‘It’s my local, and the commercial fishery I visit most, being as its walking distance from my house; a good walk, but walkable. But it’s still my bogey location. I can fish places I have never been and come away with something, but Swanswater continues to confound me.

I was heading out yesterday for a half day out but after walking the dog in the morning, I feared Pendreich might be too windy for comfort, certainly, if the day before was anything to go by, it was downright dangerous at times, the wind totally changing direction while you had line aerialised!

Swanswater is a fairly sheltered venue, it’s a place you can usually fish in most weather conditions, though if it’s very windy, getting on one of the favourable pegs might not be too easy, if it’s busy. I trotted up there for One o’clock,  and got a 4 hour ticket off Morna. The weather wasn’t too bad but the forecast was grim, so I put on my over trousers and waterproof jacket, joking that my fishing results can make me miserable enough without adding to the misery by being soaked to the skin! How prescient?!

I had set up a cast in a washing line fashion, there were the odd fish showing on the top but nothing spectacular, and I reckoned they would not be far down in the fairly mild but grey conditions. On the point was a nice bushy LTD Sedge, then coming up the cast I had a couple of Buzzers, and a black Diawl Bach, four flies in all on a cast of about 16 foot tapering from 10lb to 6lb fluorocarbon.

I tried both slowing fishing them back figure of eight style, and leaving them static. Once or twice the Sedge dipped under but I am inclined to think it was likely one of the buzzers catching a bit weed rather than a take. I started near the dam wall and worked my way right round to the South end, but got nothing. Once at the South end, I spotted a big Blue cruising about a foot or so down, and I attempted to intercept it,  it initially looked like it might show interest but then thought better of it and departed the scene.

With over an hour gone this wasn’t working, but I had one more place to try and went round behind the island to “Nan’s place”.

I had a cast there and had the Airflo 40+ line on to give me lots of distance. About second cast I spotted a rise to the Sedge, I struck but at such a long-range it never connected. I swapped patterns about and even put a dry Klinkhammer on top dropper, cut the point tail off, and reduced to three flies, tried a hares ear and a Cruncher under the Klink, so getting a little deeper- nothing. The rain was by now coming on heavier and heavier, in bursts. Reluctantly I swapped to a Yellow Dancer on point and a Bunny leach on top dropper. Second cast of this and I had a sharp tug but no fish. This continued especially out near the fringe of the lilypads but I wasn’t connecting. I could feel the fish mouth the fly and would keep the retrieve going or speed it up, but no solid takes. I swapped the Yellow Dander for a “small” Humungus and right away this got a follow all the way to the front of the platform but the fish would not take it; I could not “hang” it or retrieve it any more than I did!

Then on one cast I got three sharp tugs and the third seemed to strike home but there was a lot of flailing on the surface and a very decent fish rolled and shot away! And this dear reader was the pattern for the day the heavens opened, I considered fishing deeper but was getting attention as it was, changing patterns wasn’t resulting in solid takes just loads of nipping, it wasn’t like I could really shorten the tail on the fly more either as they were not that long. The last hour and a half I had the place to myself, everyone else had cleared off as they never had water proof’s, right to the last I had tugs, while the skies tipped out on me. Not a sausage landed and ANOTHER blank at Swanswater.

I will say one thing though, I did see a few decent fish up there, and out near the lilypads just as the heavens opened I saw a fish, right below the surface its silver flanks catching the light- this thing was a submarine!

Finally- I would have posted some pics but for the rather unfortunate problem whereby my iPhone stored safely in a waterproof pocket turned out not to be so waterproof, well damp proof even, it was a bit moist when I got home and in fact is totally dead.