We are lucky in our village to have some outstanding fly fishing venues in the area. I know when we first moved here I was busy checking maps and was delighted to see how many rivers are in close proximity. On a good day and with the traffic prevailing I can get into my car already encased in my waders (to save valuable fishing time you understand!) and be on the upper Taw in 6 minutes.
We are also lucky to have the Yeo, Creedy and Culvery pretty much on our doorsteps and many other babbling brooks that I have yet to sniff out, but give me time.
The Taw is my first love and although it is a fair bit smaller in its upper reaches it holds a special place in my heart as it was the first place I cast a fly to a West Country trout.
Having fished many of the Chalkstreams I can say the rivers here are a lot different as they are less manicured and certainly a bit overgrown but I like this. It makes you think a little bit harder about the cast you are about to make and certainly makes you check behind so that the overhanging branch you didn’t notice doesn’t snatch your fly before it gets the chance to make contact with the water.
The trout here are generally in the 6 to 8 inch size range but don’t let that let you treat them with any less respect. Too many false casts or a badly presented fly will have them scattering for cover quicker than you could imagine. If you are careful and have a little bit of luck a fish in the 10 to 13 inch range could attach itself to your fly and really give you something to think about as it races around the pool.
Lee Wulff, a famous American fly fisherman once said that a fish was too nice to catch just once and I agree, so as a result I use barbless hooks and make sure the fish go off to fight another day perhaps just a little bit wiser. If you decide to do this try and keep handling to a minimum and if you need to hold the fish make sure you have wet hands so that you don’t remove the protective slime of the fish.
So what do you need to fish the streams around here? The answer is not a lot. Being fly fishermen we like to travel light and often everything I need for the day will fit in a large shirt pocket except of course for the obligatory pasty.
Rodwise a shortish one will work best, something in the region of 7 ½ ft to 8 ½ ft to enable you to get under the branches. This should be matched with a 3 to 4 weight line. We next need to attach a nylon leader to the end of the fly line so the fly lands well away from it and doesn’t spook those already skittish fish. The leader needs to be around 8 ½ ft to 9 ½ ft in length, ideally tapering to 2lb to 3 lb where you attach the fly.
Now to the flies. It is easy to walk into a tackle shop and be overawed by the amount of flies you can buy. It is often said that some flies are tied to catch fisherman rather than fish. I believe it pays better dividends to keep it simple and over the years I have fished here I have just a small flybox that covers nearly all situations.
So firstly we have something often referred to as either the Devon or West Country Mayfly. It is in fact a land based fly called the Hawthorn, that first appears in springtime. The fly isn’t the best when airborne and is easily blown onto the water. It also has two long hind legs that just make it too tempting for Mr Trout. Look for these in size 14 and 16.
Next, we will need some olive fly patterns. The Olive is an upwinged fly (family ephemeroptera) that hatches throughout the year generally starting a dark green colour that tends to get lighter as the year progresses. A good all rounder for this is the Greenwells Glory or an Adams, which is an American generic pattern that works well for me. Sizes 14 to 18 should see you OK.
Don’t let it be said that the fabled Mayfly is food for just for those posh chalkstream trout of Hampshire. We have them as well! Despite the name, the Mayfly (Ephemera Danica) tends to start showing around early June and I’ve seen them on the Taw as late as August although those few were looking a little lonely! Flywise a Grey Wulff usually does the work in size 14 but have some in size 12 just in case.
Next, the Sedges: these are the flies that appear over the water and look very much like moths. They usually appear towards the end of the day and I often smile thinking of the time I was casting large sedge flies to trout at 11.30pm on a summer evening in Ireland. Sedges are more of interest during the summer months of the season and I use an American pattern called the Elk Hair Caddis to cover the bases. Sizes 14 to 18 will be fine.
As flies are hatching and are trying to work their way through the sticky surface tension of the water, trout see them as a nice easy meal. To cover this emerging stage I use a fly tied by a Dutchman initially for grayling but is devastating. It is called the Klinkhammer Special and every fly box should have some! Ideal colours are brown and green in the usual sizes of 14 to 18.
For nostalgic reasons I carry the Tups Indispensible. This is a well known pattern developed by R.S Austin who was from Tiverton. It represents a member of the Olive family called the Pale Watery. The fly is mainly yellow but has a small pink area that in the original tying came from an interesting area of a tup or ram! If you ever see me on the river I’ll tell you the story.
Finally the black gnat is an important piece of the armoury, again in sizes 16 and 18. There are plenty of gnat patterns that are fine for the job but again I use the Adams to cover this and so it means even less to carry.
Our spate rivers here are not blessed with plentiful amounts of food. That means our fish are always on the lookout for any morsel of food they can find, so this is good news for the dry fly fisherman. However, it is worth carrying a nymph or two to represent the underwater stages of the fly. It is worth casting a nymph into some of the deeper pools you may well encounter. You never know what might be lurking in there. There is always a chance your fly might be taken by a salmon or sea trout resting up before heading off further up stream to spawn. Landing one of these migratory fish is another story. A perfect pattern to use would be the Gold Ribbed Hares Ear (GRHE) in size 14 and 16.
So now we have our rod, line and flies and all we need now are some waders. Chest waders are best but thigh waders will be just about fine. A hat to help shade your view and to protect you head from stray flies. Finally please, please, please make sure you wear some polarised sun glasses. Firstly they will take the glare off of the water and make it easier to see your quarry but more importantly they will protect your eyes. There is nothing more frightening than seeing a fly come hurtling back at you if you have missed striking a fish or are trying to pull your fly free from a tree or bankside vegetation. It is better to be safe rather than sorry.
I try to fish the dry fly almost exclusively and I will fish them for grayling during winter. Sometimes it just doesn’t matter how many fish you catch it’s all about the amount of enjoyment you take from it and usually even if dry fly conditions are tough I can usually find one silly enough to take my offering.
They say you go through stages as a fisherman. Firstly just wanting to catch a fish, then wanting to catch lots of fish next the big fish stage and then just going out there enjoying yourself trying to catch that tough fish that is rising to dries under a very low tree branch in a back eddy. Now that sounds my sort of fish! I have, in the past, had fishing friends walk away shaking their heads as I’ve spent an hour on that elusive fish but for me that’s what it is all about.
So if you find yourself on one of our beautiful rivers try and be observant and watch what is going on around you. Everything is in front of you and all the clues are there. Let them show themselves and let the river unfold. We are lucky as fly fishermen in that trout live only in beautiful places and there are lots to see around the Zeal Monachorum area.
If by chance you are on the river and see a fisherman who has been transfixed to one spot casting and then hooks what looks like a good fish only for it to come off, and then proceeds to laugh, come over and say hi; it was probably me!
Peter Tyjas. back to home page