Last Saturday saw me visit the River Monnow, following a kind invite from Dave Smith. The forecast was for it to be an absolute scorcher - and that it was. I spent some time when I arrived watching fish from the bridge. The water was crystal clear and the fish were on station taking nymphs and duns - very much the opportunists.

We ventured through several sections of the river. My first fish was a nymph caught chub - a little unexpected, but it put up a healthy scrap. We both caught a couple of trout on a Klinkhamer - enjoyable search and sight fishing.



We spent a good hour and a half trying to tempt one particular specimen from a fast riffle. This fish must have gone 3.5lb if not more - and it was holding in the flow, knocking off duns as they passed. When its huge spotted snout broke the surface the adrenaline really started to pump. It was not to be however, and we left him to find more obliging fish.

Dave Smith, casting and covering the monster:

We were joined by another angler, Neil, and after a great BBQ and a beer amongst stunning surroundings, we fished into the evening as the Mayfly spinners started to cloud. It was hard fishing though and they were tricky to tempt. In fact it was very tricky to work out what they were taking. Eventually as the light started to fade, we had some sporadic action on the Mayfly imitations. A great day on a fantastic river. I hope to return soon.




This weekend I will be fly tying at the BASC Wales & Border Counties Game & Country Fair. Hopefully I'll post some pictures of the event and maybe a few more from last weekend's fishing.

~Dave

Induced Take a Prerequisite

A couple of hours spent on the Wellow brook this afternoon was, as ever, a pleasure. There was very little rising, although a short lived hatch of olives did bring a flurry (10 minutes?) of activity. I lost my first fish which took a #16 bead-head nymph, but eventually found a small pod of brownies in a deeper channel. With the sun on the water, through polaroids it was easy to spot the fish - and amongst them were some bigger specimens. They simply ignored every nymph I presented to them - until I tried the induced take. Just a steady lift of the PTN up through the water was all that was needed to persuade a take. Several fish would follow the fly up. Some would turn away; others obliged. They were very accomodating and put up with my presence long enough for me to take a couple of fish (and miss some!). It reminded me of chalkstream grayling fishing. A change to #20 loop emerger gave me another positive take at the head of the pool before I left them to it.



~ Dave.

Mayfly Life Cycle Patterns

Whilst it takes a while for the trout to switch on to the mayfly properly, even when they do seem more educated (and willing), you cannot ignore the nymphs and emerger patterns. There are many, many options when it comes to patterns. Here are a few examples to help through each stage.

1) The Nymph ~ Two possible options here:



Hook: Grip 12003 #12
Thread: 10/0 Powersilk, orange
Abdomen: Amber/ cream Awesome Possum
Thorax: Natural Awesome Possum
Rib: DNA (olive) & Copper wire twisted
Wing Buds & Back: Pheasant Tail fibres

Or the Pheasant Tail nymph:

Hook: B175 #12
Copper wire & Pheasant tail fibres only




2) The Emerger



Hook: TMC 103BL #13
Thread: 10/0 Powersilk, orange
Shuck: PT fibres & olive DNA
Abdomen: PT fibres & olive DNA twisted and wound
Thorax: Natural Awesome Possum
Wing: White & Khaki CDC

3) The Dun (also a possible option for the spent-spinner too)


Hook: TMC 102Y #11
Thread: 10/0 Powersilk, orange
Tail: Moose
Body: Awesome Possum, amber/cream
Rib: 6/0 brown silk
Post: TMC Aerowing, white
Thorax: Natural Awesome Possum
Hackle: Silver Badger

4) The Drowned Spinner (for sub-surface work)



Hook: TMC 102Y #11
Thread: 10/0 Powersilk, orange
Tail: Moose
Body: Awesome Possum, amber/cream
Rib: 6/0 brown silk
Thorax: Natural Awesome Possum
Hackle: Sunburst yellow hen / Coq de Leon hen (Olive) wound together

~ Dave

One from this evening on a CDC & Elk.

~Dave

Mayfly Crescendo

The river's calling.

~Dave

I clapped eyes on my first Mayfly of the year this evening. A prolific hatch it was not, but there were a few around. With the warm air, most seemed to make it air-bourne, but there were some making a real meal of breaking out of the surface; and a meal is exactly what they will become - just once the fish realise what they are! At the moment, most of fish seemed happy to be sipping black gnats with perhaps the odd olive being met by a splashy rise. The best is still very much yet to come: but they have made a start.




The weather has been stable over the past few days. The rain has helped, but the water is still clear. With such bright days, evening fishing is a real must to get in range of many of the fish. They are easily spooked and delicate casting is a must. Presentation is the key.



It is still small, simple flies that are needed at present. Here's a simple pattern to consider:

CDC Olive 'G'



Hook: TMC2489G #16
Thread: 10/0 Powersilk, olive
Abdomen / Rib: Tying Silk
Wing: CDC
Thorax: Rabbit




~Dave

Rising Hopes for the Mayfly

So the rain contunues to fall and we've had some proper downpours. It will be welcomed by the salmon anglers and it is more than welcome for my local streams and rivers. With them already running low, hopefully this will help them to pick up some pace, clean through any silt that had built up so early and give the fish a good belt of fresh water to get them in the feeding mood. Yes, a little colour may occur in all but the luckiest of chalkstreams, but I have always found a little colour gives the fish confidence to feed. The forescast suggests the weekend will be a mixture of sunny spell, more showers and some broken cloud. With the winds easing, but possibly becoming more easterly, we wait to see if the fishing picks up.

In hoping for a hatch of Mayflies / E. Danica / Greendrakes (call them what you will) here's a slightly bigger pattern... just in case. Many mayfly patterns I see are heavily dressed and oversized. Sometimes, perhaps, even with the huge meal that these are offereing, something sparser will be the ticket:



Hook: TMC 103BL #11
Thread: Sheer 14/0, tan
Tail: Silver Badger hackle fibres
Abdomen: Porcupine Quill (Olive)
Wing: TMC Aero-wing, tan
Thorax: Rabbit
Hackle: Silver Badger, two turns

~Dave.