New Season anticipation . Rod Action bollocks and marketing

As is usual in the darkest bit of winter one spends more time on t inter web  , In  this last few weeks of winter  shitty wet days and dark nights I have spent many an hour mindlessly scrolling through various forums and I marvel at the nonsense spouted by the add men selling stuff  and folks on forums . There are a couple of words and phrases  that seem to be in vogue at the moment .  I always thought that I knew what they meant but it would appear I don’t .  Either that or the ad men are making stuff up to get us ordinary folk to part with our hard earned cash .  

The first word to grumble about is medium as part of the phrase medium action fly rod .  Now for  most of this century and the last 20 years of the last one . Yes I am old and remember the 60s and 70s it seems to me that all the big guns in the carbon rods game have been making things faster and faster .  Most rods are still pretty fast but they have cottoned on to the fact that actually for rivers that really can be the wrong approach and  are now  trying to sell the idea that for rivers medium action is best ,  Well I for one know it is but what they appear to sell as medium action , well really just isn`t . Bamboo rods are slow / medium action ,  Fibreglass rods are often medium action and a few carbon rods are IMO medium action .  Things like the the Hardy Classic series , The Orvis Superfine series ,  The vision Cult . The Sage Circa.  Rod that are actually more a medium action . The rest well just aren`t .  But apparently and according to one online article I read .  "A medium action rod is what is needed for technical small stream fishing" well no shit sherlock which brings me on to my next marketing word grumble..

The second marketing bollox word that makes me giggle is technical . A quick google on line found the following examples as well as the classic technical fly fishing... I have found Technical fly line.  Technical fly fishing Socks and my favourite , "technical undercrackers" underwear to you and me,  I wish someone could explain to me how socks and underwear can be technical . I find the only technical thing about them is these days  keeping my balance whilst putting them on.

As for the new season well club AGMs are happening , Events that always remind me that the season is nearly upon us .  It is good to catch up with friends and its very good to see the days lengthening and the rivers waking up. In my own mind I know which rivers I will be concentrating on fishing first and which I will be waiting a little for them to wake up.  The current spell of settled weather could mean a nice early start to the trout season .  Or as is often the case will opening day follow two weeks of perfect weather and on the day be gale force winds and torrential rain.  That is the joy of English weather ,  I say weather because referring to it as a climate hints at predictability ,  Whereas we all know  March and April in particular are months when all four seasons can occur on the same day .  

Oh and one final gripe I was away for a few days recently and picked up a Trout and Salmon at the newspaper stand in WH Smith .  I had a quick flick through it and glanced at the price and replaced it rapidly ,  Fearing store security would come over and catch me stealing a read. Are they having a laugh  , How fecking much ????.  Same with fly fishing and fly Tying . for years I bought it when it was less than half current prices , then I bought the version for my ipad .  read it for a while I even had a few things published in it.  Then binned it Really though when will they wake up and actually do something decent online . I cant understand why they aren`t embracing the internet,  There have been some excellent fishing books published this last couple of years,  Peter Hayes Fly fishing outside the box. Dave Southall Long Rods Light lines John Roberts new book Grayling on the fly .  You look at those and think cost / content and compare to about Four months trout and salmon . I mean really ? Someone is technically taking the proverbial . 

Anyway that`s it for now ,  I feel better for getting that of my chest...

2025 Hopes and Plans

 

Blimey 2025! .  A quarter of a century since the Millennium .  Which seems like 5 or 10 years ago.  But there again I am one of those who says 30 years ago is the 1970s ,  Retirement heading my way fast at the moment my weeks have more days of than working .  So more time for fishing and other stuff,  But what about this year what do I want to see ?

For me there will be more fishing with bamboo.  I really have a taste for it especially for on the smaller streams where I spend so much of my fishing time ,  As for fishing time I am hoping that there will be more fishing time with friends and family ,  I have one Son who fishes although age related other interests have deflected him this last year.  But he will be joining a favourite club of mine this year so I am hoping that will reinvigorate him.  

So for the year in general  I am  hoping that we have :

• A proper Summer and by a proper Spring and Summer I mean So march cold and clear with a modicum of rain and some snow is acceptable.  April showers means showers and no more of those biblical floods ,  May means a little rain but progressively warmer ,  June, July  and August is mid summer with long warm days and just enough rain to top up my Streams .  September should start with at least two weeks of decent weather , I relish September it is like the summers last hurrah and is often the best month of the year ,  October will need some rains to restore the rivers for the Grayling fishing through until Christmas .  January and February well wet and cold please .
• Fly life Please let us have a return to a year when the hawthorn flies crash land on to the chalk stream. The BWO delight us for the evening rise , The mayfly dance and Sedges skitter. Can we see daddy longlegs in abundance and even have the midges annoy the hell out of me on those warm evenings . Surface activity to encourage rising fish would be nice .  
• Can we have sensible water levels please ,  something like a Goldilocks and the three bears analogy . Not to high and not to low but just right.
• Also this year could someone arrange for the trees to stop reaching out and grabbing my fly and tippet .  

2024 That was the year that was

 Well that`s it them , 2024 done and dusted .  A year to be remembered only for its  miserable surface hatches and for having too much water at first and then not enough . for a lack of a summer and a lack of notable fish .

For sure   I have hooked several notable fish this season sadly they all did not quite make it to the net .  There was the large trout that engulfed the Martins minnow only then to knit my tippet around the bank side wooden piles ,  then there was the one that inexplicably escaped as I drew it over the landing net ,   then an hour later an even larger brownie escaped when the same landing net frame collapsed ,  demonstrating to me at the same time that the landing net frame had cracked earlier and , I am sure was what cut the line on the other good trout of the day The reality is that that day should have been my day of the season it should have seen me land two 4lb plus brown trout , Instead it ended up being memorable for all the wrong reasons .   

Early in the season the new ( to me ) upland stream was a delight ,  The fish are eager to come to the surface , the surroundings are stunning and geography of the river means it rises and falls pretty sharpish it was often fish able where others weren’t . It one of the few seasons highlights . 

Anyway 

Monday saw me back on ( in ) a favourite stream that has a good head of grayling .  Although the last couple of visits has  seen tougher fishing than usual it’s a lovely place to be . I was fishing with friend Richard who runs a successful company selling Barbless flies you can join the dots to work out who he is . I have been pestering him for months as to why he doesn’t fish more , so when he suggested it how could I turn it down .

Above is the upland stream that brought much pleasure in the spring , it has a good head of free rising wild brown trout . It will be in my radar for April 2025 .

Below was my last fish of 2024 .  A nice grayling but by no means large for the river .  That small stream produces 1 1/2 lb fish regularly and the 2 lb target occasionally .  Also the rod reveals that my last trip was one of the first where I wasn’t fishing bamboo.  The old 8ft Scott G gives me more reach and less weight for holding the fly line of the water .  I have to say that the older scotts are a delightful way to fish with loads of feel .  Anyway readers have a great new year . For those of you who do fish then I wish you tightlines. 

Christmas Greetings

 

Testament of a Fisherman

"I fish because I love to. Because I love the environs where trout are found, which are invariably beautiful, and hate the environs where crowds of people are found, which are invariably ugly. Because of all the television commercials, cocktail parties, and assorted social posturing I thus escape. Because in a world where most men seem to spend their lives doing what they hate, my fishing is at once an endless source of delight and an act of small rebellion. Because trout do not lie or cheat and cannot be bought or bribed or impressed by power, but respond only to quietude and humility and endless patience. Because I suspect that men are going this way for the last time and I for one don’t want to waste the trip. Because mercifully there are no telephones on trout waters. Because in the woods I can find solitude without loneliness. … And finally, not because I regard fishing as being so terribly important, but because I suspect that so many of the other concerns of men are equally unimportant and not nearly so much fun." — Robert Traver, Anatomy of a Fisherman

So lets talk about the past year and the future...

 

It really has been a strange sort of a year . A spring so wet it was biblical .  Followed by a summer that never really matured it was either too hot or too cold and things never really seemed to get going ,  Rising fish seem to have been notably absent and judging by other anglers I speak to that seems to have been a pretty common experience.  The chalk stream has been a constant fascination though. As much for the bird and animal life as for the fishing and it must be said the fishing has been hard for most of the season.  Guys who have fished there for many years have struggled which makes me feel better. I had a few days where all was right in the world , fish were rising and everything slotted in to place .  I had a fine couple of days there with a guest who like me enjoys bamboo rods . The favourite rivers have delivered a few cracking days in what generally has been a below par season . 

Early season getting access to the new upland stream was brilliant as an early season option it is superb. . Cheap too so as a Yorkshireman that`s a big plus. here`s a couple of reminders of the place. 

Otherwise this year I am starting to think more and more about the R word , retirement that is. I am Part time now and in the next year total days not working will outnumber those working .  readers may be thinking that retirement will mean that I just fish all the time .  Well in some ways I feel it could be the opposite. All my life fishing has been partly an escape to de stress from work and I believe when I do pack work in other things will also move in to fill the time .  Although I think fishing is in my very bones ,

I recently received the rod I promised myself as a retirement gift .  The Luke Bannister fly rod it was a tad late for the trout season but anxious to put a line on it I had it out with me on a favourite stream after grayling with hope that I may get a grayling on it without resorting to the heavy stuff .  I also took another favourite carbon rod with me as the new rod is not really intended for slinging bead head nymphs about . So I took along a favourite winter rod for small streams a Scott original G series in a 8ft 3 wt and was catching steadily in the deeper runs . It is a perfect  having a bit extra reach .  Anyway the first few fish came to bead head nymphs in the deeper runs .  But I couldn`t catch a grayling on the new rod with the lighter nymphs ,  the rod solved the problem for me as I approached a small pool I was casting and lengthening line and had a take in the thinner water. It was this lovely OOS trout the rod was saying , look I don`t want a grayling I am for casting s dry fly on a summers evening take me home until the spring.. So that is what I am doing...Apologies for the OOS pic. but the event needed recording. The barbless hook fell out and the fish wasn`t handled 

The other thing that has lost its shine for me , not that I was the greatest fan and to some extent why I have the blog is the dreaded Facebook .  I caught myself some months  ago taking a picture of a fish I caught and thinking how best to put it on Facebook and even wondering if I had taken a picture of the same bit of river before and at that point I thought what the bloody hell am I doing . The reality is that moment made me question my motives for taking the camera . This last few months I have had many good days fishing and come the day when I catch a new PB or something really noteworthy I may well bubble over with joy and stick it on FB .  But at the heart of it is the very reason I fish . It is to relax, enjoy nature and hopefully catch a few.  Also for me fly fishing is an intensely personal pleasure , although I have to say that taking someone as a guest and sharing favourite places with them is a special distraction and I guess gave me some of the most enjoyable days of the season.   But sharing on line is a risky business .  I know that a blog is in itself social media and I am aware that others may say I am more than a little hypocritical. But FB is a very two edged thing . great for the odd political joke and keeping in touch with folks .  But Its a pervasive thing that is just a series of soundbites and snapshots without any real thought and message .  The blog is hopefully about how I feel and spread the joy of fly fishing and the places I fish but it will be less from me in terms of the grip and grin type stuff , 

As for retirement , apart from the downside and  the obvious that it means I am getting older .  It also means that I have more time to enjoy the wonderful fishing in the rivers I am fortunate to have access too.  But as  said above it doesn`t mean that I will fish more .  I also have an allotment garden which I enjoy and the old coronet major in the garage will get more use .  For those that don`t know that is a woodworking machine and not some sort of military band leader .  Truth is like the rivers I fish I am changing . I saw a video recently of the actor Michael Hordern talking about that great writer Arthur Ransome he used the phrase "Gardeners and Fishermen make fine old men" I rather liked that and it seems like a reasonable ambition to move forwards with into retirement. I will keep you informed on how I progress.  

One of the few times this year I have had an Audience...

A very surprising result

 So my last post used a racing analogy .  My Friday a couple of weeks ago  was another day that would be backing the long odds .  Until Thursday evening I had no intention to fish on Friday as the weather forecast was making Saturday look like a certainty for a good day . But late plans meant that on Friday I was heading out to the river again . I was very happily surprised to arrive at the car park, to find very light wind and warm temperatures.

The river looked in great form , rising fish that had been a rarity all season were showing . Not in great numbers but for me it was just right , enough to keep you looking and hoping .  Aware that in two more weeks the trout season would be over for another year .  By then nymphing would be the order of the day and likely nothing else until next summer . All the fish that came to hand were small and eager but ever so welcome .

On the day most fish fell to a cdc and elk , if after a few casts the targeted fish wasn’t playing then a size smaller cdc f fly usually worked . I was determined to avoid the nymph to make the most of the last of the warm summers day 

I was using a Clifford constable 9 ft light line bamboo that I had bought very cheap on eBay , I knew the handle needed some attention but when I looked at it I knew it was past redemption .  Rot had got into the cork and even the bottom inch or so of bamboo was shot .  So a new handle was spun on the lathe and a modern reel seat fitted .  It’s a fine rod but a bit tiring to use all day . The 8ft hollolite I use is the correct weight but a tad short .  I keep thinking a 8ft 6 inch Hardy Phantom might be joining the family . 

Fly line was a Moxon silk half line 

The day as it turned out was a fitting end to the season . I did make another trip back there with a guest . Although the day was very good with excellent company two lost decent fish and a busted landing net took the edge of things .  But it’s hard to complain when you are privileged to fish on such a stunning bit of chalkstream . It won’t be long until next season . 

Summers drawing to an end

 

Well as far as fishing summers go I think that to use a racing term 2024 is one to put down as an also ran. 

It was slow to get going due to last years biblical rainfall. Then being followed by a very dry couple of months .High summer never seemed to get going .  I had some brilliant early days up in the upland stream that I joined this year.  Otherwise its all been a bit strange .  The chalk stream was slow to get going and then it has been difficult all season with guys who have been fishing it for many years struggling .  But the beauty of the place is its trump card. It is not the typical manicured chalk stream.  Little is trimmed and the surrounding fields are at times chest high .  I have never seen so many Grass snakes in my life before , The river is also lightly stocked .  At times this year I have seen more Barbel and Chub in it than trout ,  

It fits in very nicely with how my fishing experience has changed over the 54 years since I caught my first trout on a fly rod .  These days it is the quality of the place and the experience that matters .  As I said in my last post the growing fondness for bamboo is also part of that change. Last Friday I had a guest on the river .  Someone who is also a bamboo fan and a rod maker as well.  A real pleasure for me was the fact that he wasn`t continuously trying to get me to repent and admit that actually Carbon is better because its lighter and then try to convince me by talking about swing weight , and modulus of something or other .  The discussion between us on various rods was about touch , feel and sensitivity .  About silk lines and how well they fish in the windy weather.  Sometimes when fishing with others  who use carbon  I feel like I am fishing with a vegan who is constantly trying to get me to see the error of my ways. 

In the end the day was long , hot and the fishing was challenging , we both caught a few trout and my highlight was targeting and catching a chub on a caterpillar imitation and remembering just what a pretty fish they are ,  On the day I used a Hardy Hollolite 8ft 5 wt with a silk line.  For the gusty wind it was perfect.  Otherwise the kingfisher blazing up and down the river all day was nice to see and the lunch at the hut chatting to the other anglers  is always a pleasure. 

Not long now till the end of the trout season .  It seems to me that the seasons get shorter and shorter ,  I must make the most of it...