Week beginning 17 July 2023
Monday 17th July. 2’1” and 58f but very beery with a stiff westerly wind blowing, two rods had decided not to travel for a one day trip and the other two are here for three days so set about the job. I got them going and suggested a few places to try as I had a funeral to attend. Norman Taylor was soon into the tail of the cauld but nothing was doing, they went to learmouth and the glide where they saw fish but no pulls. This afternoon on my return Stuart was a happy boy as he’d landed a 6lb fresh seatrout, Norman wasn’t as happy as he’d snapped his rod and had a leak in his waders. Some better catches were made on the river today with as far as I know Junction leading the charge with 7 salmon and 15 seatrout all on a spinner I’d imagine in the very beery water. Just heard one on a fly. By 5.00pm the gauge was down to 1’9” so tomorrow it’ll be around 1’6” and hopefully a lot cleaner with less wind, back up to full strength on rods as well tomorrow.
Tuesday 18th July. An overcast day but calmer, 1’6” and 58f with a beery touch to the colour. I had a cast last night in the glide and lower cauld but didn’t have a touch or in fact see a fish. Back to today, Stuart was up top whilst Norman fished learmouth, Stuart had a couple of follows to the sunray in the slap and a wee pull in the cauld, Norman blanked. Richard Summers was having more luck in the duddo getting a 7lber but then went on to blot his copy book by having the line snap on another, he admitted that he may have nicked the line getting the hook out of the first fish, this afternoon he hooked into what must have been a much bigger fish in the cauld as it never showed and he couldn’t make much of it despite bending the rod into it, after a couple of minutes the hook pinged out with neither of us getting a glimpse of it. Another fish had a big lunge at the sunray in the slap but again no connection. Catches were not what I’d expect after the water we’ve had, below us one fish per beat seemed to be the average, top rod on the river today was Jonathon Reddin getting three salmon and 11 seatrout on his favourite black and yellow tube, quite a catch. Forecast more rain for the rest of the month, good for the fish but disaster for my flowers in the garden.
Wednesday 19th July. A mild enough calm start and there were fish showing in the slap and cauld, fresh ones at that. Barry main was up top and soon had a 9lb fresh fish in the net on his wee switch rod and a #10 double black and yellow sort of thing, we popped on a sunray for a few casts and the fish went mental, one of them boiled over it three times but wouldn’t grab it, others followed and splashed at it, we moved into the cauld and he had a 4lb seatrout on the same fly, I saw a cracking silver fish in the heavy water near the cauld which cleared the water silver as could be with spray everywhere as it crashed back in, Barry’s pal David down in learmouth had a couple of fish on but couldn’t keep them on the hook for long, he also had another pull. Norman and Stuart were down on the glide and duddo where Stuart lost a fish, Norman sadly blanked and his run of luck continues, all of it bad luck, apart from breaking his rod, having a leak in his waders, his fly line coming apart he hooked and lost his only fish of the trip in the cauld this afternoon, thats how it goes sometimes. Milen Graden had a good day getting seven salmon, Kevin the ghillie text to say they were all fresh and big fat fish. There was a very heavy thunderstorm just before lunch but luckily most of us made it to the hut just as it was starting.
Thursday 20th July. 1’3” and 59f still a beery tinge to the colour of the water. The Morgan brothers joined us today Phil and Stephen or Steven with all sorts of new kit to wave about along with David Foreman and Stuart Thornton, Stuart was up top and wasted no time in getting a 10lber out of the slap on a #8 posh tosh, it was time for a rest after that so he said show me the sunray in here, second cast and a nice silver fish was on but in seconds was off again to much swearing, we moved into the cauld and below the second croy right bank (tiger country ) he hooked into something that straight away we knew was a bigger fish it turned out to be a 15lb hen which had been in a while. Stephen or Steven and Phil had a more difficult start as the cornhill boat was in the duddo along with two trout fishers who didn’t move (words with them when I see them) and wild swimmers in the glide, turns out the swimmers didn’t bother the fish much as when Stephen/Steven fished it later he had a salmon almost beached when ping it was away. David who put in the long yards between learmouth hut and the iron gate never saw or touched a thing, the learmouth rod went on to get three off the iron gate in the afternoon on a spinner. Cornhill were seen getting a nice fresh fish out of the bags on a fly in the afternoon. Stephen/Steven went to learmouth after lunch and had a nice clean fish on his second run down after changing to a one inch black and yellow tube whilst up top Phil failed to tempt a fish, it’ll be his turn tomorrow, must ask what way Steven/Stephen spells his name. Latest- Dave Foreman having a cast in learmouth has had three seatrout he text me tonight and its not dark yet so score might increase.
Friday 21st July.1’2” and 59f still with a beery tinge. Stephen was up top and once he put an extra two yards on the length of his cast he was into a fish in the slap, it was a lively 8lber and took a #10 cascade double sort of thing. The wild swimmers were here again in the glide this time but Stuart gave them a few words of wisdom and they moved. No more fishy action was had on the Lees unless someone gets one tonight. It was quieter today with far fewer fish showing apart from the temple that now has a few sploshing about, mostly big seatrout I suspect. West learmouth had a couple of licers out of the stream this afternoon so thats a bollocking for Phil Morgan as he fished it this morning and left them for the other side. The catches on the river as a whole are not what I was expecting, the lower beats I should think should be getting more than one or two but maybe I’m just being impatient. Dave Foreman did increase the score last night as he had a 3lb fresh grilse also out of learmouth.
Saturday 22nd July. 1’0” and 60 degrees and clean. The top was quiet fishy wise today with not a touch morning or afternoon, we did see one silver grilse in the slap but couldn’t even get a follow to a sunray. In learmouth three fish were caught two fresh grilse for Dave foreman and Andrew caught a 10lb hen in the evening, he also had a 10lber from the Annay. Chris Messom had a 7lber from the otter stone this morning which pleased him a lot as he’s had a three year fishy drought, I was just as pleased as I put him right on to it and it rolled over the fly on the surface as it took the fly. The cheery weathergirl has been saying we are/were going to get rain of biblical proportions but again sadly wrong for us, there is a wee lift coming down the Teviot but not a flood, better than hot and sunny for the fishing I suppose but I’d like a bit of sun for the garden and polytunnel. A few grilse now starting to show up, Dave’s two from learmouth were both liced five pounders. Another liced fish of note was a liced 17lber caught at lower pavilion, it must have had a rocket up its bum to get up there so fast. 12 salmon for the week is better along with a mink a couple of moles and some seatrout.
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© M Campbell 2023
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