Dancing dries on the River Thrushel

David and Tim stole an hour this afternoon to do a recce on the Thrushel (it's hard work but someone's go to do it). Even though the river was still high and a little coloured, several brown trout succumbed to carefully-presented dry flies. The guys gave a one-weight (yes, one-weight!) rod a trial - fantastic fun on a river this size!
With the spring flowers making a welcome appearance, there are certainly worse places to be at this time of year...

Tinhay Lake gets the thumbs up!

Louis Norman showed the pros how to do it this morning by landing five fantastic rainbow trout from Tinhay Lake. Using a dry fly to suspend a Black Buzzer and drifting them in the ripple, 10 year-old Louis released three fish and kept this brace of 3lb 12oz and 4lb 4oz. Great work Louis - an expert in the making!



Carl and Lou Wheeler joined David and Tim for two half-day enhancement sessions on the lake and river. After a casting brush-up, Tim showed them the finer points of spring nymph fishing on the lake yesterday; they landed nine fine trout between them! David took the lead this morning, teaching Carl and Lou the gentle art of the upstream dry fly on the Lyd - surely the ultimate skill for any trout fly fisher.

Trout in a Hurricane!

Yesterday England International fly fisher Simon Kidd and son Matthew fished Tinhay Lake in what can only be described as a hurricane. The wind was relentless and from all directions, making casting near impossible at times. Nevertheless, Simon and Matthew caught and released over 10 fine rainbows between them, including this beauty of 3lb 8oz. As ever, the monster (estimated at around 7lb) got away! The day was a photo-shoot for an upcoming issue of Total FlyFisher magazine in which Simon demonstrates the finer points of sinking line fishing. The intermediate seemed to do well, but young Matthew took all of his trout on a floater and buzzer patterns.

Rainbow trout perfection!

Although casting was tough, the trout kept on coming.

Young Matthew Kidd used buzzers to deadly effect!

Working for the Future

We visited the new Tamar salmon hatchery yesterday at Endsleigh. The set up is fantastic - the modern equipment, and stringent organisation and hygiene controls were very impressive. Many thanks must go to hatchery manager Jim for showing us around.



Anne Voss-Bark and David Pilkington watch thousands of young Tamar salmon at the new Endsleigh hatchery.



Hatchery manager Jim shows a typical box used to house alevin before they become fry and inhabit the larger tanks...



Tamar salmon of the future!

The Cockpit tackle shop - open for business!

Dawn of the brown trout season. Rods, reels, flies and all the fisherman's gadgets ready for sale.��

Searching for a Springer

David and Tim shared a rod on the Lower Tamar fishery today at Gunnislake Weir. With only a handful of fish through the counter so far, hopes of connecting weren't high but you'll never know unless you've got a line on the water!
With blue skies, a warm sun and just a breath of wind, it was a beautiful day to be out, and the flora and fauna were certainly waking up to spring. The only fish seen were a grayling and a sea trout smolt to David's Mepps Long no.3 spinner, and all manner of flies were swum to no avail. But what a day to be alive!





Gunnislake Weir - not a bad day for early March!





Purple Toothwort; a rare flower of the British Isles, but common in the Tamar valley during early spring.





David searches the water as the tide starts to lift...





... and the result! Not the first springer of the season, but a welcome grayling nonetheless.

Tinhay Lake... in the cold!

When the rain, sleet and bitter winds subsided today, Roy and David took the opportunity to sneak an hour on the lake. Typically, as soon as the first casts went out... the heavens opened!
The fishing was less than a walk in the park, and although several fish were seen rising lazily to small midges, they proved tricky. The one that eventually graced the net however, was the most perfect little rainbow that any angler could wish for - it was great to see that the fish have over-wintered well and are in fine fettle.
On the rivers front, the salmon season started last Saturday and the first salmon of 2008 is yet to be caught. A handful of fish has been clocked through the Gunnislake counter, so it won't be long until the first falls to rod and line... watch this space!
We've spotted small hatches of grannoms and large dark olives while trimming the riverbanks recently and, on milder days, trout and grayling were seen rising even in mid-February. It all bodes well for the months ahead...





Harry would have rather stayed in the warmth of the fishing office...





This little rainbow - taken on a Pilk's Nymph - just wouldn't give up. It fought like a fish twice its size.





Roy shows the typical quality of this season's fish in the lake.

Chasing Grayling

Between days of serious bank maintenance, ladder building, tackle repair and river inspection, we've managed the odd hour or two chasing grayling! Beats 8b, 9a and 9b have been the most productive, with David and Tim taking several great-conditioned fish to 34cm on goldhead nymphs and pink shrimps. Several out of season brownies have also put in an appearance, and on the few days when the sun has shone, it's been lovely as ever to be on the Tamar...