Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Aug 13, 2004, 10:12am

Heatwave, noisy aircon, brain fading just when I'm trying to put an irresistible
proposal together. We're having big rain and then big sun so the air even in my
office is heavy and humid. Just how are the rivers right now? Outside my window
a pied wagtail is reaping a busy harvest along the ridge tiles of a roof
opposite my window. There is certainly plenty of fly about. It is all too much.
Logoff... Shutdown... Throw my diary in my case. Lock up. C'mon Richard! Get over
the moor and see what is really going on...<br>
15:30 arrived at my favourite tributary (the main river is brown). A worried
walk, still in shoes, through hot wet grass and, "Oh dear."

The water is tinged, high and I cannot see any fish at all. Thousands of caperer
sedge flies are low enough to the surface to suggest possible casualties. The
walk back to the car is unhurried; I'm almost expecting to blank so maybe the
usual trembling urgency has been dispelled? The rod I broke last week is not
satisfactory with its spare top - almost certainly a psychosomatic problem - so
an old Sharpes Lightweight is chosen. Hmm! Not bad at all and it is so nice and
dull with its varnish-less finish.

Warren had suggested that a sedge would bring them up. Sedges were over the
water. A sedge (NDS) was on my tippet.

Wandering upstream it was not until I'd passed through the wood, round the "new
fence water" and up along an 800 yards straight section abounding with thick
tresses of ranunculus that I saw my first fish as it rose in a bay that I can
usually present in drag free. Not this afternoon! No matter how much extra
leader I curled up into the run, the fly was almost immediately whipped out of
the bay at great speed. The rising fish went down and that was that.

I needed to find similar but on my side of the river. So, onwards and upwards,
to a glide, downstream from Warren's "buffer field" (and pond) that I referred
to in an earlier report. There was a substantial fish taking real sedge flies on
my side, in fact it was almost on my bank! It weighed just over two pounds and
it saved me from a blank - I could have kissed "him". On returning the fish, I
was just drying my fly and feeling very pleased with life in general and angling
in particular, when another fish rose a little way up. I had to crawl to keep
out of sight. Derbyshire is almost at the Northern limit of the Stemless
Thistle's range and crawling often helps to drive that botanical fact home to
me. Today was no exception! Never mind. The fish was fooled on the first cast
and it would be just under two pounds. Well, well! Two fish for a four pound
aggregate is surely good by any standard. By the time I reached the post and
rail fence that sets aside Warren's buffer field I had four fish for an
aggregate of seven pounds! The potential blank and visit just to see "what is
really going on" had changed beyond all recognition.

I slid carefully over the fence away from the gate that is in full view of the
fish. Then bowed and scraped my way to the gate post nearest the water and sat
down using the post as a back rest. The pool is fed by the river proper rolling
down from a cobble weir and also from a flash on the left bank that pours spring
water into the pool and puts a walking stick shaped curl into the main feed
lane. It is where the bright waters meet so I call this pool "Plunket".

It was teeming with fish. I sat there singing and laughing to myself but
declined to cast. The wonders of Captain Kirk's communicator (mobile 'phone) had
allowed me to speak with a pal earlier. He was going to join me later. Any one
of these fish will make his evening for him so I watched them instead of
catching them.

Later, we had a great evening together. It started with him catching one of
these fish and it finished, three hours later, at the little fishing house with
us drinking tea, watching the black clouds roll in over the little valley from
the moor accompanied by great flashes of lightning that turned night into
strobe-lit day.

The big raindrops at 21:30 indicated it was time to go.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nicepix on Aug 13, 2004, 10:42am

I do envy you Richard. Not only can you roll out of the office and straight into
some of the best river fishing in the country that is relatively unaffected by
the heavy rain, but you also have an understanding wife.

Well, she must be given the state that you would have got into crawling about in
the mud in your shoes, not to mention the time that you eventually returned
home.

The lady is a saint!

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Aug 13, 2004, 1:21pm

Ah! Sorry, sorry I misled you! The shoes were on during the walk because I
hurried from the car to look at the water. On my return to the car I did fully
tog myself up complete with wellies and Stemless Thistle proof over trousers.
Stabbing myself in the hands with rampant thistles is one thing - stabbing the
softer parts of my anatomy is quite another.

Mrs. W had supper ready for me time to coincide exactly with the moment my hands
were washed and dried after my, longed for, arrival...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004 -year of the sedge?
Post by richardw on Aug 14, 2004, 4:36am

(To the tune of "If you are going to San Francisco")

If you are going
To Derbyshire rivers
Be sure to wear
Some sedges in your hat

Well put some in your box anyway.

I've posted my standby Non Descript Sedge (NDS) on the fly tying forum.

http://flyforums.proboards35.com/ind...ead=1092472120

Enjoy...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by pbannis on Aug 16, 2004, 4:53am

I had hoped to fish the Derwent this Sunday but it was high and unfishable.
Hoping to salvage the day I enquired at the Peacock about day tickets. The very
helpful staff tried to dissuade me..'It's unfishable, we've cancelled the
guest's fishing'

I paid & hoped.

The river was high and coloured but over the next six hours there was a steady
number of rising fish in the slower water and back eddies. I had a great day.
The river to myself and despite my ineptitude caught fish steadly with a flurry
to sedges as it got dark.

Interesting 80-90% of the active fish were rainbows in the 7-13 inch class. I
saw no large brownies active all day.



Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Aug 16, 2004, 4:09pm

Snatched from the jaws of defeat eh? I'm really pleased for you. It can be a
hard river but that makes it all the more wonderful when you overcome the
difficulties and have a good day...

For me (with access to some very fine fishing indeed) the Haddon day ticket
water (Peacock) is still the very best dry fly fishing of all.

Aren't those Wild Rainbow Trout (WRT) exquisite?

What sedge pattern(s) did you find were most effective for you?

richard


Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by JME on Aug 17, 2004, 10:41am

Magic as always. Thanks

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by WarrenSlaney on Aug 17, 2004, 5:59pm


Quote:I had hoped to fish the Derwent this Sunday but it was high
and unfishable. Hoping to salvage the day I enquired at the Peacock
about day tickets. The very helpful staff tried to dissuade
me..'It's unfishable, we've cancelled the guest's fishing'

I paid & hoped.

The river was high and coloured but over the next six hours there
was a steady number of rising fish in the slower water and back
eddies. I had a great day. The river to myself and despite my
ineptitude caught fish steadly with a flurry to sedges as it got
dark.

Interesting 80-90% of the active fish were rainbows in the 7-13 inch
class. I saw no large brownies active all day.





Always a difficult call to make when the river is running high and coloured. I
ask the girls to ring the rods who are booked in to fish the following day and
explain the situation. If people have just nipped down the A6 from Derby or
travelled up from the South Midlands, the result is the same when they arrive to
see poor conditions after looking forward to the day so much.
In the end the river fined and lost alot of its colour on Saturaday. I was
surprised to see so many fish on top during the afternoon and am pleased you
enjoyed your day and your six fish.

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by pbannis on Aug 18, 2004, 4:51am

In reply to RichardW. For sedges I used either a CDC sedge or a simple elk hair
caddis. The former works but is not so robust in the fast water.

In reply to Warren Slaney. I arrived well after lunch to try the fishing and I
suspect the river was falling. I had loooked at the Wye on Friday, as I'd hoped
to fish then,but it was clearly out of sorts. Sunday just looked slightly better
hence my gamble. I was determined to cast a line on Sunday. I've recently broken
my wrist in a mountaineering accident and last wednesday was the release from
the plaster cast.

Many thanks for all the work on the river.

I've booked another day this Saturday.



Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Aug 18, 2004, 6:48am

Let's hope the river is in good order for you...

Now don't forget to come back here and report your findings!



richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Aug 20, 2004, 6:47am

It's misty and drizzling outside. Locally we have had rain most of the night. I
have everything with me for fishing this evening and I have made an executive
decision that I'm going fishing after work no matter what the elements are up to
at that time.

Blessed is he who has access to spring fed rivers in times of rain!

There will be a report...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nicepix on Aug 20, 2004, 8:31am


Quote:Blessed is he who has access to spring fed rivers in times of
rain!




How does the Derwent fare in this Richard? As I understand it the river is
controlled by the sluice at Ladybower and therefore should not pick up much in
the way of floodwater until it joins with the Wye. I have often wondered how the
Derwnt compares to other rivers in the way of flow rates and water temperature
throughout the year.

Being over an hours drive from Darley Dale and given the recent weather I have
not ventured to the Derwent in about two weeks. Am I missing out?

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Aug 20, 2004, 9:09am

It does vary. Bear in mind that down stream of Ladybower there are many
tributary streams, brooks, cloughs and winterbournes. At times of heavy rain
these can bring the Derwent up to just as high as it ever did run before the
reservoirs existed. During periods of prolongued rainfall, over time, the
sediments and flotsam disturbed by the initial flushings are washed away and the
Derwent will stay high but become clear enough for some sport with the fly.

I haven't checked the temperatures so cannot comment.

Have you missed out this last fortnight? Probably...

I'd make the journey and have a look. It was a very bad day indeed if I didn't
get some return for my efforts when I was a member at Chatsworth, even if it was
just a grayling or two or some small dace.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Aug 22, 2004, 7:07pm

Friday!

Warned in time to save my journey I left the river alone on Friday to let it get
over its indigestion from over drinking. Gareth called me just as I was about to
leave to tell me it had gone a funny colour and was probably not feeling too
well at the moment.

Saturday!

It was tinged still, but fishable. In fact the evening turned into a very
successful affair indeed.

It is so strange to be kneeling in water at this time of year and to see
bankside springs, that usually don't run until after Christmas, just pouring out
crystal clear water into all their usual runnels. After such a long period of
heavy rain the flies were all making up for lost time. Sedge flies and spinners
had me spoiled for choice. So it was a case of either changing flies over and
over to suit whatever each fish was diagnosed to be eating, or to simply choose
to cast only to fish that seemed to be eating real versions of whatever was on
my leader.

It's pretty exciting watching fish slash at sedges, making that characteristic
sideways on flash of their sides, as they turn to move off line and intercept
their next mouthful of the evening meal.

But...

There is something very satisfying about watching a preoccupied trout
confidently rocking, nose-dorsal-tail and again nose-dorsal-tail in that
unmistakeable, "spinners on the menu", way. Then putting your own fly on the
conveyor belt leading to your chosen quarry and then seeing it do
nose-dorsal-tail again but this time to your fake!

I chose the Poly Prop Spinner (PPS)...

And didn't regret having to ignore the sedge eaters.

Today!

Yes I do get out on some Sundays, when the choir is on holiday...

What a lovely afternoon today was. The Wye looked fishable but I was keen to get
on to the lower beat of my favourite tributary as it had been over a week since
I was last there. The Wye had to wait.

Sedge flies again and a good sprinkling of BWO had me chopping and changing this
time to suit each fish. Why not do the same as last night and just stick to one
fly? Well this was full afternoon sun and there simply were not a lot of fish
rising. There were enough to keep me busy, but it was best to keep changing the
fly back and forth between Non Descript Sedge (NDS) and Kite's Imperial.

The kingfisher came zooming upstream as I was having a last look. Coloured water
gives them such a hard time, so seeing (and hearing) this sure sign of a healthy
river was a relief and a joy.

It may be warm and the wet weather can be deceptive but I feel sure that Autumn
is gently drifting into the meads and woods now. Certainly there is no chill and
the summer migrants are still with us (except the fly catcher, which has already
gone from the valley). The hemp agrimony still has plenty of unopened buds in
its pink panacles. Young coots are still grey and staying hidden. The wren with
its nest under a fallen willow opposite the "Three Brothers" is still working
flat out to feed chicks that can be clearly heard in high pitched cheeing chorus
whenever "dinner is served". Nevertheless, Autumn is there if looked for
carefully. The beeches are weighed down with a massive crop of mast. I saw a hen
brown trout today with definite mottling. Some of the larger cock fish are
kyping up and their teeth are more exposed (the holes in my left thumb bear
silent witness). Worst sign of all - I'm heading home earlier each day!

Three more weeks and we will be trying hard to catch grayling.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nick on Aug 23, 2004, 6:49pm

Richard,

I've followed your postings with great interest as I have a trip to the
"Peacock" water planned for mid September.

Although I have fished it several times over the last 2/3 years, I haven't been
so late in the season. As a North East freestone angler whose local rivers are
therefore very unlike the Wye, I would appreciate any suggestions as to what may
be hatching and/or your recommended patterns?

In addition, on previous visits I have been intrigued by the tributary to the
Wye which enters the main river just below the roadbridge outside Rowsley (ie.
the "stream" you park next to and walk beside to reach the downstream Peacock
beat). This appears to contain some good fish - I assume it is syndicate water
although I have never asked Warren on previous visits.

Many thanks.

Nick.

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Aug 23, 2004, 8:14pm

Have a look at these (on page 2 of each):

http://www.wildtrout.org/WTT/library...Spring04A4.pdf

http://www.wildtrout.org/WTT/library...Summer04A4.pdf

Warren's new colleague,Gareth, keeps a more up-to-date list in the Peacock in
one of the glass fronted cases on the right hand side of the corridor to the
dining room. He has been known to outfish me by about 9 to 1 with his fly
choice...

When you visit the Peacock, ask to be put on the mailing list and you will get a
hardcopy of the next issue sent to you (in fact 'phone now and ask if there is a
Summer issue left).

You are right about the tributary. It is syndicate water.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 1, 2004, 7:34am

Bakewell Saturday morning showed a brownish tinged and quite high river Wye for
the time of year. Well we have had a spot or two of rain...

What was the tributary going to be like? I need not have worried. It was a
matter of looking in the edges. The best fish were taking advantage of new
opportunities presented by the high water. There was even a decent hatch of BWO
through most of the afternoon and choosing a fairly dark hackled Kite's
Imperial, to match the darkish appearance of the duns I could see, I didn't need
to change it until quite late on when sedges and spinners became predominant.
The "best" fish was in a fast riffle just below the upper boundary of the beat.
It was a brown trout of about 12 oz and coloured so highly it would have looked
fake in anything but real life. Dayglo red spots, mixed with thousands of black
ones, mahogany pectoral fins (of great size for such a slight fish), leading
edges of pelvic and anal fins in fluorescent white picked out so sharply that it
looked as though a pen had been used to mark it, bright orange adipose fin with
a dayglo red upper edge and more bright orange over the back and down the sides
where the orange became melted butter...

The kingfisher came by at least three times.

The next day I was on a higher beat and decided to try a dawn start again. I was
expecting (alright, hoping) to find spinners in the edges and fish mopping them
up. Wrong! No spinners, but, even before it was properly light, there WERE
rising fish and some of them were above average size for this river. I caught
the first one I cast to on a sedge (NDS) but to me it seemed like the fish rose
in a prospective rather than selective way. I can't explain it but I was sure
that I had only been lucky and that my choice of fly was not right. There was a
rise and in the low light I could not see exactly what was being taken. One
thing was clear they were not sedge flies, first of all I couldn't see any
sedges and the rises were not slashing sideways movements but were firm tilts
and sucks that could be heard as well as seen.

The light strengthened and there they were, flotillas of BWO! Kite's Imperial
and it became too easy. What luxury! I had the place to myself. The fish were
undisturbed since yesterday afternoon. They were feeding confidently and I could
now settle down to selective, restrained fishing... The kingfisher came by six
times and during one flypast stopped and perched on a dead branch opposite me
and cleaned up wingtips and breast. It was just wonderful.

At 09:00 I stopped fishing and went to see Warren and have a look at some of his
latest work to encourage ranunculus and natural gravel clearing to create even
more ideal habitat for the river's inhabitants. Very encouraging stuff and
fascinating to see how the river actually shows him where it really wants to go
and where the banks should actually be.

To Mayfly Cottage, Mrs W, luncheon and the (unsatisfactory) Belgian Grand Prix.
Then it was time to go back and fish another part of the beat. As the evening
drew on, the spinners returned and a perfect day was ended under a full moon.

The Bank Holiday had me delayed by domesticity until late afternoon.
Intermittent squalls of rain were not prolonged enough to justify a coat. The
natural process of being wet in the rain was followed by the equally natural
process of being dried and warm when the sun came back. There was a minor mishap
when I slipped and fell into a feeder stream that this time last year was dry.
This year it was three feet deep and instantly filled both wellies. This gamut
being run I then struggled through an overgrown, thistle-filled, disused
orchard. I was keen to get to a spot near the lower boundary that I knew was
seldom fished despite it actually having a very good head of browns and WRT. I
was not concentrating very well, maybe the wet feet and lower legs had something
to do with it but I walked straight into a steel stake that was pegging down a
chain dog lead. The top of the bar (hidden by thistles) delivered a firm prod
right into my external genitalia. This was followed by the usual difficulties.

On finally getting to my chosen spot I promptly threw my sedge fly into an old,
unpruned (so very high) apple tree! Two days before I had given away the best of
two spares to a lady angler. My spare was okay but to me was a little
overdressed (my mistake with too much hair in the wing). I lost that two casts
later in the thistles. (Let's blame the unpredictable gusts of wind.) I didn't
have anymore sedges and there were thousands of the naturals whizzing all over
the place. My old standby Double Badger was pressed into service but I caught
nowt at this special spot. Having snacked on an apple pinched from the tree that
had pinched my fly I retraced my steps (avoiding the steel stake) and came to a
big wide open bend with deep water on my bank (right bank) and a shelf on the
inside of the bend (left bank). There for all to see was a great big trout that
was taking sedge flies delivered to the inside of the bend by the destructive
gusts of South Westerly. Unfortunates kept being bounced down to the water from
whence they struggled invitingly to the fish below. "MY" trout was in perfect
position to take advantage. First cast showed me that he was also protected
against dry flies cast from the right bank by the instant drag. BUT the wind
could help me. An over long cast held in the air allowed the wind to catch it
and blow it all back so the fly landed just ahead of a lot of loose leader. The
fly drifted a good yard with no drag and just before the leader was uncurled
enough to start dragging the fly he ate the Double Badger! The scales said 3lbs
4oz, the wet net weighs 1lb 2oz making the fish 2lbs 2oz. It was immaculate and
so satisfying to catch that all previous tribulations were deemed worth it!

Tuesday afternoon and to the Wye. Very high still and many holding stations
seemed devoid of fish. Of course the fish are there but they were not rising.
Eventually I found myself upstream of Bakewell and watching some good grayling
and WRT in the middle of the river below Lumford Bridge. After working my way
along a wide topped garden wall I was able to sit and with a hedge behind me I
fancied I was pretty much invisible. A very happy two or three hours was spent
pottering around here and the back of the fire station. My first graylings of
the season and the WRT plus a singleton brownie were all in immaculate condition
and even the small fish had me working hard to keep them from weeding me in the
long, long tresses of ranunculus.

A quick snack at Mayfly Cottage, care of Mrs W, all flung into the car and a
rapid drive back over to yesterday's beat of the tributary as Warren had tipped
me off about an experiment he is doing with removal of boards from some of the
ancient weirs. I wanted to see what was going on. It was very interesting to see
that what had once been in effect long prisons boxed off by high boards was now
a very rapid descent into a long pool where spinner were attracted to the white
rapids and spent spinners were drifting down the long pool. I caught one near
2lbs brown trout but Warren pricked my conscience with a plea to let them feed
and get used to the changes so I left them alone and wandered back up stream.

The conditions were perfect. I had the perfect match to the spinners in the form
of my PPS. Upstream from the changes, a pool formed by the junction of two
outlets from an old dam (industrial archeology from the 18th century) had a fish
rising no more than 1 inch from the edge formed of folded over hemp agrimony.
The cast was made without checking behind me and a tall ash tree claimed my fly.
The river seemed to be saying "You should not be here! Leave things alone for
tonight! Come again another time!" So I packed up and am looking forward to the
next time out.

I think the Wye will be the place to be for the rest of the season. If we have
no more heavy rain. Anyone coming up to Chatsworth this weekend would be well
advised to get a ticket from the Peacock and finish their day out on the Wye. It
fishes its head off when the water settles down after big rain...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by ScottRods on Sept 1, 2004, 7:49am


Quote:
Three more weeks and we will be trying hard to catch grayling.

richard



Why not go over to Carsington and have a go at the browns that are fry bashing
before the season end?

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by pbannis on Sept 1, 2004, 11:30am

I was out on the Derbyshire Derwent at Darley Dale on bank holiday monday
afternoon. The river is high but fishable with fish rising to olives and small
sedges in the smoother glides and back eddies. A combination of smallish
grayling and wild rainbows plus a few larger browns. All taken on a sedge or
size 18 olive parachute dun. I did try the faster runs and deeper pools but
there was just no surface actvity and I had decided it was a day for the surface
rather than lots of weighted nymphs.

I am informed that a number of the clubs on the upper derbyshire derwent (Darley
Dale, Sheffield Waltonians but probably not derwent fly fishers) have relatively
short waiting lists at the moment

My planned day out to the Peacock Wye was cancelled due to floods but I've
re-booked for 14 september and I'm hoping for better conditions.

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by BigDaddy on Sept 1, 2004, 1:13pm

I drove up from the Smoke to try out the Peacock water on the Wye as a Bank
Holiday present to myself. Stayed in the Charles Cotton Hotel in Hartington (a
fifth rate establishment aspiring to be third rate) because there was no space
in the Peacock. The water was quite high in the Wye and the fish stayed well
clear of me for most of the trip, but it was evident that when in form that
river is a real slobberknocker of a dry fly fishing trout river. The runs and
pools are simply sublime. It was also evident that the Peacock is a superbly run
hotel. The weekend was really designed as a recce, and my conclusions were that
as a wild trout destination it may well be my favorite in England. One question
for Richard and/or Warren. What is the upper limit of the Peacock's water? I saw
some excellent water above Bakewell at a bridge on a road marked "Duke Street"
or some such thing. Is that within the boundaries? The water was running much
clearer up there.

Just say no to pellet fed rainbows.

BigDaddy

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by HarryOtter on Sept 1, 2004, 2:49pm

Another superb post RW.

Have you seen the kingfisher in Scots Meadow and up behind the fire station? It
was there 4 or 5 times last week.

The fishing extends beyond the sheepwash bridge but is left hand bank only from
that point and goes up almost as far as Lakeside. (Look out for the strange
creatures in the fields at the bottom of Lakeside ...... Lamas.......)

HO


Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 1, 2004, 3:12pm

Haddon's fishing on the true left bank ends level with the tail of the island in
front of Lumford Cottages. The right bank fishing goes on up to the boundary
above Lakeside.

I didn't see the kingfisher but I thought I heard one a couple of times...

I have not visited the field with the Llamas in it yet. Must have a look soon.

I watched a TV programme about a woman rancher in the USA who keeps sheep and to
protect her flock from Coyote attacks she keeps Llamas and Burrows (Donkeys) in
the flocks. The Coyotes stay away from the flocks and instead go to town on the
rodents (gophers). She gets the benefit of free rodent control by letting the
Coyotes live on her land.

richard


Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 1, 2004, 3:35pm


Quote:What is the upper limit of the Peacock's water? I saw some
excellent water above Bakewell at a bridge on a road marked "Duke
Street" or some such thing. Is that within the boundaries? The water
was running much clearer up there.




The limit is upstream of Bakewell above a place called Lakeside. Go out of
Bakewell on the A6 towards Buxton. Pass the Gatzo cameras and up a hill. Near
the brow of the hill is a road on the right (cul-de-sac) called Lakeside. Go
halfway down it and park where you can. There is a right of way on your left
(facing down the hill) that takes you into a steep meadow. At the bottom of the
meadow is the Wye. You can go up here until you see the sign for the Haddon
Fisheries terminus. There are lovely runs up here but thoughtless farmers have
spoiled much of the bankside access with barbed wire stapled to trees! (Really
in tune with Nature some farmers. Aren't they just?) Up here is the place to
start a day if the water is tinged after rain. It clears up here first.

Opposite the entrance to the meadow on the other side of the road is another
right of way ("gennels" in this part of the world) and this takes you to another
field and again you can fish at the bottom here. On the downstream side of the
field is a barbed wire fence that is worth wrestling yourself over because
through the trees here, amongst the thickest colony of butterbur you will ever
see, are some more great runs and pools through abundant ranunculus beds. These
fish are not easy and presentation is tricky but get it on a good day and you
will be very happy with your fate here.

There is a lifetime's worth of angling opportunities on this fishery alone - add
in all the other estates' fishing and the mind boggles at the prospects.

When are you coming back? NOW - is a good time...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 1, 2004, 3:39pm


Quote:
My planned day out to the Peacock Wye was cancelled due to floods
but I've re-booked for 14 september and I'm hoping for better
conditions.



Yes I was thinking about you when I drove past it during the high water. Let's
hope it is in good order for the rest of the season now...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by BigDaddy on Sept 2, 2004, 5:10am

Richard, thanks for the clarification. Lakeside is definitely downstream of Duke
Street where I saw the clearer water and good fish. You aren't joking that now
would be a good time to return. As usual, I'm too late or too early for the
decent conditions. This year on the Wye the high water overwhelmed while last
autumn on the Tweed, the crick was running practically bone dry. It would be
maddening for a person who believed only in the catching. Believe me I'd love to
leave the big nasty City this afternoon and join you for a dram and a discussion
about BWO but d**n all these pesky committments. Regardless, I am smitten.

Just say no to pellet fed rainbows.

BigDaddy

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nicepix on Sept 2, 2004, 11:23am

Just got back from Darley Dale where the river was a little higher and more
coloured than I had expected. No surface activity anywhere and little hatching.
I was unable to stay longer than 3pm so I missed the best part of the day.
Tomorrow might bring better conditions if there is no more rain.

Derby Railway AC has over two miles of single bank fishing at Darley Dale
dowstream from Darley Bridge. They also have stretches on three smaller rivers
just the other side of Matlock and some nice coarse fishing waters. At £58 for
the year - June to June, it is good value.

http://www.drac.org.uk/

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 2, 2004, 11:35am

Worth joining even if you only go a couple of times in the season - PLUS all
that lovely coarse fishing in the lower Dove...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 3, 2004, 5:44pm

If anyone wants to come and say hello, I'll be in the Haddon Estate tent at the
Chatsworth Country Fair tomorrow and Sunday.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by ScottRods on Sept 5, 2004, 1:25pm

How is the derwent running at Cromford?

The trent is so full at Burton I don't know if it's worth a trip on wed evening?


Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 5, 2004, 1:42pm


Quote:How is the derwent running at Cromford?

The trent is so full at Burton I don't know if it's worth a trip on
wed evening?




Derwent is good now and getting better daily. If there is no more heavy rain you
will do well in the next few weeks.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nicepix on Sept 5, 2004, 4:23pm


Quote:How is the derwent running at Cromford?




I fished it on Wednesday and it was slightly high and coloured which surprised
me as their had been no rain for over 48 hours. Tonight a friend phoned to say
that he had fished it today and also found it coloured. His information is that
Ladybower is releasing a geater than normal amount of water which if correct
would account for the current state of the river.

I'm giving it a try tomorrow afternoon though.

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by pbannis on Sept 6, 2004, 6:48am

I fished the Derwent @ Rowsley on saturday afternoon. The river is about 6" down
on bank holiday monday but clearer. Very fishable with fish rising in all zones
of the river. A scant hatch of olives and pale wateries. The evening was quiet
with no real increase in fish activity.

I did try to get a ticket for the Peacock water but it was fully booked. Any
reports on how it was fishing?


Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by MobyJones on Sept 6, 2004, 3:31pm

Hello all

Iv'e been reading this thread for some time now and have finally realised that I
have to now fish the river Wye.

I only took up fly fishing at the start of the year and have been fishing
stillwaters and reservoirs. Now I think the time has come to try for a wild
brown trout, instead of a pellet fed stockie. I never realised there was such
contempt for these fish until I discovered this website!

My existing two fly rods are far too big for river fishing so a new rod and reel
set up is required. I'm thinking of using an 8" 4wt outfit? Would anyone
recomend this? Also, if I can get my tackle sorted out quickly i was thinking of
going this sunday. Is this realistic or do i need to give more notice? I was
planning on fishing the Haddon stretch and thus booking through the Peacock
hotel.

Many thanks in advance.
MJ

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 7, 2004, 4:21am

I'm out of step with the trends today of fishing ever lighter and shorter rods.
If it's a windy day you will be making life hard for yourself with a number 4
line.

My set up is a rod between 8ft 6ins and 9ft. On windy days I use an 8ft 8ins rod
with a number 6 line. On normal days I use either an 8ft 6ins rod of simple
taper with a number 5 line or, if I am expecting that I might have to fish with
a tippet below 5lbs BS I then use a rod of 8ft 9ins that has a compound taper
finishing in a very fine tip section.

If I had to have only one rod for this river it would be the 8ft 8ins number 6
rod and just use a longer leader to keep the presentation as gentle as possible.

Now, having said all this, if you have lots of other water to fish that an 8ft
number 4 suits best and that this rod would get plenty of use if you had it,
then I would just bring it along and use it perhaps struggling a bit if it was
windy but working round it.

It's all very personal stuff this. If you love using a particular rod and are at
home with all the compromises that ANY rod forces upon you AND if the rod is not
going to cause you to make clumsy presentations that scare the fish AND it will
let you beat the fish in the fight - then you should use it...

Call the Peacock asap and they will let you know if there are any of the 12 rods
available.

http://www.thepeacockatrowsley.co.uk/fishing.htm

I hope this helps.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by IanH on Sept 9, 2004, 5:08am

Another terrific day on the Peacock's waters yesterday. Fished the bits others
don't seem to fish and was rewarded by some super fishing - Warren's telephone
tip to fish the extremities of the beats. Lost count of the number of Rainbows
caught, some a good size too (17", 16", 15"). Also caught three Grayling - very
black fish and three Browns.

Didn't see many Browns, those I saw were mostly quite deep and not rising. But
one of the Browns I did catch was a fish I've been trying to catch for 18 months
- lives in a slack under an Oak tree on the far bank. He was out of position
last week and more accessible. I managed to hook him but the hook slipped out as
I was trying to bring him up against the current. Less water in the river
yesterday and he was back in his normal position. After a few dozen attempts
managed to thread a cast through the trees and he took it! Got him to the net
this time - maybe 2.5lb - and slipped him back for another day.

Not sure if there are less Browns about or just that they are holding deep and
can't be seen in the slightly coloured water - quite clear now but still not
summer perfect. I miss casting to Brown spotted on the shallows amongst
ranunculus.

Ian

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 9, 2004, 6:46pm

You will find suddenly sometime this month that all the browns you catch are
cocks. The females are certainly getting quite gravid and I have already seen
mottled fish holding position on the bottom near little patches of freshly
turned gravel. Not redds yet just little cleared patches. To me it seems to be
Autumn full on now.

I took a day off on Tuesday and had a lovely time on my favourite tributary,
entirely alone except for the inhabitants of the river and its environs. At one
point a stoat came out of a hole to the left of me. It stood as high as it
could, scented the air and then bounded over my legs to pause again this time to
the right of me. It then bounded its sinous way off upstream and into a little
copse by the fishing house. It just never recognised that the brownish lump sat
on the grass was a human - it never even looked at me. All I had done to earn
this encounter was to sit quiet and still for a while.

The wind was NE and very frisky. I think I lost more flies on Tuesday than I had
lost all season (up to now)!

But the wind was a help. All the flies were being blown into lines so the fish
lined up and were hard at them, all day long. The Kingfisher came downstream
just as the wind was blowing particularly hard upstream. I have never seen a
Kingfisher pass me by so slowly. It was carrying a fish but not for chicks - the
fish was already turned for swallowing head first. It must have felt the urge to
eat away from where the catch had been made.

Here's to the next trip(s).

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 13, 2004, 11:51am

Saturday: Running very late due to domestic interruptions. I was to have an hour
or so as a guest on a tiny, but delightful, upstream tributary to my "favourite"
tributary to the Wye.

The quest?

Red trout!

My host had spotted a pod of bright red fish that are peculiar to this limestone
spring catchment. The water is so clear it is quite feasible in every case to
choose which fish you want to try and catch. This has advantages naturally, you
end up casting only to the "right" fish. (In my case, for this visit, the
"right" fish were only the bright red ones!) However, the ego takes a pounding
when you can watch the fish treat your carefully chosen fly with disdain...

It was a successful mission though, my host catching four lovely trout, one of
which was indeed "red" and I managed to maintain respectability with two
beauties - both of which were "red". Now I must explain, these are not red like
salmon that have been in the river too long. These are red because that is how
they are. In the water they appear crimson. In the landing net they are all
colours imaginable with very bright red spots and reddish bronzing. Why aren't
these brightly coloured fish caught and eaten by every predator that comes by?
Well, unlikely as it may seem, they can still disappear and merge into their
surroundings when they need to. A pool that had half a dozen fish in it before I
hooked my first, appeared empty after I had returned him. It was with the
greatest difficulty that I could detect them after they had taken fright.

We concluded the session at 13:30 when my host had to leave. I drove down river
to fish in the lower beat of my regular Wye tributary.

It was starting all over again. Conditions were wild and windy. The water here
is more exposed than up on its little tributary. Sport was to be had by careful
angling and paying attention to the flies that were blown into drifting lines by
the North Easterly. I shortened the leader which helped. It was a good day.
Enough fish to keep me busy but not too easy. Different flies at different times
to keep me paying attention. Finishing on the PPS spinner always makes me happy.
Seeing mottled hen fish guarding little bits of scoured white gravel is a
comfort because it shows that the Natural order of things still prevails. Lovely
as all these things are, none of them were the jewel in Saturday's crown.

That was reserved for the kingfishers!

I have never seen so much activity from kingfishers as there was on Saturday
afternoon. The parents with young in full adult plumage were supervising fishing
activity up and down the New Fence Water and below the fishing house. I don't
know how many there were because I never saw them all together. There were a
number of perching stations from which a bird would suddenly dart down into the
water to emerge almost immediately with a fish in the bill. I crept up to one of
these fishing spots to get a better look. What were the fish? I've looked all
summer for the minnow shoals and have been unable to find them. The kingfishers
knew just where to look and on Saturday they showed me too!

You know that wonderful experience of laying down to sleep after a long day
watching a float bob and dip and glide away whilst after roach or tench etc? The
float appears again just as sleep takes its hold. You drift into reverie happily
watching the float re-bob, re-dip and re-glide away all over again. On Saturday
night my sleep was ushered in by kingfishers re-diving after minnows that I
hadn't realised were there...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nicepix on Sept 13, 2004, 12:48pm

I don't know if they are related, but I caught what might be described as a 'red
trout' from the Monsal a couple of months ago. It had much larger red spots than
the others and was of a deeper hue over its back fading to burnished gold on its
flanks. A very beautiful fish.

On another note my friend telephoned last night to say that he had found the
Derwent up and coloured whilst Ladybower was down and having some engineering
work carried out. He thinks that the two might be related. If planning a visit
to this river it might be prudent to check first.

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by PSB on Sept 13, 2004, 12:58pm

Richard, its always good to see your updates, its seems your place as the
Derbyshire rivers scribe is truley assured by the following.

Sunday found me wading around the Welsh Dee at Llangollen doing my own thing and
having a great time in poor weather when two anglers walking the bank asked the
usual type of questions. At first I struggled to place their accents, then the
penny dropped, they were visting Dutch anglers, I stopped fishing and we got
talking. They were over for the river fishing but the Dee was not quite what
they expected. I tried to explain the virtues of a drive to Peacock streach of
the Wye, straight away, one of them replies ahh Vitchard ? I was not sure quite
what he said and gave the international confused signal of a shrug of my
shoulders. Victhard - Internet - Derbyshire he says - good site you should see
it, he continued. My smile gave the game away and then we had a good old chat,
swap of flies and my Grayling society day ticket book became his.

Proves once again the power and the reach of the internet, cheers Paul B

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by PSB on Sept 13, 2004, 1:03pm

Aghh, please excuse the typo's, I should proof read my postings with a little
more care and a little less haste, Paul B

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 13, 2004, 4:11pm

By Gum Paul! I'm a lucky man. I live near enough to the fishing to get out
regularly (not as often as I would like but I'll do more when I retire). I love
the waters I get to visit and love telling folk about them and I almost
desperately urge folk to come and see for themselves (if only as a proof source
for what I claim for the place).

The recipe is dead simple. Go fishing and carry a little (very little) notebook.
Fish and use the book to note anything that makes me go "Hmm!" or "Ah!" Come
home and report the days events. It's all the encouragement (like in your post
above) that has given me motivation to keep it up. I owe much to all of you out
there.

Now back to fishing in Derbyshire! The Derwent is mucky again with rain and the
forecast is still unsettled. I have a day booked on the Peacock stretch of the
Wye on Thursday and am hoping it is in good order. Poor Warren and Gareth will
be sick of my 'phone calls begging updates of conditions. (Pointless really as I
am going no matter what!)

Expect a report circa Friday...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 13, 2004, 5:35pm


Quote:I don't know if they are related, but I caught what might be
described as a 'red trout' from the Monsal a couple of months ago.
It had much larger red spots than the others and was of a deeper hue
over its back fading to burnished gold on its flanks. A very
beautiful fish.



I bet they are related somewhere in the past. These rivers do link up and in
high water the weirs are no trouble for a fish seeking new territories.

When I was a member at Chatsworth in the '70s and in Winter trotted for grayling
below the high weir near the One Arch Bridge, I often saw trout get right over
this weir by leaping and then swimming in the mid-air torrents! I was always
filled with awe at the sight.

So the weirs in the Wye and her tributaries would certainly be passable to fit
fish during high water...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by WarrenSlaney on Sept 13, 2004, 6:11pm

Are you talking about Charles Cotton's quote about the Lathkill fish being the
"reddist and best trout in England?"

We have sent fish in various sizes at various times from the Lathkill to the
Witham. I was interested to see if the fish showed the red colour in their new
home, and I understand that they did and do. Without jumping to conclusions,
could this this mean that the red is genetic? I always understood that the high
pH of the 'UK's only fully limestone river' (EN) lead to much changing of
exo-skeletons on the f/w shrimps, which lead to high populations and more
pigment in the fish....but it aint if they grow red in the Witham. We do have a
captive strain on the upper Lathkill and up until this year we bred with them
every winter. Perhaps there are some nomads around?

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by donnie on Sept 14, 2004, 9:13pm

Hello,
Well in the spirit of sharing that is a great feature of this thread, I'll
mention a little about some fishing I did last week in Derbyshire if that's ok.
Nothing quite as remarkable as the reports I see of the Wye, but rather a couple
of afternoons spent trying to hide from trout on a tiny little stream in north
east Derbyshire. I'm quite new to fly fishing in general, and every trip out is
a great learning (and humbling) experiance. But, I am getting a wee bit better I
hope, and managed not to blank..! The stream in question is mostly rather
shallow with a few deeper pools, and to my eye, at first devoid of trout. That
was until I started spooking them continuously, just by going anywhere nearby a
possible lie.. I am used to spooky trout in my local river in Scotland, but
these fish were seriously unforgiving of a bad approach. Gradually though, I
felt I was beginning to get the hand of things, and indeed I landed 3 lovely
trout in three casts, the largest pushing 3/4 pound. I then hooked a better fish
of over a pound but lost the chappy in the submerged roots of a tree. The stream
was only 6-8' wide and any fish of that size requires some hastey playing, which
of course I wasn't quite ready for. All the fish fell to a double badger size 12
or 14. This seemed to be a pretty good going fly for there was not much in the
way of a hatch and there were not many fish showing.
Well, that was the first day. A couple days later I returned, determined that my
approaches would be better and my presentation very careful. I was indeed
rewarded with a beautiful brownie from a long pool. I had watched him and his
mates gently sloshing about for a good 20 minutes or so, and finally decided to
go for it. He confidently took on the first cast (again a double badger), and
was around the 3/4 pound mark once more. He was a most satisfying catch, as I
had finally begun to improve my technique. A couple more fish followed from
different pools, one of which was to a CDC&Elk sedge tumbled through the head of
a lovely bathtub of a pool.
So, all in all in two afternoons, three fish on each day, I was a happy chappy.
Not because I had caught heavily, but because the experiance had really taught
me something, and through some perseverance I had a bit of success
Thanks and sorry for the essay length.. I get carried away with this sort of
thing


Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 15, 2004, 4:08pm

Well done donnie! If you were fishing where I think you were, you can certainly
catch wild brown trout anywhere they are. One of the great things about that
particular brook is how good your approach has to be for any chance of
consistent success. That Double Badger eh? Roger Woolley was clearly a very
bright inventor of flies (as well as a keeper in Derbyshire).

I hope the Wye is fined down a bit tomorrow. Warren has warned me to expect the
worst...

We shall see!

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by donnie on Sept 15, 2004, 5:42pm

Thanks Richard,
Your guidance was much appreciated! Next time I'm going to book a place on the
Wye well in advance I think..! Though, it must be said there's something
brilliant about tiny streams like that. Makes me think about getting a 6' or
6'6" rod....hmm..

By the way, is the tying for the double badger just as simple as a peacock herl
body with a badger cock hackle at either end?

Thanks

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 16, 2004, 4:00am

Yes. That's the dressing.

Black thread run on from the front down to just as the bend starts. Tied in and
wound badger hackle. Tied in peacock herl wound forwards and then back to the
thread. Tied in and rib'd with the thread. Tied in Badger hackle, wound and tied
in. Whip finish. Tiny blob of varnish. Eye cleared whilst wet. Any size from 6
to 16 with 14 being the most useful size.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by wjd on Sept 16, 2004, 3:11pm

Myself and my brother had booked a day on the Wye yesterday (Wed). This was to
be our first visit and we were looking forward to the day immensely.
Unfortunately, heavy rain on Tuesday evening had turned the Wye brown, although
the Lathkill was running clear. After a quick look around the beats a discussion
with Warren, we decided to call it quits.

The staff at the Peacock were very obliging and refunded our tickets. We drove
to Carsington and had a difficult afternoon (1 brownie) and slightly more
productive evening (1 brown, 1 rainbow).

A few determined rods stayed on the Wye for the day. Anyone know how the day
turned out for them ?.

Cheers


Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by WarrenSlaney on Sept 16, 2004, 4:53pm

Nice to meet you at the Junction Pool yesterday. Most of those who put up rods
mid morning were taking them down before lunch. Nothing could be done.
The water table is very high from 9 1/2 inches of rain during August. We had
quite a heavy spell of rain (nearly an inch) on Tuesday night and this just ran
off the saturated ground.
Gareth text me after checking the mink rafts with the news that there was a
monster BWO hatch taking place and the sand martins were doing well. Those
spinner havent returned yet as it has been chilly again tonight. The spinner
falls at this time of year can be compressed into 1/2 - 3/4 of an hour, then it
swiches off and drops dark quickly. We are due a return of BWO at some point
over the following days and my bet is for Friday night. Fishing Richard?

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 17, 2004, 5:41am


Quote:Nice to meet you at the Junction Pool yesterday. Most of those
who put up rods mid morning were taking them down before lunch.
Nothing could be done.
The water table is very high from 9 1/2 inches of rain during
August. We had quite a heavy spell of rain (nearly an inch) on
Tuesday night and this just ran off the saturated ground.
Gareth text me after checking the mink rafts with the news that
there was a monster BWO hatch taking place and the sand martins were
doing well. Those spinner havent returned yet as it has been chilly
again tonight. The spinner falls at this time of year can be
compressed into 1/2 - 3/4 of an hour, then it swiches off and drops
dark quickly. We are due a return of BWO at some point over the
following days and bet is for Friday night. Fishing Richard?



Yes. But I am expected in Doncaster Minster at 19:00...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 19, 2004, 7:12am

Thursday
After a flying visit to the office I blast over the East Moor and drop down to
Rowsley and the Peacock water. I'm meeting two guests at 11:00. Warren insisted
that my guest and his guest should not be tested so severely as the Wye was
bound to do being so discoloured after yet more heavy rain. He is rarely wrong
in such matters and sensibly we paid attention and repaired to a favourite
tributary on a beat just over two miles away from the confluence with the Wye.
Here the water was gin clear and we would have a chance.

My guest was a lady whose fishing experience was limited to a holiday in Montana
three years ago on a "Dude Ranch" where she was taught the basics of
fly-fishing. I was not expecting much...<br>
Even less when I saw her fly line - it was a bright, light, luminous green -
with considerable self-control I quietly explained that we would use one of my
reels and lines! The rod was quite nice, a Reddington Red Start of 9ft with a
steely tip action and would have been perfect for the windy conditions. Would
have been if I hadn't broken the winch fitting away from the rod as I tightened
the screw onto the foot of my reel. The tiny smidgeon of adhesive that the
manufacturer had seen fit to use had been quite insufficient. I had no rapid
epoxy with me so with red face I selected one of my rods (a carbon one) for her
to use. A shaky start and I don't suppose it helped when I rejected all her
flies and insisted on one of mine - I was building up a fair bit of
hypercritical steam and nothing it seemed could stop me.

BUT then, just before I turned into a completely brutal cad of the first water,
she asked me if her hat was okay. It was. In fact, it was more than okay. It was
very good. Full brim, drab grey green, dark underside to the brim, adjustable
chinstrap with a woggle - it was almost ideal.

Then she donned her drab green, Orvis, lightweight, breathable waders to use as
over trousers. She expected to kneel and sit! Things were getting better. She
intended to be as unobtrusive as I fancy myself to be.

Three years is a long time to be away from the water for anyone. It took a while
for the casting to come back to her. The difficulties were compounded by her
having to use another's rod and line and the blustery conditions. But she did
everything else very well. Hiding from the fish, casting whilst sitting etc.,
striking at the right time. A great time was had by all and the final fish (a
WRT) of the day was caught entirely from her own spotting, stalking, casting,
presenting, striking and landing efforts.

I was intrigued by the Dude Ranch baptism. A preconceived notion had me thinking
about a scheme to extract vast sums from over moneyed tourists in Montana. My
enquiries found that she had arrived as a complete non-angler. She had bought
all the tackle and clothing from the ranch and I think she had been served very
well by the folk at the ranch. She'd learnt to look for fish and to cast and
catch them. She had caught cutthroat trout, rainbows and brook trout and done
all this on a holiday of about a fortnight. Even after a gap of three years she
could still do what had been taught to her at the ranch. On the evidence I saw
she had been provided with excellent value for money and taught very well
indeed. If a person must come to angling as an adult then this American "Dude
Ranch" concept is a good one.

Friday
I just had to try the Wye. I was alone so had only myself to worry about and a
blank has never done me any harm so to Bakewell. I took one look at the water
and decided that the tinge would fine away later and that the place to start
would be up at Lakeside. It was. I had three very productive hours battling with
drag, several WRT and a lunker of a grayling that bullied its way up through a
shoal of rainbows to take a size 12 Non Descript Sedge!

A nasty big cormorant flew off the Lake and came over the high weir whilst I was
hidden in a swampy patch of willow herb. The highest up the Wye/Derwent system
that I've seen one this year - early and unwelcome...<br>
The next four hours I spent pottering about Lumford. Lots of fly changing, from
tiny Grey Duster and Sturdy's Fancy to middle sized Grey Duster and Double
badger through to big (size 12) Non Descript Sedge, kept Sport at a very high
level indeed with grayling and WRT and a single brown trout whose kype was
getting quite pronounced (he looked like a little red salmon).

I decide to finish above Heartbreak Corner, through the Wood and the bends below
Black Barn - so did about five other anglers! That was fine though, we each had
plenty of room. I met "Nick" of these pages for the first time. He had come all
the way down from Teesside.

If the spinner had returned I would have scived off choir practice. After
fluking a couple of WRT above the Wood on the sedge it all seemed to go very
quiet and the rain came back...

Fifteen minutes late for choir practice.

Saturday afternoon
I have another guest on the same beat of the tributary as I fished on Thursday.
He is 89 and needs a stick to get about. It is three years since he fished.
There are two places where I know he has a chance. Where he can cast one-handed
whilst leaning on his stick and use the screen of hemp agrimony to conceal
himself from the somewhat spooky trout. He is happy just to be there - having
thought he would never be beside a river again - but I do so want him to
actually catch a fish. He insists that I cast and each time I catch one a
feeling of uneasy wistfulness comes over me - I just know HE could have caught
that fish!

A break at the fishing house for Kelly Kettle tea and pastries refreshes both of
us. We go upstream to the violence of the mill's weir pool. Here we can hide
behind a wall and a hazel coppice and cast to some of the largest trout in
Derbyshire. Everyone who comes on this beat tries for these fish and by this
time of the season the fish are very sensitive to anything unusual. They are
never easy to catch at the best of times but now they are very difficult indeed.
I have really brought him here in desperation. Yes there are fish here. Yes they
rise freely. Yes we can hide behind the wall. Yes my guest can cast one-handed
here whilst leaning on his stick. But will they rise to his fly?

First cast a trout takes his fly but my friend cannot see the fly and misses the
rise. It happens again. The fish are put down. There is one last chance a few
yards upstream in the big eddy at the tail of the lasher. A pal of ours arrives
to see how we are faring. The pause as we greet each other helps in that the
inhabitants of the pool get to settle down a bit. We edge up past the hazel to
the downstream side of the eddy.

We can peer down over the wall screened by the shoots of coppiced hazel and
there for all to see is a glorious brown trout, intercepting duns and sedges as
they swing into range. My guest casts and he can see his fly swing into
range...<br>
He strikes perfectly and I drop over the wall onto a ledge at water level. After
a firm tussle he draws the trout over my net and the day is crowned. I pass net
and fish up to our visitor. By the time I have clambered back over the wall the
fly is removed and as our visitor has brought his new digital camera with him he
takes a snap of my guest with me holding this lovely fish between us. Moments
later the fish is swimming back where she (I think she) belongs.

Back to the fishing house, another brew of fresh tea and it was time to go.

A very happy three days and yes, yes I know that "there is more to fishing than
catching fish" but, By Gum, it doesn't half add a lot to the pleasure when
actually catching fish happens.

Aren't we lucky to be anglers?

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 21, 2004, 10:26am

Just in case anyone has yet to see the following thread, please do have a look
and do what you can:

http://flyforums.proboards35.com/ind...ead=1095686958

Thanks

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 28, 2004, 5:24pm

Last Wednesday

Derbyshire Drizzle - gets you wet through without letting you know. Lovely stuff
really and the fine misty droplets don't stop the flies from hatching and
returning. A fish I have targetted all season, even had on once, at last was
rising in a spot I could just cover for a few seconds without drag. It was
enough. 3lbs 2oz of bright red trout, the epitomy of limestone spring fed trout
so typical in this delightful tributary of the lovely Wye - what an exquisite
creature and it fell for my NDS like so many others this season. It really has
been the Year of the Sedge!

Saturday

To the same beat as Wednesday, but this time I went over the lower foot bridge
and instead of going upstream straight away, as most rods do, I turned and
wandered off downstream to a series of long abandoned hedgerows. Nature has just
about concealed for ever the purpose of these old enclosures and the bushes are
now trees. Hazels and Blackthorns are the main types and they are covered in
Autumn's bounty. I had left the house with no pack up so filled my pockets with
fresh, ripe hazels and ate a few sloe berries (ancient appetite suppressant) to
keep me going. After too much time harvesting and not enough time angling I went
back to the water and worked my way upstream. It was a good job too, as I
arrived back to an excellent double hatch of BWO and Large Dark Olives. The LDO
is a sure sign that the season has turned round. This fly of the cooler months
is often responsible for stunning sport on and just after opening day. Now it
has come back to help me finish the season with a flourish. Just above the lower
footbridge, where normally every fish would be put down after the angler had
crossed in full view, I crept up already on the right bank and so was able to
benefit from my allies (hemp agrimony and meadow sweet stems and seed heads).
Hunched below a coppiced hazel (no nuts this year) and seated on a very
convenient ledge amongst the allies I caught three brown trout one after the
other starting with the rearmost first and then the middlemost and then the
farmost. Very pleasing stuff - I felt almost competent.

The rest of the trip upstream saw things calm down and by 17:00 things were over
for the day. A sad epilogue was finding a 1lb 12oz female brown trout freshly
dead in the river. I scooped it out for Gareth to examine. It was free of rigour
mortis and had a neat V shaped hole on the top left side of its back just by the
dorsal fin. Nog had got her but the fish was too big for swallowing. A wasted
life? It was worse than that, Warren arrived gutted her and she was packed with
eggs that were all wasted too. At least her flesh wasn't wasted Warren had been
wondering what to have for tea!

Sunday

To the Wye on the Peacock day ticket water. It has been a (rightfully) popular
water this year. Throughout the year some excellent anglers have fished most of
the stretch. What a lot of ticket holders don't realise is that they have the
right to fish ALL of the river on both banks up to the island at Lumford and
then they have the right to fish ALL of the river on the true right bank up to
the terminus above Lakeside. The gardens hardly get fished because so many rods
are unaware that they can go through if they wish to.

Just up from Meaden bridge is a case in point.

The river is full of fish through here and they hardly get fished for. I did
make it very easy for myself on Sunday by going after some of these fish. Brown
trout, lots of rainbow trout and some very lively grayling kept me busy and in
only four hours I must have caught at least two dozen fish in some very pretty
spots. Yes you can fish a lot of this water from the Showground but there are a
lot of people in the Showground on Sundays. The other side of the river is where
to be.

I'm out again on Thursday, as it is the end of the season for the syndicate
water on the tributary. After Thursday the Peacock water will extend my trout
season until the 7th of October but I think I'll leave the brownies alone and
focus on the grayling and WRT.

Now how many times can I get off work over the next nine days..?



richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by WarrenSlaney on Sept 29, 2004, 5:51pm


Quote:

After Thursday the Peacock water will extend my trout season until
the 7th of October but I think I'll leave the brownies alone and
focus on the grayling and WRT.


richard



You may find the Brownies may leave you alone, Richard. They are showing very
early spawning activity and are unlikey to be looking up much.

Although that sedge of yours could pull most things up!

Thanks for your help the other day.

Two young male mink over the last two days in the traps. Both in the wood above
FCP.


Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Sept 30, 2004, 6:49pm

So nice to get a day off work, especially if you can persuade one of your best
pals to join you.

Thus it was today. Rain early, then sunshine, plenty of fly life and the river
with plenty of water in it even though it is September. Enough fish prepared to
rise made it a very successful day indeed that was conducted at a sedate pace
punctuated by two good breaks for fresh tea and victuals in the fishing house.

Seeds are being distributed everywhere, most by Nature but some by the hand of
man! It is pretty obvious that flag iris will be playing a significant part in
the Head River Keepers Plans for the next few years!!!

I'm glad. I love the stuff and if the livestock are kept away from it, it
provides some of the very best cover when fishing at ultra close range.

It's now time to get after the grayling shoals of the Wye. Early Saturday should
find me huddled by a glide behind Caudwell's Mill in Rowsley casting a Sturdy's
Fancy to some rise forms, each of which has a little bubble in it!

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Oct 4, 2004, 1:05pm

To the Peacock water...

Hmm...

One, Two, Three...Four! Four anglers? Yes four anglers, all in the meadow behind
Caudwell's Mill on Saturday morning!

That'll teach me...

A windy day and I was caught out by mindlessly taking and using my regular rod
(alright it is one of my favourites). I would have had an easier time if I'd
thought about it a bit more and instead used my old Sharpes 88 or Hardy
Holokona. Both use a number 6 rather than a number 5 line. How the lads, who
like a 3 or a 4 weight, cope with windy conditions on a biggish river I cannot
guess.

It was a super day all the same. In the morning it was all brown trout, in the
afternoon all WRT. I had no grayling at all until about 18:00 ish in Bakewell,
just upstream of the medieval road bridge - and that was all of 5 ----- inches!
Not ounces but inches, very pretty and it swam away none the worse for its
strange adventure.

If you are after a bigger than average brown at this time of year, keep looking
around the very margins. My biggest fish on Saturday was less than a hand's
width from the stalks of the sedges. It took a size 16 Grey Duster and a good
minute plus to come to the net. I didn't weigh it but it was 2lbs or very near
it, in stunning, untouched condition.

The water is higher than I have ever known it for the end of the season and
that's over 35 years! Some pools are almost like new ones to me, they are so
different from their normal back end, lowish water state.

I'm looking forward to getting in at least one more day before the season ends
on Thursday this week (7th October). After that, any trout I catch will be a
sign of incompetence and failure!

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nicepix on Oct 4, 2004, 2:33pm


Quote:After that, any trout I catch will be a sign of incompetence
and failure!



Most of mine are in spite of incompetence and failure


Quote:How the lads, who like a 3 or a 4 weight, cope with windy
conditions on a biggish river I cannot guess


Well, I swear a lot.

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by ScottRods on Oct 6, 2004, 2:25pm

A Cast a line on the Derwent at Willersley today.
Water was very brown and high, but just fishable.
one small grayling on a Czech nymph.

Also called in at Bakewell, and had a lesson with the excellent Peter Arnfield.
Very nice man and very good teacher. The wye in Bakewell was coloured but more
clear than the Derwent.

Lovely walk up the Derwent at Willersley behind Arkwrights Mill. Lovely picture
spot.

http://photos.yahoo.com/aston_driver42

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Oct 6, 2004, 5:49pm

12th Commandment?





"Thou shalt not covet thy fellow angler's spare time!"





I had to work and by what I could see out of my office window it would have been
a good last day for trout. Tomorrow I am in meetings all day and that is that.

What a pathetic way to end the trout season!

I'm glad you got out and your snaps show just what a lovely day it was. Go on!
Tell me you will be out on closing day tomorrow!

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by ScottRods on Oct 7, 2004, 2:49pm

Lovely day on Thursday 7th.

No fishing. Too busy, and donating blood instead.

Still, there is always the winter rainbows on the still waters.

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by ScottRods on Oct 7, 2004, 2:50pm

Time to build some rods for the new season me thinks

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Oct 11, 2004, 9:33am

Saturday
Mrs W "invited" me to look at the painting she's had done on Mayfly Cottage.
"He's made a lovely job! Just look at these downpipes..."

"Hmm. You're right love. Very smooth and shiny. Look there's a sherry spinner
trying to oviposit on this one!"

"You and your bloody flies..."

"Yes but it is only 1 o'clock and they're out already. You won't mind if I pop
off for an hour or so?"

"No. I don't mind at all!" (A trifle shrill but I believed her instantly.)

"Well in that case. I tell you what. I'll get ready and walk down so you can
hang onto the car." (It's her car actually.)

"Can I give you a lift?"

"That will be brilliant. Just down to Meaden Bridge..."

10 minutes later, arrived at Meaden Bridge and following a quick kiss good bye,
Mrs W is driving off to Bakewell whilst yours truly is heading downstream to the
run above Black Barn Weir.

I have convinced myself, more than once, over the last 35 years that this length
has to be the best dry fly water anywhere in the World! Saturday served to
underpin that sweeping opinion. The BWO was hurtling along, on the surface and
above it. Some spinner was returning but I could only see trout eating those. On
with a Kite's Imperial (size 14) and an hour later I had yet to cast. Every fish
was a trout! So wistfully I drifted upstream towards the run below the wicket
gate. This had grayling at the tail of the pool and at last I could have a
chuck. They didn't fancy my representation so I tried a thin bodied Sturdy's
Fancy and that was what they wanted. Steady Sport and then I headed for the Show
Ground.

In the edge trout seemed to be everywhere. In the middle the grayling very
occasionally would rise. It was hard work and it could take 7 or 8 casts before
getting an offer. By 16:00 I'd reached the car park, having watched a very
efficient goosander, below the cricket pavilion islands, catching just as many
grayling as me but in about 15 minutes to my 3 hours!

After crossing the river by the older footbridge I wandered down to a glide at
the park entrance. Here, despite having to pause between casts for the general
public to come past, two very large grayling (for Derbyshire) came up and
snaffled the Sturdy's Fancy.

I was a very happy angler when at 17:00 ish I wandered back to Mayfly to take
tea with Mrs W.

An observer could say that the trout knew the season had ended the previous
Thursday and that was why they seemed to be rising everywhere. IMO the
astonishing abundance of fly life (BWO, LDO, Willow Fly, Needle Fly, midge and
various Sedges) on the surface, blown into lines by the wind, had more to do
with it.

The grayling have convinced me that, to have Sport with them on dry flies, it is
vital to find a shoal. Solitary grayling and even groups of two or three just
hardly ever seem to rise. Find a shoal and they will rise for hours taking it in
turn to be caught. Is it a security thing?

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Oct 18, 2004, 4:06am

Saturday

Brown water, what a struggle! In the end I found some thin water at the bottom
end of an old mill race. The water shoots out of a single arched bridge that in
summer allows about two feet of aerial room for an adventurous cast up into the
tunnel. On Saturday it was pushing out into a great bed of "cress". Downstream
of this "strainer" there was a chance, I thought...

It was depressing to see a large grayling coming to the surface in a similar
manner to carp on a hot day in a lake losing its dissolved oxygen. It dropped
back downstream and passed close enough for me to see that it was a male! After
watching for a good quarter of an hour I was aware of only two risers, one of
which was bubbled nicely. First accurate cast (in truth about the tenth actual
cast) caught the bubble maker, all 7 ounces (max), a little lady of the stream.
She was quickly returned and I then watched the only other riser, in the edge
under the opposite wall. Eventually I got a decent look at the cause of the
rings. It was a WRT and so that was that, out of season and safe from the likes
of me!

A steady perambulation round to the main river and if anything it was now very
much browner. A pleasant stroll back to Mayfly Cottage and that was that.

Later that evening I noticed I had missed a call on the mobile. It was Gareth.
He'd been further downstream and had been more successful using bugs etc on the
bottom. Hey Ho! Unless we have some frost soon, I can see that I will need my
bugs and shrimps too.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Oct 31, 2004, 3:46pm

Saturday

A lovely, mild, open day with clouds and autumn sunshine on the river's
background of meads, trees in the late stages of defoliation and Bakewell's
spire away in the distance, it was all like some enormous Bernard Venables
painting. Imagine page 2 of Mr Crabtree Goes Fishing, only two or three months
earlier in the year.

I had expected to use bugs and shrimps and started with a Sawyer Grayling bug
(but on a curved hook) fished in the Richard Walker manner of casting across,
mending a big bend upstream, letting the fly sink deep and then as the bend in
the line straightens and turns into a downstream bend the fly is dragged upwards
and gets intercepted by a grayling.

It took me a good 45 minutes to come to terms with the sad fact I wasn't getting
deep enough so, rather than add more leaded flies, I simply nipped on a shot and
that did the trick.

Sport was steady as I worked myself slowly upstream.

I came across a cygnet with a broken wing. If we have a hard winter I think its
chances of survival are poor.

Then I had an adventure with a singleton cormorant...

Then, like magic, there were flies all over the river and fish rising
everywhere. I decided to come off the bottom and have a go with a dry Sturdy's
Fancy as some of the rising fish were indeed grayling.

As well as flies on the river there were plenty of biting midges - on me - no
livestock near enough to attract them away. I was probably the only thing worth
eating for a radius of about 3 miles!

Sport to the dry fly was slow as most rises had to be ignored. By Gum! There are
a lot of trout in this river!

I carried on though, as there were enough grayling to keep me occupied. Then a
little way down from a footbridge in a smooth glide there were several grayling
taking turns to eat: willow flies, BWO Duns and LDO Duns. My Sturdy's Fancy
looked like none of these but I cast anyway and was rewarded with a whopper (for
Derbyshire) that I'd guess at 1lb 12oz plus. It fought very well too.

Later, I met up with Warren and Gareth at one of the car parks. I had arrived a
few moments earlier. There dumped in the grass was a fully charged, big fire
extinguisher and a TV set. They hadn't been there last week. This illustrates a
very worrying aspect of most human beings. If you chuck something out of your
immediate surroundings it's okay because you've made your bit nice and tidy.
It's the same logic that leads to CSOs being installed on rivers and that makes
some gardeners tip refuse into the rivers at the bottom of their gardens. When I
come to power it will be a public flogging on TV for anyone guilty of such
things...

Warren loaded the TV and extinguisher onto the back of the Landrover for
responsible disposal later.

It had been a very productive day and out of a couple of dozen fish or so only
one was a trout, a boisterous WRT that actually took my deep fished Bug that had
just been responsible for a couple of nice grayling in the same run! What a
blessed gatecrasher!

Grayling will be my love for another month.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Nov 11, 2004, 1:05pm

My new Mosquito and my old Mosquito (now with a new top) arrived in a tube this
week from Mr Norman at Agutters.

Now how the Devil do I try out two supposedly similar rods?

I'll try one in the morning and t'other in the afternoon on Saturday! That
should do it.

It won't be a proper test as I should think I'll only be using bugs, unless I
find a shoal of very-keen-to-rise grayling, with absolutely NO TROUT AT ALL in
amongst them...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nicepix on Nov 11, 2004, 1:10pm

So you've got three new rods Richard? Or is that six? Stop pressing the POST
button!

Since we've gone all political the server can't keep up as every post has to be
vetted by the CIA.

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Nov 11, 2004, 2:12pm


I think it was my bash, bash, bash of the refresh button during a "Too many
connections" moment.

It's one new rod and one old rod with a new top...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nicepix on Nov 11, 2004, 2:25pm

I thought so. I'm off to Darley Dale tomorrow for a spot of grayling fishing.
Any tips regards flies would be appreciated.

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Nov 12, 2004, 5:41am

I don't think I'm qualified to advise on flies for grayling right now. I'm using
Sawyer Bugs but on curved shrimp/sedge hooks and with a back built up with lead
strips to make it sink and swim upside down. Some I do with fluorescent orange
or red hot spots in the belly and some I daub a brown back onto the Chadwick's
with a dark brown pantone pen. John Tyzack would be a better bet for real advice
about grubs and stuff on the bottom...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nicepix on Nov 12, 2004, 8:04am

Didn't manage to get fishing today, but there's aways another day.....

I had planned to use Sawyers and goldhead nymphs - PTN and GRHE for nyphing. Te
fly advice I was looking for was anything to do with a hatch. I have not fished
these parts in winter before. The other day I had several grayling from the
Wharfe on small Adams and Iron Blues and their emerger cousins. Would these work
on the Derwent?

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Nov 14, 2004, 3:19pm

Saturday

Beautiful day of thin yellow sunshine , a chill in the breeze and the whole
place to myself. I stayed down around Rowsley and swung a team of heavy leaded
bugs in all the runs as well as the glides. This was more in reconnaissance than
in sure and solid local knowledge. Local knowledge is out of date this year, so
much has changed in a year of high water. It was worth the effort. There are
grayling seemingly everywhere at the moment and getting hard on the bottom means
the more pelagic trout don't get chance to take the artificial.

Four happy hours of fine Sport, then I realised I was actually quite nithered.
So, a brisk walk back to the car and 20 minutes later I was soaking in a hot
bath at Mayfly Cottage!

My rig is very crude but keeps tangles to a minimum. Simply make the 5lbs tippet
2 or 3 yards long. Thread on the first bug and position it where you want, tie
it on using a Grinner knot but don't cut off the spare end. Thread on another
bug and position it, then tie it on with a Grinner knot leaving the spare end as
before. Then tie on the point fly with another Grinner knot and this time trim
off the spare end. Most of my grayling took the point fly or the middle fly (can
hardly call it a middle dropper as there is no dropper). It's just Czech
nymph/maggot/bugging but without wading.

The big thing in its favour?

100% "grayling only" on Saturday with not a single trout caught!

The big thing against it?

It's not as much fun as dry fly fishing. Nevertheless, I'm glad to do it.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by HarryOtter on Nov 15, 2004, 1:25pm

Had mixed success on Friday, rain, cold wind but didn't put the fish off behind
the cricket pavilion, in the afternoon I moved downstream and fished the lower
reaches but only managed a couple, the pink shrimp almost totally ignored, most
falling to a dark green czech nymph with a dark orange thorax and my favorite
fly, a gold head red tag. However late Sunday after lunch I managed to sneak out
once again, bright sunshine and a cold wind, wandered up through Scotts gardens
and into the meadow, and managed a super fish of almost 2lbs on the large bend.
It fell to the previously ignored pink shrimp. The fish took in the back eddy,
almost below my feet as I had just dropped the heavy team of flies into the
water and was getting ready to cast. I think I got more of a shock when I tried
to cast and found the fish had taken the fly.

HO


Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Nov 15, 2004, 2:20pm

Wonderful! Methinks you will have to teach me that trick...

richard
P.S. I lost rather a lot of flies on Saturday and as I will need to make
replenishments soon I think I might make a few of those Red Tags with a... What
head?!! I can't believe I just wrote that...

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by HarryOtter on Nov 16, 2004, 11:24am

Don't worry, its not a traditional red tag, but more a *******ised Roberts Dove
bug, first used it many years ago on the Wye, it started off as a similar type
Dove bug, but just used serveral different types of dubbing on a weighted hook,
greens, browns orange etc well mixed. When tied, i'd rough it up using a small
piece of velcro making all the fibres stick out. It caught fish and worked quite
well. A couple of years later, I added a bright red tag to the pattern using
some glo bright floss, it worked even better. Then a year or so later, when gold
beads became popular I stuck one of those on too.... a magical pattern, ribbed
with fine gold wire. I don't know which is the main attractor, the gold or the
red...but it works. And the best bit is its simple to tie. The more rough the
pattern the better, dont be affraid to really rub it with the velcro. As with
most of my flies, it wont look good in a frame, but it will catch fish.

HO

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Nov 17, 2004, 6:46am

Hmm...

Spotted that very significant word in your description of dubbing - mixed - very
important, far better to mix than dye.

I will have a go soon.

Thanks HO.

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by nicepix on Nov 20, 2004, 11:27am

Tried the Derwent at Darley Dale today. The river was up a foot or so with none
of the colour associated with floodwater so I reckon the Ladybower sluice might
be to blame.

Never touched a fish all afternoon.

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Nov 20, 2004, 5:29pm

Inspired by HO's description of his fly tying, I sat at the bench last night and
in almost a trance put half a dozen curved hooks out and absent mindedly crimped
the barbs flat, ran on some black thread and started dressing shrimpy things
with heavily humped, lead underbodies, a mix of seal's fur that started dull
green and ginger but with a band of fluorescent orange in the middle, a soft
rubber back and copper wire ribbing. After whip finishing they have round cross
sections but a few squeezes with the pliers and they become as thin as a knife.
They looked good.

From noon today in combination with Sawyer Bugs (also on curved hooks with lead
under body humps and squeezed flat) they still looked good and certainly fished
on the bottom...

First swim down landed me a heavy, waterlogged stick (I did not practice C&R)!
Next swim got me a couple of yards of ranunculus fluitans (returned safely as it
was covered in roots). Then I had a monumental tangle so retackled with only two
"flies" on. First cast with the new rig and a nice grayling took the Sawyer Bug
on my "dropper".

This set the scene for the whole afternoon. I pottered about from the Medieval
Bridge up to Lumford and then down again via Milford.

The water was in perfect order. The sky was leaden with a milky sun. Scraping
snow away at each peg meant I could sit comfortably for 5 or 10 minutes at a
time without getting chilled. So shuffling about like this, swinging the two
flies up, across and even down proved very effective.

My only error of the day was in trying to catch a nice grayling in the mill
stream at Lumford, by the Gatzo bridge. An unseen cock rainbow, with a kype that
would not have been out of place on a salmon, dashed forward and hooked himself
before I could remove the flies. I removed him to the river proper, (where he
has more chance of finding a wife).

I'm glad I bothered today. At last, after many weeks, I saw a vole, a young
vole. Thank Heavens for Warren's diligence against the many, "activist"
released, mink that are destroying so much on neighbouring estates but are
getting short shrift on Haddon. I watched a sparrow hawk repeatedly doing some
high speed hedge hopping (with eventual success). They are astonishing low level
fliers. Oh, and I had some nice fish.

richard
PS I used a carbon rod today. No point in using cane when there is no casting to
be done...




Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by HarryOtter on Nov 29, 2004, 3:17pm

Sunday morning, a very cold downstream wind blowing, but with a couple of hours
to spare and poor weather conditions, meant that the park would be reasoanbly
quiet. Wrong again, one or two dog walkers, one of whom took great pleasure in
throwing his dogs ball into the water just above the wier. Well the water behind
the pavillion was undisturbed, so three or four casts later and the gold headed
red tag did the trick, a small grayling, quickly followed by another.
By the time my rod had just bent into the second fish, I was joined by two other
anglers, time to move, so a quick walk upstream and into Scots meadow, where I
managed a further two, in the fast water below the first wier. One to the GHRT
and the other to an orange thoraxed green bodied nymph. All the fish were on the
smallish side, but perfect none the less.


HO





Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Nov 30, 2004, 10:14am

I chose not to fish this weekend and instead got my riverside fix by tagging
along with Warren. My word! We are in for a treat next year. It seems that every
trickle of feeder, every inch of gravel is being helped into life in the quest
for more and more wild bred trout. The habitat in the catchment is being
enhanced wheresoever Warren and Gareth can get at it! Everywhere one looks now
there are white shining patches of gravel, each with its female owner standing
guard. This has to be one of the biggest (if not the biggest) wild trout only
projects in the country. Roll on next April...

richard

Re: Derbyshire 2004
Post by richardw on Dec 14, 2004, 3:37pm

After all the lovely rain we had this summer we seem to be in the thick of a
drought right now. If we don't get good rain soon we are going to lose some
redds as they get left high and dry!

Anyone out in the Peak keep your eyes open for ravens!

I saw at least two pairs on Saturday and Warren texted me this afternoon with
news that a pair were displaying and courting just below his house.

Things are looking up if the food chain in the Peak can maintain these very
impressive corvids...

richard