Feedback & Reports

Couldn’t resist the challenge of a new beat on the passport – are we the first fishermen? James learnt to fish on the Severn Arms beats so we have a special affection for this river.
The passport says wading is challenging. You had better believe it! Surprised we only had the one swimming lesson…. and access also not easy, but at least that means the inhabitants of Disserth caravan park are unlikely to wander down this far. We could only get 2/3 of the way down the beat as there is a very large cliff to negotiate and the inhabitants were most definitely not impressed with our intrusion – a pair of peregrine falcons, spectacular, as was the meadow teeming with ringlet butterflies.
So how about the fishing? There were sporadic hatches of olives and pale wateries, with a few mayfly duns and spinners too, so the fish were looking up. 13 fish all on dries – how does a 2” grayling impale itself on a size 14 hook? There are a lot of small grayling on this beat which is great news – perhaps the peregrines deter piscivorous avain predators? Trout were definitely to the fore – 10 vs 3 grayling, and what stunning fish. 4 were 13” or more, the best was an 18” beauty. All fat with huge pectorals and tails, and gave great accounts of themselves. Great to see a beat with so much weed bed too – almost like a chalk stream in places. There was one pocket in the weed that I thought must contain a fish…an 8” er smashed the fly on the first cast, and was straight in to the weed and off…surely there couldn’t be another willing customer? But yes, a 14” beauty followed, over the top of the weed to hand before he had time to think about it….
So all in all challenging fishing but a great days fishing. The beat is much more like a wild stream beat than a passport beat but that wont detract for those prepared to meet the challenges.

10 Trout, 3 Grayling