On Friday morning I woke fairly early ( early being a relative term as I am on holibags). It seemed bright and had evidently been dry overnight. Maybe the river would be fishable, certainly it was dropping the evening before? I went out with a plan B. I would have a look at the County Park section below the Aqueduct and see how it looked, if it was good, then 4 hours on the Dee was to tobe the order of the day, failing that head on uphill to Chirk and the Trout Fishery.
Touch and go for the Dee
The Dee was borderline. It had dropped a lot and was clearing but it was still quite coloured and I thought that while I might get some fishing, I would probably struggle to get any fish. I decided to head to the fishery.
Off to Chirk
It was quite busy as I arrived and I tackled up. Asking at the lodge I found out that the fish stocked are not in general huge ” about a pound and a half upwards”. I set up with the 4 weight on a sporting ticket. The gent on the counter told me that most locals fish the top pond and that the lower pond was due to be stocked but had not been done yet so there were not a lot of fish there. There was no one there and I like a challenge so I started on the lower, smaller pond. Almost as soon as my first cast the rain started, but it was a light shower. Nothing appeared to be moving but as soon as the rain slackened a fish rose to my CDC hopper but I was mending line and missed it by miles!
A Brookie!
A Brook Trout at Chirk, my first ever.
I decided to come down to a smaller Olive Parachute fly, and working my way round the whole pond I managed to catch my very first Brook Trout, probably of just less than a pound but a stunning looking fish all the same. Sticking to this pattern I rose another 3 but none took. Fish were rising out in the middle of the clear water but covering many I failed to get much response until another change and a CDC and Deer Hair got me a Rainbow of about a pound also. So good fun for an hour and a half’s lap of the quiet pond.
Moving on
Time for a move so up to the larger “big boy’s ” pond. There were a lot of anglers here but there was plenty of room. Fish were rising all over and as my eyesight adjusted it became clear that fish were very visible all over the pond, but caching them might be a bit more challenging! I had been told as much by Hywel some days before!
The CDC and Deer hair wasn’t getting a reaction and I went down sizes of fly until I got to a size 18 F Fly. This got me a follow it seemed as I retrieved the fly in wet – I never saw the fish but I had an arm wrenching tug and the line pinged from the water, fly less. The 4lb line had snapped at the fly.
Bolted
A fish takes the dry fly at Chirk
On went another small CDC fly and this time I rose and hooked a fish, I played it, it feeling well enough hooked then suddenly it was off. Fly intact I checked all was Ok and fished it again after a quick de-slime and dry out in the Orvis Shake and Dry. It was a matter of a cast or two when I hooked another fish, and it seemed to be going fine when it bolted for the middle and the damn thing broke me again- another fly gone!
Time for a change of tack, I upped to 7lb 4X flouro on the point and a slightly bigger fly to get the presentation right. An olive Quill CDC emerger.
Bent Hook
A couple of casts and I was in again! I have to say at this point I never saw another single angler hook or catch a fish in all this time! Again It was playing fine then suddenly the fish came free. The fly was on but the barbless Varivas hook was bent wide open! Jeeeeez!
Not the clearest shots but the mangled remains of two flies destroyed by Chirk’s finest!
On went another fly this time the same pattern on a heavier hook. Would you believe me if I told you the same thing happened here!? No? Well it did, another mangled fly .
On went a third, and this time I rose and hooked a fish, and the damned thing came off again! It was really quite fun, I was on a C&R ticket anyway but my releases were simply “long distance”. I was out of identical patterns so had to substitute something similar, an Olive Shuttlecock and this got a number of refusals before I did hook AND LAND a lovely Brown Trout of about a pound and a half. In the two hours on the top pond I only saw one other fish hooked and it too was lost. I have to say though I had an awful lot of fun, this being the most visual fishing I think I have ever done, you could see the trout cruising and target them but they were not for taking most things.
Mad!
A trout jumps over the line in its pursuit of the abundant fly life.
At times it was quite mad as you can see in this grainy video grab, fish even jumped over the line! It seemed to be a fabulous top of the water fishery with a lot of fly life and the fish knew it!
