Feedback & Reports

What a difference a day makes! Ideal conditions at Doldowlod yesterday but today was much harder and much cooler (both air and water, after yesterday's afternoon rain), plus very windy until early afternoon, which seriously compromised good presentation. Not much fly until late morning when a few small olives began to be wind-skittered across the water surface. Not suprisingly, not too many fish were rising until a warmer and calmer mid-afternoon got a few more up, but still pretty sparse. We fished duo and single emergers and, between us, had 18 grayling to 13", including good-to-see 10" youngsters, and eight 8-12" trout. A few fish were taken on small flashback nymphs but most rising and non-rising fish were taken on HE emergers. Tough going but not a bad return considering the conditions! Needless to say, all fish returned.

8 Trout, 18 Grayling

Plenty of rising fish but the wind made the fishing quite difficult. Tried nymph and dry fly with all the fish being caught on a size 18 F fly. Grayling 8 inches and the trout all between 8-10 inches.

10 Trout, 1 Grayling

Fished from lunchtime to about 7pm. Small olives hatching off all day, with a good hatch in the early afternoon. Two of us managed 17 grayling to 17", and 8 trout to 14", almost all on small dry flies cast to rising fish. Should have started earlier. Got very cold after about 6pm when the sun went behind the hill. Nice beat.

8 Trout, 17 Grayling

Dry fly only, missed a lot of takes. Water was clear.

1 Trout

1 Salmon, 3 Trout, 4 Grayling

A lovely day's weather for fishing - overcast, muggy, hardly any wind - but very little fly apart from a few small olives and the odd sedge. Few rising fish. We fished Tenkara, conventional, single, duo, nymphs, bugs and emergers. Had about forty grayling between us, mainly of 9-12" and a couple of 13", and just one nice trout. The majority of fish were taken on emergers, although most were not rising, so fish were certainly in upwards - looking mode. The rain that was forecast arrived in earnest at about 5.45pm and, after about half an hour's soaking, what interest fish had shown before then, promptly ceased.
A hard, rewarding and enjoyable day on a beat we both love fishing. However,from the standpoint of access along the eastern bank, and indeed the safety of visiting anglers once wetter conditions prevail, the upper part of the beat needs some serious and urgent attention. There is a large tree down blocking footpath access (towards the tail of the Abernant Stream) soon after crossing the fence line. This now poses a major obstacle. Of more concern, upstream of this, the bank has become seriously eroded and access has become hazardous with little room now for safely making one's way up the beat. You either choose to risk going over the edge or you try to breach the tangle of briars that are in now your way and risk shredding your waders. A few hours with a chainsaw and strimmer and the blockage could be removed and a safer footpath created. With the safety of WUF's clients in mind, we recommend strongly that this is cleared urgently given the popularity of this beat as we get into autumn.

1 Trout

Dry fly, black gnat and wet Czech nymph. River conditions clear, summer level. All fish returned.

1 Trout, 4 Grayling

18lbs coloured hen caught on spinner, another fish lost and one seen leaping. River at 1'4", 17C with some colour. Midday session with small rod produced a couple of WBT up to 10" on nymphs. Lovely day, thank you.

1 Salmon, 6 Trout

Evening on Abernant in what looked like good conditions as river dropping and clearing. However no sight or sound of Salmon.

4 small Trout - returned, river rising quickly by 1pm and the spate dislodged massive quantity of brown algae and lots of weed, unfishable by 4.30pm.

4 Trout