NIGHT-FISHING REALIZATION 97 



night so black that you can scarcely see your hand 

 before your face, you may be bold enough to venture a 

 trip with the rod, but in these adverse circumstances I 

 do not advise you to tread even a well-known path as I 

 am of opinion you will regret the enterprise. Of course, 

 during a moonless but starry night you may be afforded 

 sufficient light by which you can cover a familiar pool. 



I deprecate working in brilliant moonshine, as experi- 

 ence has taught me that sea-trout will not sport so well 

 when moonbeams silver the water. By casting in the 

 deep shade of thick overhanging trees and bushes I have 

 hooked sea-trout but these captures are not conclusive 

 evidence in support of a claim that the fish will take 

 when the moon is high. Whether in actuality the bright 

 light from the moon is responsible for a diminution in 

 responsive fish, or whether the angler's movements in 

 the glare are more pronounced to the sea-trout, thus 

 causing the fish to stay down, must, I am afraid, remain a 

 moot point. Yet another problem is whether the sea- 

 trout become more shy the farther that they run. The 

 reason that I mention this is becaure on a bright night 

 the reports which I have received from water close to 

 the estuary have been of fair catches, whilst from the 

 higher reaches the returns have been signally poor. 

 While dealing with this abstruse subject the fact that in 

 the illumination one bank may be better than the other 

 must not be overlooked. 



According to my bag, the best times in which to try 

 your skill are either from late evening onwards or when 

 the moon is obscured by heavy clouds. For evening 

 angling on open water you should wait until you can 

 just discern the river and the far bank. If, however, the 

 pools are well screened by trees, you can start operations 

 earlier. When the moon has risen, the chances are not 

 so good if the clouds are broken, as every now and again 

 G 



