Angling Resolutions

Happy New Year! It's been a while since I've updated my blog, mainly because I've had very little angling or dramming related to talk about. 2011 wasn't a good year for my fishing in and around the Staffordshire Moorlands. Islay was superb, as usual, despite wetter conditions than usual, the lochs gave up their troot without too much of a fight. In truth, Islay is one of the reasons I've not been out on the rivers of late, it has totally spoilt me, I love the island for it's whisky and it's fishing and it is truly angling and dramming heaven.

I have big ambitions for 2012 and my new years resolutions are built around these. Firstly, I aim to take groups of anglers to Islay on a much more frequent basis. Many of the anglers who joined us on last year's trips have booked up again for this year, and they're bringing more people with them, once you've been to the magical Isle of Islay, it is difficult to get it out of your system. So from March to October, we'll be running a trip at least once every two months so get in touch if you would like to join us. There is sea fishing involved too now as well as the loch fishing for truly wild angry Scottish brown trout, salmon fishing on the Laggan and even a little stalking can be arranged if required....look up and like 'Fly Fish Islay' on Facebook and you will kept up to date of all of our forthcoming trips.

I also intend to fish more back home in the Staffordshire Moorlands during 2012. I really enjoyed my Islay fishing last year and each time I returned home, the rivers were either empty of water or in flood so it wasn't good for the trout season. I've had a re-jig with my fishing tickets, I really enjoyed the Wye but couldn't justify it again purely because I feel that it is just too far away for me to nip out for a couple of hours fishing, consequently I didn't get my money's worth last year. I'll be rejoining LTDFFA, the little syndicate on the Staffordshire bank off the river Dove at Dovedale ('The best parts of Derbyshire are in Staffordshire'), there is a good crowd of anglers in that club and I really enjoyed the craic last season. I've dropped DRAC, again due to waters being too far away, and I've kept LADFFA. This year, the plan is to get out and do a little more coarse fishing especially when the rivers are out of sorts. I want to get back to the waters where I fished when I was a lad and challenge myself to try new techniques and methods that I've never dabbled in before...help!! To this end I've rejoined Leek and Moorlands Fishing Association and Fenton and District so that I can fish Heron Marsh and most importantly, Knypersley Reservoir where I fished when I was at school and loved the place.

My camera has broken which is another reason that this blogger has been quiet, this is a situation that will be put right quite soon, when, with a little help from my mate Jason Snape who took the superb picture above at Dovedale in the autumn of last year, I will purchase a new one.

Here is to a 2012 full of angling and a little dramming ;-)

Slainte

David