Whilst the last loch report was perhaps a little sobering based on the unusually high temperatures over the summer, we are very pleased to say that things have certainly turned a corner during the last week or so. The much cooler evenings and the slight increase in wind speeds has progressed the clearance of the algael bloom, which whilst still present is nowhere near as much of an issue as it was just a couple of weeks ago.

Rod averages started to rise day on day last week, which was great news as we approached our annual charity day which was held yesterday. Much of this report will be dedicated to that.

Flies that made a difference last week included the usual array of dries such as black or natural flat daddies, black foam beetle, elk’s hair caddis. But by far the most successful fly was the blue flash damsel fished on a floating line and presented close to the margins. The fish are definitely now looking to feed on the numerous perch fry which can be seen all around the loch and I guess we’re well in to that period known by some as “fry bashing time”

Anglers Reports:

Gordon Boulding:

After looking at the forecast for Tuesday 12th of sept, I decided to have a trip up as it was supposed to be cooler with a bit of cloud cover. For once the forecast was accurate and a lovely cooling breeze was blowing down the lock into Swing gate bay. It was a quite a pleasant change from the bright cloudless skies and the oppressive heat that we have had in the last month or so. So, I set up with a single flat Daddy and started fishing from the jetty down the south bank towards the Swing gate and by the time I got to the stones had risen only two fish. So, decided to go to the Swing gate and as I reached the top of the path I could see fish rising and quite a rise at that.

As I got closer I noticed that there were a few fish tight up against the reeds, so for the first time in a while I was casting and covering free rising fish, and had a great few hours catching 4xBrowns and 1x Rainbow all fin perfect fish. Then in the afternoon the wind switched and was blowing out of the Swing gate and directly off my back and the fish just switched off and l only managed to net one fish in the afternoon. I knew they were still there because on the occasions the loch went flat calm I could see the fish cruising about. So, I personally had a great day and can’t wait to get back. I would also like to thank Gareth for the tremendous amount of work he has put in making it a joy to walk around the bank, and also the work on the stone walls. And not forgetting Carmel who does a lot of tremendous work for the fishery. Tight lines to you all.

Thanks Gordon – much appreciated, G and C

Lad(y)s and Dads Charity Day.

With the usual format of just 12 mystery flies per patch available to the anglers the day got off to a flying start. The 12 mystery fly format is a tremendous leveller and anglers really have to think about how best to use what is available to them as once they’re gone ….. they’re gone!!

The stakes could not have been higher as both teams battled it out to claim their place on the “L” Of A Length Trophy and everyone fished to see who had provided the most productive fly of the day.

People were in to fish almost immediately and we sensed that this was going to be a good day if we could avoid the worst of the weather. As it turned out we once again found a hole in the weather for the whole of the event ….. quite remarkable when you saw the state of the weather in the morning before the event and in the evening after the event! Go figure?

Perhaps the best news of the day was that every rod managed to catch fish and alongside bacon rolls in the morning and the usual slap-up BBQ in the afternoon, a good day was had by all. Clearly the fishing is very important but the main focus of the day is to raise as much money as we can in support of our chosen charity, St Abbs Independent Lifeboat. All proceeds from the day go in to the pot alongside monies raised from the raffle, auction and donations received from people throughout the year. A very big thank you as always to all those that contributed in which ever way and we hope that with your continued support we can plan ahead for next year.

We already know that we have exceeded £1500 for this year but will do a final tally once all monies are in. We will arrange to hand over the money on behalf of the loch and everyone who helped to raise such a superb sum of money.

So on to the all- important results:

Best Lad(y) on the day – Karl Ferguson (9 fish)

Best Dad on the day – Peter Dann (12 fish)

Best fly pattern – Mini humungous supplied by Peter Dann

(James Gardiner also had 12 fish but Peter had the greater length of fish, hence first place. The other interesting thing was that Peter caught the majority of his fish using the humungous, which he supplied whilst James caught the majority of his fish using the yellow FAB, which he supplied. As they say, confidence in your equipment is often the key to success and perhaps this goes some way to proving it?)

The lad(y)s had a total of 45 fish for 1051 inches

The dads had a total of 52 fish for 1299 inches

Rod average: 4.9 per angler.

So, by virtue of the longest length of fish this year’s winners were the dads.

This means that the overall standings are as follow:

Dads 6.5 wins

Lads 4.5 wins

Let’s hope that the lad(y)s can pull it out of the bag next year and close the gap.

(A list of the results plus the tally for the flies can be found in the photos)

It would be remiss for us not to make a special mention to the team of regular helpers and a couple of new ones, without whom the day would not be what it is. Your help and support is greatly appreciated and we genuinely feel that we could not run the day without you.

Thank you!

Vising Clubs:

Club days over the next two weeks are:

Sunday 1^st Oct – BDAC and North Berwick AC

Tuesday 3^rd October – Ellem Club

We hope for good weather for these club days and hope that the returns are also good.

Please note:

We will once again be holding our annual boat competition, The Coldingham Cup, on Sunday 8^th October. The loch will be closed to all other fishing on this day.