Dan O’Neill is back at the Kings River…
I seem to be a bit of a regular recently on the King’s River, but I’m certainly not complaining. The area of the Kings I fish is left very much to flourish without human interference which gives it a real wild sense. Walking on the trail that the deer have made is usually the best route through the briars and brush, if you come to a fallen branch or tree and look at the deer print it will tell you if it’s easier to go over or under the branch / tree by the depth of the indent. Nature has many ways in which it drops hints we just need to be tuned in to it to understand them.
Once I had being guided by nature to today’s fishing spot I had a quick cup of tea with my guest today, Collin Edmunds from Oregon. Collin was no stranger to a bit of a hike to get to the fishing spot. He too relies on nature in some of his scenarios as an angler. We looked at our beat today and made a plan as to what was going to be our best bet to outwit the trout.
Looking at our set ups I was fishing my “go-to” which is my 9ft 5wt Cadence. I used the Rio streamer tip line as today it was going to be woolly buggar fishing for me. Collin opted to start New Zealand style and was using the 9ft 4wt Cadence fly rod with the CSM floating line.
We started at the end of the beat. Collin found the fish were hard on the riverbed this morning, so we were using a good-sized bead mixing between 3mm-3.5mm at times. It was just a simple pheasant tail pattern. After about 10 minutes Collin met his first trout, a lovely fish as are most from the Kings.
Moving up through the run a bit Collin met a fish that was a bit bigger. The trout was in great condition for this time of year, a reminder why we hunt these wonderful creatures.
Collin looked at me and said “Hey, go fish!”. Needless to say he did not have to tell me twice. I think by the time he realised he had said it my streamer was beginning its first swing. The thing I love about the kings is that it’s very tight quarters. Raising your sink tip with a roll cast then going into a circle c is just so much fun. I enjoy the no room for error casting or moments. In saying that, yes everyone, I did hook a tree branch a couple of times and trying to climb a tree with chest waders on is no joke!!
However, I did get my shot when my line tightened during the swing and a beautiful trout broke the surface with my streamer firmly set in the corner of its mouth. Wonderful fight and again a reminder why it is I do this. The fish eventually came towards me i wet my hands slipped out the streamer and away my good friend went. With that I gave myself 10 more minutes in the run meeting one more nice sized trout, we took a quick picture and away he went with a fear of leeches for the foreseeable.
A wonderful day with Collin and another reminder that fishing can be a universal language. We spoke as if we knew each other all our lives, shared a cup of tea, many angling stories and even tactics. Another angling friend who I hope to see again one day.
Irish Spring Angling Fair
Coming up on the 4th and 5th of May is the Irish Spring Angling Fair. This fair is a wonderful opportunity to get some hint and tips off people who dedicate their lives to fishing. The kids’ zone is a highlight and how wonderful it is to see such happy faces when they tie a fly then go out to the trout lake to catch one of the wonderful rainbow trout. I will be there as will many of the APGAI team and Cadence team, looking forward to some of you stopping by to say hello and swap some useful tips.
Go Fishing…
Over Easter I have two course days available will cover fishing with polyleaders, sinking lines, leader construction and casting styles. For information contact me on the details below,
