Caroline's February 2019 Report
Okay folks… Here we are, well and truly into the New Year now. I hear tell from the trusty weather girls that we have a spot of “interesting” weather coming our way. About time too is all I can say! I recently was caught up in the “interesting” weather in Austria, the heaviest snowfall some said in 100 years and although we took two days to reach our resort, having experienced aborted landings, diversions to Germany, emergency hotels and gridlocked roads that our coach driver by some kind of miracle got us safely through, it was just lovely to get away from the grey, muddy, germ ridden England for a while. There were more poor people ill this Christmas and New Year than I ever remember, including Hubby, and I feel very sorry for you all. We need a dose of minus temperatures to kill off all these nasty bugs and clear the air for a while.
As to the fishing, well the trout fight the hardest in the cold water and with the lack of natural foods (other than fry, orange is a must in your fly box) in the lakes they are hungry and looking to take the flies with gusto! They are hitting the flies hard and patrolling the water at all depths; sometimes just under the surface and sometimes down on the bottom. They have been shoaling up a bit lately, mainly in the deeper water, but not exclusively. We anglers need to move around, test the depths by starting at the surface and counting down before retrieving, and change our tactics as and when the need arises. It is very easy to get stuck in a rut with our habits (I’m of course including me in this case), when the winter months definitely effect the fish’s habits as well.
We do of course have quiet days here at Brick Farm Lakes at this time of year but this does at least give the trout and the water a bit of a break from heavy fishing. The trout, no doubt, gain a little confidence and move around their territories more readily when the activity of constant casting eases for a while. This may explain why the larger fish are more likely to be fooled onto a hook when there is a bit of ice around or a sprinkle of snow on the grass. We had a marvellous brown caught yesterday, see the photo! We will, of course continue to stock most weeks throughout the winter and have the welcoming Lodge for our anglers to warm up in for a while and enjoy a cuppa or an egg and bacon roll (up to 12pm).
If you are a group of angling buddies or fishing club then we can offer you a bespoke menu for a wonderful day out. Please call Annie at the Lodge for ideas and info.
Tight lines now for the month of February and at least it is a short month for all you looking forward to the spring. I saw some daffs in bud yesterday so not too long to wait now. Annie and Caroline.