Post by cheyenne on Sept 29, 2009 22:59:30 GMT 4
Thursday September 10. Started fishing about 6:30pm, had about an hour to fish before the light faded. Hans Ove had just fished the Strykket from the South side, I was on the opposite bank. Started casting just above Steinen, one cast, two steps, I had walked about 10 paces when I was into a fish. The salmon bolted downstream from it's resting place by the opposite bank, and stopped about 50 meters down from me in midstream, there is nothing like the sound of a Hardy Marquis reel on one end of your fishing line with a bolting fish on the other end, magnificent. After a slight pause the salmon dashed back to its original resting place, pulling the fly line over the river surface, spray flying everywhere, then took a double somersault , one forward then one backward. Another pause then off downstream again stopping after a good leap. Immediately the line went slack, the salmon was rushing toward me, I, reeling in as fast as I could.When I had contact with the fish again it was a few meters upstream from me in the middle of the river. "Now", I thought, "I'm in control". Wro-ng! After a wee breather, both the fish and I, off it went again, charging downstream with a nice leap at the end. My fingertips were quite warm by now with reel braking. Off to the opposite bank again with another leap to signify another pause before belting upstream again. here I managed to reel the salmon toward me and it stopped, just where I was standing, in a good, quiet, clear bit of water, so I could see the fish quite clearly. I guessed the fish to be at least one meter long and much heavier than the one I landed two weeks before(see 8.5 kilo salmon in photo posting for zone 4).The salmon then drifted out to the stronger current in the middle of the river heading downriver as it made short, sharp tugs. I felt the hook losing it's grip twice while I kept pressure on the fish. I managed to reel the fish in again with me thinking about landing the fish when the fly flew past my ear. This was one salmon which I never had any control over and I'm still wondering who was playing whom. The image of this fine salmon playing me is still very vivid in my mind.
Why can we never forget the one's that got away?
Iain