When it is this hot I always try to remind myself that down in that frigidarium of a river we call a chalkstream the temperature is a blissful 51F whatever is happening above. I know it is tempting to give up all hope when the mercury soars into the high 70's and 80's but with the countryside looking this beautiful, the rivers pristine perfect and the long evenings to die for, with a bit of thought this is a month to savour.

Summer on the Test

As I say trout don't notice the heat, but they do notice the long days. Compared to April, just ten weeks ago, they have 40% more daylight hours to feed in plus many more hatches. So with more food and more time to eat it in they can, and will, be more selective. Add to that the fact that without eyelids trout hate to look up into the bright sun it is no wonder that for long parts of the day they bide their time. And make no mistake they are biding their time. Trout simply can't go very long without eating when food is available. It is against their very nature.

  

You might be some sort of superman, but with 17 hours of daylight to play with I try to fish smart. My first tactic is to abandon my fishing waistcoat, stuffing whatever I need into shirt pockets. Wellingtons are never a good idea and I avoid shorts. Nettles, wasps, thistles, brambles ...... enough said. Fish early and late; if you can do just one I like late best. Leave the river by 2pm and don't return until 6pm. Fishing until 10pm is a given. Don't forget a torch!

  

Flies? There are a lot about this month. I have just noticed Daddy Long Legs being blown into the office. Caenis, sedges, olives and midges are all around. There will be a hatch of each every day [see my Hatch Calendar], but the balance of play will change daily, with the trout favouring one or other group. If you are waiting for the hatch to start, check out the cobwebs along the bank to see what has been happening. My most deadly pattern has to be a drowned Black Midge. Midges hatch in their thousands with a large percentage stillborn; these are the ones trout hoover up for a pastime. Use an ordinary Midge (a Black Gnat will do equally well), no gink and squeeze the body together with a bit of spittle. Let the current work the fly for you (it is a imitation of something dead) and don't worry if it sinks a bit.

 

Finally, when the sun is in the sky I watch my shadow and the shadow of the rod and line. Fish get very twitchy with the water levels a tad lower and slightly slower flows, so I try to keep the sun to my face or better still position myself in shadow.

  

Enjoy it - sometimes the toughest days turn out the best.

  

RIVER KENNET GETS THE ALL CLEAR

I am sorry to see the River Kennet has hit the headlines again; last year it bore the brunt of the drought (remember that?!) publicity and nine days ago chlorpryrifos, a common agricultural pesticide, came from the sewage works at Ramsbury into the river. 

No fish were killed but invertebrates in the immediate vicinity of the outflow died in a section of the river between Marlborough and Hungerford. There have been no ill-effects reported on our beats at Barton Court and Benham Estate which are well downstream and fishing as usual. The River Lambourn which feeds into rather that is fed from the Kennet is totally unaffected.

The current advice on the Environment Agency web site confirms the all clear and that fish are fine to eat.  

HOUSE OF HARDY SOLD TO AMERICA

The famed House of Hardy and sister company Grey's have been sold to Pure Fishing the owners of well known fishing brands such as Abu Garcia, Berkley, Fenwick, Mitchell, Penn, Pflueger, Shakespeare, and Triline.

Pure is part of the much larger Jarden Inc. group which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and must be having a good year with the stock rising from $28 to a current $45. They own over 100 other brands mostly outdoors stuff. If you ski you will be familiar with K2. If you camp Coleman stoves.

THE FLY IS UP by Terry Lawton

For those of you who have had a guided day through me in East Anglia you most likely were with my good friend and writer Terry Lawton. Terry penned my 'go to' reference book on flies. I am not a great one for tying, but I am fascinated by the origins of flies and Terry's book Flies that Catch Trout charts who, when and where the 50 most popular flies of all time were invented.

I am delighted to say Terry has a new book out and in the spirit of the age, it is self-published and available on-line. The book is The Fly is Up and I will leave Terry to tell you about it.

The Fly is Up is the story of fly fishing in times very different from today. Times of friendship forged between anglers, who though they may have lived on different continents, met regularly on the banks of English chalk streams or at the Shannon River in Tasmania to enjoy exceptional fishing triggered by truly prolific fly hatches.

Anglers today may be surprised that many of their forebears greeted the start of the Mayfly carnival with neither excitement nor great enthusiasm. Before fishing the Mayfly hatch assumed its prominence in anglers' imaginations, the season opened with the grannom. This caddis fly's fluctuating fortunes show how sensitive wildlife is to man's management of rivers. The demise of the Shannon Rise demonstrates how man can create and then destroy habitat that was ideal for a particular species of fly.

The Fly is Up is more than the history of three famous fly hatches. It is a story of man's inter-action with the natural environment, for good and bad.

For more details and to buy it ($9.99) follow this link