September Success

My first wrasse

September is my favourite month of the year. Year after year it produces something memorable for me. Most of my biggest barbel have come in September, last year it was my monster Spanish catfish and the year before that, a personal best common carp of 35lb 12oz. So, this year had a lot to live up to. I started the month with a bit of general coarse fishing on our local lakes and enjoyed catching roach, skimmer bream to 2lb and small carp on waggler fished corn over pellet. A decent start! A couple of days targeting carp was next on the list. Several mid doubles took a liking to dog biscuits and bread fished on the surface, but the best fish fell to a Mainline Cell 15mm boilie fished on the bottom, a stunning looking common of 21lb 7oz. So far, so good! Highlight of the month for me though, has to be the very enjoyable day spent at Hope's Nose, Devon. Lots of mackerel (or pike bait, as they are known to me) were taken on feathers during the afternoon and the evening was spent fishing ragworm on light running lead rigs amongst the rocks. This resulted in the capture of two species I had not previously caught, a wrasse and a blenny. Also, one of the most unexpected sights I have seen, my friend Dave landing a fifteen inch long lobster! A brilliant day! My final trip of the month was to be a visit to my favourite River Wye, but this weeks very heavy rain meant the river was carrying up to nine feet of flood water and therefore unfishable, not to mention very dangerous. So, yet another great September! Next time I post on here, I will tell you all about my week catfishing in Mequinenza, Spain. I fly on Sunday. Can't wait!

The rod and line caught lobster

A Wet Day on Blagdon and the Chew Valley Lake Boat League 2012 Results

On Sunday I fished a hidden pairs match on Blagdon Lake. The weather was awful but the fishing was pretty good. I caught four trout for 10lb, which included a 4lb fish, my biggest of the season. Unfortunately my partner had decided to call it a day by lunchtime, due to the heavy rain and so I didn't place anywhere worth shouting about. An enjoyable day though none the less.
    The Chew Valley Lake Boat League 2012 results were announced this week and I was very pleased to find out that out of thirty participants, I had placed seventh! A full list of the boat league results can be found in our shop and at Woodford Lodge. I have enjoyed some really good fishing this year on both Chew and Blagdon and with the season approaching it's end soon, it just leaves the last Major Clubs competition on Grafham Water in Cambridgeshire, during the first week of October, to go.

Dry Fly Fishing on the Derbyshire Wye

Monster rainbows competing for bread

A trip to York was planned for the beginning of the month and as I would be passing over the Derbyshire Wye, famous for its wild rainbow trout, it seemed rude not to wet a line. A quick trip to the local tackle shop in Bakewell and I was armed with the information I needed on the fly patterns and the water I was to fish. Cressbrook & Litton Flyfishers Club run the fishing on a stretch of upstream only dry fly water and it sounded very inviting. Walking back across the town bridge I noticed the resident rainbows competing with the ducks for bread, thrown in by more onlookers, some of these fish must have been upwards of 10lb! Arriving at the water late afternoon, I set up my 8’ 4# rod with a single size 14 Adams tied to 2lb 8oz Drennan double strength. I started fishing the fast water near the bridge and was soon fighting my first Wye brown trout of around 9" The rest of the evening followed a similar theme with me taking smaller fish in the fast water and larger rainbows and bigger browns rising to my fly in slower sections but proving impossible to tempt on to the hook. An enjoyable few hours of dry fly fishing and with no wild rainbows caught, it sounds like a good reason for a return visit.
 

Making the cast

One in the net