A Good Soaking

The forecast for Sunday was for heavy showers turning to prolonged spells of rain. Standing in the garden at midday, there was a strong wind blowing, but the sky looked quite bright, so i decided to head for Herefordshire.
During the journey the sky became darker and as i pulled into the car park it had started to rain . A quick look over the bridge showed the Lugg was clear and a swirl said the fish were feeding. Walking downstream the rain became heavier and on reaching a pool with fish rising i was drenched.



Looking up the river with the rain easing, there were at least three fish taking insects off the surface although no obvious flies could be seen. Recently in this situation the Grey Emerger has worked well, so on it went. The first fish i covered took on the third cast, a 10" Trout, followed by two more as i moved upstream, best at 11".




After a hour or so i noticed the river colouring up and the fish had stopped rising, so a switch to the Pheasant Tail nymph under the Grey Emerger was made. Unfortunately other than a couple of lost fish on the Emerger no other fish were caught.
The wind strengthened which made casting difficult and the temperature dropped as i made my way back up the beat. So after four hours i called it a day and went back to the car.



A slightly disappointing afternoon, still it was good to have been out in the fresh air with the birds singing. In between the showers i did see a few Olives and Large Brook Duns, both refused by the Trout, but no Mayfly were seen.
As the year progresses, the woodland floor and bank side plants are growing fast, including the invasive Himalayan Balsam which is growing in patches along the riverside.