Fly fishing in the Peak District & South Yorkshire has been tough so far this season, but the fish are there to be had if you are prepared to venture out. The season started with low river levels & has now seen the rivers a little on the high side & coloured. The one constant feature though has been the cold & windy weather.
Fly hatches have been sparse and insect life generally seems to be on hold at the moment. When Fly have come off a few fish have obliged and been there to gulp them down but most of my fishing so far has relied on subsurface patterns.
Always keep an eye out for the odd Dunn floating by and watch its progress. If it is greeted by a fish then it may be worth putting a dry fly on and having a few casts. Remember to choose something similar in size & shape and if the Dunn’s are sitting high on the water then so should your fly be. Hatches can be very brief so you may have to abandon the Dry if there are no takers.
Nymph patterns are good for subsurface offerings and I like to have standard & beaded versions so that I can present them wherever I wish in the water column. If the river has a bit of colour try a slightly larger than usual version so that it gives them something to see easily & something worth moving their bum for.
Always be prepared to ring the changes and try something different if your present fly isn’t tempting them.
With any luck things will settle down & we can start to have some traditional Dry fly action in the coming weeks. If that isn’t the case though we will just have to keep an open mind, a keen eye, and a variation of patterns to tempt the little darlings.
Remember there are things that you can do to help your casting in windy conditions and a lesson or two can make a big difference. It won’t make the wind go away but it will enable you to adapt to conditions and maybe get a line out when otherwise you wouldn’t have done so.
As always I wish you tight lines and hope that you have an enjoyable season!
