A long long Winter

 

 

In my sixty sixth year now and enjoying my fishing up here in Scotland.
A day on the river- maybe catch a fish or two, then back home to a couple of pints of beer, followed by a home cooked meal.
I can go fishing all day- every day, if I want
Don't need to work anymore  "Bliss"
How bad is that.

Its the beginning of April and I am wondering when Spring is going to arrive.
The trout season started on the 15th of March and Ive only managed to get out twice.
Once on open day and again the other day.
Its just too bloody cold to be venturing around on the river.
This time last year I was in shirt sleeves and shorts, global warming? - strange - whats happened to the warming bit?.
Anyway! they say that its going to heat up next week, so I look forward to that.
I haven't managed to hook up with any trout yet, but I have been getting plenty of nice grayling .       
They say its the close season for them and you shouldn't target the species - I don't know if that's correct, I didn't think there was a close season for grayling.
They have provided me with excellent sport when times have been hard and none have been killed, all of them have swam away strongly.

Nice 1lb + grayling- this one and three of her chums warmed me up on a very cold April day

 

 

Here's me trying to get an action shot- not very good.

I must try and improve my camera work.

 

Looking forward to the weather warming up and getting amongs the big Clyde broonies.

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

My favourite spot on the Clyde

 

 

 

Wolfclyde Bridge on the A72 Nr. Biggar South Lanarkshire

Water controlled by  http://www.lamingtonfishing.co.uk/

Miles and miles of  river through lovely countryside.

 

 

 

 

Looking downstream towards the bridge

A great place to have a go with the dry fly.

A long cast towards the far bank is needed to have a chance of hooking a spooky trout.

 

 

Looking down through the arch towards the pillars of the old railway bridge.

A good place to shelter from the rain and have a chat with fellow anglers.

 

 

 

That's me--Having a cast by the bridge.

 

 

 

A visitor from Holland into a nice fish just down from the bridge.

 

 

There he is--a quick picture and safely returned.

 

 

Some visitors from Holland.

They all had a great time and vowed to be back in 2013

 

 

The river Clyde is a fine trout and grayling river.

What better a place in Scotland is there to start your fishing holiday.

From Wolfclyde you can explore the river, going up or down stream for miles.

Or should you just want to relax-take it easy-have a chat.

Just cast your fly within sight of the Bridge.

There's some nice fish lurking there.

 

Looking foreward to 2013 trout season

Ive been back from Canada for over 2 weeks now and haven't been able to wet a line.
The first few days back saw me trying to recover from jet lag, so I never attempted to go out on the river.
 (it takes me ages to adjust back from the time difference)
After that it was snow and freezing conditions that kept me away.
With only 2 days left now to have a go at the grayling, the snow has gone but the river is high,

Update-- Lamington water is now closed and it will not open again until the trout season starts on the 15th of March.
I can carry on fishing for grayling further upstream on UCAPA waters, which no doubt I will do, but the fishing isn't as good as my favourite stretch of the Clyde at Wolfclyde Bridge.
So I have a month and a bit to set my plans and look foreword to this coming trout season,
So what were my successes of last year?
 Most of my time was spent czech and french nymphing and both methods caught me a lot of fish.
I didn't manage any big brownies, my biggest being just over the pound, with my largest grayling topping the scales at just short of 2lb.
I didn't, as I had originally planned, spend more time fishing the dry fly.
That's the method that produces the big trout:
From early season the tactics are to wonder up and down the river bank looking for the rising trout.
Cast my wee fly upstream of  him - in expectation of hooking one of the Clyde's big broonies -- 2-3 or maybe 4lb of pure muscle--- I,m getting excited thinking about it.
Yes! that's what I am going to do.
From the start of this coming season I will leave most my nymphs behind and just concentrate on the dry fly and some spider patterns for sub-surface fishing.
I will rig up my 10ft #3 Marryat ( a great rod- I used it most of last year) it will cope with both methods.
So for now I am going to be doing a lot of fiddling around with my fishing gear, tie a few flies and maybe buy some not needed bits and bobs -just bide my time until the start of the new season.

Holiday all but over

Just a day left here in Canada and its the long track home.
That's the worse thing about holidays, they come to an end.
Getting a lift from Lakeshore to Windsor-bus to London-45 mins stop- then change bus and on to Toronto
6hours 30 mins flight to Glasgow- airport bus to Buchanan St - bus to Edinburgh city centre- then finally bus to my home- should be indoors by mid-day Thursday 10th January-knackered.
I suffer terribly from jet lag so it will probably be a good few days before I am back to tip top form.
I hope the weather is going to be good so I can get out fishing my favourite Clyde, I have missed it.
Well, its been a restful holiday,
Most of my time was spent, shopping, building Lego with my grandson and playing over and over and over again "Gangnam Style"on YouTube for my granddaughter.
I was presented with some nice food, compliments to my daughter.
Must get back into training, to get rid of the Xmas pounds.
Watched the local bird life on the garden feeders-- house finches, chickadees. juncos, mourning doves and a crafty Cooper's hawk who dived down and snatched one of the unsuspecting diners.
Done my usual trip to Bass Pro and kitted myself out with some nice clothes and the odd bit of fishing tackle.
Paid frequent visits to the local bar-- think I am one of the regulars now.
I went over to Canada 3 times last year.
This time for almost 4 weeks, I thought it might have been too long a stay but the time soon past.
I will miss them all.
Next trip over could be the beginning of August - hot weather and a bit of bass fishing---that will do me!

Into my last week in Canada

It's -5 c today and I had decided the only thing worth doing was to spend a couple of hours in the local bar.
Well it ain't quite local, it's about 3 miles away.
I've walked it a couple of times but today there was just a little too much snow and ice about.
My daughter suggested that she could drop me off about a mile from the bar, then go off and do her shopping.
I gladly took up her offer and was duly dropped off just after 2 o'clock in the afternoon.
With just the short distance left, I would soon be in the warmth of the bar.
Well so I thought.
I had walked about 200 yards when a sudden panic hit me "O my God " is it going to be open.
It's been opening later in the day around Xmas and New Year.
Is this going to be one of them.
10 minutes later there the pub was.
"Yip," fking shut.
Doors all bolted- not a sole about-- bloody shut-what the fick am I going to do now.
It was 2-30 and the sign said not open until 4pm
Freezing cold, standing outside the only pub within 20 odd miles and it was shut-what a prick!
"Nothing for it" I thought- cant get hold of my daughter, she's miles away shopping, I will have to pass the time away just walking about.
"Think I will retrace my steps and have a look down the marina - only thing to do"
Decision was made-- off I went.
The walk kept me warm and I soon arrived at the marina.
A frozen Belle River looking stuck in time as it joined the ice covered Lake St Clair.
"It's a very different place now " I thought. The last time I was here it was +30c and the place was bussling with fishermen.
There was just one car parked up by the deserted marina, all the boats had been pulled out, presumably by the owners, to be covered over to spend the winter in their back yards or drive ways.
Wonder where the owner of the car was, I couldn't see anyone, probably walking his dog I thought.
As I was about to turn and head off I spotted a movement out on one of the jetties.
Theres a guy out there sitting on a box - Wow!!
A guy was out there fishing, all on his own
I must have a look at this-
Out I went, carefully negotiating my steps on the frozen jetty towards this lone angler.
Funnily it wasn't too cold out there, the marina jetty was sunk down a bit and was out of the light but very cold breeze.
He was well wrapped up and looked quite comfortable sitting there by a small hole in the ice holding his miniature rod.
"I don't expect to catch anything"he said- "maybe, who knows' they may be biting today.
" Better here than indoors stuffing myself with festive food and drink"
I knew just how he felt.
I spent ten minutes with him talking fishy things,turns out he was from Poland and had been in Canada for 20 years.
" I love my fishing, cant get right out on the frozen lake yet" he said
But give it another week or so of this cold weather and I will be out there.
" Yip I love my ice fishing."
"Better you than me " I thought
"Tight lines to you" as I deserted him to make my way back to the pub.
"It must be getting near to opening time."

I asked him-should you catch a big fish - how would you get it through that small hole in the ice--   he just laughed.

No chance of me doing any of them.

 

 

A pint of Michigan stout- Yip your right it is in a jam jar.

Something to do with Hill Billies.

It tended to drip a bit from the threaded top, but it was nice.

Looking forward to a new trout season

It's January 1st and I am over in Canada spending the festive season with my daughter and family.
Another week to go, then back home to Scotland.
I have been keeping a weather check on the river conditions and it looks like I have not missed much.
No fishing over here this time, although I have seen guys at the mouth of the Belle River with their rods out -- there doesn't look like they are getting much action--they look as if they are freezing--I've done it in the past, out in sub zero temperatures, but too old for all that now.
I've been looking at the fishing over here up near Toronto, looks good for trout on the upper stretches of the River Grand, late spring ,so I may arrange a trip - must count my pennies first.
Anyway when I get back there will be to the end of January to fish the Clyde at Lamington, then it closes unit the start of the trout season in March.
So hopefully I will try my hand up at Abington and Crawford on UCAPA water -- see if I can bag a grayling or two.
Looking back on last years trout season on the Clyde, I had a few trout, not big, but a good size 10oz to 1lb and a bit maybe, so I am quite happy with that but they were mostly all caught on the nymphs only a handful on the dry.
So one of my resolution for next year is to get out right from the start of the season with the dry, see if I can bag a biggy, that's how they seem to come out--early season on the dry.
My other resolution is to try and take better shots-learn to use my camera properly- if I am going to have a blog I must be able to post decent photos on it.
Hopefully my next post will be of me with a nice winter grayling but if not, I am sure I will have some nice reports of my start of season trout catches.

Tying grayling bugs is easy

Up until a couple of weeks ago I had never--and had no intention-- of tying my own flies.
But things were about to change.
My good friend Buzz said he was too busy.
What with work and family commitments, he just didn't have the time to knock up some grayling bugs for me.
"Why don't you tie your own" he said. "Its not that hard.
I will point you in the right direction".
I think the real reason for his lack of enthusiasm was a tadge of  jealousy on my success with the "ladies" and thought "sod this I ain't spending all my time sitting on my butt tying flies for him while he is out on the river enjoying himself.
 Let him tie his own" ( Only joking Mark--I just made that bit up )

So it was a message to Toby ( Funkyfly)
Then a next day delivery saw me sitting looking at a mass of bits and bobs.
This lot, hopefully, when put together, would result in something resembling a food item and fool my quarry. I felt that it was going to be a daunting task.

Anyway I sat there fiddling around with the stuff, not really excited about it all--it seemed  just like a chore to me, something I could do without.
"I just want to go fishing" I thought to myself
"I spend enough time sitting on my ass at the computer without having to do this"
After looking at a few clips on YouTube I tentatively started my fly tying career.
"Proportion-Proportion" I was told.
I suppose that meant-don't overload the hook with stuff, keep it down to the minimum.
I was soon wrapping some thread round a hook.
On went a bead,a bit more thread wrapped down to the bend,couple of strands of pheasant tale and a wee bit of squirrel dubbing--my first fly was finished.
"That wasn't too bad" I thought--I quite enjoyed that-must tie some more"
Twenty flies later, all of my own invention, I decided that was it for the day.                                      
The weather looked good for tomorrow. "Lets give them a bash down the Clyde."

 

 

                                                   My first efforts at tying grayling bugs.
                                                   No works of art here.

 

A little black fly caught me a wee grayling, first cast and a burnt orange fly accounted for 2 more grayling one of them hitting the scales at 0.875 kg --I,m going to call it a 2lb'er.

 

Best fish of the day.

 

Was my success due to my new fly tying skill ? Who knows

But I must give some of the credit to my fishing pal for pointing me in the right direction

Thanks Buzz-see you down on the river.