Langley Dam! - (DAMN!)

I woke up this morning eager to get some more fishing under my belt, I checked the weather report and it was due to be cloudy, Perfect! I fancied a local fishery today, So I headed up to Langley Dam with my grandad Tommy!.

As we arrived I noticed a few boats in the water, But nobody was bringing in any fish! We paid our way and tackled up, We found a neat little spot in the first corner you come too, I decided to try a Rainbow Cats Whisker, Earlier on in the season I caught a few brownies on the local River Tyne with wet flies which contained these Rainbow beads, So I swear by them now!

After an hour or two of watching the fish rising and constant casting I finally had a take, And to say I got the freight of my life is an understatement, with fishing on the River Derwent catching small Brown Trout I'm not used to takes this superior!, I had a combined battle of adrenaline and trout, After around 5mins of trying to tire this fish out it got the better of me and spat out my fly! At first I thought the bugger had taken my fly also but It was still on! I was disappointed but it did give me and a lot of the others around me renewed hope.

As the day went on I kept an eye on these two fellows, Unfortunately I didn't have the pleasure of meeting these but I was impressed with how many fish they were catching. Having lost some focus on my fishing and watching everybody else, I decided to begin casting again, There was a lot of rises right in front of me and to the left and right there was 3 of us casting into similar area's trying to get a fish to at least have a sniff at our flies. None of us had any luck, Just as I thought this I had another take! It was a fish of a similar size, Again I failed to land this one, I'm sure why I couldn't land these fish, But then again I am using a 8'6" Orvis Streamline 2   #5, As it says in the name its built for streams, Very hard to "play" the big fish, I have managed before but not with fish anywhere near this size!.

I had a great day out at Langley Dam today and I can see how it is so highly rated, I am sure I will return in the future but for now I am more than happy with sticking to the River!.

I would recommend this fishery to you all, If anybody gets the chance it is a must go. If you are interested in fishing here, Check out: LangleyDam.co.uk there you will find the location, prices, photographs and even tips on what flies are working and which ones are not!

Thank you for reading, Stay tuned for more updates from me.

New Waders, New Tactics and Home Tied Flys!

Hi guys,

Its been a while since I last updated my Blog, I have been out fishing since then but sadly there was nothing to report.

This morning I headed up to Allensford, With new Flies tyed and my new purchase (Sonik SK4 Waders) made me even more eager for a few casts! The weather report suggested it was going to be a Sunny day and I was expecting the place to be really busy with dog walkers and children, Well within there rights of course but they can be a Fishermans nightmare, Throwing in stones and sticks encouraging there dogs to have a swim! But anyway, I made it to the bank side, It was cloudy but it was warm, I could hear a few coughs and smell smoke!, I spotted a fellow Angler, I made my way over and tried to start a conversation, I am the type of man who will speak to anybody for hours on end, Sadly this Angler was not. I got a Hello and then he sharp left.

I headed up to the first pool, I have been practicing my fly tying and I couldn't wait to give my fly a go! It was Olive Hackle with Dark Green dubbing with a hint of sparkle tied onto a #14 hook.

 My first cast! I hooked and landed this little beauty!

After catching this beauty I had a few more casts in this first pool but there was nothing rising.

I decided to try another fly that I tied, Unfortunately I did not take any photo's of that one. Upon casting I seen a Silver glimmer coming up towards my fly, It stopped and glanced up at my fly and turned around! The cheeky git!.

I headed further up stream, Stopping at certain spots for a few casts but there was no movement.

I changed my fly and put back on my Olive Dry Fly on which I caught the first fish on, Placing that gently on the waters surface at the biggest and last pool, I seen the Silver glimmers yet again, But this time the fish went for it, I Hooked and landed another!.

After catching these two I decided to head over to Shotley Bridge as it has been a while since I have been there, Walking over the footbridge near where I parked I glanced over to the right, Downstream and I seen a fish rise but I headed upstream past the Weir.

I found an opening, I tried to gently place my feet into the water without making a splash, This did not happen, The drop was much bigger than what I thought, I slipped and caused a huge splash, Typical.

I waited 10-15mins for the water to settle a little, I thought id have a few casts upstream. Still using my Dark Olive Dry Fly, Out of nowhere a fish came shooting up and grabbed my fly, I striked and hooked, I was overjoyed because iv had a lot of trouble hooking fish recently.

I carried on adventuring further upstream with a surge of confidence in my stride!, Not even the wild overgrowth could slow me down!

A splash broke the silence to my left, I crunched threw the overgrowth marching towards the River, I could still see ripples from the rise, Just as I unhooked my fly from above the handle on my rod I heard another splash, It was in a similar place so I presumed it was the same fish, Gently side casting and roll casting trying my best not to get tangled in a tree, This trout was definatly not interested in what I had to offer, I was outclassed, I tried and tried for around 45mins as it kept rising, teasing me just before I decided to call it a day.

I have had another great morning on the River Derwent, Catching fish on your own tied fly's makes it so much better!, I mentioned in the Title of this post "New Tactics", This is knowledge I learnt from NortheastFlyFisherman, To cut it short the tips are to always cast Upstream if possible and even if fish arnt rising they might if they see your fly, I used these tactics and they worked a treat, I am enjoying my fishing much more using these methods, Its much more fun than sitting around all day waiting for a fish to rise!

Thank you for reading, Keep a close eye for more updates!