Churn Pool Fishery

Archive for May, 2011

To those planning a visit, please note that the fishing is very hard at the moment. Catching is not the be all and and all of course. However, as the local still waters warm up, it’s time to start planning your river fishing and maybe visiting some reservoirs.  Feel free to drop us a line should you require any further information.

 Day Tickets

As of 29th May to 30th June 2011, Day Tickets are as follows….

*** £10  -  5 Fish with the Option to Retain First Three ***

Not put off by the bright sun or in contrast, overcast days with winds too gastly to shoot a line, it’s great to see members and day ticket visitors enjoying themselves on the bank regardless. With fishing on the local still waters and even rivers getting harder with the lack of rain, there are still a few trick to secure the odd fish here and there. Rich Waller amongst others had a good result at the weekend with fish reported to have been tempted by the Wulff and large Dusters. Well done to Graeme Cheyne too on Buzzers.

There’s plenty of natural food in the lake at the moment so imitations need to be top notch. Success has been found under the trees with caterpillars of George Peck’s own design. If not stripped across the surface (after a treatment of gink) the Grey Wulff has been attracting a few fish. However, it’s still producing a few knocks while drowned as reported in previous posts. The same goes for the Mayfly and other emerging nymphs.

It’s worth keeping an eye on the weather on (BBC local / Metcheck) to choose the best days for fishing over the next few days. Metcheck also has a ‘catch cast’ which takes into account wind, pressure and UV index amongst other boffin-like calculations. As it happens, it’s offered average to poor conditions over the last month.

So what fleas shall we present to these crafty rascals? The rainbow below was secured on a Silver Invicta under the willow trees on the east side of the fishery. The Invicta and Coachman are well worth sticking with on size 12 & 14 hooks. There are still plenty of buzzers coming off the water if the conditions are correct and there’s still fun to be has on the Mayfly, Daddy and Sedge. While it’s tempting to spend time casting to the obvious groups of fish in the magins, the feeding fish appear to be moving in the open water. Unless it’s overcast, early mornings  and evenings are your best options. Either way, enjoy yourselves.

Update: 20th May. It was great to see Mr Tanner back on the bank for the second time this week yesterday evening. Once again, Stuart showed how it was done by keeping low and targeting the less obvious fish. The result after a couple of hours was three rainbows in the net and four escapees. (so to speak)  Great work on a closely guarded mayfly pattern.

Also, fresh stock was introduced to the fishery today. They may take a day or two to find their feet/fins, but will be on the dries soon enough.

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While the water warms and the trout tend to shoal, it was great to see Mr Tanner employ a  different method than the standard cast & retrieve, waiting for something to bite. A bit of stalking proved rewarding and great fun recently.  In addition, it nice to see some older patterns like the Coachman (as mentioned in the last post) and Silver Invicta put to good use. Classic flies and classic tactics.

With the water temperature around 59/15 degrees (take your pick on either Celsius or Fahrenheit) it’s also worth loading up the heavy sinker lines during the day to reach the cooler water. White or green & black lures have proved to be good options. Have fun on the bank come rain or shine.

Overall, Saturday proved to be a good day with Gus Willis bagging up on a Coachman, Daddy and Mayfly. The key to the dry fly presentation was reported to be gently letting it sit on the surface with the odd pinch of the line occasionally to whip the trout into action.  Well done also John Harrison on a number of dace, pike and bream before dropping a couple of rainbow and securing a beauty on the Grey Wulff.

Coachman

It was great to see more new faces out on Sunday. With fish showing largely all day, it looked easy, but was a real challenge. Especially be so many people being snapped up. Top flies are reported to be the Wulff, Hoppers and dark red Emergers. Well done to George & Bob on some  great evening action.  

While there appear to be trout everywhere, especially in the evening, they are rather selective and returns are a little lower for a number of reasons. Having studied the fishery on Tuesday morning and going through a number of patterns, Mike Waring hit the nail on the head with 5 great fighting rainbows on the Mayfly. The initial hour was reported to be slow while the morning warmed, but close observation paid off.  Mike was also into fish today (Friday) within moments on a Grey Wulff.  Great work. 

With a number of fishermen being snapped up recently, we would like to stress the importance of checking the contact point to the fly and leader line for ‘wind knots’. Alarmingly, we have noticed a few people happily fishing with knots, unaware of the possible outcome. Laziness or lack of attention to detail will never pay off.

So what’s working at the moment? Sub surface, olive and black buzzers are everywhere and are worth drifting on the tail of the breeze. In addition, there are ample nymphs & shrimp in the margins. GRHE and PTN’s as small as 16 could pay off. As previously mentioned, Mayfly patterns along with Daddies have seen success. Being in the right place at the right time helps but there are also a few tricks to be had. If the fly isn’t securing fish while dry, don’t be afraid to drown it.

The weather is a real mixed bag at the moment, but that’s part of fishing. Enjoy your time on the bank and see if you can out-wit those fish. Tight lines!

Now the wind has dropped somewhat allowing us to cast a line at last, we can get on with some fishing in the evening. The evening rises have been quite a sight from 6:30 onwards with fish everywhere. Having gone through a great number of patterns, we’ve had success on size 16 & 18 dusters and gnats. Yes, you will need some pretty fine tippet material! Presentation is the name of the game at the moment.

Brown Trout 3lb 13oz: Alan Christopher

Evening Tickets are priced @ £15 from 5pm onwards.

Well, last week was looking good, but this week has been pretty hard going for most. In fact, the three deadly factors were involved – Bright sun, heat and a strong easterly wind.  Well done to John, Colin, Bob (for the brownie) and a few of our day ticket customers.

With fish rising everywhere on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, things looked good. Trying to find the right fly was a different matter. There were a few pulls on black & green lures at the bottom of the lake and the surface was full of tiny buzzers, a few sedge, mayfly and even a few daddy longlegs. Tiny emergers and Shipmans saw some interest, but securing fish was a different matter. They knew what they wanted and it was nothing in our boxes.

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