A Game Of Two Halves: Scottish Small Stream Fly Fishing

Back out on the local river with the rod for the first time since the 6th April!
This is quite unprecedented for the start of the season, but the weather has been dreadful, it really has. Continuos east, north east or northerly winds and low temperatures, with permanent grey skies and no sun. Week after week of it!
The weather is still unseasonably chilly but I had to get out and at least give it a go. It turned out to be a different few days and a quite different style of video! Take a look and see for yourself!
Music in this video:
Fractal of Light by
Chris Haugen

[@donnaperry7894]

Wow I love your videos and your voice is wonderful; thank you; I am Peter, Donna's husband

[@wildfisher]

Thanks glad you enjoy the videos 😊😊

[@bertifrasilmeye995]

Hi , your friend was very polite. If it were me I would be sorely tempted to cry out "haud yur wheesht am trying to fish here"😇. Great work ATB.

[@wildfisher]

Nah, Adam is a born star, takes all of it in his stride. 😁😁

[@chrismatthewsflyfishing7724]

It's certainly been a weird one, by the time things pick the bloody season will be over! Loving the drone footage, what an amazing display of gorse you have there. A pleasure to watch.

[@wildfisher]

Thanks Chris. It seems it's just a question of hitting it at the right time. Fish have been caught. Fish tend not to like unsettled weather patterns and pressures. The clock is ticking and the season is not getting any longer!

[@brianburns1411]

great video 🎣

[@wildfisher]

Thank you. 😊😊

[@davidanderson2651]

Great video always entertaining

[@wildfisher]

Thank you. 😊

[@fieldsman3307]

hi Fred and nice to see you back on the water, my rivers have been grim for dry fly then yesterday it all went mad and I had my best day ever with the biggest of 5 fish at 3lb then today flies and fish gone so back to normal, really don't know what to make of it this year but hope things will improve although the water levels are getting very low now. ATB Mike

[@wildfisher]

Thanks for the comment Mike. Sounds like you were there at the right time. Who knows what makes our spotted friends tick? 😊😊

[@Tjk186]

Hi Fred, another great video ...very enjoyable...nice to see you back on the water...for fishing on the Yorkshire Dales rivers, I'm sure Oscar at Boatfield Fly Fishing, or Richard at Barbless Flies will gladly point you in the right direction....all the best

[@wildfisher]

Thanks TK 😊

[@Ukmongoose3]

TK - are you local to the Upper Yorkshire Derwent by any chance?

[@thetattooedangler]

It's been odd right enough. I went out today and the river was alive with all the winged things nature has to offer, and not a single fish would rise. I'll have a word with them next time I get a chance. Last summer, a huge heelin morag charged me for getting within 50 feet of her bairn. Those horns are no joke.

[@wildfisher]

Aye, cows with calves are no joke for sure. No idea what has been wrong with the fish this week at all.

[@BobbyBlues]

I was on the same stretch with my new #4, and they werent rising but took to some of my dries. Thankfully the cows weren't around :D

[@wildfisher]

Well done and looks like you were lucky with the cows! 😃

[@oldsmugglerflyfishing]

Awesome video

[@wildfisher]

Thank you. 🙂

[@jamesbarr1620]

Dry fly with nymph below it is my tatic as well fred but u need to be quick lol great video though 👍

[@wildfisher]

I use that tactic from time to time too James but not as often as I should! 😄

[@Ukmongoose3]

We fish the Ure at Jervaulx Abbey. Big trout, lots of grayling and we have SEEN 1 salmon. Fished for salmon at various other beats, but no joy. Off there again in the next few days.

[@wildfisher]

Thanks for the comment. I really liked the look of the Ure and will certainly take a rod next time! 😊😊

[@Ukmongoose3]

@@wildfisher Oh, I caught a 4lb chub here too whilst salmon fishing. What a shock that fish gave me as I thought I’d cracked the mission at the 4th attempt!

[@BEN10TO10]

Bloody cows ! Reminds me of a time I made the mistake of putting my rod down to help a mate land a fish, as my back was turned a cow wondered up and chewed through my £40 fly line, ouch! !

[@wildfisher]

Yep, they are a serious nuisance and the damage to the banks and crapping in the river does not help either.

[@stevecole7174]

Heading to the Harburn estate in August, hope to find some streams around there.

[@wildfisher]

Sorry can't help you there, not my neck of the woods. Check out the Tattooed Angler's channel, he is down that way. www.youtube.com/@thetattooedangler

[@JPSZN]

I’m local to the estate, the local river is the River Almond some good fishing on some parts

[@robtaylor9782]

Awesome vids I’m just getting back into fly fishing, what size of rod would you recommend for the Doon average 20m across and below but would also be suitable for fishing lanes above Loch Doon

[@wildfisher]

Thanks. The rod is really personal preference, but a good all round river rod would be a 9 foot #4 weight. A 9 foot #5 weight is what I tend to use on lochs, but as I said it's really personal preference.

[@richardcole4694]

The music is welcome, the dialogue is valuable, but when you put them on at the same time, those of us who suffer from nerve deafness will struggle to understand what you say. Oh sorry i had forgotten the cc button.

[@wildfisher]

Yes it is sometimes difficult to get the balance right. My own hearing is not what it once was so I do try to reduce the intro music volume when there is dialogue.

[@alexking9573]

Great video enjoyed what type of indicator was Adam using?

[@wildfisher]

He did tell me, but also said they are no longer available, but I can't remember. Apparently you need a small piece of cocktail stick or toothpick to hold them in place. 😄😄

[@caorach3354]

The drone looks great Fred but I don't like that other bloke as much as you :-) We've had a slow spring but not really bad compared to a few over the last while however I think the fish have got to the point where they just have to eat something - I was out on a lough yesterday and the wind changed direction from west to east and got really cold but even after that it was still possible to move fish to the wet fly. There also seems to be some fly life and, again, I guess the flies have to hatch at some point no matter the weather.

[@wildfisher]

It has not been a great spring Philip has it? Are you off to Lewis any time soon?

[@caorach3354]

@@wildfisher I've been out a few times Fred but no video as they've basically been a quick hour, was out last night and even with a cold easterly the fish were moving and I got plenty but it certainly wasn't May type fishing weather. However although it has been a slow spring it has been far from bad with us - I think it was the 2009 - 2010 winter and spring and we had snow on the ground up in the hills from the end of November until 26th April. Nothing like that this year, we don't have the big hills of Scotland so a normal year sees show on the hills maybe 5 - 10 days at worst. I might get a cast on Lewis in June but it won't be much as this year is a bit complicated.

[@thetattooedangler]

@@caorach3354 Aye, I mind that. I had joined a wee hill loch fishing club, but the water was frozen solid for opening day and stayed frozen for 2 weeks after. A load of new members wanted thier money back.