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| Chris into a small salmon |
In terms of fluctuations in water levels, September was one of the most unsettled months we have seen this year, which in my opinion never bodes well for any type of river fishing, let alone salmon fishing, however some of the people I had out in September did connect with a few fish all the same, both Salmon and Trout, and even though we were not seeing lots of salmon showing in the pools we did manage to record some success.
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| Returning a small Cock fish |
The problem with constantly high waters, from a fishing stand point, is the fact that fish can simply get their heads down and concentrate on navigating the river and nothing else, not a bad thing I might add, as this can only be good news for future generations of fish, and anglers too. However you will certainly see fish from time to time, literally sneaking upstream on these higher waters, often barely breaking the water surface as they do so, leaving their regular holding pools, especially those that fish best on a low water, (often on the lower river beats) almost devoid of fish. We have witnessed this several times this month, which can be very frustrating for the angler, but remember this, they do have to stop from time to time on their journey upstream to rest up, and this is when we get the opportunity to connect with one or more of them on the fly.
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| Andy into a Double Figure fish |
Despite these conditions we have definitely still had opportunities to catch a few salmon this month, and we have also hooked and lost a few too, however, some of these salmon we have connected with have definitely had plans of their own, parting company with their potential captors, one of which you can see in the picture above left as Andy fights a double figure salmon on the lower river, just before disaster struck and the fish came off. That said, at least he did get to see it before it parted company, and to hook it in the first place is always a confidence booster.
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| Another fish of around 15lb |
The fish above wasn't the only substantial fish to escape either, as Allan (pictured right) will testify to, as he played yet another double figure fish (much higher up the river) of around 15lb all the way to the net, just before it gave a final shake of the head and ultimately ejected the fly in front of him before turning tail for deeper water. It sometimes happens I'm afraid as I am sure many of you have experienced yourselves. Never mind Allan revenge is sweet!
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| Greg with a nice Brown |
The few times we targeted trout in September also proved quite productive, although with the water predominantly on the high side and very little surface activity, the most effective method was often a Goldhead nymph, or an alternative weighted nymph pattern of a similar ilk. This was the method chosen by Greg and Nick, (pictured here) taking advantage of a guided fishing opportunity whilst over from France on a business trip. Well done guys!
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| Nick playing a Brown on a Goldhead |
Brown trout, towards the end of their season, are often neglected as our attention turns to salmon fishing, "I see this all the time". However towards the end of the trout season they often become very aggressive as they move closer to their breeding time and some good catches of decent fish can be had, I am sure many of you have experienced this whilst fishing for salmon, often hooking very large browns on a salmon fly, especially as you move from September to October. It's as if the trout know their season is over and they are now safe!!!
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| A Borderlines Day by the River |
More Borderlines events took place again this month affording us the opportunity to continue our current project of introducing many more youngsters to angling and the environment. The picture on the left shows one of our Borderlines instructors explaining to the youngsters how to set up their tackle in preparation for fishing. Prior to this section of the day the youngsters themselves gave a safety talk and we also discussed the life cycles of the fish themselves and the insects they feed upon at the various stages of their lives. Another good day!
The river levels are now beginning to fine down again after yet another rise of water, although there is more rain forecast over the next few days, but let's hope going into October that the water settles down again and gives us the opportunity to connect with a few more salmon before the season finishes on October the 14th. The saving grace is that whilst the river has been rising and falling over a period of time it has remained a reasonable fishing colour for the fly, especially on the higher beats. This is down to the persistent flows of water we have had continuously flushing throughout the system as it makes it way downstream towards the sea.
After the salmon season is over we will once again be focusing on the Grayling fishing which as you know can offer up some great sport and extend our fly fishing season, which is always a bonus. So here's looking forward to getting a few of you out on the river over the winter months to target these wonderful fish. "I know I will be out there regardless".
