Willow tree.

Willow tree against the setting sun.

Took the dogs for a walk after 5pm for the first time in almost four months yesterday. One of those quiet perfect evenings. 


Click on photos to enlarge.

Long shadows stretching over the valley.

Textures and winter colours.

Gloaming, a lovely word to describe the soft light of evening.

Thorn tree silhouetted against the sunset.

Farm gates

Farm gates tell there own story. We just need to decipher them, must be a Roseta stone somewhere which will unravel their ancient secrets?

How many seasons have they seen come and go, freezing winter, scorching summers.

sunset over the farm gate.

Night adder

Earlier on today, our deputy principal at school, got a frantic call from his daughter at home. There was a snake in the house. He rushed home, he lives quite close to the school, and found a small night adder in the passage. He scooped it up in an empty mayonaise bottle and brought it back to school with him. The adder was only about 8 inches long with beautiful makings. As he did not want to release it near the school he brought it to me and asked me to release on the farm.

Night adder (Causus-rhombeatus).


There are five different types of night adder that occur in sub-Saharan Africa. They don't grow very big, 60cm being average, up to about 90cm. Night adders are not very venomous and live mainly on frogs and toads. In spite of their name are quite active during the day. It was strange to come across one so early in the season, I would not have expected snakes to be active before September, looks like summer might be here sooner than we think.


I released the snake on the edge of the property. It took a few moments for realization to sink in that it was free, lifted it's head and flicked it's tongue out and took stock of the situation. Unerringly it made it's way to a jumble of sticks and dry grass a few meters away.


Looking at it glide through the dry grass I marvelled at it's perfect design, the grace with which it moved and disappeared.

Late Winter bass.

Walked down to the bottom dam on the farm to do some bass fishing. Spinning rod and soft plastic worm. Very slow retrieve in winter, often leaving the lure lying still for long periods.

This bass above took the worm on my first cast, in deep water.

After about 30 minutes of no action I moved to a shallower part of the dam, and my next cast produce this nice fish. Lean and hungry after their prolonged winter fast. My next cast produced another fish slightly bigger than the one above. Before I could get it to pose for a photo it shook the hook lose and flip, flopped down the bank and into the water.

As the days get longer and temperatures increase, bass will become more active and feed to prepare for spawning that takes place here end of October through November.

Fly tying.

The pleasures and challenges of fly tying 2.

The first thing you need to start tying flies is a fly tying vice. For centuries though, fly tiers used to hold the hook between the thumb and index finger of the left hand, for right handed tiers, and thumb and index finger of the right hand for left handers.  Just try doing it ,I have, all I can say is impossible, yet past fly tiers thought nothing of it. Below is an illustration of tying a fly by holding between the thumb and index finger.

Colour plate from "Rod Fishing in Clear Waters." (London 1860) This book gives detailed description of how to tie a fly while holding the hook between your thumb and forefinger.


Charles Cottons decription of tying a fly by hand is give in his contribution to Izaak Waltons The Compleat Angler, "Being Directions how to Angle for Trout and Grayling in a Clear Stream" Written in 1674, and published with Walton's revised The Compleat Angler 5th edition, in 1676. p308.

Pisc. This will not be long in doing: and pray observe then. You see how first I hold my hook, and thus I begin. Look you, here are my first two or three whips about the bare hook: thus I join the hook and the line; thus I put on my wings; thus I twirl and lap on my dubbing; thus I work it up to the head; thus I part my wings; thus I nip my superflous dubbing from my silk: thus fasten; thus trim and adjust my fly; and there's my fly made; and now how do you like it?  

Cotton certainly made it seem easy.

James Ogden , writing in 1879, comments that in the 1850’s tying vice were scarce but by 1879 were becoming quite common. The illustration below is of James Ogden’s improved fly vice.

Frederic M Halford in his book “Floating Flies and How to Dress Them,” published in 1886, recommended the use of a fly tying vice. I haven’t been able to find an illustration of the Halford tying vice.

The vice I use now is the first one I bought about six years ago, cheap, very cheap, but it works. The vice holds up to size 20 hooks with ease, and for large sizes up to about a size 6. Comes in a neat wooden case and is very portable.

Pages in the background are from Izaak Walton's "The Compleat Angler" 5th, edition, 1676, reprinted 1897.

The vice below is the vice I use for tying large flies.  It looks impressive but not a very good vice.

(Cat the cat can be seen sitting under the table)


The vice below is more of an ornament, paperweight on some executives desk to remind him what his missing by chasing filthy lucre!

It has a minute whip finishers, scisors, bobbin and hair stacker. The hair stacker is actually very useful.

My dream vice is the J Vice, handmade in South Africa. www.jvice.com. As you can see, impressive, and as prices go for a work of art, not bad. Click on the link, really worth a look. Hope Santa Claus reads this post.

Sources:


Ogden's improved fly tying vice; Wikipedia


Colour plate on hand tying flies: Wikipedia


Jvivce; www.jvice.com

Tranquility

Click on photos to enlarge.

Reflections of a winter willow on tranquil waters.

In two or three weeks time bass will be rising all over this pond at this time of the evening, and I'll be there casting a fly.