I was offered a days Salmon fishing on an exclusive syndicate beat just above Corwen. I don’t do much Salmon fishing but it was an opportunity too good to turn down. Flamboyant fellow CADAC committee member Mick was to be my guide and the torrential rain that battered us both on our respective journeys into North Wales had raised our expectations considerably. Sadly, it didn’t raise the river Dee as Corwen itself had missed out on the downpour.

 

Mick has caught many Salmon and appears to belong to that very small group of “lucky” Salmon anglers who just seem to be out fishing on the right days.
The fact is of course that these so called “lucky” anglers make some very informed decisions before they even leave the house. Water height, water clarity, water and air temperature, light, wind, etc all have to be ‘right’ to even have a chance of catching and on top of all that, you then need to know what you’re doing!
So, if you know where the fish might be holding; and you know at what depth and speed to present the fly; and of course which fly to choose, you might just be in with a chance.

 

It was clear when we arrived that Mick ‘didn’t fancy it’ today and he wasn’t convinced that we would catch. As usual, he was spot on!
It did however give me a chance to wield the 15 footer around and practice my double handed casting, as well as check out a new beat for winter Grayling fishing.

 

We called it quits around 2pm but even a half a day with Mick is a joyful experience. Known for his sartorial elegance and passion for the traditional, he often attends committee meetings sporting tweeds and a pocket watch.
Today he fished with rare Hardy equipment that most of us would keep under lock and key. I was also treated to some charming and incredible tales of his past fishing exploits but perhaps most enjoyable were the stories about his menagerie which has included Ferrets, Goshawks, Peregrines, Parakeets and Cockatoos, a couple of cat-eating dogs, some Fighting Cocks that saw off a Sparrow Hawk after it tried to eat their chicks; and a tale about how his local council rejected his application for a dangerous animal licence the time he tried to adopt a Lion from a local zoo!