THAMES VALLEY

FLY DRESSERS

BRANCH OF FLY DRESSERS GUILD

Wednesday 14th  November 2012

A mid-week escape for the lucky ones - John A, Richard E and E , Paul and Jason and off to Liddells. A great start to the day - about 11 deg C and warm. No gloves to start and no wind.

The fishing was fairly fast to start and there was some nice action before mid-morning coffee. Most of the fish fell to nymphs despite there being a steady sporadic rise and some of us trying dry fly. Towards lunch the hatch became more steady but still sporadic and a few fish fell to dry fly. The weather was superb by lunch , Richard Elbro fishing in shirt sleeves. The nice weather caused poetic musing by John A who concluded this was a better day than being dead.

After lunch the action was steady , mostly to nymphs with a bead head. We finished the day with some cracking fish including the one Paul is holding. There were lots of claims for bigger fish than the 39cm one last week but in the absence of a measurement John A's record stands.

Overall we put about 60 fish on the bank for a very good day.

 

Good luck for Saturday

Richard                                  

 In Praise of the Grayling

I believe the grayling the most beautiful fish in the world. Where Kilsey Craig stands up like a rampart below Hatton Gill there is a stone bridge over clear water, running over pebbles white as mushroom tops, spotted with water snails black as ebony. The fine turf either side of the Wharf is grey-green. In the swift places of the water the grayling rests, a fish of silver and pearl, fanning the stream gently with graceful fronds of bronze silk. He looks as if he rested still, and let the stream ripple through his soft fins, but he is keeping his place with effortless grace. Sometimes he lets go and drifts down stream, swift as the shadow of a flying bird; and then a flicker of pearl light, and he is back at rest again. At evening time when the stream is dark, he shines like white pewter in the moonlight. I hate to give you the recipe for cooking him.

He is flavoured of thyme—as are all things living on those thyme-scented moorlands—so when you have caught him, pack him in your creel with a bunch of the wild thyme that grows in scented purple and grey close to the stream, and cook some of it with him. He is far superior to trout.

Dorothy Hartley

PHOTO’s OF THE DAY