Bank Holiday Monday

The rain hasn't appeared yet but the bright sun has made fishing a little tricky. Earlier the fish were rising all over the west bank of the lake taking sedges and gnats off the top. Bob's bits and black klinks doing some damage!
I even managed a few myself during a visit from Clive from the Midlands who came up for a float tubing lesson. He managed his first fish on the fly and obviously his first from a tube.
Yesterday was a red letter day for most, lots of fly fishers registering over 5 fish in the  session. Top rod was Jonny Stuart who caught 14 fish in a 2 hour spell!

Let's see what the week brings......

Bank Holiday Weekend

A reasonable start to the Bank Holiday weekend, the weather is appreciably better than forecast but has still made the fish go quite deep.

A variety of methods and flies being tried and that's really the key to it when the fish aren't trying to climb up your rod.

1. Keep on the move 
2. Keep changing flies 
3. Most important of all keep trying differant depths

22nd May

Well it's been a rather up and down last few days. The fishing was quite hard over the sunnier periods with the fish going deep and lethargic. It has now changed to wet and cooler so this should get them back to being more active and feeding again.
Don't forget that the use of an intermediate or sinking line is not just for winter, they must also be used when the temperature goes up as well.
During the sunny days we had a great illustration of just one of the differences between coarse and salmonids. The roach were popping on the surface sun bathing and the trout were sulking in the depths!

If you have to go deep then normally slow your retrieve down, however in very bright days with little or no wind, then you can try a sinker with a team of blobs and strip them back as fast as you can! This tactic is certainly NOT from Isaac Walton's school of fly fishing, but can be effective nonetheless.

Sat 17th May

Last few days have been good top of the water fishing. Almost any dry buzzer pattern in almost any colour has been working.  Shipmans, Suspender, Shuttlecock and Klinks take you pick

Here's a copy of an email sent in recently from John Burrows.....

Mike........thanks for the advice to try either a klinkhammer or a shipmans buzzer last night at Curleys ........after an hours fishing with just a  single pull  with an olive buzzer, I switched to a black shipmans on a 14 hook.......bang...second cast straight into a decent size bow........I found that varying the retrieve when bringing the line back in seemed to get the fishes interest ,,rather than individual retrieves after each cast, also I let the fly drift naturally in the water prior to my retrieve..... ........finished the night with 5 fish........cheers mate.......John.......

Well done John but the best way to fish these patterns is without any retrieve - just let them drift about and manage your line to "keep in touch"

You can also keep up to date with what the fishing and other things at Curley's by looking at our facebook page here   

Monday 12th May

Good to be back after a busy weekend at the SportFish Open Weekend in Reading.
Whilst I have been away lots of fish caught even though it hasn't been the best of weather. Inevitably Jim McGinley was top rod with 12 on Saturday and is on his way to reaching to same number today. The fish are near to the surface and seemingly willing to take almost anything!

Here's a couple of interesting You Tube videos shot at Curley's by my mate Ant Glascoe Jr.
The first shows the sunken boat off the boat pontoon - it has certainly deteriorated since it last saw the light of day some years ago.

The 2nd film shows a pike coming to have a ganders at the camera.

No1
http://youtu.be/7uiUZSlJjHY

No2
http://youtu.be/dsa4fBCGvNA

Thursday 8th

Warmer temps and drizzle has created a massive hatch of sedges and buzzers, fish rising all over the lake. A lot within reach of the pontoons but would be a great day for float tubing! You would catch that many fish it would be like water skiing!

Float tube kits available for hire including fins for boot foot or stocking foot waders. All you need are your own chest waders and the ability to smile and laugh a lot! Defo the best fun you'll ever have in waders!

7th May

The weather has turned wet and breezy but it has put the fish off. Plenty being caught mostly on lures and buzzers.
Lots of Hawthorn flies and sedges around almost everyday now. Hawthorn hatch won't last too much longer though - take advantage whilst you can.

Most of the fish are at the cafe end and along the road but when the wind changes or eases this will also change.

Thursday 1st May

New month and lots going on in and around the fishery. Lots of fish in or near the surface, should continue as the slightly wetter weather starts the big buzzers hatches.

I will be at the very popular Fawcett's game show on Sunday from 10am, great place to look at all the shiny new tackle from lots of manufacturers. The show takes place on the river lune at the Underley Estates, signposted from Kirkby Lonsdale.

The following weekend I will be demonstrating at the big Sportfish weekend show at Reading
See here for more details  Click here for all the info

Amongst all that is going on all day at Curley's it's easy to forget that amongst other things it's a haven for all kinds of wildlife. This a a little clutch of Yellow Wagtails just a day old!