Feedback & Reports

Similar to the previous day on The Creel, very difficult.
Had two small barbel 3-4lb early on then nothing. The previous two nights had been cold (even got an ice warning from my car on the way up! This is August?)and was very cold when the sun went in so perhaps this was having an affect. The river was clear but with a good flow but apart from the first few casts absolutely no sign of barbel at all.

2 Barbel

First time on this beat and looks very nice indeed. I had two fish but below the second croy after the hut.

1 Barbel, 1 Chub

Fished from 8-11am. Stream running clear with some of the pools almost still. A beautiful stream with multiple pools and riffles. Fishing was challenging with a seeming lower fish density than in other wild stream beats.
Two sizeable trout were spotted, one tucked up very nicely in a fallen tree the other I spooked from the tail end of one of the faster pools. The trout caught were all about the 8 in mark. 3 to a GRHE and 3 to a PTN. The 3 to the GRHE all came from one pool. Two salmon par also came to hand.
Presenting the nymphs in the slower water was tricky. I would imagine this beat would fish much better later in the day when the trout are looking up more or during a hatch as many areas are well suited to the dry.

6 Trout, 2 Other

A beautiful stretch of river with some lovely pools. Had some some nice trout and grayling up to a pound and also dropped a few nice ones. Fished New Zealand style and had the majority of the fish on the dry fly. Well worth a visit to this beat. You definitely need either felt or studied soles though to get the best out of this stretch. Fished all the named pools twice and had fish from them each time. Finished the day off watching an otter in one of the top pools.

6 Trout, 6 Grayling

Overcast and chilly but recent rain had put some babble in this brook. Simple wading but for the most part under canopy and I was thankful for my little 6'6" brook rod allowing a cast in some pretty tight places.
A trickle of small and medium olives encouraged sporadic rises. Stubbornly stuck to dries (CDC emerger for the meanders and para adams for the riffles) and was rewarded with 12 wbt, for the most part 4"-7" but one chubby 10"er, it's fins trimmed with a striking flash of red.
This beat provides 3 to 4 hours of stealthy fishing and would be enjoyed by anglers who enjoy tight casting with small tackle at modestly sized wbt. I loved it and will return.

12 Trout

A single 1 pound barbel - probably the smallest barbel I've seen!

6 Chub to 5.5lbs, a PB for me. No barbel. I think the otter which paid me a visit scared them away. Thanks to Terry for the advice.

6 Chub

Used fly and spinner. No fish taken.

Had a great two days fishing a number of swims over the two days and all producing fish. We had 13 barbel, best 7lb 12oz and 7 chub, best 4lb 8ozs. All caught on pellet fished with ground-bait feeder.

River low and clear with bright sunshine. There were plenty of chub feeding but only one 4lb barbel. All fish caught on 8mm pellet.

1 Barbel, 17 Chub