Hi Howie,
I really enjoyed our fishing session a couple of days ago .. thank you. I learnt a lot very quickly. I now need to put it into practise!
I have enclosed a couple of links .. I am going to Tsiname … lots of stuff on You Tube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kl42XWUMapw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbNOfdjjxkE
I will be in touch re another lesson next week as soon as my plans become clear.
Best
David.
]Fly fisherman Clive Eakins contacted me regarding saltwater fly fishing in the river Adur. So I chose a session on the falling tide today which was 3 hours into the ebb after a 5.2 high. This is a great time to fish these short tides as you get a chance to go for the mullet and bass as they seem to stay in the estuary longer. Although we did not connect with the mullet Clive did catch 4 schoolies.
Later I walked the river on the flood tide (without a rod) and it was stuffed with huge mullet. Could this be the start of a late seasons fishing on the Adur? Here’s of couple of pic’s of Clive.
Well done mate.
Really getting to grips with my Hot smoker now. Mine has 2 meths burners which need to be filled to the max to enable a burn time of about 4o minutes. Enough to cook to good sized fish of about 1.75lbs each. I like to score the fish with a sharp knife on both sides. Then rub in salt pepper, olive oil and stuff the fish belly with rosemary and sage. Grey mullet smokes really well too. TOP TIPS. If the dorsal fin can be pulled away easily then the fish is cooked. A small hand full of wood chips loosely wrapped in foil gives a delicate but adequate flavour and helps keep the pan clean.
Here’s a couple of Arlington Rainbows I served up for friends at the weekend along with local picked samphire..Magic 🙂
The tuition in 2014 is again doing really well and Again I’ve had the pleasure of introducing more anglers into the world of fly fishing with lots of positive feedback. Last week I meet father and son,Tony and Pete Elliott who came to me as absolute beginners. After a 3 hour session they were both getting to grips with the Overhead and Roll cast plus shooting line a few tips on casting in windy conditions and fly fishing river techniques. Here is what Pete had to say about the session and pictures of his dad Tony.
“Thanks man, was a good experience and I think, the beginning of a new hobby for dad”
Last night I took advantage of the warm evening and rising tide last on the Adur and landed 2 lovely Thin Lip Mullet Mullet on a Red Bead Diawl Bach fly. Unfortunately when landing the second fish the rod tip snapped so I had to go home otherwise it could have been a bonanza night as the fish were taking the fly quite confidently. Hopefully I can buy a new rod tip? Anyway check out the the fish and magic fly pics. Tight lines Howie
I was invited as a guest to an SPS lake last Saturday. It was a warm and very sunny afternoon and so was not expecting to much under these conditions. However the water was clear and the trout started to rise. Before to long I was getting takes and follows from fish. Then the line tightened and the rod was almost wrenched from my hand and after a great scrap I landed this beautiful, full finned rainbow followed shortly by another. One on a sinking Daddy and another on a red Buzzer. It is some time since I have uncounted such fine quality specimen rainbows. Congratulations on your specimen fish SPS. Seriously thinking of joining up next season.
Visited Arlington reservoir again yesterday.This time with boat partner and novice Jim Lockhart who is just coming into fly fishing. After a very blustery morning with waves coming over the bow we struggled to connect with fish using teams of buzzer and nymphs patterns. Except for Jim losing his potentially first ever trout as we struggled to get the landing net erected. Lesson to be learned there. After lunch the wind dropped and we ventured out again this time with fast sinking lines and searched the depths with black and green Zonkers. Normally a autumn fly I know but it worked and we bagged 5 trout. Then the weather really calmed for the evening and the fish stopped taking so we changed the Zonkers to white colour which produced another 5 fish. I can’t tell you how many fish we lost to trout just grabbing or playing with the fly’s tail. I shall now be tying a set of flies to try and combat this occurrence by putting the hook in the tail. Here is a photo of Jim and his first trout and the fabulous scenery to take in when the fish aren’t biting.
I fished the tide out on the Adur this morning hoping for my first bass of the season. I did not catch or see any but I did get a surprise when my line tightened and in came a nice flounder which had grabbed my large black clouser. I did pop it back after the photo. The river is only now just starting to clear after running brown for weeks. Apparently according to another angler, the Arun is the same. Has anyone any clues to why we are getting this brown colouration. May Bloom perhaps?
Tight lines Howie
Had a free day yesterday so decided to visit Arlington reservoir. I splashed out on a 8 fish ticket and a boat with a motor which turned out to be well worthwhile. It was a fine and mostly sunny day with a fresh southerly blowing across the lake. It took me about 2 hours drifting and cruising around to locate my first trout. The battery was then starting to lose power so decided, best to get back to the fishing hut for lunch and a fresh battery. These electric engines are nice and quiet and better for stealth but don’t last long when exploring a reservoir like Arlington in search of fish. After a lunch I set off Again and with no takes or fish rising I put on a fast sinking line and a weighted Minky. I cast out and let the whole fly line sink and started to row around the the middle section of the lake close to where I took my first fish. With the reel resting behind the boat seat and the drag set I was able to control the speed and depth of the fly by slowing and speeding up my rowing. This also saves the life of the battery, keeps you warm and is good for ones health (so they say). It wasn’t too long before the rod jerked forward and line started tearing off the reel and I was into my 2nd rainbow. Bingo I’d found a shoal of fish and by rowing around the same area I was lucky to get my limit. It wasn’t that easy though. It took 8 hours to catch 8 trout when many anglers blanked that day so I was ecstatic.
I’ve been doing quite well with the fishing in Goa this season but I think I have lost as many fish as I have landed. This is because the sheer power and cunning of the mainly Red Snapper. I am new to lure fishing and try to fish the fly whenever I can. I had been using 12lb Maxima Chameleon for spinning which is a very nice line to use but these powerful fish head straight for the rocks which are covered with razor sharp shells and then it’s game over. Also to pull too hard in retaliation is another recipe for disaster. I have also had lure to line linkages straightened out too. I had to rethink my tactics and tackle and invested in some good spinning braid with stronger lure linkage which luckily are available here. 2 days ago I was rewarded with this beautiful specimen. Check out the the size of the size of the tail fin.
Fly Fishing Sussex 