This stretch of river from bank to bank is nowhere more than two feet deep, except in the middle a few yards below the stepping stones, where the current is strongest and where it has dug out a deeper channel. The beginner looking at this stream immediately notices the darker tone of water denoting the deeper channel and concludes that, of all places in the reach, that is the most likely to hold a good fish. Let him not be misled; the deeper channel holds many good fish, but of all parts of the stream, that channel is the least likely place from which to basket one.
The Head of the Dale
Photo by N. N. Lee
Often have the writers seen men enter this stream, and wade straight out to the deeper water, unwittingly driving scores of trout in consternation before them. They fish the deeper rush of water, are rather surprised that it does not yield a fish, and then move up the river to the next stream, splashing right through the best water as they go. These men, more often than not, return home with a creel lighter than it was before they ate their mid-day meal; and, besides doing nothing themselves, they make it absolutely impossible for another following on, to fish the stream with any chance of success within half-an-hour of their having disturbed it.
The way in which a friend, an adept at clear-water worming, would approach and fish this stream is very different. Here is a description of his method.
He enters the reach at the very tail end, where, at the edge, the water ripples along some two or three inches deep. The manner of his beginning may be compared to an otter’s in the quietness with which he enters the river; there is no splash or disturbance, and, more probably than not, he will stoop to avoid being seen.
He will make the first cast straight upstream, the worm entering the water twenty-five or thirty feet in front of him, but only some six to twelve inches from the bank.
Many beginners have laughed at the idea of a fish being caught in such a place, but let the unbelievers walk on a bright summer’s day along the bank of a trout stream, and what do they see? Innumerable fish darting away from the edges of the river, scared at their approach. It is for these very fish that our expert intends to try, when he makes his cast at the extreme edge of the river.
Directly the worm reaches the water, it begins to travel naturally and without drag towards the angler, who slowly raises the point of his rod, keeping in touch with the worm so that a twist of the wrist will immediately drive the hook home if a fish takes hold. He is careful to avoid drag, which is fatal, and is usually caused by the too rapid raising of the rod point. Without moving his position he makes another cast, only this time slightly more across the stream, then another and another, each being further from the bank.