What happened last opening day - and tips for this year — Laurence Farr

OPENING DAY ACTION

Laurence Farr describes his 2017 season start and offers a few tips for early season.

First light is magic - and cold and with great reflections

For those of you who remember last seasons (2017) opening day, the weather prediction appeared bleak for the big day! However, that didn’t stop an army of enthusiastic anglers dusting off their waders and warmest clothes to hit the water on the first day...

At 5:45am on DAY ONE I stood on the edge of a flooded, frozen lake… it was a windless on the central plateau, nearly a foot of snow blanketing the ground, a thin layer of ice; a jagged mosaic, extending out from the bank into the fog.

Had we come too early?

Were we too eager to be the first line in the water?

Would we suffer a whole day of cold hands, numb cheeks and aching toes, only to be held away from our spotted golden prize by a layer of relentless ice?

I embraced the warm outside of my pocket thermos stowed inside my jacket as daylight arrived, illuminating the thick air and with it came optimism. It was as if the sun had seen enough of our suffering and arrived just in time to save these mad souls.

As the fog lifted, the open water of the lake became visible — our first chance.

A dark fur fly, surely the most humble of flies, seemed fitting, and was my choice for the season. Its maiden voyage however presented a challenge, frozen guides, frozen and stiffened line and tippet as well as rock solid fly that offered no movement in the vital first portion of a retrieve if kept out of the water for more than a few seconds! A manual de-icing of each guide was necessary by blowing on them with precious warm air. I had to make each cast count, I told myself.

A glance along the bank revealed a second defrosted patch around 50 metres away. A much smaller patch than the first. High water levels had inundated a previously exposed grassy depression, forming a secluded defrosted bay, well outside the normal margins of the lake and no more than 10 square metres in diameter.

An unmistakable and heartening ripple emanated from this little bay and what followed was one of the most unforgettable observations of wild trout behavior I have experienced in my short time fishing.

My heart rate rose as I carefully prepared my outfit, whilst watching carefully the bay ahead. As I stood almost lifeless a commotion of water and fins erupted. It seemed multiple fish were working together on a school of galaxiids in less than a foot of water. It was all I could do not to stumble head over heals as i raced across the snow into position, crouched in front of a bush roughly 4 metres adjacent to the tiny bay. Knees shaking, hands fumbling I extracted an unweighted black and olive green minnow, switched flies, swiftly wet the fly across my lips and watched the astonishing scene unfold.

The trout appeared to be completely tolerant of each others presence, two were visibly parked at the only exit, while three were more or less lurking concealed in the grass tussocks throughout the bay. Moments of calm were followed by upheaval, as one fish came across prey scattering the bait school across the surface as they attempted to escape, only to be met by the open jaws of the other aggressive trout.

At this point, there was not much to be done on my part, a single back cast and a I sent the fly to the opposite edge of the bay, two strips and a pause was followed by a bow wave by the closest fish and it was on! Needless to say the remaining fish quickly exited the scene and I realized my only chances of landing this fish were keeping it inside the bay, as escape to the main lake with its companions under the ice would be disaster. Thankfully, I kept the fish jumping close to where it was hooked by applying pressure from opposing angles, and keeping tension on, I was able to run to the fish and slid my net under its belly. A healthy, spotted golden buck was a good way to start the season!

The day proceeded as many highland days do, a breath of wind lifted the fog before midday and parted clouds providing moments of sunshine, followed by sleeting rain then snow, wind, then back to sunshine. A prevailing South easterly wind set in after midday breaking any remaining ice and providing the lake conditions with rather predictable trout holding areas.

Stalking the leeward (down wind) shore I speculated an accumulation of food would likely occur along this bank and to cut a short story shorter, it wasn’t long before my prediction payed. A dark silhouette of a fine brown cruising along the bank in the same direction I was walking, quickly, back on when the fur fly and the pleasurable pursuit followed; the trout appeared in no mind to turn back on his path and would have undoubtedly made his way along the entire bank of the lake, if, he had not seen a tasty feed of fur and hook twitching on the bottom. I had held my presentation until he moved behind a snow covered grassy ‘bulkhead’ that allowed the concealment of both my fly line and waving rod, from the fish only a few metres away.

I presented my fly a metre or so in front of where I thought he was, retrieved the slack in the line then let the fly sink, a 4-5 second pause then a tiny twitch was all it took. This fish was the biggest of the day at 3 and a half to 4 pounds. It didn’t, like being hooked and took off for the middle of the lake. My confidence lay in the strength of my leader and the solid hookup I’d made, at this point I remembered the importance of enjoying the whole experience, letting a fish fight in this colder water is less likely to stress them, so rushing the retrieval in this case was unnecessary. I took my time and with a smile on my face, slid the net under another remarkable fish.

The day continued as any trout angler would have hoped. With a total of 5 memorable fish by 4pm I had had my fix! It was time for a hot meal and a bubbling brew to reflect on what makes the early season so good!

Thoughts on early season

The opening season is an exciting time for all anglers as the prospects of new opportunities in the coming months inspire the imagination of catches exceeding previous season highs.

But the ambition to fish the highland lakes in opening month, defines the intrepid few from those content to postpone their first venture for more comfortable conditions. While the lowland lakes will certainly provide reliable catches in the first portion of the season, the highland lakes will offer unrivaled experiences, where the opportunity of being the first to fish an area for the season puts one in high stead of landing the more memorable fish. Just over the bush

It is the the firm opinion of both myself and my fishing mates that the early season is one of the most productive times of year, the reasons for which, are as follows;

Apart from it being the single longest time without angling pressure, it’s as if the thought of reproduction then the following challenges of surviving winter resets the fear of being caught to practically zero! Aggressive feeding by fish desperate to regain weight after winter is often the case. Fish will feed with less hesitation and far less scrutiny of poor presentation and perfect imitation. This allows for thicker, stronger leaders, (6lb or more is certainly not too heavy). Chiefly, this time of year usually presents the highest water levels in all systems after the heavier winter rains. Any well seasoned trout angler will know this means fish in the shallows, often easily spotted working the margin of lakes and rivers feeding on newly submerged food sources.

What fly should I tie on first?

Unless you see reliable evidence otherwise- wet flies are the go, darker flies in black and gold or green and black should do wonders as these colors contrast well with the typical darker water at time of year.

Wet Flies

Fur flies are an effective ‘go to’ fly for any shallow water over grass or weed at this time of year, a pattern general enough to imitate a variety of subsurface critters. Known commonly as the ‘Sloane style’ or ‘frog’ fly, usually tied from rabbit fur on a size 8-10 hook. These flies should be fish slow… or not retrieved at all. I recall an interaction with a ‘well seasoned’ fly fishermen while standing next to a small but well known lagoon in the central highlands; After a lengthy conversation about the challenges of fishing such a commonly hit location, he opened his fly box and gave me one of his own tied Sloane flies ‘one of many’ he said, ‘not hard to come by, but one of the only flies I’d fish here’. He explained the most effective way to present these was sinking them to the bottom in front of fish, then leaving them there ‘only twitch a fly to get the fish’s attention once he’s seen it, don’t touch it’.

Cat fur flies really deserve a whole category of their own, the well known and loved ‘Shrek’ fly is a deadly green and black pattern, and there are many variants on the well known ‘Yeti’ fur flies — weighted or unweighted for water depth. Imitating a bait fish means a conscious retrieval is needed, small short strips, big long strips, pauses or even a consistent retrieve are all viable, depending on the waterway and the fish feeding behavior on the day! As always, experiment, but have faith! These flies are responsible for more than their fair share of fish in the early season!

The old faithful, bead headed Wooly Bugger will be the first fly to hit the water for many an angler this opening and for good reason! These flies are ideal for deeper waters, anywhere much over 1.5 metres depth and a bead head is going to hit the hot spot during august.

Scuds, nymphs and the age old Mallard and Claret will have there place in the August arsenal, for when fish begin to appear more hesitant, after they’ve seen a fly or two these patterns are sure to induce a take!

Fishing around ice

During August many highland waterways will have partial ice coverage. It is uncommon however, for lakes (especially those of reasonable size and volume) to be remain frozen all day, many lakes present only partly frozen with a thin lay of ice and snow in the morning but thaw rapidly once the sun provides its heat. Reading

Let them go and let them grow

the pattern of ice on a lake can tell us a lot about the water conditions of the lake.

When a layer of ice forms on a lake we know that this surface water is 0°C, however due the phenomenon known as ‘stratification’ the water below is certainly warmer, up to 4°C in fact. Once we see ice melting we know the below ice temperature is even greater and could be as high as 7°C, a temperature well within our wild trout’s ‘comfort zone’. A rising thermometer (or barometer) at any degree (over 4°C) is enough to trigger a feeding response, and from experience this is exactly what August brings!

A consistent wind in one direction will create an extended ice coverage out from the upwind shore while a buildup of broken ice, or no ice at all on the downwind side. This down wind edge will likely be the warmest as water circulates across the surface towards this edge, creating an accumulation of more temperate surface waters, while the opposite side will experience ‘upwelling’ from colder bottom waters. This downwind bank will almost always hold the greatest food accumulation at this time of year, as dead or dying aquatic life will be washed in this direction. Trout know this and cunning, more dominant individuals will cruise this bank in search of an easy meal.

The warmest clothes

While writing this (July) we are receiving calm sunny days followed by wild wind and rain in the north, there’s really no predicting the weather on opening day but in preparing for early season one should certainly expect the full scope of our beloved states whether!

Having completely water proof clothing head to toe is a must and maintaining dry undergarments all day is essential. High quality warm clothing, such as merino thermal socks, gloves, and undergarments, woolen midlayers and Gortex raincoats over waders are a must have for enjoying this time of year. There’s no denying these conditions are tough, but there’s not much a pocket sized flask of hot beverage can’t make better!

Lessons:

Don’t be hesitant to be the first angler on the water on opening day.

Don’t be reluctant to fish partially frozen lakes, as areas of defrosted surface often hold the feeding fish in higher concentrations.

If you see a fish under the ice, unless there’s a defrosted patch nearby, just take a photo, or enjoy the moment because there’s honestly no way to catch these fish.

Look for flooded inlets and bays as fish love feeding over newly submerged ground.

When imitating subsurface food sources target the downwind shore.

Prepare for the worst conditions- hope for the best.

Don’t forget to renew your license.

Never forget a flask of hot beverage.

If you’re after some hot early season action (minus the hot weather) then; get into your tackle store, get geared up and get in early on the opening! Laurence Farr