The Fly Fisher’s Logbook

THE FLY FISHER’S LOGBOOK by John Bailey
Published by NEW HOLLAND (UK) Ltd 2004
ISBN 1-84330-486-4
Price: £ 12.99 Hardback

New Holland say:
Fly fishermen find themselves in the most beautiful natural surroundings enjoying a sport that is memorable in so many ways. Whether it is due to the stunning scenery, the tranquillity, the weather, the type, size or quantity of fish caught, each outing holds much in store. ‘The Fly Fisher’s Logbook’ is the perfect journal for fly fishermen to record their observations and catches and keep as a permanent memento.

Illustrated with beautiful artwork the log part of the book is divided into months of the year. For each month there is helpful advice on the main events and where to go to get the most out of your fishing, plus seasonal fact boxes, which provide handy hints and tips on equipment, clothing, and fieldcraft. The nrest of this diary section is left blank for notes and sketches detailing the type and size of the catch, weather and water conditions, type of fly and so on. At the back there is a tick list in which to log the fish caught month-by-month throughout the year.

Eddie Caldwell says:
I’ve had a number of marvellous guidebooks on my shelves for years about the Lake District by Wainwright. They are valued and trusted old friends that have guided me over the peaks of Cumbria for the last thirty years. I have a great love and fascination for old Wainwright’s style and presentation which made his books unique, and now, very collectable. I can look for hours at his meticulous drawings of hills and valleys, his accurate perspectives and inimitable hand written script.

I was reminded of Wainwright’s books when John Bailey’s Fly Fisher’s Logbook arrived in the post. Except for the first few pages of general information about the fisherman’s year, the pages are mainly quite blank. This is where the budding Wainwright comes into play; wouldn’t it be great to imitate the original books and fill in the Fly Fisher’s Logbook in the style of Wainwright; drawings of the water visited from several angles, ‘hot spots’ where fish were taken, brief hand-written accounts of fishing methods, flies used, the fishing lodge and any other nuggets of information about that particular water.

I’m already talking myself into it; Barnfold Water, Raygill, Stocks Reservoir, the River Aire near Skipton, Loch Assynt and the Inver river, River Suir in Tipperary and so many more. What a marvellous volume it would make. What a beautiful record of a Fly Fisherman’s Year.

Alas, not for me in the sense that I could ever approach Wainwright’s majestic volumes. I will probably do it purely for my own fun and information but anyone with an exceptional skill with English and draughtsmanship could have a best seller – a series of best sellers – on their hands.