CROWN FLY FISHERS
FISHERY REPORTS 2007
PINBRAID FISHERY - 17/03/07....Winter was on the way back after the recent mild spell and up in the hills with a strong north westerly blowing it certainly felt that way for the first outing of the season. Worse was to come in the afternoon as steady rain brought temperatures down even farther. The club had made the decision before commencing fishing not to include brown trout in the four fish limit, so the return of sixty one fish to the weigh in plus thirty seven released by the seventeen rods who attended was an excellent total considering the afore mentioned weather conditions. Sport started slowly with the odd fish coming to lures but as the morning wore on rods could be seen bending regularly and the four fish limit was reached by quite a few anglers. Looking out from the cabin the left hand bank was fishing particularly well but to reach where the fish were lying a very long cast was needed and as flies were retrieved fish could be felt nipping at the lures right up to the bank. Of the twelve anglers who `bagged up' Rab Brazier had the heaviest weight and so secured his first outing win as a club member. His four rainbows totaled 10 : 04 and included the heaviest of the day at 4 : 03. Second and third were Stewart Wallace and Hugh Skeoch with 9 : 14 and 9 : 12 for their four fish. Pinbraid is quite a shallow loch and so floating and intermediate lines were all that were required with Yellow Dancers in various guises, Orange Blob, Cats Whisker and Green Pea were among the top lures. Also worth a mention was the pheasant broth at lunchtime, on such a cold day a lifesaver for some, especially the guys who had still to catch a fish and who then went out and caught their limit. For info and prices call Bill Wood on 07881 764437 or 07810 778534.
Outing winner Rab Brazier (left) and Ron Chesney both try to subdue lively Pinbraid rainbows
LOCH VENNACHAR - 24/03/07....Club members Craig and Wullie Osborne took a boat on the loch for an early season look at one of Scotland's prime brown trout fisheries. This is Craig's short report of the trip. Water Temperature 5 deg. A bright sky with a cold easterly wind greeted us in the morning, this mean 't the morning session was a bit cold on the hands at times, the breeze dropped in the afternoon and the last couple of hours was very mild for the time of the year. There was a continuous hatch of small light coloured midge throughout the day although not surprisingly this was not enough to bring fish to the surface with the cold wind and low water temperature.We both started using Intermediate lines and traditional's in the morning, this produced a very slow start with the Wullie taking two fish to the boat by lunch time. The first fish took a Red Tailed Kate Mclaren in Boat House Bay and the second a Haul `y' Gwynt at the Sailing Club using a fast glass line. I switched to a medium sinking line with two traditional's on the droppers and a large Humungus on the point. Within minutes I had my first fish on the hang using the Gold Humungus. I continued to hit fish on and off throughout the afternoon drifting along the margins of the south shore. Wullie switched to the same method but with a Silver Humungus. We found a small area holding fish near Boat House Bay where we continued to fish the afternoon session out. We finished with nine fish for 9lb 12oz. Four fish from this years stocking, two wild fish and two fish from last years stocking along with a rainbow trout. Both the wild fish and the over wintered fish were in good condition.
RIVER CLYDE - HYNDFORD BRIDGE....Club members Hugh Skeoch and Dougie Hek fished the Clyde for the first time this season. Hugh posted this short report. It was a very bright morning with a freezing cold westerly wind blowing hard at times and the river was low and clear with every stone visible. There was a hatch of large dark olives along with a very small light olive ( maybe a size 18 ) which lasted barely ten minutes. During the "rise"( I use the word loosely), there were some small trout and grayling up at naturals and I had a fish of around eleven inches straight away on the wets and managed to lose a couple others. While the hatch was on I had another three small trout around the nine inch mark, I also had a small grayling of about nine inches. Dougie was unlucky having a couple of fish on but he has perfected the long line release technique perfectly and both got off. The highlight of the session though was two pairs of kingfishers that barely seemed to notice us and flew around the stretch all day. All in all we were probably unlucky with the wind direction changing from the recent easterly but in a few weeks when the weather warms up trout should be feeding avidly.
Loch Awe at it's most demanding and Hugh Skeoch (right) contemplates his next move
LOCH AWE - 14/04/07....The unseasonably warm, dry weather continued as temperatures hit twenty degrees conditions more inclined to be found in the Mediterranean in April and not the Scottish highlands. Boats quickly spread out over the northern end of the loch with the islands the main attraction. Occasional fish could be seen dimpling the surface as a sparse hatch of buzzers provided some interest. Anglers were faced with the choice of targeting these fish with floating lines and dries or emerger's or going deep with wets and mini lures, the latter being the preferred method of the majority. Tam Campbell and boat partner Alex Watson found fish between the islands of Fraoch Eilean and Innis Chonain and in fact half of the fish caught by club members came from this small area. Tam had four for 3 :03 on a Di - 3 and a team of traditionals to win the outing, with Gordon Turnbull second with a well conditioned brownie of 1 : 07. This was also the heaviest fish landed. Third was Wullie Watters with one at 14 1/2 ounces. Patterns that caught included Clan Chief, Hutch's Pennel, Claret Dabbler, Orange Dabbler, Bibio, Black Snatcher, Humungus and Black/Gold lure (see Craig Osbornes patterns). Bill Hunter deserves a mention for catching a pike on his first cast on a Butcher Dabbler and another on his last cast with a Sunburst Kate, Bill did manage a rainbow in between times. Eighteen members caught fourteen fish, considering the unbroken sunshine and flat calm conditions suffered all day this was a very good total indeed.
Bill Hunter with a nice wild fish from a good looking run on the River Don
RIVER DON - ALFORD / GLENKINDIE - 26 & 27/04/07....Club member, Bill Hunter, and photographer took the long road up to Aberdeen to fish the River Don. Wall to wall bright sunshine, with little shade to be found, made things very tough. In fact, only one decent sized trout was spotted over the entire two day trip. Lots of very small trout were only too willing to rise to olives. The first day was spent fishing the public water at the Caravan Park at Alford. Beautiful streams were fished, although to no avail – but the wild life was spectacular. So good in fact, that Bill spent a good hour covering the spot where, out the corner of his eye, he had caught sight of a huge trout, which had made a porpoise type rise. Well, he thought it was a trout! It was only pure coincidence that Bill spotted, as he left the water for the day – a big dark otter frolicking in the reeds two pools down. Could this have been the big rolling splash spotted an hour earlier?? Na …… he is not that daft ……. Or is he?! After an excellent evening of darts, pool and Macallan, the second day was spent on the Glenkindie stretch, about 12 miles upstream of Alford. Once again, there were some fantastic streams and runs, but all pretty exposed to the sun. The tops and sides of most of the stones were covered with stickmen and caddis. Around midday , at long last, a good trout rose in the middle of a fast run. Fishing wets at the time, Bill quickly changed his point fly to an olive, covered it, rose it and hooked it. In fact, it had taken a small olive nymph left on the cast 3ft above the dry fly which it had ignored. Sadly, that was it for the trip. The fishing was poor, but it sure was a great place to be for a couple of days.
Robert Irvine with 3 pounds and !/2 ounce of River Tummel brown trout taken from the pool below the A9 road bridge on a Compara Dun
RIVER TUMMEL - 28/04/07....For the second outing running the weather was rather unkind as the clear sunny conditions continued. Coupled with a strong, cool easterly breeze these were hardly perfect conditions to tackle a low, gin clear river. The March Brown and Olive hatches that were expected failed to materialize although flies did hatch during the course of the day in a very sparse, steady trickle. Occasionally fish could be seen rising but most taken on dries were caught by anglers speculating rather than targeting individual fish. Tam Campbell won for the second time this season with all his fish taken from the Pylons area. His five fish at 3 : 12 just pipped Bill Hunter who also had five from Moulinearn at 3 : 04 1/2, most of these fish were on dry fly. Robert Irvine was third and had a magnificent brownie (see above)from the pool below the A9 road bridge that tipped the scales at 3 : 00 1/2. Other fish of note were taken by Ron Chesney, 1 : 14 and Hugh Skeoch 1 : 11 and in total fifteen rods managed to winkle out twenty four fish over twelve inches in length with many smaller fish returned. Stewart Wallace for example had a really enjoyable day with thirteen fish coming to the net again in the A9 bridge area. Everyone fished floaters with March Brown, Compara Dun, Light Cahill Olive and Double Decker the successful dries and Partridge and Olive, March Brown Spider, Greenwells, Partridge and Orange and Peeping Caddis fished down and across the patterns that worked wet.
The best fish from the Clyde. 1 : 10 1/2 caught by Stewart Wallace
RIVER CLYDE - 26/05/07....Thirteen rods fished the Lamington A.C. water on a bright, windy but mostly dry day. Rule changes meant that anglers were looking for twelve inch trout and that only two could be weighed in. Not a big ask you might think but in past visits club members had struggled to find ten inch fish but for most it turned out to be one the best days they have ever had on the river. From around eleven olives hatched in steady numbers, the main hatches being Blue Winged Olives, Yellow May Dun and a very small light olive about a size sixteen. Trout and grayling duly obliged by rising freely concentrating on the hatching nymphs just under the surface but they could be tempted into taking dries. Craig Osborne and Robert Irvine found that a small Pheasant Tail under a dry fly brought fish after fish to the net while outing winner Hugh Skeoch and Wullie Osborne found a localised hatch of Black Gnats and hooked and returned many quality trout on small black imitations. Seven anglers had their limit, Hugh's two at 2 : 05 the best with Ron Chesney's two at 2 : 01 1/2 and Tam Campbell third with two for 1 : 14. Stewart Wallace had the days heaviest fish with one at 1 : 10 1/2. As trout were taking the Yellow May right off the top at one stage, dry patterns with yellow bodies featured as did BWO patterns, small nymphs and CDC winged dries. Wullie Watters hooked three large trout while fishing bugs in one stream, losing two and being broken by one, ending the day as one of five blank rods. Unfortunately the line between success and failure is a narrow one.
Craig Osborne plays a fish on lovely Loch Vennachar
LOCH VENNACHAR - 2/06/07....Thankfully the strong winds forecast did not materialise and conditions were quite favourable as fifteen members began their session on this picturesque loch in the Trossachs. Fish came to the boats early and Wullie Osborne caught what turned out to be the heaviest fish on the first drift over Submarine Island, a nice brownie of 1 : 10 1/2 which took a Bibio. Most rods were fishing Wet Cel 2 or Di-3 lines and pulling traditionals or a small lure. Patterns that worked well included some old favourites such as Pearly Invicta, Clan Chief, Kate McLaren, Doobry, Zulu, Orange Dabbler, Haul-y-Gwent with a red tail and Humungus. Top drifts in the easterly that prevailed for most of the day were, Port Nellan, Scout Club, Submarine Island and Boathouse Bay. When the wind did die away later on small dark olives started to hatch and a few anglers caught on dries with a small Compara Dun the best fly. Although the loch was not at it's best and a few anglers blanked thirty seven fish were brought to the weigh in. Of the three anglers who managed their limit of seven trout Robert Irvine had the best bag at 6 : 10 followed by Bobby Blackley with 5 : 15 and Craig Osborne third with 5 : 10.
A drookit Ron Chesney with a belter from the Clyde
RIVER CLYDE - WOLFCLYDE BRIDGE - 13/06/07....The River Clyde continues to provide terrific sport this season as club members Ron Chesney and Rab Irvine discovered whilst out for an evening at Wolfclyde Bridge. Heavy overnight rain had pushed the river levels up by a couple of feet and a tinge of colour meant this evening was going to go one of two ways - the fresher colder water was either going to curtail hatches and keep the fish out of sight, or the fresh would stir things up and provide an evening to remember. Fortunately the latter was the outcome and both hatches and rising fish kept the interest going right until 10.30am when the persistent rain and driving easterly finally killed things off till the next time! It may be hard fished but the stream below the pool that opens out into a tasty looking flat nonetheless holds a good head of fish and with a sprinkling of specimens amongst them. Rab got off to a flying start, returning two decent fish just below the pound and missing a few others to a light olive Compara (16). A terrific hatch of medium olives kept the fish looking up so it wasn't long before Ron also put hand to fish. Rab spotted the classic Clyde bubble rise on the far bank next to some rushes - the one where it's either a parr or a rod bender - and duly sent the Comapra dun over for a reccy. The bubble appeared, the fly disappeared and a three pounder exploded out of the water. Two searing runs, another jump, them a charge straight at the challenger was enough to grant its freedom. With the air turning too blue for Ron he disappeared round the bend in search of other feeding fish. Rab continued with the risers towards the tail of the pool, picking up another 4 and losing yet another fish in the 2.5 to 3lb class. A quick buzz on the mobile from Ron was enough to get Rab out of the water and heading off down to the big pool round the next bend. Ron had landed around a dozen fish up to the pound mark and they were still rising. The first fish Rab hooked would have made a pound and a half but he just had to lose it to cap off a forgettable hat-trick. Rab then spent over an hour trying to catch 4 fish the were rising in front of him every other second, dancing round his imitations to get at some real flies, whilst Ron moved steadily down stream picking of fish at will. Rab had no answer to the stillborn Yellow Mays that the fish were gorging on, whilst Ron did - a great big March Brown Compara that Rab tied for him!! So whilst Rab was trying to spot his fly amongst two hundred others, Ron was looking through his good eye watching for the size 10 to disappear, and disappear it did as a moby decided that this was a perfect match for the hatch. A cracking fight ensued before the net was lipped under a crackling wild Clyde three pounder (and a couple of ounces). A cracking night in unfavourable conditions saw Rab with 6 decent fish and Ron with 15 superb fish. The Clyde is definitely on!
Stewart Wallace reaches for the net as Wullie Watters looks on
LAKE of MENTIETH - 30/06/07....For the week before this trip reports from Mentieth were poor with very few fish being caught so we were pleasantly surprised to find that for whatever reason the Lake fished really well with nine members taking their six fish limit. An added bonus was that the heavy rain forecast did not turn up until well on in the afternoon. To begin with the majority of boats concentrated on the road shore and this area did fish well but fish were also to be found in Hotel Bay and in good numbers. Top lines were Ghost and Midge Tips as fish were no more than a couple of feet down and plenty of surface activity gave some the opportunity to fish dries. The washing line rig proved successful and the Cat Booby was one of the top patterns along with various Cormorants,Blobs, ginger and olive Crunchers and Pearly Pheasant Tails. A seasons best 6 : 03 rainbow helped Ron Chesney to the heaviest bag with six for 16 : 08 and Craig Osborne was second with six for 14 : 14. Stewart Wallace was third, his six at 14 : 06 came from the jetty round to International Bay. Eighteen rods landed seventy eight trout with another twenty five returned with the average size well over two pounds and a rod average of 4.3. Tam Campbell and Craig Osborne had nineteen fish to the boat, mostly from Gateside Bay. While Tam was playing his sixth, a fish of around 1 : 04 (the smallest of the day) the line seemed to snag something and everything went solid. When the dead weight started to move he realised a much larger fish had taken the trout on his line. Five minutes later and with a great deal of effort a very large pike (at least twenty five pounds) cruised past the boat with the rainbow in its mouth. Shortly after the trout was spat out in disgust and a very dead fish was lifted into the boat. A strange but exciting way to bag up.
The Lugar in South Ayrshire and a close up of the Norman Keep cut into the sandstone
RIVER LUGAR - 22/07/07....On Sunday 22 July, Bill Hunter picked up the Auchinleck AA complimentory ticket from Dreghorn AC secretary Wullie Osborne and headed south to his old stomping ground , the Lugar. This was the first time Bill had fished 'The Rocks' located between Ochiltree & Mauchline in nine years. What a bonny stretch of streamy water this is! How many of you can spot the 13th. century Norman Keep in the sandstone rockface right above the water in the picture? Bill fished the water for many years before locating it. Anyway, what was the fishing like? The trout were free rising all morning to olives. Then they switched right on to the great hatch of sedges that swarmed over the water in the afternoon. However, Oor Bill still managed to miss the three good chances he got when the better fish rose to his flies.
Bill Hunter on the Manor beat of the Tweed
RIVER TWEED - 28/ 07/07....The last Saturday in July saw Bill Hunter fishing his favourite stretch on the River Tweed. This is the Manor beat, just above Peebles. The permit is now available from a new tackle shop in the Northgate, Peebles (Well, it was new to Bill . The proprietor told him that the shop had been open for 4 years!). Conditions were very windy indeed, making it very difficult to cast at all, never mind acurately. The water had a good run on it after the recent rain. Hatches were very localised, but when located, the trout were eager to take what was on offer on the surface. From mid afternoon on this was sedges. A balloon caddis secured two good trout, which were returned and three other jags. It was just a pity so many small par were also greedy for the flies. A good day out on possibly the most beautiful .....and varied beat on the river, that Bill has fished anyway.
Robert Irvine brings a Loch Ba trout to hand
LOCH BA - 18/08/07....Constant, heavy rain coupled with a stiff breeze and cool temperatures made this outing a lot less enjoyable than it should have been. Members knew that to reach the most productive parts of this fine loch meant a yomp of at least three quarters of an hour over some very difficult terrain. A huge head of free rising small fish means that this loch is the perfect venue for newcomers to fly fishing and indeed some anglers had three fish on at same time on more than one occasion. The hardest part of the session apart from the walk was finding ten inch fish among the many small trout that were only too willing to take the flies offered.The majority found that an intermediate fast glass line and a team of traditional patterns pulled fast worked for them while a few found success with floaters and Muddler patterns. Top rod was Craig Osborne who had his limit of ten fish for 4:06 including the heaviest at 10 1/2 oz. most of these came to a Glister Olive Bumble Muddler and a Kate McClaren while a Claret Bibio also did the trick. Second was Dougie Hek with nine for 3:10 and third was Robert Irvine with eight for 3:03. Having lost his landing net Robert spent his day trying to bring slippy wild brown trout to hand, losing few in the process, not recommended for a competition angler. A couple of other patterns worth mentioning were the Alexandria and Humungus. Everyone caught plenty of fish with a few failing to find trout large enough to secure some points but most enjoyed their day none the less.
Hugh Skeoch plays a Tummel brownie
RIVER TUMMEL - 15/09/07.....The air temperature was only three degrees as the session began but this didn't put off the many species of olive that began hatching in large, steady numbers from around ten thirty onwards. Everything from Large Dark to small Pale Watery and even Yellow May made an appearance at one point during the day and members struggled to match the hatch as fish could be seen nymphing sometimes in large groups. These were assumed to be grayling until one was finally hooked and turned out to be a brownie. All the members who fished agreed this had been a superb and challenging days fishing although the majority failed to produce a trout of the twelve inch limit needed for the weigh in. As at the Loch Ba trip, successful anglers contradicted each other regarding the methods that worked for them. Some matched hatching olives for size and colour and scored while others fished larger patterns and trout picked these out from the raft of naturals on the surface. Thirteen anglers made the trip with only seven fish coming to the scales of which Robert Irvine's two at 1:05 lead the way and Hugh Skeoch also with two at 1:02 not far behind. Third was Craig Osborne with a trout of 13 1/2 ounce, good enough to win the sweep as the heaviest fish. It was good to see grayling showing in good numbers and anglers caught some decent specimens on a variety of methods. The sight of the full river `steaming' around midday proved just how chilly the air was and this phenomenon is usually only seen on late summer nights or early mornings. A thoroughly enjoyable day on one of the best trout rivers in the U.K.
CAMPS RESERVOIR - 22/09/07....Wullie and Craig Osborne along with Tam Campbell experienced a days wild brown trout fishing that will live long in the memory at this picturesque venue in the hills above Crawford. With a week of the season left it was surprising that very few anglers made use of the perfect conditions that had trout up in the wave attacking almost any pattern put in front of them. Tam and Wullie fished from the bank around the top of the arm at the east of the loch while Craig decided to fish from the boat. As the reservoir was full some steep banks made casting awkward but the end results were rewarding with wild, hard fighting brownies between nine and twelve ounces the prize for a well timed strike. Fish seemed to come for every cast at one stage swirling and boiling around flies and solid, strong pulls resulting in another trout missed and a few curses to boot. While Wullie and Tam stuck with the floater Craig fished a Ghost Tip and had great success with a gold Humungus on the point. This fly raised a few eyebrows and caused some head shaking amongst the local members at the club hut. Soldier Muddler, Bibio Hopper, Black Dabbler, Pearly Invicta and Sedgehogs caught plenty but almost any pattern would have triggered a reaction. Sport finally tailed off in the late afternoon but not before Wullie Osborne had taken the fish pictured above on a Sedgehog. This beautiful specimen weighed 2:06 and according to local anglers was one of if not the largest trout taken from the loch this season. In total in the region of forty five takeable size fish were landed and apart from a few fish that had been deeply hooked all were returned. Although this season is nearly over anyone looking to challenge lightning fast native browns should look no further than this well run fishery where a day ticket is only just over a fiver. Who knows a day away from flabby, overfed, tailless stockie rainbows caught in a puddle might remind anglers what fishing in Scotland used to be like.
A very full Penwhapple Reservoir (left) and a bright fully finned rainbow, typical from this venue
PENWHAPPLE RESERVOIR - 24/09/07....Dougie Hek and Tam Campbell braved the elements as constant heavy driving rain threatened to ruin an end of season visit to this south Ayrshire venue. The reservoir was full to capacity and sport was understandably slow with no surface activity, Hoppers and other top of the water patterns failed to bring trout up for a look so on went intermediate and Ghost Tip lines. Dougie had a couple of browns and a rainbow on the top shore pulling wets with a Humungus on the point and Tam had a rainbow with the same fly as he covered the first fish he had seen up top all day. After four hours of suffering the rain finally abated and Tam moved to the east shore near the dam. A few casts with a team of nymphs on the Ghost tip brought another rainbow to the net with two others hooked and lost shortly after. Dougie managed another brown as he made his way round the loch but sport was almost non existent and all to brief when a fish finally showed some interest. A cold damp day, but hey it beats working any time. A Gold Head Pheasant Tail on the point worked best as the team swung round in the wind but a Ginger Cruncher also claimed a fish. We will pray for better weather on our next visit.
Bob Logan nets a lively Harelaw rainbow
HARELAW DAM - 6/10/07....Favourable conditions greeted the fourteen rods who turned out for the last outing of the season and although reports suggested that fishing would be far from easy everyone anticipated an enjoyable day at this reservoir in the hills above Neilston. It was decided to take a three fish ticket, so it was simply a case of catching three and taking your chances at the scales. It always sounds so simple. Anglers have plenty of room at this venue and were soon spread out round the loch. After a slow start for the majority, rods started to bend and one or two bagged up around lunchtime. Intermediate lines with traditional patterns accounted for most of the fish taken although in a quiet sheltered bay Craig Osborne and Gordon Turnbull had fish on dry fly. All of the five anglers who reached their limit caught their fish in the large bay on the left hand bank with the Bibio, Doobry and Mallard and Claret taking a few. Dougie Hek had two early in the session on a Cat Booby fished just under the surface. Other flies of note included Kingfisher Butcher, Gold Head Pearly PTN and Crucher. Best of the limit bags was Bobby Blackley with three for 6 : 07 closely followed by Alex Watson with 5 : 14 and Wullie Osborne with 5 : 04. Robert Irvine added the Bank title to the Club Championship he had already won for the fourth time in five years.
Tommy Campbell plays a Drum rainbow with Hugh Skeoch in the background
DRUM FISHERY - 28/10/07....Dreghorn Angling Club committee and guests fished for the S.K.F. Trophy at this eight acre fishery in the heart of Dalswinton Estate near Auldgirth in Dumfries and Galloway. Thirteen anglers made the best of the favourable late autumn weather and the beautiful surroundings to end a most enjoyable day with a total of ninety rainbows, most of which were returned to the loch. Fish were up top and interested from the off and floaters or slow intermediate lines were all that was needed. Green Pea, Humungus, Yellow Dancer, White Cormorant and various Damsels fished with a slow figure of eight or long slow pulls brought fish after fish to hand and both banks at the top of the loch, farthest from the island was the best area. When trout started to shy away from lures in the afternoon Black Buzzers either swung round in the breeze or hung under a big dry came into their own. Craig Osborne won the day with fifteen, ten of which were on the Green Pea. Both Rab Brazier and Tam Campbell had ten with Tam having interest from around forty fish with ten hooked and dropped and another ten returned. No blanks and a rod average of six point nine meant that unusually everyone had ha smile on their face at the end of the session. This fishery is well worth a visit. For more information or bookings call Andy Ross on 01387 740573.