Grilse & Salmon Numbers Building up Slowly

A mixed bag over the last week with one or two reasonable trout to around a pound and a half and Grayling to two pound, but generally a lot of small fish in this category with more Brown Trout than Grayling which has been the trend of late with the dry fly tempting the bigger fish at the moment.

This last week also saw more Grilse entering the river with a few good Salmon showing amongst them and whilst targeting these fish at the weekend we did manage to land a nice fresh Grilse of around 5lb (for the pot) and lost a very nice, very fresh Salmon of around 12-15lb which gave a very acrobatic account of itself before parting company with the fly at the 11th hour, "oh well at least we got a good look at it". With a couple of additional brief encounters with these fish they were certainly up for it and I know there were one or two others taken further up river.

The last couple of days have been away from the Salmon fishing and dedicated to casting tuition and trout fishing higher up the river with some success, however whilst putting his new casting techniques into practice, Tony (pictured here on the left) found that although he did manage at least a dozen fish, as usual the bigger fish were proving harder to tempt as the season marches on.

There are spells of heavy rain forecast over the next week so we will see how this impacts on the Salmon fishing as we draw further into the prime fishing time on the River Eden for these Silver Tourists.

The Grilse Are In

I was on the river with Fay last Wednesday who is a regular visitor to Border Game Angling. With no surface activity whatsoever we set up with two small pheasant tailed nymphs which turned out to be the business. Unfortunately the larger fish proved to be illusive but Fay did manage to catch and return 13 small Brown Trout which did keep her very busy throughout the session.

At the end of last week we held a youth event for the Carlisle Angling Association under the Borderlines banner and with some very welcome help from committee members Graeme Proud, Colin Pulmer, David Altham and George Pearson, along with some fantastic assisstance from Rebbecca and Joanne from the Eden Rivers Trust, the day was very successful with 88 youngsters attending along with other family members bringing the total attendance to well over 100. The day included fly tying, fly casting, fishing, entomology and lots of information about the environment and fishing related subjects. Hats off to the C.A.A. for sponsoring such a great day and promoting angling and the benefits it can bring to those who care to participate.

I have also been involved in many more fishing sessions with Borderlines over the last couple of weeks introducing younsters and families to fishing of all kinds on both stillwaters and rivers including the River Nith and the Border Esk which has been very rewarding.

Plenty of Spey casting tuition with the Salmon fly rods again, and as people were getting to grips with the techniques required whilst on the river Eden we saw on more than one occasion several fresh run Grilse arriving in the system at last, but up to now despite some of the guys covering the fish very well they are certainly not in a taking mood, but with the Haaf Net operators also seeing very large Grilse runs entering the estuary then it should only be a matter of time before more fish are caught.

We did get an additional small rise of water on the Eden on Saturday albeit very peaty which usually indicates that the river Eden has been influenced by one of its upstream tributaries known as the river Irthing, this can seriously effect (for a period of time until it begins to clear) the fishing downstream in a negative way, but that said, I was much higher up the river yesterday above this tributary and the water was also very peaty suggesting that at least not all of the additional water was from the Irthing alone. This certainly did make the fishing difficult though as Fay found out on her return for another Trout session with only one small fish.

I continued on Yesterday afternoon for a couple of hours on my own and despite missing a couple of offers on the nymphs and one lost fish, I did manage a nice Brown Trout of around one and a half pounds at the 11th hour on a size 14 Dry Greenwell's Glory. A nice way to end the afternoon.

Water At Last

Through the night on Saturday 10th July the river Eden rose around two foot and coloured which made Sunday 11th on the lower river unfishable which would normally be a bit disappointing, especially as I had to cancel a trout fishing session, but as we have had no significant water whatsoever for many weeks this was very welcome and gave us hope for the Salmon fishing as this water could certainly encourage fish to enter the system.

Although there were a few fish caught and a few good ones at that, as well as a few Sea Trout in places, it was not spectacular, but the water did hold it's level for a while with the upper river a good colour to fish the fly and on the Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 13th - 15th I enjoyed the company of Chris, Andrew and Alan who were up from Wales on a fishing holiday with me. Alan was one of a party of four that came to Norway with me on one of the Salmon trips I used to arrange with a friend in Norway. All three came into contact with Salmon on the last day but unfortunately only briefly. Chris also indulged in a bit of trout and grayling fishing with some success.

Saturday and Sunday 18th & 19th were taken up with some single and double handed fly casting tuition with Sean and Stephen (pictured here) and Monday was to be a trout fishing session but the water rose again and the day became a tuition day looking at casting and fishing techniques.

Bit of me time on 20th - 22nd July as I headed off with a friend to the Dovey in Wales for some Sea Trout fishing only to find upon arrival the river in full flood for almost the whole duration of the trip apart from the last four hours when I did manage to wet a line but to no avail, although the guy in front of me proceeded to pull out a nice Sea Trout of 8lb. As the river was out of order we were given a real treat as we were taken by our very good friend and host Illtyd Griffiths to the most beautiful lake up in the Welsh hills to fish for wild brown trout and despite the rain water which had also effected the lakes clarity we did catch (between the two of us) 15 nice wild brownies of which we kept five and returned ten. In addition to this whilst we were away the river Eden rose again approximately four to five feet which gave it the good flush through it needed for the Salmon fishing.

By Saturday the lower river Eden was still holding a bit of colour although a few fish had been caught on spinners, but the upper river was running nice with just a little colour and in the afternoon I had Jake and his young nephew Tom with me to do some Brown trout fishing, with the intension of Sea Trout fishing later on that evening until the early hours. Jake managed a couple of nice Brown trout up to just under 2lb and as for the Sea Trout fishing, he hooked two very good fish one of which parted company quite early and the second proceeded to crash about on the surface (which Sea Trout have a tendancy to do when first hooked) before it too parted company, this would be a fish of about 3 -4lb as we both got a good look at it on the surface.

Sunday saw the lower river still high but coming into good condition with the water still coloured but clearing nicely and after a short casting session with Mike and despite not seeing any fish at all I did manage to hook and land a nice fish of around 9lb on the fly which was promptly returned as it was a coloured fish likely to be a Spring fish that entered the river a while ago although it gave a very good account of itself during the fight which is often the case with a well rested fish. Several other fish have also recently been caught throughout the system with fish of around 17lb being recorded. Large Grilse runs have yet to be seen although I am sure they are on their way as they did arrive late last year.

The Brown trout fishing was also very good yesterday and I managed 14 fish on the upper river up to one and a quarter pounds on goldheads, spiders and on the dry fly as fish began to rise in the evening. I kept one for the pot.

Killyleagh & Lough Melvin

On Friday 2nd July I flew over to Ireland with three fellow instructors and very good friends, Illtyd Griffiths, Gary Champion and Karl Humphries to represent AAPGAI at the Irish International Fly Fair, a very successful event which has gone from strength to strength since it's inception in 2008. The event encorporates fly casters, fly dressers and many other angling related parties from around the world in the beautiful setting that is Killyleagh which overlooks strangford Lough. The event evolved from an environmental enhancement programme based around the local Dibney River through an organisation formed in 2007 and now known as the Dibney River Conservation Trust which does excellent work with both adults and youngsters alike to promote a better understanding of the benefits local rivers can provide to the community.

Whilst over there we met up with several friends from APGAI Ireland (Advanced Professional Game Angling Instructors) many of whom are also members of AAPGAI in England who were also involved with the casting instruction at the Fly Fair.

Following the Killyleagh event I travelled from there with Jim Hoy, (a very good friend of mine and member of both AAPGAI & APGAI Ireland) 3 hours down the road to where Jim lives on the banks of Lough Melvin (literally) where I had the good fortune to spend 3 days with Jim and his lovely partner Lillian in such an idyllic setting where we fished very successfully for two species of trout known as Gillaroo and Sonaghan which are unique to Lough Melvin. Jim is the Head Water Keeper for the Southern side of the Lough and has fished Melvin most of his life which certainly showed in his ability to catch these hard fighting fish as well as being able to locate them in often changeable conditions. Anyone wishing to take a trip to Lough Melvin to fish for these fantastic creatures as well as having a chance to hook one of the many Salmon we saw jumping on the Lough, I can certainly recommend Jim who can arrange all the facilities you require for your trip. You can contact Jim on the following email address: jimhoyflycasting@gmail.com

The Gillaroo (which comes from the Irish for Red Fellow) are generally found in the medium to shallower areas of the Lough (just offshore) as they are predominantly bottom feeders, feeding on such things as snails and caddis larvae etc and are great fighters themselves with there butter coloured bellies and deep bright red spots, but when you get hold of a good sonaghan (which generally prefer open water) which I would describe as a dark steely looking fish with black spots, long pectoral fins and a tail that is disproportionate to it's body (bigger) you soon know it, and sometimes you even think you have hooked into a grilse, as although they are not big fish they do have the tendancy to pull the rod tip under the boat. A fantastic experience and one I suggest you should try.

Searching For Fish

Over the last three weeks the river Eden has suffered badly especially for the Salmon angler with yet more dry weather and low water conditions. In the more oxygenated areas of the river there are still some good trout to be had on spiders and dries or even very small goldheads in the pocket water, but you do have to search for them and if you are prepared to do so then it can be quite productive.

When I have not had people out on the river I have been putting my free time to good use and recently attended an AAPGAI professional delopment weekend which was held at the Three Acres near Huddersfield. The weekend was based around casting and fishing techniques with a variety of rods and reels, which allows us as instructors to keep up with some of the latest outfits on the market today as well as continuing our own development, but even more important it was good fun and very enjoyable.

Off to Ireland in a couple of days for the Irish International Killyleagh Fly Fair and to fish Lough Melvin for 3 days for Sonaghan and Gillaroo trout. Speak to you all soon with an update.

Some Rain but not Enough

As I suspected, the rain, albeit heavy at times, was not enough to bring the river Eden into the good order we desperately need for the Salmon fishing to improve, although there is some fresh water in the system and one particular area on the lower Eden has still been producing a few good fish with one angler taking three nice Salmon to his own rod in one day, but in the general scheme of things we do still need some rain.

There continues to be some good trout fishing available to those who make the effort which tends to be on the more overcast days or later in the evening which always tends to be a good option, and following a session on Monday I managed to land seven Brown Trout and a Grayling all on the dry fly, but I cannot claim that there were any specimens amongst them this time, never the less, good sport and I will hopefully meet those fish again in the future.

Some good feedback confirmed another very successful weekend with Dumfries & Galloway Angling Association members on the river Nith, from beginners learning how to Spey cast for the very first time to some good improving anglers (who have been before) who were looking at some of the more advanced Spey casting techniques with both full Spey Lines and shooting heads etc.

Also during the week we had some further school day sessions with the fishing for knowledge project in the Port Willam area of Scotland delivered by us at Borderlines, and whilst it does temporarily keep us away from our local rivers, it is a very worthwhile experience and one that gives us the opportunity to get the message accross (regarding angling and the environment) to many youngsters who will hopefully carry this message forward long after we have gone.

Finally, if you like to keep a Salmon or two when you go fishing, then as from today in England and Wales you can do so (dependant on local fishery rules) i.e. from 16th June, which is in line with the Environment Agency National Byelaws, (click on Logo for more info) but be careful as from the 10th September all hen fish must be returned to the water.

In addition to this the Grayling season has now officialy opened as from today!

A Hint of Change

Early in the week I was on the upper Eden with Ken, Declan and Liam. They are a father and two sons respectively and were spending the day with me for Liam's birthday present. It was a very hot day as usual, but Liam did manage to bag himself a good Brown trout which was his first ever Brownie (well Done!) along with a few smaller fish, and Declan also managed to hook and land two very nice Grayling, which were promptly returned to the water, not just because the season does not begin until June 16th, but as he said with a smile that's what he would normally do. I did get a good underwater shot though (see below).

I fished the Eamont mid week with Tony Bell in very difficult conditions (hot & bright) although we did manage to turn a couple of quality fish on very small dries and caught a few smaller fish, but all in all they were a bit wary in the low clear conditions we encountered. Very small dries or spiders and tiny goldheads have been the order of the day in these difficult conditions.

Later in the week we were in SW Scotland introducing youngsters to angling and all things related and over the weekend I returned to SW Scotland once again with fellow instructor Glyn Freeman to deliver two, one day Spey Casting courses to members of the Dumfries & Galloway Angling Association.

Only on the river Eden for a short tuition and fishing session this morning which was just as well, as the river where we were (higher up the system) began to rise a little and colour up following a heavy downpour in the pennines. I would like to think that this was the beginning of a good flush through as the river desperately needs extra water, but I am not convinced, although the forecast is for some additional heavy rain tomorrow evening so fingers crossed.