Sea Trout Fishing

kingfisher lands an 8 lb sewin and gets stung by a badger?

2011-08-26T21:37:00.004+01:00

Spent Thursday night on the river on my own! There was no one to be seen anywhere from what I could see! The night was lovely. Warm and still but with the odd rumble of thunder and lightning flash. I started fishing quite early - about 9.30 ish I think. At about 10.30 I noticed evidence of fish running. The odd splash and funny unexplainable noises in the fast water. Soon after I had a savage take in a place that rarely produces a fish which tuned out to be a solid, plump sewin of about 8 lb I think. It fought like stink and took me quite some distance down stream before I managed to beach it. A quick photo and I got it back in the water as soon as I could. It was a really strong fish, wrestling with me all the time I was trying to remove the hook. I am glad now that I stopped off at Sportfish on my way down to get some new flies of this patern as the ones I had all had blunt hooks! Must get Rodders to tie some for next season?

I started walking back to the car at about 1.00am. As I got to Crewel Pool I chose to walk the small detour path through the Himalayan Balsam to avoid a small area of bank erosion. After just a few yards I saw a badger on the path before me with it's head in a wasps nest! Brock was just 3 or 4 yards in front of me and was very excited with his new find although he was shaking his head and leaping about every now trying to shake off the inhabitants from around his nose! I could see everything very clearly of course despite it being a very dark night because I had a powerful hand torch and a head torch both switched on. Fascinated by the spectacle I soon noticed that whilst Brock was tucking in I became the focus of the wasps whose nest he was destroying! In no time at all I had hundreds of wasps swarming around me. I seemed to be getting the blame for his pillaging! 'Turn off the bloody light Andrew' - I said to myself. So I turned off the hand torch. Still I was being attacked but Brock was having a feast! Then it dawned on me that I could still see what was going on! Shit - my head torch - 'turn it off you pratt' I thought! The wasps by this time were getting extremely nasty and one bit me on my hand. There were hundreds of them and I hated it! I tried to fiddle around to find the button to switch it off but there were wasps everywhere all over me. Eventually I pressed the button and held it down to turn it off. Those few seconds needed to get that bloody head torch to switch off seemed like bloody hours! 'Switch off your bast..d' I kept saying to myself! Eventually the light went out thank God! I turned around and made a hasty retreat and left the Badger to finish his tasty meal! I took the other path once I had regained my composure and soothed the bite! Some funny things can happen to you on the river in the early hours of the morning!!!

1 more fish to my credit!

2011-08-01T22:30:00.002+01:00

Spent 3 nights on the river this week! I managed a 1 1/2 lb sewin which I returned but I lost 2 very big fish in the tail of my favourite pool in the early hours!

Another fish to my credit!

2011-07-15T21:28:00.003+01:00

I went out on Wednesday and Thursday night and caught a lovely 2 lb sewin which I returned. That takes my total for this season to 4 fish so far. I saw quite a few fish early on both nights but as soon as temperatures dropped that was it! One thing I have noticed this year is quite a few lampreys around! Hoping for more settled weather next week and warmer nights which would definitely improve prospects I think. July is the best month according to my records so I am just hoping for some settled weather.

My first fish of the season!

2011-07-04T11:02:00.003+01:00

Fished Wednesday, Thursday and Friday last week and got some success on Friday night. Caught 3 fish - 1lb, 2lb and 6lb. All were fresh run and fought well. The river height was just about perfect and the air temperature was not too bad at about 9 degrees unlike the two previous nights when temperatures plunged quite dramatically after dark. I hope that we will get a steady stream of fish from now on and that we get some good sport! Unfortunately John blanked but I am sure his luck will change soon!

Fishing trip Friday 24th June 2011 - abandoned!

2011-06-25T00:02:00.002+01:00

Went down the river today hoping to get some fishing in for a couple of days but rain stopped play! From about 4.00pm it chucked it down big time. I left at 8.00pm and it was still pounding away! Should do the river good for next week though!

Fishing trip Thursday 2nd June 2011

2011-06-05T22:17:00.003+01:00

Went down the river Thursday morning so that I could fish Thursday and Friday nights. Both nights were pretty good weather wise and ideal for sewin if they are about! Saw or heard the odd fish but that's all! No pulls or takes! Looks as though it's going to be a slow start!

Very few fish appear to be about!

2011-05-13T23:17:00.003+01:00

Having spent 2 days on the river I can confirm that there are few fish around at the moment! The river is very low but clear. Other anglers have had little success so far but are hoping for a decent flood to bring fish into the river for June.

The river looks in great shape after the winter floods!

2011-03-04T10:51:00.006Z

Went down to the river yesterday on what was a glorious day. The sun was shining and the sky was blue and everything looked pretty good down there. Naturally I had my camera in my hand at all times so I came back with some half decent shots considering the drabness of the fauna at this time of year.

During my walk I saw Dipper, Gooseander, Chaffinch, Buzzard, Red Kite, Greylag Goose, Green Sandpiper and on the drive back home I spotted a Merlin! I walked from the Car Park Pool down river, over BP Hill and right down to the end of our beat. The river height was such that there were 2 rivers down the bottom, the second only just a stream and I did manage to get across it eventually without getting too wet as I only had my walking boots on! I sat and ate my lunch on the log and it was lovely, so was my lunch!

I do feel just a little bit guilty though about something that I did without thinking about the possible consequences. Whilst I was sat on the log a flock of very woolly sheep appeared in the field opposite on the other side of the river. Inquisitively they all came across the field to see what I was up to. As they were lining up to see what I was doing I thought that there was a potential picture there so I got my camera out and moved closer to the river to get a better shot. The problem was that they weren't all looking at me so I foolishly called them so they would look. The nearest sheep took my beckoning much more seriously than I had expected and literally launched himself off the bank straight into the river! The current took him or her downstream despite his attempts to swim back to his pals and we all know how thick sheep are don't we so you can guess that he finished up down near the rock face below the end of our beat. I saw him get out of the river, soaking wet, cold but still alive. He started eating the grass pretty much immediately he had got out. I felt terrible about it but at least he survived!

Other than for the sheep episode I thoroughly enjoyed the day!

KIngfisher meets SRF!

2011-02-07T09:41:00.004Z

What an occasion? Last Thursday night I was privelidged to meet Sir Ranulph Fiennes and get a book signing too! It all happened thanks to my sister-in-law Marina here who fixed everything up for me during the Midland Excellence Award's night in Birmingham. To shake hands with such an amazing guy was unbelieveable and something I will remember for ever!

Why not join me on Facebook?

2011-01-26T21:19:00.004Z

I have started a group on Facebook if you are interested in taking part and contributing to the discussion? The Group is called:

Night fly fishing for sea-trout or sewin (Wales)

The 2010 'get together' !

2010-11-30T18:22:00.004Z

On Saturday 29th November the 4 of us with our wives had lunch at the Swan at Bibury! This is a ritual and I must admit we all enjoy meeting up and meeting the other halves too! These are just a few pictures from the day.

Another season ends!

2010-10-19T21:20:00.002+01:00

Well that's it for another season! For me it has been my worst season possibly ever! Just 2 sewin despite a great deal of time and effort. As I am soon to retire I will have think hard and long in order to decide whether it is viable for me to travel the 100 miles to fish the Towy. It will be a difficult decision to make as it currently costs me the best part of £35 in fuel alone for each trip I make! I do love the river and its inhabitants (that is the wildlife) and in particular this year I have managed to get some wonderful images of the birds which is compensation for such poor fishing I suppose.

What saddens me most is the lack of passion and willingness of many anglers on the river to get off their arses and do something about the problem! Just look at the Sea-Trout Forum for instance - what a waste of time that is? Many members of my own angling club will rarely be seen on the river despite living close by to it and as for supporting conservation initiatives or political lobbying then I don't think there is much of that going on. Just the other day I was talking to Colin the farmer where I camp out and he was telling me that he has hardly seen any cars parked up at the end of his lane this year! So it just shows how desperate the fishing is. Despite managing the LAL Blog I have not had a single fishing report that I can think of from any members other than my good friends Rodney, John, Chris and Tim! Nobody else seems to care! Such a shame!

I have to say I have met some strange visitors this year! I was talking to a new member (allegedly so) by where I camp out this summer as I was tackling up. Whilst we were talking I heard the otter coming up river and alerted him to this. His response was 'if I had my shotgun with me I would take the bast..d out, accusing the otter of taking all the fish out of the river'! Nut case or what? Very weird! I have even had another knob, actually a 'posh knob' who fishes Crewel Pool, threaten to sort me out if he catches me fishing his pool. This was a reaction he gave to a joke I made whilst chatting with him and his fellow anglers one evening whilst they were sat outside their hut. I said something like 'make sure you leave me some sewin for when I come back up from the bottom in the early hours of the morning'. Sad!

On a more positive note the wildlife seems to be holding its own pretty well. A lovely pair of kingfishers have been around every day and I managed to get some nice shots of them. Also plenty of Red Kites and Buzzards have been seen. Only last week I got shots of Cormorants gallore (too many probably), Gooseanders, Grey Wagtails, Common Sandpiper, Wren, Sparrowhawk, Dipper not to mention our treasured Otters and of course a 'not so treasured' Mink! Worryingly I noticed a Cormorant catch at least 4 fish in a couple of hours! Multiply that out and you will see that Cormorants could be part of our problem! Interestingly I have observed all our silly juvenile Gooseanders on many occasions for many hours and I can honestly say that I have not seen any of them catch a single fish! Don't know what they live on but I can't see it being fish!!

Oh well better get back to my fly tying vice as its the only vice I have these days! Looking forward to better fishing days perhaps!

Tight lines!

kingfisher

2010-09-26T22:39:00.005+01:00

Spent a couple of days on the river with Rod, John and Gadget Man. The water conditions were perfect - about 1ft 9in on the gauge and running clear! Gadget Man was the first to hit a salmon but unfortunately he lost it! He then went on to do exactly the same again in the same pool, probably the same fish? Rod was the one who came good though with a magnificent 8lb cock salmon! Well done Rod.

Here is a photo from my phone of the 8lb 2oz cock salmon (28ins long) caught round the corner on a Ally shrimp and floating line and 10ft leader. Not sure how I would have got it out if John hadn't been there to tail it. It looked much bigger than it actually is. We both thought it double figures when we first got it out, until John weighed it. The two other guys that went down same time as us came later to the log. One had lost a salmon round by the cattle drink above the tin hut but then caught an 8lb sewin (bar of silver but returned) also on a small Ally shrimp with fast ink tip and 3ft leader. Interesting. Rod!

Looks like I will be salmon less again this season!!!

2 nights fishing - no fish to be seen or heard!

2010-09-05T20:13:00.003+01:00

Having just returned from a 2 night session on the river I have to say it was extremely disappointing. I spent 48 hours in, on or close by the river and failed to see or hear a single fish let alone catch anything! The only success I had was with the camera! It just goes to show that it is easier to capture this than it is to catch a sewin at the moment!!

Kingfisher gets 1 night in and then abandons the river for another week!

2010-08-20T18:15:00.002+01:00

I spent Wednesday night on the river in good conditions but didn't see or hear any fish! I spent all day until 3 pm on Thursday with my camera and got some good kingfisher, gooseander and heron shots but then the rain came! The wind got up and the heavens opened and I was forced to abandon my trip completely! Shame but that's the way it sometimes goes!

John spends a couple of nights on the river but fails to connect!

2010-08-15T00:46:00.002+01:00

John spent 2 nights on the river this week but didn't catch. He told me that there were a few fish showing but unfortunately they wouldn't play ball. The conditions were generally quite good especially in terms of temperature and water level and clarity. It is getting late in the season now for sewin however I do hope to get a couple of nights in myself next week that's if the weather holds up! I will keep you posted!

Tight lines

kingfisher

Calling ALL GAME ANGLERS!

2010-08-06T21:58:00.001+01:00

Rodney - it is long time overdue in my opinion that sea trout and salmon fishermen alike not only voice their concerns about dwindling fish runs but actually start doing something about it! In fact I personally think that its time to take ACTION NOW!

The EA have been pratting about for too long with clearing feeder streams, 'improving' habitat, doing things that don't cost much money but it ain't working and it won't. There are things that can be done now that will have a major impact on fish stocks, the environment and the ecology! They might not be well received in some quarters but neither are the measures being taken by our Government currently to rectify the credit crunch. So what can be done?

Ask any game fisherman in the UK and he or she will tell you!!!

How can we do it?

By joining together in a united force with one aim in mind - to RESTORE OUR GAME RIVERS BACK TO THEIR FORMER GLORY SO THAT FISHERMEN FROM ALL OVER THE UK AND THE WORLD WILL WANT TO COME AND FISH HERE. We all know what effect that would have!

If we don't ACT NOW then frankly I can't see me bothering to fish the Towy in the next 2 or 3 years and as far as my kids or grand kids fishing prospects are concerned - forget it!

Rodney Byles voices his concerns about the state of our river!

2010-08-06T21:55:00.002+01:00

I can understand the interest and excitement roused by Spence’s fish of a lifetime and wonder if he took scale samples and its length for the Celtic Sea Trout Project. However, I have been fishing the Towy near Bethlehem for about 25 years and in that time I have noticed a steady and very worrying drop in sewin, especially in recent years.

From my limited knowledge the leading authority Environment Agency Wales (EAW) and the Countryside Council for Wales (CCW) don’t appear to be doing anything positive to stem this decline. I recently spent five nights on the river, which looked in perfect condition and was at an ideal level and clear. The previous week’s spate should have encouraged plenty of fish to the middle reaches. However, during my visit I fished every night from about 22:30 until 05:00, clocking up over 30 hours and only managed one sewin and a few offers. I saw very few fish move. One night there were 13 anglers on this stretch and none had a fish. However, what was even more worrying were the concerns of the more and very experienced local anglers I met, some with 40-50 years on the river, all discussing and complaining about the decline and considerable lack of fish and especially this season. I can only wonder at what it must have been like to fish the Towy in the late 1950s with annual rod catches of around 20,000 sewin.I, and pretty sure many other concerned anglers, would like to know what the EAW and CWW have been doing or are doing to stem this dramatic drop in sewin. Do these authorities know or indeed have any idea of the cause or causes of this decline? If not why not? If so what are the causes and what are these authorities doing about them? What do we pay our exorbitant game fishing rod licence fee for and how much of it actually goes towards sewin conservation? It’s not as though the EAW and CCW have been unaware of the decline and strongly believe that if nothing is done very soon it may not be too long before there are no sewin in the Towy left to catch.

I suspect there may be several factors contributing to the decline. These could be over fishing in the Irish Sea, and if so who is policing this, and do the authorities have any idea of the number of sewin caught. The estuary and coracle nets are probably taking far too many sewin at present as a percentage of the total run. Perhaps they should be more closely monitored and even considerably restricted or perhaps their licences temporarily revoked until sewin numbers hopefully recover. A rod caught sewin is worth considerably more to the local Towy valley economy than those from the nets or coracles. Although the dam water acidity problem may have been solved with liming, is the cold water discharge now affecting the sewin run? I suspect it is and there is the possibility that cold water flows could further considerably increase if the dam and reservoir are extended to generate the need for more hydro-electricity. Have the authorities been monitoring coordinated dam discharge and water temperature downstream and its possible affect on the behaviour of radio tagged sewin? Are toxins from sheep dips and the chemicals in cow shit getting into the spawning headwater streams and into the main river after floods? Is there or has there been a regime of water sampling in these areas to check and possibly rectify water quality? If not why not. What impact is the effluent discharge in Carmarthen having on the sewin and why haven’t the authorities apparently done anything to stop it? The increase in predators, such as Goosanders, Cormorants and Otters, is also bound to be contributing to the decline. There are two large broods of Goosanders just on the Bethlehem stretch this year.

Enough is enough, but I know the EAW and CWW won’t take any notice of individual complaints and concerns. However, I’m told that money talks, so before it’s too late I would suggest that perhaps all Towy anglers and clubs somehow unite and refuse on mass to renew their rod licences and demand the authorities act now with one overriding objective: Stop the dramatic decline in sewin and take the appropriate actions to restore stocks to those of years gone by.

Rodney Byles

Now I know why they call it 'fishing' not 'catching'!

2010-08-01T17:46:00.003+01:00

I have just returned from a concentrated 3 night fishing expedition with Rodney Byles. Disappointingly we only caught one fish each. Rod's fish was 4 lb and mine 3 lb. Conditions were absolutely perfect. Good river height, clear water, warm temperature and largely cloudy skies. Very few other anglers caught from what we could see. We fished from about 10.30 pm until 5.00 am each night. Despite only getting one fish we both enjoyed it. There is evidence of the odd 'huge' fish but otherwise fish are few and far between. Maybe conditions will improve over the next week or two! Nice to see Shane and Tim on the river. Tim - thanks once again for sponsoring my BHF bike ride! Cheers mate!

Rod's 4 lb sewin!

Tight lines

kingfisher

Latest prospects!

2010-07-26T16:42:00.002+01:00

Well things are looking much better now after the welcome rain of late. With 8 in on the guage I would imagine that the water will be perfect for the fly at night! Rod is going down today for 1 week and I will be joining him from Tuesday evening onwards. I will keep you posted as to how we get on!

Tight lines

kingfisher

My total so far for the BHF!

2010-07-13T18:27:00.004+01:00

Having completed a 30 mile bike ride for the British Heart Foundation on the 4th July 2010 I am pleased to have raised, so far, £615.00!!!!! Thank you to all my friends who have contributed I really do appreciate your support. For those of you who have forgotton to sponsor me it is not too late just go to:-

http://original.justgiving.com/andrewholmes2

To make things even better it looks as though the good Lord is blessing us with a drop of very welcome rain! Tight lines all and look after your heart if you have one!

Latest news from Llangadog!

2010-07-10T21:48:00.002+01:00

Spent Friday night on the river with my brother-in-law john. It was a dark, warm night with small amounts of drizzle from time to time. I managed to move 2 fish in total but neither of them would take solidly. It became quite windy later on. John had one good pull. Crewel Pool had a good head of fish in it from what I could see. Most of the fish I saw were smallish though! Needless to say we need rain badly!

Tightlines!

First fish of the season!

2010-07-01T21:20:00.002+01:00

Well I have always said that July is the best month for sewin on the Towy and at 1.00am on July 1st I did at last connect with a good solid sewin of 4 lb. It is already cut into steaks and in my freezer! Brilliant!

No water - very few fish!

2010-06-18T21:16:00.004+01:00

After a 2 day session on the river this week I am alarmed at the lack of water and fish for this time of year! I fished for 2 nights and didn't see a single fish. There is little flow in most of the pools which makes fishing the fly very difficult. There is no doubt the odd fish about but they are very few and far between. Strangely algae is not an issue! The only fish I saw was a lamprey as I crossed over the river below the railway bridge. It had made a hole about 300mm deep wich I fell into. When I looked back it was about to return to its nest! I spotted a Goosander with 8 chicks so there must be some fish around somewhere. The only successful fisherman that I could see was this guy!

The Goosander family taking a break in Crewel Pool. It is very difficult to get within range of them which is why the image is rubbish!

June 2010!

2010-06-12T21:20:00.005+01:00

Low water levels have limited our success on the river so far this season I think. I have had a 2 day trip during the first week of June but I have to admit I found it very difficult to fish the fly with any enthusiasm. My brother-in-law John too has had no success despite fishing hard on a number of occasions and Rodney Byles as reported earlier. There have been a few fish reported caught including some in the 5lb class and a monster 11lb but these have not been confirmed to me. The river is looking good this season and I can't wait to get my first sewin. I hope to get on the river this forthcoming week probably Thursday and Friday so who knows what might happen?

2 fishers on Crewel Pool - one looking decidedly dejected I think?

Tight lines everyone!

Rodney Byles casts off for the 2010 season!

2010-05-26T22:35:00.001+01:00

Rod has reported about his first trip to the river this year.

Called into Llangadog on the way back and fished all night till 4am. Tony, Dan and Dave were also out and river very low. Despite that quite a lot of good fish moving nearly all night from 9ish to 2am. Dan had a pull and so did I, but nothing on the bank. They weren't having it. Maybe the full moon, but great to be back on the river. Turned a bit cooler later on with a light breeze (10 degrees when I got back to the car) but I stuck it out and really enjoyed it. The others all went at 12.30. I think I'll wait for water now before trying again, unless Tony starts catching!

Contemplating my first cast of the season?

2010-05-11T22:01:00.002+01:00

Weather prospects next week are looking up so I am contemplating a trip down to the River Towy with the hope of getting some night fishing in without freezing to death! I hope to fish next Wednesday night subject to things warming up as forecast?

It will be a short trip though because I am taking my two lads for a long weekend at the Ty'n y Cornel Hotel to fish the Tal-y-Llyn Lake for brown trout. Should be exciting as I haven't done any lake fishing for many years and my lads haven't ever fished before very much! My brother-in-law John is coming too so we should have some fun in an area of what looks like 'outstanding natural beauty'.

I will report on what happens on both trips on my return for those who may be interested!

Tight lines!

The 2010 season has started!

2010-04-02T21:31:00.003+01:00

If you are like me you have just spent the last 6 months longing to get back on the river! Well now you can. The 2010 season is here at last. Get those waders out of the garage and check them out for leaks, tidy up that tackle bag and sort out your flies cos the time has come to put them to good use!

I probably won't bother going down the river for a few weeks yet, maybe the first week of May if the weather improves but I can't wait to cast my fly and I can't wait to catch my first sewin of the season too. This year will be very busy for me because not only will I be fishing all night but I will probably be hiding away with my camera in hand in search of that amazing wildlife shot during the day! This winter has been very productive for me in terms of wildlife photography and I have learnt so much. Now that I am equipped with some decent gear I am sure I will get some amazing pictures. In particular I will be stalking kingfishers and otters so look out - if you see a portable hide on the river bank and a big lens sticking out of it and no sign of Simon King then it will probably be me, but don't disturb me - I could be just about to snap that once in a lifetime picture!

Beware of this little bugger though - they are everywhere!

Keep up to date with my achievements by logging on to www.kingfisherimages.co.uk

Tight lines everyone but stay out of the frame!!

3 months to go!

2010-01-25T21:52:00.002Z

I usually take my first trip to the river during early May so I calculate that it is only 3 months or thereabouts to go! I have to say this winter has been long and hard and I cannot wait to cast that fly over my favourite pool on a warm still evening, dressed only in shirt sleeves (and my waders obviously) while I watch the odd monster sewin jumping and splashing further downstream! It can in my book only be described as 'majical'!

I must start thinking about getting all my fishing gear out and giving it a good clean and a drop of oil where required. Also I need to get all my camping gear out, give it a good washing and a scrub and put it back in its containers in some sort of order rather than how it is currently which is thrown in all together!

I wonder what sort of season we will have? I have to say, if last July had been a normal July instead of the relentless downpours that we had then I think the 2009 season as a whole would probably have been exceptional!

Anyway, lets just hope that those sewin decide to visit us in great numbers this season, that the weather is moderate and that the river and its wildlife inhabitants are as prolific as ever! This season will see me concentrating on both sewin fishing and wildlife photography so my nights will be taken with the fly and my days, after sleeping that is, will be spent lurking around in the bushes trying to capture that illusive wildlife shot to beat all others! I have already made a bit of a start with my photography as many of you will have seen on my new website at:-

http://www.kingfisherimages.co.uk

Another year ends!

2009-12-21T22:59:00.002Z

Merry Christmas everyone and a Happy New Year!

Tight lines for 2010!

My catch summary for the 2009 season

2009-12-08T21:39:00.002Z

6th June 2009 - 2 No sewin - 6lb and 3 lb - 8 oz
27th June 2009 - 1 No sewin - 7lb
6th Aug 2009 - 2 No sewin - 3 1/2 lb and 1 1/2 lb
29th Aug 2009 - 1 No sewin - 9 1/2 lb

John breaks his 'duck' on the last day of the season!

2009-10-18T16:13:00.002+01:00

John stayed down the river on Saturday and managed to entice a good fish of 3lb from the fast water in the neck of the Car Park Pool. Well done John!

That's the end of the season now. I think its been pretty good other than the fact that July was a complete wash out. Still - must look forward to the 2010 season now - God willing!

15th October 2009 - last minute sport?

2009-10-17T22:59:00.002+01:00

Had a night on the river Thursday! Caught 1 sewin of 3lb and lost a much bigger fish. There were lots of fish about. Just shows the extent of the Towy sewin run!

Rodder's takes to the sea!

2009-09-03T12:39:00.002+01:00

Rod has sent me this report about his salt water fly fishing exploits!

It’s been difficult for me recently trying to coordinate a trip to the Towy at Llangadog when the river's been okay for the night fly, so decided instead to try my hand at sea bass fishing, something I’ve wanted to do for quite along time, and the sea is nearer to my home.

As I’ve never been bassing before I thought it best I book my very first trip with ghillie Justin Anwyl, who runs a sea bass guiding service from Chichester Harbour and the surrounding area.

See his website http://www.bass-fishing.co.uk/.

On this occasion we were drifting over kelp beds from a small boat, another first for me. Thanks to Justin’s guidance, advice and tackle, I managed to catch my first ever sea bass and on a fly. Estimated weight was 5lb and put up a very strong fight and maybe more so than a similar weight sewin, but without the acrobatics!! I was very pleased with myself (see photo) and as this is a bass conservation area unfortunately it went back instead of on my plate!

I was rewarded again later with another hard fighting fish of about 2.5lb. My fellow angler Duncan also had two fish of very similar size. And to cap it all I also caught my first ever mackerel, also on a fly. This was a memorable and very enjoyable day, which wouldn’t have been possible without Justin’s guidance. I will definitely go again and maybe try it from the beach next time, when all the kids are back at school!!

Rod

Well done Rod! I think I will have a go too sometime!

Best catch ever!!!!

2009-08-31T18:06:00.002+01:00

My gorgeous granddaughter Sofia!

Saturday 29th August success!

2009-08-29T16:10:00.002+01:00

Friday was a horrible day and the water was up to a good level. After a day of very mixed weather and no success this morning proved to be a different thing all together!

I woke at 6.00 am in the car and immediately got up and cooked my breakfast. It was a lovely start to the day, blue sky, white fluffy clouds and lovely sunshine. The river had dropped about 300mm and was almost clear at the car park so it was bound to be better down the bottom. I made my way down to the bottom of the beat, through the woods and up and over heart attack hill. I remember a very similar day like this last year. The water level and weather were identical and I caught a good sewin last year so I was looking forward to repeating it again! In fact when I arrived at my pool I looked in my fly box to see if I could find the very same fly and there it was all bedraggled and scruffy! Even so I still put it on! I worked my way down the pool and got closer to the 'hot' spot. Would history repeat itself? I cast perfectly to the place that I caught a fish last season. The fly came round and there was a swirl at it! Might have been a trout perhaps I thought? I cast again - nothing. One more cast and the fly came round and wallop! A 9 1/2 lb sewin in bright sunshine at 8.00am on 12 lb breaking strain nylon! Amazing!

Where have all the sewin gone?

2009-08-14T16:58:00.007+01:00

Went fishing Wednesday and Thursday nights down the bottom of our beat, touched one fish in my favourite pool, otherwise saw nothing! They have either gone upstream or are sulking! Maybe they are in hiding because of our 'black cat'? One good thing it seems about this 'killer' cat is is many anglers are staying at home and leaving the fishing to me! I fished all night Thursday and didn't see another angler!

What a beautiful place?

Thursday 6th August - a good nights sport!

2009-08-10T09:08:00.003+01:00

Went fishing last week for a couple of nights and had some good sport on the fly!

Thursday night was warm and the water completely clear. I landed 2 fish, one 1 1/2 lb and one 3 1/2 lb but I lost many more! If I had landed every fish that I had felt the weight of then I would have had the best night of my whole career. Every other cast it seemed produced a pull or better. It was amazing!

Even more amazing was the big black cat that I saw! Must put this story in my book!

July is a 'washout'!

2009-07-28T20:37:00.002+01:00

This has to be one of the wettest July's on record? Downpour after downpour is all we are getting making the river largely unfishable most of the time. Certainly fly fishing at night has been pretty much out of the question. Lets hope August is drier but with 75mm of rain forecast tonight and tomorrow then I fear the worst!

2nd and 3rd July 2009 - my latest report!

2009-07-07T17:45:00.002+01:00

I fished both nights with no success! The night of Thursday 2nd July was torrential rain all night and the river rose at least 300mm! By the time Friday night came around I had just about dried out all my clothes but the river was still a bit coloured. There were many anglers on the river though but the only report of a fish was a young angler fishing the Railway Bridge Pool who reportedly lost a good sewin! Subject to weather and water I will be fishing this week.

Tight lines

Perserverance pays off!

2009-06-28T20:17:00.002+01:00

Went fishing Saturday 27th June on a fine, warm night with the river low but clear and with the knowledge that their are plenty of fish about.

Met up with Dylan earlier and decided to fish the cattle drink for a change. Their was the odd fish moving but nothing seemed interested in our flies despite trying every pattern in our boxes! It soon became obvious that we not going to get lucky so Dylan and I walked back to our cars foe a coffee. He decided to quit but I thought I would try my luck at the Car Park Pool. At about 2.45 am I saw a fish move in the tail of the pool. I moved on down quickly and started to cover it. After 3 casts it took very gently, in fact I thought I had snagged on the bottom. It turned out to be a good 7 lb fish, caught on of course a Rodder's Special yet again! Rod - your fly is a revolution and for me has been very successful particularly for the big fish and those that are travelling I think!

Very rewarding!

Tight lines all.

Where have all the sewin gone, gone gone everyone!

2009-06-13T19:00:00.002+01:00

I went fishing with John on Friday night. It was the most perfect night. Dark, still, warm and the water was pretty clear. After last Thurs and Friday nights fishing I thought we were bound to catch fish in these conditions. How silly of me! We didn't really see or hear any fish of any consequence throughout the night having started fishing at about 10.30 pm and packed up at 3.00 am! We fished really hard all night but the fish were not to be found and there were 'no new kids on block' turn up at 2 am either! It was very disappointing but I guess that is sewin fishing!

Tight lines!

Is the main sewin run underway?

2009-06-06T21:44:00.010+01:00

Well, if the last 2 nights are anything to go by then I would definitely say that it is!

I spent 2 nights on the river (Thurs - Fri) and managed to land 2 fish (one 3 1/2 lb on Thurs and one 6 lb on Friday). Both were fresh, silver and in prime condition.

Thursday night's fishing started with me showing a visiting angler around the beat. Shane is interested in joining LAL and therefore took out a day ticket so that he could take a look at the beat. I offered to show him around so we both finished up fishing together all night down the bottom end of the LAL water. Hopefully Shane will be convinced of the quality of fishing that we have as he finished up with 2 sewin, one of 2 lb and the other about 3 lb - the first sewin that he has ever caught on the fly at night! Well done Shane! He was very pleased with himself and we both sat together having a cup of tea back at my base at 4.30 am talking about the nights fishing.

Shane with his 2 sewin, both caught on the fly!

I also caught a my first sewin of 2009 at 2.00 am which weighed exactly 3 1/2 lb so I was happy too!

Friday night was even more exciting!

John, my brother-in-law came down to fish with me and we both met up with Dave and Tim on the river before dark. As soon as darkness arived I started fishing the pool opposite the log where we sit. I had at least 2 good pulls but John, who was following down behind me, hooked a good fish but unfortunately it didn't hold. Bad luck mate! Tim, meanwhile managed a 1 lb sewin further upstream which opened his account for the season!

Things went quiet for awhile until about 2 am when I hooked and landed my 6 lb sewin. It was a beauty! Soon after Tim hooked and landed a good 6 1/2 lb fish which fought like hell! Around about 3 am I hooked a monster! I played it for quite awhile and it appeared to be well hooked. It fought deep down most of the time and I am convinced it was a double figure fish! It was not to be though and soon it released itself much to my frustration. Still, it was an exciting few hours that I can honestly say was some of the best fishing I have experienced for many years!

My 6 lb sewin awaiting the knife!

Lets hope this season will be a good one!

Tight lines

kingfisher

The Towy is so beautiful at this time of year with loads of wildlife to see and hear.

Looking down on the Railway Bridge Pool and the Car Park Pool

There is the odd fish about!

2009-05-30T21:09:00.002+01:00

I spent Thursday and Friday on the river this week and enjoyed it immensely! The river is falling and is pretty much in fine fettle now. Thursday night Rodney Byles and I fished the bottom beat. We didn't see any fish at all except for the 4 lb sewin that Rod caught at about 10.30 pm and a fine specimen it was too!

My first trip of the 2009 season!

2009-05-11T21:49:00.003+01:00

Went down to the river on Saturday night to try my luck. The river is low and the bed is covered in algae which frequently attaches itself to your fly hooks. There is no doubt that the river needs a complete flush out!

I fished first down the bottom of our beat. There are some changes there but nothing too drastic. The night was warm and overcast but I failed to spot any sewin at all. At about 12.00 midnight I went up to the car park pool and tried my luck there but to no avail. So my first night was blank but this was not too unexpected I have to say as the season is still very young!

Like my pictures? Why not view my complete portfolio?

2009-02-11T12:58:00.006Z

If you like my fishing pictures then why not visit my Redbubble website and look at all my photographic work? There is something there for everyone and you can buy it too! From a greetings card to a full size, mounted and framed picture - its all there and I get a commission!!!! Pretty good actually as I am currently unemployed!

Go to the Links section and click on:

See more kingfisher photography

Tight lines all

The 2009 season is approaching rapidly!

2009-02-11T12:08:00.006Z

Yes, the new season will soon be here! Time to send off for our permits and licenses. Lets hope that the 2009 season is better than last year (well it can't be much worse for me anyway). Make sure you follow the Llangadog Angling Web Site for the latest news and this one of course. Just to remind you of how beautiful the River Towy is and to bring back some happy memories I have uploaded a few pictures for you to enjoy.

Tight lines everyone.

The Annual 2008 luncheon!

2008-11-17T10:09:00.004Z

The annual fishing do went well this year with everyone enjoying themselves!

Held at The Swan at Bibury on Sunday 16th November 2008 we all agreed that we should visit this beautiful village more frequently, preferably in the summer months. We all took turns to feed the rainbow trout and the ducks once we were fully fed and watered and I guess the urge to go fishing certainly crossed my mind as we fed some fish that must be in the 4lb class!

The ability to catch fish is something we all need to work on ready for the 2009 season having all had a pretty poor season this year on the Towy.

Fully fed and watered

The ladies relax with a coffee while we go in search of a rainbow!

The dynamic team (with John asleep as usual!)

Rodney Byles posts his 2008 report!

2008-11-09T15:50:00.000Z

'I've been fishing the Llangadog AL water for well over 20 years and this was my worst season for fish caught. As I prefer to fish the fly at night and being a 400 mile round trip for me, conditions need to be reasonably settled. Unfortunately the river has been up and down like a fiddler's elbow this summer and I only managed three nights with the fly and not even a touch. I fished the spinner on a couple of other visits and on the penultimate day of the season on falling water and using Cerith's 12ft rod, I managed a nice fresh 9lb cock sewin on a silver toby. I would have released this fish but spinner well down and bleeding badly after quite a long fight.

Hopefully conditions will be more settled next season to fish the night fly, otherwise it will be a change of tactics to fish the "garden fly" during the day.'

50 miles for the BHF - DONE!

2008-11-07T10:39:00.005Z

Just to let all of you who sponsored me know the Coventry Bike Ride was cancelled at the last minute due to adverse weather conditions! That didn't stop me however! I went out on my own around Stourport, Kidderminster, Bewdley and almost Worcester and completed the 50 miles despite the cold and rain! It was a horrible day and when I got back home my feet were numb! It took me about 5 hours, I didn't time it perfectly but the important thing was that I didn't let any of you down!

On line sponsorship amounted to £460.00 just £40 short of my target (that excludes the tax benefit that the BHF will get!)

In particular I would like to thank Gilda for her continued support together with a big donation and Llangadog Angling Limited for their £50 sponsorship!

Thanks everyone for supporting me and please keep supporting the British Heart Foundation - one day they may help save your life or someone you love too!

My 2008 catch report!

2008-11-07T10:33:00.002Z

2008 was my worst season for many years!

This was mainly due to the water levels being up and down so frequently.

3 fish was the best I could do!

28th June 1 sewin 4lb (night)
3rd July 1 sewin 4lb (night)
13th Sept 1 sewin 7lb (fly by day)

Lets hope 2009 is better!

Tight lines

Llangadog Angling Limited launch their own News Blog!

2008-10-29T16:58:00.002Z

Great News!

Llangadog Angling Limited have launched their own up-to-date News Blog which will keep members informed of fishing prospects, notable catches, Committee Meeting Minutes, a gallery of fishy images and a whole lot more including members comments!

Why not check it out? Go to the link at the right hand side of the page!

Tight lines!

No salmon today!

2008-10-13T09:06:00.003+01:00

Well my trip to Golden Grove failed to produce me that elusive salmon!

On this trip I fished the beat directly below Llandeilo bridge. The river level was holding up about 2 or 3 ft above normal conditions which was ideal for spinning but not quite suitable for the fly!

There were plenty of coloured sewin about but no sign of any salmon. I caught a 2lb fresh, silver sewin which I returned but otherwise had no other offers all day.

The beat has a great deal of potential for summer fly fishing with plenty of holding water and some fast runs!

Well done Rod - a lovely 9lb fresh run sewin!

2008-10-07T20:21:00.004+01:00

Rodney Byles called me yesterday to inform me that he had caught his first fish of this season! Yes, a 9lb sewin! Well done Rod!

Like most of us Rod has had little opportunity this season to get some concentrated quality fishing on the Towy! The river has been up and down like a yo yo! Living 150 miles away from the river he can only get down fishing every now and then and hitting it right is more luck than judgement! At last he has been lucky and well deserved too!

The fish was hooked on a toby whilst spinning! Not ideal for Rod as he is a fly fishing purist similar to myself but under the circumstances this season I would imagine that he is quietly relieved!

As I am fishing GG on Friday then I just hope that the river holds up till then!

Tight lines!

Fishing prospects for the last 2 weeks!

2008-10-02T18:25:00.002+01:00

Having looked at the BBC Weather it looks as though we might get some rain!

This weekend (4th/5th October) should get heavy rain in Wales which makes me excited as I am fishing Golden Grove again on Friday 10th! It would be nice to see some water for the last week of the season! Despite being catch and release I can't wait to have a last bash before hanging my wader boots up for the winter!

Lets just pray for rain! Watch this space!

Tight lines!

If you enjoy this blog then please support me and be generous to the BHF!

2008-09-25T20:58:00.005+01:00

I am cycling 50 miles for the British Heart Foundation on Sunday 2nd November! Please support me by giving generously!

WHY?

I am doing this event for a number of reasons!

I want to raise money for the BHF because without their support Mr Graham, my consultant, would not have been able to save my life the way he did, with the technology that he had at his disposal and when he did!

I was lucky - 2 weeks from diagnosis to CABAGE x 4! Mr Graham told me that my Aorta was almost blocked and that if it did block up I would be history! Fortunately I did not have a heart attack - if I had then I probably wouldn't be here now! Good enough wake up call, hey?

Yes it was a big big shock to me and my family! I owe my life to the forethought of Dr Horton my GP, to Mr Graham my Consultant, to the BHF for all their good work over the years and their part funding of the Cardiac Rehab Clinic at Kidderminster Hospital and finally to my wife and children without whom I wouldn't have survived the trauma of the operation let alone come out the other side wanting to live! I believe passionately that the BHF can and do make a difference to peoples lives! All the support from their publications, research, PR etc is vital to reducing the impact of this 'silent killer'!

At least two people who I have been close to have died unexpectedly from Cardiac Arrest! A long time friend of mine from work, who was about my age, had a fatal heart attack without any notice as such! He was unlucky! I was lucky!

I have a beautiful granddaughter called Sofia who I love dearly and who I want to be healthy and live a full life! I don't want her to go through what I've been through! I want her, like millions others to eat sensibly, exercise and be healthy without the threat of this evil killer hanging over them and I know that the BHF can help turn things around in time!

Has it affected my life? Before my diagnosis I was tired, worn out, lifeless, useless, knackered and more!

Now I am fighting fit, full of life, enthusiastic about my new job, mad on fishing, mad on photography, mad about Sofia, mad about taking my wife away for holidays and long weekends, mad about cycling, mad about my kids and their wives, mad about my allotment!!! MAD, MAD, MAD MAD!!!

Thank you BHF for letting me live, giving my kids their father back, giving my wife her husband back and most of all - giving my granddaughter Sofia a GRANDAD who would do ANYTHING for her no matter what the consequences!!

Sorry - gone a bit 'over the top but can't help it'!

By the way - a heart by-pass gives you back your heart a million times over!

4hrs - 36 mins to beat!!!

YOU CAN DONATE SECURELY AT

www.justgiving.com/andrewholmes1

PLEASE DO IT NOW!

Cerith cracks it again!

2008-09-22T21:21:00.002+01:00

Cerith had a 'cracking' salmon last week! Here is his brief report!

'Had an 8.5lb salmon on the worm earlier down the bottom, lovely clean fish which gave a good fight on 8lb line. Had a few good knocks as well before three otters disturbed the pool completely for about 20 mins'.

Cerith

Let me have a picture Cerith!

My report from the Golden Grove Fishery!

2008-09-20T18:33:00.003+01:00

I have just returned from a days fishing at the Cilsane Beat at Golden Grove and thought I would report on the fishery for the benefit of any of you who may be considering fishing there.

I met the Ghillie on the bridge at Llandeilo at 8.00 am and he showed me the beat, car parking places and an outline of the river and pools. The water had fallen to about 300mm above summer norm so I was not overly optimistic of catching especially as it looked like it was going to be a sunny day!

This section of the river is slightly wider than the Llangadog water but has a nice mix of water with fast flowing runs and glides that looked very good. There is some canal type water that I would imagine would hold sewin well in the season especially under the trees or alongside occasional obstacles. There is a car park at both ends of the 2 mile beat and one in the middle and fishing is from both sides where appropriate. Fishing alternates from side to side so some river crossing is necessary which would be a restriction to the angler in high water I think. The canal like water represents probably about 40% of the whole and looks extremely good for holding big fish and for night fishing!

I fished all day in bright sunlight and didn't see any fish at all! There were Red Kites about though so there was plenty to entertain me. All in all I can see why GG has such a good reputation and I am looking forward to fishing again in early October.

Tight lines.

Day time fly fishing success at last!

2008-09-13T20:42:00.003+01:00

John and I fished Saturday 13th September. The water looked good! A little bit of colour and about 2ft on the gauge and falling.

It was quite misty when we first started fishing. I kicked off at about 8.30 am with a 7lb sewin on a teal, blue and silver double size 8! John followed suit at about lunch time with a bar of silver 5lb grilse caught in bright sun light on the very same fly pattern! I lost another fish of similar size!

I can't seem to raise a fish so I've decided to raise some more money for the BHF!

2008-09-11T20:14:00.003+01:00

I'm riding 50 miles for the British Heart Foundation in Coventry on the 5th October and I need loads of money!

Please be generous and donate safely and securely on line.

www.justgiving.com/andrewholmes1

Tight lines

My 100th Post on this BLOG!

2008-09-09T23:57:00.002+01:00

Because I had a business appointment in Bridgend today I thought I would pop over to the river and do a spot of fishing!

I got to the river by about 4.00pm. The water level was up about 600mm - 1000mm from normal which was hardly surprising since it hasn't stopped raining now for weeks! I was pleased to see that the colour was what I would call 'cloudy'! It wasn't muddy but had started clearing and you could see a Toby lure quite easily when retrieving near the bank! There wasn't any rubbish floating down either! I would say that the conditions were good for spinning and worming!

I was spinning for about 3 hrs from the Car Park Pool down to below Crewel but with no success! It was windy and rained on and off. I have never seen such sodden fields in all my 20 odd years fishing on the river! Even the cows were struggling up to their knees some times in the field - not the river! Muddy on the river bank? Not half - the worst I have ever seen! I parked my car up the lane halfway between the river and Colin's farm in an effort to avoid the mud which consisted of mud, cow shit and cow piss all nicely mixed together - lovely!

There were no other fishermen to be seen!

Tight lines!

Rod sends me his latest 'bleak' report!

2008-09-07T20:46:00.002+01:00

Rod says

"Went down the river on Wednesday for a couple of days equipped with worming and spinning gear knowing I wouldn’t be able to use the fly as water up quite a bit. Had to wait about half an hour before I could get out of the car to tackle up Wednesday afternoon as it was p*****g down. Water a good height and nice colour for spinning and tried under the railway bridge and above Crewil using different spinners, but saw nothing.

Went out again Thursday and water up a bit from day before but looked okay for spinning. Tried above and below Crewil with different spinners but saw nothing. Then went down where the cattle cross and then by the tin hut, which I used for shelter during some heavy showers and strong wind. Saw one nice fish 5-6lb move along the opposite bank but couldn’t say if it was a sewin or small salmon. Joined Cerith further down who was fishing the worm and thought he was bound to have a fish as looked ideal for the worm as beginning to colour up and also rising slowly. Cerith saw a couple of fish move in the quieter water on the opposite bank but couldn’t tempt them with spinners. Packed up about 7pm and back to the pub.

Friday was horrendous. Went to Road Bridge and water rising and colouring all the time. P*****g down again and river rose about a foot in the 3 hours I was there and got very coloured.

I left the river about 1 o’clock and a good job too as the other side of Llandovery the rain started to get much heavier and the A40 from Sennybridge to Brecon was horrendous and worst driving conditions I've ever been in. Lots of local flooding and one point I almost stopped on high ground to let the rain stop. However I decided to press on and good job I did as I later learned the A40 was closed between Sennybridge and Brecon. Rain eased a little the further east I went. Despite the bad weather an enjoyable coupler of days. I will try and get down again before the end of the season as need to break my duck!"

River still rushing through!

2008-08-30T09:18:00.002+01:00

Went down to the river last night.

It was a gorgeous night, warm, still and overcast! I looked at the road bridge first and found that it was far too coloured to take the fly at night. I then went down to the Car Park Pool where the river was rushing through at one hell of a pace but appeared to be fairly clear. I fished for an hour and came back home! I am glad that I didn't attempt to cross the river down the bottom because I am fairly certain I wouldn't have been able to. A wasted journey I guess!

Latest news!

2008-08-19T17:34:00.000+01:00

Dylan has kindly sent me this report!

We had more torrential rain here last night and I’ve just been over the Tywi at Llangadog where she is full to the banks, probably the highest water this season so I would imagine fishing is a waste of time today. The upper river may fish for the more adventurous anglers with spinners tomorrow but I would have thought it will be Thursday before she is in any state for spinning particularly on the lower river. Fly fishing will be out of it for some time I fear. There is more rain forecast also!!!!!!!!!!!!

Salmon on the Towy?

2008-08-16T12:38:00.002+01:00

Just to prove that salmon can be caught on the Towy!

Wednesday 13th August - latest river conditon!

2008-08-13T16:54:00.002+01:00

Just recieved this report from Dylan Roberts.

More heavy rain last night the Tywi is bank high today, probably the highest its been this season and on the verge of bursting its banks. I’d hold off coming down for a couple of days but should be good spinning water Friday onwards if there is no more rain.

Dylan Roberts

Thanks Dylan!

This sort of firsthand information is invaluable to many of us who live so far away.

Huge sewin caught!

2008-08-12T21:37:00.002+01:00

20 lb sewin - what a catch?

Big pike caught!

2008-08-12T14:30:00.004+01:00

A 23 lb pike caught on the Towy!

Tim picks up 2 good sewin!

2008-08-10T18:03:00.002+01:00

This is Tim's latest report! An enjoyable weeks fishing and judging by most of us a very productive one! Well done Tim!

'Got there Saturday and the river was high. Tried spinning on the evening but no luck. Sunday evening the river had dropped somewhat and was getting towards clear so I tried a few hours night fly down at the cattle drink. Had one pluck first pass through and that was all. River was too high and probably too coloured in reality.

Monday night the river was in better order, running clear but about 12 inches up. I fished down at the bottom end and had one at 6lb at 10.15pm and another at 4.5lb at 10.45pm. Both of these on a 2 inch silver and black tube. Had another couple on briefly while fishing the jambo but I think that the speed of the current was making the fly move so fast across the surface that the fish were misjudging their attacks and hence they were only very lightly hooked.

Tuesday it rained hard all day and the river shot up. I didn't fish. Wednesday was another day of heavy showers. I tried spinning and even had a go at worming in the evening but again no luck. The river rose another 6-12 inches while I was there. Didn't bother Thursday at all. Tried Friday night on the fly but was being a bit optimistic really as it was the last day of my trip. The river was up 12-18 inches and the colour was the wrong side of clear (it actually got worse during the night and started to cloud up). Needless to say, I didn't do any good.

Overall an enjoyable time spent in Carmarthenshire but the weather gods had not been kind to me at all. It really didn't feel like the first week of August.
Just waiting for it to stop raining now and I'll be trying again.'

Tight lines all!

Latest news Tuesday 5th August 2008!

2008-08-05T21:58:00.003+01:00

Cerith says:-

'River been up and down lately, until today, when she must have risen around 30 inches or more after it rained heavy all morning and afternoon. Went down after work and wormed some of the quieter back eddies and managed a small sewin around 1.5lb. As I left, the river was starting to fall, but the forecast is not so good for tomorrow. Might try again tomorrow night and Thursday before heading North'.

Tim strikes lucky again!

2008-08-02T20:54:00.002+01:00

Tim sent me his latest report.

'I took a flyer on Tuesday night and drove over to Llangadog hoping that the showers on Monday hadn't done too much to the river. As it was, the river was up about 2 inches at most and still running clear. It was a dark, wet and at times extremely windy night. I saw fish jump as early as 8pm up in Crewil pool tail.
I fished at the bottom end and saw one or two small sewin jump. The river continued to rise while I fished (up about 5 inches by the time I left). The rise seemed to have shaken the fish, because around 1am I saw one bigger fish jump and heard an almighty splash from downstream - I really did think that a cow had fallen in - the splash was enormous. That must have been one heck of a sewin - pity I didn't connect with that one!

In the end I managed to get a 3lb 12oz fish on a Jambo - it took it like a demon and charged around the pool cartwheeling all the way. I have to say this was the best fight so far, even though I've had bigger fish - I really thought I'd hooked a double figure fish. I ran through the pool again with no luck, so had a coffee and a rest for 15 mins. During this time another big fish crashed in the pool. I tried fishing for it, but the wind became that strong that it became impossible to cast - as soon as I cast forward, the wind blew the line back at me. At this point I thought I'd call it a day - I'd been rained on all night, the temperature had dropped and I was a bit concerned about getting back over the river to the pumphouse. Would you believe it, as soon as I got back to the car, the rain stopped and the wind died away totally.

Anyway, it seems the extra water has got the fish on the move again and I'm looking forward to next week - I'm over near Manordeilo for a week starting Saturday and am hoping that the rain stops falling now, which gives me a chance of night fly. If not, I'll be packing the spinning and worming gear'.

Thanks Tim and well done! With the prospect of a whole week on the river I will expect some good reports and some fish caught!

Tight lines!

Friday 25th July 2008

2008-07-26T22:59:00.002+01:00

John has reported back on his visit!

He said that he fished the lower beat first without seeing or hearing a thing. Then road bridge and again nothing! Very disappointing!

The river appears to have gone very quiet! Maybe its because of the recent rise in water level which encouraged a lot of fish to move up stream. Hopefully new shoals of sewin will be moving into the system over the next week or two!

Tight lines!

Latest report from Tim Wilkinson - Thursday 24th July 2008

2008-07-25T09:08:00.001+01:00

I fished down at the cattle drink last night. Saw a few smaller fish jumping and one or two bigger ones. They seemed to be moving at dusk, before it got dark. After dark I didn't see or hear anything. The wind got up about 12.30 am and fishing became difficult.

The good news is that I managed to winkle out a sholie of about 1.5lb in the run in to the cattle drink. This was early in the night at around 22.45 pm. Had one or two nips after that but nothing at all after the wind got up.

Cheers

Tim

Wednesday 23rd July 2008!

2008-07-24T19:53:00.003+01:00

Popped down to the river in the hope that there might be some sport!

It was a lovely warm night, half moon though with a scattering of clouds! Not too bad! Had one decent pull and a few knocks but that was all. Saw one fish of about 3 lb jump early on, well before dark, opposite the bush, jumped clean out of the water about 1.5m at least! Fished from 10.15 pm to 2.30 am in my shirt sleeves! Fantastic night to be out doors but a distinct absence of any fish in numbers! Disappointing for July!

Tight lines!

kingfisher

Friday 18th July 2008

2008-07-19T15:09:00.003+01:00

Well I have to say that this was a very disappointing night for all three of us, that is John, Chris and I! Conditions were pretty good! Warm, cloudy and fairly dark and the water was crystal. One thing that did hinder us though was a stiff breeze!

We all fished hard from 10.30 pm to 4.00 am! I blanked completely without any decent pulls; Chris lost a good fish early on; John had a few pulls and finished up with a lovely silver 2 lb sewin!

Worming in Crewel pool was also a complete let down! Not a fish to be seen or heard! I caught a small sewin of 1 lb and that was that!

Positive thoughts: Otters were around? Saw 2 kingfishers!
Negative thoughts: Bullocks and, dare I say a BULL!!!!!! F..k..g hell!!! The things that we fishermen put ourselves through! We must be MENTAL!

Monday 14th July 2008

2008-07-15T12:18:00.002+01:00

Went down to the river last night hoping that the conditions would be favourable! Unfortunately they weren't!

The river was far too high for my liking, in fact, whilst crossing back over the river at 2.30 am the water was above my waist by a few inches! There was too much flow in most of the pools although the water seemed reasonably clear. The night was dark but breezy at times. I didn't see any fish at all. Fished with Dave from Swansea and Tim Wilkinson but no one got any pulls. I will try again nearer the weekend if the rain stays away.

Disappointing!

Latest Report - Friday 11th July 2008

2008-07-11T10:35:00.008+01:00

Report courtesy of Rodney Byles

Cerith had another fresh hen sewin yesterday evening just where he caught his other monster last year.

It took nearly 30 min's to land in the fast high water and was 29ins long. It was definitely bigger than the 10 pounder he caught earlier in the season and he reckons it could have been well over 11lb! It took 15 min's to revive and release.

He tried spinning by the tin hut first early evening but with no joy so he changed to his favourite method of angling, the worm!He's a lucky sod or should I say a bloody good wormer! I might have to take it up if I'm going to catch anything this year!!!

Thank you Rod for this post and all the others that have sent me! You make a valuable and informative contribution to my blog even if sometimes a little controversial! Thanks!

New link to Towy Water Levels and more....!

2008-07-10T22:17:00.003+01:00

Good news!

All visitors who want to know about up to date river levels and 5 day weather forecast can now click on the links provided!

All part of the service!

Tight lines

Kingfisher

Big sewin caught Sunday 6th July 2008!

2008-07-08T23:25:00.005+01:00

18lb 2 oz - a fish of a life time?

This is what Rodney Byles has to say about the capture of this fish!

Andy

I have been reading bits and pieces about the 18lb sewin on the forum and decide to add my two pennerth and sent the following comment. You may wish to use it somehow on your blog.Murray’s fish is indeed a fish of a lifetime and suspect if he ever catches a similar one he will probably return it or donate to the hatchery. The various comments on the forum about its egg quality and their survival interested me and thought that I would add some food for thought. I have always believed the larger the fish the greater the number and better quality of eggs. But I have no scientific basis for that opinion.However, I am reliably informed that a hen sewin will produce an average of 600 eggs/pound of fish weight so the larger fish will produce far more than the smaller fish. In Murray’s case that fish probably had nearly 11,000 eggs. Also it has probably returned to the river three of four times before reaching that incredible size so it had probably developed survival skills that could have been passed onto its offspring. It could be said that alevins from these big multi-wintered fish could have greater survival rates than those from smaller and younger less experienced fish. Who knows!I can only pass on information I have about one big Towy sewin caught last season at Bethlehem weighing 15lb 4ozs. This hen fish was donated to the hatchery and produced over 9,000 eggs. The alevins or fry are now 2 inches long and will be put into the Towy sometime in October. If the fish has been persuaded to feed in captivity there is a possibility she could be stripped again this year prior to being released in the estuary later in the year.I was fortunate a few seasons back to catch a 14lb hen sewin at Llangadog and had I known then what I know now I would have taken a photo and either returned it or tethered it for donation to the hatchery as brood stock. So those of you anglers who are successful in catching a big hen sewin and wish to donate it to the hatchery, make sure you have a tether with you and most important of all keep handling to an absolute minimum as fish can be easily damaged and will have far less chance of survival. If you put the tether through the mouth and out through gills and secure to a tree or whatever in slack or quiet water the fish will just rest until collected for the hatchery, or so I’m told.Will be interesting to see response if any!!

What's your view on this?

Kingfisher

Latest report from the 'crack' team!

2008-07-01T21:45:00.014+01:00

Cerith and Rod are fishing all week and they are kindly reporting back to me conditions and catches so watch this space!

Monday night 30th June

Conditions were good, warm and dry but despite this neither of them caught any fish on the fly! Tim Wilkinson, a new member, appears to be having a lucky streak by catching a small sewin of about 1.5 lb. Cerith caught a couple of sewin up to 2lb on a worm at dawn in Crewel Pool!

Come on lads! This one was caught last night! What are you playing at? It weighed 15lb - 12oz!!!!!! Fish of a life time!

Tuesday night 1st July

Rod fished all night until 4.0 am with no success! Cerith didn't fish but went down to Crewel early Wednesday morning and caught 2 sewin, 1 of 2.5lb and 1 of 3lb.

Wednesday night 2nd July

Rod blanked again despite fishing hard till 4.00 am! Tim Wilkinson, despite being a new member and not knowing the LAL water at all caught a lovely 6 lb 14 oz sewin on a mouse! Well done Tim! I am glad that you are showing Rod how it's done! A picture would be welcome!

Thursday night 3rd July

Well, I could see that Rod and Cerith were struggling, to say the least, so John and I decided to go down and show them how its done! Only one fish was caught and neither Rod, Cerith or John caught it! Yes, Andy came to the rescue again! As a result of a kind invitation from Rod to fish down the pool that he was about to fish but didn't know quite where to wade or what length of line he needed! I agreed to show him! Halfway down the pool I caught a 4 lb sewin that fought like one twice the size! Thanks Rod!

Friday night 4th July

No fish were caught!

IMPORTANT NOTICE

A new marker has been installed just below Crewel Pool.

I have been asked by LAL to remind all anglers that fishing is FLY ONLY below Crewel when the marker is showing. Failure to comply with this rule may result in membership being rescinded!

Recent catches!

2008-06-30T18:13:00.003+01:00

Having been away on holiday last week I haven't really had time to update the blog properly so here is some recent news on catches!

On 19th June Cerith tells me that he caught a silver 10 lb sewin on the worm together with a few smaller fish! Having just popped down to the river after work as the river was looking hopeful after a small rise it certainly paid off for him. No doubt he will be trying to beat the monster fish that he caught last year! Well done Cerith!

Also, new member Tim Wilkinson caught his first sewin of 4 lb on 24th June! You do realise the implications of this don't you Tim? Yes you are now hooked for life but take it from me it's not all plain sailing, in fact it can be very depressing at times especially when the fish are few and far between! Anyway, well done Tim!

So there seems to be a few fish about but I think the real test will be this week when Rodney Byles and Cerith are battling it out all week with John and myself joining in the fray later in the week! Some of us have to work for a living!

Tight lines everyone!

Saturday 28th June - my first fish of the season!

2008-06-29T11:41:00.003+01:00

Well, despite adverse weather conditions last night I managed to open my account for the 2008 season in reasonable style I think! I didn't weigh it but it must have been at least 4 lb and a good silver colour.

As soon as I arrived at the pumping station I could tell that it was quite breezy and in fact a couple of degrees below temperatures at home. In fact it was cold enough to warrant a fleece even for the walk down to the river. One good thing though it was cloudy and overcast! Having returned from Sorento in Italy on Friday where the temperatures were early 30's every day I found myself feeling decidedly chilly!

I saw 3 other fishermen in total, one on the Llandeilo AA water opposite and two guys walked past me to the very bottom of our beat. I don't know how any of them got on.

Fish wise I saw one fish of about 5 lb move just by the bush opposite where we sit and that was all. My excitement came in my usual spot, around the corner in the tail of the pool at about 11.30 pm on a 2" black and silver tube. The fish must have followed me for a while and only decided to take as I was about to start retrieving. It fought well and I landed it in the shallow water below. As I write this piece she is cut up into 6 steaks and is well and truly frozen! Can't wait until tea tomorrow! Poached sewin, new potatoes and broad beans - all caught or grown by me!

Latest report from the Towy!

2008-06-18T23:17:00.002+01:00

There are reports of a few fish making themselves known; some hooked; some lost!

Lance has told Rodney Byles that there are some decent fish lurking at the Road Bridge! Lance has found them difficult to catch but has seen some good fish moving at night! He has also lost a big fish very recently there! His catch to date is a 4lb sewin from the Car Park Pool!

With water levels very low we need rain urgently! I am off to Sorento for the next week so I wont be on the river for a week or so! I have yet to open my account!

Tight lines.

John open's his account for the 2008 Season in style!

2008-06-01T11:14:00.005+01:00

My brother-in-law John caught his biggest ever sewin on a fly on Saturday night! The first of the season for any of us John's fish weighed in at 6 1/2 lb! Well done John!

Chris and John planning their nights fishing!

What a cracker?

Anglers get lucky on Golden Grove!

2008-05-19T20:34:00.002+01:00

A few fish were caught on Golden Grove last night. This is just one of them and a beautiful specimen too. Hopefully we will start to see fish like this up at LAL water in the not too distant future.

Tight lines!

Rodny Byles goes to Sweden in search of some sport with sea trout!

2008-05-15T09:12:00.008+01:00

Rod has sent me this report from his recent trip to Sweden. At last I have some pictures of sea trout on my blog!

'I have been going to Sweden for well over 30 years on business and always wanted to fish there but never seemed to have the time. So during my last and recent visit I decided I would definitely make time for fishing the fly for Baltic sea trout. I opted to fish one of Sweden’s best sea trout rivers, the Dalaven at Alvkarleby, around 100 miles north of Stockholm and a few miles from the Baltic coast. There is a good train connection from Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport to Alvkarleby costing about SEK300 return (about £25).

I stayed at the local and comfortable Alvkarleby hotel – they also have much cheaper self catering options – and bought my fishing ticket costing SEK160/day, about £13.60. Fishing when I was there in mid April was from 5am to 9pm. I was in for a big surprise. The river was very wide, about 150 yards in places, very fast flowing between 400 and 500m3/sec and water temperature quite cold at around 4ºC. The nearby hydroelectric power station regulates the flow and the river was up and down like a fiddler’s elbow.

My new 10ft Sage, equipped with fast sinking line and heavy tube, was also the wrong tool and much too short for the task in hand. All the other “sensible” local fly anglers, were deep wading and using 15ft double-handers with 750 grain fast sinking lines and casting well over 50 yards or more. Interestingly all were using large arbour Loop reels. Still I gave it my best shot with my little wand and stuck to the margins and managed a “first” by catching and releasing two bream on a 2inch tube!!!

There were some nice sea trout caught on the sunk fly (see photos) up to 3.6kilos (8lb in old money). But most anglers were either spinning or using the preferred method of a paternoster system of a fly tied on a longish cast linked to a heavy weight trotted down along the bottom in the fast flow. Salmon also run up in the summer and biggest caught a couple of years back weighed just under 28 kilos, that’s around 60lbs!!!

The Alvkarleby fishery bailiff and local Swedish and Finnish anglers were all exceptionally friendly and helpful, making for a very enjoyable but “blank” visit. I even made friends with a very tame Red Squirrel (see photo) and the miles of walking I did in the fresh air was also a great tonic for my recently repaired “ticker”. However, I was very disappointed with the amount of nylon line left discarded on the riverbank just waiting to get tangled up in birds’ legs. I picked up hundreds, yes hundreds of yards of the stuff and put it in the numerous waste bins along the river.

As I left the river I looked over the main bridge with my polaroids and watched for about 10-15 minutes in the bright warm sunshine a constant stream of sea trout nose to tail and 3-4-5 abreast slowly making there way upstream. There were hundreds of them and never seen so many in one place before. An amazing sight.

For those interested have a look at the link'.

http://www.alvkarlebysportfiske.nu/

Gravel extraction - the story continues!

2008-05-12T08:43:00.005+01:00

Rodney Byles has kindly sent me a piece that he has written which describes his findings and views on this very important matter!

It's not very often that I find it necessary to publish other peoples articles on this blog but this report is so detailed and informative that I felt it in everyone's interest to do so! Clearly Rodney not only shares my views but that of many others too, about the environment in which we live and the place that we all value so dearly - the River Towy!

The research that he has done, including endless telephone calls and emails has uncovered a great deal of valuable facts that we all need to know. Much of the views that he expresses in the piece are I am sure shared by most if not all of us! I am sure that you will find it most interesting and that hopefully it will stimulate further debate on this very important subject! Clearly the story continues!

'I believe Cerith may have already had a chat with the farmer about some Llangadog Angling Association Ltd members’ concerns the gravel/shale extraction is having on the water course and the creation of the bypass channel shown in the Google satellite image, which I believe was taken sometime last season in lowish water. I do not know if this is now an accurate picture of the area as I have not been down there yet this season. Also I do not know what response Cerith got.

As many members will know who fish this section the farmer has been taking out shale for several years and this area, has at times, resembled a bomb site with heaps and craters everywhere. Last season the bank of the main river was finally breached and over topped during a flood allowing the fast flowing water to carve out a smooth bypass channel and preventing anglers’ access to the bend of the main river.

The action of the farmer was recently brought to the attention of Environment Agency Wales. However, the EAW’s Flood Risk Management section does not consider the alleged activity presents a fluvial flood risk to people or property; therefore, no action will be taken by flood risk management. The local EAW bailiff also made a site visit and concluded that no enforcement action is warranted from a fisheries perspective. The EAW has advised LAAL of its conclusions.

I spoke with our bailiff after this and his first visit to the area since gravel extraction started. He told me that he believed the channel had been caused by “natural erosion” as he saw no evidence of gravel extraction. I would probably have reached the same conclusion had I not known the history of its creation. However, he did say that without any evidence of actually catching the farmer in the act of gravel extraction or photographs of his action, there was nothing he could do. But he was adamant that if he had the evidence he would definitely prosecute the landowner for illegally extracting gravel.

Our bailiff was surprised, that as the gravel extraction had been going on for some years, it had not been reported to him before, especially as some LAAL members who have fished at this location since unauthorised gravel extraction started, are also EAW employees. I couldn't’t answer that.

I believe the EAW appears to have abdicated its apparent responsibility. The farmer has apparently extracted gravel in contravention of the Water Resources Act 1991 and the Land Drainage Byelaws and understand he has not applied to the EAW for consent. I have requested to know what action the EAW will be taking to ensure compliance and prevent further gravel extraction and to repair the damage done to the bank by the apparent illegal extraction of gravel. I also believe the farmer has not applied to the Council for planning permission. Maybe Defra should be informed as this may come under their jurisdiction.

The farmer has put LAAL in a very awkward situation as LAAL rent this water from the farmer and would not wish to take any action that may jeopardise future fishing.
But it cannot be right that farmers/landowners can extract gravel willy-nilly and change the course of a river without any recourse from the relevant authorities. I can just imagine the fuss and uproar from anglers if this was on Llandeilo AA water.

If the EAW does not act to protect our environment it will just create apathy.'

Rodney Byles
Llangadog Angling Limited Member for over 20 years

Latest NEWS from the Towy at Llangadog

2008-05-11T12:21:00.002+01:00

Just returned Saturday from a 3 day spell on the river!

The water level is low but there is still a reasonable flow through the pools. Green slime is a bit of a nuisance when worming but not an issue with the fly! There is the odd fish around.

My brother-in-law John has seen a few fish in Crewel. One of these I saw too and it was a silver sewin of about 5lb. I also saw a smaller fish by the tin hut at the bottom end of Crewel and another under the railway bridge. Other than that we fished right down the bottom on Thursday night and the Churns and Cattle Drink on Friday night but saw nothing.

A good flood would now would be perfect but I'm afraid the forecast for this next week doesn't look very favourable!

Tight lines!

Think I might start fishing my 'home' river!

2008-05-02T10:26:00.008+01:00

This 8 lb springer was caught the other day at Holt on the River Severn just a few miles from where I live!

The Half Moon Inn is producing fish now that I have left! 7 salmon to date! For more information and latest news on the Torridge click on the link below.

http://www.halfmoonsheepwash.co.uk/

Gravel extraction is damaging our fishery!

2008-05-01T21:05:00.003+01:00

It is clear for anyone to see. This is a low water picture! It may be too late to reverse this damage but lets hope not!

One thing is for certain we must do something!

Please pledge your support!

POST YOUR COMMENTS NOW!

The 'best months' to fish - these are MY statistics for what they are worth!

2008-04-16T16:43:00.007+01:00

These quantities are based on my catch record published earlier on this blog. If you look at the catch record you will see that there are quite a few years missing!

Whilst I have caught more fish in July over these years the total weight of sewin is heavier in August!

So the message is - stay in doors till July, catch your specimen sewin in August? Take up badminton or coarse fishing for the rest of the year!!!

NOT SCIENTIFIC!

Guess what?

I am a grandad - Sofia Marie - 8Lb - 5oz born Wednesday 23rd April 2008 - a good size springer - apparently she fought well too!

A disappointing trip to the River Torridge - Spring 2008

2008-04-08T21:24:00.009+01:00

Rod and I arrived at the Half Moon Inn at Sheepwash on the evening of Friday 4th April with lots of anticipation, hoping that the fishing conditions would be conducive to catching a spring salmon or two! The water was about 300mm too high by all accounts but that didn't bother us as we were there for 4 days so maybe we had hit the river just right?

As far as the water was concerned then I think we had arrived at a good time! The water was falling and clearing - just what we wanted! The problem was that there were no salmon to be seen anywhere! We both fished hard, Rod for 3 days and me for 4 days but neither of us saw a salmon let alone caught one!

The expert at work on Sunken Tree Pool at Beam

Saturday was quite warm but Sunday morning we sat eating our breakfast watching the snow falling outside. Early mornings and nights were cold from then on but the days themselves were very pleasant and fairly warm. Its a lovely place to fish and we had a good laugh in the bar at night with Bob and his wife. Charles, the previous owner, still organises the fishing and has hardly changed over the years that I have known him. We were lucky to be put on one of the best beats on the river every day - Beam!

Rod trying his luck in the Weir Pool at Beam

Time for a break!

This is Yew Tree Pool at Beam

We tried sinking lines, sink tips, floating lines the lot! Big flies, small flies and every colour you can think of but to no avail. We didn't even see any sea trout!

Now it's my turn in the Weir Pool

The Torridge, looking down stream from the Bridge and Boulders Pool

By the time I left on Tuesday afternoon the water was at about optimum height and very nearly clear! One good thing is that the Hotel is more like what it used to be when Charles and Benji had it. A nice place to stay and a very pleasant holiday! Rod is off to Sweden next week and hopes to get a few days fishing in - might get some pictures of 'fish' for the blog? Tight lines Rod! Watch this space.

There were 3 of us fishing on this occassion!

The water level was almost perfect but the weather had turned cold

For latest news on the Torridge click on the link below

www.halfmoonsheepwash.co.uk

And some of yours!

2008-04-03T17:39:00.002+01:00

I went into the hazel wood
Because a fire was in my head,
I cut & peeled a hazel wand
And hooked a berry on a thread.

And when white moths were on the wing
And moth-like stars came fluttering out
I threw the berry in the stream
And caught a little silver trout.
Anon.

Unknown contributor

My favourite sea trout fishing quotations!

2008-03-28T18:29:00.009Z

Thought I would share these quotes with you while we are all getting ready for the new season. They are my favourites and can be found along with many more in the sea trout 'bible', Hugh Falkus - Sea Trout Fishing.

'Rivers and the inhabitants of the watery elements are made for wise men to contemplate and for fools to pass by without consideration'

Izaak Walton, The Complete Angler (1653)

'A moon that wades through a sea of clouds need not disturb the angler very much, but one which converts night into day is not loved by the keen fisher who desires some sport with sea trout. In these circumstances he must exercise the greatest care, study his every movement, approach the water quietly and always keep himself concealed from the trout, use the finest tackle and throw the lightest of lines; in short, he must stalk his fish, and in the end his reward, if any, will not be great. It will, however, be highly creditable. A single capture is a triumph; more than that constitutes a glorious night's sport'.

R. C. Bridgett, Sea Tout Fishing (1929)

Do you know any good ones?

The 'A' Team get stuck in to bank repairs!

2008-03-21T19:45:00.008Z

Just 4 of us showed up to do bank repairs on Good Friday! There wasn't a great deal to do but it was good to get out on the river and get a bit of physical exercise!

So what did we achieve?

Well, we re-cut all the steps over By-Pass Hill (formally known as Heart Attack Hill), we repaired both bench's top and bottom of Crewil and we also repaired and improved some of the handrail over BPH. We were lucky to get the assistance of Collins quad bike to take everything down to Crewil and, I must admit, the help of a very competent driver (Eifions son).

The weather started off very cold but soon warmed up as we got started.

The river was up but by no means over the bank! I would guess that it was up about 1 metre above summer level? Maybe even less than that!

After we had finished our work the others went back up river but I went for a walk down the bottom!

I was shocked when I got down to the lower beat! There were 3 rivers! The last time I saw this was when we had very high water! But the water wasn't what you would call high now! The river wasn't in flood! The farmer has been extracting gravel for years now and I have been concerned before but this is serious! I could not get to the main river or the tree that we use as our base camp! I could see the tree but there were 2 rivers preventing me from getting to it!

In my view there has been serious damage to our fishing caused by the action of this farmer! We must not only make sure it stops but we must also force the farmer to replace the gravel that's been taken! I will speak with Eifion soon to see what he thinks. I have tried to get some pictures that show the extent of the damage but its not easy! I fear that this could be a deliberate attempt to change the course of the river? I hope it won't effect our summer fishing too much but take it from me lads, don't hold your breath! If this irresponsible behaviour is allowed to continue then my best fishing beat and that of most of my friends is finished!

WE NEED TO ACT NOW BEFORE ITS TOO LATE!

Llangadog Angling Limited - latest report

2008-03-14T17:25:00.004Z

This is a brief extract of a meeting that took place on Monday 10th March 2008. I was unable to attend but Eifion has kindly sent me some minutes.

The Towy Net Buyout has now been completed! A total of £88,000 has been paid for 6 nets, including £42,000 from Sir Edward Dashwood.

Bill Gracie has been appointed as Bailiff although this was inadvertently left out of AGM minutes.

A Licence to shoot Goosanders and Cormorants was circulated. The Chairman said that he would consider filling it in?

Repair work will take place on the river bank on Good Friday 21st March 2008.

The 2008 Season is nearly here!

2008-03-10T10:14:00.005Z

Well it's been a long wait but the new season is nearly upon us and I can't wait to wet that fly in the water as I am sure many of you can't!

I am pleased that Rod is feeling alot better now! There will be no holding us back this season what with me being bionic and him having had his pipes straightened!

Rod and I are going to spend a few days salmon fishing on the River Torridge again this year. We are fishing from 5th April through to the 8th at the Half Moon Inn and we are both looking forward to it.

The master at work on Beam Weir Pool - the place where Rod caught 2 fresh run salmon in April 2006 and I lost 1 fish - just my luck!

I am pleased that there are new owners at the HMI and hope that they can return the pub back to it's former glory. It was always one of my favourite haunts when Charles and Benji ran it, along with Muriel, Phil and many many more characters! The fishing can be exceptional but it all depends on the water. One thing for certain though is that the area is one of the most beautiful places I know of especially in Spring.

Looking downstream from Beam Weir Pool towards Sunken Tree Pool

I didn't see it myself but Rod tells me that Johnny of 'Johnny's New Kingdom', whose wildlife series is currently running on BBC TV at the moment, was filming otters at Beam weir, in the last programme. Beam is one of the best HMI beats on the river I would say!

I trust that you have all sent off for your Llangadog Angling Limited's permits? If you haven't then you had better pull your finger out before they are all snapped up! John and I have offered to build a couple of fisherman's bench's, one above and one below Crewil Pool. Haven't heard back yet as to whether than want us to!

Rod is threatening to buy a Sage Z Axis rod like mine but hasn't got round to ordering it yet from the States! I'm off to Cardiff on Saturday to buy a new pair of waders from Gary Evans Fishing tackle shop while Gilda goes shopping in the City (I bet my bill will be cheaper than hers though!)

Lets hope that Rod and I get a salmon each on the Torridge this year! It would be a great start to the season!

A couple of hard fighting spring salmon like this one will do - PLEASE!

Tightlines for the 2008 season everyone!

ClustrMap archive

2008-03-07T10:21:00.003Z

In case you are wondering where the 'busy' cluster map has gone - it's been archived! You can still view it by clicking on the map and then 'Maps Archived'.

Tight lines

Llangadog Angling Association Newsletter for 2007 Season

2008-02-15T23:11:00.001Z

Llangadog Angling Limited – Supporting Llyn Y Fan Hatchery.

The club has always supported the efforts of Llyn Y Fan Hatchery, and the 15lb 5oz hen sea trout that local angler Cerith Booth caught in July was donated to the Hatchery. The sea trout was stripped this winter and produced approximately 11,500 eggs. The sea trout is to be kept at the hatchery until next winter when hopefully she will produce more eggs, after which she will be released back to the Tywi. On the 26th January seven local and guests of the club visited the hatchery for a look around. It was a fascinating morning and all were encouraged and thankful for the work of the owners, Viv and Olwen.

Information

Anglers are reminded that the fly only rule still applies, with fly fishing only below Crewil pool from the 1st May through too and including 31st August when the white marker at the tail end of Crewil Pool is showing.

Anglers are also reminded to take their litter home, especially fishing nylon, and to leave the fishing bank in the order they found it.

Please report any suspicious activity to a committee member or contact the Environment Agency direct on free phone 0800807060. Any member who holds a Llangadog Angling Limited permit has the right to ask any other fisherman/woman fishing club waters to see their permit.

Llangadog Angling Limited Contact Details -

President Eric Jones Contact Details
Vice President Dylan Roberts
Chairman Roger Howell
Secretary Eifion Jones 01550777296
Treasurer Eric Jones 01550777645
Club Bailiff Cerith Booth 017891817204
Committee Tony Byard
Jeff Davies
B Gracie
Sub - Committee Andrew Holmes

If you would like to contribute to the next issue of the news letter or have any information regarding catches etc, please contact Cerith Booth on 017891817204, or alternatively at cerithbooth@hotmail.co.uk

Introduction

We the committee of Llangadog Angling Limited would like to welcome you all to the first club news letter, spring 2008. We hope you find this news letter of interest and wish you all tight lines for the coming season.

Llangadog Angling Limited was formed in 1963 as Llangadog Angling Association. The inaugural meeting was held on the 14th October 1963 at the Castle Hotel. Six local parishioners attended the first meeting with the objective of providing recreation in the form of angling to the residents of the Llangadog County Council Ward. Mr Owen Jenkins was nominated as the first Chairman and Mr W Butler Jenkins as the first secretary. The first president was Mr Leslie Thomas. Also present at the first meeting were Mr Dewi Hall, Mr J Rees and Mr D T Evans. At the first meeting it was proposed by Mr Leslie Thomas that all present at the inaugural meeting be made founder members of Llangadog Angling Association. The fee for Llangadog parishioners for the coming season was priced at a £1.

During its time Llangadog Angling Limited has mainly relied on leasing its fishing waters from various sources. In the early years the club leased not only fishing rights on the Tywi, but also on the River Bran, Sawdde and Dulais. In more recent years the club strengthened its cause with the purchase of two exclusive fishing rights on the river Tywi. On the 18th February 1987 the club purchased the fishing rights from the Car Park Pool down to the Cattle Drink Pool below the railway Bridge. And on the 23rd June 1992 the club purchased the fishing rights at the Road Bridge. There are also records showing that the club made enquires regarding buying and leasing fishing on the Teifi at Lampeter and on the Lake at Talley.

A more recent change was the renaming of the club to Llangadog Angling Limited from Llangadog Angling Assosiation in 2007.

Catch Statistics 2000 - 2007

Season Salmon Total Sea Trout Total
2007 7 145
2006 2 155
2005 6 256
2004 5 106
2003 7 346
2002 2 345
2001 Foot and Mouth Year - No Fishing
2000 18 529

These figures are not accurate, because not all catch returns are returned to the club. Anglers are kindly asked to report all catches at the end of the season so a true reflection of the numbers of fish caught on Llangadog Angling Limited waters can be obtained.

Llangadog Angling Limited

Founded 1963

News Letter - Spring 2008

A look back at the 2007 season.

April – Opening day was Sunday the 1st, and although not many anglers fish the Tywi at Llangadog this early, one local angler was rewarded for his early activity with a salmon on the opening day at the Road Bridge Pool. April on the whole was a dry month with settled conditions and although there were a few fish seen in Crewil Pool and down the Groins during the month, I have no reports of catches.

May – This weather for May was very unsettled, with fluctuating river levels making night time fly fishing difficult. There were reports of fish being caught on all methods, with the worm in particular proving its worth during the small spates.

June – This is the month that usually produces sea trout in good numbers, but because of the unsettled weather, catching the sea trout proved to be difficult on all methods especially at night on the fly. There were reports of fish showing at the Car Park Pool, Crewil Pool and down the Groins, and I also have a report of a double figure sea trout lost on the 9th down the Groins.

July – The month started as June ended with the river in flood and this pattern continued throughout the month with the river not settling to summer level due to all the rain. July turned out to be a complete washout for night time fly fishing, with the best chances of catching a fish on a spinner or on a worm. The rain at the beginning of the month did bring a lot of fish up river from the lower beats, unfortunately due to the continued high water the fish moved through as quickly as they arrived. However there were reports of a number of fish caught during the month including a 15lb 5oz sea trout for local angler Cerith Booth on the 2nd to the worm, one of ten he caught during the week. Guest member Wyn Richards also reported good catches on a spinner during the first week.

August – The month of August was much more settled with the river running at summer level or just above for most of the month. The night time fly fisherman welcomed this settled period at good catches were reported throughout the month. Guest member Andrew Holmes and his brother in law John caught 4 sea trout of 2lb, 4lb, 5lb and 7lb between them on the 11th down the Groins, and Andrew followed this up with another 2 sea trout of 4lb 8oz and 6lb 8oz the following week. There was also a report of a run of grilse during a small spate on the 15th with local angler Cerith Booth catching one of 7lb 8oz on the worm at the tail end of Crewil Pool.

September – As the summer came to a close and the river Tywi welcomed in the autumn, reports of fish being caught slowly dried up. There were still sea trout around, and in between the coloured fish the odd nice fish was caught. Guest member Chris Morris catching a 5lb sea trout on the 21st on a spinner at the Churns.

October – With the season ending on the 7th,October gives you little time to try and catch a salmon, and with no floods during the last week of September to push the salmon up-river it did indeed prove to be a disappointing end to the season. The season was extended to the 17th of October strictly catch and release, but I do not know how many anglers used this extension period and I have no reports of fish caught.

Llyn-Y-Fan Hatchery, Towy News Letter, January 2008

2008-02-01T22:09:00.000Z