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Fishing Reports
Czech out Denmark - part 2
June 27, 2006
Posted by Ripley Davenport
Ejby, Fy 5592 Denmark
Email: admin@distantstreams.com
Current Report
Czech out Denmark
Czech nymphing in the
kingdom of Denmark
2
By Ripley Davenport
Yesterday was hot. Not as
hot as sitting in a sauna
for seven hours on full
power while wearing neoprene
waders but close enough. The
label said breathable.
Yeah right
I said.
try wearing them in a
sauna for seven hours on
full power.
I was confused. Are my
waders leaking or had my
feet and crotch areas
decided to sweat the liquid
honey of last nights Czech
beer?
Why was I wearing waders in
the sauna anyway?
Denmark never really has a
summer. Come to think of it,
it never really has any
suitable weather that you
could say, What a lovely
day
I think Ill go fishing
and why can I only find one
sock?
1. Rain.
Its either raining sideways
or the raindrops bounce
around like little ping pong
balls.
2. Wind.
It blows a storm force gale
364½ days year in the wrong
direction normally from the
direction you want to cast
towards. The other fraction
of the year youre actually
not fishing but driving
either to or from it.
3. Snow.
Plenty, but its never
around long enough to
remember. Then it turns into
that wet, cold, clear stuff.
4. Cold.
Every day between 00:01 hrs
January 1st to 23:59 hrs
December 31st. The rest of
the time its just bearable.
5. All of the above.
However, there are times
when its hot? For us
anyway. Anything over 15c
is classed as a heat wave
and puts the entire country
in shorts and thin 6X G-
string bikinis for the day
and the term B-B-Q,
becomes word of the week
along with, doggy doo-doo.
Anything below 15c and the
train service goes on strike
due to thousands of leaves
blowing on the rail track
and people stand around at B-
B-Qs complaining of the
cold and the amount of doggy
doo-doo in the garden and
who else stood in it? All
this of course over a
chicken salad in your 6X G-
string.
The weather men never get it
right. And neither do us pea
sized brained fly fishermen
when it come to tackle and
techniques especially in
Czech nymphing. Theres
always something wrong with
something you are using and
you are left thinking what
something you could have
used, that you left at home,
that could have made the
situation somewhat better?
Here are some examples I
have asked myself over the
years
1. Perhaps if I lengthened
my leader an extra
1/10,000,000 of a
centimetre, I could get the
nymph down to the fish?
2. Maybe I should have
bought a bottle of Mr Super
Sinkys Ultra Speedy Super
Sink gel?
3. Perhaps I should dive
down and place the nymph in
the fishs mouth in person.
Maybe have a cup of tea
while I was down there and
do a bit of shopping?
4. Are my waders leaking
again?
Equipment for Czech nymphing
in Denmark is pretty much
the same as our European
neighbours. 6lb of
explosive, a net to fish out
the dead with, and a good
sense of humour. No really
The net was over the top,
sorry.
Danish waters are quite
varied. Most of the best
waters are pretty narrow
providing good runs and deep
pools. One problem we have
is the amount of weed
present after June. It clogs
up the small streams
providing difficult fishing.
But thats all the fun.
Losing nymphs and kms of
tippet has always been the
best side of fishing
especially when you start to
notice (as a last resort),
that you actually tie on
your fly box as you have
exhausted your nymph
patterns.
By standard, I use a 9ft
leader and tend to use just
one weighted nymph. If
youre feeling lucky, I will
use two nymphs with the
point fly being heavier. It
works. I can say that but
who said it wouldnt?
Some of the deeper holes -
and we have many of them -
require a longer leader. I
have used nearly 12ft to
reach the bottom or near
enough to it. These pools
echo fish, and big ones at
that, but sinking something
so small, so deep and in a
split second is hard thats
why we have devised a method
that works for holes deeper
than a big family sized bag
of really deep things.
More how and why on that in
the next article. We have to
keep you coming back. Cant
spill the baked beans just
yet can we?
One problem that can cause a
headache and a build up of
frustration is the long
grass at the river bank if
wading is not possible. It
always happens
You see a
fair sized fish with your
name on it, hanging out
beside some weed, popping
nymphs like some frenzied
upbeat teenager. How do I
get my nymph over to it?
Cant cast. How do you
explain a lead shot in the
back of your head to your
wife?
Wading is a possibility but
the thought of wading
through thick grass up to
your armpit is a daunting
task. My armpits are grassy
enough.
By over reaching sometimes
helps. Arm straight and rod
held out at about a 90
degree angle. You can place
or (plop) the nymph between
the weed in the path of the
fish in question a good
couple of metres up from his
hold. Its not a guaranteed
method but works when you
least expect it.
If you do manage to get the
fish to commit then youre
in a world of hurt. The fish
will take one look at you
and decide to head under the
weed and dart in every
direction possible. Your
tippet will be tested beyond
its testing strength and
your underpants will fill in
a controlled manner. SNAP!
Why O why? Would you
target a fish in such a
situation? Answer, because
we are Czech nymphers and
second in line to the high
and Almighty.
So what are we using in
general
?
Suited rod for Danish rivers
would be an AFTM #5, 8 to
9ft long. I use a Zeplin &
König class #4 Elegance. The
rod is made for small
streams. You can also just
look at it rather than fish
but I have had no luck
catching anything on this
method - as yet.
A nice light weight reel and
line to match. Now fly lines
Why should I brag on about
fly lines?
Czech nymphing doesnt
require one.
But we, (fly-fishermen,
women, and mentally
obsessed), love them.
Colours, action, smell, and
stamped on brand name all
lure us into departing with
a shed load of cash.
However, for the sake of
those that enjoy the dry
A
WF or DT will do. A nice
colour will add to the
enjoyment too!
A leader about the length of
your rod made from two or
three section between 0,10
and 0,18mm mono would be
fine but be prepared to
adjust longer with the
deeper holes and shorter
with the more swallow glides
and runs.
Tippet can vary. Normally a
0,10mm would suit most
situations but as the
smaller streams run gin
clear a 0,08 or 0,06mm can
be warranted.
One, two or three nymphs are
up to you. If things are
slow, a washing line of 20
to 50 nymphs is fun.
Only kidding. But it would
be fun wouldnt it?
Nymphs are tied on hook
sizes 10, 12 or 14 but
lately I have been using
18s as the fish have been
as picky as my wife
selecting her millionth pair
of shoes. Browns, greens,
greys and blacks work like a
greased up working girl but
reds, whites and pinks can
save the day so a mixture of
nymphs in every colour under
the sun is a wise choice.
The standard pheasant tail
in brown or green seems to
the colour of choice and the
fish (if they could speak)
would agree with me as I am
buying the drinks.
Other patterns that can be
dish of the day are: hairs
ears, blood worms, fresh
water shrimps, caddis
larvas in brown or green,
and my own pattern called
the O My God. This is just
three brown beads and tied
of with brown cotton and
finished with my wifes
clear nail polish with a bad
of glitter. Simple.
So, after all that jargon, I
will end it here and move on
the next article, which
happens to be part 3.
This will cover the
favourite rivers and streams
targeted, rules and
regulations in Denmark and
10 amazing things you can
find in a box of cornflakes.
Enuff said
Ripley Davenport
Distant Streams
www.distantstreams.com
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