|
You know what its like, a river fishing venue is selected, hotels booked the meals are ordered. The week before the match you sit at home, watching the rain beat against the windows and pray to the rain gods. Please, all I want is two or three fine days to let the water level drop, yet again you ring the river level line, “1.673” the animated voice declares. The phone rings, yet another entrant asking if the match is cancelled, “sorry it’s all booked, we can not cancel now”.
It’s Saturday morning and the optimist in you leaps out of bed and the first thought is ring the river line “1.493”. Oh well, it could be worse. Down to breakfast and try to be cheerful to the other 20 faces doing exactly the same. Then its tackle into the car and off to the briefing at Ty Mawr Country Park. This is where I met the first problem of the day, the toilets were locked and I still need to put on the extra warm undergarments. Never mind lets hide at the back of the car and hope that the folk in the houses opposite don’t get up early on a Saturday.
Everyone arrived on time, which allowed Paul Sissons to carry out the briefing and us all to disperse to our various sections in good time. The match was to be fished in two sections, the Sunbank stretch and Ddol Issa stretch, with us all changing over at lunch time. Beat numbers had been drawn the previous evening, with the idea being we each stayed with 30yds of our starting point for 30mins and were then free to fish any part of the section for the remaining time.
With the river this high up and running through like a train, I will not bore you with details of the match. Suffice it to say that a lot of Czech Nymphs were lost during the day and a few expletives used when fly’s snagged on the bottom or up trees. Lunch time rumours had it that only one measurable grayling had been caught, along with one undersized fish and a brown trout. Water levels only dropped 3cm during the day and the clarity of the water didn’t improve at all. The 4.30 whistle came as a relief and every one was eager to return to the hotel for a shower. Again there were rumours of a second fish being caught on the Sunbank during the afternoon.
Sprits soon rose as we met up again for our own small firework display and a very good meal, accompanied I am sure by a few glasses of orange juice! The ELFA Rivers Champion for 2005 was announced as Gina Le Faux, having caught a grayling measuring 28cm, Mary Hopper coming a close second with a fish of 27.5cm.
The association would like to say thank you to Ken Bathers and the bailiffs of the Maelor Angling Association for their help in organising the day. Also a huge vote of thanks must go to the men and women who gave up their time to act as controllers for the match, without who’s help this event would not be possible.
|
