some grayling to finally threaten the 2003 1lb 8oz PB.
Mr Fish
I have had a few hours on the Dee trying to get some kind of respectable spey cast going because I have a trip to Kelso, Scotland on 10th October to fish the Teviot for salmon and I've not cast a double handed salmon rod for 15 years.
Anyhow the Oliver Edwards fly fishing DVDs (Essential-skills.tv) have been on again while waiting for nappy changes and feed and encouraged me to give the dry fly a go for grayling rather than the deep nymphs while the weather is still good and insect life prolific. I've never caught one on a dry and anyone who has read these blogs will know that my nymphing experience for grayling is only 18 months old and still on a steep learning curve. I have caught trout and coarse fish on Klinkhammer emerger patterns though so that was the line of attack today at a stretch near Bangor on Dee.
10 small grayling caught on black and brown Klinkhammers so my first "Dry(ish)" sorted and a PB of sorts. No size though with the biggest only going 6 ins but I'm now getting an idea of the water to target - the seam just off the main tongue of water going into a pool seems to be the hot spot. Slower glides didn't produce and interestingly running a heavy czech nymph through the same area didn't cut the mustard either.
I did try to get another session in near Corwen on 3rd October but it lasted 15 minutes including a 14 minute walk from the car to the beat. For some reason my pride and joy Hardy Angel decided to clean snap the second section after merely threading the fly line and putting a modest bend in the tip. Not really what you expect from a £600 rod (A rare treat to myself) and after owning it for 5 years it seems a strange time to go. I can only think that a heavy nymph has clacked the blank but I'm hardy powering them out.
The internet forums are worryingly full of vitriol as regards Hardy, in particular Angel rods and customer service but it's been a fabulous tool so hopefully they are actually a helpful bunch and fix/replace it for me promptly so I can get out there and find some grayling to finally threaten the 2003 1lb 8oz PB.
Mr Fish
14/08/2011
Big Grayling - Attempt No 7 (River Dee)
I had a couple of spare hours this morning and with the River Dee looking gin clear in Chester I thought I'd quickly run the czech nymphs through some of the better pools I've fished for grayling. First cast and a salmon parr saves any potential blankety blank blushes but nothing more despite fishing the best sections of two beats.
I see one salmon around bangor on dee and with more time I might have got the salmon rod out and whipped the river to a foam. Not sure if these heavy nymphs work in the summer for grayling but so far I am sure that they don't work for me!
Back to the catfish/eel night shifts...
Mr Fish
23/01/2011
Big Grayling - Attempt No 6
Bit of a wasted day really today. I travelled about 75 miles across North Wales intending to fish various stretches of the River Dee but all bar one stretch were packed with fly fisherman. It was like they were the 49ers panning for gold round Bala there were that many people in the river....
I've never had much luck following anyone down a pool when Czech nymphing unless the first angler is salmon or dry fly fishing. All the articles say that Grayling are the most tolerant of the game fish but I've found that they either have it in the first three casts or not at all. I only fished one stretch as a result and the water is still too high - today should be nominated "Excuses day"!
Not a touch or sight of any life at all despite giving my heaviest Hydrowhatsit and Racothingamys a good swim through. About 1.5 hours fishing and 4 hours driving. I'll definitely wait until the level counter suggests good fly water before making the trip again.
Another grueller of sorts then...
Cheers
Mr Fish
I've never had much luck following anyone down a pool when Czech nymphing unless the first angler is salmon or dry fly fishing. All the articles say that Grayling are the most tolerant of the game fish but I've found that they either have it in the first three casts or not at all. I only fished one stretch as a result and the water is still too high - today should be nominated "Excuses day"!
Not a touch or sight of any life at all despite giving my heaviest Hydrowhatsit and Racothingamys a good swim through. About 1.5 hours fishing and 4 hours driving. I'll definitely wait until the level counter suggests good fly water before making the trip again.
Another grueller of sorts then...
Cheers
Mr Fish
09/08/2010
Big Grayling Attempt No 5 (River Dove, Dovedale)
We’ve been on the hotel section of the River Dove today, which is well fished but has plenty of brown trout and some great grayling. It’s an even smaller river than the Wye in this stretch with most runs 2ft deep and a few pools perhaps going down to 4ft. The grayling are very large and if I can hook one, a new PB (currently 1lbs 8oz from the River Dee at Farndon) is on the cards. The only trouble is that I’ve fished the stretch four times before and know that the grayling are better educated than an Oxbridge graduate!
It’s been an enjoyable but not too eventful day, with a brace of brown trout on a grey klinkhammer and a big egg laying sedge being the ones landed amongst countless missed takes. There were quite a few PB grayling clearly on show but they just wouldn’t play ball, even despite 30 mins of dapping various dries from behind a tree over the head of a very big 2.5lb plus male sitting near to our bank. I’d been thinking about Czech nymphing and spider fishing some of the quicker sections for a while, so tried it later in the day but there’s just not enough flow for the nymphs and I’m not comfortable I know what I’m doing with the “Dog and Partridge” spiders I’ve bought recently.
Good fun day, but I’m already thinking I should be able to winkle a decent perch out of the Dee if I can get the boat set up right to fish some of the deeper pools around Ecclestone…
Cheers
Mr Fish
It’s been an enjoyable but not too eventful day, with a brace of brown trout on a grey klinkhammer and a big egg laying sedge being the ones landed amongst countless missed takes. There were quite a few PB grayling clearly on show but they just wouldn’t play ball, even despite 30 mins of dapping various dries from behind a tree over the head of a very big 2.5lb plus male sitting near to our bank. I’d been thinking about Czech nymphing and spider fishing some of the quicker sections for a while, so tried it later in the day but there’s just not enough flow for the nymphs and I’m not comfortable I know what I’m doing with the “Dog and Partridge” spiders I’ve bought recently.
Good fun day, but I’m already thinking I should be able to winkle a decent perch out of the Dee if I can get the boat set up right to fish some of the deeper pools around Ecclestone…
Cheers
Mr Fish
09/05/2010
Big Grayling Attempt No 5 (River Dee)
Family life and far too much rain has delayed my latest attempt to break my Grayling PB and hopefully get over the 2lb, or even the 3lb barrier. I have managed to get a new boat up and running in the meantime though, which will make life easier when trying to improve on my coarse river species PBs when the season opens.
I'm still gutted at the fish that I managed to release 30 seconds before landing it last time on the Dee but, having given it further thought, I think I'm just playing them too hard on the predominantly braid rig I'm using. Same rig again today, but the drag's backed right off to try to stop pulling out of any better fish I can find...
It's a sunny day for a change and the river level is much lower than I expected. The old weed is dying off in the low water and there's quite a bit of turnover going on, with debris holding up in the slacks. I've gone for the same tactics as last time as they are the only ones that have worked so far in four attempts!
First few runs through the lies which produced last time and the flies are continually catching bottom in the slower flow. A lighter point fly quickly produces some plucks and a few salmon smolt take the Green Pea top dropper. Deeper water produces a nice grayling on a big Hydropsyche and a tiddler on a basic grey shrimp with an orange spot.
I keep working downstream through all the lies I fished last time until a big hatch of small olives with parr and small brownies rising furiously encourages me to drop anchor and run the team of czech nymphs through a few times. No immediate success but there must be grayling beneath the hatch; as there's more flies coming off than volcanic ash over an airport!
I have the feeling I'm going over their heads so put on the biggest bug I can find as the middle dropper. First cast and it's a very solid thump in response to the line stopping - bingo, I'm getting good at this game. It's one heck of a scrap with the drag on the Hardy Angel set at a minimum and a good current giving the big dorsal fin plenty of resistance to work with . Literally ten minutes of gentle playing later and a very good but angry male grayling is in the net. He promises to be PB number two, but the scales come up 2oz short at 1lb 6 oz.
Close, but no cigar.....and even worse the car radio tells me tories are having to try to do a deal with the Lib Dems - looks like we're all goosed for 10 years....
I'm still gutted at the fish that I managed to release 30 seconds before landing it last time on the Dee but, having given it further thought, I think I'm just playing them too hard on the predominantly braid rig I'm using. Same rig again today, but the drag's backed right off to try to stop pulling out of any better fish I can find...
It's a sunny day for a change and the river level is much lower than I expected. The old weed is dying off in the low water and there's quite a bit of turnover going on, with debris holding up in the slacks. I've gone for the same tactics as last time as they are the only ones that have worked so far in four attempts!
First few runs through the lies which produced last time and the flies are continually catching bottom in the slower flow. A lighter point fly quickly produces some plucks and a few salmon smolt take the Green Pea top dropper. Deeper water produces a nice grayling on a big Hydropsyche and a tiddler on a basic grey shrimp with an orange spot.
I keep working downstream through all the lies I fished last time until a big hatch of small olives with parr and small brownies rising furiously encourages me to drop anchor and run the team of czech nymphs through a few times. No immediate success but there must be grayling beneath the hatch; as there's more flies coming off than volcanic ash over an airport!
I have the feeling I'm going over their heads so put on the biggest bug I can find as the middle dropper. First cast and it's a very solid thump in response to the line stopping - bingo, I'm getting good at this game. It's one heck of a scrap with the drag on the Hardy Angel set at a minimum and a good current giving the big dorsal fin plenty of resistance to work with . Literally ten minutes of gentle playing later and a very good but angry male grayling is in the net. He promises to be PB number two, but the scales come up 2oz short at 1lb 6 oz.
Close, but no cigar.....and even worse the car radio tells me tories are having to try to do a deal with the Lib Dems - looks like we're all goosed for 10 years....
28/03/2010
Big Grayling - Attempt No 4 (River Dee)
Very mixed day yesterday. Arriving at the River Dee at 8.30 am to see 2-3 feet of additional water running through and a tingle of colour set the confidence back at bit. However, I've researched czech nymphing to death now and armed with braided leaders painstakingly marked with permanent market pen every 2 ins and a team of the heaviest nymphs I could find on-line, I do fancy my chances for once.
I pick the neck of a streamy pool to start and first run through the leader twitches but nothing on the strike. Second run through and the braided leader on the surface darts away and we're in (!), a little 6 ins grayling has taken the super weighted hears ear nymph. At last, a fish after 4 blanks on the run and my first grayling on a fly. Thanks to Karel Krivenec - not the easiest reading of fishing books, but the rigs have worked straight away.
The next hour or two is slow with a few twitches before the leader stops again and I'm into a better fish at the tail of a pool. It fights a lot harder than I would have expected before I hand in a 9 ins grayling, which again has taken the weighted hears ear. Nothing more in this stretch so back to the car to try another beat before I'm back to the family to have some fun "Launching" a boat I've just boat on to my brother's farm pond.
Next stretch and into the neck of the main pool again. Second run and we're off again, a much bigger fish though. A grayling of about 1.5 lbs rolls on the surface and runs with the current before the hook pulls. I'd tightened the drag to put the rod in the car, so a schoolboy howler loses probably a second pb for the diaries. Another hour passes with not much happening - this is hard fishing with constant lobbing of flies and to be honest not the most enjoyable I've ever done. My neck's killing 24 hours later.
I'm totally goosed now, but put three super heavy flies on to try one last run through the main pool. Just as I'm finishing the tail, the leader stops dead and I'm in to something big. The drag is right this time and is immediately tested as the fish tries to run straight over the rapids at the end of the pool. It's about 3-4 minutes before I see the fish and it looks like I've snared a good sized Rainbow Trout of 3lbs, or so, which has somehow escaped in to the river. I'm up to 5-6 minutes with the rod bent double before I ease the fish in to shallower water to see it's actually a monster grayling of every bit of 3lbs. It's fighting more like a bonefish in the shallow water and keeps trying to go out of the back of the pool. I have to really put the pressure on to try to guide it towards me and..........the hook pulls.
Five minutes of top quality swearing to myself/kicking rocks on the bank and I'm back in the car, totally gutted. I know my tactics are spot on now, but I've lost pound for pound one of the best fish I've ever had on, including sharks; marlin etc. I may have blown my chance of a fish of a lifetime but on the flip side, I know where he lives!
Bank holiday next weekend so I'll be back, again...
Mr Fish
I pick the neck of a streamy pool to start and first run through the leader twitches but nothing on the strike. Second run through and the braided leader on the surface darts away and we're in (!), a little 6 ins grayling has taken the super weighted hears ear nymph. At last, a fish after 4 blanks on the run and my first grayling on a fly. Thanks to Karel Krivenec - not the easiest reading of fishing books, but the rigs have worked straight away.
The next hour or two is slow with a few twitches before the leader stops again and I'm into a better fish at the tail of a pool. It fights a lot harder than I would have expected before I hand in a 9 ins grayling, which again has taken the weighted hears ear. Nothing more in this stretch so back to the car to try another beat before I'm back to the family to have some fun "Launching" a boat I've just boat on to my brother's farm pond.
Next stretch and into the neck of the main pool again. Second run and we're off again, a much bigger fish though. A grayling of about 1.5 lbs rolls on the surface and runs with the current before the hook pulls. I'd tightened the drag to put the rod in the car, so a schoolboy howler loses probably a second pb for the diaries. Another hour passes with not much happening - this is hard fishing with constant lobbing of flies and to be honest not the most enjoyable I've ever done. My neck's killing 24 hours later.
I'm totally goosed now, but put three super heavy flies on to try one last run through the main pool. Just as I'm finishing the tail, the leader stops dead and I'm in to something big. The drag is right this time and is immediately tested as the fish tries to run straight over the rapids at the end of the pool. It's about 3-4 minutes before I see the fish and it looks like I've snared a good sized Rainbow Trout of 3lbs, or so, which has somehow escaped in to the river. I'm up to 5-6 minutes with the rod bent double before I ease the fish in to shallower water to see it's actually a monster grayling of every bit of 3lbs. It's fighting more like a bonefish in the shallow water and keeps trying to go out of the back of the pool. I have to really put the pressure on to try to guide it towards me and..........the hook pulls.
Five minutes of top quality swearing to myself/kicking rocks on the bank and I'm back in the car, totally gutted. I know my tactics are spot on now, but I've lost pound for pound one of the best fish I've ever had on, including sharks; marlin etc. I may have blown my chance of a fish of a lifetime but on the flip side, I know where he lives!
Bank holiday next weekend so I'll be back, again...
Mr Fish
20/03/2010
Big Grayling - Attempt No 3 (River Dee)
I've only got three hours today, but I'm determined to crack this Grayling fishing on the fly, even if my track record so far is real Eddie the Eagle in terms of achievement level.
Sods law with not much time, second cast with my team of three strongly recommended czech nymphs patterns perfectly, balanced as per an internet site I've become short term obsessed with and its all systems go....up the overhanging tree with the lot of them - triffic. Taking no regard for personal safety I'm up to the very top of my chesties in ice cold River Dee to jump up and snap the branch off - anyone watching would have had a field day - what a total goon.
Ten minutes of water knot fantastic later and I'm off again. I've finally forced myself to stop casting and feel I'm running the team of nymphs through the runs ok, possibly not deep enough though, as I'm never catching bottom. Half a mile of hard fishing with not a sniff and then the indicator stops, a strike and nothing. Another run through and it stops at slightly further down the run. Thump and I'm into something fishy for 3-4 seconds and then it's off. Two hundredish more runs through the swim with bugger all but confidence is no longer on a par with Portsmouth's chances of premiership survival...
Another blank. I'm probably mad but feel I'm getting closer. I've just spent two hours watching Oliver Edwards DVD and another hour making longer braided leaders for next time. This time next week....
Cheers
Mr Fish
Sods law with not much time, second cast with my team of three strongly recommended czech nymphs patterns perfectly, balanced as per an internet site I've become short term obsessed with and its all systems go....up the overhanging tree with the lot of them - triffic. Taking no regard for personal safety I'm up to the very top of my chesties in ice cold River Dee to jump up and snap the branch off - anyone watching would have had a field day - what a total goon.
Ten minutes of water knot fantastic later and I'm off again. I've finally forced myself to stop casting and feel I'm running the team of nymphs through the runs ok, possibly not deep enough though, as I'm never catching bottom. Half a mile of hard fishing with not a sniff and then the indicator stops, a strike and nothing. Another run through and it stops at slightly further down the run. Thump and I'm into something fishy for 3-4 seconds and then it's off. Two hundredish more runs through the swim with bugger all but confidence is no longer on a par with Portsmouth's chances of premiership survival...
Another blank. I'm probably mad but feel I'm getting closer. I've just spent two hours watching Oliver Edwards DVD and another hour making longer braided leaders for next time. This time next week....
Cheers
Mr Fish
13/03/2010
Big Grayling - Attempt No 2 (River Dee)
Right, off we go to the Dee again, this time with slightly better weather and more of a plan of action. It's Czech nymphs again, though I've never caught anything on them, even when fishing for trout on the Dove where I've done pretty well on the dry.
Lots of tangles; difficulty to get the hang of not casting and again a total lack of action. Bugger me, this is rubbish. I fish two complete stretches hard and not even a nudge. Pink nymphs; hypo, gastro-sawyer whatever their names are, it doesn't seem to matter as the fish aren't having it. Plenty of salmon moving and one's caught from one of the main pools as I'm leaving. More revision required to sort this out - 2 DVD's on their way from Sportfish which will hopefully do the trick...
For now, another blank racked up....
Mr Fish
Lots of tangles; difficulty to get the hang of not casting and again a total lack of action. Bugger me, this is rubbish. I fish two complete stretches hard and not even a nudge. Pink nymphs; hypo, gastro-sawyer whatever their names are, it doesn't seem to matter as the fish aren't having it. Plenty of salmon moving and one's caught from one of the main pools as I'm leaving. More revision required to sort this out - 2 DVD's on their way from Sportfish which will hopefully do the trick...
For now, another blank racked up....
Mr Fish
07/02/2010
Big Grayling - Attempt No 1 (River Dee)
The new baby and moving house to Chester has put me out of action for a few months and I've trying to find the time to cram in a few river sessions before the end of the coarse season. The weather has been horrendous since November though, so I haven't missed out on too much. Time is very limited so no coarse fishing today and out comes the fly gear to try to catch a decent grayling. PB is not disastrous at 1lb 8oz, but all my fish have come on bait so far.
First go is on the higher reaches of the Dee and it's a shocking day - driving rain and then hail - lovely. Trying to fish czech nymphs for effectively the first time so more of a practice run really. Good job, as not a sausage for 3 hours and I've had enough of my nether regions freezing in the snow melt. Need to refine the tactics a bit - another blankety lank and back to the books...
Cheers
Mr Fish
First go is on the higher reaches of the Dee and it's a shocking day - driving rain and then hail - lovely. Trying to fish czech nymphs for effectively the first time so more of a practice run really. Good job, as not a sausage for 3 hours and I've had enough of my nether regions freezing in the snow melt. Need to refine the tactics a bit - another blankety lank and back to the books...
Cheers
Mr Fish
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