I decided to have an evening session on the Blagdon section. My rod is a 7' 3/4 #. I fished from the mill upstream, venturing as far as the viaduct. It was a sunny warm evening a good few large mayfly in the air, I fished a size 10 Grey Duster the fish tugged at it but no takes. It was a calm warm evening, the river rippled over the stony riffles and the resonating bird song made it a joy to be here in my own little world. I switched to a size 16 Griffith Gnat, I took two fish in quick succession, a brace of beautifully marked full finned wild Brownies in the 7" to 8" bracket. I spooked a Roebuck he stomped away barking his annoyance. I came to a long stretch of calm water and I decided to try a small gold head hares ear. The fish were interested as tug after tug resulted in another two to the net and returned to grow on a bit more, another two in the 7" to 8" bracket. I came upon a Dipper bobbing up and down on a rock in midstream spreading his wings in a curtsy. Then I took the biggest fish of the night also on a Gold head this beauty was 9" to 10". As I headed back downstream rod underarm anticipating a beer when I got home, I could not resist going to the river on an open section and looking downstream for any activity. Then my visit was made more than worthwhile, just downstream diving in the open water and turning stones in the shallows heading my way was a bitch otter. I sat still on the bank next to a willow bush. She performed her agile ballet for me in the arena at my feet as she searched for tit bits for her supper. I caught the Solstice Ballet on my phone video then headed of home as nothing could surpass that this evening. An example of the beautifully marked Wild Brownies.
0 Comments
I fished on the Blagdon stretch on Tuesday afternoon for 3 hours. There were a good number of trout rising and many were taking mayfly. I decided to fish with a green emerger and was rewarded quickly with several takes, hooking 3 fish in the 6 to 8 inch size, safely returned. I observed a much better fish rising every few minutes but it was under a tree close to the far bank. Patience was key and after a few false casts I dropped the fly 2 feet above it's lie and was rewarded with a take. After a good fight (7 foot rod with weight 3 line) I landed the fish and was able to get a quick photo before returning it to the river. This is one of the best conditioned trout that I have caught in recent years.
I continued to fish, missing a few smaller fish and landing one more fish similar to the one in the photo, though not quite as large. Although the weather has turned cooler, conditions are still good. An easterly or northerly wind is not ideal but there is now a reasonable amount of fly life. Trout are actively surface feeding at most times of the day, although many of he rising fish are in the 5" to 7" size. Larger fish are not rising so freely but the mayfly hatch should make it easier to spot their territory.
There are a few mayfly about now so by the end of next week the main hatch should be well under way. Last Friday evening was the 60th meeting of the River Blyth Association. The RBA is a forum for all angling groups on the river to meet and discuss catches for the previous season as well as issues that are of concern to fishing on the whole river. Clubs represented included Bedlington and Blagdon, Dinnington and Seaton Burn.
A trophy was presented to the angler who caught the heaviest brown trout of the year and this went to a member of the Dinnington club who recorded a fish in excess of 4lb in weight! This is an exceptional fish for the River Blyth but it shows that the specimens are there to be stalked. Catch returns were down but this was to be expected as all clubs on the river are now refraining from stocking farm reared fish. A few years ago it was common place for anglers to visit the river in early April to 'stocky bash'. Poachers were also able to claim their fair share of fish as these stocked fish tended to shoal in their first few weeks. A wide variety of unsubtle tactics would invariably hook a fish. Those days have gone. If you fish the river in early spring you will need to find the streams that hold the feeding fish and fish with much more natural flies than have been effective in previous years. Parrens such as March Brown, Pheasant Tail, GRHE and Greenwell's Glory are all traditional favourites on the Blyth. It was noted at the meeting that grayling numbers are increasing, particularly on the upper stretches and as they extend downstream then we should all see improved catches of this wonderful fish. River conditions are excellent, running clear and at a nice level. There is not much surface feeding to be observed due to a scarcity of fly life, but nymphs or wet flies should have a chance of hooking fish.
It’s a pleasure to just be on the river at this time of year. Dippers have made a return after several years when they were rarely seen. Kingfishers are still there but much more elusive. Roe deer observed drinking from the river in the country park. It won’t be long until the Hawthorn Fly hatch and that should be the start of some good dry fly fishing, followed at the end of May with the famous Mayfly. Last years hatch was spectacular with even cars parked at Plessey Mill being covered in drakes. Dave . As our existing members will know, we are now three years into our journey to revert the River Blyth into a wild fish angling experience. Our resident head of 6”-8” fish from a few years ago are growing on nicely thanks to the absence of an introduction of hungry, aggressive stocked fish. Grayling numbers are also increasing.
Our fees for new adult members are £50 in the first year and £30 annually thereafter making it some of the best value fishing in England. This is a reflection of the aim of our club which has always been to provide quality brown trout and grayling fishing at an affordable price. If you are thinking of joining us, please use the contact form from the website and our secretary will be in touch shortly after. If existing members have experiences of the river that they would like to share via this blog, please get in touch with the secretary or chairman. David Symons Following very poor service from our website provider, the Association has decided to move it's website.
The address of our new website is www.bedlingtonandblagdonAA.weebly.com |