I called Viv at about 10am on a Wednesday morning after seeing an advertisement in the window of the Mallaig tourist bureau. The advertisement for ‘local guided loch fishing’ was similar to Mallaig; quaint and decrepit in places, but seemingly honest and real. At 60 pounds for a half-day trip, I was thinking that I might get to sit in…
Category: Fishing stories
The best lure in the box
The trout were there. I could see them. Every few casts, a fish would follow the lure. Every so often, one would swipe, its white mouth flaring as it tried to kill its prey. I even hooked a few, but kept losing them to their jumping antics. Part of the problem was that the fish were small. This is definitely…
Fishing on Little Pine Lagoon, and observations on observation
I was reading some Gierarch the other day and he was describing his approach to writing. After getting home from a fishing trip, he’ll often wait a few weeks before reflecting on the experience. The story—if there is one at all—should naturally bubble to the surface. It might be a story about the fishing, but it might be something else…
The old man and the fish
The old man was there when we arrived. Crouched down behind a tussock a few rod lengths from the bank. His quarry soon became apparent. Just a few feet from the shore, a dorsal fin and then a tail broke the surface. The old mans attention was totally focussed on the fish. Not once did his gaze wander as we…
Preparing for a trip
One of the things I enjoy most these days is prepping for a trip somewhere new. Unlike fishing locally, going on a destination trip means stepping into the unknown and stepping out of your comfort zone. Many hours are spent pouring over google maps scouting out potential fishing spots. More hours spent reading every bit of information the internet…
Appreciating the little things: A couple of hours fishing in New Zealand
It will come as no surprise to anybody that since the arrival of my son three months ago I’ve been spending far less time on the water. On a positive note, things are not as dire as many predicted, the talk of “you’ll never go fishing again” were a wild exaggeration. So while I am not fishing as much I…
It’s not all about the fish
Hamish wrote a great little blog about our trout opening weekend here, so I don’t want to repeat anything he said. But the sentimentality might be similar. I had a magic weekend, yet I didn’t catch a fish. In the past, I would have found this somewhat disappointing. I can remember a trip to Nariel and another to Bright for…
New seasons.
We arrived in dribs and drabs from all over the south east of Australia. Canberra, Woolongong, Melbourne. Myself, Nick and Brett arrived first. Lee arrived not long after and we set up camp. Soon we were sipping on mid strength beers, soaking in the anticipation of what was to come. As dark arrived we set in by the campfire, revelling…
When you cant match the hatch, throw them something juicy: the story of the dry bugger
The story of the dry bugger began on the opening day of last NSW trout season. Myself and Perrin had headed out to a stream to hopefully christen the season opener with a few trout. After a relatively fruitless morning, Perrin spotted a decent trout. He was gracious enough to give me first shot. I slowly and meticulously stalked to…
Leeky Jewfish
Sampan Sunday – that’s what they are calling it, the day that at least 30 meterys were landed at the mouth of the flooded Mary River in the NT. This Barra bonanza happened on the neap tides when the clearer waters allow barra to see lures. From then on Shady Camp became a frenzy of boat traffic on a scale…
Secret creek
It’s great when a hunch, some anecdotal evidence and a bit of research pay off: I recently found a ‘secret creek’. I’m not really sure what makes it secret; perhaps the reason that no one has heard of it, there is no evidence anyone fishes it, and that there is very little evidence that it would contain trout. It’s situated…
How to become a better fisherman: learn to fail.
The biggest factor in me becoming a better angler over the last three years has been learning to fail. When I started fly fishing three years ago I sucked. I could barely casts 30ft, I spent most of my time with my flies tangled in trees and stream-side vegetation. Generally it was a disaster for the first few months. If…