If you’ve ever wondered if fishery owners were exaggerating about the damage cormorants do to their fisheries just take a look at the picture sequence with this blog taken at Grafham Water on Friday last week. The bird was blatantly fishing in between the massed boats around ‘G’ Buoy as cool as you like. Diving down it emerged with a fish firmly in its beak that had to be around the 2lb mark. Tossing the trout up in the air it opened its throat and swallowed the fish headfirst. It was a remarkable sight even more so as the bird was so close to the fishing boats. Grafham is fishing well at the moment and the nasty tea colour the reservoir was holding a week ago has all but disappeared and the water, although still very cold, is pretty clear all over the lake. It’s also pretty full due to the Great Ouse being backed up at the Denver Sluice allowing Anglian Water to pump water in from the river to ensure the reservoir is topped up in readiness for the summer. You will also see the amazing bank erosion improvements done to the reservoir over the winter. Senior warden at Grafham, John Mees, is confident that once finished, it will allow bank fishing from the lodge right up to the Sailing Club.
I hope everyone saw Sunday’s BBC ‘Countryfile’ programme featuring Eyebrook Reservoir and its estate manager Andy Miller. River Gwash Fish farmer Jamie Weston also got into the act too and looking at the quality of the fish he was putting into the reservoir, with the ‘assistance’ of presenter Matt Baker, I need to get down there and wet a line pretty quickly.
I did some photography at Ed Foster’s Elinor Trout Fishery on Sunday for the fifth heat of the longest competition name ever, the Iain Barr Fly Fishing Airflo World Masters Individual Bank Competition 2012. Forty-six anglers took part and by no means, not all the ‘usual names’. It was very refreshing seeing ordinary run-of-the-mill anglers standing shoulder to shoulder with Internationals, National champions and even International loch-style champions…and beating them.
I’m off to Rutland’s opening day on Saturday and if the whispers are correct there should be some very interesting action around the draw-off tower on the reservoirs North Arm where the Bloody Red Shrimps appear to have overwintered rather well. And, if that’s true, the resident trout should have really packed on the pounds. Can’t wait!
Regards
Cliff Waters
