Trolling, the not so fine art of dragging spinning and wobbling lures behind a moving boat is not everyone’s cup of tea. If my fishing was confined solely to days spent trolling I would long ago have sold the rods and taken up computer gaming or amature dramatics instead. As it is though, I indulge inContinueContinue reading “Trolling, the gentle art of doing not much at all”
Author Archives: Claretbumbler
Scratching a dry itch
The fickle March weather has turned cold and wet again. The balmy few days we had last week have been swept away by mean winds that seek out every opening to send a chill through me as if to remind me of my advancing years. Looking back over the season so far the rod hasContinueContinue reading “Scratching a dry itch”
A couple of old spiders for this time of year
OK so there is nothing even remotely new about these two patterns but they are so effective that I think there is no harm in reminding you about them both. Let’s start with the Poult Bloa. Yellow tying silk with the faintest mist of water rat or mole’s fur dubbed on it form the bodyContinueContinue reading “A couple of old spiders for this time of year”
A difficult day
Robeen Bridge as a handy entry point on the River Robe. Both banks are clear downstream of the bridge but there is a heavily wooded stretch immediately upstream and this means that you have to get into the water and wade upriver to fish this part. The bottom is very slippery and there are someContinueContinue reading “A difficult day”
Messing around with the Hare’s Ear
A standard Gold Head GRHE nymph The GRHE gold head nymph is one of my standard patterns but I thought I would tie up a variation, so here it is: This is dressed on a curved grub hook and I added some chopped up fl. lime floss and red fur to the HE to formContinueContinue reading “Messing around with the Hare’s Ear”
As good as it gets
The bridge, good water below here 19th March. The bright and warm weather is unusual for this time of year and I decide to go fishing, hoping the good weather will have raised water temperatures and brought the trout on the feed. So with Bob Seger blasting out on the CD in the car IContinueContinue reading “As good as it gets”
Bibio’s
Bibios are so widely used that you may be forgiven for thinking that you know all about them. A great fly early in the season when you need something dark and a handy pattern if there are salmon around. What else is there to know? A hell of a lot is the answer! Let’s startContinueContinue reading “Bibio’s”
fr. Ronan
Despite the ecclesiastical name I don’t know of any particular connections with the church for this fly. It is a dabbler style pattern for use when fishing for sea trout and salmon but I can see no reason why it would not work for brownies too, especially around the time of the mayfly hatch. ItContinueContinue reading “fr. Ronan”
Who remembers the Bodie Special?
Not many is the answer! Who or what is a Bodie Special? Sounds like it could be a Glasgow cocktail based on fortified wine, but no, this is a trout fly with a small but ardent following in Scotland. Here is how it is dressed and, as always, I have a small variation to theContinueContinue reading “Who remembers the Bodie Special?”
A typical spring day on the river
16th of March. A Monday, blessed with an overcast sky and light winds from the North East. By 11.30am I have cleared the desk and can hit the river for a few hours. A west wind would be better but beggars can’t be choosers at this time of the year so any day that isContinueContinue reading “A typical spring day on the river”
Claretbumbler 