CROWN FLY FISHERS

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SEASON 2006 FISHERY REPORTS

ORCHIL LOCH - 11/03/06....A bitterly cold day with a stiff north easterly and flurries of snow meant tough conditions for the season opener at Orchil Loch. The loch had been frozen for nearly a week prior to the outing so flies fished deep and slow was the order of the day. Anglers struggled to contact fish apart from Bobby Blackley who managed his bag limit of five in the first two and three quarter hours. Terrific going on such a cold day. Top fly for Bobby was his favourite Green Pea on an intermediate line retrieved slowly. New boy John McDowall was the only other angler to manage five, again using similar tactics and the same fly John plugged away picking up trout all round the loch during the course of the day. Another angler who kept going right to the end of the session was Dougie Hek, hooking and landing a rainbow of 7 : 11 3/4 on his last cast. Black and Green came out top colour combination with patterns such as Blobs in pink, orange and peach, Bloodworm, Snatchers and Diawl Bach also featuring for successful anglers. Fast Glass intermediate lines or floaters used in conjuntion with a sight bob took most of the fish caught. Sixteen rods had twenty nine trout, not a bad total, with John McDowall leading the way with five for 12 : 04 1/4. Second was Bobby Blackley with five for 10 : 01 1/4 and third Dougie Hek with three for 12 : 12.

 

 

 

 

Dougie Hek makes sure he's got the big one in the net

 

 

 

 

 

PENWHAPPLE RESERVOIR - 8/04/06....Once again this fishery produced the goods even though the cold start to the season continued and the strong northerly wind that persisted all day did nothing for the anglers confidence as they tackled up before the session started. Although easy to reach Penwhapple still gives the impression of a moorland loch and even the recently completed wind farm does not detract from the pleasant surroundings and varied wildlife found in the area. Sixteen rods managed to land sixty one trout, a mixture of rainbows and browns, all in good nick and all giving a good account of themselves before coming to the net. The north and west shores were the most productive but fish can be found all round the loch. Fast glass intermediate and wet cel 2 lines produced the majority of fish but floaters coupled with sighters also took a few. Fly patterns were many and varied but black and green was once again high on the menu. Top fly for the second venue in succession was the Green Pea but Yellow Dancer, Cats Whisker and Straggle Fritz patterns also featured. Robert Irvine had six on a small black marabou double with a pearl Fritz head. For those fishing right on the bottom black and green Boobies took a few. Top of the bag limits was Bobby Blackley with six for 11:03, second was Dougie Hek with six for 10:00 and third Ron Chesney with six for 9:13. Alex Watson landed the heaviest of the day with a rainbow of 3:00. Everyone managed to catch at least one fish and the club thoroughly recommends this fishery to those who have still to try it out. Possibly the best value for money ticket in Scotland.

 

 

 

 

 

Bob Logan with a nice Penwhapple rainbow safely in the net

 

 

 

 

 

LOCH VENNACHAR - 15/04/06....The cold damp conditions of recent weeks showed no signs of ending as four club members fished this water in the heart of the Trossachs. With the new club house and cafe/visitor centre well under construction things are looking good for the future of this venue and it could soon rival more well established brown trout fisheries. After a calm spell early in the session the wind finally picked up from the north west and proper drifts close to both shores could be fished out. Fish came in very short bursts and Tam Campbell and Dougie Hek managed five to the boat with Rab Brazier and Scott McDade taking three. With cold air and water temperatures it was no surprise that all the fish came to sinking lines including DI-5, DI-3 and fast glass. Stockies around the pound mark showed up well in the returns with Gold Head Viva, Humungus and Peach Muddler accounting for these and Golden Olive Bumble and Clan Chief also taking fish. Brownies have a tendency to follow flies up to the surface when they are fished on sinking lines, so make sure and hang your top dropper in the wave for a few seconds before you recast as this can encourage fish that would otherwise be missed to take. Even in the cold conditions buzzers hatched out all day and sport should improve as the temperatures rise in the coming weeks. Click here for Vennachar map.

 

 

 

 

Dougie Hek with a nice Vennachar stockie

 

 

 

 

 

PENWHAPPLE RESERVOIR - 17/04/06....What a difference a week makes, same cold north westerly only much stronger coupled with strong spring sunshine and even stockies decide to hide away. This must be one of the few countries in the world where numb hands can be sunburned at the same time. Tam Campbell and Rab Brazier started the session well enough with both rainbows and browns coming to mini lures like Green Pea and Cat's Whiskers but as soon as the sun broke through sport tailed off with only the occasional fish showing any interest in the flies offered. Once again the west and north shorelines were most productive with some nice trout coming to hand. Takes were savage, a slow figure of eight retrieve on a fast glass line the most effective method although a high percentage of these trout managed to come off as they were being played. More of the lochs stock of natural brown trout were in evidence and in the coming weeks these will provide great sport with floaters and dry fly. All in all a real day of two halves, fishing was steady in the morning but very slow in the afternoon.

 

 

 

 

A fin perfect Clyde brownie around 1 : 08

 

 

 

 

RIVER CLYDE - HYNDFORD BRIDGE - 22/04/06....Once again the strong winds that have plagued our outings this season were with us again, this time a good deal milder than in recent weeks and from the west. Hugh Skeoch, Tam Campbell and Rab Brazier fished the Hozier Angling Association stretch near Lanark on what turned out to be a very productive session. Most of the day was spent from Hyndford Bridge to the Shoals about half a mile upstream. This provided the anglers with some degree of shelter from the wind and happened to be the area where the majority of olives could be seen hatching. The March Brown hatches came in short bursts not lasting more than five minutes and it was during these periods that most of the trout were landed. Fish were in great condition and nearly all of them over a pound in weight with Hugh having one around the 1 : 12 mark and Tam's best close to 1 : 08. In total nine fish came from this beat with many more hooked and lost, all apart from one came to March Brown and olive patterns fished dry. The other took a Snipe and Purple fished down and across. Later in the afternoon Tam fished a nice glide about three quarters of a mile below the bridge taking two nice trout on a dry olive and losing another. Apart from the windy conditions an enjoyable day on a lovely stretch of river and all the fish were safely returned to fight another day.

 

 

 

 

One for Tam Campbell on a dry March Brown

 

 

 

 

 

RIVER TWEED - GALASHIELS - 29/04/06....Warm, unbroken sunshine and a steady northerly coupled with gin clear water made this venue a challenge for the twelve rods and the number of trout (twenty one) returned to the weigh in reflected this. The majority of these were stockies, signified in these parts by a blue dot tattooed on the trout's belly but there was also two cracking wild fish caught. Hugh Skeoch not only won the outing but broke the club record for a brown trout into the bargain. His fish weighed four pounds and one ounce and was taken on his Big Broon pattern that appears on his patterns page. Hugh himself reckoned that the fish had reached it's peak at least a year ago and was starting to deteriorate with age. This did not diminish his achievement in any way and the fish ran for over seventy yards downstream before it came to the net. The top three rods all fished the top of the beat and a couple of flurry's of large olives kept the fish interested while further downstream only once did the flies hatch in any numbers. It was during this hatch that Tam Campbell hooked and landed a two pounder in great condition (see pic on standings page) and only two other trout came from this area. Hugh's total was four for 6 : 14, with Dougie Hek's good run continuing with four for 3 : 03 and Bill Hunter's four came in at 2 : 10. While Hugh and Dougie caught with dries Bill had three on a Gold Head Hares Ear fished down and across. March Brown and various olive patterns were the order of the day but hatches of the naturals have been sparse and not just on the Tweed but in a few other good trout rivers members have visited.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dougie Hek fishes upstream dry on the lower Tummel

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RIVER TUMMEL - 20/05/06....The unsettled weather that had featured in all the outings so far this season continued. After a damp, calm start to the day a stiff northerly sprang up and coupled with intermittent rain brought temperatures crashing down. During the course of the day the river rose approximately eight inches and anglers found that some areas fished in the morning could not be reached in the afternoon. Fly hatches were localised and at the Sawmill stream olives could be seen coming off all day while down near the Pylons hatches came in short, sparse bursts. It was just below the Sawmill that Bobby Blackley took his five trout for 3 : 09 to win the outing. His fish came to an olive emerger pattern and it was with a similar fly that Craig Osborne took three out of his four fish, the other coming on a tungsten bead PTN fished down and across. Craig's four came in at 3 : 06 and came from the Pylons and the stream below. Third was Robert Irvine and his bag of three for 2 : 15 included the heaviest fish of the day at 1 : 08. Methods and patterns varied greatly but dries turned out to be the most successful style with many olive variations and March Brown emerger's top patterns. Wets such as Partridge and Orange, Partridge and Yellow and Waterhen Bloa all caught and top nymphs and bugs were PTN, Hares Ear and Peeping Caddis, all weighed with beads. The Tummel trout were surprisingly lean considering the fly life in the river but gave a good account of themselves in the strong flow. Fishing should come alive in the next few weeks when evening sedge hatches reach their peak.

 

 

 

 

 

Tummel weigh in

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LOCH VENACHAR - 27/05/06....Four club members enjoyed a red letter day despite very windy conditions on this well managed Trossachs loch. The Lendrick drifts on the north shore provided sport straight away with quality browns coming to a variety of patterns presented on fast glass lines. Dougie Hek was the top rod with ten and his Peach Muddler brought fish up cast after cast. Tam Campbell had fish early on a Red Tailed Kate and a Claret Dabbler fished on the point also performed well. Craig Osborne and Scott McDade picked up a couple each in Invertrossachs Bay in the morning, Craig took the best fish of the day from here at 1 : 13. Both changed to Hi-Di lines in the afternoon and started taking fish by stripping back quickly and hanging the flies. At times during the session for every fish hooked half a dozen would be missed or lost and at its peak sport could only be described as hectic. The total catch for four rods was thirty trout ranging from ten ounces to a pound and three quarters, of which all were returned to the loch bar four. Angling on Venachar is managed by Trossachs Fishing and this loch is certainly worth a visit. If it continues to perform to this standard then boats will be hard to come by. For more information have a look at http://www.trossachs-leisure.co.uk/ Click here for map of Vennachar

 

 

 

 

 

 

Concentration at Carron

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CARRON VALLEY RESERVOIR - 24/06/06....A full complement of eighteen anglers set out in near perfect conditions for this evening session on Carron. Anglers were quickly into fish pulling traditional's on intermediate lines although as fish could be seen rising the majority changed to floaters within the first hour and continued to catch. Eventual winner Craig Osborne fished the bays in and around Gull Island and took his limit on Red Tailed Kate, Sunburst Kate, Hutches Pennel and Peterhog. As conditions changed and the Caenis started to hatch a Fiery Brown Snatcher continued to put him in contact with fish although a few of these were lost. Dougie Hek found success directly across from the jetty on a Kate Muddler and a Goats Toe on a slow figure of eight retrieve. Another angler who bagged up was Robert Irvine, who along with Wullie Watters fished Burnhouse Bay all evening. Fish in this area were up top and locked into a bright green buzzer until sedges started to hatch and Balloon Caddis in lime green and hares ear consistently took fish all night, even in the Caenis hatch. Wullie had the heaviest trout of the night at 1 : 04. Robert returned ten fish and had an excellent sessions sport. Wullie just failed to bag up losing his last trout on many occasions. Craig's winning bag weighed 4 : 14, Dougie Hek had six for 4 : 06 and Robert Irvine came third with six for 3 : 08. Other successful patterns included, Gold March Brown, Doobry, Claret Dabbler and CDC buzzers. As the wind dropped and the Caenis hatch reached its peak trout could be seen all over the loch in large numbers. When conditions are like this anglers can become very frustrated but at least they can see there is plenty of trout in the water.

 

 

 

 

Billy Foster (left) and Rab Brazier on beautiful Lake of Mentieth

 

 

 

 

 

LAKE of MENTIETH - 1/07/06....Favourable conditions greeted sixteen members and two guests on this club outing that did not count in the league placing's. Reports prior to the outing suggested that large concentrations of fish were to be found around Dog Isle and the Malling Shore and this was certainly the case. Almost every boat on the Lake headed for this area, one who bucked the trend and started along the Roadshore was guest Billy Foster who had tremendous sport with small cdc's on a floater bringing ten fish to the boat and losing many more. Boat partner Rab Brazier finished with four taking three from this area on a Diawl Bach. After a slow morning in the main basin Ron Chesney and Tam Campbell found fish in Gateside Bay when in calm conditions floating booby's cast to rising fish paid off. Later in a small bay just off Stable Point Ron took five on a stripped quill cdc emerger and a Diawl Bach with jungle cock cheeks. Stewart Wallace had seven in the area around Dog Isle and it was here that most of the other fish landed were taken. Wullie Watters had the heaviest at 3 : 14 and Ron had eight for 19 : 12. Tactics varied but floaters or floaters with slow sink tips featured in most of the reports. Top flies were Boobies in various colour but coral, orange, black and Cat's Whisker were top takers. Diawl Bach and cdc emerger's fished well in the calm areas and orange and green Blobs were top pulling flies. Eighteen rods took a total of forty five fish (with another eight returned) for approximately 105 pounds and only two rods blanked.

 

 

 

 

 

Frandy winner Hugh Skeoch and Craig Osborne head for the weigh in

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FRANDY RESERVOIR - 22/07/06....The long hot spell continued and with water temperatures soaring fish seemed to have headed for the deeper parts of the loch and were very difficult to find. Boat anglers seemed to fair better having more opportunity to cover deeper water. Even a pull or follow was deemed a form of success as some members fished for eight hours with a variety of methods without any sign of a fish. Hugh Skeoch clinched the Bank Championship as well as an outing win with two fish for 3 : 12 both taken on dries in the corner near the dam wall. Eight anglers all managed a fish each and Ron Chesney had the heaviest of these with one at 2 : 12 followed closely by Robert Irvine who had one for 2 : 08. Eighteen rods totaled seven rainbows and three browns, not a true reflection on the numbers of trout in this fishery. Orange Booby patterns featured among cdc Shuttlecock Buzzers and Hoppers for those who tempted a trout. Hugh rounded off his day by claiming the sweep for the heaviest trout with one at 3 : 02.

 

 

 

 

 

Dougie Hek on the Clyde

 

 

 

 

RIVER CLYDE - LAMINGTON - 26/08/06....For the second outing in a row members struggled to find quality fish in any numbers. The river was very low and clear and only the occasional trout could be seen rising. Weather conditions were not to bad, although we could have done without the strong upstream breeze that kept fly life to a minimum. Only seven trout made it to the weigh in with Robert Irvine and Ron Chesney, who were first and second respectively accounting for four of them. Scott McDade had a season best third place with one fish and Robert Irvine had the heaviest with a twelve ounce trout. A couple of nice grayling near the two pound mark put in an appearance and plenty of small grayling were caught, a good sign for the future. Most fish were taken on small nymph and bug patterns with a few popping up for dries. Hard going but a great river none the less.

GLENSHERUP RESERVOIR - 16/09/06....A murky, misty and cool day with a steady north westerly breeze greeted the sixteen rods who fished the penultimate outing of the season. The top three anglers all had bag limits with Ron Chesney narrowly coming out on top. Scott McDade lost out by half an ounce for the second time at this venue with Dougie Hek coming third. All three anglers had five fish with the weights reading 8 :01, 8 : 00 1/2 and 7 : 00 1/2 respectively. Booby patterns in black, white and orange did well on a variety of lines but the Cortland blue intermediate was the top line. Small white Cat Whisker lures also accounted for a number of fish and the Red Headed Damsel proved popular. Most of the forty fish caught came from the top of the loch near the dam, but Tam Campbell and John McDowall had fish on Deer hair Emergers at the bottom end where the burn comes in with Tam taking the heaviest fish here with one at 2 : 04 1/2. Robert Irvine became club champion with his four for 6 : 12. Three of these came on the Booby on a HiDi line in the afternoon at the dam wall.

 

 

 

 

 

A tranquil Carron Valley

 

 

 

 

CARRON VALLEY RESERVOIR - 22/09/06...Tam Campbell had near perfect conditions, cloudy with a warm southerly breeze as he fished Carron from the bank. A floating line was all that was required and although no fish could be seen rising to begin with a size 12 Deer Hair Emerger brought fish up from nowhere. Fishing the bays just beyond the jetty was as far as Tam needed to go as plenty of interest from the trout meant there was no point leaving this area. The first fish turned out to be the heaviest, a stockie that came in at 1 : 06. This fish exploded out of nowhere and hooked itself. The other ten killing size fish that followed during the course of the day were all wild fish in great condition and all were returned to the loch. The only fish that didn't take the emerger was caught on a size fourteen Black and Peacock Spider fished wet on the top dropper during a quite spell on the dries. As the boats that were out all struggled it might be worth noting that a bank session could produce fish when the loch seems to be off.

 

 

 

 

Drifting across the middle of Lindores

 

 

 

 

 

LINDORES LOCH - 21/10/06....A cold south easterly quickly disappeared to leave very favourable conditions for the middle of October. Fish could be seen all over the loch and anglers took advantage of the calm conditions to pick off rising trout with a variety of hoppers and emerger patterns before the breeze picked up once more. For the next three or four hours fish were hard to come by but any that were taken were well up in the water. Fish could be seen splashing around and it turned out that these fish were trying to rid themselves of lice that were obviously irritating them. In the afternoon the breeze dropped once more and fish once again became active chasing flies back to the boat with many hooked and lost and many missed. Exciting sport all the same. Ron Chesney was the only angler who managed to take his limit of five for 7 : 14 with Hugh Skeoch and Stewart Wallace not far behind with four apiece for 7 : 08 and 7 : 05 respectively. Stewart also had the heaviest fish with one at 3.00 1/2. Eighteen rods returned forty rainbows to the weigh in, most taken on floaters right off the top. Midge tip and ghost tip lines with Diawl Bach and other small nymphs accounted for a few but it was hoppers in a variety of colours that out fished other patterns. Robert Irvine's three fish helped him just pip Ron to win the boat championship and Roberts boat partner Wullie Watters proved just how narrow the line is between success and failure. In the last twenty minutes he hooked and lost four fish while playing them and finished the session blank.