Being a competitive yachtsman amongst other things, Jeremy wasn’t concerned when I explained that the river had risen considerably overnight. Nor was he concerned when I said that we might get more rain later in the day. He was only interested in preparing for his impending retirement by learning how to fly fish.   The…

Otter. Grayling. Red Kite. Who needs Springwatch?

Back into beautiful Derbyshire for a classical concert in Buxton on Saturday night followed by fly fishing on the Wye on Sunday. A very relaxed and pleasant weekend thanks to friends Steve and Hilary.   Fortunately, I wasn’t forced to don my dinner jacket or my plus fours. I think it’s fair to say that…

Today I had the pleasure of guiding Mike, a new fellow Corwen and District Angling Club member. We chose a beat that he had never fished and focussed on dry fly and duo presentation. He’d also had an issue with ‘missing’ takes so we set about trying to solve that too.   The conditions weren’t…

On Sunday I was my pleasure to guide recently retired John and his son Dave on the river. They had both attended an introduction to fly fishing course on a Stillwater in LLangollen and were so smitten that they immediately invested in their own fly fishing gear. Conditions for our day seemed almost identical to…

Fish farmer Sean was already a keen and accomplished course and sea fisherman but the delicacy of fly fishing had always appealed to him. With a trip to New Zealand on the horizon and a fly rod that will easily fit into his luggage, he was eager to learn the casting and presentation skills that…

Steves friend Phil was keen to brush up his fly fishing skills so Steve and I joined him on one of his local rivers, the Derwent. Another very relaxed affair with lunch being interrupted by bouts of fishing. We did though cover some casting and presentation tips that were immediately put into practice.   One…

The Bobbon Mill beat is only available to club members and their guests but it is very popular because of its parking, access and scenery.   Todays pace was much more leisurely as a picnic lunch had to be factored in as well as a light hearted boys v girls fishing competition… which of course,…

What do you buy a fly fishing instructor for xmas? A day’s fly fishing apparently! This was no ordinary day though, it was to be a day on the insect and fish crammed river Wye in Derbyshire. Even so, a day on the Wye can be as frustrating as it is fruitful. Gin clear shallow…

Dan was back in North Wales for 3 days fishing before a summer holiday with his wife. A hectic work schedule meant he’d left London at 05.30 on Saturday morning to get up to North Wales for our river day.   This may have accounted for his less than enthusiastic reception to my suggestion that…