The Birth of the Wandle Shrimp: 17/05/16
One thing that has always amazed me about the Wandle, is the amount of freshwater shrimp crawling in my wading boots whenever I leave the water. The cause I’m reliably told, is the constant mild water temperature which allows them to thrive all year round, giving rich pickings to the Wandle’s diverse fish species.
With no decent shrimp patterns in my box, I headed to the Orvis store on Regent Street to find some inspiration in late April. After searching through the hoards of Czech nymph & grub patterns, I stumbled upon some size 10 olive Freshwater Shrimp imitations, but they were too big. I purchased one for reference and jumped on the tube home to tie up some weighted smaller versions of my own, opting for grey dubbing instead of olive, thus matching their natural colour. The dubbing was saved from the Japanese Akita we had when I was a younger. Every time she malted, I would save some of her fur in bags amongst my fly-tying gear. I knew it would come in handy at some point!
Two weeks had passed without a day off work, and I couldn’t wait to get down to the river and put my new shrimp pattern to the test. This was my third trip of the season, and I was eager to keep up the good form of the last two outings of six trout up to 2lbs. The water was at summer level, gin clear and perfect for spotting trout!
On my last visit I remember spooking a good Brown in the last likely looking hole before leaving the bank, so what better place to start? As I slid down the verge onto the clean gravel, I slowly worked my way up the stream in the clear water, peeling off a few yards of line as I went. It didn’t take long before the unmistakeable (and sizeable) mass of a Brown Trout shot past me like a torpedo! They always see you before you see them it would seem, no matter how stealthy you are! Out of the river I crawled, and onto the next spot.
This was the same run where I’d had my first success of the season, so I knew it held fish. With excitement high, I rigged up my tippet with a peeping caddis on the point, and my new shrimp pattern on the dropper (pictured above). About a dozen casts in, and I was half way up the run, with my offerings drifting down nicely, when I noticed a huge dark shape just in front of my feet. It saw me and bolted, flashing it’s pectoral fins as it turned…a huge barbel I suspect! Three casts later and I had a ferocious take which I knew was a trout, right up until ten seconds into the fight when it went dead weight. My prize was a huge chub of around 5lbs on the peeping caddis. I very quickly returned her, checked the flies, and threw another cast a bit further up the pool. Now they say lightning doesn’t strike the same place twice, but where chub are concerned, I fear this is a myth! Right on queue, another ferocious take followed by a decent chub on the bank within twenty seconds. Time to move on up the river!
Having been incredibly lucky to grow up in the Yorkshire Dales, I often long for the countryside when in London. The sights, the sounds, the smells, and the fishing, are all something I crave dearly, and the Wandle offers somewhat of a comparison if you empty your mind of the city lurking not too far away. That’s why I love wandering her banks in the summer, especially when the sun is out. It gives ample opportunity to forget where you are, work out ways in which to approach likely wading spots, and of course, spot a fish or two!
After the chub episode, I wandered upstream at a leisurely pace, glancing through my polaroids into the depths, and I didn’t have to wait too long before I saw the next trout! A fine cock fish of around 4lb-5lb, feeding like a trooper in two feet of water, and as if things couldn’t get any better, he hadn’t seen me! As I crouched below him against the silhouette of the tree line, I watched him feed confidently for about twenty minutes, moving from side to side near the gravel bottom, and giving chase to the odd crustacean. I was sure he was in the midst of a shrimp buffet so I de-rigged my cast and opted for the single fly approach of a 5lb tippet, and my new unnamed shrimp pattern. This was going to be a one-cast chance, knowing that if I fluffed my lines here, he’d be gone in an instant.
My nerves were shredded. If I caught this fish, he would easily be my personal best wild trout, and an achievement made even more sweeter coming from the Wandle in South London. I weighed up the cast I was about to make and threw out twelve yards of line in the opposite direction to wet the fly, and avoid any false casts. I drew a deep breath, and with one flick of the wrist launched my little shrimp towards him. I couldn’t believe it, what a cast! It landed right next to his head: He turned and grabbed it immediately. Fish on, and after the split second of elation, sheer panic set in! What followed was a five minute scrap with an angry trout…up and down the river he ran before ledgering himself in a weed bed, then coming free somehow! All I could tell myself was not to lose him and have patience. After shaking his head more times than I care to remember, I netted him (only just) on the second attempt, with the fly popping out of his top lip. I couldn’t believe it, and in that moment, I felt like the luckiest fisherman alive. I was so grateful! I gently laid him down on a weed bed, took a quick photo, weighed him in the net, and returned him to fight another day, no worse for ware. At 5lb on the nose, I’ll do well to better him on this river, thats for sure!
I continued along the bank that day with a sense of angling pride that can only be matched by two other occasions - my biggest Sea-Trout two years ago, and my first Salmon in 1998. I also managed another trout further upstream of 8oz or so, a little fellow in pristine condition, reminding me just how well this little chalk stream is doing.
I’m slowly falling in love with the Wandle, and If you let her, she will charm you…long may it continue.
Oh and that little unnamed shrimp pattern? I think the Wandle Shrimp would be a great name.
