This trip today required a forty minute walk to where I started off the spin session in what was quite good conditions, apart from the lack of cloud it was a top morning to be chasing trout. It was 8:50am when I hit the river and started the session off with a well used #00 copper Aglia mainly because I was fishing in shade & the water was still reasonably dark in colour, if it doesn't catch a trout then I'll make a change. The water level had already dropped by a few inches since my last trip so I have to make the most of fishing these tannin waters while there's still some decent water flowing in them. Casting up and across the stream into the flat water near the river banks I had a few light hit and misses on the Aglia, I wasn't sure whether to stick with it or give it a bit longer. I did the latter and it wasn't all that long when I had my first hook up and trout in hand, a small/medium brown and a plump fish it was. I continued working the spinner from one side to the other in the stream as I slowly fished my way up it and had a couple more hook ups but lost both fish. I don't mind losing the odd trout every now and then but when I lose two in a row then it's time for a lure change, it was off with the Aglia and on with a #00 March Brown Bug spinner.
The water level varied quite a lot from knee deep water to some very shallow runs of only a few inches as I fished my way upstream, it was the knee deep runs where I was having the odd hits and misses. The trout came hard and fast at the spinner but were missing the trebles, even when they did go at the lure to me they seemed a little skittish..With the water being much lower and becoming a little lighter in colour probably had a lot to do with it, several times I saw trout darting off at the slightest movement made by me in the water. What seemed like ages after catching the first trout it was only ten minutes later when I had my second trout take the Bug spinner in a nice medium flowing stretch of water. A little further up and five minutes on I hooked caught two trout from three hook ups and four casts in a small shallow piece of water. With four trout caught and released things were looking good and a double figure session was on the cards today. Well, I spoke too soon as the following half a kilometre of this stream only gave up three hits for one hooked and lost fish, it took forty minutes before I landed trout number five. The water I was now fishing had a lot more shallow stretches along it than any of the ones I fished earlier this morning, not only that the sun was now hitting the water which meant the trout could shut down at any time.
From here on the trout were pretty well scattered in the stream with up fifty minutes without a fish being caught down to three trout caught in eight minutes. This went on until I called it a day at 12:40pm due to the stream now being in full sun and lower water levels the further I went upstream was enough to end the spin session. The good thing was I did finish up with fifteen trout ranging from 260 grams through to 325 grams, I did hook and lose quite a few, also had many hit and misses during the time spent in the water. It was a long time chasing trout today in what was difficult fishing conditions overall, but it was still well worth the time and effort I put into it. With the water level dropping at a fast rate now I'll only get one more spin session in before it's no longer viable to head back here until we get another decent dose of rain. My next trip will be tomorrow in another area a couple of kilometres further upstream. Here's hoping there's a few trout to be had up there.
Adrian Webb (meppstas)
Beautifully coloured wild brown trout
Last trout of the spin session
Nice piece of tannin water
One plump brown trout
Rocky stretch of water