The recent rain had raised the level of the river and made it unfishable. The southerly wind was soft and the sun was shining when I left home but as I approached Petworth the rain started. There was only one car by the lakes, I had a cup of tea and set up my rod in the shelter of the club house.

While drinking my tea I watched the lakes, the Trout were head-and-tailing everywhere on Great Springs. Not splashy rises, proper ‘buzzer rolls’. I had the lake to myself for a while. I thought “This is going to be easy”, bad assumption. It was good to see that Tony had moved the wooden seat back to the dam end, that’s where it belongs.

I didn’t want to go home early and started fishing on The Point with a dry Adams. In two hours I had one half-hearted take. It was time for a change of fly. I switched to a size 16 buzzer and immediately started to get takes, from Roach !  The fish were only a few yards from the bank and the casting was easy. I hooked a Trout which snagged me in the bankside weed and got off. More Roach.

Then I had an idea, a ‘cunning plan’. Chop the hackles of an Adams and let it sink a bit. Instant success, three Trout later I had a break and another cup of tea at the hut. Then I found a better imitation of a buzzer in my dry fly box, a black neoprene buzzer that sank very slowly. The fish went mad for it and I quickly had another three Trout and some more Roach. Which was a bit greedy.

I had a chat with Tony before I left for home, he is off Bone fishing in Cuba, lucky man. As I drove away the rain stopped, the wind died and the sun came out. I took the fish to Nick and Jerry for supper.

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