Graylings and bows

It has been a while I have caught some serious numbers of graylings. When planning the trip for september I looked for a stream with abundant amount of graylings. Not an easy task since the grayling population has diminished in many rivers and streams in central Europe. And the very unstable summer to boot, some serious weather luck was needed. But boy did I luck out...

This trip I was supposed to be accompanied by two friends but they both had to cancel due to various reasons. The 4 day trip turned out to be pretty epic! Also thanks to the great, albeit a bit hot, weather.

The first two days were spent on a tributary of the river Inn in Austria, about an hours drive from the historic city of Passau in southern Germany. Too bad I didn't had the chance to visit the city of three rivers. This stream is divided into several sections, belonging to several leaseholders. The two stretches I fished were held by the local hotel where I stayed. All together almost 8 km long. What a great stream it turned out to be.

From the moment I stepped into the water, I saw several pods of fish cruising along the banks. In fact I was surprised the number of fish count this stream holds. Within minutes I was into a small grayling. The typical erratic shakes of a grayling trying to get loose of the hook felt very familiar.

With the anticipating heat I should have started earlier, but from about 8 AM up to around 1 PM turned out to be the most productive part of the day. After around 2 PM, the temperatures hit the high mark of 30 degrees celsius making the fish slow down their activities as well as the fisherman. No need to say that you have to keep yourself hydrated all day long. Also keep yourself protected from the harsh sun rays.

During the heat the best spots were found around deeper areas as well as faster currents with ample oxygen. What a joy to fish a stream full of graylings! I can't remember catching this amount graylings the past 15 years or so. Among several graylings barely not reaching the magic 50 cm mark (most were around 35 to 40 cm) I also caught a couple of chubs as well as rainbows. I even caught a bunch of roaches in the slower parts!

The next day was even better. I fished the other (longer) stretch and while again a very hot day the fishing was amazing. Besides the obvious looking spots, I also enjoyed looking for that only fish in a small seam under the bank or just next to a fallen tree. With just a flick of the wrist, casting a couple of feet of line is all that is needed. This stretch turned out to be very diverse. Just be ready for some serious physical exercise with long walks, rock climbing and bush whacking.

For the second part of the trip I visited my favorite river in southern Germany. Boy what a treat I was given. The fishing was spectacular to say the least. Rainbows as well as brown trouts were in great numbers and in very good condition in spite of the very low water conditions.

It's always amazing in how shallow spots fish manage to hold. I encountered fish in spots that most would never consider even have a look at it. This fellow was spotted in a shallow moss covered gravel area that barely covered its back. Although the fish manage to hide between, under or maybe in the rocks it's still a good idea to look for that familiar shape of a trout. I've seen and caught many fish by wading slowly spotting the gin clear water and sight casting it with a nymph.

The past four days really made me realize how much I enjoy fly fishing. The stress relief and relaxation it gives as the result of pure focusing on the fishing as well as the physical work out of wading all day, climbing rocks and miles of walking. The days were over before I knew.

After a long day 'at the office' the food at the local Italian restaurant was nothing short of spectacular. Great to know that all the guys working at the restaurant are football maniacs like me, so between the servings we watched matches of the Champions League on a huge screen next to the counter.

To show how lucky I was with the weather, the evening of the last day the dark clouds gathered above the hills and started raining. The next morning I left with some very welcome rain for the river to recover from the heat of the past days.

Update 30 Sep 2016:
Rods I used are the G. Loomis NRX LP (8.8ft #3), custom built G. Loomis IMX (9ft #4) and the Epic 580 Limited Edition. I'll do a short review on the NRX LP and the Epic 580 soon.


A short video I made from a couple scrapes of tape:



Watch the video in high quality (at least 720p) by selecting the HD button.