Water II

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A month ago there were reports in the media that the next two years - 2016 and 2017 - will break global heat records. Not good news and it seems it impresses no one anymore. I don't read or listen too much to all the talk about the climate change, but I can tell the difference in terms of how it affects fishing when fly fishing a local chalkstream on a regular basis since 2004. From 2004 to 2008 the river was full of water from the rain; Fall season to the spring run-off of snow melted water. The river was mostly impossible to wade at this time of the year and you may cross it only on the bridges. As a result there was a stable water flow for long periods, that was good for the fish and fishing. All the mud was blown downstream, the bottom was mud-free, the river bed cleared and the water better oxygenated.

Since 2008 and especially in the last 2-3 seasons there was a different pattern established after the dry August when the river is at its lowest water level. Rain was expected, as in the seasons before, but the quantities that fall were much, much less than in previous seasons. As a result, September is not as good of a fly fishing time any more, as it used to be in the past and the best part of the season ends earlier - in end of July.

In the autumn of 2008, I ordered a bamboo fly rod specifically for the September dry fly work on a favorite freestone stream. I have had an excellent end to the brown trout season dry fly fishing for several years on this stream prior to this and I was hoping these good times on the water to last for the years to come. Much to my annoyance the following Fall seasons didn't turn as good as expected because of the low level waters, due to lack of rain during the what was a former usually wet and rainy local autumn. In the low water fish are not very active, they hide, don't chase the fly, add to this a warmer temperatures and it's the ultimate recipe for bad fishing days.

It's not that there is no more rain, in the last 5-6 years we have an abnormally heavy rains that fall concentrated in the low land places - in both bigger towns and smaller villages, so there are regular floodings. For the end of the brown trout season this year (the end of September) I was fly fishing my favorite local spring creek. The forecast was for several rainy days, so I was hoping the rain would revitalise the river, the fish would be active and the fishing good. There was some rain, but the river bed was with only very slightly more water than during the worst dry days of August heat. At the same time, some 50 km away from the spring creek in the flat land, there was a severe flooding badly affecting a town and a couple of villages.

So is there a climate change? If you ask me yes, it is here, it affects my fishing since the rain falls not high in the mountain, filling the rivers, but instead it rains straight and heavy on the low land, not to mention the much lower water levels compared with the previous years during the wet season from September to April.

Tight lines!