Hodder in autumn
low water, sunshine and plenty of takers
Late September and early October on the Hodder are truly magical times
When the waters fine down the lines of lure-chucking, salmon anglers disappear and peace reigns supreme for the dedicated trout and grayling fisher. Now, only the cry of a buzzard over the alders or a few Frisians happily grazing the meadows will be one’s only company. Being an antisocial type of creature myself this suits me down to the ground.
A spell of dry, sunny weather at this golden period is welcome and not to be missed as awkward summer fish tend to take the dry fly with more confidence now as they feed up for winter.
I found this to be true recently when I managed to take a nice mixed bag with the water being no higher than summer level on the gauge.
Both grayling and trout were eager to take traditional fancy patterns such as the Treacle Parkin and Grayling Witch. Effective sizes were 16s and 18s with the larger pattern provoking more interest on the day.
Very often, when the water is so low and clear, only smaller dressing will suffice down to size 24, yet this day was the exception.
I also took a fair few grayling on larger dun imitations. Most of the naturals were drifting on the far side of the stream making identification difficult yet the fish were quite selective taking only the odd one as they struggled in the surface current.
I figured that most of what was coming down the stream were Medium Olives and the odd Autumn Dun.
My suspicions of the latter were confirmed as I noticed one in the undergrowth by the water’s edge. The Autumn Dun is a lovely fly yet it is quite energetic and never lingers about for very long. Nevertheless, I managed to get a shot of a male before he flew away.
Reaction to takes had to be lightening fast as the fish were hitting with a vengeance – just the way I like it. Armed, as usual, with my trusty 6' dry fly rod and number 3 DT floating line I managed to land a dozen fish. I lost plenty more but that's just the way it goes.
I will let the pictures speak for themselves and tell the story better than mere words ever can.
Autumn duns can brighten up sport on the cooler late season days
Speckled perfection - a Hodder brown taken on dry fly graces the bank side before being returned to the stream
Bad news for the Salmon fishers but low water in autumn need not mean the dedicated fly angler should stay at home
Yet another superb grayling drifts back into the stream after taking an old fancy dressing
Popping another beautifully marked Hodder brown back to grow bigger.
Yes - autumn on the wild, spate stream can be a very special time indeed and not one to be missed, if sport is to be had in abundance.
NB. All pictures on this website are copyright of Pat Regan and not to be used without prior permission