Feedback & Reports

18 Grayling, 2 trout, all taken on small goldhead nymphs, all returned. Great days fishing. Many thanks.

Two barbel caught at the top of the beat around mid morning, one 5lb and the other 5lb 2ozs. Both caught on pellet. In the afternoon on the advice of Colin Richardson (the ghillie) we moved to the far end of the beat at the end of the island and had 3 chub - 3lb, 3lb 5ozs & 4lb 4ozs, all on pellet. The river was slightly up & the weather was overcast. We had a lovely day and we will come back for another go next year. Many thanks to Colin for pointing me in the right direction as he helped me catch my first ever barbel, may there be many more. Great service from the people at the Wye and Usk Foundation, I would recomend them to any angler.

8 grayling up to 2lbs. Rising well in one pool, most caught on small dry fly, a couple on small nymphs.

Got ten solid takes in the afternoon: lost two; returned six and kept two grayling. Also had a bite off a very juvenile Brown Trout who went back very quickly and unharmed.

The two grayling I kept were both around a foot long caught on a small pink shrimp.

16 x grayling 6 - 15 inches; 3 x out of season trout 6 - 12 inches. This beat was new to me and something of a grayling experiment as I have the impression people tend to associate it mainly with either salmon or coarse fishing. I rather liked it. Very different from just upstream, it's a massive, wide bit of river which has cut its way through quite a bit of farmland over recent years, leaving some wetlands and wilderness which the water birds like. As the passport states, it's easy wading on broad gravel flats, and in fact easily crossed with 1 foot on the Lanstephan gauge. I fished a team of wets at range as there is so much water to search and found the flats are absolutely stuffed with grayling parr - it's necessary therefore to find where the adults are holding up. It will be interesting to see how it fishes with the trotting rod later in the winter, when the grayling start to form tighter shoals.

Caught 2 grayling and 2 brown trout. Successful flies were snipe & purple & partridge & orange. All fish returned. Large groups of canoeists (school parties) were coming down the river all day long.

The beautiful weather and quality of fishing made for a really enjoyable 3 days. Thank you very much.

Eight grayling caught ranging from 5 inches to 11 inches (Bathing pool was the best 4 caught). Weather dry and bright, insect hatches still in abundance and trout still rising as well in Erwood pool. Possible salmon spotted at Top Planks and holding in pool just below the deepest pool there. Water low. All fish returned.

No salmon to report for either of us. Rose one and saw one other. Nonetheless we had a thoroughly enjoyable day.

Many thanks for making all the arrangements as usual!

Two rods fished all day from Nine am to Five pm. 10 fish in total. 1 rod 4 fish the other 6.

No fish moving, all caught on New Zealand style droppers, gold head hares ear. Hard fishing but cracking stretch of river.

It was with great anticipation that we walked on to the beat at first light for our first attempt at fishing the Wye. We dropped the gear at the first few swims and walked the whole stretch of this beautiful river.

Having got a feeling for the river a decision was made to start near the top of the stretch. First cast and a nice chub of around 3lb, second cast and a barbel in the 5lb region. This was matched by my mate so off to a good start! Sport slowed so a move was on the cards lower down the beat. For the rest of the day action was forth coming if not electric and the tally between us at the end was 9 barbel to mid 7lb and 10 chub up to 4lb.

A rest over night at the Swan Inn of Letton with great food and amazingly warm hosts was very welcome and an ideal way to prepare for our second day on the same beat. We both expected to pick up from were we left of the day before but this would have been far too easy! Moving swims and refining tactics were picking up the chub but the sought after barbel was proving slightly elusive. As the afternoon arrived so did the barbel and with a better average size it were smiles all round. I finished the day with 13 chub and 4 barbel to my mates 4 chub and 6 barbel which included a new Pb barbel for him of 8lb 5oz, a great result across the two days of 19 barbel and 27 chub which were all in mint condition.

My thanks go to the Wye and Usk foundation, our return visit has already been booked.