April- 01st – 2019, Week 12

“Goldenloch”

April- 01^st – 2019, Week 12

It is the 1st of April, the last week of March has been really cold, early evening and night-time temperatures have dropped to nearly freezing, the knock on effect has been that the mornings have been very cold, fish do not like change, especially temperature change, this is less obvious on newly stocked waters, but where the fish are more natural and acclimatized to the surroundings they can become very fussy, as that is what has happened here, don’t get me wrong, people are still catching fish, but not as much as they were catching lets say a week ago, the loch temperature has not really risen that much in the last 3 weeks, however there are massive signs that things are about to change, in the margins and shallows there are green shoots of reeds and margin weeds starting to grow, frogspawn can be found and copious amounts of shrimp, the last few days have seen really good caches after 3 p.m. it’s not that it doesn’t fish well in the morning is just the fish or much harder to find or entice, some really nice sizeable fish have been getting caught, three to four pounds and upwards, these fish have grown to that size naturally, however there is a much larger fish in the loch, it hasn’t been seen or  caught for a few weeks, but Saturday saw Mr Gunn catch it (see photo) the water clarity is very good, in fact it is just about perfect, the only problem I would say is that we have dead blanket weed rising from the loch bottom, it’s not a huge problem, it blows to the side very quickly, the forward forecast is not that great for the next few days however, it is much warmer this morning than it has been, amusingly in the last week there have been a few lads talking about all the new variations and oddity flies that are available to catch fish, it would seem that almost any  and every new material that can be tied on a hook is deemed as a fly fishing fly, however here at the Goldenloch loch, our remit is that it has to look  like something that can be found naturally, another subject being touched upon or talked about is the use of barbs, versus debarbed hooks, the answer is quite simple if your killing fish we don’t mind you using barbed hooks, if you are putting the fish back then you must use hooks that have been debarbed, so as not to harm the fish, we prefer that fish and not removed from the water and are released in the net at the side of the boat or on at the bank, it’s all very simple stuff and logical, great care must be taken all times with the fish, it’s very simple 20 fish caught and returned is 100 quid’s worth of fish, so we would expect you to take care and be as kind as possible, fly fishing is a hobby it is relaxation it is very pleasurable and should be enjoyed not something to be abused, I do understand for a lot of people they are only fish, that they exist only to be caught, however for the rest of us, they are there to be seen as challenge, something that has to be tempted or induced by something that resembles natural feeding, that’s where the fun comes from, it’s a personal thing its only an angler that gets the feeling, not only does the angler get that thrill, but he also gets as a bonus, being outside, at one with nature, the wildlife, the weather, the cold, heat, the rain, everything that nature can throw at him, but faced with the alternative of being an office or driving a lorry whatever, going fly fishing is bliss and long may it be like that.

Our remit since 1986 is that fishing the “Goldenloch” is a day out, a day when a hobby becomes a pleasure, anglers come to relax and enjoy the atmosphere, no interruptions nor unwanted background noise, quality fish in pleasant surroundings, abundant wildlife, Finest hard fighting, top quality fish guaranteed, boat or bank you decide. Phone 01337840355 or 07968006367 ask for John or look up Postcode KY14 6HZ