The Continuing Adventures of the Fluff Club, Episode 8

The names and places are disguised ... you should know why by now.

It's been a while, … I wonder if anyone has actually noticed? Any road up, at last another Fluff Club outing. I missed the last two because a few non-Fluff outings got in the way. Never mind, plenty of fishing, tying too, over these last months.
This trip was poorly attended, only three stalwarts making the effort. The Fluff Boys don't seem to travel well once we get more than an hour's drive from home, and other things have transpired of late that have decimated our ranks for the time being, plus a couple are away currently, c'est la vie, n'est ce pas?
After a breakfast meeting we arrived at the fishery, a first visit for all three of us. There's about seven acres of water, consisting of three main pools linked with channels, featuring islands, bridges and peninsulas. Nicely mature, and very, very clear water. A mild day, grey skies, and not too many fellow anglers, so our hopes and aspirations ran high.
On the journey up l had the stereo on, turned up to 11 as is my wont, and Blackberry Smoke summed up my ethos exactly:

"This time tomorrow you won't see my face,
There'll be one less rat running in this race,
I'll be soothing my soul,
With a fishing pole ..."

Nice. (Taken from "Freedom song").
The Professor, the Inspector, and I paid our dues, asked the pertinent questions, tackled up and sallied forth. My only negative recollection of the trip was the noise from the M4 motorway, less than a mile away across the fields. After a couple of hours, though, it became just background noise and so much less obtrusive.
I strolled around, heading for the top end where the inlet is, looking for fish between the Swans, a solitary Goose, Ducks, Coots, and Dabchicks, accompanied on the banks by chirpy Robins and tiny Wrens. Arriving at the top I found the Inspector in action and I started fishing at the next swim as there were a few fishy swirls in front of us from time to time.
After a few casts I had a small fish follow an olive Damsel, then after a couple more fly changes I had another follow to a Nomad ('fire and ice' pattern from Dr C Coleman). Nothing else until I went over to the dark side, tying on my ALF: picture a red squirmy wormy crossed with a pink Apps. This brought a Rainbow of around one-and-three-quarters of a pound, beautifully spotted, fit, and fully finned. Ahhh! feel that onset of relaxation.
Next, I lost a much bigger fish which straightened the hook after just a few seconds, in a way a salute to the absent Admiral's tradition of the long distance catch and release.
After a few more changes I returned to the dark side, tying on a chartreuse ‘squirmy wormy’ with a hot lime tungsten bead centre. This was taken by a virtual twin of the first fish, including the fighting quality. Two thirds of my ticket filled, I headed for the lodge and a coffee break.
The chap running the show was also a Guild member, although of different branch and a higher level than I. He knew a lot of the Guild members and folk on the tying scene and we got chatting. At one point he told me he liked the Hends barbless hooks, but that they were really designed for use on #2 or #3 weight outfits and tended to get straightened if used on a heavier outfit, say a #6 weight. I had the proof of that particular pudding to show him hanging on my fly patch ... but only just!
After we'd put the world to rights the urge to fish took hold again so I headed off to look at the other parts of the fishery, casting at a couple of Blues spied on the way, but there was only the merest
flicker of interest. I eventually came to a clear pool where the former lodge still stood, unused and close to ruin.
There were some swirls out in the centre, so I tried to reach them from a couple of the platforms. At one point my landing intermediate line spooked a good fish, judging by the disturbance.
I tried a small orange Blob and had a follow straight away, bow-waving after the fly, the Blob disappeared but I missed the take. After that it went very still out there, and after a while I moved back towards the main pool of the fishery.
I walked up the larger island and spotted some fishy movements, making lots of casts but no successes. To my right up at the top where the Inspector had started I saw the Professor bent into a fish. In front of me the Blues were especially spooky, probably because of their very visibility they are cast at so often. I decided to move onto the right bank's peninsula near the top end, but to get there I had to walk back down to the lodge first. There I saw the Professor by his truck, packing up, so I went over for the craic. He had got his four limit, all on small flies like size 16 or 18 PTNs.
I headed up as planned and could see there were fish between me and the top bank. After a few lures got me absolutely nowhere I knotted on a size 16 GRHE with a tuft of orange at the tail, and second cast was into my third and final trout. This too fought hard, but was eventually safely netted, nice to finish with one slightly larger than the others at over 2 pounds.
Job done, time to get home for the excellent coverage of the Rugby World Cup quarter finals and some cold beers.

Until the next time.