Gum beetles! The warm weather has finally started and has brought gum beetles and good polaroiding with it. The Nineteen Lagoons have produced many fish both polaroided and to dries fished blind in overcast weather. With the calm, clear days we wasted no time getting into these productive highland lakes and tarns. Lake Botsford has been fished very heavily by many anglers with catch rates low. However elsewhere, midging trout have produced exceptional sport when the weather is calm enough. Stewart and his clients have managed many fish around the 3lb mark while wade polaroiding.

We’ve had one day of ‘shark’ fishing when despite apparently excellent conditions, less than a dozen trout were seen. Although fish came to dries fished blind, the usual numbers of neon-lit browns are not yet present.

Meanwhile Stewart and Gary (Donaghy) had an outstanding day recently with well over twenty fish landed on dries and many more sighted and hooked. A lot of these fish were in a few inches of water. A double hook up right at the end was a highlight. No doubt about it, the fish are well and truly on if you hit the right day.

Besides the nice warm, stable weather we’ve had a few cloudy days. These days have had duns around as you would expect with Arthurs and Woods both producing amazing fishing. Arthurs has started its huge dun hatches with fish periodically switching on and off until 6.30 pm in the evenings. Plenty of fish have been caught in foam lines and slicks as well as around the kerosene bushes; on both dries and nymphs.

The duns and the trout on Woods Lake are finally starting to behave themselves, with both up and about in good numbers from 11 am onwards in the right weather. One client hooked 17 at Woods last week with the average fish 2lb plus. These trout are fighting very well with the bigger ones as usual easily over 3lb.

Just tonight I was lucky enough to fish the St Patricks River for three hours. It has been some time since I fished what I consider to be my home water (running at the bottom of my garden!) and it possibly fished better than ever before. I counted 32 trout landed and I lost many more. This was amazing enough but when I consider that the size of the fish was much bigger than usual, it was a day to remember. Many were close to 2lb and all ate dries! The icing on the cake was using a lovely Nick Taransky cane rod to fish the river. The few days before and after Christmas are often quiet for us at Rainbow Lodge and that always gives us the opportunity to catch a few trout ourselves. I will be back there on Christmas Day before lunch in the hope I can repeat the performance.

Finally, a Merry Christmas everyone and any may you all have a fish-filled 2014. We will!