Week beginning 25 June 2018
Monday 25th June. Norfolk’s finest with us for three days in the shape of Paul Grewcock and wife Linda accompanied by Fliss Atherton. The gauge was sitting at 1’0” and 62 degrees with not a cloud in the sky, the cheery weathergirl said it was going to be a hot one and it was. There were 4-5 silver fish showing in the Slap but even the sunray stripped across couldn’t get a boil or a bow wave from them. Paul saw a couple of fish in Learmouth but again couldn’t get a rise from them. The team had a slow afternoon and are out again tonight as its a bit cooler, Its going to be a hard week as the forecast is the same all week, the might be a chance of some coastal cloud first thing tomorrow morning and the team are going to have a run through before breakfast.
Tuesday 26th June. Another scorcher of a day but the team were up at the crack of dawn (almost) and had the bottom half of the beat fished before breakfast with sadly nothing to show for it. Paul Grewcock had a bow wave at a sunray in the Slap then whilst backing up the Temple he had a fish really splash at it, it was like someone had thrown in a brick, later on we were in the Cauld and a fish came and had a look at a wee skimmer but thats all it did. By lunchtime they all decide that enough was enough and headed for home, the forecast of 28 degrees tomorrow helped them make that decision.
Wednesday 27th June. It was a misty start but by 9.30am we joined the rest of the country in wall to wall sunshine. Water temp was 65 and 9” on the gauge. We gave Learmouth a half hour and 6 casts at the Slap with no results. The heat was building quickly so I got some weed cut around the Slap croy and the Cobble point followed by a bit of strimming until I couldn’t see for sweat running down my face. The forecast is for more of the same so the rods are going to struggle. The fish are struggling a bit as well as the water temp tonight was 73 degrees and there was a fish above the Cauld that looked to be in a bit of distress ( see instagram or facebook tweedbeats page)It also had a bit of a nibble out of its tail/wrist that wouldn’t help. Finished off the evening with a Carrion Crow one of a family of five I’ve been after for ages, of course it helps when you’ve zeroed the rifle in. No trout seen rising again as they are not there thanks to the bloody cormorants. It’s almost GnT time.
Thursday 28th June. It was even hotter today and no air from the east to help cool things down, in fact this morning there was no air at all. Colin Hewitt and Steve Robins here, Steve set off to the bottom end and I’ve not seen or heard from him since, Colin fished the Slap and Cauld before setting off downstream, he’ll be the colour of a ripe tomato this evening. I was having a go at the fallen Beech tree but decided that sawing up limbs and splitting logs in 30 degrees was madness. The river temp was 74 degrees at 9.00pm tonight, if any fish does grab a fly it’ll be dead by the time it comes to the shore it these temps.
Friday 29th June. Another hot sunny day but not as hot as last two and in fact a bit of cloud with an east wind brought the temps down a lot until around 5.00pm when the sun was back out. Just the one rod on today Steve Robins, I saw him heading to the Iron Gate area as I was having my evening patrol round the beat looking for nasties. I wasn’t on the beat today as I was attending a funeral at Hawick and whilst there had a wee peek at the Teviot; it’s just a wee trickle today with bleached stones from either bank almost touching. On the garden front as I know some of you fret about my veggies things have been going well, I’ve eaten all my first early spuds and very nice they were, I’ve also scoffed my first planting of Broccoli and Sally has turned a bed of Beetroot into chutney. This year I’ve been wise enough to have a second planting well under way in pots ready to plant out in the emptied beds, so I should get another crop of the Broccoli and Beetroot in 3 months. Clancy your onions are looking great in their new bed. Having a warm sunny May has made all the difference.
Saturday 30th June. Another day of the same, hot and sunny and a falling river, 7” on the Lees gauge and 65 degrees this morning, still nice and clean though. Mark Williamson and pals here for the day, it’s their first time on the Lees so its a pity it’s not in good order, still you never know, “if your flies not in the water” and other annoying clichés. Anyway I haven’t heard any reports of fish being caught today on the Lees. The weather is stunning I have to say but if it would say drop about 2” of rain at Peebles and Hawick it would be just fine, it could stay dry here and sunny.
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©M Campbell 2018
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