Trout Fishing?

Tinytony

Well lads, seems to be mostly sea fishing that discussed here but do any of you do any freshwater trout fishing?

Have taken it up this summer and find no better way to pass an evening (when it's not raining!). At the moment I'm just doing wet fly fishing, with reasonable success. The local river I fish has plenty of trout but average catch size would be small (3/4 lb or so).

Just wondering if there's any other river anglers here and what methods ye use etc.....

Popanddrop

My personal favourite method of catching trout is using the worm. Most people think this is a simple way to catch them but to catch many of them is the key. Believe if you can master this method it can be deadly, I have had evenings that I have hooked a trout each cast.
This is a very simple type of fishing, a lightweight trout rod and a small fixed loaded with 4-6LB line will do you perfect and give you some great sport. Simple way of setting up a small hook straight onto the main line with a worm, cast into your hole and let it drift through and recast again if nothing picks up. Use lead shots according to current speed but try to get away without using them because this gives a more natural presentation. All you need after that is a small net and a needle nose pliers to remove deep hooks. Try to use barbless hooks to risk the least amount of damage to the fish.

Tinytony

The stretch of river I fish wouldn't really be suitable for fishing with a worm, as it's quite shallow and fast flowing. Thats why I find the wet fly good, as you can get a good position in the river and fish across the runs.

I use 2 or 3 flies tied off on an a couple of inches of line and a couple of feet apart, I find it gives a better chance of beng successful with your fly selection and the trout seem to take them quite readily coming off the end of the runs, although I doubt it's a very good method for catching the bigger fish.

There are a couple of spots suitable for spinning but there is never much action there.

coolwings

The runs will be productive during the hours of daylight. You have good cover provided by the broken water. Also, the small fish must grow faster, and eat more, so the little trout in the runs will feed during daytime.
However all brown trout have eyesight which is excellent at low light levels, and this means they are able to feed most efficiently at dawn and dusk.
So at these times consider a move towards the flatter deeper pools, and especially the deeper runs into the big pools where larger trout hold. The fishing for them is more dificult, and upstream dry fly or nymph may be necessary.
At this time of year, moths and sedges will hatch and being big flies they attract good sized trout up to rise for them.

Tinytony

coolwings wrote: »

The runs will be productive during the hours of daylight. You have good cover provided by the broken water. Also, the small fish must grow faster, and eat more, so the little trout in the runs will feed during daytime.
However all brown trout have eyesight which is excellent at low light levels, and this means they are able to feed most efficiently at dawn and dusk.
So at these times consider a move towards the flatter deeper pools, and especially the deeper runs into the big pools where larger trout hold. The fishing for them is more dificult, and upstream dry fly or nymph may be necessary.
At this time of year, moths and sedges will hatch and being big flies they attract good sized trout up to rise for them.

Day time fishing is fairly poor on the river but at dusk and for about half an hour afterwards you can get great sport.

Ya I haven't tried the dry fly fishing yet, still getting a feel for fishing in general but that'll be on my list for next "summer". I have an uncle who does a bit of it so he'll show me the ropes.

Looking forward to the levels on the water dropping once the floods have passed through and get a couple of good weeks fishing in before the end of season.

Popanddrop

Good Luck.:D

coolwings

If you want to fish wet but be getting practise at how the dry fly style works you can fish a pair of spider dressings either up or up and across.

They are fine imitations of midge pupae hatching and will catch trout taking both the wet midge pupa, and the dry hatched midge.
Best sizes are 16 - 22.

Tinytony

Cheers coolwings,

I have a few of the black and silver spiders in my box alright. What would you put as a leader on the line with them? Bubble?

coolwings

Well thats why I suggested them as a compromise between techniques.

They will catch as droppers above a sunk bubble on the point, or as droppers above a floating bubble on the point. (bubble farthest from rod, spiders hanging between bubble and rod)
I use them as dropper and point fly on a floating or intermediate ( slow sink) flyline.

When fished up, or up and across they are a natural imitation for feeding brown trout.
In sizes 16 - 12 and fished down and across they are fancy traditional wet flies suitable for sea trout or grilse.
You can also fish them beneath a float, or hanging 12" beneath a floating fly (grey duster) as a static suspended midge pupa imitation, and they will attract takes with no, or virtually no movement.

Tinytony

Great info, coolwings, be good to try something different.
Thanks for that.

Although there's no let up in the rain here so it'll be another week or two at least before the river is fishable again.