Weekly Report

Date: 18-25 July

Air Temp: 7C-17C
Water Temp: 10C-12C
Water height: -21cm to -28cm
Number of rods: 15
Number fish caught: 208
Biggest fish: 22lbs Kim Waters
No 30+: 0
No 20-29: 5
No 8-19: 35
Grilse: 168

Weather: Other than a sunny first evening and a sunny last day, I don't remember many such near perfect weather weeks for fishing. It has been just about ideal. Temperatures have been cool and days have warmed up. Skies have remained essentially grey with good cloud cover and wind speeds have been enough to keep the insect life at bay without hampering the casting.

Manager's comments: The last week of the season has produced more fish than any other week of the season. There have been a lot of grilse which has kept morale going with sporadic bursts of activity. There has been contact with fresh fish up to 20lbs but the biggest fish have been elusive with the stable weather conditions. Certainly the fresh fish have been charging through the water we fish from the lodge and fish with long tailed sea lice have been caught up as far a Upper Norcamp.

It has been a fun week at the lodge with guests from England, Scotland, Wales, Spain and Sweden. The group got on famously through a shared passion for salmon fishing and there were plenty of laughs around the bar in the evening. It is a great sadness to be finishing the season with fresh fish still entering the river in good numbers. The fishing can still remain good until mid August and we will be looking at ways to keep costs down to extend the season a little longer.

It seems like only yesterday that we were looking forward to the season with great anticipation and now here I am signing off on the last blog posting. It is an opportune moment to thank all our clients for their loyal support during the course of the season and to thank the guides, lodge team and helicopter crews for making it all happen. Roll on 2016!

Fish Lost

Date: 24 July

Air Temp: 11C-15C
Water Temp: 12C
Water height: -28cm
Number of rods: 15
Number fish caught: 16
Biggest fish: 16lbs Anders Romson
No 30+: 0
No 20-29: 0
No 8-19: 5
Grilse: 11

Weather: A grey start turning into a blue sky day with a strong upstream wind.

Manager's comments: The last days fishing was in fact the hardest and least productive of the week. Many fish of all sizes seemed to be lost. Geoff lost four on the trot but he was not alone in the numbers of fish he lost. Is it the bright sunshine which is somehow affecting the way they take? The week seems to have disappeared remarkably quickly.

Long Tails

Date: 23 July

Air Temperature: 8C-11C
Water Temperature: 12C
Water Height: -26cm
No of rods: 15
No fish: 24
Biggest fish: 17lbs Jose Miranda
No of fish 30lbs+: 0
No of fish 20-29lbs: 0
No of fish 8-19lbs: 2
Grilse: 22

Weather: More of the same on the weather front. A coolish start and warming up. Grey skies and a gentle upstream wind with a brief period of light drizzle.

Manager's comments: Grilse continue to run the Yokanga in reasonable numbers giving guests some good sport. They must be running hard, in what are ideal running conditions, as another one with long tailed sea lice was caught at Upper Norcamp.
Jose M caught the biggest of the day, 17lbs from Lower Norcamp. Jim F changed his fishing tactics to Scottish style cast and swing with no stripping. He had a slow, deliberate and positive take and found himself into a good fish. Guide, Vova, remarked "Big Fish" a remark he tends to reserve for fish of an exceptional size. After a good fight the fish was nearly done and both rod and guide had a good view of the fish when for no apparent reason it just fell off. It would undoubtedly have been the best of the week by some considerable margin and possibly could have been a personal best for Jim who has previously landed a 32lber on Yokanga.

Spruce Moose

Date: 22 July

Air Temperature: 8-10C
Water Temperature: 12C
Water Height: -25cm
No of rods: 15
No fish: 35
Biggest fish: 22lbs Kim Waters
No of fish 30lbs+: 0
No of fish 20-29lbs: 2
No of fish 8-19lbs: 2
Grilse: 31

Weather: Much the same as previous days! Overcast, little to no sun and a light breeze. Ideal!

Manager's comments: The grilse are giving people plenty of action. Most are being caught right in the very tail of the pools. Tackle is varying from sink tips to full floaters and flies are generally doubles and smallish tubes. Congratulations to Kim W for landing a well deserved 22lber from Lyliok and to Jim F for again breaking the 20lber barrier. One of the days highlights was seeing a moose at Upper Norcamp.

Surprise Visitor

Date: 21 July

Air Temperature: 12C
Water Temperature: 11C
Water Height: -23cm
No of rods: 15
No fish: 43
Biggest fish: 21lbs Jim Ferrie
No of fish 30lbs+: 0
No of fish 20-29lbs: 1
No of fish 8-19lbs: 5
Grilse: 37

Weather: A cool grey day with the occasional sunny spell. A light upstream breeze.

Manager's comments: The big surprise of the day was a seal that was seen in Lyliok at 11am. Three further sightings followed on beats upstream with the seal last seen as far up as Island.
Congratulations to Lucas R for catching his fourth fish of the week on a hitched fly. Jim F had a mint fresh 21lber from Lyliok after dinner which was kindly tailed by brother Alan. Only 24 hours after commenting on the good value for money of Shakespeare rods and two of them broke in one day!

Silver Bar

Date: 20 July

Air Temperature: 12C-8C
Water Temperature: 11C
Water Height: -23cm
No of rods: 15
No fish: 41
Biggest fish: 17.5lbs Matt Harris
No of fish 30lbs+: 0
No of fish 20-29lbs: 0
No of fish 8-19lbs: 9
Grilse: 32

Weather: An ideal overcast day with a light upstream wind. The temperature started dropping quickly in the afternoon.

Manager's comments: Again, the morning was generally quiet with the vast majority of fish being caught in the afternoon. Matt Harris took the largest of the day 17.5lbs from Lower Norcamp. Michael F lost a bar of silver that could have taken the honours but unfortunately it came unstuck having behaved like a tarpon, jumping ten times and head shaking.

Lyliok Pots

Date: Evening 18 and 19 July

Air Temperature: 8C-17
Water Temperature: 12C
Water Height: -23cm
No of rods: 15
No fish: 49
Biggest fish: 20lbs x 2, Martin Webster, Jose Miranda
No of fish 30lbs+: 0
No of fish 20-29lbs: 2
No of fish 8-19lbs: 12
Grilse: 35

Weather: A cooler start to the morning, getting warmer through the day. Sunny spells and little wind.

Manager's comments: The cool morning meant no action for anyone until 11am. First time Yokanga visitor, Jose M, landed a 20lb fish at Cliff and Martin W took a 20lber from the Lyliok pots.

The grilse seem to be running in good numbers. As ever we see very few fish move on Yokanga and always seem to catch more than we ever see. Either way the grilse are giving us plenty of action. No sign of the really big Yokanga salmon but they always seem to put in an appearance at some stage.