Wednesday 23 May 2018

Pana set up and Kitza changeover

As anticipated, yesterday was a busy day.  It was also extremely hot and blindingly bright which was fine for those of us flying but not ideal for those fishing.

The Pana renunion
After seeing the clients off at 9am this morning we started to load the helicopter with the first tranche of the Pana provisions and then flew to the village to pick up the Russian team.  As ever, there were huge hugs, smiles and perhaps a small shot of vodka to mark the reunion and it was lovely to see them all again with Dima still the head guide which is great news.

Hippo Rock well out of the water
After a stifling flight we landed to find the river looking practically perfect.  For those of you who know the beat (there are not many who come into that bracket as only 32 people fish it every year) Hippo Rock is well out of the water.  It looks stunning up there and I think our Spanish friends should have an excellent first week.

"How did you get on"? Lower and Kitza clients swapping stories
It was then back to Lower in order to get things ready for the 7pm changeover with the Kitza clients.  It was a frustrating day that the rods had here at Lower in that we landed 17 but lost 42 more!  Nice to see all of that action but it was very puzzling as to why so many fish dropped off and the book could have told a very different story.

Middle also had a bit of an odd day.  They landed 35 fish which is obviously a great days fishing but this team would expect more than that. 

Graham J on Lower Sviats
I just wonder if we are being conned a bit by the weather and the fact that we started with such a high river.  It feels to us as if the river has dropped by miles and that we are in the middle of June because of the high temperatures (it was 27 degrees yesterday with the water temperature at 11 degrees) but the reality is that we are still faced with a big river and it is only just late May. As ever, time will tell.

Mark J with one of 5 he landed yesterday
Kitza landed 10 yesterday before we went to pick them up and swap over the clients.  The team had really enjoyed their 3 days over there and were full of praise for Ollie and Lucy. 

As soon as the helicopter landed at Lower, Anders H looked at the river and decided it simply had to be fished.  3 fish in just over an hour was more like it and despite another cloudless morning with very strong winds, hopes are high for a more “normal” day.

Charlie White