I headed out with fishing buddy Alan Atkins for an evening session on Tuesday night – the conditions looked perfect: overcast, warm and flies on the water – sure the river was low however this exposed a lot of pocket water where I suspected the trout would be sitting. As it was it was strange evening – as dusk settled there was a lot more flies on the water, drowned Yellow May spinners with a lot still in the air. The rising trout peaked at around 1030 and to be honest it really was not what I would call a proper evening rise – usually when the bats are on the water you see a lot more trout rising in the slower water and they are a bit braver at taking slower moving dry flies when an hour before they would not even consider it.
Alan did two things which deserved ultimate respect.
1. He caught a trout in poor conditions – a nice trout at that – certainly around the 3/4 pound mark – it fought like a devil and ran absolute rings round him – we had a good chortle about it and I promised not to write about or humiliate him publicly.
2. He ate a drowned Yellow May spinner – he picked it out the water and I asked him to taste it (half joking) he popped it in his mouth and “chewed” before staring off into space and said “tastes sweet” . I feel he now has a definite advantage when flies are on the water !
Still it did not give him any advantage over the next hour – he text me today and has not mentioned anything to do with stomach cramps or hospital admissions so the pluses of eating insects are still on the positive side.
All very Zen!
Nice fish did you get it at that good stretch of water where the good size fish are. Fished up where I live Tuesday night only got two but at the same time. One about 4inchs on the point fly Hare’s Ear nymph and one about 6inchs on the dropper Greenwells spider line was going all over the place. Spent the rest of the night talking to Willie the bailiff and some of the other guys and watching some big fish rising where we had been fishing.
Hey Jim – aye – got it up where “I think” you have met Alan a couple of times – I take it you fished the vet school area?
You ever see lots of people fishing above the vet school – ie. folk without permits?
A*
Alistair, no stomach cramps or vomitting as yet , so all’s fine with the inner man, in fact i feel somewhat energised and at a distinct advantage over the fish now !! Seriously, it was an enjoyable night and good to have a wander on that part of the river and scout out potential pools for hwen the conditions are better. I’ve certainly noticed that the trout have been much more switched on to the yellow may duns than in previous seasons
Alan, you’re a brave man. I can see something in the near future resembling the guy at the end of men in black….
Alistair, yes still bump into them and do explain they need a permit but when you say you have just spoken to the bailiffs you don’t usually see them on the way back down the river.Scotty9 can you imagine it a yellow may with a beard. What would you use to tie that fly?