Week beginning 21 September 2020
Monday 21st September. First job of the day was to nip up to the tackle shop and get a new pair of waders and a new wading jacket plus a pair of forceps as they all went in the break in. It’s lucky I got the forceps as I needed them five times in the morning as George Fleming hooked and landed five from the Cauld, one on a #8 double and four on a wee black and yellow bottle tube which is the only fly I have left as the arseholes that broke in took all my fly boxes, the bottle tube had been cut off the line and dropped on the floor of the hut. The arseholes that broke in even nicked my crisps! I had some packets hanging in a bag beside my chair so the mice couldn’t reach them, went in today to get a bag and they were gone!! The fingerprint squad were here today dusting the place down and took a few DNA swipes so hopefully. They really cleaned Paul and myself out, I’ve nothing left! Anyway back to the fishing, some of the pools are full of fish jumping all over the place and we even saw a fresh one or two this afternoon, all the ones from the Cauld were coloured weighing between 6lb-16lbs, there was a 6lber from Cornhill Bend that was clean. 1’0” and 50 degrees on the gauge, the forecast is for the weather to get a lot colder over the next few days so that might bring them on. Also today if having to sort out what been nicked. I was going towards the Glide and a car was blocking the road, I stopped to ask the lad to shift it and point out he shouldn’t have his car in the fields,( I did all this politely). Are you the landowner? No I’m the Ghillie, thought so he said, so I have to pay £1000 a day to walk my dog here do I? Fuc###g knobs or nobs you lot. That threw me a bit as I couldn’t grasp it to start with. Fuc###g fishing nobs £1000 a day fuc###g walk my dog swear swear swear. Its not a £1000 a day to walk your dog its free I said. Don’t fuc###g tell me I know, It’s not I said, well £800 then, no I said, £600 then no I said, fuc###g £400? No I said about £200 I said. Oh thats not so bad then he says with almost a smile, then he remembered that I’d asked him to move his car and he switched back to swear, swear,swear and threats of sticking his walking stick up my arse if I got out of my car, I started to open the door and he changed again to calling his dog in and calling the landowner less than clever and questioning his parentage as there was no sign saying he shouldn’t bring his car in, I said I think there is on the gate, he drove off with the parting words of “Cucking Funt” or something like that. I looked it up online and it seems to be Geordie for have a nice day.
Tuesday 22nd September. 1’0” and 54 degrees squeaky clean. It was bloody windy but dry and the fish are jumping all over the place, the streamy water such as the Bags where Mark caught two this morning, one was a tagged fish which had been tagged at Tweedmill in early July. Duddo, Learmouth and the Cauld are stuffed with fish, I’m starting to feel sorry for them being packed into small areas, there’s plenty room in the Back of the wall and Glide but they are liking the streams, its a bit like the last two years. Rob got a 10lber in the Duddo this morning which gave him a fair old scrap and Dominic got a 12lber in the Cauld, not to be outdone Giles tweaked one out of Duddo this afternoon and Andrew had a wee grilse from the Annay just after 5.00pm making it 6 for the day. At least there were no break ins today and no irate dog walkers but I think I might just have to start wearing body armour and carrying a stout walking stick myself.
Wednesday 23rd September. Much colder today with a North wind this morning, had one pull in the Cauldstream this morning with Rob, thought we have a lot more as the fish were jumping over the line. Further down things were much the same with Mark having a hold of 2 in Learmouth and landing neither, Dominic Waters losing one in the Bags and Giles losing one in the Duddo. This afternoon Angela took over from Rob and I put one of my Sunray snakes on the end of the line the take she had made her squeak, it made up for her falling over in Cornhill bend and getting a wee touch wet sadly this was another one that didn’t stay on the hook long enough, Mark lost another this evening in the Duddo, had they all stuck we would have had 8 on the scoreboard. No threats of violence today and no thefts but did find more evidence as to the route the burglars took back to town. Keep a look out on any sites you might use for second hand 13’6” syntrex rod, 15’0” swift, 4” Hardy Bougle, 10/11 Cascapedia.
Thursday 24th September. A nice enough start to the day with no wind a bit of sunshine and mild, team Cadzow here for three days. Tim had a couple from the Bags one was an 18lb hen and Mark Newstead had a 14lber from Learmouth stream, The rev Jonathan our spiritual advisor blanked down the Back of the wall, the quieter water is not really holding many fish they are all in the streams. This afternoon it turned from a mild early autumn day into winter, as I was standing in the water waiting to net a fish in the Cauld for Tim I was half expecting the rain to turn to snow it was so cold in the north wind, the fish was a 14lb old cock that fought like a tiger. Simon had a couple splashing at the sunray snake in the Duddo, Tim lost a big fish in the Cauld that also took his fancy conehead fly, a Swedish design with a gold cone behind the dressing which I first saw Kent Hakkinson using here a couple of years ago. 11” and 50 degrees and the water is squeaky clean, we ended with 6 for the day unless they caught one after 5.00pm. Forecast for tomorrow is for very strong north winds so it’s an extra layer for me tomorrow.
Friday 25th September. 11” and 48 degrees which is the first time its been below 50 since early April, this seemed to perk the fish up a bit and our total for the day was 11(12 on web as includes one from last night),some of the lads are fishing on so that might increase. There was a very blustery north wind blowing which at time swung into the west then east so it was always a bit of a challenge with the casting. Again the streams are where you want to be with the Duddo fishing well even though its become a bit of a choke point with us, Cornhill and Learmouth all having a go in that area. The good reverend Jonathan caught up with the rest of the rods this afternoon getting two from the Cauld and being snapped by one other. We had fish from the Cauld, Learmouth, Cornhill bend, Duddo and two from the Annay, all on floaters with sinktips and wee bottle tube type things on the end. All fish coloured again although one that Tim caught in Cornhill bend was trying to be clean. No nutters round the Lees today, although the woman whose dogs run about out of control, the same woman who told me “I’d be right last time as I was a Fu####g man” was in the area somewhere but I never saw her, she must have been in the Lees somewhere as her dogs were there, I couldn’t be arsed to start arguing with her today about dog control, next time I’ll spray her labradoodle blue with food dye she what happens. The catches on a few beats were up likely due to the drop in temp.
Saturday 26th September. Not a frost but a big drop in temperature with the water down to 46 degrees from 54 on Tuesday and what a difference it made with fish being caught from the Cauld to the Annay. 16 for the day, none fresh sadly. The Good reverend Jonathon had 2 from the Iron Gate and 1 from the Glide, Ian Cadzow had a 14lber from the Cornhill bend on a wee shrimpy thing a bit like a bonsai Frances, Tim Springham had 1 from the Bags and lost another, (the Bags fishing very well at the moment). I reckon we’ll have to start fishing the bottom of the beat much harder in these low water conditions. Mark Newstead had a 10lber from Learmouth. Top rod was Tim Springham getting 4 and losing 1 in the Cauld this afternoon, all on that Swedish fly with the cone behind the dressing (see instagram for photos of fly). The water levels continues to drop and the fish are being squeezed into smaller areas mostly the streamy water but bucking the trend Tam at South Wark had 4 from the Temple as we were playing our fish in the Cauld, all just above the cobble point. It was just like the good old days catching all these fish the difference being in the good old days they were all fresh silver fish not coloured old warriors. Full floater with sinktips and wee bottle tubes or micro tubes being the successful flies. A few martins were flitting about over the Cauld this afternoon for 20 minutes or so before they headed south. Forecast going forward is dry until Wednesday when it turns wetter.
Latest- another 3 from the Iron Gate point so 19 for day, not done that for a long time.
As ever see tweedbeats on instagram for lots of pics and clips
©M Campbell 2020
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