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February’s Fly Tying Evening in the Ferry Boat Inn was well attended. Tony Fox, who recently won the Final Fling with a stunning 5-11-0 rainbow, is here tying up one of his killer patterns, along with Harry Fox and Kevin Blackwell. Don’t forget, there’s another Fly Tying Evening on Wednesday 6th March, also in the Ferry Boat Inn, beginning at 7.00pm.
Farmoor 2 fished extremely well for its regular Fur & Feather event, sponsored by Craig Barr’s Flash Attack Flies, given the time of year. Under rather more comfortable conditions than last year, 39 anglers achieved a rod average of 1.4, with a top bag of 9 fish for 17-10-0 (inc time bonus) to Mark Haycock. 2nd was Gary Morris with 8 fish for 15-15-0, with Harry Fox (right) 3rd with 7 fish for 14-10-0. Harry has also been selected for this year’s AT TEFF team in the European Championships in Montenegro, so has obviously hit form at the right time! Well done Harry!
The AT TEFF Bank Qualifier enjoyed better conditions than the previous day, which saw driving rain in the afternoon. With a close-to-capacity field, which included several internationals, fish were being caught right from the start, with no areas really being quiet. Winner Andrew Scott landed 13 fish, blanking on just one peg, to finish with 20 points, but Billy Bridgeworth made the most of a good start on the Houses Bank to pick up 7 fish and finish a good 5th out of a field of 18. He now goes through to the Southern Semi-final at Elinor in March. Full Results >>
The Fur & Feather started off wet and miserable, but some early limits off the Causeway and the Houses Bank raised the spirits, with Barry Shedden doing well on No4, and John O’Regan getting four off the Houses Bank, which included a cracker of 3-13-0. Jim Dillon, Andrew Smith and John Ferguson also got their four fish later off the Houses Bank, while Frank Daley caught up from the Steps on the East Bank of No4. Top Weight went to John O’Regan with 11-13-0, 2nd was Frank Daley with 10-3-0, and 3rd Jim Dillon with 8-11-8.
The Autumn Series enjoyed some excellent fishing, with fish to over 4lbs and bags in the 20s and 30s, so anyone who couldn’t make it will see what they’ve been missing in the Fur & Feather. With a consistent performance of three first places and one second, and fish to 4-6-0, Barry Shedden took the Michael Radford shield, just two points ahead of John Ferguson and Andrew Green Results>>
Halfway through the Autumn Series, the fishing really switched on. Here are a couple of good fish to Barry Shedden and Peter Baker. Barry’s went 4-6-0, Peter’s not far off that.
Rivers events: Mike Heritage, Tony Fox and Andrew Green all fished the Rivers National on the Eden at Appleby, where the trick was to avoid a blank in your four sessions. Mike went one better, getting 2+2 on the second day, finishing in the top ten. Mike also shone in the Broadlands Grayling Classic, finishing as top team with partner Baz Reece, with Tony and Harry Fox also doing well. Tony also won the Lower Itchen Rivers Qualifier, with the other two qualifying, and caught well despite coloured water affecting the downstream sections. Our Wherwell club grayling trip saw a nice clear river, if a little low, but we had to contend with bright sun and a strong downstream wind. The sun did at least encourage a hatch, and fish were caught on small dries as well as on the Duo, with some good fish to over 40cms landed. As usual, Hugh’s gammon and veg went down very well at lunchtime.
The recent Wateraid Charity event saw a really good turnout for this worthy cause. With the reservoirs not yet fully cooled down after the long hot summer, attention was split between Nos 4 & 5. At the lunch break it was clear the West bank of No5 was the place to be, with 2nd placed Barry Shedden already having bagged up here. In the afternoon Jim Dillon took his swim, and the trophy, with four fish for 12lbs, ahead of Barry in 2nd and Vince King 3rd with four for 9lbs. The best fish was a 4-8-0 rainbow to Dave Garry
Our final match in the Wednesday Evening Series saw another good turnout, with everyone giving it their best shot right up to the final whistle. Fittingly, though, it was current leader Frank Daley who showed us it’s done, landing a three pounder, the only fish in the competition, to take the Ken Gunn trophy for the overall series winner by an impressive margin Results >>
Harry Fox is currently with AT Team England FF at the European Fly Fishing Championships at Vyssi Brod in the Czech Republic, which will be fished on the Vltava River and the Kvetonov Reservoir near Kaplice. Sponsored by Wychwood as official supplier, this team also includes Ben Bangham, Andy Cliffe, Andy Croucher, Steve Cullen, Mike Dixon and manager Martin Dixon. The event will be fished over five sessions from the 8th-11th June, three on the river, two on the reservoir.
Our Fly-tying Evening got Rosie, Eren and Sam off to a good start on the basics with a simple Black Buzzer, followed by a Cat’s Whisker Booby, and a demonstration of the winging technique on a Black Zonker, with an explanation of how the Snake style of tying reduces taps with these long-tailed flies, while still keeping the length and action that brings you takes. Our thanks to Cliff and Thames Water for allowing us to use the great facilities of the Angling Academy building. Here are our beginners focused on the job.
The Haven House Children’s Hospice charity event saw a much better turnout than last year, with at least 20 people taking part, on top of donations received from others. Our thanks to them, and also to Thames Water who generously waived the fishing charges for the day, and to the Ferry Boat for providing the tasty burgers and chips at lunchtime. Both No4 and No5 reservoirs were fishing well from the start, with fish active on top for most of the day. Earl Johnson took plenty of fish on dries on No5 to come second with 4 for 11-5-8, but it was Tony Fox’s 5-2-0 fish, the best of the match, plus three other nice fish which got him the shield. The results do not reflect the catches. Many of us were putting back the smaller fish in the hope of something better only to come unstuck as the fishing slowed in the afternoon.
Volunteers needed to take over production of club newsletter and website. Due to relocation in the summer these positions will soon become vacant in the near future.
Our Club Trip to Farmoor enjoyed remarkable water clarity with fish plainly visible cruising along the marginal slope a good 2-3 rod lengths out. After a few early fish to floating line and buzzers, some of us switched to Intermediate or DI3 with Snakes and Tadpoles to carry on catching, while others found that small nymphs like size 12 or 14 Buzzers or Diawl Bachs with jungle cock cheeks on light tippets produced takes, although fish were quick to eject flies if you were slow. The SW corner was the top spot.
Barry Shedden with a nice fish around 4lbs from No4, the best in a catch of 17 fish on Silver & White Boobies.
Loch Style Qualifier Mike Heritage and Andrew Green found Bewl in one of its tough moods in the recent SEFFF Loch-style Qualifier there. One fish was enough to get Mike into the Repechage at Draycote later in the year, while all Andrew had was a couple of missed takes.
Iain Barr World Bank Masters Despite being covered in snow the previous weekend, Farmoor still performed on the Individual and Pairs days, with catches up to 29 fish being recorded, and a lot more fish lost in play as well. Although none of the WFFC members who fished this event finished in the top ten, they said they’d still had a good day, with small Snakes and Blobs working, although long distance casting seemed key to success. (Right) Vince King about to land a fish (Image courtesy of Iain Barr World Bank Masters)
London Fly Fishing Fair Thanks to generous financial help from Thames Water, through manager Will Barnard, we were once again able to have a stand at London’s own fly fishing show, opposite the big screen and handy for the bar. With more exhibitors this year, we were kept busy handing out information and signing up new members, who are all very welcome. WFFC member Damon Valentine, who posts on Instagram as londonflyfisher, was good enough to give us a mention in his presentation on Urban Angling, proving that even within the capital there is a vibrant fly fishing community.
Club Fleeces with Badge
We were asked about these
at the AGM, so we’re happy
to report that these can now
be purchased direct from:
Image to Suit You,
241 Bullsmoor Lane, Enfield EN1 4SB. Tel: 01992 710 153. Website>>
Our AGM and Auction was held in our original venue, the Ferry Boat Inn, and attracted a good turnout in our reserved area. Chairman Dave Jarvis described the red tape that can sometimes hinder progress on the reservoirs, with the new more durable signs yet to go up, even though they had been delivered. The good news was that an extra 1,000 fish had been stocked into Nos 4 & 5 reservoirs on Thursday and were already showing up in catches. Arrangements for exhibiting at the London Fly Fishing Fair were also outlined, with a call for help in manning the stand. Kevin Blackwell then ably took over the Auction which attracted some keen bidding for a good variety of lots, all recorded on Vinnie’s laptop.
The Final Fling saw overcast conditions with a chilly SW wind which increased during the day, making the usually favoured West bank swims on No5 harder to get a good distance from. Barry Shedden, who fished off the Houses Bank, had a dozen fish up to 2-12-0, while John Ferguson and John O’Regan also did well here. The South West bay was also productive, with Billy Bridgeworth getting a 3-1-0 fish here, plus a 3-15-0 to Andrew Green, the best of the match Results and Report>>
Farmoor Fur & Feather The Walthamstow members who supported this event deserved everything they caught, having to put up with steady snow from the start followed by rain. Considering the conditions, Tony Fox did really well to get two decent fish on floating line and buzzers. Frank Daley came second, just 5ozs behind ranger Ben Farley. Best fish of the day was a five pounder to John Hardy, but apparently it was noticeable that the boats, being slightly further out, were doing better than the bank. (Images courtesy of Craig Barr, Flash Attack Flies)
Ticket savings for the new season Thames Water are offering Angling Trust individual members a 10% discount on season tickets at Walthamstow and Farmoor. Annual AT individual membership is £25 for adults, which your 10% discount will easily cover - and more! Its like getting AT membership - free. More information here>>
Cormorant Watch 2 has been launched by the Angling Trust, a new version of the previous ‘Cormorant Watch’ site. This allows the public to record sightings of cormorants, goosanders, red-breasted mergansers, and their roost locations. Over 120,000 sightings of birds were recorded when the first edition of Cormorant Watch was launched in 2012, which helped the Angling Trust make the case for the introduction of Area-Based Licences for lethal control of birds, which have reduced bureaucracy and costs for hard-pressed fishery managers and angling clubs. You will find Cormorant Watch 2 here>> You can also watch AT
Chief Executive Mark Lloyd introduce Cormorant Watch in this YouTube video here>>
In a letter to Fisheries Minister George Eustice, the Angling Trust is demanding a doubling of the number of cormorant licensed to be shot in England annually, to 6,000.
E-petition. If you would like to add your own personal support to an e-petition requesting that the current licensing system should be reviewed you can do so via this online link here>>
Walthamstow Weather
Which bank will be comfortable? Will I need waterproofs? Look up the local forecast here>>
Alex Titov website
Alex now has his own website offering guiding and instruction services around London link>>
