294 DRY-FLY FISHING 



weight, but only one condescends to accept our 

 lures, and we change to that belt which lies between 

 the Castle Island and the south shore. 



We arrive there in time to welcome the fore- 

 runners of a hatch of Medium Olives, for which 

 Loch Dochart is justly famed, and which it seldom 

 fails to produce. A resounding splash here and 

 there shows that the trout are as pleased to see 

 them as we are, and we lay whenever possible our 

 floating representation where a worthy trout is 

 found to be waiting. For a time the sport is 

 sufficiently fast and furious, and the quality of the 

 fish coming aboard quite good enough to satisfy the 

 most exacting of anglers, but there is one require- 

 ment above all that must be possessed if a rise is 

 to terminate in a kill ; and that is ability to strike 

 quickly. 



We have never in all our wanderings encountered 

 trout which are so quick in their movements as 

 are those of Loch Dochart ; the speed with which 

 they can accept and then reject a fly is astonishing, 

 so that the answering strike must be very quick 

 indeed. After they are hooked they show an equal 

 agility in enveloping themselves in weeds, unless they 

 are held firmly and worked smartly into the net. 



To be successful with these nimble trout a vigilant, 

 ever-watchful eye is necessary, especially when the 

 lure employed is the floating fly, for they, the larger 

 fish in particular, can and do frequently suck it 

 down almost without betraying the fact. The 

 sudden disappearance of the fly is all that indicates 

 the event, and should the attention waver for an 

 instant the longed-for opportunity of dealing with a 

 fish may be gone for ever. 



