Good weather-trout feeding the return of our resident osprey? How bad is that.

Got round at last to doing my  blog .
I went out Thursday and what a lovely day it was--too good in fact for fishing, the trout don't like bright weather,they get spooky and hard to catch, but I was in for a pleasant surprise.
First of all,
I heard it before I saw it--right over my head- the returning osprey.
It was being mobbed by crows and gulls with noisy oystercatchers giving their penny worth.
The osprey looked on the small side so I am not sure if it was a juvenile or a male.
Whether it was our local bird or just passing through I don't know,any way I had some fantastic views of it hovering over the water ready to pounce on an unsuspecting trout,unfortunately it moved on down river without diving.
Back to the fishing,
I started off just before the bridge and after 30 minutes I was into a nice grayling,which was duly netted photoed  and released.

I used my new iphone to take the shot dropping it into the water at the same time.
All is well with it however,I was lucky,water and electrical gadgets don't go well together.
I have now bought a waterproof bag(used for water sports,all your gadgets go in it and it hangs around your neck) to keep my phone dry.
I have also purchased a new camera,this time its water proof being able to take shots underwater,that should be good.I am looking forward to using it.
So after catching the grayling I moved further up river but had no further offers.
I then turned round and went the other side of the bridge,there are good spots just downstream,but nothing  doing.
A couple of fish rising but I couldn't tempt them to my fly.
I finally returned to the spot that I had started at,had a chat with a fellow angler and contemplated packing in and heading homeward.
"Sod it" I thought, lets give it another go and to my surprise winkled out 3 nice trout from the same spot as the grayling.
So it all ended up a successful day.
I was happy.

                   A nice view of Wolfclyde Bridge on a sunny day

A good start to the trout season.

I have been out now three times since the beginning of the season and  what joy it has been to get away from the the house.Winters up here in Scotland seem to last ages.
Now there is a bit of spring in the air,mild weather and good river levels have brought the trout out to feed.
I have had a few,good size at around 12oz to a pound and a bit, a couple of nice grayling have come to the net as well.
I will be posting some pictures of my catches as soon as my camera dries out--had a little mishap-it got a bit wet.
The birds on the river have been active-with  pied and grey wagtails flirting about and the odd kingfisher speeding by.
Over head the buzzards have been displaying trying to compete with the crows as to who is the best manoeuvre'r in the sky.
Oyster catchers are in, in numbers, laying out their territory and making a right old racket doing it.
I am sure that the odd swallow and sand martins are about but I haven't seen them yet (too busy casting my  fly.)
And of course the favourite--our local osprey he will be here soon.
(Not finished yet with this blog-be back later.)

Back again.--
Didn't go out today until 12-00, it was a bit windy but I had nothing else to do so off I went.
The idea was to just fish the dry fly but as I walked the river there was nothing rising so I put on the nymphs and soon was into a nice fish a grayling of about a pound.

                                                                        Todays grayling
That was the only fish I had,but I was happy to catch something,see if I can do better tomorrow.

I managed to retrieve some of my shots from my waterlogged phone so here is a tout I caught yesterday.

Eat Sleep&Fish Enzine

 I was asked if I would like to write a short article for a new Enzine about flyfishing the Clyde
 Here is my contribution. Edition #3 published February 2012.
                                              The Upper Clyde
It didn’t take me a lot of thought, it was an easy decision—my business down here in London was on its knees, too much debt, not enough orders, now was a good time for a big change.                              
I sold my house, paid off my debts, loaded my van and headed North.                
Living on her own in Edinburgh, my mother needed me, she was in her eighties and was suffering from dementia.
I had been away from home for forty and a bit years,now I was in the position to look after her,to give her a bit of my time  and of course a chance to  fish the Clyde.
Its only when I am well up the M74 and have crossed the Clyde for the first time that I feel  I am nearly home.
My first glimpse of the river is at Telford Bridge,then running to Crawford and Abington.
This is the upper Clyde, it has a long way to go until it reaches  Glasgow and then into the sea.
I have made this trip many a time and looked  across the fields to the river.
One of these days I am going to be down there”—I say to myself.
Well here I am, it won’t be long now,I am starting to get excited.I turn off the motorway at Abington Service Station on to the A702,I am now heading for Lamington , Biggar then on to Edinburgh and my mum.
What’s all that stuff you are buying she asks me “Em!!  Just a little bit of fishing gear—not a lot just a few bits” is my reply. ”
Hope you are going to have time to look after me and not be out gallivanting “she  retorts.     
“Wont do that mum – I will just  go now and then.
 I will get you  settled first, make sure you have everything -  only be away for a couple of hours.    Not all the time just now and then “ I repeated.“Make sure you bring me back a fish for my tea then” she says and laughs.“ Will do"
I don’t kill fish from the river, just the ones from our local stocked pond.I will get her a rainbow now and then, she won’t know the difference ,it will keep her happy.
The stretch of the Clyde that I fish is from Wolfclyde Bridge
(that’s where the last wolf in Scotland was shot—reportedly)
 up to Telford Bridge just by the motorway.You could not wish for a better brown trout and grayling  water.Miles and miles of crystal clear water that would take you more than a lifetime to explore.
I can go out some days and not see a sole.Plenty of cows and sheep to keep you company and there are always dippers, wagtails chirping away by the river side-kingfishers dashing past-buzzards soaring in the sky.
If you are lucky you may get a glimpse of an otter or watch an osprey plucking fish out of the water.
Well there you are—I’ve told you a little bit about the river  where I spend my time.
And I’ve told you how I come to be there. My mum passed away last April and I miss her.
I won’t be coming back South, I will be staying up here spending my retiring years fishing the Clyde.
So if you are travelling on the M74 and you look over the fields to the river, that lone fisher could be me—why don’t you join me, you would be more than welcome.

A wee Clyde brownie

Just about to start a grayling seasion at Wolfclyde Bridge.