Paul Arden | Tuesday, 11 March 2025
Ashly and I are in Edinburgh this week, enjoying a late family Christmas. It certainly feels cold enough for Xmas here! It’s been great to catch up with my sister, who happens to be madder than I am. The highlight for me has been a sauna on a lake. The sauna felt, well like Malaysia actually, but the lake was 6C and it’s difficult to describe exactly how that part felt. We have also had some good runs and swims, although staying fit in this climate must be a hell of a challenge. Tomorrow we are off for another morning run, with a forecasted temperature of 3C. That’s about 30C colder than what I’m used to. The things you do at Christmas!
No fishing for me on this trip. The fishing season hasn’t opened here on the Water of Leith. It’s somewhere I would like to fish again. As a teenager my family lived here and I would visit and fish the river where it flows through town (and in the more peaceful stretches above town) . Black Gnat time was really excellent as I recall and I had some wonderful trout fishing. Fishing sedges into darkness was also first class. I found fish eating wasps and beetles. I learned a lot here.
Trout fishing for me is more about memories nowadays and I have no interest in taking it seriously again. I have spent so much of my life trout fishing, over 10,000 days, which is a lot. Of course I would continue to do it if there weren’t other fish species to be learned and caught! And of course trout fishing is best if you like cold, windy, wet weather. And I don’t like cold any more!!!
The great thing about travel and living in different parts of the world is that you get to experience many different fishing lifetimes in one. You also get to learn that the tropics is a far more hospitable climate, where you can wear shorts and don’t need thermals and a woolly hat to survive!
Anyway it’s a wonderful trip and great to catch up with family. Back in Malaysia next weekend. Lots of casting lessons next week.
Price increases next month incidentally. So if you are thinking of treating yourself to an exciting new fly rod then now would be the perfect time to get in touch!
Have a great week and Merry Christmas to you all!!!
Cheers, Paul