Early days by Anthony Baggott
Early season trout fishing can be a test of the thermal efficiency of your angling at- tire, but it can be rewarding. Myself and Phillip have had some good days fishing the shallows of Corrib when temperatures struggled to hit 8 or 9 degrees. Trout are nos- ing about in the shallows, and even before duck fly hatch, will feed on shrimp, snails, louse etc. You need to be able to see the bottom, and a boat with a deep keel band is a positive disadvantage as you want to drift unhindered over the rocks. An intermediate line and fairly small flies complete the set up, and a couple of fa-
vourite flies for me at this time are golden olive bumbles and fiery browns. However don’t get hugely caught on the intricacies of fly patterns. I never have, and I have been as lucky or (as unlucky) as the next man. I remember with a smile the look I got from an angler who was describing with great detail the shade of sealsfur that trout of a particular Corrib bay insisted was incorporated in their duck fly imitations. The people in this lakeside watering hole was in thrall to this man, however I threw a spanner in the works by remarking that the same trout would take a snap at a Mepps if the fish was feeding and it was pulled by his nose .Cue shrivelling looks from obsessive match the hatch brigade, but after more years angling than I care to remember, there are two words I don’t use in relation to angling and the two words are--- always and never.
However one early season day springs to mind .It was a raw early March morning and while the weather forecast had said nothing remarkable was in store I noted a sharp raw breeze was blowing as I loaded the gear. I paused and surveyed my work, and laughed “everything but the kitchen sink". It always intrigued me how much equipment an angler brings for a days fishing and the problems that arise if you forget something .Like the mayfly day I arrived at Carra without my wellingtons, or the day on Conn while Phillip was playing a strong fish of 2 and a half pounds and I casually remarked to him that the net was at home in the shed.!However ne- cessity is the mother of invention and two strips of silage cover and mono made a
I Shoot and Fish E-Zine March 2012 9
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78