I've just passed the one year mark in my fly-fishing life. It started after a three family camping trip to the Lakes with Noeyedeer. He gave me his spare 4wt rod and I thrashed away at Ghyll Head near Windermere, frothing the water like a capuccino machine, as he kept reminding me 'wrist!wrist!' every time I took the rod past vertical in the back cast. To cut a long day short I finished with two, as the sun was setting, the first being this heavily coloured rainbow that looked like a brown until we netted it. It took a Kate McLaren fished fairly deep, but not very far out. The first fish I ever caught without bait on the hook.


I came to the conclusion that day that Trout fishing required a blend of three qualities, Skill (of which I had very little), Luck (which comes and goes) and Patience (which I have in large enough amounts to keep going when the other two fail me). Being able to appreciate Nature and tolerate inclement weather are two factors crucial to maintaining this patience. Skill is a catch-all heading for anything which might be described as technique or knowledge, everything from fly-selection to reading the water. I'd like to think I improve every time I go out. Luck, well perhaps I'll let Noeyedeer have the final say on that.


This week we should have again been camping in the Lakes, but a waterlogged campsite, driving rain and weather warnings forced us to make a retreat. I was hoping to regale you with pictures of wild brownies from hill tarns and babbling becks. Instead I took Noeyedeer to a wild looking Reservoir called Lower Ogden, in Barley, Lancashire. Towards the end of a challenging day (that the club bailiff, who was blanking, declared as "the slowest he'd ever seen") we had had one each. We decided to try at the windy end again for an hour or so on the way back to the car. More or less first cast I was smashed by a good fish that took a size 12 Kate McLaren, almost as it landed. I had experimented with a dropper tied with a perfection loop, suggested by Phil Bailey, elsewhere on this Forum, it failed at the PL knot, leaving two equal length tag ends. More spit next time, and stronger Fluoro. The other Kates I had were smaller with less palmered hackle, and didn't elicit a sniff. I was wondering what to try next for the last twenty minutes when a Heather Fly landed on my hand. I tied on a size 12 Bibio and cast it out 20 yards into the foot high waves. I could make out the end of my floater and retrieved as slowly as I could to keep it in a smooth arc. On what I had promised myself was my last cast this obliging Trout took it and gave a good account of itself. I had it for supper last night cooked in a Thai style sauce, delicious!


A year ago I wouldn't have known a Heather Fly if it had bitten me, wouldn't have known it as a Bibio, wouldn't have been able to cast 20 yards in a stiff wind and wouldn't have detected the take, which I had lifted into before I had consciously registered it. In small increments I have learned a lot in the last year. I have caught many more fish than I ever expected, own more rods and reels than I would have thought necessary and found myself in some beautiful and exciting places that I would never have seen if it wasn't for the pursuit of Trout. This Forum has been a great font of knowledge and support. Long may it continue. I've got a long way to go yet.

SharkeyP

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Often thinks not travel widens,
Stay at home the Trout obliges.

I'm coming up to my 20th year in fly fishing and if I've learned anything in that time its that you never stop learning in this game.I think I must now be at what I would describe at the "experienced novice level," for want of a better description.

I've been fishing since I was a very small boy in the 1950's coarse and sea at first, my big regret is that I didn't get into flyfishing sooner as i have found it to be the most absorbing and fascinating branch of angling. Hope you have many more years pleasure from the sport.

Nice story Sharky brings back memories.
My first rod caught fish on the fly was a nice Brown trout on the river wear at the age of 9,swapped rods with another young lad,I was maggoting ,he was fly fishing.after that it was fly all the way.I have been lucky to fish in most of the country with a special feeling towards Devon and its rivers,where many many hours have been spent and they were a total delight, even at midnight.
Meeting like minded anglers nearly 41 yrs of angling has been great and still learning things.Much has changed or has it?To be honest it is only really the tackle side which has the skills .the casting the flies (old tradtionals) still remain and still take fish.It took me nearly 20 yrs to catch a 2lb rainbow and I can still see it now taken on a gold muddler.the thrill was great.Then cam the big fish trend which changed much of angling ideals.Big fish hunting became the game,of which I did follow and Im glad I dont do it now and enjoy any fish caught on a fly.So many good memories and so many good waters ,each have their place be it stillwater,wild lochs or rivers or sea it has all been worth it and time well spent.

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Kevin

Nice story.good to hear of success.

Jim

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The Fishermans Friend is the Flirty Fly,Fickle Food for Fleeting Fish.

It get more addictive the more you do it.
It also gets harder in a kinda funny way.

SharkeyP, Excellent story, and most important good progress. I have a mate who has just started the journey. He'll definatley get a kick out of it.

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Eddie
"We look to Scotland for all our ideas of civilisation."
Voltaire

Nice wee article, glad to here you got off to a great start
Some tail on that rainbow

Thanks for the kind words guys. I posted partly for new guys starting out and partly to say thanks for the thousands of grains of knowledge I have garnered from this forum. It's all a bit daunting at the start, trying to decipher the jargon and work out a technique.

Still ahead of me are the joys of tying my own flies, and fishing from a boat. My river technique is very much in it's infancy, and not looking like getting much of a polish before the season ends with this weather. No matter, I'm a patient man.

SharkeyP

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Often thinks not travel widens,
Stay at home the Trout obliges.

i'm pretty new to fly fishing, that's given me hope that things can only get better, thanx, excellent story, i too are gaining lots of useful info off here, i just need to put some of it into practice.

Dave

no two day are ever the same,fly fishing is an ever expanding learning curve.
if you blank on a few days dont dissmay,put it down to experience and learn from it.learn to read the water and you wont be far off.

it's not why we do things thats important,it's the fact that we can.