Feedback & Reports

Turned up at one of my favourites at half twelve ... an absolute myriad of insects on the go .... Large Brook duns, olives, gnats and hawthorns, a kind of KFC family meal with extra fries for the Edws resident brienies .....
A very slow mooch fishing an Iron Blue and a Para greenwells ... sport this afternoon on a perfect river ... if you could dream the perfect river this would be it .... rising fish in most of the pool heads.... just totally sublime .... just carefully does it wading in the now clear, perfect height dry fly water !!!
Fish this afternoon ranging from seven to twelve inches, fourteen made it to the net ...with a few off at longer range , most casting to risers... lots of low branches over pools so careful casting, that's why I love the double taper two weight it just glides through the air , yet you can punch a tight loop with it to get it under alders etc etc ... love the Barrio line I'm using at the moment, fantastic!!!
A total change from a month ago when I was here just buzzing with life .... I got out by the waterfall at the top end at half five ......definitely a slow tactical session today, but so worth it, and some superb sport ...... lifes good in the Edw Valley, back to this little gem very soooooooon ..... cracking stuff !!!

14 Trout

Including one reasonably decent fish. Anyone know when rain is next expected?

2 Trout

I’ve been checking every stream and river I’ve crossed for the past month to select the optimum time to venture out . I thought today would be ok. Arrived at Hergest at 09.00 and fortunately no other angler was there. I was greeted with perfect conditions, weather, level and flow wth olives and pale watery breaking off and settling on the water. Fished until 14:00 without seeing a rise, without raising any and not bringing any to hand or net ! Drys , nymphs and reluctantly the duo. Nothing ! This has always been a beat where you knew you had a chance whatever the conditions and I’ve fished it for over fifteen years and proved successful. Either I was too late for the morning rise (April ?) and left to early for the later. First ever blank at Hergest, gutted but it is still the most beautiful beat and I’ll be back again and again and again . Tight lines you stream fishermen/ women !

Just a brief session this morning on an old favourite , up a tad and running a bit murky when I parked up . Reading 10 degrees on the trucks dash, considerably cooler than yesterday ….. anyway , nice to be down on the Hergest beat ….. it seemed confined after having a ball on Craig Goch , Claerwen and Nantymoch over the last two weeks ….. some cracking days in the Elan Valley too , with some fab early season sport , happy days !!!!!

The Edw was up which was a shame , I should imagine by Thursday she’ll be perfect , there was a good trickling of olives by eleven thirty , and sedge , but the party was decidedly dour , and I think only orange juice was being served , hence the lack of feisty fish on the go for the easy pickings !!!!!

Sometimes they do take some pepping up the old wild streams , it’s easy to rush things , but alas some are slow to get going , unlike the upper Wye and Usk which has seen some bumper days just lately with magnificent LDO and March Brown sport on the top !!!! I mamanged two this morning , on a single tungsten nymph with a bit of orange colour …. I’ve always found orange based nymphs successful here , and on the Llynfi …… anyway , still a fun few hours , lots of bankside erosion has taken place , which leaves the fencing suspended in mid air ….. I guess the only way around that with bare banks is to get it protected against the fast powerful outside meander , but of course it’s all bucks and time these days ….. Britain on its knees , things like this don’t get done anymore !!!!!!! We have enough of a battle with river pollution , I shall step down off my proverbial soap box …..

A fun time on the Edw , roll on May when Salmo Trutta is looking up , Great fun in the Edw valley as always ????????????????????

2 Trout

Just a brief session this morning on an old favourite up a tad and running a bit murky when I parked up . Reading 10 degrees on my trucks dash. Considerably cooler than yesterday.... anyway nice to be down on the Hergest beat ..... it seemed confined after having a ball on Craig Goch , Claerwen and Nantymoch over the last two weeks .... some cracking days in the Elan Valley too , with some fab early season sport , happy days !!!

The Edw was up a tad which was a shame I should imagine by Thursday she'll be perfect , there was a good trickling of olives by half eleven , and sedge too ! The party never got going , no rises , in fact it was pretty dour in fairness !!! No rises yet to the easy pickings ....... shame !

Sometimes they do take some pepping up these wild streams , it's easy to rush them , but alas some are slow to get going, unlike the Wye and Usk which have seen some magnificent ldo and march brown hatches , to make top of the water sport excellent !!! I managed two this morning on a single tungsten nymph with a hint of orange in it .... always seems to do well here , nymphs with orange ... here and the Llynfi .. lots of bankside erosion on this beat , which leaves fencing suspended hanging in mid air ... its all bucks and time these days getting it done !!! Britain on its knees, things like this dont get done anymore .... we have enough of a battle with river pollution , I shall step down off my proverbial soap box ...

A fun few hours in the Edw Valley .... its just starting to wake uo now ..... roll on May when Salmo trusts will be scoffing off the top !!! Happy days ......

2 Trout

Low and slow. Very little moving about. A nibble on a nymph or two. Good little March brown hatch at the end of the day. Fish seemingly unmoved however. Lovely beat to blank on.

I would suggest until substantially more rain, day tickets should not be sold. River too low for fishing ????

River reduced to a trickle. Gave it a couple of hours and managed 2 x wbt, both returned.

Hopefully The Edw can recover over the winter.

2 Trout

Well , smashed the mowing at silly o’clock, as there was no dew down , then went for a good burn on my mountain bike , and to top of this lovely weekend , thought it rude not to give another of the Edw beats a bash , looked at the website , Hergest was free , so onward to the Edw , again , just to complete the Edw extravaganza !!!!

Got there at midday , and tackled up my usual six foot , two weight , except I fined down the tippet even more , and furled leader on also , just for added turnover , and delicacy , which is what you needed here , as boy was it tricky , but fun at the same time …. Water temperature sitting at 13 degrees , and a lot isn’t workable , even with dry fly , but also a lot is , so it’s swings and roundabouts here at the mo ….
Some folks would look at it at the mo, and say , that’s not fishable at all ,….. but alas it is !!!!

In fact some risers were tricky to say the least , but caught them to a splashy rise to my Parachute Greenwells in the end … managed five feisty brownies between six and ten inches maybe …
Just fished up to the weir , and got out I think just before three …. Cows in the field with young calves , so carried my impromptu mark one nine foot stick , just in case things went Pete Tong !!!! Thankfully they were very sedate this time …. Didn’t even move …. Pheeeeeeeew !

A fun three hours here , had a chat with the farmer on his quad taking sheep down the road …. Lowest he has seen it in years , as he explained it does hold its water very very well , due to its catchment area … a knowledgable chappy and most interested in the fishing too , which is always nice …. A fun few hours here , and three great sessions on three days on one of my favourite small streams , can’t be bad , back to The Ponferosa , and a well earned pint of cider me thinks , sorted !!!!!

5 Trout

Well for a change , hadn’t been to Hergest for a while , so took a bimble out to there ….. looked like it was to be a warm day as I parked up just over the bridge at nine . Word of warning don’t park in that lovely lay-by over the tight bridge , that is there to allow a turning arc for tractors and big lorries etc etc , so park right at the end of it in the rough grass !!!!!!

Tackled up a small f fly initially , ohhhhhhh river was low when I walked down to the water … I did do a thermometer dip , reading 13 degrees so nice a cool , well , I thought I’m here , let’s give things a blast ……

Some olives , and I’m sure I spotted half a dozen late mayfly too , also some sedge at half eleven , busy busy with insects this morning , had half my trout to risers , and half to prospected dry , either f fly or Para iron blue …..

Actually with stealthy moon walking , fishing was hard going , but had some good sport in the three hours I was there , and managed six beauties to the net , three really nice fish too , maybe ten or eleven inches , lost a few and flumped some cracking rises also …… doooooooh , oh well !!!!!

Horse flies galore , dam things , once they lock on to you it’s a game of letting them settle , and bashing them before they have you !!!! The beef cattle are in the field , looked fairly feisty too , so a brisk walk across that last big field to my truck , kind of like Benny Hill , minus the props !!!!!!!!

Three sightings of kingfishers , very busy up and down , maybe feeding young , nice to see . Did some stone flipping , lots of invertebrates , and two bullheads , so health wise the Edw is looking good . She’s definitely crying out for some decent rain , not this half hearted drizzle we’ve been getting , three or four good solid day would be just the trick . Another cracking few hours on a favourite river, spot on …… back to The Ponderosa for a cool glass of the amber nectar , happy days !!!!

6 Trout