Saturday, 7th April

Lake of Menteith, Day Session

After our aborted attempt to start the new season 3 weeks ago, we landed on our feet with this date.  OK, there was barely a cloud in the sky all day, but it was nice to be out in the sun, which is now high enough to pack some warmth.  There was a light breeze, which was a tad variable, and it was still cool on the odd occasion when a cloud did manage to catch the sun, but all-in-all it was just what the doctor ordered.

I was paired with our Hong-Kong inmate, Adam Marr, over on a spring break and not having wet a line since Butterstone in July last year.  There was only one weekly report to date on the Lake's website, and it was suggesting that the fish were lying towards the southern marks: the heronry, the butts and Lochend.  With that in mind, and a light westerly at the start, we decided to start in the heronry and work our way down and round the south side.

Our man in Hong Kong, with a decent stockie

I mentioned to Adam (who had not fished early season at Menteith for many moons) that a feature of recent seasons was that you often had only one chance at a fish on a drift, and that was last cast before the boat was into the reeds.  We seemed to be set for more of the same when my first fish came right at the end of a drift onto the back of the promontory.  More of the same followed as Adam took his first fish as the boat slid down the face of the promontory.  We let the boat drift on, and it rounded into the small bay (does it have a name?) on the east side.  Now we were among other boats... and they were catching... regularly.

With the aid of a troot, The Cap'n attempts to describe a parabola

Needless to say, we hung about.  Adam stayed all day on a Wetcel II (probably about 20 years old) and a cast made from nylon that may have been older, judging by the number of flies that disappeared off the end under mysterious circumstances.  In the course of the day, I tried DI-3, Fast glass and DI-5.  In fact, we saw other rods catching on every conceivable line, from floater to fast sinker.  Every retrieve as well, for that matter.  Adam was mostly figure-of-eighting.  That did nothing for me, and I just pulled at pedestrian pace, while others around us were rewarded by putting a bit more welly into it.

The north shore, with Ben Ledi just showing in the background

We had 7 or 8 fish to the boat in that wee bay, before it went a bit slow -- We wondered about changing flies or tactics, but it didn't feel like the thing to do.  Adam was on a yellow dancer and a hothead damsel, while I was on a black tadpole and a small white minkie.  There were plenty buzzers hatching, and even an occasional rise, but conditions really said stay downstairs, stick with what you are doing, and find the fish.  The other factor that swayed us on this was the frequency of the action.  Nothing for 10 mins, then we would both get a take within a second of each other.  Then nothing for another 10 mins, then 2 takes on consecutive casts -- a sure sign of moving groups of fish, and not too fussy when they passed your patch.

A rare sight -- early season, and most boats drifting open water

As it slowed in the bay, we looked about and we saw a bit of an armada assembling in the open water out from the butts -- just over to our right.  Sure enough -- there was a rod bent, and there another, and over there another.  No invitation required!  Aye, this'll be the fish that hug the reeds at this time of year... my arse!  We did a drift that started at the butts on the west shore, and finished at Kate's Brae on the east shore -- about an hour later -- and there were fish being taken by the boats around us the whole way across.  Two-ups were happening here, there and everywhere.  I can remember a few years back finding the fish in April way out in the middle, though on that occasion it was overwintered brownies being drawn to the hatching buzzers.  The fish being caught here were stockie rainbows.  Go figure!

A gnarly old specimen -- with a stockie rainbow

Adam and I finished with 22 fish landed and another 7 lost -- and we doffed our caps to 2 or 3 other boats around us who were clearly doing better than we were.  So, with all that going on -- fish being caught on every line -- any fly -- every retrieve -- just needed to be in the area -- just a matter of being there... Er, so we thought.  We honestly expected everyone else to have catches like ours, and yet others came in saying they were in the area, but could not get tuned in.  Others who were not in the area also struggled (that is always going to happen).

Alan Duncan was best of the rest in our club, having had 6 (plus a bonus 9 lb pike) -- no details supplied.  Tom Steven and Bob Allan had half a dozen fishing buzzers and Diawl Bachs slow, on intermediate and DI-3 in the butts area.  Bob Whyte and John Gibson also had half a dozen, including a 4 lb 8 oz blue to John's rod.  They mostly fished the heronry, with sink-tip, intermediate and DI-3, with damsel, coral lure, black fritz and orange blob on the score sheet.  It's a funny old game...

The Club's 14 rods landed 51 fish (19 of which returned).  Top rod was Mr Marr -- not bad for a man who fishes about once each year... with 20 year old tackle!

Photos: Images 1, 2, 4 and 5 = Canon 10D with 70-300 IS lens and polarising filter.  Images 3 and 6 = Nikon D70s with 18-70 mm lens.