Mike - Somerset“Hi James
Thank you for all your expertise yesterday at Hawkridge, I learned a lot ! & enjoyed the day despite the nip in the air.
Gutted the fish as soon as I got home as you described & have cooked & eaten one of the fish today. Delicious !!!
Feel free to add this to your reviews.
Mike ”
Phil Dorchester“Having not cast a fly for a few years, I asked James to help me brush the rust off my casting. He quickly spotted two areas that I needed to sort out and then taught me the back cast and how to haul (single and double). He pointed out the limitations of my tackle and lent me appropriate tackle for the venue. We then tried to catch fish which proved to be very difficult. Along the way James showed me some new (to me) techniques. We had a fly past from an osprey and kingfishers and I took a fat trout home for tea! I would have no hesitation in recommending James for either beginners or returners to the sport.”
Paul - Tiverton Devon““A superb day out with a master of his craft.” Friendly, fun and enlightening.
Unlike those occasions when one leaves a restaurant, a film or a music concert thinking it to have been expensive or a waste of money, a day’s tuition with James is worth every penny and, if you were to feel it to have been overpriced I would suggest you consider afterwards whether you had listened carefully or paid sufficient attention to his excellent guidance.
Do not for a minute think that he is going to guarantee that you’ll catch a fish (although he’ll do his best to help you do so). No, he’s there to give you the skills and the confidence to do so as you progress into the addictive world of angling and that’s precisely what you will acquire from a day on the water with James. I would have no hesitation in recommending him to novices or accomplished anglers wanting to fine tune their technique.”
Steve - Taunton“Had a fantastic beginners day session with James this week. Had a very enjoyable time and learnt the basics of Fly Fishing in a beautiful setting. Casting was a challenge but with James' excellent coaching I improved with every cast. I wasn't lucky enough to get a fish but I'm sure with the skills picked up it won't be long till I catch something. Can't wait for another session soon to hone my fly fishing ability.”
Dave - Exmouth“Positive: Professionalism, Quality, Responsiveness, Value
Had a lesson with James on 8th April at Hawkridge Reservoir Somerset. Not one of his younger students as I won’t see 60 again and prior to the day with James I was able to cast a fly so not a complete novice.
Great day and I can not recommend his patient instructional style enough. Taught me how to single and double haul cast. I had a list of queries regarding what I was doing wrong and problems I had when fly fishing and James took the time to address each of them, regardless if it was about tackle, reels, lines, leaders or flies.
To round the day off caught two good fish as well as losing several others.
Hope to fish with you again when we catch up James.
Thanks for the great day”
Neil - Corfe“A great day. From complete novice to trout catcher. Lots more to learn but a great start and initiation into fly fishing.”
Richard - Bath“Absolutely terrific day on the water with James. My casting improved tenfold and I even took home a few trout. James was friendly, very funny and informative. Such an enjoyable day that there was a complete loss of time! Thoroughly recommended”
Dave - Torquay“Positive: Professionalism, Quality, Responsiveness, Value
Had a lesson with James on 8th April at Hawkridge Reservoir Somerset. Not one of his younger students as I won’t see 60 again and prior to the day with James I was able to cast a fly so not a complete novice.
Great day and I can not recommend his patient instructional style enough. Taught me how to single and double haul cast. I had a list of queries regarding what I was doing wrong and problems I had when fly fishing and James took the time to address each of them, regardless if it was about tackle, reels, lines, leaders or flies.
To round the day off caught two good fish as well as losing several others.
Hope to fish with you again when we catch up James.
Thanks for the great day”
Michael Exmouth“Having once spent a week fly fishing during my teens (the best part of 30 years ago) I promised myself that I would give it a go again “one day”.
Having recently relocated to Devon from London I wanted to make it actually happen, but with no kit, technical ability and only a vague memory that it had been fun, I didn’t know where to begin.
Enter James, he took me out, got me set up and took me through the basics of casting. Over the day it got better and better!
Just got home and have bought my own kit (again super reasonably priced following James’s recommendation), ready to go back out soon and confident about how to go about business! Thanks for a great day and (hopefully) a new hobby for life! ”
Brendan“I needed a few bad habits straightened out with my casting and a couple of hrs with James sorted it right out. Easy to follow instruction, keeping me calm and consistent as my frustration was building. Finished off. with a nice few fish in the afternoon, taking some on a dry fly on James's advice. Thanks and I'll keep the wrist locked”
Steve Kiddiminster“Hi James,
Thanks for a great day, I really enjoyed it. Looking forward to another session.”
Shaun St Albans“Thank you for a great day, was very enjoyable and the trout was delicious, happy wifey! Feel a lot more confident with my casting. Have a good day.”
Chris Stevenage“Hi James,
Just a quick email to say many many thanks for the tuition today at Summerfields. It was an excellent day and I got a lot out of it. Really enjoyed the sport and am definitely going to look at getting some of my own equipment and getting back there as soon as I can to keep the practice fresh in my head and because I enjoyed it so much.
The tuition itself was excellent from yourself and catching those 3 fish on my own, so to speak, was a massive buzz.
Just for one final time, I should of written it down lol, can you remind me what pattern of fly we used today?
I know you mentioned other popular patterns, like Damsels, daddies, buzzers and montanas, all of which I am going to remember.
Thanks again James, learned loads and had an awesome day. Looking forward to continuing with fly fishing
Regards
Chris
”
Russell - Glastonbury“James was fantastic. Very knowledgeable, down to earth and easy to organise with with. Would definitely go again!”
Ron St Albans“Hi James,
Just wanted to a big thanks for all your time and patience yesterday.
I will definitely be taking it up as my hobby, and will probably be bothering you from time to time with some questions or advice.
Looked at videos last night re gutting the fish , looks straight forward enough.
Would be great to catch up the sommerfield again for some tips.
For every 2 free tips ... I'll buy you a pint ?”
Paul, Bridgewater Somerset“Hi James, Thanks for a great day, really enjoyed it, knackered but loved it!”
Tom Taunton Somerset“Hi James, Thanks so much again for yesterday. It was fantastic fun and I was so pleased to have been able to land one from start to finish!”
Robin and Kathy Milton Keynes“Hi James,
Thank you so much for guiding my wife and me yesterday. Cathy was particularly impressed with the attention you gave to her.”
Scott Leighton Buzzard“Another cracking lesson today, thanks James really appreciated it and yes you are right, I am now hooked on trout (and still pike!) see you again soon! First trout fly lesson!!”
Adrian, Chard Somerset“I came to James out of desperation and a recomendation, I can honestly say I learnt more in a single day with him than I had learnt in the previous year. He got my casting improving almost immediately by a clever little trick and most importantly he gave me confidence in trying new tactics and techniques which paid off in abundance. Now when I fish I think like the trout. Thank you so much”
Simon, Taunton Somerset“Hi James, just wanted to say thanks again for a fantastic day!, I can't believe I actually caught two trout. Will be back in touch next week to book up some more tuition.
”
Sarah Woburn Sands“Hi James, Just a quick note to say thank you for the last two mornings. Mattie had a good time, and seems very much more positive about Scotland! ”
Kevin, Minehead Somerset“Hi James, Just wanted to say thanks for a great days instruction and fishing. I cant wait to get back out there catching a Trout or two, and want to book your boat course if you can send me an invoice. Cheers.”
Steve, Somerset“Had a fantastic beginners day session with James this week. Had a very enjoyable time and learnt the basics of Fly Fishing in a beautiful setting. Casting was a challenge but with James' excellent coaching I improved with every cast. I wasn't lucky enough to get a fish but I'm sure with the skills picked up it won't be long till I catch something. Can't wait for another session soon to hone my fly fishing ability.”
Mikey - Yeovil“My dad and I went on a day trip with James, he was a very good teacher, so even though neither of us had done this before, we were both picking it up pretty quickly. He had lots of helpful advice for us when we do this again in the future, I would highly recommend!”
Robert - Taunton“My son and I had a fantastic day with James as an introduction to fly fishing. His extensive knowledge, incredible patience and great sense of humour made for a really enjoyable and memorable day for us both. Top tips on technique and really helpful advice on getting started with buying tackle. Many thanks for a great day and start to a new pastime.”
Martyn - Seaton Devon“Having just spent a cracking day on the water on my first fly fishing experience, I could have not spent it with anyone better than James.
His teaching skill and knowledge was to highest standard, and he soon had me on the water casting for trout. Nothing was too much trouble and offered feedback once we were fishing alongside each other.
Towards the end of the day I even managed to hook and land the largest fish of the day all thanks to the great tuition from James.
I will be back soon !”
Andy - Shropshire“Yep - had a great sunny, warm day with James at Hawkridge reservoir. Coaching and company is excellent. Complete beginner to advanced novice in 6 hours and back home practicing in the garden . Looking forward to going back down in the autumn when there's a bit more cloud cover and the reels will be fizzing!! Thanks James”
