Trout

Blagdon's Fantastic Opening Day

What a stunning opening day we had on Blagdon today!
The weather could'nt have been better - light winds and overcast skies - perhaps a tad warmer, but hey - it is mid March!

We couldn't get a touch for the first couple of hours, but by midday, when we moved the boat closer to the shorelines - we hit the proverbial jackpot.
Simon caught the first 3 rainbows - all on the pointfly; a Gold Head Montana, fished on a floating fly line.
I fished a team of nymphs on a floater and started to get take after take on either a Black Buzzer or a JC Black Diawl Bach Nymph.

We never changed from floating lines all day!

There was no appreciable difference in the weather conditions during the afternoon - it didn't feel warmer, but things started to happen.

By 4:00pm, we had both caught over a dozen trout each and had released most of them - the surprising thing was that the best areas were within 50 metres from the bank.
Bells Bush at the Top End was sensational, as was Wood Bay and Green Lawns.  Butcombe fished it's socks off and we did one last drift into Polish Water before going home - both of us releasing 2 rainbows.

If you are going to Blagdon in the next few days, I hope that you have as good a day as we have just enjoyed.

John Horsey Fly Fishing
John Horsey Fly Fishing

The New Lexus Fly Fishing Championships Website is Officially Live!

Today marks the launch of the new supporting website for the Lexus Fly Fishing Championships, sporting a fresh new look and feel. The UK-based fly fishing competitions, organised by myself, are now in their 8th year. Both competitions feature heats across England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The events are known for drawing a Global audience, with regular participants from the whole of Europe, as well as Canada, the US and even as far as Australia. It's safe to say both fly fishing championships hold a firm place on the calendar of any fly fisherman who is passionate about their sport.

Whether a beginner or experienced fly fisherman there's an awful lot to gain from entering either of the events.. hints and tips on improving your game, fishing with like minded people, great prizes throughout, along with a brilliant atmostphere at each heat. For more details on the competition head on over to the Lexus Championships website... the site will be updated with results and photos soon after every match heat.

Lexus Individual Fly Fishing Championships

The Lexus Individual is for individual fly fishermen of all skill-levels. 20 heats will be held this year on 16 waters throughout the UK.  Each heat qualifies a number of participants depending on the day's takeup, ranging from 3 to 10. A feature that is unique to the Lexus Fly Fishing Championships is the 'wildcard' qualifier at each heat. This automatically qualifies the captor of the largest fish on the day - meaning that literally anyone stands a good chance of qualifying in each heat! Multiple entries are allowed, further increasing chance of qualification. There are quality prizes at each heat for every qualifier and a fantastic array of prizes at the final - grand prize is a Lexus RX450 SEL Hybrid SUV, largest fish wins a fishing holiday to Norway courtesy of Anglers World Holidays! Get an entry in now!

Lexus Team Fly Fishing Championships

Are there a few of you who share a passion for fly fishing? The Lexus Team is for teams of 6 anglers, with 9 heats taking place at 6 UK fishing venues.  The number of qualifying teams at each heat depends on takeup. There are tonnes of quality tackle prizes for both teams and individuals throughout the competition, grand final cash prizes of £1000, £750 and £250 for 1st, 2nd and 3rd team places, and much, much more. Only 1 entry is allowed per team, so make it count! Look forward to seeing you there!

Catch John and Chris Tarrant's fishing adventures on Youtube

Last year I spent many weeks filming a new fishing series for TV with my good friend Chris Tarrant.  I'm sure that most people realise Chris is a fanatical fisherman and we set out to film some great action from home and abroad.

We flew to the exotic Maldives where we caught Sailfish, GT's, Wahou, Tuna, and many more species.  Chew Valley Lake was our English location, with masses of pike action, while Salmon and Trout stole the limelight in Northern Ireland.

The rugged wilderness beauty of the Yukon in Northern Canada formed the backdrop to some of the best freshwater fishing I have ever experienced. 

Attached are a couple of clips of Chris Tarrant and I catching magnificent lake trout from Wellesley Lake in Kluane national Park... enjoy!

 

Chris Tarrant fishing on the Yukon
See video

New trout fly fishing season only days away!

The new trout fly fishing season is only days away, with Blagdon Lake opening on Wednesday 16th March, while Chew Valley opens a week later on 23rd March. This season looks like being a bumper start, with Bristol Water holding back 000's of 3lb+ rainbow trout in the net cages at Chew all Winter long. These trout are in tip-top condition and should provide great sport for boat and bank anglers alike.

What we now need is a bit more rain to fill both lakes to capacity, then a spell of mild weather to promote some decent fly activity and get the fish feeding.  In recent years, floating lines and nymphs have been more effective than fishing sinking lines with lures... let's hope this trend continues!

Book a day now!

I still have a handful of days available for the start of the season, although Opening Days on both Chew and Blagdon lakes are fully booked. Contact me for any enquiries about availability.

Final session of pike trials

In between now and the start of the trout fishing season, I have a couple of days targetting the pike in the final week of pike trials and already there have been plenty of 30's caught.  Who knows, this last week might produce a fish over 40lbs 8ozs to break the previous Chew record - watch this space and I'll keep you informed via the blog.

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