Thursday – hot – roasting hot – Glasgow was boiling – overcast and oppressive – Kelvin has no water so we headed to the big sister/brother The Clyde in search of some kind of evening rise – it was even hotter out that way with the added problem of there being no clouds – we cast to spooky sporadically rising trout (possibly huge) which were not interested in my huge flies – and only a couple of smaller ones were interested in my fishing buddies molecular sized flies.
At dusk into darkness the long slow pool came even more alive with trout – big ones too – at one point I looked down the long slow pool and could hardly count the number of rising trout – we could not work out what they were taking – we could not see anything on the surface – no spinners, duns – I suspected they were taking something just under the surface – when I tried casting a fly which sunk just under the surface the trout ignored it.
Finally a trout took my fly – I had put on a deer hair emerger out of sheer desperation – I spotted some nervous water and drifted my fly downstream over it – a trout nosed towards my fly causing a v and gulped it down – I set the hook– it ripped 20 yards of fly line before jumping all over the pool – when I landed it I estimated it to be around 2lb – a monster brown in anyone’s book.
Hang on – that story was totally fabricated – what actually happened was I had put on a deer hair emerger out of sheer desperation – I spotted some nervous water and drifted my fly downstream over it – a trout nosed towards my fly causing a v and gulped it down – I set the hook and with an almighty splash the trout was gone.
What could have been eh?
We’ve talked about this before. You’re a fishing writer – you’re bound by a moral obligation to go with the first version of your story. It’s just what it is.
Alistair, which permit section of the clyde do you fish? I’ve only fished the lamington covered water, it’s a lovely area imo!
Tom – I am bound by a strict moral code of ethics that force me to tell the truth at all times – that and the fact that there was a witness who would grass me in quicker than a bolt of lightning 😉
Scott – I probably fish the same water you do.
I’ve been struggling lately on a kelvin trib with the low water. The only sport im getting is in the faster, more broken water where surface disturbance masks evil intent! A dip in trout sport is a good excuse to fish for other species I guess though. Perch are hammering flies hard just now, worth a shot.
By the way Scott – you ever been asked for a permit down on your section of Canal? I have heard some British Waterways guys have been doing the rounds?
Nah I have not Alistair, the bit Ive been fishing (poaching?) most lately is run by a coarse angling club whose name escapes me. If they enforced the rules there and made people pay up then Im sure that they would make a looooooooot of money.
There is a private coarse angling club on the canal? I thought it was all BW?
Aye, I think its the lowland scotland coarse angling club? something like that anyway. They run from kelvinhead to the underwood lockhouse near bonnybridge, arguably the nicest stretch of the canal.