Outside Days » Fishing

Packing for the Coming Season

Howard — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 07:30:15 +0000

On the cusp of a new season, with one bag packed for Croatia and another for the Yorkshire moors, I find myself contemplating the sport that lies ahead.

By the time you read this, I will be in sunny Split chasing wild migratory quail across the Croatian countryside. At least if you are reading this between 4 and 9am or 6 and 8pm. Otherwise I’ll be chasing wily trout in mountain streams, stalking sea fish with a speargun or lolling about on a boat dangling my line over the edge. Don’t say I didn’t give you the opportunity to do the same! In fact, if you hurry, we may be able to nab a few days sport in September.

The walked up grouse in Yorkshire sold out as soon as it hit the books, and left some of you queuing. We are working hard at expanding our last minute offers for this season, and the availability for next. Meanwhile if someone can work out how to fit two large men, a labrador, a springer and her pup and all our kit in the back of a small van without crushing anything vital, please let me know.

September is full of promise for fur and fin alike with evenings stalking and nights on the rivers in pursuit of sea trout, not to mention some of the best early season partridge about. We do have a few days still available, and anticipate being able to squeeze in a few more before the season’s out. If you are not already on our mailing list, sign up so you can be among the first to find out about new offerings and last minute availability.

Cartoonist’s Pen Shoots Down Sporting Agent

Howard — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 14:29:37 +0000

Well, its finally happened. After years of leg-pulling, stick-giving, and micky-taking at my beloved clients’ expense, one of you has finally gotten your own back. And oh so publicly, too. Talented satirical cartoonist Andy Sipson got his revenge with an image on his Facebook page.

Andy, his father, and the coffee table with legs he swears is a springer spaniel joined me for a walked up day this past season. I can’t honestly remember being that insulting (aside from a few choice comments when hunting for his lost ‘dog’). No. 2 observes I must have made an impression as 5 months later he posted this incredibly accurate (if a bit pointed) cartoon of me on Facebook. After howling with laughter and sending the cartoon to everyone we know, No. 2’s scheming to redecorate with placemats, notecards, and wallpaper featuring what she describes as Andy’s art. My ego hasn’t recovered enough to be objective.

There’s no doubting the man’s talent. If you can think of a good use to which to put his talents, the commissioning process is a dawdle. All Andy needs is a photo of the victim and a character sketch of their personality traits and he’s away. Alternatively, he’ll join you on a shoot day and produce a series of cartoons to capture the characters and misadventures. Just beware. That quiet exterior belies a wicked sense of humour readily released on the unsuspecting sporting agent.

Rivers of Gold: Thwarted Yellowfish Fever

Howard — Tue, 18 May 2010 21:05:59 +0000

You know you should find a fish in a river when the river’s name appears in the fish’s! So when we put the shotguns and rifles down long enough to flick fluff in the River Vaal, I fully expected to have the Vaal-orange largemouth yellowfish (Labeobarbus kimberleyensis) yanking my line. Nevermind that its sibling the smallmouth yellow fish (Labeobarbus aeneus) is much more common. I had might sights set on BIG.

Which was just as well: the Vaal is no trout stream or chalk river. Its a monster at 150m wide. Sidling up to it in our Crocs (shoes that is) and shorts, 5-weight rods in hands, we couldn’t help but feel undergunned. I have fished smaller rivers with 15 foot double handed 10-weights. Hours spent scanning the fish-porn online had armed us with a series of facts:
1. The River Vaal is wadeable
2. Yellowfish, regardless of mouth size, readily take dry and wet flies
3. The ‘freshwater bonefish’, even a 2lb yellowfish will take you down to your backing
4. Beware: yellowfish are dangerously addictive even for the experienced user

Unfortunately, as Fact 1 turned out to be…not entirely true, we were never able to prove the veracity or otherwise of Facts 2, 3 and 4. The Vaal had burst its banks six weeks before in floods the likes of which hadn’t been seen in 20 years. Although receding, there was just too much water heading downstream to make dipping more than a toe attractive.

Tiptoeing back along the bank to avoid waking slumbering monitor lizards (an effort put paid to by the dog mistaking one for a fire hydrant), we retreated to the buggy and the safety of our shotguns. Yellowfish fever will have to wait for another trip.

One Season Closes, Another Opens

Howard — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 15:39:23 +0000

When Britain mothballs game shooting for the season, my attentions turn to sport further afield, and to the next season looming on the horizon – a summer of game clays and fishing for trout and salmon.

While you’ve been reliving the season past over a pint and cleaning your gun for the final time, I’ve been to the GP to arrange shots and contemplated packing for a guinea pig trip to South Africa in May. Never one to live in the present, I had the details of that trip sewn up with my Christmas shopping: now I’m firming up plans for trips to Croatia in early August. Better known for boar and deer (which we can also arrange), Croatia is also home to a species of quail so small that disturbed coveys have been described as swarming bees. Cheap flights to parts of Croatia have made bargain sporting breaks a tempting prospect. We’ll be putting together teams to go to locations near Split and Zagreb in pursuit of these tiny dynamos. The sport will be quail over pointers at either end of the day (avoiding midday heat), and ‘cultural’ activities in between. As always with pointers, the ideal team size is 4, and the standard package is 2 days sport, 3 nights accommodation. If birds the size of angry bees are your thing, get in touch.

When game birds become protected species on February 2nd, trigger fingers across the country begin to itch through lack of use. Simulated game, or game clays as I like to call them, provides the remedy for many of you each year. From April until mid-July we offer days on several locations in the South, or we can bring the sport to you. Unlike driven shooting where the line is limited to 6 to 10 guns, we work on 12 to 18. Perfect for everything from team building to wedding guest amusement, we’ve organised days for it all. From fully catered with wait staff and candelabras to picnics in a hay barn or sandwiches from the boot, we can do it all. For the lone gun or incomplete line, we have a number of scratch days throughout the simulated season. Get in touch if firing upwards of 400 cartridges a day sounds like fun.

My sporting passion began with rod and line, and every year as the buds burst and the days lengthen I am drawn back to my roots on the river bank. Whether your pleasure is still water or river, novice or experienced fisherman, we have opportunities to flick fluff at trout for all. Days are booking up rapidly, but remember you can always fit in an evening’s sport after the office closes with some of our waters catering to the afterhours fisherman.

Shooting and Fishing in the Sun!

Howard — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 14:07:35 +0000

As the 2009/10 season draws to a close we have certainly had our share of weather! From shirt sleeves in November to being almost drowned in December to now being frozen, we’ve seen the lot.

Looking for a chance to get away from it all this spring (Dates TBC) ? I am looking for a clutch of guinea pigs to join me on an exploratory trip to Argentina.

The three locations we are looking to visit are:

Cordoba

World famous for its dove shooting and the enormous number of birds it produces, most of us have heard about this area – Cordoba makes every list of the top places to shoot before you die. Not wishing to cast aspersions about your health, but life is short and this trip is cheap. Why not make it this year?

Northern Patagonia

This relatively new fishing destination offers truly wild rainbows and brownies in a spectacular setting. Couple this with a luxury lodge and you have a memorable adventure.

Tierra del Fuego

When you fish the rivers of the sea trout capital of the world, even the average fish is the fish of a lifetime. We will be fishing the River Menendez were the fish average 16lbs. So pack those 8 and 9 weights and start eating your spinach!

You don’t have to do all three locations. Just pick the one(s) that appeal to you. This is a trial trip so the prices will never be beaten. For more information drop me an email.

Fishing For Red Hot Christmas Gift?

Howard — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 08:00:31 +0000

Are you searching for the perfect gift for the person who has everything? Or maybe, like me, you are trying to help loved ones to buy something you actually WANT and not another pair of socks or the ever-present scarf? Outside Days provides flyfishing lessons for every level of fisherperson, from the complete beginner to someone wishing to refine their double hauling technique.

As the old saying goes, give someone a fish, and you’ve fed them for the day. Teach them to fish, and not only do you feed them for a lifetime, but it makes it much easier to buy them gifts for birthdays and Christmases yet to come.

We offer a range of lesson plans, from all-season, lake-based courses to bespoke chalkstream masterclasses. Gift days start from £90.

Devonshire Flyrod McNab: Saltwater

Howard — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 12:01:26 +0000

My fascination with all things saline began early, on what now would be a staycation, but then was a seaside holiday. As saltwater fly fishing has moved from the subtropical bonefish north into temperate waters, I have been able to combine my two passions and reduce No. 2’s irritation with me.

David Pilkington is another convert to a phenomenon I have written about here: bored fly fishermen finding alternative quarry at which to fling fluff…albeit considerably larger dust bunnies. Having failed on the freshwater sections of the Devonshire McNab, we were determined to turn around our fortunes by heading to the sea (not the first Brit to think this would be the making of my adventure). We kitted up in the carpark, surrounded by intrigued walkers and ponies: donning waders and strapping washing up bowls (line trays) to one’s waist caused a sensation among the less fashionably attired. Setting off across the sands to meet the flooding tide, we passed a host of promising looking depressions that would be fish-holding pools on our return journey.

As soon as we reached the water, all our dreams of crystal clear seas were shattered: the swell resembled a tossed salad. Saltwater decorated with rafts of seaweed, driftwood and swirling sand charged up the race to meet the turbulent spate freshwater. Imagine fishing into Realtree camo, and you’ll come close. Double hauling frantically to get the best of the clearer water, it was impossible to tell whether the knock on the end of your line was a fish or a passing pallet. Undetered, we fished on, David watching the incoming sea to make sure we could still beat a hasty retreat to the diminishing beach. After a couple of hours of good effort with nothing to show except improved technique, we accepted defeat, and returned to the welcoming fires of the Arundel Arms where a consolation dinner awaited us.

Clearly, this is not an adventure for the weak of cast, the pessimist, or those afraid to fail. But then what true challenge is? The tides and runs of sea bass and sea trout make this a trip with a limited window of availability. If you fancy having a go, don’t hesitate in getting in touch to secure the best dates.

Devonshire Flyrod McNab: Freshwater

Howard — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 17:57:48 +0000

We wrote this blog more than a year ago, but had to hold off sharing it with you for editorial reasons. Now, in the gloomy rain of autumn, it seems appropriate to hark back to summers gone, and dream of the ones to come. As I have observed when trying to justify my attempts to catch barbel on the fly, fishermen invent new challenges when bored. The Arundell Arms staff, passionate about their flyfishing, have invented the Devonshire Flyrod McNab: brown trout, sea trout and sea bass on the fly in a day. I’ve been desperate to visit the infamous Arms since I was 10 and keen to learn to flyfish. Needless to say, my parents couldn’t be convinced to send their kid off to Devon on his own, and had no interest in accompanying me, so I had to satisfy myself with drooling over their brochures. Thirty years on, Anne Voss-Bark was kind enough to invite me and Number Two to stay and attempt the McNab.

The 2008 season was a challenging one on the spate rivers, with the constant rain making conditions unpredictable, but I packed my rods in great anticipation, and headed west. For those of you who haven’t had the pleasure of staying at the Arundell Arms, it is famed as much for its fabulous food and hospitality as for the 20 miles of fishing on the Tamar and its tributaries.

Conditions on the Tamar resembled the Nile in flood, ruling out any night time adventures as the water was just too dangerous to fish for sea trout in the dark. Come the morning, it was apparent we would have to be clever with our fly choice to tempt salmonids of any flavour to take. Needless to say after several hours of dangling Pilkington Bumbles (our ghillie’s foolproof invention) in likely spots, we conceded defeat and beat a hasty retreat to the welcoming arms of the bar. Under fishing paraphernalia that would make the most accquisitory collector blush, we plotted and schemed the salty part of the day’s challenge.

Reels at Gin-Clear’s Fly Rise

Howard — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 06:45:51 +0000

The downside of the CLA Game Fair is that the most interesting people always seem to cross your path when you are juggling other commitments. When Matt McHugh introduced me to director and producer Nick Reygaert, I had my hands full of Orvis gear. Only later when I logged on to his website and read his blog did I realise what I’d missed

The fly fishing equivalent of Cannes, RISE is the world’s largest fishing film festival and on our doorsteps for the month of November. From exotic locations to big fish, cinematographers have captured the epic passions that drive us back to the water over and over. Don’t believe me? Check out Nick’s equivalent of a trailer on YouTube. I’m overcoming my distaste of the Big Smoke long enough to make the London showings…

A Lewis Year: Four Seasons Six Species One Day

Howard — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 07:00:00 +0000

Fortunately, excursions to the Outer Hebrides aren’t made or broken by the weather…for dour folk, the Hebrideans are weather optimists: whatever comes next, it won’t be the same twice. Very like the sport. After grouse, the odd snipe or passing plover, and a whatever the collective noun is for 3 salmonid species, we’d stretched FlyBe’s weight limit with kit and headed north.

All I can say is we didn’t see snow. There were plenty of coveys – Scottish National Heritage’s commitment to mink trapping real seems to be paying off with groups of 5 or 6 replacing the twos and threes of previous seasons (turn numbers are on the up, too). The wind was determined to make its presence a factor: moments of absolute stillness, broken by the midges, had the dogs befuddled by lack of scent. A couple of hours later, and we had birds out-racing Superman and needed elastic for our hats. In between, we managed some excellent shooting, bagging braces of birds in great condition.

The variety of fishing normally offered by the island’s lochs, burns and rivers from boat and shore was supplemented by the challenge of a generous wind. It provided some excellent gifts (two minutes of video of our man in the Hebrides clinging to a rock by his prehensile Northern toes, fishing all the while…priceless), and plenty of brown trout. Their larger cousins rolled at the occasional fly, but stayed warm and wet out of the wind.

Well worth it for the sighting of a sea eagle and a peregrine sharing the same sky, not to mention stags, seals and numerous golden eagles, we still have a couple of spaces for walked up woodcock for this season, and are booking up fast for next year’s grouse over pointers. Get in touch and go wild.