Went up to Pendreich this week on Wednesday and Thursday.
Wednesday
Wednesday was mild but somewhat gloomy looking and I went up for a couple of hours fresh air but not having high hopes- especially after my grim night at Swanswater earlier this week.
After a somewhat delayed start- I was helping another angler out with a fly and leader set up, I eventually got a line out from the dam wall with Pheasant-tailed Klinkhammer on point. Ironically I got no response to the fly until I started to gather it in to try elsewhere- I suddenly realised there was a weight on the rod and after a short fight a very fat Brown Trout of well over a pound was netted. The hook came out easily and it was returned safely.
I decided to move up the bank and based on my findings of what the fish were eating, from the fish I took away a few weeks ago, I decided to try a beaded caddis pattern on point and an Okey Dokey Buzzer on dropper on a sink tip line. the idea was cast out over the shelf near the bank, let it sink and retrieve along the bottom.
This worked almost right away and I had a few tugs then a fish on. A second fish shy of a pound was netted and after this, I had a few more tugs and knocks. The weather wasn’t great but in an hour and a half, I had some really enjoyable fishing.
Thursday
Thursday was a different kettle of fish (sic). I went up and decided to give Pike on the Fly a go. I put on a pike leader and a big fly made of red and white Marabou. I really liked the way it fished but it was a pig to cast with the HM3 rod and the addition of a really bad breeze made it almost impossible. I only lasted at this for about 30 mins and gave up to concentrate on “the troots”.
I started as I finished on Wednesday but had no takes and the wind was playing havoc with the line. I retreated near half nine to the dam wall and put on a Klink and a Shipmans buzzer- at least you could cast here.
It did not take many casts for me to get a reaction and I had a lively fish on of about three-quarters of a pound, which was hooked in the scissors. It was released and after a bit of coaxing swam away OK. A few more casts as I was thinking of calling it a day and a second take- it felt much heavier and another angler commented it looked big but in fact, it was the same size as before- unless there was a subtle swap halfway through the fight! This fish had totally swallowed the hook and it was in its gill rakers- it took me a lot of fiddling to remove it and I thought I was going to have to take the fish. But with a lot of patience, the fish revived in the shallows and eventually swam off- hopefully OK. Both took the Pheasant-tailed Klink yet again- what a fly this is!.
