20/01/2025 - A days grayling fishing
The swim where I caught my grayling
20/01/2025 - A Day After Grayling My grayling swim
It was around 0900 hrs when the taxi driver dropped me off, with instruction to collect me at 1700 hrs. I then had to walk for about fifteen minutes to a grayling stretch of my local river, first job was to check water temperature it was 44 degrees F, up 2 degrees F on the day before, air temperature was 46 degrees F. I then thought “Should I fish for chub or the grayling”, I chose the latter, in the hope I could find the ladies of the stream as they are often known. I then had to decide, if I would fish upstream nymph or float fish trotting with gentles. I chose to float fish, it’s a real good searching method, which I will need to do, often it entails a lot of searching around to find the grayling. find one and you often find more, as they are a shoal fish. If I didn’t find the grayling, I might catch some chub. The weather was ideal, overcast with a light mist and no wind, the river was carrying about two feet fairly fast clear water.
My tackle consisted of a 12 foot rod matched with a Richard Carter centre pin holding some fifty yards of 3lb bs line, I chose a cork on quill Avon 2SSG’s which were placed halfway between hook and float, a foot below these two shot I added another SSG, I then attached a size 14 barbless hook to 3lb nylon, to the hook length I attached an 2AA shot about six inches from the hook. I would be fishing some very fast water hence the amount of weight on the line, one reason for all the weight was to get the bait down quickly, the other so I could boss the stream, and not let the stream take charge of the float. In my tackle bag I had a flask of hot chocolate, a cheese and pickle roll, a box of white gentles, float tube a box with various accessories, including my scales and plastic weigh bag. I didn’t have a chair, I would be doing a lot of walking, also when trotting a long distance perhaps 40 yards I feel I need to stand up, one to see the float, second to control the float.
I had in mind three swims where I might catch grayling, I started just upstream of the bridge where a stream flowed in to the river creating a nice crease. After running the float through a few times, I reckon I’d got the depth about right. After putting in a handful of white gentles I baited with three gentles, with an under hand cast I dropped the float in at the start of the swim, allowing the float to pull line off the reel, in the first half an hour, I put in a few gentles every cast. My reward was just two small dace and three chub of similar size. It was very pleasant fishing even if the results were small, I gave it another fifteen minutes, with no action it was time I move on to my second swim about two hundred yards upstream. Repeating the same as I’d done in the first swim, every cast I added a few gentles, half an hour later with no sign of grayling or other fish, I moved again. This time some half a mile upstream, choosing to fish the tail of a well know salmon pool where in the past I’ve had good results from both grayling, trout and chub. After running the float through a few times I felt happy that the bait would be close to the bottom. I was going to be fishing a lot further out also the water was a lot faster. I chose to put in gentles with a small bait dropper, a prewar model that Gobio Gobio had given me, I find it far better than the modern ones, as it doesn’t thankfully get snagged up in the rocks. I started by putting in two droppers of bait, then made a Wallis cast as I was now fishing quite a long way across the river.
After several casts I had a bite about thirty yards down the swim, it turned out to be a small grayling about eight inches. After catching three similar size fish, I put in two more lots of gentles, after half a dozen casts David said “The floats gone” at the same time he said those words, I’d hooked a good fish, immediately I switched on the drag, as line was taken. My big worry was an old tree in the water along the far bank. At first I wasn’t sure if it was a chub or grayling, then I felt it shake its head and twist in the water, I said to David “I reckon I have a good grayling” After a long lengthy fight I started to gain line, slowly I was getting the fish across the fast water that was pushing down the middle of the river. Eventually I had the fish in the slightly quieter water. David was a few yards downstream watching the action when he called “Take it easy it’s a good grayling” A few more minutes then the fish is in the net. As it fell in the net, the hook fell out, I sighed with relief, as it meant that I didn’t handle the fish, which are so fragile especially if they have had to fight for some time. We got a reading of 1 lb 9 ounces, a quick picture then the net was lowered in the water where we watched it swim off strongly. Over the next two hours I had eight more fish on similar size, David reckoned that two of the fish would have been about 1 lb 12 ounce region. After a fishless hour I moved five more times, only catching a few small dace chub and grayling, nothing bigger than eight inches. I was more than satisfied with my day on the river. Back at the bottom end just upstream of the bridge, I sat on the bank to enjoy my hot chocolate and cheese roll, while watching the bird life. Long tailed tits, two robins enjoying my gentles, some twenty or thirty jackdaws settled in the tees behind me. A cock pheasant on the far bank sudden took off then flew across the river to an ivy clad oak tree no doubt its roost for the night. The highlight was a kingfisher which perched on a branch over the stream, after catching two minnows it flew off upstream. By now the light was failing so I headed off to meet my taxi driver who is always on time to get me back for my bus home.
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Martin James FishingEmail:[email protected]

box of gentles had been in the fridge for 4 weekd at a temperature of 38 degrees F

Bait dropper

I had 9 of these grayling all of similar size
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