Richard Lane looks at the wider issue of his fishing and what it means to him. We agree!
Sometimes what I look for from my angling is more than just going to a lake or river and catching a fish. After all if that was all we needed from our angling experience then any one of a long list of, mostly sterile, put and take fisheries in my area would serve my needs.
No, there has to be something else for me to be both inspired, invigorated and hopefully left yearning for more.
Luckily living within the British Isles we are blessed with a multitude of beautiful places in which to cast a line for our chosen quarry. Maybe our trout do not run as big as in some more exotic destinations, but thankfully, merely catching the biggest fish is not always the sole point of the exercise!
For example, in the past week I have travelled through Wales and fished every day for eight days and each day was different, refreshing and inspiring. I revelled in the stark beauty of Lyn Bugeilyn at 1800ft. A bleak landscape in early May, but awe inspiring just the same. I witnessed a magical evening rise and had some of the best dry fly sport with the resident wild browns that I have had for ages.
The next day saw me wading through the crystal clear waters of the delightful River Irfon, where I found the stubborn browns to be tucked neatly beneath the overhanging trees and bushes - due no doubt to the sun finally appearing for the first time that week!
However, possibly best of all was the chance to fish the secret lake that has lain hidden and unfished amongst the rolling Welsh hills. What was in there? If anything! Having been given permission to explore and fish if I so wished by the owners (who also said that they didn’t think there was anything in there to fish for but were interested to see what I found) I decided to investigate further.
I set off for the lake and after a steep thigh crunching climb I was looking out over the hidden valley at a lovely long lake of about three acres in size.
With a stream running through the lake and shrouded by overhanging trees and bushes, with ferns and gorse dotted just to add to the fun of being able to cast!
After a few hours exploring and looking for places to cast a line I had seen precisely nothing in the way of trout apart from a few small fry in the edges, which gave me hope that there might be something else in the hidden depths. As the light fell and the sun dipped behind the hillside a trout rose as if by magic a few yards to my left, and then another out in the lake. My first cast to a rise saw my fly confidently taken by a most wonderful wild brown trout who must have wondered what on earth was going on !
For me at least, this experience gave me almost everything that I require from angling: peace, solitude and the lure of the unknown all contained in a stunning setting.
And in answer to that oft asked question from the bemused non anglers “don’t you get bored?”
Well actually, no I don’t, and thankfully I never will.
About the person that wrote it... Richard Lane has been fishing since I was eight growing up in Cornwall and now 42 have fished for a wide variety of species and enjoy fishing for various species as the angling seasons unfold.
Now residing in West Sussex making regular forays throughout the British Isles for whatever species is inspiring me to cast a line at that time! I have nothing really to promote but do have a website for pics etc.
http://www.richardlanewildlifephotography.com/