Fishing Trips - Dartmoor

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Another fishing report - from April 2002 this time.

The West Dart in spring

I went to Dartmoor with Colin - another fish for anything, anywhere, fishing chum. We had intended to fish the West Dart but the weather at Postbridge was so pleasant we decided to start straight away on the East Dart and work upstream.

Now the back of the ticket sets the bag limit at eight fish and the size limit at six inches. This is nearly impossible to achieve although there are few larger trout in the river - they are still there, we didn't trouble them.

There were a few sedges and stoneflies about as we started but no fish showing. Then after a short while some flies that I'd swear were blue-winged olives (Are there bwo's on the moor?) started to come off though I didn't examine one closely, a few trout started to rise and continued to do so sporadically until mid afternoon.

I rose a fish in almost every dub though I only hooked about one in twenty. At first they took #16 blue duns but after an hour or so they switched to the invisible fly ploy. Any fly that -I- could see on the water was ignored but anything tiny, greeny brown and camouflaged against the peaty background was acceptable. I wound up striking to every movement near the end of my line.

So I had a dozen or so fish averaging a little over four inches long - great fun but not high in the hunter gatherer league.

A pleasant day out though, several miles scrambling up a tiny rocky stream in high country with a blue sky and a pleasant breeze.

Also a first: the first time I have knowingly been struck by an adder. She was basking on a tussock that I wanted to cast from but she didn't want to budge. She was fairly big for an adder, at least 18". So I waggled my foot in front of her nose and she hissed and struck at the sole three times quite hard, I fancy I felt the impact through the rubber. When I didn't budge she got the message and did a sidewind around keeping ready to strike again while lining herself up for an escape and eventually slid off very straight backed and affronted. I caught another tiddler from that stance.