I reckoned today as being the last opportunity I will have this season to fish at Coulter, for one reason or another so put the gear in the car, and headed there for an afternoon on what was a pleasant September day. Probably too bright for fishing and I expected there to be few or no boats free being a Saturday. So I was kind of surprised to see only two boats out and someone had gone and left two boats on the jetty, which while not the right thing to do, did save me a lot of hassle!
Tackled up, I motored out across to the burn bay, there was one boat holding station just opposite the boat house near poachers point and it held station there all afternoon. I thought they must have found a right hot spot but they only recorded two fish all after noon between 2 anglers when I checked the sheet later.
Casting in the sunshine
Nothing showed at all and my cast was a Kate McLaren on top dropper, an emerging Sedge on middle and a Diawl Bach in Holo Green on point. You wouldn’t have known there was a fish in the loch for the first half an hour or so though at one point while trying to maneuver the boat side on to the wind, having left my line in the water I lifted it out to recast and felt the distinct tug tug of a fish but I couldn’t tighten the line quick enough and it was off. The wind was pushing me out across the bay and I let the boat drift over towards the far side. I was again straightening the boat drift with the motor when a fish rose directly behind the boat. I quickly gave the outboard a burst of reverse to try sop the momentum, and cast as best I could right over the receding rings of the fish’s rise wake, and managed to get my team of flies bang on target first time. Almost immediately there was a splash and I was into the first fish of the afternoon.
The First fish about to go back
The fish put up a strong fight before coming to the net, which it wasn’t happy about at all, a really stunningly coloured Brownie of around a pound and a half, and looking a bit like a male. Very possibly the biggest and certainly nicest fish I have had at Coulter since I started fishing there. It had taken the Kate McLaren tied on a barbless hook. Away it went and I carried on my drift following the weedy margin though I soon realised there were outbreaks of fish rising maybe 30 yards out from the edge so I guided the boat further out. Soon a fish rose again slightly behind me but I was able to fashion a cast that landed near the spot, even in the tricky cross wind. Again as soon as I started to bring the flies back there was a solid pull and the second fish this time about a pound was on the Kate once more.
The Second fish, a little smaller about a poundm no red spots but still in great nick.
The wind started to become very changeable- never good for fishing in my view, one minute blowing from the south, the next the North. Up and down the bay the boat would turn on the drift. The rises dried up and it went very quiet for about one hour. In the shallows off poachers point a few fish did eventually make themselves known and for the last half hour I decided to tie on a Dry fly. My first few goes were ignored but out the corner of my eye I spotted a fish rise, again and again about 40 yards of the point. I decided to take my CDC Sedge and give it a go. In a reasonable position to reach the spot I cast across. I left the fly a food minute or so , all was quiet. And then a huge Brown and gold torpedo emerged from the water and snatched the fly and it was away taking line directly away from the boat. I was holding on and let the fish take my slack line before slowly engaging the drag. I wasn’t far from the backing, this was a string fish and based on what I had seen of it as it took, had to be in the 2-3 lb class, the rod was well bent into the fish and it started to slow, then totally inexplicably for no obvious reason the fly came free. I was utterly gutted, I thought I was going to land a big Brown this time. That was me scunnered, I decided to call it a day, much better than I had any right to expect on such a sunny day.
Kenny wish i had known you were up there as i was thinking about going up but was just heart lazy considering all my gear is in the car boot! the last couple of times i have been up the fish i have caught have been wild and almost all have been caught on or near the surface near to or right in the weedbeds to the right of the boathouse looking towards poachers point, they have all been a beautiful golden yellow colour and i have had two over the two pound mark, Definitely going tomorrow/ weather depending but am looking forward to a day when the daddys are on the go as it can be really good! so i have heard!, tight lines.
That’s a shame. Not to worry. Good luck if you go tomorrow. Was definitely sedges they were on today, the fish would rise when they were appearing on the surface. I was ready with the daddies but never got round to tying them on though had a hopper on with my Kate at one point.