Fly fishing experience on the Birs river
In this first post, our Bob's Pro Team member Claude tells us about a recent day of fly fishing on the Birs river. How did his new nymph perform, and why getting up in bad weather can be worthwhile? He'll tell you all about it himself.
Stories from the Birs
I was finally able to get back to the Birs. After a demanding week in the kitchen, Sunday finally arrived. On Saturday after work, I quickly tied a few flies, laid out my fishing gear, and set the alarm for 6:30.
The alarm went off... I looked out the window and had a bad feeling: dark clouds and thunder. A quick check of the weather app and yes, a thunderstorm was approaching....
Never mind, I grabbed the Nymphmaniac and off we go.
On the way to the bus, it starts to pour down really heavily. I think to myself: Great, finally some fishing and then this happens.
After an hour's drive, I finally reached the water and it had stopped raining. A quick check of the water's condition. As expected, murky, but no flooding – at least that's something.
Motivated, I assemble everything and tie a striking nymph to the leader.
At the first spot, where I usually have good luck, nothing's happening. Even after changing nymphs, nothing changes. I walk upstream, already thinking, "This isn't going to work out today." After a 10-minute walk, I reach a bridge with a deep pool. First cast... no bite.
After the second cast, the bite indicator stops, bite!
Unfortunately, I lose the fish during the fight. Oh well, I think to myself: they're biting. Further upstream, I reach the next pool. Here too, I get a bite right away, followed by an exciting fight; finally, the first fish is in the net.
Now it was time to test the new nymph (Braunolive Waltsworm).
After another 20 minutes, another pool that looks fishy. The water is also slowly looking better. Still slightly murky, but that's usually a good thing. I tied the newly tied nymph to the 6x leader and off I went.
Suddenly, a jerk in the rod
Suddenly a jerk in the rod - I immediately realize it's a big trout.
The fish shakes itself and takes off...what a fight! But suddenly, no more tension on the line. The trout has shaken off the nymph!
After a short break to digest everything, I continued upstream. With renewed confidence (in the new nymph), I fished on, and some truly memorable moments followed.
What a day!
After 10 hours, I arrived back home, fell into bed exhausted, and thought to myself, what a day.