Slow Start to the Season

The season has begun very slowly, everthing is behind this season and the weather remains cool. Having said that, The Leach is currently looking very nice.

A minor success last week in the shape of a small Brownie, taken on a size 20 Goldhead Hare's Ear. It was very welcome on a cold and miserable evening. I would guess it was from last years spawning and a very healthy sign for the river.

Orvis Fly Fishing Show at Blenheim

Orvis will be holding a Fly Fishing Show at Blenhiem Place on Sunday April 11th between 10.00 and 5.00.

To quote their website, where more information can be found:-

"Orvis have teamed up with Blenheim Palace Trout Fishery to bring you a day of fly fishing demonstrations, along with lectures by the Orvis Pro-Guide team, including writer and magazine contributor Paul Procter and local professional guide Jim Williams."

I have been asked to tie flies at the show along with Roy Christie, Dave Wiltshire and Dennis Shaw. This is a very exciting opportunity to tie along side these experienced tiers and I am very much looking forward to it, hopefully it will be a great day.

Fly Tying League Round 1

I recieved this months Fly Fishing and Fly Tying Magazine in the post yesterday, after round 1, I am equal second in Division 1. A very pleasing start, so onward with the next round of flies.

Comparadun

The Comparadun is a beautiful looking fly. I tied a few towards the end of last season and found it a lovely little fly to fish with, so delicate and with a great profile on the water.

Dave Wiltshire provides great tying instructions for this fly on his site River Fly Box, http://www.riverflybox.co.uk/cdcdun.html, it is well worth taking a look. Dave has developed many variants of this fly and I make no excuse for following his pattern.

One thing I would add is that it is essential to use good quality CDC, it makes tying so much easier. Marc Petitjean's CDC is available from several sources and the Swiss CDC from Phil Holding at http://www.flytyingboutique.com/ is superb, coming in a great range of colours. For anyone who has not seen Phil's site it is well worth a look, a great range of excellent materials.

Fly Tying League Round 1

The 1st round of the Fly Tying League this year required 3 Biot Nymphs, tied on a size 12 wet fly hook, an odd combination. The additional fly I chose to tie was the Dentist's Delight. Last year I finished 7th in the Open Class, so it will interesting to see how I fair this year in the new format.

Emerger Bodies

After tying the 'Once and Away' I wondered what other combinations of materials might make interest bodies. The flies below are tied with a paraloop hackle but the body was the main focus. The first body is gold tinsel alternated with black horse tail hair (see previous post), this has plenty of sparkle (perhaps too much), the photo doesn't do it justice. The second body is brown / tinsel sewing thread alternated with black horse tail hair, not so sure about this. The third, my current favourite, is Crystal Sunburst Boar Hair overlaid with gold wire, this has real possibilities.

Gold Tinsel and Horse Tail

Brown/Tinsel Thread and Horse Tail

Crystal Sunburst Boar Hair and Gold Wire

Snow in Berkshire

It's been a difficult couple of days in Lambourn with the recent snow fall but we have still had to make a twice daily trip to our ponies just outside the village. This is Barney, our Norweign Fjord.

Putting a Bend in the Rod

I fancied a little fishing yesterday so took an old fibreglass float rod, centrepin and a loaf of bread down to the River Windrush. The river was very coloured and fairly high so fishing was limited to a few bits of slack water. In a couple of hours I took 4 Chub and a Brownie. Interestingly, the first fish I hooked (and lost) was a Brownie which snapped the hook link and the last fish I caught, two hours later, was the same Brownie with both hooks in its mouth. The first hooking obviously did not affect the fish too much as it continued feeding during the afternoon. It was a very pleasant and enjoyable way to spend the afternoon.

Once and Away

The 'Once and Away' by Hans van Klinken has featured in several books, notably

Tying Flies with CDC and Tying Emergers.

I have admired the fly for sometime and only recently obtained some Peccary from Niche Products. Having tied a few in various sizes, I can only be impressed by the way the fly sits on the water and look forward to putting it to use next season.

British Fly Fair 2009

The Fly Fair last weekend at Trentham Gardens was a fantastic event as usual. The weekend was a great opportunity to watch and learn from some of the great tyers from around the world. I took the opportunity to catch up with some of my favourite tyers including Chris Watson, Phil Holding, Roy Christie and Dave Wiltshire, these guys tie flies that catch fish, not the angler. Each time I watch them I learn so much and come away with so many ideas. The Caddis below was tied by Chris Watson and the Shrimp by Phil Holding, both superb flies.

During the show my friend, Keith Passant, under took a 24hr Tying Marathon in aid of Casting for Recovery and Help for Heroes. I donated the box below for the auction that followed, where further funds were raised for the charities. This was a great effort by Keith.