UnexpectedlyHooked

Not as easy as I thought – perhaps I need Reg laughing at me.

Produced one rubbish buzzer and one half decent one.

Another evening at Reg’s. Made 4 nymphs and 3 buzzers.

Reg sent me home with enough tools and feathers to start tying on my own. I scrounged a small bottle of nail varnish from my youngest daughter, and added some bits from my sewing basket.

Another friend took me as a guest to a private lake near Fleet – Bourley Lake.

Peter caught 1 fish, but I caught none, but enjoyed trying to cast so that the line floated down in a straight line. More often than not it dropped in a pile, and I got quite good at untangling the fly from the line. But I didn’t get my fly caught up in the trees as some others did.

Bought my fishing licence from the local Post Office, then Reg took me to Barn Elms, a trout fishery. Reg is a very experienced fly fisherman, and has given me a landing net and priest from his huge collection of fishing tackle. We both bought 2 fish tickets, and spent a pleasant if unproduductive afternoon at the far end of the lake. We moved closer to the lodge, and Reg soon caught his 2 fish. The keepers helped me out, arguing over the length of leader I needed, but helping to get my 2 fish by 7 o’clock. I have yet to net a fish myself, but I despatched both fish with my priest. I was a bit concerned as to whether I would be able to kill fish, but when it came to it I had no problem.

The fish were 2lb 6oz and 2lb, and I cleaned them myself – this time cutting the back of the cavity and removing the blood vessels.

I froze one and cooked the other – wrapped in greased tin foil with slices of lemon and cooked at 180°C/Gas mark 4 for 40 minutes. It was delicious!

Went to Reg’s this evening for a fly tying session. Under his supervision I made 3 Black Pennells (guess which I made first!) and 3 buzzers, 2 of which were Shipmans.

Reg had a good laugh. How do you keep those golden pheasant herls together as you tie them?

Black & peacock spider – the first fly I made

4 peacock feather herls bound in and then wound in close touching turns to the eye. Then a cock’s hackle bound in near the eye and wound round a bit. Fastened off and nail varnish dropped on the head.

Midge larva – the first of my flies to catch a fish!

Length of white stuff and thick thread bound round. Invented by Sally, our fly tying teacher and just using whatever came to hand. A good lesson in how unparticular fish are!