Day #1 – The River Honddu

At 3am on a Saturday morning in April there is an expectance that one should either be asleep, working a night shift, or in some sort of military outfit. This author however, is still awake, listening to the gentle tap of the rain on the bedroom window…and worrying something terrible that this is going to spoil the following day’s fishing.

At 7:30am I was packing the car, it had stopped raining and I was set on the beautiful drive East over into the Honddu Valley.

By 9:30am I was sat around a table in the Park Hotel, near Abergavenny, tucking into a seriously fine full Welsh breakfast, and with the fantastic company of Rob, Neil, Adrian, Morgan, and Mark. These were to be my companions for the day as we all set forth to tackle the true gem that is the river Honddu.
The Honddu. This small freestone mountain stream is held dear to a few, and holds a very special place in my heart. Similar, in ways, to my beloved home stream, the Honddu holds its own secrets and has its own beautiful quirks and its own identity.

I was paired with Morgan, so after saying our ‘Good Bye’s’, ‘Tightlines’, and ‘Good Luck’s’ to the rest of the party, we drove the short distance to the stream. After parking and tackling up we began the short walk to the Wye & Usk Foundation Voucher Box, and then to the stream.

The Honddu is sight to behold. Even so early in the season, she looks magnificent. Fresh greens from the trees were sprouting fourth, as were the very positive looking number of olives, midges, and a few LDOs. After months spent fishing for grayling on the lower Taff in freezing cold, and sub zero temperatures, I aim to grasp the beginnings of the warming temperatures and start of the trout season with voraciousness.

The day’s fishing was fairly difficult. With water levels very low – and the clarity of what remained very high – Morgan and I were in for a day of creepy crawling in order to avoid detection (so much so I even bruised my knees).

Being in these surrounding at this time of year is the most exciting as life just seems to want to spring from everything. Buds are flowering, trees are again beginning to bring forth their foliage in the warmer temperatures, and the birds are boisterously singing their summer songs as they flit up and down the stream picking off the flourishing fly life.

From 11am to around 3pm, olives were presented, and even as the naturals drifted on the stream’s currents the trout didn’t seem to care much for them.

I was grateful enough to bring five wild brown trout to hand, and Morgan even going six fish better than I. One of my fish was a good 13” wild and very spirited fish. All were far from easily caught, but due to the hard work needed, and the creeping manoeuvres needed in order to position ourselves, we were extremely satisfied. The beautifulness of our surroundings easily made up for the lack of fish throughout the day.

Meeting up later that evening at a local small pub for a pint of ‘Son of a Bitch’, it seemed Morgan and I were the most productive, with many participants blanking. So, after tails of fish, the odd piss-take, and another pint, we retired back to the Park Hotel for more drinks.

While through our first drink back at the hotel, somebody suggested the rest of the party try out a rod and reel combo…this turned out – as it always does – into a serious hour long session of handing rods back and forth for each to try; each of us secretly longing to steal Rob’s Sage SLT 7’6 #4wt.

To end the day’s fishing, us six anglers retired for more drinks, and I unfortunately said my good byes as the party ordered steaks – I had plans that couldn’t be missed at home. I felt dreadful for having to leave and therefore miss out on the following day’s fishing; however, my spirits were lifted slightly after hearing tales of thunderous hangovers the next morning.

And thus ends my spring day on the Honddu. Beautiful.

Day’s #2 (home stream) and #3 (Dore) to follow.

To view all the photos of all three days, click here.

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