Its a hard life

“Goldenloch”

October-04- 2019, Week 38

Unbelievable, is the only word to use to describe the change in conditions this week especially for going Fly Fishing, heavy rain and a wind that blows in all directions, all at the same time, from my angle which is, as a fishery manager / operator, this has to have been the most extreme season, that I have ever dealt with, nothing has been like normal, 100% a complete nightmare, to be honest here at the Goldenloch the weeds were never a problem, I also think the way we deal with what weeds we have, we did it well, but the lack of rising fish or rather fish that were not feeding on flies was a bit of a shock to the system, but I should have twigged quicker, there just wasn’t flies about, or hatching, a good example would be that the Lastec mower I have, usually needs the radiator blown out to stop it overheating, the cars we own and the lorry usually would have flies splattered all over the windscreen and body work, the lack of wasps and house flies, normally a complete scourge and always a nightmare, what is happening, nature is changing and its not for the better, I got sidetracked into thinking it was stickle backs, maybe it was, however I did kill tens of thousands of them, the fishing was hard this year, yet it was not impossible, those that stuck by us here at the Goldenloch they were rewarded by us in given out dozens of freebie sessions, 60 tickets to be exact, mostly in the form of Golden Tickets, we also stopped taking money from lads that were out of work, I can honestly say that everyone fishing here this summer has benefited in one way or another and that Anne and I have really appreciated your support, but there is always One, a nasty element from some lads, on Friday past when everyone was catching fish and having a good day, one lad wasn’t and his comments were bitter and distasteful so, and this is not the first time this guy has been like this, however he definitely wont be back, harmony is hard to achieve on a fishery especially on days of poor weather, but the norm here is everyone having a good day, the fish I think are recovering very well from an extreme hot summer, the water in the loch reaching 21.75 degrees C which is 71 degrees F, just about hot enough to cook food, ospreys have done a huge amount of damage especially the young ones about 6 of them, their inability to lift fish after catching them, digging there talons in the fish has caused a lot of damage, is now visible as a wound with a white mucus growing over it, it takes time for these fish to recover and get their condition back, but the fishing has been really good lately Barry’s Angling Club yesterday fishing in crystal clear water, had a happy day 8 guys all bagged up 4 fish each plus many more returned, Rod Thaw, Grant McGregor, D Robertson, B Kemp, A McCaw, A Cuthbert, A Hyndman, these guys all catching 7 or more all returned, Bob Rankin  a visiting member from the UK Fly  Fishing Stillwater web site had a very pleasant day keeping 2, Regular Neil Christie, who is always looking for a better place to fish always returns as the Goldenloch is where he catches best, George Duff Buckhaven 3 returned, Sandy Band a guy who loves to just go fishing had another very profitable day, he had 4 fish on four different flies in four casts and was well chuffed.

Fly Fishing is a Pastime, it is not only relaxing, but also rewarding, come to the “Goldenloch” enjoy your Hobby to the max, no stress, only tranquil surroundings abundant wildlife, great fish, Brown, Blues and Rainbows, you will not be disappointed. Phone 01337840355 or 07968006367 ask for John or look up Postcode KY14 6HZ