Season’s End

So as the sun set beyond, an admittedly grey and cloud obscured horizon this evening, the curtain falls on another Brown Trout season. Its been a funny season for me, though one I enjoyed, particularly as I wasn’t sure I would be a regular participant at all at the start of it. While I wasn’t out as much as I would maybe like I was out a lot more than I dared hope and overall it wasn’t bad.

I became a member of LASAC this year and that gave me fishing on Loch Coulter reservoir and the River Carron near Denny. I had fished the loch before with friend Tommy, though somehow we never met up on the loch this year, so it was a bit more of a learning season here for me. I had a few good outings in the early part of the season and though the boat mooring arrangement is a bit of a hassle, if you have the time for it, its a lovely location when the weather is settled. You don’t want to be there in anything more than a stiff breeze at sea level though! The river almost became my “go to” place this year though. When the wind was too stiff you had a chance of getting out on the river and it has been something of a “find”. I had thought of fishing it a few times prior to becoming a member but I never really knew anything about it. My only recollection of the Carron was a rather manky slow section of the river I had seen when working on a radio link for a factory that lay beside the river further down, many years before.

A nice River Carron trout is returned

I had a few wee walks to find out the lie of the land just before the season started and it gave me a few ideas for places to go find some fish and it turned out to be time well spent. I only blanked once in all my outings on the river and on that one blank session I was unlucky to lose what was certainly a very decent fish, if not a pretty large one. I never got a look at it but the speed it took off upstream was amazing before it slipped my hook.

I had a few sessions where a blank looked imminent but the river would see pity on me and offer up a few of its bonnie wee wild fish or a chubbier stockie. I have to say most of the fish I caught I think were wild. I don’t really mind catching small fish even on a 3weight rod its good fun. I never took any fish there though, all were returned, I think the biggest was probably about a pound and a quarter or so. I never had any success with the Tenkara rod, though, the times I took it out it was either too windy or not really the right pace of water to make a good fist of it.  But I think I fell in love with this wee river and will look forward to making her acquaintance again next year, health permitting.

The second fish I got at Pendriech taken in low light on a black Shipmans Fish returned.

Pendreich on the other hand was a whole other kettle of fish. Actually that’s a misnomer if ever there was one, it was an empty kettle! My first season up there I had close on 70 fish, even with a few mid summer blanks thrown in. I have never been able to replicate that but always managed something on at least half my visits. But not this year. I had a few pulls and on one session rose 12 fish and never hooked a single one! It wasn’t until quite late on in the season that I had a couple of fish and lost another couple in one 2-3 hour outing. It wasn’t like that for everyone, I know some anglers had a great season there but equally I met a few who had seasons like me too. I was never really sure what the problem was but I was only there rarely when fish were clearly on the move.

Fishing after dusk at Millhall

Other than that I had a few sessions on some trout fisheries, a new one for me this year was Millhall, near Polmont and I had a great night losing more than I landed but tremendous sport in the gin clear water. I also made a couple of outings to a favourite of mine, Glensherrup. One was with fellow bloggist, Ron ( Fly Fishing Old Fart), who won my draw for a free outing, when this wee blog hit its 100,000th visitor. We had a nice evening up there, though the fish weren’t especially easy to catch, but I did manage 2 or 3 fish and one which was my best fish of the season, a wild Brown of about 2-2 and a quarter pounds, it looked bigger than it weighed I have to say.

Ron fights a fish at Glensherrup

A nice 2lb wild Brown trout taken on a Dry fly at Glensherrup. Fish was returned.

I also had my first ever session out in a boat at Carron Valley. That turned out to be a bit of a trial. I came away somewhat frustrated and empty handed on a fairly difficult and changeable evening. I would like to try that again, but tis not especially cheap so not something I could do as often as I would like given its only 20 minutes away.

And of course my local trout fishery Swanswater, as ever it had good sessions and hard ones, but its still one of my favourite locations for a few hours fishing close to home. I also managed my first mid summer evening session on Burnhouse and Harviestoun. I managed a fish in the luke warm water at Burnhouse but the evening at Harviestoun was another challenging outing at the end of a very warm day. Finally and only recently I had my first ever session out on the River Tummel where we found the Grayling and were doing well until disaster ensued! ( not to me for once I hasten to add).

So with the official season over, winter fishing beckons. I have to be honest and say things are a wee bit creaky here just now, the old joints are playing up and its a wee bit hard to move, but with luck I will get a few outings for the Grayling, and there is usually good Autumnal fishing to be had at the commercial fisheries so hopefully more to come yet.