[Loxiafan]

Hopefully the first of many for you this season! Cracking flies btw.

Already had a few dude, have been making the effort ! 

L

[Ben Dixon]

Not good mate although considering conditions I think you did a damn good job 

I'll be salmon fishing on Monday unless the weather changes considerably.

Cheers

Ben

[Sandy Nelson]

 I am think of flooging all the other shit and getting an Access 904 #5 !

About to come cross to the light side Been down the same road, although never got into roachpoles for fly fishing
9ft has always been my personal max for comfort. tried 3's for many moons but now its 4wt or 5wt's depending on action

These days I have an awesome Plastic 2pc 9ft 4wt fast action and a proper rod in a 3pc 8ft 5wt Cane med/fast. I fish both with the 4wt SLX So far its the best idea i've ever tried and i'm comfortable with my fishing gear, for once.

BTW i'm deeply in love with the Cane and it will see most of the use this year, infact i intend to try and use nothing else, so we shall see.

Have a look at some of the super sweet second hand rods kicking around, don't know if H is still selling his B11X, it is the ideal rod for the river Or build yourself something nice, you tie a nice fly, so a rod would be easy

Otherwise Lovely fish I'm going to have a go tomorrow on the Don, not sure where to head yet but i guess i'll wing it in the morning.

Sandy

[Mike Barrio]

Cracking report and photos Lindsay ....... nice trout too!

Best wishes
Mike

[Hamish Young]

Have a look at some of the super sweet second hand rods kicking around, don't know if H is still selling his B11X, it is the ideal rod for the river

I am still selling it 

[Iain Cameron]

Back to the reliable Access #4, to be honest I am think of flooging all the other shit and getting an Access 904 #5 !

Cracking fish Lindsay - not been the nicest week to be on the river, weather wise, so good effort.
 Shame about the big fish, but you know where he is now!!

Can I have first dibs on your 10ft 4wt when you flog it!

[Sandy Nelson]

I spent a few hours down the river this afternoon, from lunchtime through till about 4.

Lots of flies coming off, mainly LDO's with a few of these scattered in amongst them




Not a fish to bee seen rising, so i set off with a March brown dry on the dropper and a Nymph on the point and went searching.
After a lot of nothing i sat and had lunch, the flies kept coming which is great, but still no risers I even sat at the point i though most likely to produce a wee rise, still nothing......

So i'm making my way up through some pocket water when i get to the tail of the pool above the streamy bit i'm fishing and i spot what could have been a small rise, or the swirl from a rock, unsure i sit down and wait, the next LDO that floats down is being observed rather closely when up pops a large head and the fly is gone, a smooth back and a tail the 2/3rd's the size of my hand, barely a ripple except in my chest where it is all suddenly going mad. So off comes the nymph and on goes a Waterhen Bloa. The fish is only about 4 ft out from the bank so a careful cast puts the flies out......Nothing..... did i spook him Lack of confidence in the heat of the moment, so i sit and wistfully watch pondering what i did wrong, did he not like the flies, was it the orange line (i'm still on the nymph rig and not swapped to dryfly mode) did he see me even though i'm crouched on the bank about 10ft behind him Lots to ponder when A small flash about 4ft further out and i see the tail again. This time i wait.............. after about 90secs i cast again somewhere between where the two rises were, up he comes and the waterhen bloa is quite confidently Consumed. Bang he's on and going mental, what a way to christen the new 8ft Cane After several spectacular leaps, i lost count at 8   each bringing its own minor heartattack and desperately trying to keep him out of the rapids with some well applied side strain I managed to get him up to the bank, a good 20-22" long if not a little more.. Now here starts my issue, i have only my small handnet which is great when you are wading, but when you are 2ft up from the water and kneeling on the grass its not so clever So with the rod in my left hand and the net in my outstretched right i lean down to try and net him... this he is not to amused at and makes a final Leap...... Pop goes the dropper and i'm left staring at the water trying to regain some sort of composure .

Awesome.... Probably the best Fish i've hooked since i came home, brilliant fight more like a sea-trout and i got to see him up close a beautiful golden brownie with the classic Don Blue blusher, Only thing i didn't get to do was land him so i could measure him properly and get a Photo to claim a decent fish
So i'm still to get off the mark, but things are looking up, and so it seems are the fish

But I now I know where he lives Roll on the warmer weather next week

Sandy

[Mike Barrio]

Great stuff Sandy

Cheers
Mike

[Noel Kelly]

Great report sandy hope you get to give that trout another opportunity to join the forum gallery!

[Loxiafan]

Nice report Sandy and well done on the hard bit, getting him to take !  As you know I have had mixed results recently...

On to today. Very promising weather, arrived about 1pm to scads of LDO's and quickly found steady risers in some slack water next to a main crease. Today I opted for Tiemco 212Y's for my DHE's. First cast, fish on, around two pounds in weight as he jumped twice. All going well. Then dreaded recoil ! Looked at the DHE, complety opened ! Right phuk this, I said raking about till I thankfully found a shitty size 14 DHE on a Kamasan B100, and on it went with liberal Gink to the Deer Hair. I sat back and the 'big boy' thought he'd start on the LDO's. Covered him a few times, but must have lined him as he went down.

Sat for about 40 minutes when I noticed dimpling rises on the edge of the crease right in the slack water. This looked like the type of rise a parr would make. Third cast he gulped the DHE and went mental, but no jumping ( at all - sign of a big fish ??) ! I could feel the weight of the fish and had to sidestrain him from his bolt hole a massive boulder midstream. All the times saying please hold, please hold to the B100. The fish then stripped line from the reel and took me down in to the next pool. A Salmon angler who had turned up asked me if I needed any help and then proceeded to watch ( more of this later !). My thoughts now turned to the leader and tippet ( 6ft 2X Orvis SS tapered, with 3 feet 3x, 2 ft 4x and 1.5 feet 5x) and all the knots. More "please hold's" ! I managed to work the fish upstream and could see it was really big and I thought I was going in to shock ! Reached for me net and it was tangled up in the Orvis stretchy stuff. So I shouted up to the Salmon boy " can I borrow yer net mate" to which he replied " I dinnae carry one" ! So when he asked me if I needed any help earlier, just what did he mean ? !  The net finally untwisted form the Brian May guitar lead and I got the fish in. Massive ! The Salmon boy said well done and buggered off. I weighed him in the McLean and it was just below the 5 pound line, certainly no less than 4 lb 14 oz. I would have liked a photo of me with the fish but you'll just have to make do with this:




I only took a couple as my first thought was to get the fish back and away. He took about a minute to steady himself but off he went strong. A fish of a lifetime for me, no doubt.

Here is the TMC212Y that opened and the 'heroic' B100 (debarbed) that held firm:




I had just ordered a whole bunch of 212Y's from Lathkill last night but when they arrive they are going straight on the bay of E. Thankfully I also ordered a shitload of B100's and have some here meantime.

I must thank Iain Goolager. I spooled my new GT90 #4 this morning (which I used today) and attached a RM mincon with Iain's whip finish SBS he sent me. Held firm dude !  The Helios 104 with the GT90 was great !


Big March Brown hatch today at 3pm on the nose but very little surface interest from the trout.

Lindsay

[danbruce]

Well done Lindsay, that is a monster 

[Iain Cameron]

Fantastic fish Lindsay, unbelievable!

[Sandy Nelson]

Awesome fish dude

Well done that man

Sandy

[Iain Goolager]

Lindz,

nice trout, well done.  
Real pity about the big trout (takes a bit of skill to handle those boys but that will come   )

There are some hooks that I wouldn't use when there is a possibility, however remote, of a decent wildie and the 2200 is included. I do like the Tiemco 212Y and it hasn't let me down with fish to the 3 lb mark (rainbows) but would I'd have to be uber giddy to intentionally target a large river brown with a fly tied on one.

If you would like to trial a 9 for a 5 Access give me a shout.

Sandy,

cracking photo   but a spotty trout lying alongside a cane wand would have been even better.

River Don? Landing nets?  another case of damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Realistically fishing without a long handled net will lose you some decent fish over the season, get the blood pressure in the head and neck rocketing as you contort yourself upside down amongst the dockings and nettles & possibly get you a soaking to boot.............  I have tried on a few occasions to carry different net types with a greater reach but always revert to a short handled version?  

Surface activity may not be great but as always at this time of the season patience will generally provide something worthwhile to aim at............ I hate you guys that get down to the river of an afternoon  

Iain

[Iain Goolager]

Lindz,

you posted as I was writing and damn it that was something that I was going to question in said post.....................the reason for using fine wire crap on DHE's?

all mine are tied on Kamakazee B100's (until I have in my hand a suitable barbless type - which I think I've found).

I use the 212Y's on emerging CDC patterns for lightness and as said these are for stocked rainbows or smaller wild fish.

Anyway, I'm so glad that you caught a decent fish, well done you bute!

Iain