Thank the Lord…it’s time.

Four days off work. No computers. No Servers. No IT Support or listening to other peoples IT-related problems. In fact, there will be no work related anything! Instead…Lots of beer. Lots of fishing. Lots of relaxation.

Off I go, to spend 3 days and 2 nights with 20 or so other like-minded fishing fanatics…see you all Tuesday!

As some of you have read, at the start of April I managed to snap my Sage Fli. Well, it was delivered back into my loving arms a week or so ago with a brand new tip section! Turnaround time - 20 days. Not a bad turn around if you take into account it had to be sent to the retailer first (John Norris of Penrith), then to sage, and back again.

The process was totally painless, and John Norris’s customer service (as ever) was faultless! Thank you John Norris and Sage!

However, since the fateful snap, I’ve thought to myself ‘What would happen if I had a fishing trip planned for the weekend after?’ Well, I’d be screwed.

There is a company (I believe them to be THE company when it comes to product quality and pre/post-sales customer service) who has a solution…

To the question ‘What if I have broken my only rod and need it to continue fishing?’, Orvis reply:

Average turnaround for rod repairs is 3 days (excluding transit). Should your repair take longer and you will require a loan rod in the meantime, will provide it to you free of charge.

Well that sounds pretty good! But that’s just in addition to their 25-Year Guarantee! Keep reading…

[The Orvis] 25-Year Rod Guarantee

Purchase an Orvis Helios, Zero Gravity, Superfine, Western2, Shooting Star, T3, TLS Power Matrix, Clearwater, and Clearwater Double Hander rods with a 25-year guarantee, and we will repair or replace it, no matter what the reason, for a quarter of a century. Step on it, close the door on it, run over it with the car - it doesn not matter, we will repair it. If we cannot repair it, we will choose a current comparable rod to replace it. All this in a turnaround of less than a week in over 94% of the cases!

Of course, this sounds way to good to be true! But then, I’ve experienced first hand just how good the Orvis rod guarantee is, and also, I’ve experienced similarly awesome customer service when a pair of Endura waders began leaking.

Now, as it’s my birthday this month, I’ve decided to treat myself to a new rod, and of course, I’ve gone for an Orvis.

I kinda’ fell in love with their Superfine ‘Troutbum’ series a little while ago, but (for now) I need a new 8′6″ 5wt for all-round/general river work on small/medium sized rivers. It has to be suitable for fishing teams of spiders, weighted nymphs, duo-setups, streamer fishing, and of course (more important to me than any of the above), it has to be gentle enough for the dry-fly. The Superfine can wait a little longer.

With the above requirements in mind, I decided to purchase a T3 Mid Flex, 8′6″ 5wt. This was a blind purchase, where I ended up not having the chance to try the rod out in person due to various reasons, but instead, I went on the recommendations of others that have a similar casting style to myself.

Mmmm…sweet!

Image copyright Orvis 2008

Orvis say:

A slower-action five-weight for delicate presentations, and effortless roll casts. The tracking and forgiving castability of this rod means you can still lay down a perfect line, even when you are focused more on the fish than your timing.

Fly Rod Features Include:

• Super-high modulus graphite and thermoplastic-enriched, thermoset resin/scrim matrix: more powerful, more durable.
• Three coats of finish with a final UV blocking coat.
• Silicon-carbide-lined stripping, chrome snake guides.
• Protective aluminum rod tube.
• 25-year guarantee to repair or replace fly rod
• 30-day Risk Free Trial

Ordered the rod Saturday, there was a slight mix up with the stock advertised online, but this was remedied immediately by couriering the rod from the Orvis store in Bath. Due to the Bank Holiday, etc, I was expecting the rod to be delivered today…spot on!

Upon its delivery I was struck with a problem: I was at work…and the rod was at home. Add to this conundrum the fact that the social is taking place tomorrow; what does this equal you ask? A very anxious and excited Gareth with no time to try out the rod before the social.

Work couldn’t finish fast enough, but after getting home, opening the package, and setting up the rod, I (apparently) turned into a ‘dribbling mess’…of course I disagree, and believe I was very dignified in my response to my new rod…perhaps not.

First impressions? This is a truly beautiful and very well crafted rod, and one that will last a long time it cared for (don’t worry, I’m not going to start talking to it). Obviously, to get a proper opinion I’m going to have to actually fish with it, but then, with the Monnow social is taking place tomorrow…perfect for hardware testing, I can’t wait!

I’ll post an update on the rod in due course.

…anyway, it’s now off to the pub for a ‘pre-social’ curry and pint…result!

Images of a madman with unwashed, messy hair, hunched over a fly tying vice all the while laughing and rambling hysterics to himself; eyes bloodshot with a slightly crazed and deranged sparkle to them, tying the world’s most evil fly patterns…may (please) be dispelled.

Instead, I’ve had a few lovely, relaxing nights, calmly restocking my fly collection one fly at a time. A tea break here and there, a flick through a few fly tying web sites to find a few nice new patterns, and then back to it; I always find fly tying relaxes me. The concentration needed casts out any other thoughts.

A problem arose on Friday of last week at the office. A colleague enquired if I was excited for the Monnow Social weekend taking place on Friday and if I had everything organised. Excitement - Check. Organisation - Whoops!

The state of my fly box and the fact that there would be no tying vice around for miles could have spelt disaster! Luckily though, I’m now replenished.

Anyone who knows me will know my favourite flies. It’s simple, as I rarely fish with more than a handful.

Four or five dry flies, a few nymphs, and a few wets (and maybe a couple of streamer patterns when the going gets tough). That’s my lot though, and they all fit snugly into one fly box (although, due to my fly tying ‘cram’ session, I now have a 10″x6″ plastic compartment container full of my favourites flies, plus a few ’special’ additions needed for the Monnow social).

At this time of year the Monnow system plays host to a substantial hatch of Mayfly and is proof of the quality of it’s waters. The visiting angler will ignore this hatch at his/her peril, as the trout certainly won’t be in ignorance. In addition, the organisers of the social (who’s primary fishing takes place in/around the Monnow system) are currently reporting the existence of a healthy abundance of hawthorn fly. Two fly patterns you’ll not want to forget when you’re in this area and at this time of year.

Hopefully, both Mayfly and Hawthorn flies will make an appearance next Friday, as the Taff system sees very little hawthorn and Mayfly are practically unheard of.

The Hardy Handful

Dry Flies
Klinkhammer (various colours and sizes)	CDC & Elk (various colours and sizes)
Balloon Caddis (various colours and sizes)	Adams (Parachute) (various sizes)
Spiders
Snipe & Purple (various sizes)	Partridge & Orange (various sizes)
Snipe & Yellow (various sizes)
Nymphs
GRHE (various sizes)	Dee Devil (various sizes)
PTN (various sizes)	Czech Nymphs (various colours and sizes)
Streamers
Black & Olive Woolly Bugger (various colours and sizes)	Olive Woolly Bugger (various colours and sizes)
Monnow ‘Specials’
Mayfly (Extended Body) (various colours and sizes)	Mayfly (Grey Wulff) (various sizes)

Unlike last year’s social, this time around I know the area better and am a little better acquainted with the local fly life. As a result (and with a little more certainty that last year) I know what to expect.

We’ll see how successful I am…

A few weeks ago I decided a new chest pack was on the cards, not that there was much wrong with it, more an issue of bulkiness, the chest pockets would swing under your arms when you bent over, the weight distribution seemed a little off, etc.

As I said, not a bad chest pack, very good value for money, and I would still recommend.

That said, I wanted something that, if given the chance, wouldn’t slide under my arm pits, would sit properly on my shoulders/back/etc, was a true ‘middle of the chest’-pack, and would be just right able to handle all the tackle needed for roaming or exploring a stream/river for a full day. For me, this would include a fly box, couple of spooks of tippet, head lamp, food, and a bottle/flask.

In the end I stumbled upon the William Joseph Confluence Chest Pack, and the reviews of the pack were around 99% positive! Looked good!

Here’s what the people at Willy J had to say:

The Confluence literally renders all things before it obsolete.

Never before have technology, comfort, and performance come together so smoothly. All these features will ensure that you get the most from your time on the water. With the new Willy J AIRTRACK™ suspension you will forget you are wearing anything - no matter how much gear you have managed to stuff into it. From it’s William Joseph tippet dispenser to it’s voluminous pockets, it is the most organized pack on the water.

The pack has, over the last few trips, been exceptional, and you hardly notice it’s there. It sits as snug to your body as you’d like, and subsequently, it doesn’t move about when you bend over and it doesn’t swing under you. The weight distribution is also fantastic.

A couple of nice features of the pack are the built in retractable zingers (there are two) and tippet dispenser. Keeps everything nice, neat, and tidy (just the way I like my fishing to be!).

Other features such as the two swing-down ‘workstation’ style pockets (great for organising your flies mid stream, although I removed the foam fly holder straight away as I can imagine them getting mashed against the inside of the pocket), and the ability to wear the pack as high as you’d like via the strap system are definite advantages (brilliant for those deep waders among us!).

WJ Confluence Images

Front View

Rear View

Front - Main Pocket/Workstation - enough room for a large C&F fly box, mobile phone, etc.

Front - Secondary Pocket/Workstation with tippet dispenser (a little fiddly at first…we’ll see how this goes)

Back - Main Pocket (there are two smaller pockets as well) - Plenty of room for a 1ltr flask

A superb piece of kit although further scrutiny is needed. At the moment I would definitely recommend.

For more information, see the William Joseph web site.

With the weather as beautiful as it was for South Wales yesterday, I was determined to have a day on the upper waters of the Taff with the dry fly.

My last couple of visits to this part of the river have proven very positive. Comments such as “There aren’t any fish up there!”, “You won’t catch a thing!” have been answered quite proudly with images such as the one below (caught last week).

Wilder, more remote waters will always be harder to fish. In fact, sometimes they are down right near impossible. However, in fishing these waters I believe the skills deemed necessary (both close-quarter tactics, locating fish in the smallest pockets, etc) will be honed.

On arriving at the stream, the one thing which was impossible not to miss was caddis hatch. It was simply huge, and was content to continue throughout the day. The trout, obviously tuned into this fact, were quite happy to munch down my Caddis imitations such as CDC & Elk and Balloon Caddis.

The fish today were what you would normally expect from a stream of this size. Small (around the 6/7’’ mark), perfectly formed, and muscular. Very opportunistic in their feeding, most drifts of a dry fly would result in a splash at the surface. These fish were to be the standard for the day, and unfortunately, no bruisers such as the one from last week were brought to hand.

The major problem with this type of fishing, however, is getting yourself into position in the first place without disturbing the fish. It’s much easier to spook these weary fish, so wading and false casting are kept to a minimum, and instead, crawling and flicking rather than casting is the way of the day.

Again, an amazing day, I’m really starting to love small stream fishing…and I suppose, as my 5wt rod is currently undergoing ‘surgery’ it’s all I’m equipped for…I’ve never been forced to do something so nice!

A few pictures of the day…

Fly Fishing in South Wales is two years old today! Hard to believe I know, but hey, they grow so fast!

Since starting some web site analytics a few months ago, I can see that (amazingly!), the blog is receiving approximately 1,000 visits per month; has UK visitors ranging from Aberdeen to Brighton; International visitors ranging from Russia, Argentina, USA, South Africa, India, Australia, New Zealand…it truly is humbling!

I’d therefore like to say Happy Birthday to Fly Fishing in South Wales, and I hope you all keep visiting and enjoying the blog!

A big thank you to you all!