Category: 2026

The Dalkia Day

Once again the weather gods were kind to us but the fish proved very fickle.

The day started well with sporadic fish raising hopes for the guests and mentors that fish would be coming to the net. Thankfully this proved to be the case in the early part of the morning with some beautiful large fish coming to the nets from different parts of the lake but the takes then dried up despite the best efforts of the mentors and constant changes of flies.

Despite the best efforts of the mentors the lull in screaming reels did give us all the opportunity to get to know each other and the banter and stories could be heard all around the lake and the general consensus regarding the fish was “they will be back”.

As the morning wore on the fish were rising again to something very small below the surface so the mentors wisely put the guests within casting range using buzzers and nymphs and catch numbers began to rise.

It was pleasing to see that thanks to the skills of the mentors quite a few of the guests had mastered the casting technique and getting the line out very straight and targeting a fish when it rose so the determination by the guest to succeed was very visible. There was the usual wrap the line around the rod on occasion as some tried too hard but this was brushed aside with the usual expletives (technical fishing terms) not to be repeated closely followed by jubilation when it was corrected and a fish on.

Noticeably among the guest there were a few “naturals” who picked up the cast and retrieve techniques very quickly so I was confident that one or two would be asking lots of questions and probably taking up the sport in the future.

One guest excelled herself when she laid a very nice line on the water and contacted a large fish on a very small (16) barbless blood buzzer and played the fish perfectly and after several heart stopping minutes brought it to the net and it weighed in at 8lb. Her mentor was rightfully proud.

Her mentor told me that when he first saw it his heart sank as he knew it was a very large and strong fish on a small barbless fly and a fish that size usually sheds the hook quickly but that did not happen on this occasion. O ye of little faith.

Apart from the superb 8lb fish several more large fish 4lbs up to 5.8lbs came to the net to the delight of the guests and a feast was planned when they returned to base.

• Winner of Biggest Fish to WO2 Emma Colton. Mentor Richard Gill.


• Winner of Biggest Bag to WO2 Natalie Craig. Mentor Richard Hughes.


• Winner of Smallest Fish to Sgt Nacanelli Mate. Mentor Paul Raymen.

Without exception everyone did their best on a very fickle fish day and the smiles say it all.

Bill Howell Founder

Pictures courtesy of Mike Edwards

 

 

Once again the weather was in our favour (no rain). The sun was up and although from the start the air temperature was quite high and so was the water temperature also quite high making the fish uncomfortable – the water level was down quite a bit. That presented a challenge to mentors and guests. Advice from the fishery team advised us that the fish were shoaling so it was a case of find them and tempt them which in many cases even with constant changes of flies made it an arduous task.

The morning began with the usual welcome of T&C and rolls and introductions to our guests from at least 3 branches of HMAS then pairing off to tackle the wily trout.

That being said, fish came to the scales constantly and with the constant changes of spots around the fishery a very reasonable number of fish were weighed in.  Sadly, we had two blanks due to fish coming off which was thankfully less than I envisioned. Several fish were lost for reasons unknown even by those who bagged up but that’s fishing.

The camaraderie and banter were, as always very evident and smiles, compliments and insults were voiced throughout the day. Once the first fish were caught the focus was intense on catching a fish as can be seen in the pictures and the technique of casting the fly rose to a very acceptable level and can be seen on the guests faces as they grasped the rhythm.

I managed to have a short walk (back still giving me Gyp) and those guests I had the pleasure of chatting with were obviously enjoying the day and the number of questions on fly fishing, I and the mentors, were asked was pleasing as most of them had never considered fishing as a leisure / healing pursuit.

An unexpected but welcome guest was Pat Burgess’s dog Storm who viewed everything from a supine position wondering what all the fuss was about when a fish was landed and now and then took my wife for “walkies” around the fishery with her on the other end of the lead.

A superb lunch was served and by way of a change of prizes excellent framed fishing prints courtesy of Geoff Brooks were presented to the winners and received with smiles.

• Winner of Biggest Bag  LCpl Zack Jones. Mentor Mark Roberts


• Winner of Biggest Fish  SSgt  Jodie Sutton. Mentor Geoff Brooks


• Winner of Smallest Fish Sgt Cat Windridge. Mentor Richard Hughes

It will never be boring for me to say “another successful day in the history of FFF ” all due to the excellent support from the mentors and from the fisheries teams and caterers.

Someone famous said (not me).

“A picture speaks a thousand words” but for me our motto will be “The smiles speak a thousand words”.

Bill Howell Founder

The pictures courtesy of Mike Edwards FFF Photog.

 

The weather gods were playing games leading up to the event with the temperature on the 29^th at 31c and we expected the fish to come out of the water pre-cooked on our event day.

We were fortunate that the temperature dropped to 25-27c on the day, perfect weather if you wear a bikini I suppose but most male anglers, I know don’t (then again, Hmm let us not go there).

With Mentors and guests finishing their Welcome rolls and T&C it was off to the waterside but the bright sun and muggy heat did not bode well.

On this occasion the day started very well with a couple of nice 4 & 5lb fish coming to the scales quite quickly and word went round that buzzers seem to be the fly of the day.

It was pleasing to see the guests were from all three branches of HMAS and none had fished before but with Engraved Glass tankards to be won the competitiveness was soon apparent and it was “Game on”.

It was a pleasure to see that 50% of the guest were ladies on this occasion so the men were possibly in for a bit of ego bashing judging by some of the comments and sadly for them it turned out to be the case.

After a superb lunch and weigh in it was clear that numerous fish large and small had come to the scales and the ladies were in the lead in the main categories for prizes of Heaviest Fish and Heaviest Bag tankards eliciting huge smiles from the ladies. The usual banter continued with the tongue in cheek question of “any luck” from the ladies to the lads that did not help to restore any male egos.

Again on my walkabout round the fishery, it was abundantly clear how special the mentors are in forming bridges communicating with their guests and the smiles throughout the day were clear evidence of this. For their sterling support I feel privileged to have them as friends.  Several guests also asked when the next event would be giving us clear indications that our formula works.

Our sincere thanks to the Fishery team helping to make it a memorable day and our special guest for presenting the prizes, thanks also to Daz Crowle (Team leader) for helping us put the day together.

• Heaviest Fish Tina Hays @ 6lbs   Mentor Richard Gill


• Heaviest Bag Zoe Wood @ 12lb 14ozs   Mentor Joan Russell


• Smallest Fish Jessica Croft @3lbs Mentor Richard Hughes.

Tight lines to all

Bill Howell Founder.

Pictures courtesy of Mike Edwards

Once again, the weather gods were kind although the day started with a mist in the valley greeting us all with a ghostly view of the fishery, but it cleared quite quickly with the sporadic sunshine. We welcomed our guests from Battle Back with T/C and Bacon rolls and pastries supplied by the fishery and Bolly the clever caterer, everyone was also supplied with water as the temperature was quite high and was surely going to rise. The H&S lecture and a short casting display completed it was off to the waterside for mentors and our guests from all three branches of HMAS (Army, Navy, RAF).

Competition between all branches for the superbly engraved glass tankards supplied by our sponsor ORSA for the day was clear from the outset. As usual the banter and insults that cannot be printed rang out loud and clear especially when a fish was landed by a guest and had us all chuckling throughout the day, but the camaraderie and the good humour was obvious throughout the day.

Although the bright sunshine made fishing a little a little difficult the mentors skills came to the fore and fish came to the scales quite regularly accompanied by huge smiles and the usual fisherman’s tale as to how it fought etc etc. It never ceases to amaze me as to how quickly a guest who has never caught a fish before mastered the angler’s art of storytelling as to how they manage to land the fish that weighed 2lbs when hooked and grew to 5lbs when landed until I say “get your hand off the damn scales” at weigh in. Skullduggery seems to be a class included in their training.

As we finished the superb two course lunch after the weigh in the heavens suddenly opened during the 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd prize giving and it was a bit of a scramble to present the prizes and the superb gifts generously supplied by our sponsor.

As I frequently say, “the smiles say it all” and our sincere thanks to the chef, the fishery team and the mentors who all give so much of their time plus the generous gifts from our sponsor. I can say another excellent day of no blanks in the annals of FFF and “Mission accomplished again”. Several 4 fish bags were weighed in ranging from 6lbs to12.4lbs which speaks volumes of the quality of the fish and the excellent stocking system of the fishery team.

-Biggest Fish of 3lb 4ozs went to Cpl Ian Lund. Mentor Richard Noscoe.

-Biggest Bag of 12lbs 4ozs went to FS Paul Jackson. Mentor Neil Mundy.

-Smallest Fish of 1lb 12ozs went to Liam Macaw. Mentor Mark Roberts.

My sincere personal thanks to all the mentors as it is your dedication and enthusiasm that makes FFF so successful.

Tight lines to you all.

Bill Howell.
Founder, dogsbody etc etc.

 

Having received an invitation to tour the Battle Back facilities for WIS personnel at Tedworth House. A group of FFF mentors were received very warmly upon arrival.

WO2 Daz Crowle slipped into Tour guide mode and we spent almost two hours being shown the extraordinary work he and his associates achieve organising many other pursuits for our WIS such as kayaking, surfing and outward bound days to aid those wounded in conflict and related ailments.

We were allowed to tour the facility that has numerous classrooms for everything from arts and crafts to bookbinding to model making and gardening which was most enlightening. With many plants and foods grown in house. There are also numerous specialist facilities such as Hydro pools and Yoga rooms attended by very qualified instructors to aid those suffering from physical wounds as well as trauma, PTSD and related ailments.

The exercise facilities were very impressive with a variety of weight lifting equipment, exercise bikes and various other forms of exercise equipment throughout the gymnasium with the addition of an electronic Ski slope with all the accessories for those who may have lost limbs enabling them to get out on the slopes when the opportunity arises. Ski trips are also organised by Daz and team a keen skier and cyclist himself. The pictures say it all.

It has been proven time and again that fishing plays a small but important therapeutic part in the recovery of those wounded in service although when our guests from Battle Back arrive at our events there are the usual signs of trepidation on their part but the day always ends with them asking “when is the next one” so we seem to have the correct formulae and great mentors.

The tour ended with a very nice lunch and lots of conflab with several of the BB team including the OC who was vociferous with his praise and thanks for all we do and he threatened to join us when he can fit it in but like Daz his workload is phenomenal.

We may organise another tour later in the year subject to Daz’s schedule for those who could not join us on this visit and I will cascade the details out to all once a date is agreed.

Whilst our contribution may be small compared to other better funded organisations the recognition of what we do (the mentors mainly) is considered by the team at BB as an invaluable addition to the recovery of those who join us at the waterside.

I know you will endeavour to keep that in mind for as long as possible, as your support, as I have often said, is also invaluable as it you who form and make Fishing For Forces.

My best

Bill Howell
Founder, teaboy dogsbody etc etc.

The weather gods were kind to us (no rain) with a beautiful summer morning but a bit too bright for trout fishing as the trout head for the deeps on sunny days. The day did not start as planned due to our guests being seriously delayed by traffic and other elements beyond our control, plus the guest numbers were lower than usual and the mentors had all arrived by 08.30 as requested. A simple case of Humans plan and God laughs.

It was decided that after refreshments and rolls the mentors could use the down time to have a quiet fish or practice other casting skills or sourcing fish where they had gathered.

The guests duly arrived and after the H&S intro were paired off with mentors and headed for the waterside. Fish were coming to the net quite quickly, so I had to man the scales rapidly – a pleasant task for me.

Fish were caught consistently throughout the morning, and several 4 fish bags were recorded when we stopped for lunch.

The lunch was superb as usual (see pics) and the guests were very complimentary on that subject. The banter throughout the day was unending and many thanks were passed to the caterers, fishery staff and mentors from the guests as they said farewell.

The winners tankards were presented to tumultuous applause and the usual ribald and good hearted comments mostly unprintable.

-Biggest Bag went to Jitesh Gurung. Mentor Tim Mundy.

-Biggest Fish went to Kym Webb. Mentors Phillipa and Richard Winser.

-Smallest Fish went to Sury Gurung. Mentor Richard Noscoe.

It is pleasing to note there were no blanks which speaks volumes of the mentor’s skills putting guests onto fish on what was a challenging day.

My sincere thanks to those mentors who did not have a guest but still assisted by sharing one thereby enhancing the broader skills being passed as none of us who mentor fish in the same manner.

Another good day in the annals of FFF.

Thank you all!
Bill Howell Founder.