My guest Andy had heard about the huge Frome Grayling but despite many hours of helping me on the Wylye I hadn’t got round to inviting him down in the winter for a crack at them.
With a small window left in the season and the Frome fining down just in time we set off fishing a likely glide, much of the river wasn’t exactly ‘gliding’ along! but was nice and clear and he was into fish straight away, getting 4 in one spot, really chunky fish of about 1lb to 1lb 6oz.
He moved downstream when the bites stopped and my efforts nearby produced no bites so I back-tracked into his previous spot and got a cracker of 2lb 2oz.
After moving downstream there was a lengthy spell without bites, then I got one of 1lb 14oz and a real solid deep fish of 17.5″ weighing in at an incredible 3lb 2oz (see below).
From Dorchester Fishing Club 2009 |
Andy had the misfortune to lose his hook on the strike 50 metres upstream of me, so I called him down to fish my swim and to our astonishment he caught a very nice Grayling which on unhooking proved to have another small hook in it’s mouth, with a fresh maggot attached, yes you have guessed it, his lost fish had dropped down 50 metres and he got a second chance at it!!
We covered most of the likely looking spots and I caught no more but was very happy indeed with my 3 fish.
Andy proved himself very competent with a centre pin reel and finished the day with 17 fish, the best being on almost the last cast, a personal best of 2lb 12oz a very hard fighting male fish beating his previous best by 1oz (from the Wylye!).
A big smile covered his face as we made our back to the car”.
Cheers
Adrian
The Club is a private one, founded in 1877, of approximately sixty-four members and six Town Rod subscribers. The Club’s waters consist of about 12 miles of wild brown trout & grayling fishing in the main River Frome, River Cerne and River Piddle, together with attendant carriers and side streams. The waters extend both above and below the town of Dorchester and the Club employs a part-time keeper.
Price £60 per ticket per day or three days for £120
Day Tickets are only available during the trout season and only on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays & Bank Holidays. (season 1st April – 14th October)
The Police have made it quite clear that poaching is a crime in progress covered by the 1968 Theft Act. Members should always call 999 to report it and not phone the keeper. Without a report the police will not be aware of the extent of a problem.
If possible note or photo vehicles.
Stress if you are vulnerable/elderly or at risk of intimidation..
In order to give the call handler an accurate location they recommend putting the “what3words” app on your smartphone. Click here…
Angling’s representative body, the Angling Trust, has a web site for anglers to record sightings of cormorants, goosanders and mergansers throughout the UK: www.cormorantwatch.com The site is easy to use and will gather vital data to help persuade government of the need for action to protect fisheries.
Invasive plants and animals can carry diseases that kill fish, block waterways and banks, interfering with fishing. They can be small and hard to spot, so are easily spread on damp clothing and equipment.
Protect the environment and fishing you enjoy, by keeping your kit free of invasive plants and animals.
To find out more please visit
the NNSS Website