As I parked up at the westerly arm of the wild Nantymoch reservoir yesterday, I had a feeling it was going to be a corker ….. that hunch with a super trouty breeze from the West, drizzle and overcast, with intermittent sunny spells …… absolutely perfect for wild brownies !!!!! Having quickly purchased my permit from the garage in Ponterwyd , and making a beeline for the reservoir across the moors …… as you approach it looks lonely and menacing …… I crossed the dam and made my way up to the shallower bay of the huge six hundred and fifty acre water .
I tackled up my trustee Orvis six weight , and a team of two flies, on the point a Kate Maclaren, and on the dropper, some three feet up a Mallard and Claret. These flies actually stayed on all day, as takes to both of them were exceptional . I was also more than pleased with my new Barrio line and an Airflo poly leader with a hover characteristic . This leader aids in the turnover of your flies and beds them in the water superbly so that they sit a foot or so under . I’ve been using this all week on Craig Goch and Claerwen, the flyline and the polyleader have performed flawlessly …….. happy days !!!!!!
The day couldn’t have been better, as far as early season mountain trout fishing goes …. Suffice to say the sport was sublime, ok a lot of fish were eight to ten inch brownies, but beautiful little fish, and scrappers too !!!!! Six fish out of a tally of thirty were really good trout of sixteen to eighteen inches I’d say … beautifully spotty Nantymoch brownies … total respect for these fish. They’ve survived against all odds, grown up in the feeder streams as fry from a diligent hen fishes eggs….. and made it to become the cracking fish that inhabit this wonderful reservoir ….. and the age of some of these wild brown trout ????? Who knows, maybe eight, ten or even fifteen years old ….. wonderful creatures , Salmo Trutta , the special forces of the fish world most definately !!!!! The takes all day were constant , I lost a few fish before they made it to the net …. Lovely solid confident takes to the flies …. Interestingly early morning it was the dropper fly they were hammering the most , then by mid day the point fly was seeing the action too !!!!! A fantastic day, and to be honest I’m glad I took a really substantial lunch, much needed , may head over to Bugeilyn next week, then the wild streams should be awake by then …..Actually yesterday was totally different from today, as I write this , it’s been blissful sun all day here in the Elenydd, and I’ve mountain biked around the lakes and some of the rivers of the Elan Estate, and sitting outside The Lamb and Flag in Rhayader, it was positively balmy !!! Anyway it just leaves me to say have a happy, peaceful Easter folks and enjoy this weather while you can …… I think some more of the wet stuff is on its way for Monday !!!!! 🫣🫣🎣🎣🎣🎣