September is always a busy time when it comes to fly fishing for Trout so as the trout season has now ended I have time to write a summary of the month and post s few pictures

Please take the time to read on

1st Sept 2008

Finally the river has started to return to sorts. Arrived at the
Monnow at Skenfrith at 9.30 the river was till carrying a lot of water but visibility good at around
3ft. fish was not the easiest, I think that the fish where still sulking after the floods I spent half a day looking at different fishing styles appropriate to this sort of water and where to find fish.

A few fish where caught but I think the fishing will not really be at its best for a couple of days.

3rd Sept 2008

Booked to fish on Skenfrith with a client today but with the rain that came in yesterday and continued today the Monnow has risen dramatically and I am afraid it will take at least a week before the lower river is fishable again. so much for the river being in better condition today.

19th Sept 2008

On the river Monnow again today now that it has finally started to return to normal levels after on of the biggest ever recorded spates on the Monnow.

There was not much fly life in the air so we spent the day fishing wet flies and spiders. a few nice Graying where caught which was a first for the couple I was fishing with.

26th Sept 2008

I met up this morning with Robert Denny and Patrick Lloyd from the Monnow Project and George Woodward from the Environment Agency. The aim of the day was to survey the River Honndu (a tributary of the Monnow), recording the state of the stock fencing and the degree of shading caused by bank side trees. Also to record the spread of Himalayan balsam. The work was being carried out to check out the viability of a habitat restoration project and to select a couple of demonstration sites.

We walked up stream from Allt-yr Ynns to Cwmyoy. It was great to see so much of this fantastic river. We also luck enough to see a very large hatch of small stoneflies, although few trout were rising to them.

29th Sept 2008

Getting close to the end of the Trout season now so I decided to spend a day on the Usk at Bridge meadow.

We arrived around 10 am and set up each with a team of wets I fished upstream while my mate fished down. We both reached the ends of the run without a touch.So quick change of tactics and I fished up a deep streamy run that is normally very productive for me!! Not a touch.

This went on till lunch time with little success. After which I decided to fish the deep streamy run again but this time with a duo made up of a Balloon Caddis and a size 18 tungsten headed GRHE in a slightly orange colour.

 

30th Sept 2008

The Honndu is with out doubt on of the best trout streams in this part of the world. It flows into the main river, The Monnow at Alt-Yr-Ynns having traveled through some spectacular scenery

I arrived at the river later than I would have liked but hey ho. After putting the rod up I walked down to the start of the beat and as I slipped in to the water at the start of the first pool I noticed a trout of about 12 -13 inches sitting in the middle of the run but right on the bottom.

I tied up a shorthish leader of around 8ft and put a small but weighty GRHE with a very slim profile on.

I gently roll cast out to the middle of the run, dropping my fly about 4-5 ft in front of the fish. The great thing about tungsten is by the time the fly was level with the fish it was at the right depth. I saw the fish move side ways and its mouth open as I lifted the rod the line went tight and the trout took off downstream.

After a bit of a tussle I landed and returned the fish. It was a very health cock fish and can be seen in the bottom picture in the next column.

The rest of the days fishing was fantastic I caught six fish from the first pool alone.

Was it enough to sate me until spring?
Never!! but at least it felt like it at the time.

 

Now where are those Grayling Bugs.

 

Frank