Feedback & Reports

Well, after that horrible intense heat, was lovely heading out today ....
I was up at sparrows fart anyway, sorting the garden and getting some nice cold water put into the pond....
Fished 10 till 2pm .... A lovely , surprising session to be honest !!! First thing to get done ....Temperature dipping, of the water...She was very low, but sitting at a very reasonable 14.5 degrees C ..... Happy with that!!!
Fished dries, as always....Great fun, and, fish prepared to nail the flies today too. I'm sure its the cooler conditions have brought them on !!! A few insects about too, and several lovely sightings of the kingfisher ......... Watched one nail a minnow too ....just superb !!!
The fish were of the usual stamp for here, seven to nine or ten inches maybe ....Great fun ...I cut out two pools after the Elan Pipes....I always think thats just about right then ...And, some good dry fly sport too, with nine to my net....Can't fault that !!@
Back home and a well earned cold can of Inchs cider me thinks ....Round of a cracking sunday !!! Out on the Afon Elan later in the week with a client ... Might venture over to an Usk tributary mid week, give one of those a bash ...

9 Trout

Nice to be out solo today ....A none guiding day, so what and where to go ...The little Clywedog , its shaded, stays lovely and cool, even on a smokin hot day !!!
Dipped it first thing after half nine, water temp reading 13.5 degrees ...Happy with that !!!
The dry fly sport was pretty good, in the riffley fast stuff ...Nothing big today, just wee chaps that fancied a terrestrial casualty !!!! Great fun as always .....
I only fished up to the Elan Pipes ....Lots of recent otter prints seen, and was nice to see lots of kingfisher activity as is the norm here ....
Think I'll try one more shaded stream tommorrow, then it'll be the Elan outflow for me, till it cools down again ...
A fun session, on one of my favourite beats.... will be back here sooooooooon !!!!! Lovely job ....

9 Trout

Three trout caught, all around 5-7inches. All caught on dry flies (Klinkhammer, Parachute Adams). A few splashy rises missed but exciting! As well as lovely dry fly water, saw: Red kite; two deer; kingfisher (I think); woodpecker; dipper. Lovely few hours on a new beat. Good access from tree-lined fields at various points and easy wading most of the time.

3 Trout

Well, a lovely way to round off a fantastic May, on the streams, with both clients and on my own wanderings !!!
Muggy and 16 degrees this morning, looked like imminent rain, seems like lots tommorrow and Tuesday maybe .....Really insecty weather, twas fab dry fly sport too.... A few mayflies seen, but top of pools, fish were lining up for my dry ..... lol !!!!
Sixteen made it to my net, lots about five of six inches, with seven or eight half decent tubby little fish, maybe eight or nine inches !! .....
Fresh otter prints seen .... its one thing i've learnt here, you can catch it wrong, if Tarka has been on a walkabout, and lots of pools, it can be dead, and can be put down for some time !!! I seemed to have caught it right today ....Eleven till two I fished.... Only up to the Elan Pipes, so a fairly brief sortie, but fun from the off in fairness... Was nice being out on my own, after a few busy client days ....
Ohhhhh, nearly forgot, the most important part of the sortie, and my first course of action in the river ..THERMOMETER DIPPING !!!! She was reading a healthy cool, 12 degrees, which i did in three locations up stream. Happy days !!!
A nice chilled session, home, gear away, and im thinking a cold cider may just be in order, with a casual walk into Rhayader .....Sorted !!!!!!

16 Trout

My first time trying this beat and it won’t be the last! Beautiful canopy covered stream but still good amount of space to flick a sideways cast away (mostly!). Arrived around 9am and hit back to car at 12:30 ish. Didn’t fish the full beat as needed to get back. I’m intrigued what it’s like where the banks become more gorge like! Stuck with a dry and managed 5 to hand with another 5-10 missed or long range releases. Plenty of insect life but no free rising fish, so prospecting likely holding runs brought them up to the dry. Bedrock wading fine….very different to my local Arrow stream bed though.

5 Trout

A sizzling day ....Again!!! 22 degrees, when I parked up at 10 bells ....And, i think it was 31, when i packed up at three....Then made a beeline for Crossgates garage for some cold cans of pop, muchly needed !!!
Fishing was sublime,for the whole length of the beat ...Slow and steady here folks, its very low, but fun stalking rising trout, then getting them on the dry, that really takes some beating i think !!!!
Fish ranging in size from five inches right up to a portly 12 inches ....Had four really nice fish for this little diminutive brook .... fantastic stuff !! 21 made it to my net, with a few more slippery devils that didn't..... c'est la vie !!!
I dip tested the river with my thermometer, and she's at 13 degrees, so thats still good !! Must admit, its why I like these overgrown streams, they're well shaded, and keep cool.....
Plenty of insects on the go, including mayfly, which put in an appearance from midday . Lots of mayfly, nymphal shucks in slow back eddie's...good to see !!
A lovely, lively, hot session on my local stream. Super stuff.... Kit away, and i think a cold pint is called for at The Lamb and Flag in town...Round off a bank holiday in style !!! Sorted .......

21 Trout

Back to one of my favourites today ... fishing between half ten and half two .....Lots of olive Uprights and baetis coming off, with the resident fish responding nicely!!!
Wriggly fish today, managed eight to the net, only small chaps, but, probably half a dozen or more, on and off !!! Ohhhh well , thats how it goes sometimes hey !!!
A low river, could do with a decent five or six inches extra height...Slow, careful wading needed at the mo, with ultra carefully presented dries too !!
A cracking dry fly session, again!! Also nice to see thr kingfisher dive into her burrow ...And, the dipper, nesting tight under the bridge !! Cracking nests too, fabulous stuff !!!!
Will give one of the Arrow beats a bash later in the week. I have a gent up in the Elan Valley tommoz, for a guided day, then another, on a river day ....
Been a cracking long weekend of Angling, happy days .....

8 Trout

Bowled up at my local stream about half eleven... Carrying a good bit of water, but she's running clear.
Twas a funny sort of day, the sun did its best I guess, with a measly 12 ish degrees ....
Plenty of upwings and sedge on the go from one ish.
Four little chaps on the dry olive emerger and elk. One riser, the other three in likely spots!!! I must say what was demoralising was the amount of trees across favourite pools. And two seasons ago I grafted hard here to tidy things up .... ohhhh well, I guess nature always wins hey !!!! Still enough water to go at. It was only a quick, but fun session, and I cut out just past the Elan Pipes ....
Nice chat with the farmer, and his positive interest in the stream was nice to see. Some summer rabbiting is on the cards here ....happy days !!! Right, cuppa time, a cold Sunday cider from the fridge, and a decent movie !!! The perfect sunday .... lol .....

4 Trout

A real ripper again today !!! With drought conditions now in a lot of Wales, tis time to really think about where to go, with also NRWs warning on water temps, 20degrees and game fishing stops simple as that!!!!!! ....The open rivers heat up quickly.... Bear it in mind folks, don't just aimlessly book a beat !!! I fished the little Clywedog again, cause its heavy tight canopy keeps it cool .... I temp dipped it, reading 14 DEGREES ....PERFECT !!!!
The fishing today between ten snd half two, was tough , but mega fun on tiny dries again.... There's no place for nymphs here ... to much disturbance and accuracy is key to success too, plus its not deep enough , along most of the beat ....
Five wee brownies to the net, including a futher two salmon parr and a dinky four inch grayling ...all nailed my dry fair and square ...great fun ....
A hot one today ..... was glad to get back to my truck, and a well earned cold diet coke ...Just the biz after a long stealthy wade upstream....Rain badly needed, but, it really tunes your finesse casting to a really high standard when your targeting brownies in seven inches of clear water !!! Right, cider time.... have a goooooooood weekend folks !!!!
Tough

5 Trout, 1 Grayling, 2 Other

Hot hot hot today!!!! Fished between ten and half three !!! Hard work... mega need of rain, like everywhere really!!!!!
Dry fly sport as usual and some serious stealth required too !!@
Kingfishers and dippers busy here today... lots of insects on the go from half eleven .... loved it !!!
Only fished uo to the Elan pipes.... Stealth was key factor for success.... very tight accurate casting needed!!!
A fun five hours ...fish all between seven and nine inches ...ohhhh two salmon parr also in the mix ....
Ill leave the streams now, during this very hot spell, although I did temp dip the Clywedog, she was at 14 degrees !!! Just nice ....
A lovely session on one of my favourite beats !!! Back here when we've had water...... Soon I hope ....

7 Trout