My First Springer
Sorry for milking this fish, but hey I enjoyed it
Prior to this trip I had a look at the diaries from the last two seasons, this being my third full season where salmon have been targeted.
The entries for last year were sparse, zero fish! There were many reasons for the lack of fish, but the season was a disaster.
My hopes for this year, which I posted in the ambitions for 2011 thread, included 'try to make some sort of contact with a springer on the Finn'.
It was this optimistic thought that was in my mind as I prepared for the trip.
The Finn being a spate river, I had been watching the river reports and trying to time the run to coincide with the water being about 2 foot and dropping. The Finn is catch and release this year and the boxes had been replenished with some of BadBastie's creations, the odd cheaper fly and the very odd one of mine that makes it past my quality control.
As I sat at my work desk on a dull Wednesday in early April, I saw that the water was rising and a few showers were expected. The Finn had opened on 1st March and I still hadn't made the trip North West, I was waiting for some news that would spur me on.
There had been no reports of fish moving but the conditions would be perfect by the next day. I have had success on the Finn when making quick decisions to go, along with many failed and miserable blank days, but I always maintain 'Someone has to be there when the fish arrive'.
I managed to negotiate a day off and the gear came out of the loft for the first trip of the season.
With the new road West, the trip to the Finn can be done in 2 hours from door to door, so i set the alarm for a leisurely 6.30 start and set off from Belfast. Arriving at Glenmore about 8.30, I was told that the river was just over 2 foot and there was no rush to start. After a chat with Sim the fishery manager and his loyal companion Robert (the springer spaniel) I arranged to meet a couple of others from the forum for a run down Glenmore Streams.
This was the first day out of the season and to say things felt rusty would be an understatement. There was a big push on the water, a strong wind and I was casting on my wrong shoulder.
I didn't feel I was fishing too well. The other two rods were covering the water exceedingly well and I'm sure if a springer was about we would have made contact.
For whatever reason, a rod was available on the beat in the afternoon. I was able to get on to the stretch after lunch.
Mentally, I felt me fishing was rushed last year so I was looking forward to slowing things down and day dreaming a bit. Some forum members had been kind enough to spend some time tweaking my casting over the winter and I had a new set up which seemed to suit the conditions and myself better than the tools I was fishing with last year. I was using a 14 foot LPXE, with an AFS shooting head.
Last year, I was followed down the same stretch of water by AnGranniach from the forum and he had success on a Snaelda fished on a hover tip. Crispin had also had success with a Snaelda on the Finn last year.
As I parked at the Graveyard on the Finn i was thinking about giving similar tactics a go.
Access to the pool is alongside a well tended and very peaceful graveyard and I like to set up down where the wall meets the river. The river is wide at this point and with the water at just below two foot and dropping is as close to perfect as you can get.
I tackled up with a five foor hover polyleader and a 1inch Snaelda with a size 11 single salar at the business end. You enter the graveyard pool by a small gate, some anglers start the Graveyard further up and I always check for approaching anglers before wading out. As I stood at the edge a clean fish cleared the surface, a few feet from the far bank, with a big splash. This was encouraging, despite many days on the Finn in spring this was the first evidence of a springer!
Luckily there were no other anglers coming down, so I waded out a few feet and worked my way back up a few yards from the gate and started fishing the nearside. As I did so there was another splash, closely followed by another. As I lengthened the line, I couldn't help having some amount of anticipation, this was the first time I was sure I was covering Spring fish rather than exploring the water.
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Crispin always mentions aiming for the blue fertiliser bag in the tree at the far bank, I saw it last year but couldn't quite remember which tree it was, it must have been cleared over the winter.
About mid way between the gate and the stand at the football pitch the water breaks up a wee bit about 10 feet from the far bank, as I was looking at this water I saw a fish move just to the back of the area. I was struggling with covering this bit of water with the snap T I had been working on over the winter and decided to launch the fly overhead as I was now a good few feet out in to the pool and at the right angle to do so.
The fly landed 6 feet in front of the spot where I had seen the fish and the line was nicely extended and taught. The fly was travelling at a nice speed passed where I had seen the fish and as it did so I felt the line go heavy. I was convinced it was a brownie, I have had many attack the salmon flies on this pool. As I lifted the rod the line tightened and then travelled upstream in a way only a salmon could do. The next logical thought was, it's a blinking kelt and then I caught sight of the unmistakable silver of a fresh fish in the sunlight.
I had my phone in my top pocket, it's my fishing phone and the camera is broken. I knew I wanted a photo of this fish, so I managed to get the phone out one handed and called Sim down at the lodge. I was acutely aware that the fight needed to be quick, as I was putting the fish back and using a size 11 single salar and didn't want the fish to thrash itself off the hook. I had already played the fish for longer than I probably should have.
I grew up trout fishing with cheap reels and still can't get used to playing a fish on the reel, Sim quickly spotted the problem as I had yards of line out as the fish was slapping about.
The fish made a couple of spirited runs up and down the graveyard pool and then stayed deep, I got the fish on the reel and started to bring it towards where Sim and the pup were waiting with the net. Robert was watching intently, sitting upright and remaining still as well trained dogs do as the fish came towards the net. The fish was ready to come and turned on it's side as it approached the net, I still didn't want to relax, and it was such a relief to see the net go under and the fish slip in to the mesh.
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Sim was keen to get the fish back in the water before any photos were taken, but not having a lot of experience handling salmon I was not so confident in my ability to hold on to the fish, but alas the fish was kind enough to pose for a few snaps before continuing the journey upstream.
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My mobile phone bill for April has just arrived and the Finn being across the border; means I have clocked up a handsome bill contacting those who I thought might be interested, many on the forum. All were kind enough to allow me to recall the afternoon's sport in full
The 2.5 hour drive did not seem so taxing on the way home, as the rest of the season stretches ahead with increased enthusiasm and optimism for fish ahead.
Sorry for milking this fish, but hey I enjoyed it
Prior to this trip I had a look at the diaries from the last two seasons, this being my third full season where salmon have been targeted.
The entries for last year were sparse, zero fish! There were many reasons for the lack of fish, but the season was a disaster.
My hopes for this year, which I posted in the ambitions for 2011 thread, included 'try to make some sort of contact with a springer on the Finn'.
It was this optimistic thought that was in my mind as I prepared for the trip.
The Finn being a spate river, I had been watching the river reports and trying to time the run to coincide with the water being about 2 foot and dropping. The Finn is catch and release this year and the boxes had been replenished with some of BadBastie's creations, the odd cheaper fly and the very odd one of mine that makes it past my quality control.
As I sat at my work desk on a dull Wednesday in early April, I saw that the water was rising and a few showers were expected. The Finn had opened on 1st March and I still hadn't made the trip North West, I was waiting for some news that would spur me on.
There had been no reports of fish moving but the conditions would be perfect by the next day. I have had success on the Finn when making quick decisions to go, along with many failed and miserable blank days, but I always maintain 'Someone has to be there when the fish arrive'.
I managed to negotiate a day off and the gear came out of the loft for the first trip of the season.
With the new road West, the trip to the Finn can be done in 2 hours from door to door, so i set the alarm for a leisurely 6.30 start and set off from Belfast. Arriving at Glenmore about 8.30, I was told that the river was just over 2 foot and there was no rush to start. After a chat with Sim the fishery manager and his loyal companion Robert (the springer spaniel) I arranged to meet a couple of others from the forum for a run down Glenmore Streams.
This was the first day out of the season and to say things felt rusty would be an understatement. There was a big push on the water, a strong wind and I was casting on my wrong shoulder.
I didn't feel I was fishing too well. The other two rods were covering the water exceedingly well and I'm sure if a springer was about we would have made contact.
For whatever reason, a rod was available on the beat in the afternoon. I was able to get on to the stretch after lunch.
Mentally, I felt me fishing was rushed last year so I was looking forward to slowing things down and day dreaming a bit. Some forum members had been kind enough to spend some time tweaking my casting over the winter and I had a new set up which seemed to suit the conditions and myself better than the tools I was fishing with last year. I was using a 14 foot LPXE, with an AFS shooting head.
Last year, I was followed down the same stretch of water by AnGranniach from the forum and he had success on a Snaelda fished on a hover tip. Crispin had also had success with a Snaelda on the Finn last year.
As I parked at the Graveyard on the Finn i was thinking about giving similar tactics a go.
Access to the pool is alongside a well tended and very peaceful graveyard and I like to set up down where the wall meets the river. The river is wide at this point and with the water at just below two foot and dropping is as close to perfect as you can get.
I tackled up with a five foor hover polyleader and a 1inch Snaelda with a size 11 single salar at the business end. You enter the graveyard pool by a small gate, some anglers start the Graveyard further up and I always check for approaching anglers before wading out. As I stood at the edge a clean fish cleared the surface, a few feet from the far bank, with a big splash. This was encouraging, despite many days on the Finn in spring this was the first evidence of a springer!
Luckily there were no other anglers coming down, so I waded out a few feet and worked my way back up a few yards from the gate and started fishing the nearside. As I did so there was another splash, closely followed by another. As I lengthened the line, I couldn't help having some amount of anticipation, this was the first time I was sure I was covering Spring fish rather than exploring the water.
Crispin always mentions aiming for the blue fertiliser bag in the tree at the far bank, I saw it last year but couldn't quite remember which tree it was, it must have been cleared over the winter.
About mid way between the gate and the stand at the football pitch the water breaks up a wee bit about 10 feet from the far bank, as I was looking at this water I saw a fish move just to the back of the area. I was struggling with covering this bit of water with the snap T I had been working on over the winter and decided to launch the fly overhead as I was now a good few feet out in to the pool and at the right angle to do so.
The fly landed 6 feet in front of the spot where I had seen the fish and the line was nicely extended and taught. The fly was travelling at a nice speed passed where I had seen the fish and as it did so I felt the line go heavy. I was convinced it was a brownie, I have had many attack the salmon flies on this pool. As I lifted the rod the line tightened and then travelled upstream in a way only a salmon could do. The next logical thought was, it's a blinking kelt and then I caught sight of the unmistakable silver of a fresh fish in the sunlight.
I had my phone in my top pocket, it's my fishing phone and the camera is broken. I knew I wanted a photo of this fish, so I managed to get the phone out one handed and called Sim down at the lodge. I was acutely aware that the fight needed to be quick, as I was putting the fish back and using a size 11 single salar and didn't want the fish to thrash itself off the hook. I had already played the fish for longer than I probably should have.
I grew up trout fishing with cheap reels and still can't get used to playing a fish on the reel, Sim quickly spotted the problem as I had yards of line out as the fish was slapping about.
The fish made a couple of spirited runs up and down the graveyard pool and then stayed deep, I got the fish on the reel and started to bring it towards where Sim and the pup were waiting with the net. Robert was watching intently, sitting upright and remaining still as well trained dogs do as the fish came towards the net. The fish was ready to come and turned on it's side as it approached the net, I still didn't want to relax, and it was such a relief to see the net go under and the fish slip in to the mesh.
Sim was keen to get the fish back in the water before any photos were taken, but not having a lot of experience handling salmon I was not so confident in my ability to hold on to the fish, but alas the fish was kind enough to pose for a few snaps before continuing the journey upstream.
My mobile phone bill for April has just arrived and the Finn being across the border; means I have clocked up a handsome bill contacting those who I thought might be interested, many on the forum. All were kind enough to allow me to recall the afternoon's sport in full
The 2.5 hour drive did not seem so taxing on the way home, as the rest of the season stretches ahead with increased enthusiasm and optimism for fish ahead.
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