The day was bloody hot and I went to places that I knew had a lot of overhanging trees. There was one fly kicking around and there was no other rising trout to be seen. 

The river had a whitish tint to it and in other parts looked crystal clear – there was a nice earthy smell from the water. I wouldn’t say it was on its arse however it was looking thin in places. 

The weather has to break at the weekend so hopefully that will kick things into action. I am not sure if the cans were used fir graffiti or buzzing however it was annoying to know that the old saying of “People Make Glasgow” should really be “People Make Glasgow look like Shite”

As much as this is a personal affair I sometimes get asked how folk can support Urban Fly Fisher and keep it free from shareholders, billionaire owners and advertisers. I know that everyone is not in a positon to pay for content however if you are then here are some ways that you can help::

On the right hand side of this blog you will see some links to Amazon – if you buy those books or even something else on Amazon after clicking on the link I get a bung – generally a few pence for every ten pounds you spend.

I have an Amazon Wishlist from which family members buy me stuff for my birthday – you could buy me something and have it delivered to my home – this will give the added benefit of driving my wife nuts. You will also notice that I do not actually have expensive tastes. You can find my wishlist here.My hosting and domain fees are a couple of hundred a year – if you wish to donate to this fund you can do so using the link at the bottom of the page .Even a couple of quid (or dollars) go a long way – I still remember the day around 10 years ago when a well known fishing icon gave me £100 and it was tremendous – they wanted to remain anonymous.

At time of writing I have just under 2 thousand folk subscribed to the blog via email and around 11 hundred followers on Facebook – if only half those folk chucked me 50p I would not only have enough to pay my hosting fees and buy a new pair of waders I would also be able to pay a fraction of my energy bill as well.

Feel free to subscribe to my email at the bottom of this page – you can unsubscribe at any time.

See you on the river.

Of course, hardier souls are out braving the cold for Grayling fishing at the moment. Even though my thyroid is under control, I still feel the chill easily.

While pondering this, I glanced up at the hill and saw people paragliding. I’m not sure if they had small motors attached, but they certainly looked like they were enjoying themselves as they soared around.

Just yesterday, I welcomed a new addition to the family – an 8-week-old Pointer mix named Jasper. Settling him in and starting his training has been a lot of fun. He’s a very intelligent little guy, and I’m hoping he’ll be able to join me on some of my hillwalking adventures as well as to the estuary and to my hill loch.

Anyone got any good training tips?

My last Wednesday on the river was a total burn out – that is to say it was in fact the last day of blinding sunshine. The temp must have topped 24 degrees and it was an odd session due to the changing colors of the trees as Autumn was well on the way.

Anyway, when I got there it was still a little overcast so as I fished upstream I quickly hooked and landed a nice trout. I had the classic thought that it was going to be a half decent session when the blazing sun started to beat down. Every now and then I would dip my hands in the cold water to cool down which felt lovely. I trudged back to the car and got some water – I drove upstream however found a car parked in my space. I drove back down to another spot and trudged my way upstream through some deep undergrowth – the sweat was fair dripping off my forehead “I’m not even having a good time” I muttered as I finally got to some shade. It was nice though sitting amongst some trees and watching the water – it was totally devoid of any feeding trout though. Even when I worked up a nice long pool with a nymph they did not play ball. 

I dreaded walking back downstream however decided to cross the river and walk down under the shade of some trees – also the added bonus of little undergrowth due to the sheep – which turned out to be rams “are rams dangerous” I googled as they eyed me up however I passed them by without incident. 

My final Wednesday I decided to stay local – I had actually planned on hitting the estuary for any Sea Trout stragglers, however I bolted past my spot until I arrived at my parking place for my pond. I tramped up the hill and it is always nice when I see the water in front of me. 

I fished around the pond and used some new sinkent that had been sent to me – I had been sent this stuff by Unfair Baits and I had to write a review of it. It felt slightly waxy between my fingers as I put a small amount on my fly and up and down my leader. First cast and I noticed a real difference – usually the fly takes several casts to get deep however it cut through the water straight away – bloody good stuff. 

I worked my way around the pond and picked up a couple of trout. I had only applied the sinkent once and it worked for the whole session which was very good going. It is sold as an attractant as it has a smell, I don’t know about that but it was incredibly good for its intended purpose. They also sent me a floatant as well – I tried it out when the wind dropped and some trout splashed the surface – no trout however the fly floated lovely. 

We are now in 2025 – time for a New Year change and fly tying.