Chances Missed, Chances Taken in Tasmania

I blamed soft wire hooks, Mark blamed a leader that sank too easily. And we both blamed the inaccurate forecasts – supposed polaroiding days interrupted by cloud; promised dark dun days ruined by a bright sun. But of course a cold, hard analysis a day after the last cast suggests we might have actually made a few mistakes all on our own…

At Little Pine hoping the cloud didn't break up!

At Little Pine hoping the cloud didn’t break up!

It was a great trip all the same, as much for catching up with two good mainlander friends turned locals, Lindsay and John, as for the fishing. There was also about the biggest eagle Mark and I have seen. It looked like a sitting kelpie from a distance as it jealously guarded a wallaby carcase.

How many duns?

How many duns?

On the purely fishing front, we watched an extraordinary dun hatch roll on for several hours at Woods Lake. Over the western half of the lake, there must have been about four duns a square metre the whole of that time. Woods is roughly 1500 hectares in size and I’d say the average dun lasted maybe a minute before taking off. You can do the math.

Wendy on Christopher Bassano's boat shows us how it's done!

Wendy on Christopher Bassano’s boat shows us how it’s done!

We also fished Little Pine (okay), Great Lake (good in some bays, tough in others), Arthurs (wrong weather), Augusta (promising but bad light) and Bronte Lagoon (should’ve been there last week!) Dee Lagoon offered a couple of hours of lovely fishing on the eastern shore. Only a few fish rose, but a Paradun fished along the steep edges brought several nice trout to the top, including a beauty that took Mark to the backing and then broke him off somewhere in the gloomy depths.

Dee Lagoon brownie.

Dee Lagoon brownie.

The last session was on the Macquarie near Cressy. Mark was already packing up his gear when the wind dropped out and almost immediately a good trout began sipping spinners right on the bank. Using my rod which was still set up (and equipped with a functional leader!), Mark made the first cast count and a lovely brown sipped down his parachute Red Spinner.

Last cast on the Macquarie.

Last cast on the Macquarie.

It was nice to end the trip with chance taken, not missed.

And all is right with the world once again.

And all is right with the world once again.