Pairs Trophy
Last Saturday saw the final S.A.A. Fly bank event of the season take place as anglers congregated at the Tingwall boat shed for the annual pair’s trophy.
Last year’s champions Bobby Irvine and Leslie Barclay were in buoyant mood as they tackled up and discussed tactics in preparation for the defence of their trophy. They even had time to mend a gaping hole in Leslie’s landing net. The rest of the competitors could only look on enviously. They would have to keep any knowledge or information they had a closely guarded secret until l they knew who their fishing partner was.
First to be drawn together were the on form Jeemie Sandison and Dave Wright. This was a partnership that could certainly do real damage if they were to get their tactics right on the day. Another tasty looking pairing then emerged from the hat as this year’s bank League champion Billy Reid drew the experienced Harry Sandison. This “dream team” of youth and experience must have been quietly confident and both could scarcely hide their delight as Billy loaded his gear into Harry’s pick up! Perhaps the most interesting combination however was the final pairing of Barry Robertson and Derek Tithridge. Both these maverick anglers are capable of great things. Indeed Derek is a recent winner of this trophy and knows exactly what is required to be champion! Would it work for them today however?
The key for this competition would be making the correct choices with regard to lochs. There wasn’t just a great deal of optimism as anglers departed the Tingwall Boat Shed in blazing sunshine. However master weather forecaster Billy Reid predicted that there would be cloud cover within the hour and this gave everyone something to hold on to!
Billy was right. “Old Jamaica” soon disappeared as the cloud cover came in to make the day much more attractive from a fly fishing perspective. All four teams headed for the West side where many of the premier waters there would receive some attention over the course of the next eight hours.
As competitors reassembled for the 5.45 p.m. weigh in initial reports suggested the angling had been a struggle with the trout very reluctant to come to the fly. However a quick glance at everybody’s body language revealed that Jeemie Sandison and Dave Wright were finding it very difficult to suppress their excitement and were obviously quite pleased with themselves about something.
After a tense weigh in fourth place went to Barry and Derek with three fish for 1 lb, 12 oz. However questions were raised as to whether these two had played by the rules and always fished in the same loch as each other. By a narrow margin it was agreed that this minor indiscretion (if indeed one had taken place!) would be overlooked this time and our deadly duo avoided the dreaded disqualification!
Third spot went to defending champions Bobby and Leslie with six trout for 3 lb, 14 oz. Theirs was undoubtedly the hard luck story of the day with Leslie reporting having lost a monster which was “more like a shark than a trout!” in Girlsta during the last hour of the competition. It didn’t take much imagination to hear the “Jaws” theme tune playing in the background as Leslie rein acted his encounter with this leviathan of the deep! Hard luck Leslie. The capture of this huge fish would undoubtedly have retained the trophy for his team.
In second place was Billy Reid and Harry Sandison with nine trout for 5 lb, 3oz. Both anglers admitted that they’d had their chances in Stump but couldn’t connect with the fish that they’d seen.
This left the animated Jeemie and Dave in first place with ten trout for 6 lb, 13 oz. and therefore pairs champions for 2011. Their confidence had not been misplaced and the deciding factor was undoubtedly a specimen of 1 lb, 11 oz. which had fallen to Dave’s “Loch Ordy.” By a strange quirk of fate this was also the fly that Leslie had lost his big fish on.
Having struggled to contain themselves during the weigh in the announcement of the official result meant that Jeemie and Dave could celebrate in style. It was all an S.A.A. official could do to get the exuberant and excited pair calmed down and organised for a winner’s photograph.
When asked the secret of their success an obviously delighted Dave suggested that it was certainly down to ”having a big picnic lunch” and added that “we caught fish in every loch we went to!”
Well done Jeemie and Dave. Jeemie can do no wrong at the moment and having Dave on his side proved to be a lethal combination. They will be a hard team to overcome in 2012.
Last year’s champions Bobby Irvine and Leslie Barclay were in buoyant mood as they tackled up and discussed tactics in preparation for the defence of their trophy. They even had time to mend a gaping hole in Leslie’s landing net. The rest of the competitors could only look on enviously. They would have to keep any knowledge or information they had a closely guarded secret until l they knew who their fishing partner was.
First to be drawn together were the on form Jeemie Sandison and Dave Wright. This was a partnership that could certainly do real damage if they were to get their tactics right on the day. Another tasty looking pairing then emerged from the hat as this year’s bank League champion Billy Reid drew the experienced Harry Sandison. This “dream team” of youth and experience must have been quietly confident and both could scarcely hide their delight as Billy loaded his gear into Harry’s pick up! Perhaps the most interesting combination however was the final pairing of Barry Robertson and Derek Tithridge. Both these maverick anglers are capable of great things. Indeed Derek is a recent winner of this trophy and knows exactly what is required to be champion! Would it work for them today however?
The key for this competition would be making the correct choices with regard to lochs. There wasn’t just a great deal of optimism as anglers departed the Tingwall Boat Shed in blazing sunshine. However master weather forecaster Billy Reid predicted that there would be cloud cover within the hour and this gave everyone something to hold on to!
Billy was right. “Old Jamaica” soon disappeared as the cloud cover came in to make the day much more attractive from a fly fishing perspective. All four teams headed for the West side where many of the premier waters there would receive some attention over the course of the next eight hours.
As competitors reassembled for the 5.45 p.m. weigh in initial reports suggested the angling had been a struggle with the trout very reluctant to come to the fly. However a quick glance at everybody’s body language revealed that Jeemie Sandison and Dave Wright were finding it very difficult to suppress their excitement and were obviously quite pleased with themselves about something.
After a tense weigh in fourth place went to Barry and Derek with three fish for 1 lb, 12 oz. However questions were raised as to whether these two had played by the rules and always fished in the same loch as each other. By a narrow margin it was agreed that this minor indiscretion (if indeed one had taken place!) would be overlooked this time and our deadly duo avoided the dreaded disqualification!
Third spot went to defending champions Bobby and Leslie with six trout for 3 lb, 14 oz. Theirs was undoubtedly the hard luck story of the day with Leslie reporting having lost a monster which was “more like a shark than a trout!” in Girlsta during the last hour of the competition. It didn’t take much imagination to hear the “Jaws” theme tune playing in the background as Leslie rein acted his encounter with this leviathan of the deep! Hard luck Leslie. The capture of this huge fish would undoubtedly have retained the trophy for his team.
In second place was Billy Reid and Harry Sandison with nine trout for 5 lb, 3oz. Both anglers admitted that they’d had their chances in Stump but couldn’t connect with the fish that they’d seen.
This left the animated Jeemie and Dave in first place with ten trout for 6 lb, 13 oz. and therefore pairs champions for 2011. Their confidence had not been misplaced and the deciding factor was undoubtedly a specimen of 1 lb, 11 oz. which had fallen to Dave’s “Loch Ordy.” By a strange quirk of fate this was also the fly that Leslie had lost his big fish on.
Having struggled to contain themselves during the weigh in the announcement of the official result meant that Jeemie and Dave could celebrate in style. It was all an S.A.A. official could do to get the exuberant and excited pair calmed down and organised for a winner’s photograph.
When asked the secret of their success an obviously delighted Dave suggested that it was certainly down to ”having a big picnic lunch” and added that “we caught fish in every loch we went to!”
Well done Jeemie and Dave. Jeemie can do no wrong at the moment and having Dave on his side proved to be a lethal combination. They will be a hard team to overcome in 2012.
Westside Trophy
Last Saturday morning saw flyfishers congregate at the Bixter graveyard in horrendous conditions of torrential rain driven by a South East gale for the final round of the S.A.A. Fly Bank League. Despite the atrocious weather and also the fact that the league winner and the top six places had more or less been sorted out, there was still an excellent turnout of eleven anglers. This was due to the fact that Bonnie Isle competition stalwarts Harry Sandison, Bobby Irvine and Jeemie Sandison had sponsored a new trophy to be fished for annually in the last league competition of the season.
It was great to see John Laurenson making a long overdue return to the bank league. It was also good to see “cheeky chappy,” cockney Dave Wright back after a long absence. There was a poor audience for his particular brand of wit however as anglers sought shelter in their vehicles before the 9.45 a.m. kick off. There was no point in getting soaked earlier than was needed even with the attraction of Dave’s comedy routine!
Competitors had a choice of all the major lochs on the West Side and making the correct choice would be crucial to success on the day. Two anglers who did exactly this were 2011 champion Billy Reid and Jeemie Sandison who is on fire at the moment. In the first hour of the competition Billy had six fish out of the mighty Vaara on “Hedgehogs” while Jeemie had eight fish out of Clings Water most of which fell to an “Orange Palmer Muddler.” This is the kind of start to a competition that all anglers dream about.
Jeemie spent the rest of the day having a leisurely picnic and cruising around the West Side laughing at everyone else battling the wind and rain. He then caught two more trout in injury time from the Hulma Lees to claim top spot and be the first winner to have his name engraved on this beautiful new trophy. Jeemie’s final basket at the 1745 weigh in contained ten trout for 5 lb, 14 ¾ oz. A superb effort in the desperate conditions.
Second place went to Bobby Irvine who had nine fish for 5 lb exactly and in third place was Billy Reid who also had nine fish but for the slightly lesser weight of 4 lb, 11 ½ oz. Fourth spot went to Alan Smith with five fish for 2 lb, 11 oz.
Other anglers weighing in were John Laurenson, Leslie Barclay, Alastair Jamieson, Mark Sandison, Derek Tithridge and Barry Robertson.
Since winning the Ronas Hill trophy at the beginning of July, Jeemie has been in a rich vein of form which has seen him take two first and two third places in the last four league competitions. This has seen him soar up the league and cement his place in the bank team for next year.
This means that the final league positions for the 2011 season are as follows.
Billy Reid
143
Bobby Irvine
114
Mark Sandison
112
Jeemie Sandison
111
Kevin Robertson
110
Peter Laurenson
96
Alan Smith
86
Alastair Jamieson
84
Leslie Barclay
81
Barry Robertson
68
Magnus Reid
56
Stephen Brevik
46
Darren Laurenson
46
David John Anderson
32
Derek Tithridge
29
Dave Wright
16
John Laurenson
15
When things are going your way then they’re certainly going your way. After climbing out of his waders at the weigh in, Jeemie realised that he’d left his patent leather shoes in the passenger waiting room at the Laxo Ferry terminal, having changed there in the morning in order to shelter from the elements. Imagine his delight on returning to Laxo at 6.30 p.m. to discover his expensive shoes were exactly where he had left them. This perhaps says as much about the honesty of the Whalsay commuters as it does about Jeemie’s good luck and it is heartening to know that in this day and age some things are still sacred!
The final Fly Bank event of the season is the ever popular pairs competition when champs Bobby Irvine and Leslie Barclay will attempt to defend their trophy. This takes place tomorrow, Saturday 20 August, with a 9.45 a.m. check in at the Tingwall boat shed. All fly fishers are encouraged to attend this fun competition and partners will be drawn from a hat.
It was great to see John Laurenson making a long overdue return to the bank league. It was also good to see “cheeky chappy,” cockney Dave Wright back after a long absence. There was a poor audience for his particular brand of wit however as anglers sought shelter in their vehicles before the 9.45 a.m. kick off. There was no point in getting soaked earlier than was needed even with the attraction of Dave’s comedy routine!
Competitors had a choice of all the major lochs on the West Side and making the correct choice would be crucial to success on the day. Two anglers who did exactly this were 2011 champion Billy Reid and Jeemie Sandison who is on fire at the moment. In the first hour of the competition Billy had six fish out of the mighty Vaara on “Hedgehogs” while Jeemie had eight fish out of Clings Water most of which fell to an “Orange Palmer Muddler.” This is the kind of start to a competition that all anglers dream about.
Jeemie spent the rest of the day having a leisurely picnic and cruising around the West Side laughing at everyone else battling the wind and rain. He then caught two more trout in injury time from the Hulma Lees to claim top spot and be the first winner to have his name engraved on this beautiful new trophy. Jeemie’s final basket at the 1745 weigh in contained ten trout for 5 lb, 14 ¾ oz. A superb effort in the desperate conditions.
Second place went to Bobby Irvine who had nine fish for 5 lb exactly and in third place was Billy Reid who also had nine fish but for the slightly lesser weight of 4 lb, 11 ½ oz. Fourth spot went to Alan Smith with five fish for 2 lb, 11 oz.
Other anglers weighing in were John Laurenson, Leslie Barclay, Alastair Jamieson, Mark Sandison, Derek Tithridge and Barry Robertson.
Since winning the Ronas Hill trophy at the beginning of July, Jeemie has been in a rich vein of form which has seen him take two first and two third places in the last four league competitions. This has seen him soar up the league and cement his place in the bank team for next year.
This means that the final league positions for the 2011 season are as follows.
Billy Reid
143
Bobby Irvine
114
Mark Sandison
112
Jeemie Sandison
111
Kevin Robertson
110
Peter Laurenson
96
Alan Smith
86
Alastair Jamieson
84
Leslie Barclay
81
Barry Robertson
68
Magnus Reid
56
Stephen Brevik
46
Darren Laurenson
46
David John Anderson
32
Derek Tithridge
29
Dave Wright
16
John Laurenson
15
When things are going your way then they’re certainly going your way. After climbing out of his waders at the weigh in, Jeemie realised that he’d left his patent leather shoes in the passenger waiting room at the Laxo Ferry terminal, having changed there in the morning in order to shelter from the elements. Imagine his delight on returning to Laxo at 6.30 p.m. to discover his expensive shoes were exactly where he had left them. This perhaps says as much about the honesty of the Whalsay commuters as it does about Jeemie’s good luck and it is heartening to know that in this day and age some things are still sacred!
The final Fly Bank event of the season is the ever popular pairs competition when champs Bobby Irvine and Leslie Barclay will attempt to defend their trophy. This takes place tomorrow, Saturday 20 August, with a 9.45 a.m. check in at the Tingwall boat shed. All fly fishers are encouraged to attend this fun competition and partners will be drawn from a hat.
North of Mavis Grind
Master flyfisher Billy Reid clinched the S.A.A. Fly Bank League title last Saturday in emphatic style with a competition to spare. Reid cantered to the championship taking first place in the Northmavine competition and adding his name to an illustrious list on a trophy that represents the very pinnacle of Shetland flyfishing.
In reality Billy has had a grip on the trophy for weeks as he swept aside most pretenders to the throne in May and June. With Bobby Irvine falling by the wayside in the previous competition this only left Kevin Robertson and Mark Sandison with a very outside chance of the title. However this would involve a series of permutations in the results not dissimilar to Scotland attempting to qualify for the World Cup with two games left!
With Kevin unavailable due to work commitments this only left Billy with the minor irritation of Sandison. Billy soon swatted Sandison aside as he took three trout from Eela Water in ten minutes and then a further two on the same cast right under Sandison’s nose to cement his supremacy. A deflated Sandison knew that the game was up and slunk of home muttering something about getting ready for a wedding!
Billy’s final basket contained six trout for 3 lb, 6 ½ oz. all of which came from Eela Water. Billy had used all his expertise to employ a team of “Half Hogs” to devastating effect in the very difficult conditions.
Indeed at the 9.45 a.m. Mavis Grind check in much of the discussion had centred around the cold cyclonic wind and therefore the poor prospects for a successful day’s angling. Definitely not ideal conditions for free rising brown trout!
As has been pointed out before in this column, successful angling at this level comes down to the tiniest of margins. It was Bobby Irvine who provided the main talking point of the day by choosing this competition to unveil a brand new state of the art fly rod. Fly fishing, like many other sports is at the very cutting edge of modern technology and even the smallest of advances in materials can give an angler the necessary edge needed for competition success. Tackle experts Alastair Jamieson, Harry Sandison and Barry Robertson gave Bobby’s new rod the once over and confirmed that it did indeed adhere to the Bank League’s strict competition rules! Bobby heaved a sigh of relief as he was given the all clear to unleash his new weapon on the unsuspecting trout of Northmavine!
Once Derek Tithridge had been sorted out with a map, and the competition lochs pointed out to him, anglers were heading off for what was going to be a gruelling eight hours fishing. This prediction was born out after only a couple of hours with the tell tale sign of competitors motoring between flat calm lochs. Probably the best policy in this situation is to just pick a loch and stick with it although this can be very difficult to do as the grass always seems to be greener in another location! At one stage four different anglers vehicles were seen around Eela Water with the occupants discussing with each other where they had been and what was going to be their next move. Probably the best early action was seen by Father and son team Peter and Darren Laurenson in Punds Water and Jeemie Sandison who lost a good fish at the net in Houlland.
At the weigh in all anglers reported that the angling had been extremely difficult. Indeed three anglers had blanked which is very unusual for a competition at this time of year.
Second place on the day went to Bobby Irvine who had four trout for 3 lb, 1 oz. This included the heaviest fish at 1 lb, 3 ½ oz during injury time in Punds Water. Third spot went to the on form Jeemie Sandison who took three fish from the often overlooked Kilka Water for 2 lb, 5 ½ oz. This was another excellent result for Jeemie which secures his place in next year’s bank team. Fourth place went to Peter Laurenson with four for 2 lb, 3 ½ oz. and who is probably kicking himself for not staying in Punds Water for longer.
Other anglers weighing in were Mark Sandison, Darren Laurenson, Alan Smith and Leslie Barclay.
These results meant that not only was Billy crowned as champion for 2011 but the top six places for next year’s Bank Team were also confirmed.
Billy Reid 141
Mark Sandison 112
Kevin Robertson 110
Bobby Irvine 107
Jeemie Sandison 96
Peter Laurenson 96
Alan Smith 78
Alastair Jamieson 71
Leslie Barclay 67
Barry Robertson 66
Magnus Reid 56
Stephen Brevik 46
Darren Laurenson 46
David John Anderson 32
Derek Tithridge 18
Dave Wright 16
Putting his success simply down to “luck,” a modest but obviously delighted Billy stated that he was very proud to have his name engraved on this old trophy and join the list of legends already there!
So congratulations to Billy. A deserved and popular winner of this esteemed title. Billy really has “fished his socks off” this year, setting a standard that is going to be very difficult for other anglers to match in the future, as well as cementing his reputation as one of Shetland’s top fly fishers.
This means that the last league competition of the season is almost a dead rubber. However there are five anglers still chasing the reserve position for the team and Billy himself will be aiming for an unprecedented “full house” of six first places - and who would bet against him doing so in his current form?
The final league competition takes place on Saturday 13 August with a 9.45 a.m. check in at the Bixter Graveyard.
In reality Billy has had a grip on the trophy for weeks as he swept aside most pretenders to the throne in May and June. With Bobby Irvine falling by the wayside in the previous competition this only left Kevin Robertson and Mark Sandison with a very outside chance of the title. However this would involve a series of permutations in the results not dissimilar to Scotland attempting to qualify for the World Cup with two games left!
With Kevin unavailable due to work commitments this only left Billy with the minor irritation of Sandison. Billy soon swatted Sandison aside as he took three trout from Eela Water in ten minutes and then a further two on the same cast right under Sandison’s nose to cement his supremacy. A deflated Sandison knew that the game was up and slunk of home muttering something about getting ready for a wedding!
Billy’s final basket contained six trout for 3 lb, 6 ½ oz. all of which came from Eela Water. Billy had used all his expertise to employ a team of “Half Hogs” to devastating effect in the very difficult conditions.
Indeed at the 9.45 a.m. Mavis Grind check in much of the discussion had centred around the cold cyclonic wind and therefore the poor prospects for a successful day’s angling. Definitely not ideal conditions for free rising brown trout!
As has been pointed out before in this column, successful angling at this level comes down to the tiniest of margins. It was Bobby Irvine who provided the main talking point of the day by choosing this competition to unveil a brand new state of the art fly rod. Fly fishing, like many other sports is at the very cutting edge of modern technology and even the smallest of advances in materials can give an angler the necessary edge needed for competition success. Tackle experts Alastair Jamieson, Harry Sandison and Barry Robertson gave Bobby’s new rod the once over and confirmed that it did indeed adhere to the Bank League’s strict competition rules! Bobby heaved a sigh of relief as he was given the all clear to unleash his new weapon on the unsuspecting trout of Northmavine!
Once Derek Tithridge had been sorted out with a map, and the competition lochs pointed out to him, anglers were heading off for what was going to be a gruelling eight hours fishing. This prediction was born out after only a couple of hours with the tell tale sign of competitors motoring between flat calm lochs. Probably the best policy in this situation is to just pick a loch and stick with it although this can be very difficult to do as the grass always seems to be greener in another location! At one stage four different anglers vehicles were seen around Eela Water with the occupants discussing with each other where they had been and what was going to be their next move. Probably the best early action was seen by Father and son team Peter and Darren Laurenson in Punds Water and Jeemie Sandison who lost a good fish at the net in Houlland.
At the weigh in all anglers reported that the angling had been extremely difficult. Indeed three anglers had blanked which is very unusual for a competition at this time of year.
Second place on the day went to Bobby Irvine who had four trout for 3 lb, 1 oz. This included the heaviest fish at 1 lb, 3 ½ oz during injury time in Punds Water. Third spot went to the on form Jeemie Sandison who took three fish from the often overlooked Kilka Water for 2 lb, 5 ½ oz. This was another excellent result for Jeemie which secures his place in next year’s bank team. Fourth place went to Peter Laurenson with four for 2 lb, 3 ½ oz. and who is probably kicking himself for not staying in Punds Water for longer.
Other anglers weighing in were Mark Sandison, Darren Laurenson, Alan Smith and Leslie Barclay.
These results meant that not only was Billy crowned as champion for 2011 but the top six places for next year’s Bank Team were also confirmed.
Billy Reid 141
Mark Sandison 112
Kevin Robertson 110
Bobby Irvine 107
Jeemie Sandison 96
Peter Laurenson 96
Alan Smith 78
Alastair Jamieson 71
Leslie Barclay 67
Barry Robertson 66
Magnus Reid 56
Stephen Brevik 46
Darren Laurenson 46
David John Anderson 32
Derek Tithridge 18
Dave Wright 16
Putting his success simply down to “luck,” a modest but obviously delighted Billy stated that he was very proud to have his name engraved on this old trophy and join the list of legends already there!
So congratulations to Billy. A deserved and popular winner of this esteemed title. Billy really has “fished his socks off” this year, setting a standard that is going to be very difficult for other anglers to match in the future, as well as cementing his reputation as one of Shetland’s top fly fishers.
This means that the last league competition of the season is almost a dead rubber. However there are five anglers still chasing the reserve position for the team and Billy himself will be aiming for an unprecedented “full house” of six first places - and who would bet against him doing so in his current form?
The final league competition takes place on Saturday 13 August with a 9.45 a.m. check in at the Bixter Graveyard.
West Burrafirth and Skeld
The S.A.A. Fly Bank League resumed again last Thursday after a six week break to allow for various events including the Fly Bank team’s victory on home waters over the Dounreay Fly Fishing Association.
We are down to the nitty gritty in the league now. The scoring system allows for anglers to count their best six results out of nine competitions. With six competitions having already been fished, the only two anglers weighing in six so far were Billy Reid and Mark Sandison. This meant that competitors had everything to play for in their efforts to secure a top six finish - and the kudos of representing Shetland in the S.A.A. bank team.
Understandably then nerves were on a knife edge as anglers met at the West Burrafirth junction for the 6.15 p.m. kick off. Successful angling at this level is as much “in the head” as anything else so the usual mind games and attempts to “psyche out” opponents were very much in evidence. Anglers were very keen to try and discover what their opponent’s intentions were with regard to fishing venues and flies while giving away as little information of their own as possible! While no one will actually tell any lies - half truths and the withholding of key information is certainly common practice – especially so among some of the older and wilier competitors!
It was great to see the return of charismatic Whalsay man Harry Sandison to the competition scene after a long term injury lay off. Harry soon had everyone back in a relaxed frame of mind with his jolly japes and jokes. It should be pointed out that Harry’s injury was probably due to spending too much time on the golf course! It is hoped that he will now see sense and concentrate his efforts on the more worthy and noble pursuit of fly fishing.
The chilly North breeze on the evening maybe wasn’t the best for hopes of free rising brown trout. However anglers did have a wide range of lochs to choose from in the West Burrafirth and Skeld area which should mean plenty of room for the 13 flyfishers to spread out and not be tripping over each other in attempts to get to the fabled “hot spots!”
As predicted, anglers soon discovered that the trout were very reluctant to come to the fly, so it would all be about being mobile and searching them out.
One angler who is adept at this is “wily old fox,” Jeemie Sandison. Jeemie used all his experience to take three trout from Sulma Water before making the astute tactical decision to switch to the “Hulma Less” for a further two fish. This gave him a winning basket of five trout for 3 lb, 1 ½ oz. After a great deal of “humming and haaing” Jeemie finally confided that his killing fly was his own “Golden Slipper.” Trying to track down a tieing for this pattern is a “slippery” business in it self however as their appears to be a multitude of variations depending on which Whalsay man you ask! Anyway, well done Jeemie! A worthy winner with a very good basket considering the conditions.
Second place went to “Young Gun” Kevin Robertson who is on fire at the moment and fresh from taking the heaviest basket in the interclub against the Dounreay fly fishers. Kevin had five trout from the unfashionable “Grass Water” for 2 lb, 10 oz. most of which fell to an “Olive Muddler.”
Third place went to veteran Alastair Jamieson who is seldom far away from the honours. Alastair had four fish from his favourite “Stump” for 2 lb, 9 oz. all of which fell to a “Clan Chief.” In fourth spot was Peter Laurenson who had two fish from Stump before moving on to Longa Water for another two. Peter’s bag weighed 2 lb, 4 ½ oz.
Other anglers weighing in were Alan Smith, Bobby Irvine, Barry Robertson, Mark Sandison, Billy Reid and David John Anderson. Everyone reported seeing very few trout and most had struggled to put even two or three trout in their baskets on an unseasonably chilly evening.
A quick glance at the league table still shows Billy Reid well out in front. However the battle for a top six place is really hotting up with most competitors still in with a shout.
Billy Reid
132
Mark Sandison
110
Kevin Robertson
110
Bobby Irvine
100
Jeemie Sandison
88
Peter Laurenson
80
Alastair Jamieson
71
Barry Robertson
66
Alan Smith
65
Magnus Reid
56
Leslie Barclay
55
Stephen Brevik
46
Darren Laurenson
32
David John Anderson
32
Derek Tithridge
18
Dave Wright
16
The penultimate league competition of this year’s campaign takes place tomorrow, Saturday 30 July with a 9.45 a.m. Check in at Mavis Grind.
We are down to the nitty gritty in the league now. The scoring system allows for anglers to count their best six results out of nine competitions. With six competitions having already been fished, the only two anglers weighing in six so far were Billy Reid and Mark Sandison. This meant that competitors had everything to play for in their efforts to secure a top six finish - and the kudos of representing Shetland in the S.A.A. bank team.
Understandably then nerves were on a knife edge as anglers met at the West Burrafirth junction for the 6.15 p.m. kick off. Successful angling at this level is as much “in the head” as anything else so the usual mind games and attempts to “psyche out” opponents were very much in evidence. Anglers were very keen to try and discover what their opponent’s intentions were with regard to fishing venues and flies while giving away as little information of their own as possible! While no one will actually tell any lies - half truths and the withholding of key information is certainly common practice – especially so among some of the older and wilier competitors!
It was great to see the return of charismatic Whalsay man Harry Sandison to the competition scene after a long term injury lay off. Harry soon had everyone back in a relaxed frame of mind with his jolly japes and jokes. It should be pointed out that Harry’s injury was probably due to spending too much time on the golf course! It is hoped that he will now see sense and concentrate his efforts on the more worthy and noble pursuit of fly fishing.
The chilly North breeze on the evening maybe wasn’t the best for hopes of free rising brown trout. However anglers did have a wide range of lochs to choose from in the West Burrafirth and Skeld area which should mean plenty of room for the 13 flyfishers to spread out and not be tripping over each other in attempts to get to the fabled “hot spots!”
As predicted, anglers soon discovered that the trout were very reluctant to come to the fly, so it would all be about being mobile and searching them out.
One angler who is adept at this is “wily old fox,” Jeemie Sandison. Jeemie used all his experience to take three trout from Sulma Water before making the astute tactical decision to switch to the “Hulma Less” for a further two fish. This gave him a winning basket of five trout for 3 lb, 1 ½ oz. After a great deal of “humming and haaing” Jeemie finally confided that his killing fly was his own “Golden Slipper.” Trying to track down a tieing for this pattern is a “slippery” business in it self however as their appears to be a multitude of variations depending on which Whalsay man you ask! Anyway, well done Jeemie! A worthy winner with a very good basket considering the conditions.
Second place went to “Young Gun” Kevin Robertson who is on fire at the moment and fresh from taking the heaviest basket in the interclub against the Dounreay fly fishers. Kevin had five trout from the unfashionable “Grass Water” for 2 lb, 10 oz. most of which fell to an “Olive Muddler.”
Third place went to veteran Alastair Jamieson who is seldom far away from the honours. Alastair had four fish from his favourite “Stump” for 2 lb, 9 oz. all of which fell to a “Clan Chief.” In fourth spot was Peter Laurenson who had two fish from Stump before moving on to Longa Water for another two. Peter’s bag weighed 2 lb, 4 ½ oz.
Other anglers weighing in were Alan Smith, Bobby Irvine, Barry Robertson, Mark Sandison, Billy Reid and David John Anderson. Everyone reported seeing very few trout and most had struggled to put even two or three trout in their baskets on an unseasonably chilly evening.
A quick glance at the league table still shows Billy Reid well out in front. However the battle for a top six place is really hotting up with most competitors still in with a shout.
Billy Reid
132
Mark Sandison
110
Kevin Robertson
110
Bobby Irvine
100
Jeemie Sandison
88
Peter Laurenson
80
Alastair Jamieson
71
Barry Robertson
66
Alan Smith
65
Magnus Reid
56
Leslie Barclay
55
Stephen Brevik
46
Darren Laurenson
32
David John Anderson
32
Derek Tithridge
18
Dave Wright
16
The penultimate league competition of this year’s campaign takes place tomorrow, Saturday 30 July with a 9.45 a.m. Check in at Mavis Grind.
Tulloch Midsummer Shield
Ten of Shetland’s top bank anglers reported for duty last Saturday morning at the Tingwall boat shed to fish for the much sought after Tulloch Midsummer Shield. This coveted trophy tends to attract the very elite of Shetland’s fly fishing fraternity. Our ten hardy boys were going to have to be at the very top of their game however. Flat calms combined with blazing sunshine are total anathema to the fly fisher. It was going to take an expert angler to tempt a trout in these conditions which were more suited to the Med. than our Northern archipelago.
As a result there was a certain “laid back atmosphere” at the check in. Only Barry Robertson seemed slightly on edge as he interrogated several of his adversaries on their intentions for the day. Robertson was keen discourage others from going to Vaara so that he could get to his favourite island in the loch before anyone else did. As the 9.45 a.m start time came and went it was only Leslie Barclay who seemed in a hurry to get going. Leslie was going to need all of his time to complete the magical mystery tour of Shetland that he had in mind.
As predicted the majority of anglers struggled in the conditions and there were a couple of no shows at the 5.45 p.m. weigh in who shall remain nameless!
Also as predicted it was the true masters of their craft who had taken the top positions. In first place, and taking the Tulloch Shield for the third time, was the legendary Bobby Irvine. Bobby had a simply fantastic basket of eighteen fish for 8 lb, 11 oz. from Lunga Water on the Westside. This feat was all the more amazing given the desperate conditions on the day.
Second spot went to Kevin Robertson who had six better quality trout from Punds Water for 5 lb, 9 ½ oz. This basket also included the heaviest fish of the day at 1 lb, 4 oz. Kevin just pipped Billy Reid to the runner up position. Billy had a basket of eight trout from Tingwall and Asta for 5 lb, 8 ½ oz. most of which fell to “Half Hogs.”
Alastair Jamieson also managed a respectable six fish for 3 lb. Other anglers weighing on a very difficult day were Barry Robertson, Derek Tithridge and Leslie Barclay.
Despite the red sunburned faces at the weigh in everyone agreed that it had been a very enjoyable day out. A strange story did emerge regarding one of Shetland’s premier boat anglers who had been seen mooching around Asta up to his middle in the loch with a pock net! No one seemed to know quite what Stephen Brevik had been up to and several theories were put forward, most of which were too ridiculous to be printed here in a family newspaper! It was finally decided that he was either collecting mini beasts or spying on the bank anglers for tips and information.
However in fairness to Stephen, it should be pointed out that on being invited to select a couple of flies from Derek Tithridge’s box that would work on the day, Derek mounted these specimens on to his cast and immediately caught two fish. Some would say that this was pure luck while some of our more experienced anglers might suggest that Brevik simply has that fishy touch that runs in the family!
The next fly fishing event is the ever popular Ronas Hill trophy. This takes place on Saturday 2nd July with a 9.00 a.m check in at the Collafirth pier. Bring your own O.S. map and compass!
As a result there was a certain “laid back atmosphere” at the check in. Only Barry Robertson seemed slightly on edge as he interrogated several of his adversaries on their intentions for the day. Robertson was keen discourage others from going to Vaara so that he could get to his favourite island in the loch before anyone else did. As the 9.45 a.m start time came and went it was only Leslie Barclay who seemed in a hurry to get going. Leslie was going to need all of his time to complete the magical mystery tour of Shetland that he had in mind.
As predicted the majority of anglers struggled in the conditions and there were a couple of no shows at the 5.45 p.m. weigh in who shall remain nameless!
Also as predicted it was the true masters of their craft who had taken the top positions. In first place, and taking the Tulloch Shield for the third time, was the legendary Bobby Irvine. Bobby had a simply fantastic basket of eighteen fish for 8 lb, 11 oz. from Lunga Water on the Westside. This feat was all the more amazing given the desperate conditions on the day.
Second spot went to Kevin Robertson who had six better quality trout from Punds Water for 5 lb, 9 ½ oz. This basket also included the heaviest fish of the day at 1 lb, 4 oz. Kevin just pipped Billy Reid to the runner up position. Billy had a basket of eight trout from Tingwall and Asta for 5 lb, 8 ½ oz. most of which fell to “Half Hogs.”
Alastair Jamieson also managed a respectable six fish for 3 lb. Other anglers weighing on a very difficult day were Barry Robertson, Derek Tithridge and Leslie Barclay.
Despite the red sunburned faces at the weigh in everyone agreed that it had been a very enjoyable day out. A strange story did emerge regarding one of Shetland’s premier boat anglers who had been seen mooching around Asta up to his middle in the loch with a pock net! No one seemed to know quite what Stephen Brevik had been up to and several theories were put forward, most of which were too ridiculous to be printed here in a family newspaper! It was finally decided that he was either collecting mini beasts or spying on the bank anglers for tips and information.
However in fairness to Stephen, it should be pointed out that on being invited to select a couple of flies from Derek Tithridge’s box that would work on the day, Derek mounted these specimens on to his cast and immediately caught two fish. Some would say that this was pure luck while some of our more experienced anglers might suggest that Brevik simply has that fishy touch that runs in the family!
The next fly fishing event is the ever popular Ronas Hill trophy. This takes place on Saturday 2nd July with a 9.00 a.m check in at the Collafirth pier. Bring your own O.S. map and compass!
Clousta road
Fly fishers congregated again last Thursday evening at the Bixter hall for round six of the S.A.A. fly bank league. With the South Westerly breeze, overcast skies and temperatures in the teens, spirits were understandably high. These should be perfect fishing conditions and everyone was looking forward to a good evening’s angling.
The ideal conditions were reflected in an excellent turnout of 17 anglers, the best so far this season. It was good to see Stephen Brevik back for more punishment as he has obviously decided to have a serious tilt at making the bank league team this year. He had also taken along his coach and mentor in the form of Drewie Hawick - another legend in the annals of Shetland angling. It was great to see Drewie at a bank league competition and we hope to see him at many more in the future.
We are now beginning to get down to the nitty gritty in the league with competitors chasing a top six finish in order to qualify for next year’s inter county team. With the stakes so high then a storm almost blew up before anyone had even managed to get their waders on when a box of Mepps No. 3 spinners was spotted in the boot of Dave Wright’s car. As a lynch mob was being assembled Dave moved quickly to defuse the situation by explaining that he was thinking of making a comeback in the spinning league! Watch this space!
Anglers had a choice of lochs in Shetland brown trout fishing heartland including the mighty Vaara and Clousta and also the likes of Collaster, Northouse, Clings Water and Kirkhouse. The names of these lochs are legendary in the folklore of Shetland angling.
The 6.15 p.m. start saw anglers fairly evenly spread out over the whole Clousta Road area. However, with the sun making an appearance and the wind dieing away, choosing the correct loch would be of paramount importance. It was two of Shetland’s top Bank anglers who did exactly that. Billy Reid and Bobby Irvine had decided to fish Vaara and more importantly chose to stay there for the entire evening. They came first and second respectively by a huge margin over everyone else.
The amazing Billy Reid who is untouchable at the moment had eleven trout for 6 lb, 12 ½ oz, while Bobby had ten for 6 lb, 5 ½ oz. Both these top anglers had scored with “Peach Hedgehogs.” Billy’s accomplishment was all the more noteworthy as he was befriended by a black Labrador doing the doggy paddle in the early part of the evening!
All other anglers had struggled to put even a brace of trout in their baskets on what had turned out to be a very difficult evening. Third place went to “big fish man” Jeemie Sandison. He had three trout for his evening for 2 lb, 11 oz. including an injury time heaviest fish at 1 lb, 9 oz. from Northouse. This monster fell to an old traditional fly, the “Invicta” which hardly seems to get a swim nowadays. As Jeemie pointed out though, sometimes the old ones are the best ones!
In fourth place was Kevin Robertson who had four fish for 2 lb, 8 oz. Kevin had hiked over the hill to Kirkhouse and Collaster.
Other anglers managing to weigh in were Alastair Jamieson, Magnus Reid, David John Anderson, Leslie Barclay, Mark Sandison, Stephen Brevik, Barry Robertson, Alan Smith and Dave Wright.
It was a luxury having two competition secretaries at the weigh in. Billy Reid and Stephen Brevik stood no nonsense from any “likely lads” despite Dave Wright’s best attempts.
There were a couple of hard luck stories involving lost fish. With his last cast in Kirkhouse Drewie Hawick had connected with a fish which he reckoned to be in the region of two and a half pounds. Drewie had the trout on for several seconds before it threw the hook – in this case another old traditional, the “Hardy’s Gold Butcher.”
And spare a thought for Derek Tithridge. After an exhausting and frustrating evening trying to tempt a wild brown trout from Northouse, one specimen finally succumbed. Having netted the fish and given it a good clonk over the head imagine Derek’s dismay when the hardy trout made one last bid for freedom, jumped out of his hands and headed straight for the middle of the loch to fight another day!
With six out of the nine bank competitions having been fished the unstoppable Billy Reid is running away with the league. Competition for the remaining top six places is really hotting up however and it is now poised on a knife edge for the final run in.
Billy Reid 132
Mark Sandison 109
Kevin Robertson 89
Bobby Irvine 86
Peter Laurenson 64
Jeemie Sandison 63
Magnus Reid 56
Leslie Barclay 55
Barry Robertson 53
Alastair Jamieson 53
Alan Smith 50
Stephen Brevik 46
Darren Laurenson 32
David John Anderson 22
Derek Tithridge 18
Dave Wright 16
The bank league now takes a break.. In that time the S.A.A. bank team will play host to the Dounreay Fly Fishing Association as they compete for the inter club trophy. The next Fly bank League competition takes place on Thursday 21st July with an 1815 Check in at the West Burrafirth junction. Meanwhile the ever popular “Tulloch Midsummer Shield” will be fished for this Saturday the 18th of June with a 9.45 a.m. check in at the Tingwall boat Shed.
The ideal conditions were reflected in an excellent turnout of 17 anglers, the best so far this season. It was good to see Stephen Brevik back for more punishment as he has obviously decided to have a serious tilt at making the bank league team this year. He had also taken along his coach and mentor in the form of Drewie Hawick - another legend in the annals of Shetland angling. It was great to see Drewie at a bank league competition and we hope to see him at many more in the future.
We are now beginning to get down to the nitty gritty in the league with competitors chasing a top six finish in order to qualify for next year’s inter county team. With the stakes so high then a storm almost blew up before anyone had even managed to get their waders on when a box of Mepps No. 3 spinners was spotted in the boot of Dave Wright’s car. As a lynch mob was being assembled Dave moved quickly to defuse the situation by explaining that he was thinking of making a comeback in the spinning league! Watch this space!
Anglers had a choice of lochs in Shetland brown trout fishing heartland including the mighty Vaara and Clousta and also the likes of Collaster, Northouse, Clings Water and Kirkhouse. The names of these lochs are legendary in the folklore of Shetland angling.
The 6.15 p.m. start saw anglers fairly evenly spread out over the whole Clousta Road area. However, with the sun making an appearance and the wind dieing away, choosing the correct loch would be of paramount importance. It was two of Shetland’s top Bank anglers who did exactly that. Billy Reid and Bobby Irvine had decided to fish Vaara and more importantly chose to stay there for the entire evening. They came first and second respectively by a huge margin over everyone else.
The amazing Billy Reid who is untouchable at the moment had eleven trout for 6 lb, 12 ½ oz, while Bobby had ten for 6 lb, 5 ½ oz. Both these top anglers had scored with “Peach Hedgehogs.” Billy’s accomplishment was all the more noteworthy as he was befriended by a black Labrador doing the doggy paddle in the early part of the evening!
All other anglers had struggled to put even a brace of trout in their baskets on what had turned out to be a very difficult evening. Third place went to “big fish man” Jeemie Sandison. He had three trout for his evening for 2 lb, 11 oz. including an injury time heaviest fish at 1 lb, 9 oz. from Northouse. This monster fell to an old traditional fly, the “Invicta” which hardly seems to get a swim nowadays. As Jeemie pointed out though, sometimes the old ones are the best ones!
In fourth place was Kevin Robertson who had four fish for 2 lb, 8 oz. Kevin had hiked over the hill to Kirkhouse and Collaster.
Other anglers managing to weigh in were Alastair Jamieson, Magnus Reid, David John Anderson, Leslie Barclay, Mark Sandison, Stephen Brevik, Barry Robertson, Alan Smith and Dave Wright.
It was a luxury having two competition secretaries at the weigh in. Billy Reid and Stephen Brevik stood no nonsense from any “likely lads” despite Dave Wright’s best attempts.
There were a couple of hard luck stories involving lost fish. With his last cast in Kirkhouse Drewie Hawick had connected with a fish which he reckoned to be in the region of two and a half pounds. Drewie had the trout on for several seconds before it threw the hook – in this case another old traditional, the “Hardy’s Gold Butcher.”
And spare a thought for Derek Tithridge. After an exhausting and frustrating evening trying to tempt a wild brown trout from Northouse, one specimen finally succumbed. Having netted the fish and given it a good clonk over the head imagine Derek’s dismay when the hardy trout made one last bid for freedom, jumped out of his hands and headed straight for the middle of the loch to fight another day!
With six out of the nine bank competitions having been fished the unstoppable Billy Reid is running away with the league. Competition for the remaining top six places is really hotting up however and it is now poised on a knife edge for the final run in.
Billy Reid 132
Mark Sandison 109
Kevin Robertson 89
Bobby Irvine 86
Peter Laurenson 64
Jeemie Sandison 63
Magnus Reid 56
Leslie Barclay 55
Barry Robertson 53
Alastair Jamieson 53
Alan Smith 50
Stephen Brevik 46
Darren Laurenson 32
David John Anderson 22
Derek Tithridge 18
Dave Wright 16
The bank league now takes a break.. In that time the S.A.A. bank team will play host to the Dounreay Fly Fishing Association as they compete for the inter club trophy. The next Fly bank League competition takes place on Thursday 21st July with an 1815 Check in at the West Burrafirth junction. Meanwhile the ever popular “Tulloch Midsummer Shield” will be fished for this Saturday the 18th of June with a 9.45 a.m. check in at the Tingwall boat Shed.
North Mainland
Round five of the S.A.A. Fly Bank League took place last Thursday evening in the North Mainland.
With the overcast skies, Westerly breeze and temperatures soaring into the teens there was little room for complaint from the 13 anglers who had assembled at Mavis Grind for the 1815 check in. Surely this should be ideal trooty conditions!
It was particularly good to see David John Anderson turning out for his first bank league competition in a while. Hopefully we’ll see him at many more in the future as great things are being predicted for this young Whalsay man.
There was a moment of controversy when Derek Tithridge produced a fly box containing what looked to be a cross between exotic birds and Christmas Tree decorations. Sun glasses were quickly donned in order to carry out an inspection of the dodgy looking flies. An S.A.A. official considered confiscating the offending box and the matter will now go before the S.A.A. disciplinary committee in order to check on the legal implications of possessing such weapons.
Then a moment of drama and excitement. With only minutes remaining until the 1815 start and with a squeal of brakes and a screech of tyres, the on fire Leslie Barclay came flying in to the Mavis Grind car park. Another surprise was in store however for the astonished onlookers as top boat man Stephen Brevik emerged groggily from the passenger seat. Stephen was visibly shaken after his white knuckle ride from the town with Leslie. It wasn’t long before Stephen regained his composure however and he was soon back to his usual self, explaining to all the bank league “novices” the finer points of how to extract wild brown trout from a loch by way of an artificial fly. Our deadly duo were still attaching flies to their casts as everyone else sped off in a Northerly direction.
Competitors had the pick of all the top lochs in the North Mainland ranging from the “Loch of the Glen” in Muckle Roe, through the likes of Burraland and Eela Water to Houlland at Eshaness and Housetter in the far North. Most of these lochs would get some attention over the course of the evening. With the mild conditions it wasn’t long before rods could be seen bending in to fish.
At the 2230 weigh it was the great Stephen Brevik who had come up trumps and taken seven better quality trout from Eela Water for 5 lb, 8 oz. Stephen’s top fly was a “Claret Hedgehog.” It will be interesting now to see whether Brevik steps up to the mark and has a go at making the bank league team which is obviously a much stiffer challenge than qualifying for the boat league team!
Stephen however was just pipped to top honours on the evening by the lucky – some would say “jammy” – Mark Sandison. Sandison had sneaked a 7 ½ oz. fish with his last cast of the evening to finish 1 ½ oz. ahead of Stephen. Mark had had success with that old favourite the “Clan Chief.”
Third place went to another boaty angler who is also seeking a greater challenge in the bank league. Alan Smith took three trout from Eela Water before moving to Punds Water for another three to give him a total basket weight of 4lb, 8 oz. Alan’s top fly was sinking line favourite the “White Cat.”
In fourth spot was Billy Reid with another very good bag of seven fish for 3 lb, 15 ½ oz. Billy had also scored with a “Claret Hedgehog.” Always a good bet on peat stained water.
The heaviest fish of the evening at 1 lb, 6 ½ oz. fell to Bobby Irvine and also helped him to fifth place from Burraland. Bobby’s top fly was an import from Orkney, the “Doobry Muddler.”
Other anglers among the points were Alastair Jamieson, Jeemie Sandison, Kevin Robertson, Magnus Reid, Leslie Barclay, David John Anderson, Barry Robertson and Darren Laurenson.
As predicted at the check in it was a very good weigh in and indeed competitors were hard pressed to remember when so many trout had come to the scales at a North Mainland competition.
With the overcast skies, Westerly breeze and temperatures soaring into the teens there was little room for complaint from the 13 anglers who had assembled at Mavis Grind for the 1815 check in. Surely this should be ideal trooty conditions!
It was particularly good to see David John Anderson turning out for his first bank league competition in a while. Hopefully we’ll see him at many more in the future as great things are being predicted for this young Whalsay man.
There was a moment of controversy when Derek Tithridge produced a fly box containing what looked to be a cross between exotic birds and Christmas Tree decorations. Sun glasses were quickly donned in order to carry out an inspection of the dodgy looking flies. An S.A.A. official considered confiscating the offending box and the matter will now go before the S.A.A. disciplinary committee in order to check on the legal implications of possessing such weapons.
Then a moment of drama and excitement. With only minutes remaining until the 1815 start and with a squeal of brakes and a screech of tyres, the on fire Leslie Barclay came flying in to the Mavis Grind car park. Another surprise was in store however for the astonished onlookers as top boat man Stephen Brevik emerged groggily from the passenger seat. Stephen was visibly shaken after his white knuckle ride from the town with Leslie. It wasn’t long before Stephen regained his composure however and he was soon back to his usual self, explaining to all the bank league “novices” the finer points of how to extract wild brown trout from a loch by way of an artificial fly. Our deadly duo were still attaching flies to their casts as everyone else sped off in a Northerly direction.
Competitors had the pick of all the top lochs in the North Mainland ranging from the “Loch of the Glen” in Muckle Roe, through the likes of Burraland and Eela Water to Houlland at Eshaness and Housetter in the far North. Most of these lochs would get some attention over the course of the evening. With the mild conditions it wasn’t long before rods could be seen bending in to fish.
At the 2230 weigh it was the great Stephen Brevik who had come up trumps and taken seven better quality trout from Eela Water for 5 lb, 8 oz. Stephen’s top fly was a “Claret Hedgehog.” It will be interesting now to see whether Brevik steps up to the mark and has a go at making the bank league team which is obviously a much stiffer challenge than qualifying for the boat league team!
Stephen however was just pipped to top honours on the evening by the lucky – some would say “jammy” – Mark Sandison. Sandison had sneaked a 7 ½ oz. fish with his last cast of the evening to finish 1 ½ oz. ahead of Stephen. Mark had had success with that old favourite the “Clan Chief.”
Third place went to another boaty angler who is also seeking a greater challenge in the bank league. Alan Smith took three trout from Eela Water before moving to Punds Water for another three to give him a total basket weight of 4lb, 8 oz. Alan’s top fly was sinking line favourite the “White Cat.”
In fourth spot was Billy Reid with another very good bag of seven fish for 3 lb, 15 ½ oz. Billy had also scored with a “Claret Hedgehog.” Always a good bet on peat stained water.
The heaviest fish of the evening at 1 lb, 6 ½ oz. fell to Bobby Irvine and also helped him to fifth place from Burraland. Bobby’s top fly was an import from Orkney, the “Doobry Muddler.”
Other anglers among the points were Alastair Jamieson, Jeemie Sandison, Kevin Robertson, Magnus Reid, Leslie Barclay, David John Anderson, Barry Robertson and Darren Laurenson.
As predicted at the check in it was a very good weigh in and indeed competitors were hard pressed to remember when so many trout had come to the scales at a North Mainland competition.
Westside
Eleven hardy anglers met at the Bixter Grave yard last Thursday evening for round four of the S.A.A. Fly Bank League. With the North East breeze keeping the temperature down and making it feel more like April than late May a few extra layers of clothing were the order of the day - and indeed some neoprene waders, which should have been packed away for the summer by now, made a reappearance to keep out the chill.
A Northeast wind is certainly not a “fishy” wind. Anglers however are by their very nature an optimistic breed and our eleven “cheeky chappies” were their usual upbeat selves at the 1815 check in. There was the obligatory feeling out of the opposition and fishing for information and tactics while trying to keep one’s own cards as close to the chest as possible. Giving away any crucial information at this stage could have disastrous results come the weigh in! The dissemination of misinformation was also rife. A master of this is Jeemie Sandison who almost had Mark Sandison and Peter Laurenson heading off on yet another wild goose chase. However Mark and Peter have fallen foul off Jeemie’s tall stories too many times in the past to be taken in by them again on such an important occasion!
Competitors had a wide range of lochs to choose from in the “Wild West” of Shetland ranging from the Hulmalees, through Stump in the Skeld area and right out the A971 to the likes of Burga Water and and Mousavord. A successful evening’s angling would all depend on choosing the correct loch and being ready and willing to adopt “Plan B” if necessary.
At the 2230 weigh in it was “on fire” angler Billy Reid who had made all the correct choices. By 8 p.m. he had taken seven trout from the often overlooked Lunga Water and lost several others. He then rounded off his evening by utilising plan B and heading to Flatpunds for the last 20 minutes. Here he added another fish to his basket in full view of Jeemie and Mark Sandison who had both thrashed the water to a frenzy all night for very little! Billy can do no wrong at the moment and his eight fish weighed 4 lb, 4 ½ oz. – most of which fell to a “Claret Sedgehog.”
However Billy was equalled on the night by another Burra angler who is always ready to adopt plan B - and sometimes plan C and D if necessary! Leslie Barclay had fished the first two hours of the competition in the Hulmalees for nothing. Never one to give up Leslie had then made the inspired decision to move to the Loch of Grunnavoe in Walls. Most anglers would need an OS map to locate this out of the way water! Here Leslie had struck gold and taken five trout in rapid succession which after much careful weighing, also amazingly came to 4 lb 4 ½ oz. Leslie’s basket included the heaviest fish of the night – a monster of 1 lb, 9 ½ oz. Every one of Leslie’s fish had taken an “Oakham’s Orange.” This is a fly which has fallen out of favour with many local anglers in recent years but which obviously hasn’t fallen out of favour with the trout!
Both these popular anglers received a round of applause and slaps on the back. An S.A.A. historian noted that the last tie for top spot in the bank league was 13 years ago when another two popular anglers, Peter Laurenson and Brian Hunter, drew in the Hulmalees!
With there being an equal first place there was no second place. So third spot went to Kevin Roberson who despite recovering from a bad back managed to take six trout from the Hulmalees for 3 lb, 3 ½ oz. Kevin’s top fly was Whalsay favourite, the “Blue Headed Muddler.” Kevin has been well warned not to overdo it as he will be a key player in the annual intercounty against the Dounreay Fly Fishers this Summer!
In fourth place was Magnie Reid who had taken the brave decision to fish Stump. Stump hasn’t really fished well for a few years now but Magnie had a very good basket of four fish for 2 lb, 7 oz.
Other anglers among the points were Bobby Irvine, Mark Sandison, Barry Robertson, Peter Laurenson, Darren Laurenson and Jeemie Sandison.
An obviously delighted Leslie took a little bit of convincing to get his picture taken for the paper. However the bashful Leslie finally succumbed to pressure from his angling colleagues and was persuaded to pose for the perfect winner’s portrait.
The next Fly Bank League competition takes place next Thursday the 9th of June with a 6.15 p.m. check in at the Bixter Hall.
A Northeast wind is certainly not a “fishy” wind. Anglers however are by their very nature an optimistic breed and our eleven “cheeky chappies” were their usual upbeat selves at the 1815 check in. There was the obligatory feeling out of the opposition and fishing for information and tactics while trying to keep one’s own cards as close to the chest as possible. Giving away any crucial information at this stage could have disastrous results come the weigh in! The dissemination of misinformation was also rife. A master of this is Jeemie Sandison who almost had Mark Sandison and Peter Laurenson heading off on yet another wild goose chase. However Mark and Peter have fallen foul off Jeemie’s tall stories too many times in the past to be taken in by them again on such an important occasion!
Competitors had a wide range of lochs to choose from in the “Wild West” of Shetland ranging from the Hulmalees, through Stump in the Skeld area and right out the A971 to the likes of Burga Water and and Mousavord. A successful evening’s angling would all depend on choosing the correct loch and being ready and willing to adopt “Plan B” if necessary.
At the 2230 weigh in it was “on fire” angler Billy Reid who had made all the correct choices. By 8 p.m. he had taken seven trout from the often overlooked Lunga Water and lost several others. He then rounded off his evening by utilising plan B and heading to Flatpunds for the last 20 minutes. Here he added another fish to his basket in full view of Jeemie and Mark Sandison who had both thrashed the water to a frenzy all night for very little! Billy can do no wrong at the moment and his eight fish weighed 4 lb, 4 ½ oz. – most of which fell to a “Claret Sedgehog.”
However Billy was equalled on the night by another Burra angler who is always ready to adopt plan B - and sometimes plan C and D if necessary! Leslie Barclay had fished the first two hours of the competition in the Hulmalees for nothing. Never one to give up Leslie had then made the inspired decision to move to the Loch of Grunnavoe in Walls. Most anglers would need an OS map to locate this out of the way water! Here Leslie had struck gold and taken five trout in rapid succession which after much careful weighing, also amazingly came to 4 lb 4 ½ oz. Leslie’s basket included the heaviest fish of the night – a monster of 1 lb, 9 ½ oz. Every one of Leslie’s fish had taken an “Oakham’s Orange.” This is a fly which has fallen out of favour with many local anglers in recent years but which obviously hasn’t fallen out of favour with the trout!
Both these popular anglers received a round of applause and slaps on the back. An S.A.A. historian noted that the last tie for top spot in the bank league was 13 years ago when another two popular anglers, Peter Laurenson and Brian Hunter, drew in the Hulmalees!
With there being an equal first place there was no second place. So third spot went to Kevin Roberson who despite recovering from a bad back managed to take six trout from the Hulmalees for 3 lb, 3 ½ oz. Kevin’s top fly was Whalsay favourite, the “Blue Headed Muddler.” Kevin has been well warned not to overdo it as he will be a key player in the annual intercounty against the Dounreay Fly Fishers this Summer!
In fourth place was Magnie Reid who had taken the brave decision to fish Stump. Stump hasn’t really fished well for a few years now but Magnie had a very good basket of four fish for 2 lb, 7 oz.
Other anglers among the points were Bobby Irvine, Mark Sandison, Barry Robertson, Peter Laurenson, Darren Laurenson and Jeemie Sandison.
An obviously delighted Leslie took a little bit of convincing to get his picture taken for the paper. However the bashful Leslie finally succumbed to pressure from his angling colleagues and was persuaded to pose for the perfect winner’s portrait.
The next Fly Bank League competition takes place next Thursday the 9th of June with a 6.15 p.m. check in at the Bixter Hall.
Trout festival
Shetland Anglers Association hosted the annual trout festival with a series of competitions over four days last week. Despite the stormy weather that curtailed regular boat anglers from taking part, there was a healthy 116 entries and 220 trout were caught. Due to Spiggie Loch currently proving difficult to fish, this meant that the festival was more open, as anglers in general were forced out of their comfort zones and had to widen their search for lochs that were producing fish.
The Wednesday night competition produced mixed results for the 18 anglers taking part, with half of the anglers making blank returns and the remainder weighing-in a total of 35 trout. Alec Miller caught the heaviest basket with 8 fish weighing 4lb 11oz from his usual haunts in Bressay and Peter Laurenson made his mark with his one and only appearance at the festival this year by winning the heaviest fish prize with a trout of 1lb 14oz from Spiggie.
Thursday night saw 20 anglers braving the storm, and the returns improved with a total of 62 fish weighed-in. This was to be a Clingswater’s night, with the heaviest basket of 5lb 15oz being caught there by the intrepid “rockhopper” Mark Sandison who squeezed float tuber Paul Bloomer into second place with a basket of 5lb 4oz from the same loch. This was the second night that the “Clan Chief” fly had been used to good effect to win the competition. Andrew Kerr took his float tube (minus flippers - doh!) to Greista Loch where his basket of 3 trout for a respectable 3lb 1oz contained the heaviest fish of the night at 1lb 9oz.
There was a slight drop in entries on Friday, partly due to broken down cars and perhaps also broken down anglers! However, all the 15 participants had a share in the 60 fish caught on the night. “Mr Consistency,” Bobby Irvine spurted to the lead in the overall aggregate weight due to the splendid winning basket of 6 trout weighing 7lb 2oz from a range of Northmavine Lochs. The heaviest fish was won by another “Mr C”, Tunnel designer and Benston Loch specialist John Laurenson who used a rubber legged, bug eyed, green monstrosity to catch a specimen 3lb 7oz trout, that turned out to be the heaviest fish of the festival ( Do you think a touch of jealousy is beginning to creep into this report?)
The Saturday competition saw 63 fish landed, and at the weigh-in “Bressay fishing virgin” Billy Reid’s basket of 13 fish for 7lb 1oz from his new found fishing “heaven” won him the heaviest basket for the day, and the single trout that he caught in the last half hour was enough for him to reach an aggregate total of 17lb 6oz for the festival, beating Bobby Irvine by only 7oz for the aggregate prize. (And you all thought the last day of the relegation battle in the English Premier League was exciting!) The heaviest fish prize for the day weighed 1lb 14oz and was taken by Andrew Kerr who intended to fish in Yell, but instead ended up in Sandwater (Don’t ask!) with his float tube and a newly found set of flippers.
There was general consensus from the participating anglers that despite the unfavourable weather, the festival had been successful and enjoyable and the 30 year old event has cemented its place in the angling year.
The Wednesday night competition produced mixed results for the 18 anglers taking part, with half of the anglers making blank returns and the remainder weighing-in a total of 35 trout. Alec Miller caught the heaviest basket with 8 fish weighing 4lb 11oz from his usual haunts in Bressay and Peter Laurenson made his mark with his one and only appearance at the festival this year by winning the heaviest fish prize with a trout of 1lb 14oz from Spiggie.
Thursday night saw 20 anglers braving the storm, and the returns improved with a total of 62 fish weighed-in. This was to be a Clingswater’s night, with the heaviest basket of 5lb 15oz being caught there by the intrepid “rockhopper” Mark Sandison who squeezed float tuber Paul Bloomer into second place with a basket of 5lb 4oz from the same loch. This was the second night that the “Clan Chief” fly had been used to good effect to win the competition. Andrew Kerr took his float tube (minus flippers - doh!) to Greista Loch where his basket of 3 trout for a respectable 3lb 1oz contained the heaviest fish of the night at 1lb 9oz.
There was a slight drop in entries on Friday, partly due to broken down cars and perhaps also broken down anglers! However, all the 15 participants had a share in the 60 fish caught on the night. “Mr Consistency,” Bobby Irvine spurted to the lead in the overall aggregate weight due to the splendid winning basket of 6 trout weighing 7lb 2oz from a range of Northmavine Lochs. The heaviest fish was won by another “Mr C”, Tunnel designer and Benston Loch specialist John Laurenson who used a rubber legged, bug eyed, green monstrosity to catch a specimen 3lb 7oz trout, that turned out to be the heaviest fish of the festival ( Do you think a touch of jealousy is beginning to creep into this report?)
The Saturday competition saw 63 fish landed, and at the weigh-in “Bressay fishing virgin” Billy Reid’s basket of 13 fish for 7lb 1oz from his new found fishing “heaven” won him the heaviest basket for the day, and the single trout that he caught in the last half hour was enough for him to reach an aggregate total of 17lb 6oz for the festival, beating Bobby Irvine by only 7oz for the aggregate prize. (And you all thought the last day of the relegation battle in the English Premier League was exciting!) The heaviest fish prize for the day weighed 1lb 14oz and was taken by Andrew Kerr who intended to fish in Yell, but instead ended up in Sandwater (Don’t ask!) with his float tube and a newly found set of flippers.
There was general consensus from the participating anglers that despite the unfavourable weather, the festival had been successful and enjoyable and the 30 year old event has cemented its place in the angling year.
Benston and Nesting
Last Thursday evening saw S.A.A fly fishers compete for the Pottinger Benston trophy. In a far sighted move competition secretary Billy Reid had decided to change the date and time of this year’s event. This trophy is normally fished for on a Saturday night in the middle of June until 2 a.m the following morning. As a result it is usually left to the toughest and hardiest of anglers. Only Billy Reid, John Laurenson, Gordon Waddell and Mark Sandison were present for the roll call last year.
In changing the weigh in time to 1015 Billy was hoping to attract some anglers with perhaps more limited stamina and maybe also some Whalsay anglers who might now be able to catch a late ferry home. Taking the date forward by a month and a half might also improve the catch rate on this notoriously dour loch as theoretically the trout should still be fairly hungry after a long hard winter. Last year’s competition was won with just one fish!
In the event eight anglers turned up at the 1815 check in at the Benston Boat park. These stout fellows however were under no illusion concerning the hard evenings fishing which lay ahead. The trout in Benston didn’t reach their monster size by rushing to impale themselves on the first cleverly decorated hook to swim past their noses. These fish are more discerning and fussy cousins of the normal Shetland brownie!
Although the sky was overcast our intrepid anglers would have preferred to see a bigger wind than the calm Southerly breeze which greeted them. These still conditions would only serve to make the trout extra suspicious and fickle! As a result there was an unusually laid back atmosphere at the check in with little of the usual urgency to get going as the anglers bantered back and forth. In fact the keenest two to get underway were the youngest and oldest fly fishers present in the shape of Darren Laurenson and Barry Robertson. This would be telling come the weigh in.
Despite warnings printed in this column last week some anglers have still not heeded the message. Gordon Waddell and Barry Robertson were fortunate to emerge unscathed after a rather serious run in with a herd of wild Nesting sheep! All this before anyone had even got their flies wet!
Soon every one was down to business however and on such a fine night it was great to hear the voices of fishing buddies Dave Wright and Derek Tithridge drifting down the loch as they gave each other encouragement and advice regarding tactics, flies - and indeed, who they were and where they were!
As predicted the fishing was extremely difficult with the majority of competitors not having a sniff of a fish all night. Two anglers shone through however. In second place was Barry Robertson with two fish taken on the same cast for 1 lb, 4 oz. Barry then called fellow Bonnie Isle man Bobby Irvine and they headed off to catch an earlier ferry home. Barry must have had a sneaking feeling at this stage that he had maybe just done enough to win it.
In first place however and living up to expectations in claiming his first major S.A.A. trophy was Darren Laurenson with three trout for 2 lb, 2 oz. Darren’s top fly, the “Darren’s Daddy” was one of his own creation, the tying of which he is keeping top secret. Such is this young man’s confidence that he was able to take time out to laugh at Mark Sandison doing diving demonstrations and also finish half an hour early in order to watch his older colleagues thrash the water in vain! Well done Darren. A deserved winner of this difficult trophy.
From Reid’s point of view his brave move to change the tired old format of this competition was also a success. Double the amount of anglers and five times the amount of fish weighed in, in half the time of last year! As Billy also pointed out Darren’s basket was better than the majority of anglers had managed the previous Saturday in the Spiggie competition!
Still not having had their fill of Nesting 14 anglers then reconvened two days later at the Nesting junction to fish round three of the S.A.A. fly bank league. However competitors now had a range of lochs to fish in the central and East Mainland ranging from Burga Water in Vidlin right down to to Vatster at the end of the Tingwall straight. Benston of course was included in the list but surprisingly, few of the anglers at the 1145 check in seemed to have much appetite for it!
Top boat fishing man Stephen Brevik honoured everyone with his presence, making his annual appearance at a bank fishing competition. He soon had a captive audience as he held court with various anecdotes and stories. He then proceeded to dispense wit and wisdom in equal measure to those who would aspire to his exalted status within fly fishing circles.
There were a few raised eye brows at the non appearance of another top angler, Bobby Irvine. Being thick as thieves, his comrades from Whalsay were reluctant to cast any light on the situation. However after some pressing Barry Robertson spilled the beans and admitted that Bobby had left his fishing waistcoat on the ferry complete with all his top fly patterns. All the Whalsay men had apparently become so carried away discussing the day’s fishing before them that the waistcoat had been forgotten in all the excitement! Bobby was now waiting at Laxo for the ferry to return from Whalsay! Everyone knew however that this delayed start for Bobby would have little effect on his trout catching abilities.
And so it was at the 1745 weigh in. Bobby had done some stocky bashing in Freester and Houlland before moving on to Sandwater to give him a basket of eight fish for 4 lb, 8 oz. and second place on the day. Bobby’s top fly was the “Iceland Dabbler.” which was specially supplied by top Whalsay tier Alec John Polson. Ex pat Polson is rapidly earning a reputation as one of Shetland’s most innovative fly tiers!
Bobby was beaten to first place however by Billy Reid who is in a rich vein of form at the moment. Billy had taken ten trout from Houlland for 5 lb, 15 oz. to give him his second bank League win on the bounce. Billy had scored with his legendary “Hedgehog” patterns with the top one on the day being an “Orange Hedgehog.”
Third place went to the ever consistent Peter Laurenson who had four better quality fish from the unfashionable Petta Water for 3 lb, 9 oz. Peter’s killing fly was Orkney early season favourite the “Coch Zulu.”
Other anglers among the points were Mark Sandison, Stephen Brevik, Darren Laurenson, Alastair Jamieson, Barry Robertson, Derek Tithridge, Jeemie Sandison and Alan Smith.
With a third of this year’s Bank League competitions having been fished a look at the league table shows on fire Billy Reid beginning to put distance between himself and everyone else.
Billy Reid
66
Mark Sandison
58
Peter Laurenson
52
Kevin Robertson
43
Bobby Irvine
35
Alan Smith
24
Alastair Jamieson
24
Barry Robertson
23
Jeemie Sandison
22
Derek Tithridge
18
Stehen Brevik
15
Magnus Reid
14
Darren Laurenson
14
Dave Wright
9
Leslie Barclay
8
The next Bank league competition takes place on Thursday 26th May with a 6.15 p.m. check in at the Bixter graveyard.
In changing the weigh in time to 1015 Billy was hoping to attract some anglers with perhaps more limited stamina and maybe also some Whalsay anglers who might now be able to catch a late ferry home. Taking the date forward by a month and a half might also improve the catch rate on this notoriously dour loch as theoretically the trout should still be fairly hungry after a long hard winter. Last year’s competition was won with just one fish!
In the event eight anglers turned up at the 1815 check in at the Benston Boat park. These stout fellows however were under no illusion concerning the hard evenings fishing which lay ahead. The trout in Benston didn’t reach their monster size by rushing to impale themselves on the first cleverly decorated hook to swim past their noses. These fish are more discerning and fussy cousins of the normal Shetland brownie!
Although the sky was overcast our intrepid anglers would have preferred to see a bigger wind than the calm Southerly breeze which greeted them. These still conditions would only serve to make the trout extra suspicious and fickle! As a result there was an unusually laid back atmosphere at the check in with little of the usual urgency to get going as the anglers bantered back and forth. In fact the keenest two to get underway were the youngest and oldest fly fishers present in the shape of Darren Laurenson and Barry Robertson. This would be telling come the weigh in.
Despite warnings printed in this column last week some anglers have still not heeded the message. Gordon Waddell and Barry Robertson were fortunate to emerge unscathed after a rather serious run in with a herd of wild Nesting sheep! All this before anyone had even got their flies wet!
Soon every one was down to business however and on such a fine night it was great to hear the voices of fishing buddies Dave Wright and Derek Tithridge drifting down the loch as they gave each other encouragement and advice regarding tactics, flies - and indeed, who they were and where they were!
As predicted the fishing was extremely difficult with the majority of competitors not having a sniff of a fish all night. Two anglers shone through however. In second place was Barry Robertson with two fish taken on the same cast for 1 lb, 4 oz. Barry then called fellow Bonnie Isle man Bobby Irvine and they headed off to catch an earlier ferry home. Barry must have had a sneaking feeling at this stage that he had maybe just done enough to win it.
In first place however and living up to expectations in claiming his first major S.A.A. trophy was Darren Laurenson with three trout for 2 lb, 2 oz. Darren’s top fly, the “Darren’s Daddy” was one of his own creation, the tying of which he is keeping top secret. Such is this young man’s confidence that he was able to take time out to laugh at Mark Sandison doing diving demonstrations and also finish half an hour early in order to watch his older colleagues thrash the water in vain! Well done Darren. A deserved winner of this difficult trophy.
From Reid’s point of view his brave move to change the tired old format of this competition was also a success. Double the amount of anglers and five times the amount of fish weighed in, in half the time of last year! As Billy also pointed out Darren’s basket was better than the majority of anglers had managed the previous Saturday in the Spiggie competition!
Still not having had their fill of Nesting 14 anglers then reconvened two days later at the Nesting junction to fish round three of the S.A.A. fly bank league. However competitors now had a range of lochs to fish in the central and East Mainland ranging from Burga Water in Vidlin right down to to Vatster at the end of the Tingwall straight. Benston of course was included in the list but surprisingly, few of the anglers at the 1145 check in seemed to have much appetite for it!
Top boat fishing man Stephen Brevik honoured everyone with his presence, making his annual appearance at a bank fishing competition. He soon had a captive audience as he held court with various anecdotes and stories. He then proceeded to dispense wit and wisdom in equal measure to those who would aspire to his exalted status within fly fishing circles.
There were a few raised eye brows at the non appearance of another top angler, Bobby Irvine. Being thick as thieves, his comrades from Whalsay were reluctant to cast any light on the situation. However after some pressing Barry Robertson spilled the beans and admitted that Bobby had left his fishing waistcoat on the ferry complete with all his top fly patterns. All the Whalsay men had apparently become so carried away discussing the day’s fishing before them that the waistcoat had been forgotten in all the excitement! Bobby was now waiting at Laxo for the ferry to return from Whalsay! Everyone knew however that this delayed start for Bobby would have little effect on his trout catching abilities.
And so it was at the 1745 weigh in. Bobby had done some stocky bashing in Freester and Houlland before moving on to Sandwater to give him a basket of eight fish for 4 lb, 8 oz. and second place on the day. Bobby’s top fly was the “Iceland Dabbler.” which was specially supplied by top Whalsay tier Alec John Polson. Ex pat Polson is rapidly earning a reputation as one of Shetland’s most innovative fly tiers!
Bobby was beaten to first place however by Billy Reid who is in a rich vein of form at the moment. Billy had taken ten trout from Houlland for 5 lb, 15 oz. to give him his second bank League win on the bounce. Billy had scored with his legendary “Hedgehog” patterns with the top one on the day being an “Orange Hedgehog.”
Third place went to the ever consistent Peter Laurenson who had four better quality fish from the unfashionable Petta Water for 3 lb, 9 oz. Peter’s killing fly was Orkney early season favourite the “Coch Zulu.”
Other anglers among the points were Mark Sandison, Stephen Brevik, Darren Laurenson, Alastair Jamieson, Barry Robertson, Derek Tithridge, Jeemie Sandison and Alan Smith.
With a third of this year’s Bank League competitions having been fished a look at the league table shows on fire Billy Reid beginning to put distance between himself and everyone else.
Billy Reid
66
Mark Sandison
58
Peter Laurenson
52
Kevin Robertson
43
Bobby Irvine
35
Alan Smith
24
Alastair Jamieson
24
Barry Robertson
23
Jeemie Sandison
22
Derek Tithridge
18
Stehen Brevik
15
Magnus Reid
14
Darren Laurenson
14
Dave Wright
9
Leslie Barclay
8
The next Bank league competition takes place on Thursday 26th May with a 6.15 p.m. check in at the Bixter graveyard.
Spiggie
Always one of the S.A.A.’s most popular competitions, it was no surprise then when fourteen anglers checked in at the Spiggie boat park last Saturday morning for round two of the Fly Bank League.
All the “Big Guns” were out in force again after several had been posted missing for the first bank league competition four weeks ago. Checking in early were the indomitable Leslie Barclay and also Magnus Reid – resplendent in a brand new pair of short legged breathable waders acquired at a knock down price from partner in crime Barry Robertson! Added to this colourful trio were the returning Alastair Jamieson, Alan Smith and Bobby Irvine - so everyone knew they were in for a tough day!
With all the anglers playing for high stakes and nerves jangling, it was perhaps inevitable that a dispute would arise in this charged atmosphere. No stranger to controversy it was Dave Wright who was spotted with a fly on his cast which was more akin to a dead parrot than any sort of insect life and which certainly exceeded the maximum fly length of fifteen sixteenths of an inch! A pair of scissors were quickly produced and the necessary alterations made before the situation could really blow up!
And so to the fishing. After two weeks of near blazing sunshine the competitors were delighted to see overcast skies and a Southerly breeze. This should be ideal angling conditions.
Although Spiggie hasn’t fished as well so far this season as it did last year, there have still been some very good baskets coming off the loch. Today it would be all about finding the fish and any angler who could locate a shoal of feeding fish could be in for a bonanza. And anyway as Billy Reid was quick to point out, “Spiggie on a poor day is still better than most other lochs on a good day!”
Although Barry Robertson, fully armed with a 20 inch landing net and measuring stick hanging by his side, was keen to get going, competition secretary Billy Reid made sure that the clock had turned 11 a.m. before giving the signal to start.
Anglers did have a choice of nearly all of the lochs in the South Mainland but most of the early effort was concentrated on Spiggie itself with competitors spread out up and down the East and West banks. However after a couple of hours the tell tale signs of anglers plodding despondently back up the bank or motoring to another loch were all the clues one needed that the loch wasn’t fishing. The situation wasn’t helped by the strengthening wind and the sun which was now appearing through increasingly broken clouds.
This gloomy prediction was borne out at the weigh in where it transpired that everyone had had a very difficult day indeed and struggled to put even a brace of trout in their baskets from this normally prolific loch.
In first place was Spiggie expert Billy Reid with a fantastic basket, considering the conditions, of eight fish for 5 lb, 4 ½ oz. Billy had concentrated all his efforts on the difficult weather shore. Billy’s top fly was his own “Orange and Gold Muddler” – a “peerie beauty.” This fly can be purchased from Billy at the knockdown price of £5 each.
Second spot went to Mark Sandison with seven trout for 4 lb, 7 ½ oz. Mark reported having success with an “Olive Tadpole.”
In third place was Kevin Robertson with 4 fish for 3 lb, 2 ½ oz. Two of his trout came from the Loch of Brow. Kevin also had the heaviest fish of the day at 1 lb, 4 ½ oz which fell to an old favourite, the “Loch Ordy.”
Fourth place and a special award for endurance went to Peter Laurenson with four trout for 2 lb, 4 ½ oz. Peter had spent the day on the deeps with the waves breaking over his head and fully deserved his sixteen points!
Other anglers weighing in were Alan Smith, Bobby Irvine, Magnus Reid, Jeemie Sandison, Barry Robertson, Alastair Jamieson, Dave Wright, Leslie Barclay and Derek Tithridge.
A rather bizarre story came to light at the weigh in when Leslie Barclay reported having a strange encounter with a “pink headed sheep” at the back of Spiggie which he claimed had completely put him off his stride for the rest of the day. This story was met with howls of laughter and derision among the assembled throng and generally put down to Leslie’s overactive imagination. However stranger things have happened to the solitary fisherman and anglers are reminded to be constantly on their guard when fishing alone on Shetland’s remoter lochs!
The next fly bank league competition takes place tomorrow, Saturday the 14th of May with an 11.45 a.m. check in at the Nesting junction.
All the “Big Guns” were out in force again after several had been posted missing for the first bank league competition four weeks ago. Checking in early were the indomitable Leslie Barclay and also Magnus Reid – resplendent in a brand new pair of short legged breathable waders acquired at a knock down price from partner in crime Barry Robertson! Added to this colourful trio were the returning Alastair Jamieson, Alan Smith and Bobby Irvine - so everyone knew they were in for a tough day!
With all the anglers playing for high stakes and nerves jangling, it was perhaps inevitable that a dispute would arise in this charged atmosphere. No stranger to controversy it was Dave Wright who was spotted with a fly on his cast which was more akin to a dead parrot than any sort of insect life and which certainly exceeded the maximum fly length of fifteen sixteenths of an inch! A pair of scissors were quickly produced and the necessary alterations made before the situation could really blow up!
And so to the fishing. After two weeks of near blazing sunshine the competitors were delighted to see overcast skies and a Southerly breeze. This should be ideal angling conditions.
Although Spiggie hasn’t fished as well so far this season as it did last year, there have still been some very good baskets coming off the loch. Today it would be all about finding the fish and any angler who could locate a shoal of feeding fish could be in for a bonanza. And anyway as Billy Reid was quick to point out, “Spiggie on a poor day is still better than most other lochs on a good day!”
Although Barry Robertson, fully armed with a 20 inch landing net and measuring stick hanging by his side, was keen to get going, competition secretary Billy Reid made sure that the clock had turned 11 a.m. before giving the signal to start.
Anglers did have a choice of nearly all of the lochs in the South Mainland but most of the early effort was concentrated on Spiggie itself with competitors spread out up and down the East and West banks. However after a couple of hours the tell tale signs of anglers plodding despondently back up the bank or motoring to another loch were all the clues one needed that the loch wasn’t fishing. The situation wasn’t helped by the strengthening wind and the sun which was now appearing through increasingly broken clouds.
This gloomy prediction was borne out at the weigh in where it transpired that everyone had had a very difficult day indeed and struggled to put even a brace of trout in their baskets from this normally prolific loch.
In first place was Spiggie expert Billy Reid with a fantastic basket, considering the conditions, of eight fish for 5 lb, 4 ½ oz. Billy had concentrated all his efforts on the difficult weather shore. Billy’s top fly was his own “Orange and Gold Muddler” – a “peerie beauty.” This fly can be purchased from Billy at the knockdown price of £5 each.
Second spot went to Mark Sandison with seven trout for 4 lb, 7 ½ oz. Mark reported having success with an “Olive Tadpole.”
In third place was Kevin Robertson with 4 fish for 3 lb, 2 ½ oz. Two of his trout came from the Loch of Brow. Kevin also had the heaviest fish of the day at 1 lb, 4 ½ oz which fell to an old favourite, the “Loch Ordy.”
Fourth place and a special award for endurance went to Peter Laurenson with four trout for 2 lb, 4 ½ oz. Peter had spent the day on the deeps with the waves breaking over his head and fully deserved his sixteen points!
Other anglers weighing in were Alan Smith, Bobby Irvine, Magnus Reid, Jeemie Sandison, Barry Robertson, Alastair Jamieson, Dave Wright, Leslie Barclay and Derek Tithridge.
A rather bizarre story came to light at the weigh in when Leslie Barclay reported having a strange encounter with a “pink headed sheep” at the back of Spiggie which he claimed had completely put him off his stride for the rest of the day. This story was met with howls of laughter and derision among the assembled throng and generally put down to Leslie’s overactive imagination. However stranger things have happened to the solitary fisherman and anglers are reminded to be constantly on their guard when fishing alone on Shetland’s remoter lochs!
The next fly bank league competition takes place tomorrow, Saturday the 14th of May with an 11.45 a.m. check in at the Nesting junction.
Shetland Times Trophy
After two days of blazing sunshine and flat calm the sixteen anglers who turned up at the Tingwall boat shed last Saturday morning to compete for the Shetland Times trophy were understandably delighted with the overcast sky and warm Southerly breeze. Ideal trooty conditions! They were also delighted to see two “new faces” at a competition in the shape of young Terry Laurenson from Burra and the slightly older Greg Anderson from Skerries. Two excellent additions to the competition scene.
The Shetland Times trophy can be fished for using either fly or spinner. Nine times out of ten of course the spinner, which is a mechanised and industrial form of angling, will outfish the fly.
Fly fishing however is the very pinnacle of our sport. Although the road to mastery of this ancient craft is long and hard, the rewards are great for those who remain true to the art and stick with it to the end. A quick glance at the names of past winners engraved on this beautiful old trophy then will reveal that the majority of them were legendary figures of Shetland trout angling who pursued the beautiful and gentle art of fly fishing.
The cynical spinning angler will be quick to point out of course that this is because only Fly Fishing is permitted on the prolific Spiggie which has a tendency to be “on” just when this competition is being fished. However as one wise fly fisher from Whalsay pointed out, “the fish still have to be caught – they don’t jump in to your basket by themselves!”
And so it was at the 6 p.m. weigh in. Two anglers at the very top of their craft came in first and second after spending most of the day in Spiggie and utilising very different tactics.
First place went to Billy Reid who had taken nine fish from Spiggie before making the astute tactical decision to switch to Asta for the last two hours of the competition. Here he added a couple of better quality trout to his bag to give him eleven fish for 7 lb, 11 oz. As well as changing lochs Billy had changed from sub surface to a top of the water set up. So a deserved winner of a trophy that Billy has virtually made his own - winning it four times in the last eight years!
Second place went to Bobby Irvine with another basket of eleven fish for 7 lb, 1 oz. Bobby just pipped top spinner Stephen Johnson to the runner up spot. Stephen had nine trout for 7 lb. exactly from Clings Water and the Hulma Lees.
In fourth spot was a veteran fly fisher who has been a master of his craft for many years now. Jeemie Sandison had seven fish for 6 lb, 4 oz. Anglers at the top of their game are always ready to listen to news and advice. Jeemie had read the advice in this column from a fortnight ago and spent the last half hour of the competition in the mighty Girlsta where he had caught a specimen trout of 2 lb, 9 oz. This monster had fallen to that classic mini lure the “Christmas Tree.”
Other successful anglers on the day were Mark Sandison, Kevin Robertson, Terry Laurenson, Barry Robertson, Alan Chapman, Tam Terris, Malcolm Bowie, Dave Wright, Derek Tithridge and Derek Baines.
Due to an oversight in S.A.A. planning the Shetland Times competition coincided with a boat competition in Tingwall. So it was a bit like Piccadilly Circus for a while at the Tingwall boat Shed as both competitions weighed in at the same time with the great majority of S.A.A. competition anglers represented. If any of the Shetland Times competitors felt like they had had a hard day they were soon faced with a reality check when they saw the haggard faces of the twelve boat anglers coming ashore. There is a certain extreme element to most forms of angling. However there is no doubt that the boat anglers in Tingwall take it to the masochistic level! To sit for six hours in a boat in Tingwall “without even a touch” takes a certain kind of mental mindset and toughness that us lesser mortals can only dream about. As one wag pointed out, “Perhaps they should fish the boat competitions in Girlsta.”
The next bank competition is round two of the fly bank league. This takes place in the South Mainland on Saturday the 7th of May with an 11 a.m. check in at the Spiggie boat site.
The S.A.A. have recently been involved in an exciting new project. Several volunteers have spent the winter looking after sea-trout spawn intained from the brood stock in Upper-Brouster Loch. About a month ago, the 60,000 eggs hatched in the Kergord Hatchery, which is leased by SAA. The tiny fish will shortly be ready for re-stocking as “first feed” fry in local burns and Lochs.
Before releasing the fry, the Association are holding an open day at Kergord Hatchery on Sunday 1st May from 2pm to 4pm. The hatchery is situated directly across the road from the Bonhoga gallery. The volunteers would be delighted to welcome SAA members and members of the public to come and view the trays of fry and some of the team will be available to answer questions about the interesting life cycle of the sea-trout.
The Shetland Times trophy can be fished for using either fly or spinner. Nine times out of ten of course the spinner, which is a mechanised and industrial form of angling, will outfish the fly.
Fly fishing however is the very pinnacle of our sport. Although the road to mastery of this ancient craft is long and hard, the rewards are great for those who remain true to the art and stick with it to the end. A quick glance at the names of past winners engraved on this beautiful old trophy then will reveal that the majority of them were legendary figures of Shetland trout angling who pursued the beautiful and gentle art of fly fishing.
The cynical spinning angler will be quick to point out of course that this is because only Fly Fishing is permitted on the prolific Spiggie which has a tendency to be “on” just when this competition is being fished. However as one wise fly fisher from Whalsay pointed out, “the fish still have to be caught – they don’t jump in to your basket by themselves!”
And so it was at the 6 p.m. weigh in. Two anglers at the very top of their craft came in first and second after spending most of the day in Spiggie and utilising very different tactics.
First place went to Billy Reid who had taken nine fish from Spiggie before making the astute tactical decision to switch to Asta for the last two hours of the competition. Here he added a couple of better quality trout to his bag to give him eleven fish for 7 lb, 11 oz. As well as changing lochs Billy had changed from sub surface to a top of the water set up. So a deserved winner of a trophy that Billy has virtually made his own - winning it four times in the last eight years!
Second place went to Bobby Irvine with another basket of eleven fish for 7 lb, 1 oz. Bobby just pipped top spinner Stephen Johnson to the runner up spot. Stephen had nine trout for 7 lb. exactly from Clings Water and the Hulma Lees.
In fourth spot was a veteran fly fisher who has been a master of his craft for many years now. Jeemie Sandison had seven fish for 6 lb, 4 oz. Anglers at the top of their game are always ready to listen to news and advice. Jeemie had read the advice in this column from a fortnight ago and spent the last half hour of the competition in the mighty Girlsta where he had caught a specimen trout of 2 lb, 9 oz. This monster had fallen to that classic mini lure the “Christmas Tree.”
Other successful anglers on the day were Mark Sandison, Kevin Robertson, Terry Laurenson, Barry Robertson, Alan Chapman, Tam Terris, Malcolm Bowie, Dave Wright, Derek Tithridge and Derek Baines.
Due to an oversight in S.A.A. planning the Shetland Times competition coincided with a boat competition in Tingwall. So it was a bit like Piccadilly Circus for a while at the Tingwall boat Shed as both competitions weighed in at the same time with the great majority of S.A.A. competition anglers represented. If any of the Shetland Times competitors felt like they had had a hard day they were soon faced with a reality check when they saw the haggard faces of the twelve boat anglers coming ashore. There is a certain extreme element to most forms of angling. However there is no doubt that the boat anglers in Tingwall take it to the masochistic level! To sit for six hours in a boat in Tingwall “without even a touch” takes a certain kind of mental mindset and toughness that us lesser mortals can only dream about. As one wag pointed out, “Perhaps they should fish the boat competitions in Girlsta.”
The next bank competition is round two of the fly bank league. This takes place in the South Mainland on Saturday the 7th of May with an 11 a.m. check in at the Spiggie boat site.
The S.A.A. have recently been involved in an exciting new project. Several volunteers have spent the winter looking after sea-trout spawn intained from the brood stock in Upper-Brouster Loch. About a month ago, the 60,000 eggs hatched in the Kergord Hatchery, which is leased by SAA. The tiny fish will shortly be ready for re-stocking as “first feed” fry in local burns and Lochs.
Before releasing the fry, the Association are holding an open day at Kergord Hatchery on Sunday 1st May from 2pm to 4pm. The hatchery is situated directly across the road from the Bonhoga gallery. The volunteers would be delighted to welcome SAA members and members of the public to come and view the trays of fry and some of the team will be available to answer questions about the interesting life cycle of the sea-trout.
April 9th 2011. Tingwall area.
Despite the pleasant Spring morning last Saturday with
the temperature reaching an unprecedented ten degrees there was a relatively
poor turnout of only nine anglers for the first Shetland Angling Association
fly bank league competition of the season.
With many of the associations “big guns” out of commission for various reasons including work commitments, injury and old age, this would surely be the perfect opportunity for a few of the association’s second string players to step up to the mark!
There was an unusually subdued atmosphere and a few grumblings and long faces among the few hardy souls who had turned up for the 1145 check in. This was due in part perhaps to the lack of an effective S.A.A. youth policy but probably more down to the fact that Tingwall, which should have been the prime venue on the day’s list of lochs, simply hasn’t been fishing so far this season. There were of course numerous other lochs to choose from in the Tingwall and Girlsta area but it just didn’t seem the same somehow with the area’s premier venue out of the equation.
This didn’t prevent a couple of optimistic anglers from having a few early casts in Tingwall, such is the pull of this legendary loch, but they soon moved on.
At the 1745 weigh in it was rising star Kevin Robertson who had stepped up to the plate to make the most of the day’s opportunities for maximum points. This young Whalsay angler had spent the day in the unfashionable and often overlooked Vatsetter where he had assembled a basket of eight fish for 3lb, 12 ½ oz. Kevin’s success was all the more notable as it was the first time that his flies had been wetted this season!
Kevin’s top fly was the world famous “Norski Lad” with a Whalsay twist invented by local fly tier Stephen Brevik. This was quite apt as Stephen is currently out of fly fishing action after a knee operation and we wish him all the best for a speedy recovery.
Second spot on the day went to Mark Sandison who had spent the afternoon in Asta taking five trout for 3lb, 8 ½ oz. His brand new technical socks supplied by top Burra Isle knitter Jessie Jean Pottinger had kept his feet warm and enabled him to wade deep for his fish. There were a few envious looks aimed in Sandison’s direction from the Whalsay boys present, as knitwear of this quality just doesn’t seem to be coming out of the Bonnie Isle at the moment!
Sandison had endured a long barren spell in the middle of the afternoon but luckily for him the Asta model yacht club had provided excellent entertainment and excitement during this time as they sailed their end of season regatta. Much better than the Grand National any day!
Third place went to defending bank league champion Peter Laurenson. Always among the top spots and still sporting the remnants of a suntan from a fly fishing holiday in Patagonia, Peter had one fish from Asta and one from Tingwall for 1 lb, 8 oz. His killer fly was old favourite the “Black Pennel.” Proof once more that although flies go out of fashion among anglers as newer and “fancier” patterns come along, they seldom go out of fashion with the trout!
Peter’s basket was exceptional in that he was the only angler to take a fish from Tingwall whereas in previous years at this competition the bulk of fish weighed in would have come from Tingwall. The output of any loch tends to be cyclical over a number of years however and it will simply be the case that Tingwall is going through a downturn at the moment.
Fourth place went to top Burra Isle angler – and perhaps knitter too for all we know - Billy Reid, with the heaviest fish of the day at 1 lb, ½ oz. from Girlsta. The trout had come up to a “Sedgehog” and Billy reported seeing a lot of life in the loch. This flies in the face of local angling lore and tradition which states that Girlsta doesn’t fish until July and August. One wonders what would come out of this mighty loch if the same amount of angling time was invested here as in some of our other premier waters!
There were no other successful anglers on what proved to be a very difficult day for fly fishing. However as Derek Tithridge pointed out, it had been “a nice day out,” so of course from that point of view everyone was a winner!
Anglers are reminded that the next competition is the ever popular Shetland Times Trophy which takes place on Saturday the 23rd of April with a 10 a.m. check in at the Tingwall boat shed. The next fly bank league competition takes place on Saturday the 7th of May with an 11 a.m check in at the Spiggie boat site car park.
With many of the associations “big guns” out of commission for various reasons including work commitments, injury and old age, this would surely be the perfect opportunity for a few of the association’s second string players to step up to the mark!
There was an unusually subdued atmosphere and a few grumblings and long faces among the few hardy souls who had turned up for the 1145 check in. This was due in part perhaps to the lack of an effective S.A.A. youth policy but probably more down to the fact that Tingwall, which should have been the prime venue on the day’s list of lochs, simply hasn’t been fishing so far this season. There were of course numerous other lochs to choose from in the Tingwall and Girlsta area but it just didn’t seem the same somehow with the area’s premier venue out of the equation.
This didn’t prevent a couple of optimistic anglers from having a few early casts in Tingwall, such is the pull of this legendary loch, but they soon moved on.
At the 1745 weigh in it was rising star Kevin Robertson who had stepped up to the plate to make the most of the day’s opportunities for maximum points. This young Whalsay angler had spent the day in the unfashionable and often overlooked Vatsetter where he had assembled a basket of eight fish for 3lb, 12 ½ oz. Kevin’s success was all the more notable as it was the first time that his flies had been wetted this season!
Kevin’s top fly was the world famous “Norski Lad” with a Whalsay twist invented by local fly tier Stephen Brevik. This was quite apt as Stephen is currently out of fly fishing action after a knee operation and we wish him all the best for a speedy recovery.
Second spot on the day went to Mark Sandison who had spent the afternoon in Asta taking five trout for 3lb, 8 ½ oz. His brand new technical socks supplied by top Burra Isle knitter Jessie Jean Pottinger had kept his feet warm and enabled him to wade deep for his fish. There were a few envious looks aimed in Sandison’s direction from the Whalsay boys present, as knitwear of this quality just doesn’t seem to be coming out of the Bonnie Isle at the moment!
Sandison had endured a long barren spell in the middle of the afternoon but luckily for him the Asta model yacht club had provided excellent entertainment and excitement during this time as they sailed their end of season regatta. Much better than the Grand National any day!
Third place went to defending bank league champion Peter Laurenson. Always among the top spots and still sporting the remnants of a suntan from a fly fishing holiday in Patagonia, Peter had one fish from Asta and one from Tingwall for 1 lb, 8 oz. His killer fly was old favourite the “Black Pennel.” Proof once more that although flies go out of fashion among anglers as newer and “fancier” patterns come along, they seldom go out of fashion with the trout!
Peter’s basket was exceptional in that he was the only angler to take a fish from Tingwall whereas in previous years at this competition the bulk of fish weighed in would have come from Tingwall. The output of any loch tends to be cyclical over a number of years however and it will simply be the case that Tingwall is going through a downturn at the moment.
Fourth place went to top Burra Isle angler – and perhaps knitter too for all we know - Billy Reid, with the heaviest fish of the day at 1 lb, ½ oz. from Girlsta. The trout had come up to a “Sedgehog” and Billy reported seeing a lot of life in the loch. This flies in the face of local angling lore and tradition which states that Girlsta doesn’t fish until July and August. One wonders what would come out of this mighty loch if the same amount of angling time was invested here as in some of our other premier waters!
There were no other successful anglers on what proved to be a very difficult day for fly fishing. However as Derek Tithridge pointed out, it had been “a nice day out,” so of course from that point of view everyone was a winner!
Anglers are reminded that the next competition is the ever popular Shetland Times Trophy which takes place on Saturday the 23rd of April with a 10 a.m. check in at the Tingwall boat shed. The next fly bank league competition takes place on Saturday the 7th of May with an 11 a.m check in at the Spiggie boat site car park.
