I had a great seatrout summer in Norway with productive trips to both the Driva and Vefsna. Fishing both single and double hand fly rods I caught my fish using typical Welsh night flies such as snakes, secret weapons and surface lures.

On Vefsna I had several fish including a mint, sea-liced eleven pounder with several back-up fish in the six to eight pounds category. On Driva I had fish to six pounds plus but I lost an absoloute monster in the middle of the night while fishing a big snake fly on the double hand.

Sea trout fishing is my favourite form of the sport – I just love the magic of casting a fly somewhere out into the darkness and waiting for that heart-stopping thump down the rod. Here’s a pic of one of the Vefsna fish weighing around seven and a half pounds. 

  

Check out the new pages I’ve just added to the site – angling photography (taking good catch pictures) and ‘another aurora experience.’ These were added in October 2008.

Matt

Every day we get a hatful of contacts from people who visit the site. Sadly, i cannot possibly keep up with all the requests to write, say hello or answer a question. I’m also amazed at the number of requests I get to go fishing with someone. I am very, very flattered that you take the trouble to write in but I simply can’t reply.

If you want to book me for an event, get a signed photo, other merchandise etc., the team will pick the request up and deal with it.

Thanks for writing in and apologies for not being able to reply – there’s only one of me! 

    

I will be doing a limited range of guided trips this year.

There are two carp venues – Weston Park and Acton Burnell along with some barbel trips in the autumn and some predator trips in the late autumn/winter.

Most of the trips are already sold out but there a re a few places left for carp and predator.

To be honest, the carp trip to Acton Burnell is the pick of the bunch. This is a very, very private syndicate lake in Shropshire and quite the most beautiful that I have ever fished. it has an awesome head of big carp, with the average size over thirty. I can’t guarantee it, but I fully expect one of my clients to nail a big thirty or a forty during our week.

For more details, please visit the Angling Direct Holidays website by following the links on this site 

 

I have added some new photos to the gallery. You will find new images in fishing (some nice winter pike and zander stuff), fly fishing (shots of flies and tying) and in Norway (winter landscapes and aurora shots including the stunner from this February.  

These images have been processed in photoshop to mimic the effects of infrared film. While it won’t work everytime, used with the correct image, infrared can create memorable, haunting images.

This first image is in black and white and has the classic haunted, moody look that infrared is so good at creating.

Infrared works in colour too. The second image, shot on the same day has been processed in colour infrared using photoshop CS3. 

 

 The photographs were taken in the Jutenheim mountains in September. It was a raw day with snow covering the pass that crosses the mountains and sixty miles per hour winds. The air temperature was below freezing and with conditions worsening by the minute I was limited to getting a few grab shots between bouts of staving off frostbite. The results were worth it, I think! 

  

 

This image was captured on March 7th 2007 when we experienced a once-in-several-lifetimes event: the lunar eclipse.

The eclipse took place when the earth came directly betwen the moon and the sun, casting a shadow over the moon in the process.

I shot the picture on a 600mm lens, using a 1 second exposure at f4 with the camera set at ISO 100.  

 

 

For a better view of the picture, go to the ‘Natural World’ gallery. 

Here’s a shot of a moose running in the snow, taken last winter in Norway. I got the shot by staking out an area identified by my wife, Anne Marit, as a place where moose might feed in the harsh winter conditions.

During the winter, moose come down into the valley where we have our house and we see them quite regularly. They are elusive, however, when it comes to grabbing photographs. Usually we see them in low light or at too great a distance to get a decent shot.

This photograph took several days to obtain and involved staking the area out for several hours at a time. Lying in the snow with the air temperature below freezing is hard work but when a moose finally comes running across a clearing toward you, snow flying in all directions, the results are more than worth it! 

 

 For the camera buffs among you the shot was taken with a 400mm fitted with a x2 converter. The exposure was 180th of a second at f5.6 on iso 800. 

 

Here’s a nice shot I took on a recent trip to Ireland. Photographing leaping fish is not easy but if, like me, you enjoy the challenge of taking great fishing pictures the results are well worth the effort.

The shot was achieved by setting the camera to a high ISO setting (this allows you to shoot at fast shutter speeds on dull days). On sunny days iso 200 will deliver decent shutter speeds and on rare occasions you can drop to iso 100 but most of the time iso 400 or 800 is usually necessary.

 

 Set the camera at F4 with a shutter speed as high as possible. The minimum is 500th of a second but 1000th up to 4000th of a second is better. A burst of flash will help to add punch to the picture.

This shot was taken at iso 200 with the aperture at f4 and the shutter speed at 2000th of a second. The flash fired and was set to high speed sync.  

In addition to knowing how to handle the camra it is always important to be ready. Anticipate the action by having the camera ready to shoot with the right lens fitted to match the distance you think that the fish will appear at and make sure that the camera is turned on with the right settings dialled in.

This and some of the other tailwalking shots can be found in the gallery.

Incidentally, the fish in the picture is a twenty!

 

Matt 

 This is Paul Mcassey with one of a stunning brace of common carp caught from Weston. This was a new PB for Paul who has fished with me as a guest on three occasions. The joy on his face when he scooped the ent under the fish certainly made my year – well done my son!!!

 

Another stunning Weston common for Lance who came on the three day guided trip. Lance fished like a pro, landing a rake of fish from the fantastic ‘rhodies’ swim with the best of the bunch this cracker. And to make things even better, his team manged to stave off demotion too!

 For those of you who have not seen it before, this is the fantastic Weston park lake that we fished. A beautiful estate lake, it contains over 160 carp, mostly twenties with fish to high thirties. There are lots of big commons in Weston and it is a beautiful and secluded place to fish…

 

 Here is a shot of the famous Weston carp browsing in the margins. After climbing a tree located near to the shallows, I was amazed to see around thirty big fish cruising in the shallow water. I flicked out a few spicy chicken boilies, expecting the fish to spook and was amazed to see them swim straight over and start feeding! All of the fish in this picture are over twenty pounds, with the biggest over thirty (a common too!) i nearly fell out of the tree…

  

 Fishing at Weston is a magical experience – the lake is surrounded by beautiful woodlands and the lake glistens like a jewel surrounded by green velvet. 

 

Weston also contains mirror carp – here is Dave Miller with a new PB twenty-one pound fish.

Another mid-twenty common, this time for Pete who was fishing in the shallows. Pete was so absorbed in the fishing that we had trouble getting him to take a break for the evening barbecue…

 This is Matt Underwood with one of the ghost carp found in Isis lake at the Watermark fisheries. Notice the famous houses in the background – these are luxury holiday homes and are the perfect place for families and couples to enjoy a holiday with a spot of fishing!

The ghosties in Isis are legendary – there are lots of them with plenty of singles and low doubles to provide superb surface sport.

  

How’s this for a tench? This is a typical fish from the awesome Bradley’s gravel pit. The tench here average six to seven pounds with fish into double figures. This is Phil Greene with a new personal best…

 

And here’s the moment that makes it all worthwhile – one of my fishing guests slips a superb fish back into the crystal clear margins at Bradley’s pit. Smiles and handshakes all round!

 

To all the guests that have fished with me so far in 2007 – cheers lads – hope to see you in 2008!

 

For more information about guided trips with Matt Hayes in 2008, please go to www.anglingdirectholidays.com