Feedback & Reports

Took dogs for a walk mid afternoon behind the house and spotted a few trout rising in the Pinsley Brook. I have access to a stretch a bit upstream of the Roving Voucher sections.
Started with smallest black fly I had but could not tempt any risers. Very lazy and tied on a ptn on about 12" beneath the fly. Had a fiesty wbt about 10". A very enjoyable hours fishing.
This is a lovely little brook and I expect the Voucher sections will also be productive. Dont' expect easy fishing - vegetation rampant after all the rain and channel already narrow. This is real wild fishing.

Kept going west from a very tasty looking Wye until I could find a Roving Voucher beat that wasn’t too high and looked like chocolate! Also took the opportunity to recce. a few new beats to me. Looked up and down the Dore and decided to give the Abbey Dore section a go. Not of great length but time was running out. Water a foot above normal, according to a local source, and slightly coloured. Wading was “interesting” with higher water and some trees having dropped over or even into the river! Access in and out to get around deeper pools is not for the feint hearted even with the excellent gates/styles installed by the Foundation, well done guys, not ’till levels drop anyway…..Having said all that I did pick up 3 WBT of 8-10” and another very fat one of 12”+, all on a Whickhams Fancy fished downstream in the longer glides. Nothing in the pools no matter what I tried, too much colour perhaps, and the riffles were heaving through at such a pace that it was difficult to stand at times. I look forward to fishing this river for the winter Grayling.

3 rainbow trout caught. All caught on worm.

The water level was still about a foot too high, and the water was heavily coloured. The river was just about fishable albeit wading was an impossibility. The water level dropped approx 6" by the end of the day and clarity had improved considerably too.
There was an abundance of hatches throughout the day with a good number of Mayfly on the water, unfortunately due to the conditions this still did not encourage rises!
Despite the difficult conditions we managed 1 WBT approx 1lb on a nypmph fished close in to the bank, and lost another which looked about half lb bigger when it jumped. Late afternoon fish did start rising under the bridge and managed to take another WBT approx 1lb on a black Klinkhammer. In the fast flowing water all of the fish fought well above their weight.
Love this beat and cant wait to fish it again when wading is possible.
Met 2 people from the Foundation who were incredibly friendly, knowledgable about the beat/river, and helpful.

3 brown trout all about 1/2 lb all caught on GRHE. All fish released.

A fantastic afternoon spent on a great brook, 14 brownies between 6-8" all taken on a gold head hears ear. Fish all found in the deeper dark pools. All fish returned. Thank you to the wye usk team for giving all anglers this great opportunity. Tight Lines!

Having been beaten by the high flows the day before at Cwmwysg Ganol, it was a pleasure to see the river had dropped substantially overnight, and continued to drop through the day. A warmer day saw Penpont at nearly optimum conditions - a good flow of water, light wind, warm air. All these combine to bring the hatches on, and as seems to be the case every year, free rising fish.
Would recommend the lower end of the beat - despite camp sites next to the river, there are fish to be caught there.
Penpont is a dry fly heaven if your casting is accurate, and there are fish to be had all along the beat, especially in the glides. There are also fish to be had above the bridge on both sides, but wading in anything other than summer flows is risky - it is deeper that it looks. If you fancy an adventure, take a walk upstream; a very different river.
Penpont is imho the easiest beat on the Usk for wading, and rewards a stealthy approach. It is also a magnificent place to visit, and the scenery alone is well worth the fishing fee. We camped overnight on the banks of the river. The proprietors have gone to great trouble to ensure well-appointed and clean facilities.
On this occasion, I landed 4 brown trout to 14 inches, and lost 4 others, all on a size 14 brown pheasant tail dry. My companion, a beginner, pricked a few but couldn't land any. These fish give a great account of themselves - I call them the Penpont Airborne Division. There are bigger fish in this beat, and on the right day, they will oblige with great memories of 'Penpont Porkers' taken and lost.

One large trout of approximately 16 inches caught and returned, on a size 16 Hawthorn.
River was running high, fast, and slightly coloured. Only saw a couple of fish rising, temperature was still fairly cold, but still saw a fair amount of fly activity.

Quite windy and not warm. Nothing showing while I fished it (10:30am to 2:00pm).

River a bit high, 1 x 10" released.