Todays CTD was lightly attended to say the least. Maybe it was the holidays, maybe it was the weather or maybe some people had a premonition of just how tough it was going to be! The 4 who braved the less than perfect summer conditions were regulars Jon M and John A and father and son team Neil and Gareth. Neil had been to previous CTD’s but Gareth an experienced coarse fisherman, was new to the mysteries of the fly.
The morning session was pretty straight forward as we focussed on casting as usual. The Johns are now fishing on rivers occasionally and were busy perfecting slack line casts and rod control. Neil was fine-tuning his overhead casting and first timer Gareth proved to be a natural getting to grips early with both the roll and overhead casts.
Possible tactics and flies were discussed over an al fresco lunch and all were keen to start fishing. However, as I gazed over the inanimate pools I felt a sense of foreboding.
The water was crystal clear, the sun was high and unusually bright, there was a swirling wind and although it was warm, there were very few insects in the air. Some fishermen stood around the lake like garden gnomes waiting for something to happen. Others were frantically stripping back lures and re casting them every few seconds. Even the children using sweetcorn were not having any luck. Every so often the sun would dip behind a cloud and as if by magic, a couple of trout would rise. However, as the sun reappeared, the fish disappeared!
The team fished valiantly and if nothing else, it was good practice changing flies and tying knots. There were a few half hearted plucks at nymphs but the fish remained largely un moved by our (and everyone else’s) efforts. The one highlight was Neil (having had similar experiences at other still waters recently), who managed to tempt one trout by gently pulsing a damsel fly nymph back towards him. Despite the general lack of fish, spirits remained high and a good day was had by all. As a wise man once said to me, “If you caught fish every time, it would be called Catching, not Fishing!”
John M and Shaun at a loss!
Perhaps they’re in the middle, John A?
Welcome to Fly Fishing, Gareth!
A triumphant Neil!