15/04/2013 - North Esk

The Low Pond weir & pool

After the (one fish) success of my previous 'downstream' session I headed upstream into what I like to characterise as the North Esk nursery. Although it didn't completely avoid the industrial intervention that most rivers faced in the last couple of hundred years, especially as you head downstream, it has been largely untouched for at least a quarter of a century and provides plenty of room to grow and thrive for some of the loveliest little brownies you'll see.

With some rain pumping the river up to about double its summer levels (20+ cm) in the day or two before, I was keen to get out and try to add to my catch totals as the water fell back to 'normal' height. The river looked pretty good, just a bit lower than I like (and expected), but nicely tinged with peat which is usually a good sign. The main problem, as always this year so far, was the ongoing low temperatures. Ultimately I blanked without so much as seeing a fish. but it was a nice evening and good to reaquaint with the river after the winter.

The pool at the foot of the Serpy weir is slowly but surely being hollowed out and may eventually get back to the big deep fishy looking spot it once was. Above the weir though there has been a lot of silting up which has resulted in the run-off lade being almost completely blocked. Further upstream, as mentioned, the levels were quite low, so a lot of the runs that hold fish in higher water were barely fishable.

Toads

There was good news at the weir adjacent to the Low Pond. I remember seeing loads of small trout trying to leap the weir here about 25 years ago. But since I've 'rediscovered' it in the last few years, I've not even had a bite from it. However this year it has eroded and rearranged itself into a very nice pool and I hold out hopes for it when conditions improve.

I finished a couple of runs above the stone bridge and decided to have a wee look in the Low Pond. I'd already spotted some frogspawn in a large puddle and a couple of toads in a ditch. At the pond it was positively hoaching with toads and I also spotted a stickleback which I suspect might prick up the ears of H, my species hunting friend. Time to get the goby hooks out?