Last week I purchased a lightweight stream rod, reel and line from Amazon ….. To be precise, a Maxcatch Ultra Lite, two weight , and a Maxcatch reel to match the line rating . Together with this, I bought a weight forward fly line, in two weight for the pricey sum of seven pounds and ninety nine pence !!!!! Mmmmmmmmmm I here you say , sounds well ropey, we are conditioned in a world of brand new cars, dimmer switches, composite doors, remote controls, Alexa and alarms everywhere, to believe cheap is nasty, well read and weep folks, because this little brook rod has tamed over two dozen brownies, some of them really good fish too, and a clonking Chubb over four visits to the Upper Wye during the last week ……
Dry fly work with this outfit was just a joy …. A sweet little caster with delicate precision, loading beautifully, …. It struck into fish well, and with barbless flies I think during four visits, lost two , which is pretty good going . Also this little cracker handled bigger fifteen inch brownies well in a fair old current too on occasions, so I really can’t complain . Looking into this rod in more detail, I’ve discovered it’s made out of IM8 graphite and actually the company that make these Maxcatch rods are Leichi Industries Ltd. that also make rods for other high end manufacturers in the same factory !!!! Makes you think hey …..The quality of the rod is very very good to be honest, the rings and finish is up there with higher end rods, and the cork handle and reel seat are made well ……! I can also report that the little reel handled bigger fish well , with a great drag system that was robust and works well … finish is nicely done too and I opted for the metallic green option , pleased with it I must say .So the full outfit was just less than a hundred quid ….. Must admit my first outing I was sceptical ….. a rise , I covered it well ,my fly landed lovely and delicate, turned over by the two weight line and furled leader, a splashy take to my dry, swift lift into him, he’s on ….. and admired quickly then released…. Ditto with the next six fish ….. wow !!!!! This was fun, and a truly responsive dry fly rod …. Accurate presentation to risers was easy and I pitched my Parachute Greenwells or Iron Blue exactly where I wanted it every time …. Superb …. Day two , Maxine, as I affectionately call her now was put in the truck , destination, The Upper Wye , again ….. this time a different beat ……. ! Success!!!! she didn’t disappoint again, and had a ball with just a single dry fly on a fine tippet attached to a superb Luke Bannister small streams furled leader in silk ….. these really are the business …… they can be treated with mucillin or other such floatants, or left to sink with tiny nymphs or wets, very versatile and aids a great turnover with tiny size twenty dries …..
So, another day in paradise, another afternoon on the Wye, and a wistful escape with Maxine ….. she did the business again ….. back to a favourite run …. Walking down saw some risers by midday , and a few B.W.O.s dancing round, along with a smattering of mayflies and olives ……. Annoyingly, on the mooch towards the river bank, I was getting pestered by horse flies …. They really lock on to their target don’t they …. Let the one land on my waders, slowly does it, bang!!!!! One down one more to go !!!! The first little victory of the day, slaying a horse fly, things can only get better !!!!! And they did, Groundhog Day !!!!! Lovely job she performed superbly ……… again !!! Sweet as a nut with an eighteen Para Adams, lovely jubbley……..
Had a few spare hours late afternoon yesterday …. Well, self employed I sort of made it spare !!!! I’d done some admin with regards to the website and leaflet distribution, although this winter, more advertising to do, and some merchandise products are being designed by yours truly ….. a quality cap and sweat top …..… but obviously I’ll keep you all posted on progress …..So, final sortie for a while, on the now shrunken Wye. Well, not so much shrunken , more stale….. we’ve just had a huge deluge of a downpour in Rhayader a couple of hours ago for about forty minutes, almost Biblical….. Enough for a flush through at least !!!! Caban Coch reservoir is releasing water at the mo …. So will be on sluice for another couple of weeks ….. trying times hey, and it’s only early June … Brummies, guess what, no paddling pools and car washing for you this summer, along with all of us for that matter !!! …. Water is getting a rare commodity these days, and luxuries in life , concerning water will not be allowed, with hose pipe bans already in force in some areas of the country …… and, it’s not going to get any better …. Get used to a dusty car ….. and the kids can stand under a watering can, simples !!!!! Again, I digress….. the rods ultimate test after some cracking brownies that nailed my dry fly, I had the strangest of rises, I had seen a rise fifteen yards above me, in the bubble line .. so I cast too it , up came the fish , sluuuurp !! that wasn’t a typical trout rise …..I struck …. Wooooooooaaaaahhhhhhhh , this teddy bear was going knowhere fast ….. arrgghhhhhh I thought, it wasn’t a salmon was it , hope not !!!! After a while I was able to see those great big rubber lips, and that huge head …. Strewth it was a clonking Chubb in pristine condition too ….. She was worked just upstream of me … my little rod nearly bent double , but handling things well, likewise the reel was put to the test too, ten out of ten !!!! Net out when she was eight yards upstream and she was tiring, head above water enough to guide her towards the net … she’s in !!!! What a donkey, on the dry, with a little stream rod …. This rod had passed with flying colours , ohhhhh yes, I’d say so !!!!! A cracking four sorties with some fabulous dry fly sport …… one could say sublime, and you know what, folks on the River Test pay three or four hundred quid “a day” to dry fly fish for brownies, me, I paid twenty five quid for the season on this river, and another one that flows into it !!!! Wales hey, truly spoilt and in the land of honey and trout , feeder streams, rivers and llyns are busting with brownies ….. Long May it continue ……. 🏴 🏴 🏴😉😉😉😉🎣🎣🎣🎣🎣🎣🎣🎣🎣🎣
