Fishing opportunities seem to have been thin on the ground of late. An increase in my workload from "steady " to "daft " whilst always welcome does has a flip side to it and as the evenings draw in and the weekends get used for work fishing time gets pushed out. Although I did recently manage a trip to Foston beck , which due to the EAs sudden embargo on weed cutting due to health and safety concerns is looking pretty overgrown but thanks to our great keeper and volunteer helpers has managed to keep some sections fishable.
The stock fish that were put in early on in the season are colouring up and continue to increase in weight. In a stream where the food supply is well able to support them.
Whilst the smaller wild fish are consistently providing surface sport even on those cold days when little seems to be hatching.
This lovely small pool always seems to hold fish rising in the faster water at the head. Even when the fish stay low the clarity allows you to watch a nymphs progrees as it tumbles through the current. Of all things it is the extraordinary clarity of these streams that has fascinated me. To be able to target individual fish and watch their reaction to nymphs drifting past is an ongoing delight.
Fish of this size seem to be constantly feeding smaller fish and bigger fish are much less frequently caught . Well by me anyway . Could it be that the smaller wild fish are feeding on smaller fare whilst the bigger wildies are to smart for me?
The river is undergoing some real changes at present . A team from the EA are removing a section of stream with an old mill the effect of inpounding water has resulted in a huge build up of silt. Which is slowly backing up the channel.
The works are blocking of the old impounded section and opening a new route with effective gradients along the line of the old overflow channel.
The new route diverts around a field to provide a new stream section with suitable gradient . The effect on the stream bed above has already been plain to see, It will be a interesting to see how things settle when we get a decent flow down the beck again. Please God can we have some rain and snow this winter the stream is so so low...
Work like this is tremendous and in my minds eye I can already picture this in a years time . Over here in the North East have had a 12month long drought and the water flow is very low . But already fish are taking up station in the newly opened stream .
It always impresses me how people can operate 20 and 30 tonne excavators with the delicacy to provide such delightful bends and gradients .
