Well, it’s not gone unnoticed by me that if you want to go fishing at a weekend AND have somewhere to yourself, you can’t do much better than the day of an Old Firm derby, if you live anywhere in the central belt of Scotland. ( I suppose it might be a wee bit different in the East round Edinburgh) but certainly, where I am and I would guess more so Glasgow, days when there is a Rangers v Celtic derby on means quiet waters.
All the more for me then!
Was up for my usual Sunday foray out on to Pendreich, and certainly, on arrival, the water was glassy calm and fish were rising all over. A couple of guys there before me said there were fish all over the loch rising.
After tackling up with my Dicksons rod for dry fly fishing and the HM3 for a trio of sub surface patterns ( a black buzzer, a PTN and a red holo Diawl Bach) for starters, I grabbed the boat and almost immediately encountered a strong wind blowing North to South (very unusual).
I started near the dam wall and though fish were all around they were not taking the nymphs on the sink tip line.
The wind turned and was from the more conventional Southerly direction. Fishing down the bank line I figured I was too deep with my flies and so swapped to a floating line. I also changed the buzzer for a small claret damsel imitation- quite small. A few casts and I had a good solid pull and was sure I was into a good fish- there was a splash on the surface the rod bent, and then it all came pinging back in a heap! Flies and line intact but in a tangle. Once sorting this out was complete nothing more was showing. I moved down to the Eastern corner and nothing much was happening. I had a single tug but not a solid take and don’t know what took the fish’s interest. There was the odd rise over the whole loch but nothing consistent. The wind got up and it went very grey and cold.
A solid one pound plus Brownie onthe F Fly
I crossed the loch and fished the South East corner. I changed the point fly to a shuttlecock buzzer to try holding the nymphs up in a washing line fashion and keep the nymphs just under the surface. The Shuttlecock was fishing crap so swapped it for an olive F Fly. I had stopped for a cuppa but first cast after this break I got a very subtle but solid take as I started to retrieve the flies. A very solid, 1lb plus fish came to the net. Pictured and released I decided to move.
A few more fish were moving now so tried to target some obvious spots, as if to taunt me- as soon as I rowed the boat from the SW corner fish started to rise there!
I swapped the point fly to a red holo Cormorant as I noticed the F Fly when wet was not a million miles from this shape and it was subsurface when taken. A fish moved ahead of me in the Eastern corner- I cast first time right on the money and was rewarded by a sharp pull, the rod bent double and I started to tighten the line. I pulled in line two or three lengths and then it all went slack again. Another rubber hook. I am now becoming certain that the 6/7 HM3 rod is just too stiff for the fish here as when I use it I pull out of an awful lot of fish- cetainly I seem to lose a lot more. I swpped to the dry set up and but for one rise that I missed (duh!) and another that swirled round but missed me, never had any luck.
I called it a day on the boat and went and packed it all away and decided to have 15 minutes off the dam wall where it had brightened up weather wise and fish were rising anything from 5 to 25 yards out. I put on a fresh brown Klinkhammer and spotted a few refusals, fish flashing gold under the fly as they turned away. The fish were definitely taking emergers, and not clean off the surface, but I persevered and was soon into a wee fish of about half to three quarters of a pound. Netted and released, after a blether to a passing local, I moved along the dam wall and eventually hooked a third slightly heavier fish, so very happy with my lot I called it a day.
Osprey looking for lunch
.. and but for one other angler who turned up later…. oh, and an Osprey, never seen another angler all day.
