Fishing Reports 2009 Season - any figures in brackets are from the previous week
Weeks 23 till end of season.
Regretably, I wasn't able to continue with my fishing reports, pressure of time and all that jazz. However, I hope to be able to make the time for next season. Although the season total of 212 fish caught in the river(please note that 248 trout were caught in total but this figure includes the Pilmuir reservoir which we acquired at the end of June 09) is down on the 349 caught the season before it is not quite as bad as it seems. The real story lies in the fishing "effort" for the river which for season 2008 was 551 hours against 277 for season 2009 - when you divide the hours fished by the trout caught then season 2009 is 0.77 trout per hour against 0.63 trout per hour in season 2008
That said, from talking with people and reports on the message board, I think the river suffered from silt pollution more so than in previous years. Additionally, the dam will be completed this coming season and this will allow the river to settle into its normal ryhthms - this is nothing against the contractors who have been excellent but I prefer the river as a river and not with part of it as a building site. Best month was September with 1.61 trout per hour followed by June at 1.34 trout per hour. Next season will be the first full season we will have had the Pilmuir and it will be interesting to compare it against the river. I would recommend that members take up the Pilmuir Reservoir option as it is a first class wild trout fishery and you don't get many of those in this area.
Weeks 20 to 22, ending Saturday 15 August.
A truly great holiday is now but a distant memory, ah well roll on September when I take my next one. During my time away the Catch Return has only had 12 entries for 13 trout all of which were returned safely - the fishing has been like my holiday - quiet. Quiet as it was, Lord Lob has ventured out from his lair(aka Kimble's Chocolate Shop) to savage the trout in the Pilmuir catching 4 on a Bibio. Best beat this period was the Pilmuir with 10, above Kirkland Bridge with 2 and Island pool to Kirkland Bridge 1. Of the 13 trout caught 3 were on the dry fly, 8 on the wet fly(Bibio catching the most) and 2 on a GRHE nymph. Looking at the message board it seems that members feel the the fishing this season has not been as good as previous seasons. The total caught certainly makes it look like that but the true picture will emerge at season end when I analyse the Catch Return. Finally, the beavers are still working away and have given the boathouse an good lick of paint - keep up the good work
Week 19, week ending Saturday 25 July.
Slow, slow, quick, quick, slow - no that's a dance but the fishing these past few weeks has been slow and continues to be so. Only 6(5) entries this week for 9(5) trout all of which were returned. It is really pleasing to get so far into the season with only 3 trout taken. Of the 9 trout caught 4 were on wets(Black Spider and a PTN), 2 on the dry (Deer Hair Sedge) 2 on the nymph (Green & Olive) and 1 on a buzzer. Top rod, no its not River Chatter, this week is Brian with 4 trout and all trout caught in the river - the best beat being Island pool to Kirkland bridge. The beavers are still clearing Canadian pond weed from the Pilmuir which this is proving to be a big job and hard work as well. Finally, no reports for the next two weeks as I'm off on holiday so au revoir till i return.
Week 18, week ending Saturday 18 July.
The CR for this week has 5(3) entries for 5(4) trout and again all safely returned. It has been slow fishing for a number of weeks now and probably not helped by it being holiday time. Of the 5 trout caught 3 were on wets, 1 on a nymph and 1 on a dry. As you may know the river was stocked in April but I've not seen these fish appear on the CR - either they have bolted (very quickly) downstream before they could be caught or they are still hanging about upstream! We have had some rain this week, enough to stain the water by the looks of it but not quite enough to give the river a good scouring. For the 6th week in a row River Chatter has been the top rod and the man with the most Catch Returns - has he no home to go to, he wont have if he goes home if he falls in the Pilmuir again. Apart from the soaking it cost him 15 quid for a new gas cartridge for his life vest. The beavers have been removing Canadian pond weed from the Pilmuir but there is still a lot remaining - we'll be back this week to remove some more.
Week 17, week ending Saturday 11 July.
This week was another week of fine weather and the river reflects this with it being pretty low and with quite a bite of weed - also a bit of weed on the Pilmuir. Rain, rain where are you!!! The CR(now includes the Pilmuir) for this week has 3(5) entries for 4(5) trout and all safely returned. All trout caught on the Pilmuir which has reasonable level of water compared to the river - dog days of summer indeed for the river. Top rod this week is River Chatter who caught all 4 of the fish logged, one trout on a dry Deer Hair Sedge and 3 on wets, a Sedgehog, Black Pennel and a Hares Ear Nymph. The beavers were again on the Pilmuir and nearly all of the dam wall has been strimmed(big thanks to Hammerhead) and quite a bit of weed cut in the water - just waiting for it to drift in so it can be removed. Will be back this week to cut more weed and finish the strimming.
Week 16, week ending Saturday 04 July.
Once again my apology for the delay in posting this report but I have been on a long weekend. Perhaps the members are also on holiday as the CR has dropped to 5(10) entries for 6(17) trout or perhaps they are fishing the Pilmuir. The Pilmuir is not on the CR and I must do something about that. Again all trout safely returned. With the weather still warm and the water low there seems to be a bit od weed/slime on the river and really does need a good bit of rain to wash it out. No best beat this week as the catch was evenly spread throughout the river. Top rod is River Chatter with 3 trout, followed by Tree Fisher with 2 and G Gorrie with 1. 5 trout caught on dries (River Chatter's CD doing the biz) and 1 on the wet - a snype and purple. The beavers have been working hard at the Pilmuir doing strimming, painting and weed clearing and look to be there for a few weeks yet.
Week 15, week ending Saturday 27 June.
Week 15 was, again, a week of warm weatherand as a result the river is very low although members are still catching fish. The CR this week shows 10(8) entries for 17(21) trout and once again they were all returned. Most, 11, of the trout caught were wild brownies in the under 8 inches categories and most, bar 3, of the all the trout were caught on dies - the Klink and Grey Duster doing damage with a snype and purple accounting for 2 out of the 3 trout caught on wets. River Chatter was top rod with 7 trout which he caught over 3 beats. Talking of beats the upper island pool to kirkland bridge just shaded it for best beat. June saw 86 trout caught copared with 55 in June 08 and 96 in June 07. After a sticky start the season seems to have picked up - let's hope it continues. The beavers have been working hard trimming the grass on the reservoir dam wall and all members should know by now that we have added the Pilmuir water to our fishings.
Week 14, week ending Saturday 20 June.
Week 14 was a reasonable week with the CR showing 8(9) entries for 21(27) trout and again all safely returned although it is fair to say that only 2 of the fish were of takeable size. Dry flies accounted for 11 trout, wet flies 3 trout and 7 on the nymph. Best dry fly this week was River Chatters CD variant, best wet a Silver Butcher fished by Tree Fisher and a green Olive Nymph fished by R McMorran. Top rod the week is River Chatter with 9 trout (inc. 2 fin perfect big uns) followed by R McMorran with 7 trout - all caught using the Olive Nymph fished downstream.Best beat this week is above "Kirkland Bridge" which just shaded it over "Below the Ford". With the prolonged and rather enjoyable warm spell the river is a bit low and has been reported as weedy, perhaps it needs a few good downpours to give it a wash out.
Week 13, week ending Saturday 13 June.
My apology for the lateness of the report but I just don't have enough hours in the day. That said, the CR this week has dropped to 9(15) entries but is showing an increase in the amount of trout caught to 27(22), again all trout safely returned. Running total for the season is 106. With the weather being mild to warm it is no surprise that dry flies are starting to dominate, this week the dries accounted for 26 trout with the Klink being ever reliable although the Grey Duster made a showing. Top Rod this week was River Chatter with 12 trout and he was closely follwed by Milestone with 10. Most of the river seems to be fishing quite well but the upper island pool to kirkland bridge has just shaded it for best beat this week. We now seem to be getting trout rising and let's hope that this will continue. The beavers were out again trimming overgrown b ranches and clearind debris from the river but equipment failure cut short the evenings work although we did hang about nattering - worse than fishwives we are.
Week 12, week ending Saturday 06 June.
The CR for this week shows a marked increase in entries and trout caught ( even I got in on the act), perhaps the the river is now switching on. This week sees 15(5) entries for 22(9) trout all of which were safely returned. Of the 22 caught , one was under 4 inches, seven in the 4 - 6inch range, nine in the 6 - 8 inch range, one in the 8 - 10 inch range, two in the 10 - 12 inch range and one over 12 inches. A week of warmer weather and lowish water has seen dry flies accounting for most, 16, of the trout caught with the reliable Klink catching the greatest number. Top rod for the 3rd week in a row is R McMorran with 6 trout (and again all caught above Kirkland Bridge) closely followed by Brian and Hammerhead with 4 apiece. Best beat this week is below ford with 8 trout caught there, above Kirkland Bridge accounted for 6 trout, above the ford 6 trout and upper island pool to the bridge the other 2. Once again the beavers were hard at repairing groynes and little dams from the ford to the pool where "swimswith fishes" likes to take a dip!!. We also, in the same area, strimmed the bankside so access to the river should be a bit easier.
Week 11, week ending Saturday 30 May.
Even with a week of warm and sunny weather behind us the CR has only 5(6) entries this week with 9(11) trout caught, all trout returned. Most of the trout were caught in the afternoon with nymphs accounting for 7, a Black Pennel and Klink responsible for the other two. Most of the fish caught were small fish either in the 4-6 inch or 6 - 8 inch range, these are truly wild trout and I wish I could catch them - I usually miss them. The CR notes show members missing fish but again there doesn't seem to too many actually rising, perhaps members would mention, over the next few weeks, in their return whether fish are rising or not. Once again R McMorran was the top rod with 5 trout and again he caught them above Kirkland Bridge. A secret pool or two - if so better let Lord Lob into the secret as he has even more, when he fishes the river, nil returns than me although he does a good job of testing the depth of a pool. On second thoughts let me know so I can have a chance of catching them The beavers continued to work on the path below the ford and did a smashing repair on a bit of it that was needing shored up.
Week 10, week ending Saturday 23 May.
Once again another quiet week for fishing the river with 6(6) entries in the CR although there were more trout caught, 11(3), this week. One trout retained making this only 3 retained out of 47 caught so far. A mildish week last week but still a bit windy (you'll have gathered from the last report that I hate the wind) but the CR notes show that members are starting to see more fish rising - they can see them rising but can they catch them. Well, R McMorran can, with 6 to his name all of which were caught on a black spider nymph - congrats to you as this makes you top rod this week. River Chatter's CR note indicates that he doesn't think that the river has switched on yet and he may be right - perhaps other members may agree. That said, the CR notes also indicate more and more rises are being seen, all that needs to be done is catch them. Finally, the beavers were out again on Tuesday and have trimmed the path at the STW and also from the ford downt to the rock face pool at the bend. For the first time in a number of years you can now walk the path below the ford on the river side of the fence.
Week 9, week ending Saturday 16 May.
Another quiet week on the river with 8(6) entries in the CR for 3(2) trout one of which had to be retained as it was bleeding. The overiding factor during the week seems to have been the wind, certainly for me I just couldn't cope - lasted half an hour on Saturday and then went home - memo to me, learn to cast into the wind, aargh better make that learn to cast. The trout were caught by Brian(snipe & purple), Butcher(buzzer) and Wee Eck(GBHE). Quick note that beavers were out on Tuesday and have trimmed the tree branches just below Kirkland Bridge which has opened up that stretch. We hope that this will help.
Week 8, week ending Saturday 09 May.
6(7) entries in the CR this week for 2(9) trout caught with both trout returned safely. All the entries were for last Sunday and it's not surprising given the weather we've had that there weren't any other entries for during the week. Let's hope we have a bit better weather this week. Anyway, the trout caught were small wild fish with GB getting one in the 4-6 inch range on a Tupps and Brian getting the other in the 6-8 inch range on a nymph PTN.
Week 7, week ending Saturday 02 May.
A check (previous week's figures are in brackets) of the CR this week shows 7(9) entries for 9(5) trout and again all of these were returned safely. Of the 9 trout caught, 6 were caught on a Black Pennel, 1 on a Snipe & Purple, 1 on GB's own nymph and 1 on an Iron Blue Dun. Members comments show that rises are being seen but hooking up seems to be difficult. Top rod this week goes to Tree Fisher who accounted for 6 out of the 9 trout caught. Again this week the best beat was from the upper island pool to Kirkland bridge. Finally, for comparison purposes April 09 had 29 trout caught as did April 08
Week 6, week ending Saturday 25 April.
This week sees 9 entries in the CR for 5 trout caught all of which were safely returned. Of the 5 trout caught one was caught on a Black Pennel, one on a Klink and the other three caught on River Chatter's dry fly(09 version). With the weather having been mild to warm I would have expected more members to have been on the river, perhaps they have been but aren't using the Catch Return. If you are out on the river please record this in the CR. Top rod this week is River Chatter with 3 trout and the best beat was from the upper island pool to kirkland bridge. As they say, you won't catch fish unless your line is in the water so lets get out there.
Week 5, week ending Saturday 18 April.
My apology for the delay in this report, although I've been back a number of days I've had so much to catch up on before I could do this. Very briefly, last week (week 4) the CR had only had 4 entries for 3 trout but all safely returned. This week sees 16 entries in the CR for 8 trout and again all of these were safely returned. Of the 8 trout caught 2 were a nymph, 3 on a wet spider and 3 on the dry fly. Top rod this week is G Bell with 3 trout and the best beat - accounting for 4 trout - was below the ford. Last April had 29 trout caught for the month and to the 18th of this April we are at 14, with a bit of luck we might match this.
Week 4, week ending Saturday 11 April.
My apology as there won't be a fishing report this week since I will be on holiday and won't have access to the internet.
Week 3, week ending Saturday 04 April.
The CR for this week shows 18 entries (looks the better weather has brought members out - I even ventured out on Friday but not a touch or even anything seen) for 4 trout, 2 in the 8 -10 inch range, 1 in the 10 -12 inch range and 1 over 12 inches. I was wrong with my guess that Brian would catch the first trout of the season although he did get 3 on Friday to become the first "Top Rod" of the season. The honour of first trout of the season falls to joadt - well done. Brian caught his 3 below the ford and joadt got his between the upper island pool and kirkland bridge. I would ask as many members as possible to use the on-line Catch Return as the information gathered is of great use.
Week 2, week ending Saturday 28 March.
Not a lot to report for week 2, according to the CR only one brave soul ventured out and although a nil return trout were seen rising, just under the surface, to the flies. Personally speaking it was too cold for me, fair weather angler I hear you cry, but the older I get the more I like fishing in the warmer weather. This week's weather forecast sees the temperature rising, with sunny intervals, on Wednesday and Thursday so perhaps I'll venture out then.
Week 1, week ending Saturday 21 March.
Firstly, may I extend a warm welcome to club members old and new and I hope that season 2009 turns out to be a good one. I can hardly believe that a year has gone by since I penned the first fishing report of the 2008 season. I managed to get out for an hour on, what was a beautiful, Wednesday evening and although no trout caught I did manage to catch a tree and lose my nice new nymph. In this fast moving world it's nice to see that some things don't change- this could also apply to Lord Lob's catch return. This first week saw 15 entries in the CR but the trout were not having any of it and we start with a duck egg. A few members reported some rises and some hatches but more worrying was the reports of disclouration of the water when their had been no rainfall. This has been discussed in the message board and all members should keep an eye out - if you see this and find the entry point you can always ring one of the committe for guidance - it's not so much the entry point but the back track to the source that we want to discover. Anyway, hopefully there will be a trout caught this week and my money is on Brian to get the first one - nothing like a bit pressure on a fellow angler