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Post by Deleted on Mar 3, 2012 18:53:23 GMT
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Post by custheyder on Mar 4, 2012 7:49:58 GMT
Fantastic set of pictures added to a super report. Thank you.
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Post by pedros on Mar 5, 2012 12:42:13 GMT
Nice report Sonia,
It was hard on Saturday with the changeable weather. Also the low sun around the sewage field is a killer. You never seem to be able to prevent your shadow being cast across the water. I flogged the dry only around Ithells for 5 Grayling. Interestingly and possibly counter intuitive I increased the length of my dry tippet from 4 to 6 feet to combat the wind problem. As you noted, holding the leader off the water mean't that any gust would also lift the dry off the water. Another issue was that with the predominantly downstream wind at Ithells, a downstream bow would appear in the tippet, so again when lifting the leader off the water the tippet and fly would be in direct contact and drag. The longer length of tippet mean't there was then an element of slack in the tippet enabling me to hold the leader without it influencing the dry.
Hope this makes sense...
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2012 13:35:22 GMT
Thanks Pedros for the longer tippet advice, there were times I was extremely frustrated with the wind as the drag issue spooked a fish which was taking close to the bank and I had a devil of a job getting near him until there was a lull in the wind strength, but by then it was too late the damage was done and he stopped rising.
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Post by Simon on Mar 11, 2012 7:51:07 GMT
Saturday 10th March. A busy day in store, loads to do and somehow try to fit a few hours on the river before the Big rugby game kicking off at 2.30! Eventually manage to get Sonia up and going, the wind was forecast to be low, no chance a strong breeze that would be blowing straight down the river. Sonia decided to stick with her 7ft brook rod today as she finds it hard to cope with the wind using the Tenkara. Still she managed to catch 18 all on the dry. I stuck with the T and fished a area on the lower Alyn called "Ithalls farm". This section has high banks due to it being very close to where it joins the River Dee. Conditions despite the wind were good. The water is crystal clear with a steady flow. I set up with two nymphs and fished them upsteam using a level line coloured with yellow model paint,12ft in length with a Tippet of 3ft. Immediately I was into my first Grayling, I'm now really getting used to detecting the takes using this level line, it just stops or straightens. Slowly working my way around the bend towards the bridge, staying on the left side 8 more Grayling fell to the nymphs. After plundering this run the wind became impossible so I changed my tactics and fished down and across with a Tenkara style partridge and orange. Fish could be seen trying to hit the fly as it covered them in the fast water. All missed until a large Grayling decided that he wanted it. Sonia called on the radios that we carry when fishing pointing out that the game started in 30min. Time to go, a successful 1.5hrs on the river. Better still Wales won!!!! ;D Simon.
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Post by custheyder on Mar 11, 2012 15:34:59 GMT
What a brilliant session.... and the fishing. I do love the quality of your pictures.
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Post by leckie on Mar 12, 2012 13:23:19 GMT
Simon, Great report and photos as usual. It's great that you are getting lots of action....especially Sonia catching on the dry There seems to be a very healthy number of fish in the river...is this because its stocked by the fishing club annually or are the fish natural wbt and grayling tight lines Alex
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Post by Simon on Mar 12, 2012 16:58:54 GMT
Hi Alex. This section is right at the end of the river so a lot of Grayling must come from the Dee, as for the brown trout this club very rarely stocks! But you have my other club just 3 miles upriver with a big weir in between, a lot of the stocked trout from this club must get washed down when the river is in flood. Also you get hundreds of baby flat fish in the river even though the sea is at least 10 mile downstream and the dee at this point is not Tidal! Also there is a very large weir in Chester. Keep plugging away up north the fish must be there somewhere!
Simon.
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Post by leckie on Mar 12, 2012 17:34:33 GMT
Simon, Thanks for clarifying that for me...it makes that little river of yours an absolute gem. As far as the rivers up here are concerned....there are loads of fish in them...I'm sure as my reading of the rivers and experience build up the fish will come. I don't mind not catching fish....it's getting out in the countryside that's more important to me. This Thursday is the start of the brown trout season up here and I'll be picking up a permit to fish the River Tyne for wbt. The fish there are much more free rising and I'll pick a few off on the dry's later this month I'm sure. I'll keep plugging away on the Esk and try for these grayling 'cause I had an internal target of catching 6 before the end of March (only 4 to go) and two and a bit weeks remaining tight lines Alex
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Post by Simon on Mar 12, 2012 17:47:48 GMT
Hi Leckie. Drop me a pm with your address and I'll post a few of Sonia's fav dry flies for you to try, have to tie them first though.
Simon.
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Post by Simon on Mar 18, 2012 9:45:39 GMT
At last it was the last Saturday of the the Rugby 5 Nations, super Saturday with 3 games. It is really playing havoc with the fishing! Again the river Alyn was our target, this time another section called Worms Wood. A very natural wooded section where the river runs over exposed sandstone in places, this area is our best bit of wild fishing on the river. With the first game starting at 12 we arrived at the river at 1030, with no one else at the parking area we had the river to ourselves. Sonia was going to target the lower section while made my way into the wood. Loads of debris, broken trees and branches were all along the banks after the winter storms, last years deep pools had filled in while others had deepened, just like going to a new river. I decide to fish my way upstream with two nymphs and then fish back down with a orange sakasa kebar, and if possible try and film a bit on my IPod, not the best camera but convenient. The river was clear but low after so little rain, fishing runs that last year held fish produced nothing, expected after the river had changed so much. Made my way upstream to a shallow, fast run with a large overhanging tree. Casting had to be adapted to get under the branches, the line stopped, feeling the shake of a tail as you do with the line being in direct contact with the fish and the Tenkara rod tip. This was a good fish, then the fun of trying to fight and land the fish with one hand due to the other holding the iPod, as you can see in the video I had to beach the fish, not the normal way, the fish was unharmed! For this section this was a large Grayling. The next pool up produced another 3 smaller grayling, time now was getting short. A change of flies and then fishing my way back down the river. Fishing the sakasa kebar I managed to tempt one brown trout which hit the fly very hard. Time up, we are going to have to call this Flash fishing! We are hoping to get out onto the river Dee tomorrow? Best news is that Wales are now the champions!!!!!!
Click on the link below for the short video.
Simon.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 18, 2012 19:59:04 GMT
Nice fish and cool vid. You looked very purposeful striding towards that stile!
Well done for the effort you put into this forum it is impressive.
Oh and congrats for the fish and the rugby.
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Post by custheyder on Mar 18, 2012 20:32:19 GMT
Enjoyed the video. Such a pretty river as well. Good luck on the Dee!
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Post by leckie on Mar 21, 2012 13:06:00 GMT
Simon, Nice video..I really enjoyed watching that...I thought I might have seen you with your new tamo in tow ....now that grayling must be near 3lbs I would guess...a real cracker. Keep the reports coming. tight lines Alex
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conor
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Post by conor on Mar 23, 2012 21:39:24 GMT
simon, nice video, I have never fished that particular shallow fast run in the woods where you landed that grayling - I have never considered that this spot could have held grayling of that size, moreover that they would not be spooked by a downstream approach from that angle. My next trip will include a try at this spot and i will probably fail miserably! Thursday 22 March I have not fished since about July or August last year. Family and work pressures were the catalyst for simply falling out of the routine if I am to be honest. A lunchtime expedition to the river had inexplicably became an insurmountable chore. Today though something clicked in my brain, it was probably the large dark olive that landed on my arm in the morning outside the office, which has a mill race that feeds off the main river only a few hundred yards away. Lunchtime beckoned and I heard the distant gurgling call of the river Alyn. After parking a few miles upstream of the office I opened my gear box for the first time in 8 months. It took 10 minutes rather than the usual 3 minutes to walk to the river. I reached a good spot, there was warmth in the day and the large dark olives were hatching in volume. As I opened my Ayu rod I was delighted to find a decent fish on the rise at the peak of the hatch. I spent the next 20 minutes stalking that fish with a size 14 parachute hares ear olive. Eventually I found the right spot, the fly presented ok, a take, and good fish was on…. and as quickly again it was off. I worked my way upstream and although I lost two more fish and put down a few more I did hook and land two small ones. It was a lovely action packed one hour visit in which all that mattered in life was the river… and I realised what I was missing all these months. Fishing is back in my veins.
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