Fishing the Hitch

Again the morning greeted us with clear blue sky's and warmth of sun. A beautiful day, but perhaps not the best for salmon fishing. Our guide today was Bruno Lepage and he quickly took us off to our beat for the day, ASPB. After 15 minutes of bumping down the old logging roads the pool we would be starting with opened up below us. If someone had an opportunity to make a perfect salmon pool then this would have been it. From the neck to the tail the pool was about 300 yards in length, and again due to the crystal clear water many fish could be seen.

I fished down the pool and then up a number of times with the bomber, but failed to raise a fish. The blessing of fishing a river that is crystal clear is that you can see the fish you are covering. I have not discovered yet is if that is a blessing or a curse! As nothing had moved I switched to the two handed rod, a 13' 8# Hardy Angel and a Rio Power Spey line. Fly choice, time to use the hitched tube again....

The fly began to skate nicely across the ledges and almost immediately a fish moved up and hit it, but cam slightly short. I backed up a few yards, gave it a couple of minutes, and then put another relatively long cast. The fly popped up on the surface and came across like a little motor boat. There was a bulge and the line went tight, and as the salmon thrashed in the clear water it almost looked like it was floating in air.... and promptly came out of the water. The silver bar of maybe 10 pounds or so slewed across the pool before erupting into the air again... the line went slack, and fish and I parted company.... Henry gesticulated wildly at me and called me a muppet, being his usual supportive self.

As it was lunch time the trio moved up to another pool little higher up the beat. There was a covered picnic table on the bank, and Bruno began to lay out lunch. I have to say that lunch on the river at Camp Bonaventure is one of the best I have had. The guides lay out an incredible spread, and this plus a glass of wine has one feeling a little sleepy. However, there was work to be done. Unfortunately the wind got up in the afternoon making casting tricky, and the air temperature began to fall. The fish hugged the bottom, and very little action was seen in the afternoon. I raised one more fish on the bomber, but I failed to hook it and we headed home feeling a little battered and sore.

On arrival back at the lodge and having thanked Bruno we threw all the gear in the back of the truck and headed down the road as we were staying that night at Salmon Lodge on the Grand Cascapedia. Salmon Lodge is very different to Camp bonaventure as it is a one hundred year old lodge that overlooks the Grand Cascepedia River. The river itself is bigger than the Bonaventure, but not quite as clear. It has a slightly tea coloured tinge, but tends to have larger fish but maybe not quite as many. On arrival Henry and I were blown away with the view up the valley, and also the wonderful feel. It was somehow more intimate and full of old fishing memorabilia. Dinner was outstanding, and the staff could not have been kinder. Guest staying here fish both the Bonaventure and the Grand Cascepedia, and the beats are moved around. It is perfect for a smaller intact party or those who are looking for a lodge with tradition and character.

Atlantic salmon on the dry fly.

As usual the best laid plans always go aside, and a combination of jet lag and excitement found us both bouncing around at four in the morning thinking of the day ahead.... and then we found out that we had actually driven across a timeline last night and it was in fact three in the morning.. oh joy! Luckily we discovered how the coffee machine worked.

After a solid breakfast we headed out with our guide Jean-Marc Poirier. B3 beat was to be ours for the day. After a half an hour ride and a quick wander through the woods the sight that met us was stunning. The river winds its way through the trees and is absolutely crystal clear. What makes this river truly unique is the ability to catch Atlantic Salmon on dry fly. On inspection the first pool was holding somewhere in the region of 200 fish. How do I know? Because I could see each and every one of them... Jean-Marc explained the technique to me, and essentially we would be fishing dry flies, or giant Bombers to be exact, on the dead drift. My weapon of choice, an new Hardy Demon 9' 6# rod with matching demon reel and a floating line.. against fishing in the pool that were in excess of 30 lbs. This was going to be fun!

The early morning was a little grey and chilly, so the fish were hugging the bottom closely. I began at the bottom of the pool under Jean-Marc's tutelage, covering the area from in a small window in front of me directly across the stream. When Bomber fishing it is best not to cast directly upstream as you line too many fish, so the fly should land a foot in front of the fish. If there is no reaction after a couple of casts, then move up the pool slowly to the next. It took me a little while to master this as my immediate reaction was to start casting too far upstream.

I made one cast that alighted over the a pod of fish, and as usual I was thinking they would not react when suddenly a large fish of maybe mid twenties turned around and chased the bomber downstream trying to inhale the fly. A big swirl, a splash and no tightening as the fish had missed the fly.... or was that because I squealed like a girl and pulled the fly out of its mouth? Not sure, but it was incredibly exciting and the adrenalin was overcoming the sleep deprivation nicely!

I switched down a size from the small chicken on the end, and immediately a small grilse came and hit it like a rising trout on a chalkstream, and my first fishing on the Bonaventure river came to hand. Not a monster, but nevertheless a fish! I moved a few more fish but did not manage to hook any others, but by now the sun was breaking through the clouds and the air temperature was rising. I did try a down stream wet fly, but this was met with no reaction from the fish at all, and having seen the whole thing take place with a surface fly I really wanted to persist as it is breathtakingly exciting.

Jean-Marc produced the lunch cooler and as we sat eating hot chili cooked on the back while sipping a little red wine he explained further the theory behind their winning technique here. The pool must be fished systematically to find a fish that will rise. The size of fly is also important as the larger flies will often get them going to make them hit a smaller fly immediately afterwards. I fished the next pool down after lunch, and although again I had several fish come and look at the fly, one actually trying to eat it which I again with precise precision managed to extract the fly from its jaws at the right moment. Time flew by, and before I knew it tea time was approaching.

Our little group them moved down to a pool called Eleanor that due to it being a little way down the bank did not receive much pressure. Jean-Marc had been down earlier,and using his periscope had actually seen 20 or so fish in the pool. Very cool. The visual aspect of this fishing is staggering. First cast was met with a big swirl. Second cast saw a fish rise of the bottom and bulge under the fly. Third cast, a little further out, and I watched the fish move up in the water column, open its mouth, engulf the fly and descend as I set the hook. Trout fishing... for salmon!.... with a 6 weight. I nice little grilse of 5lbs or so. I immediately lost another at the hand.

As the sun came off the pool I switched to a hitched tube the skated nicely across the water. It was attacked immediately by a nice little salmon that gave me quite a battle on the 6 weight. The pool came alive, and nearly every cast was being met by some kind of reaction. The finale to the session was a large 20 - 30lb cock salmon that proceeded to attack the fly four times accompanied by ooohhss and aaahs from the bank. At this point I reeled up and we headed for home. I had experienced surface fishing for salmon like never before, and quite a baptism of fire. Can't wait for tomorrow!

Atlantic Salmon Fishing on Gaspé in Canada

Well, Henry Gilbey and I are once again on our autumn travels in an effort to find some new and exciting Atlantic salmon fishing for our clients. This seems to be becoming a regular event. After our trip to the Gaspé peninsular on the East Coast of Canada last year we had to return to experience more of this unique fishery. The allure of crystal clear rivers and large salmon has kept us going.

This year rather than fly through Montreal, wait for a while and then head up to Gaspé we took the new Canadian Affair flight that comes directly from Gatwick to Fredericton in New Brunswick via Halifax. The flight was really pretty good as it is six hours to Halifax and then a further thirty minutes on to Fredericton. The main reason for doing it this way is that after fishing on Gaspe we are moving on to the Miramichi in New Brunswick, so it made sense to be hire a car from there and do the long drive first.

A six hour drive moved us up along the Miramichi system, up to Bathurst and Campbellton, past the Restigouche river system and then up into Gaspé where immediately everything reverts back to French speaking. Henry and I just about managed to negotiate petrol and some directions with our school boy French. Finally we arrived at the Camp Bonaventure Lodge on the banks of the Bonaventure River. The lodge is relatively new, built in 1995 and very comfortable. After a brief orientation we hit the hay in an attempt to be fresh for the following day.

New Online Fishing Photo & Video Magazine

Many of us of the years have been somewhat in awe of one Mr Brian O'Keefe and his incredible photographs that have had certainly me dribbling about fishing. Well, Brian has launched a new online magazine concentrating on incredible photography and video in the fishing arena,and I would heartily suggest you take a look:

http://www.catchmagazine.net/

Our very own Henry Gilbey has also been asked to contribute amoungst other well known characters and has provided some fantastic shots for this kick off issue. Subscription is free and it will be sent out the first day of every odd numbered month. Enjoy!

Game Fair 2008

We looked forward to this years Game Fair with huge anticipation. After the cancellation of last years fair and this being the Game Fair’s 50th anniversary we knew it was going to be big, but nothing prepared us for our arrival on the Thursday. The show was considerably larger than the 2005 Game Fair at Romsey, and believe that the organisers clocked a massive 150,000 people through the gates on the opening Friday!

We were lucky enough to be joined by Chris Yrazabal from Los Roques and Páll Þór Ármann from Iceland this year, and their help was greatly appreciated. Having their added expertise with us and the opportunity for those going to Los Roques or Iceland to pick their brains was fantastic. As these two operations are pretty hot property right now it generated a lot of interest, especially our new fishing on the Upper Laxa I Adaldal in Iceland that has been likened by some as the finest trout fishing in the Northern Hemisphere.

Thank you so much to all those of you who made the effort to come and find us and chat face to face. We love putting faces to names and the opportunity to discuss this year’s trips, see the pictures, and begin planning for next season.

The weather was incredible… almost too good, and by Sunday I think most of us felt that we were melting. Chris was obviously in his element being used to the 30 degree heat!

Once again we found ourselves next to the Latin American Fishing Company who we work closely with on a number of South American projects, so we really enjoyed catching up with them, especially as Gordon Richmond had been on a couple of trips with us recently.

Sea Trout fishing on the Test

The other night I was lucky enough to be invited to fish the Testwood Pool on the lower Test for sea trout by Alistair Robjent of Robjents Tackle in Stockbridge. For those of you who, like me, were unaware of the migratory fishing on the Test, our most famous chalkstream actually has an increasingly larger run of salmon and sea trout every year. Alistair has been fishing the lower Test for sea trout and salmon for approximately 10 years now and knows the beat intimately, so I felt really privileged to be asked.


This is typical night time fishing which I have always found extremely exciting, and requires co ordination and stealth.... so no doubt I was going to find this quite challenging! I have also not done any slithering around in the dark since my days as a guide in Norway many years ago. There I would often spend the early hours wandering around the river blank hitting the spots I knew held these timid fish. Normally when participating in sea trout fishing of this nature one would turn up at mid day or so and scout out the river and the lies so that you would have a much better idea of the topography of the river bed, and where the likely taking spots would be. It is also your opportunity to figure out where you can cast and where you can't.


I would also recommend using tackle that you are very familiar with as everything becomes much more complicated in the dark. Well, that was not to be the case here, and we arrived on the river at about 2230... in the dark. Nothing like a challenge! So, night time drills applied here as sea trout will spook easily, even at night. It is important to keep well back from the bank, and if a torch must be used to change fly then make sure that you hold it in your mouth and point away from the river. You will have to forgive the photography as trying to take pictures in the pitch black is challenging!


For this little excursion I was using a 9'8" 7# Loomis matched with a mastery stillwater clear intermediate line on and old Hardy Ultralite Disc, 15 lbs flourocarbon and the weapon of choice down here is a snake fly of Alistair's own concoction. The extra length of rod is useful with the sharp banks and mending the line over undergrowth. The fly is tied on a single size 6 with a long silver mylar body that extends well past the shank of the hook and terminates in a wicked little flying treble. The wing is long and black extending right past the treble, and there is a small orange hackle tied in at the throat.


Alistair and Kirsty showed me the lie of the land and while Kirsty moved further down to one of her favourite spots Alistair kindly ghillied for me and directed me towards a nice little run known as "Lower Pipes". It was a bit if tricky back cast up against the trees, and as I was suing a clear line as well it was pretty tricky to gauge the distance. Eventually I found by using the thickness of the belly I could distinguish roughly how far I was casting under the trees on the following bank. The fly swung round in a fast arc and suddenly, bang! The fish hit the fly like a small jet propelled rocket, and immediately turned and made off down stream with the tip of the rod bucking wildly against the drag. I think to begin with I probably to much pressure on him and brought him up the fish up the surface. We could see the silver flank flashing in the moonlight and I found the sleep that had been trying to invade my eyelids was very quickly beaten back by a rush of adrenalin. After a reprimand from Alistair I back off the pressure a little, and after a couple of admonishing comments such as "you saltwater oik, stop hammering the fish or the fly will pull out" the fish swam freely at its own pace.


This was the fun part, for at Testwood there is a very steep dropping bank down to the water, and it was necessary to lead the flashing fish up the river a little to Alistair's waiting net. It is important not to get over excited at this point as a quick swipe with the net is very likely to know the fish off, especially with that fly treble that can easily get stuck in the net and create leverage for the fish to pull free. Luckily for me my expert ghillie waited patiently as I guided the little bar of silver over the waiting net and Alistair drew him up and away from the river. Ha Ha! My first English sea trout! An extremely good way to begin the evening. It was a lovely fish of 3 1/2 lbs, and gave me a good scrap.


It was now pitch black, and as we fished on in the darkness I could here the odd splash of a fish out there that only made the blood pulse that bit more, every cast waiting for the tug in the hand. Every so often the silence was punctuated by the screech of a hunting barn owl, or the whir of bats wings over head. Unfortunately for us that night there was a quantity of weed coming down the river which often resulted in the proverbial "weed fish" excitement, but turned out to be a disappointment. Kirtsy hooked a nice fish between 0100 and 0200, but sadly they parted company in the night. At this point the temperature did a nose dive and the activity dropped off... and so was I. I put aside my rod and followed Alistair down the bank to a favourite lie of his just above the road bridge. Fishing finished at 0300, so it was time of a last ditch effort. Alistair had explained that this stretch had a lovely shallow on the far side that sloped into a trough under the near bank covered by an overhanging tree. I cast down stream and a 60 degree angle allowing the fly to fish immediately and we both held our breath as the fly came round into the trough.


Sure enough, a fish hit the fly and wrenched line out of his hand immediately before trying to run downstream under the bridge. At the last minute Alistair calmly walked up the bank and the fish followed away from the obstacle, and again I caught that flash of liquid silver in the dark as it rolled. After a few more runs the fish rolled over and I was able to gently slide the net under and bring it to sure. A beautiful 5 lber, still with lice on its flank. There is something truly magical about being out on a river at night. The sounds and smells all around are something that we rarely experience tucked up in bed, and would encourage you to try it. As we turned and headed for the hut the soft glow of dawn could be seen sneaking up through the trees. Time to head home and grab a few hours shut eye.

Henry Gilbey & Nick Hart go to the American West

Henry Gilbey and Nick Hart have just arrived in Montana where they are fishing from Yellowstone Valley Ranch. Currently amidst some of the most incredible scenery on the planet amidst the elk and bison, they are find out what the fabled American trout fishing is like. I know there first day has been greeted with very high water conditions after an extremely late snow melt this year I am hoping they will get amongst the fish tomorrow.

The American West has for many years been the home of serious trout fishing, and it will be very interesting to see their opinion on how it compares to our trout fishing here in the UK. They are also testing some of the new Hardy equipment, so I will also be interested to see how it stands up.

Yellowstone Valley Ranch is one of our principal operations in Montana and offers fantastic trout fishing alongside fine accommodation. It is also a lodge totally suited to families as there are a huge variety of activities that can be organised from rafting and kayaking to horse trekking.

If you would be interested in following their progress as they careen across Yellowstone National Park then please keep an eye on Henry's Blog and Nick's Blog