Here’s a picture of me with a grayling caught from the Glomma river in Norway. The fish weighed around three pounds, an estimated weight based on measuring the fish from nose to fork of tail at 50 cm. A 50 cm grayling is the holy grail to fly fishers. Sadly, the shot doesen’t do the fish true justice but the capture was a very special moment.

On the day in question I was fishing with client and friend, Paul Mersh. After getting Paul set-up and teaching him the basics of nymph fishing for grayling, I rigged up a four weight with a floating line and attached a home-tied emerger mayfly pattern made entirely from snowshoe rabbit’s foot. This unusual fur is very transluscent and buoyant, making it ideal for emergers.

While attaching the fly I saw a big fish rising just a few feet out from the bank in a deep, slack pool. It was taking natural mayflies that were emerging in numbers and I simply knew by the slooping sound the fish made as it sucked the hapless insects in that it was a big one. After creeping into position on my hands and knees, I made a gentle cast and landed the fly in the rings of the previous rise to a natural mayfly.

Sweet as a nut, the fish simply rose in slow motion and sucked the fly in with total confidence. The fight, on the wand-like four weight was heart-stopping with the fish making a series of runs that set the reel spinning almost out of control. With the rod bent into a crazy hoop I finally managed to make a swipe at the fish when it sounded almost under my feet.  

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