I was very pleased recently to hear from one of last years ‘Newbies’ Jeremy as it meant that he hadn’t been put off by his first fly fishing experience. Last September, he and his friend Chris were dealt a savage blow by the river Dee when after months of almost drought conditions, the river flooded just before they arrived in North Wales. They both did well given the conditions but I was sad that they didn’t get to experience the Dee at its finest.

 

Undeterred, Jeremy was back. This time with Brother in Law Mark who was already an avid fisherman. This trip was part of Marks 60th birthday celebrations so Jeremy was hoping that it would be truly memorable…and it was.

 

The night before, I was excited to see that the river was falling again after last weekends heavy rain but saddened to see that more rain was forecast. I shared the bad news with them both but they were determined to soldier on, so we did.

 

It rained heavily ALL DAY and the river rose around 20cms whilst we were out.
Needless to say, the fishing was tough but I have to say that I doubt I’ll meet two more tenacious and determined anglers than Jeremy and Mark. Many lesser men would have thrown in the very soggy towel hours before we eventually called it a day.

 

I am delighted to say though, that their dedication paid off and they were both rewarded with Trout when a double blank looked almost a certainty! Spirits and optimism remained high all day and it was a pleasure to be out with these two positive and good humoured gentlemen.

Just for the record, there is no such thing as a waterproof jacket!