Feedback & Reports

A decision between the antiques fair at Builth, and musing over overpriced boxed B.S.A .scorpion pistols and nodding Knowledgably over "happy clappy" Royal Worcester fine bone china ,OR a session on the Ithon...The fact I'm submitting a report kinda tells you who won the battle !!!! Lol
A Murky very fine drizzly morning, got there at eleven, fished the top section by the Camdwr brook , and actually a bit further downstream too, as saw knowone at the bottom beat parking area. Still hefty beef cattle in the bottom field. I'm guessing they look pretty athletic, so I'd park up and walk roadside down to bridge then cut through ....Mobile burgers weighing 1400lbs can shift !!!
Good insect life from midday lots of olives and tiny sedge on the go... fish looking up, a lot of prospective takes to my dries...with only three cast to risers ..Great fun, nine made it to the net, may have been ten.... but also a few slipped of as well, one was a particularly decent fish ....but your on a loosing battle when they hammer your dry and start swimming towards you fast !!!! Ohhh well he's there for another day !!! Fish the usual size for here eight or nine inches..... nothing huge today, but a fun on the go session!!! Kingfisher up and down, in fact two ... awesome to see as always...... River was sitting at a lovely height too, 0.104m on the NRW gauge at Llanddewi.... perfect for dries...Looks like another weather warning for heavy rain tonight and into tommorrow....Elan Valley it'll be then!! I'm actually up there twice with punters, and Nantymoch next week, lovely job!!! Cuppa time .....

9 Trout

Professional rain dodging today ....Very smug with myself as it started raining just as I was doing the short drive back to Rhayader from the top bridge section ( Camdwr brook ) running into the Ithon up from Llanddewi ....
A fun quick session before the rain !!! Three hours was great fun , with the river clear and low, reading 0.099m on the NRW gauge .... but workable with tiny dries !!! A goid few olives on the go from tennis... sort of went muggy for a while, that imminent rain feeling you know ....
Seven to the net, on size twenty dries ..... some lovely fish this morning too ..... A really good tussle on the six foot, two weight, superb fun !!
I noticed on the drive back home Steve has put beef cattle in the field by the lower parking area ...I don't think the bulls name is "Precious" either .....Lol !!!!
A fun few hours, seems an age since I've been on a wild stream .... probably eight days ....A couple of fab days recently on Nant-y-moch and Claerwen Reservoirs.... Great fun !!@ out with a client in the Elan Valley tommorrow, this overcast dull windy weather is perfect for the big wild reservoirs.....Happy days..Home time, and a decent mug of coffee !!!

7 Trout

Just a quick shimmy up the bottom beat from midday to just past two ish ... I did have a look at my fav, the Clywedog Brook, she's the colour of choccie at the mo after last night's rain ..... so went on to the Ithon.
Carrying colour, a tiny bit of height maybe, but gauge did say 0.099m before I headed out..., all of a sudden that brown horrid algae is on the stones ........ seems like the trout numbers dwindle when thr river " turns " ..... I'm sure they make tracks and head further downstream.... The stuff is aweful, smelly too !!!!..Can this get tested by your lab guru's WUF ???? Needs looking at I'd say .... Anyway, fishing wasn't that lively, no rises seen the whole time there, although I did do some clipping back as well with secateurs ....A very very quite river today if I'm honest, six to my dry fly, all ditto in size, about seven inches, .... its as if someone's flicked a switch on the Ithon .... most weird . Certainly WUF the river water sample needs taking I'd say ....Got a hunch chicken shit run off is going into it ... or if you can't, Flag it up to NRW ...let me know what the progress is please TV.M.
Not a bad session .... certainly not the river of seven weeks ago ..... run off ???? Using my hunch I'd say yes ..... NRW, over to you ????
Must admit, I'm ready to get back on the Edw and the Cammarch now ....Can we get a progress report on these WUF ???? After all, some of our best wild streams are out of action at the mo, with no updates for season permit holders ????
Will perhaps head to the Lugg or Arrow in a few days.. in fact amend, not the Arrow,that's closed too !! The one section of the glorious Lugg it is then .... seems strange how long the Lugg is, yet as a wild stream beat we have only ....2 !!!! One of which is nearly not fishsble now..Pilleth ??? More Lugg beats needed me finks ... be superb that !! Anyway,onwards and upwards .... Clients at Nantymoch end of the week .... Happy days !!!

5 Trout

A hot sultry morning when I parked up at half nine ....should have gone three hours earlier to be honest .... I've found optimum fly life seems to be between 18 and 22 degrees or there abouts, especially here!!!.... over that and things seek shade , classic example today !!! Very little hatching, or over the river ...mind you, old numb nuts choose the hottest part of the day pretty much !!! Never mind lol ....
Managed six brownies to the net, splashy hits on my dry fly, all about seven to nine inches ... right up in the fast, oxygenated stuff now ....The Ithon is now very very low and clear.... really spooky fish too !! Funny how's she's totally different from a week ago, or even four or five days !!!! Mega low and difficult !!! A weather warning pinged on my phone whilst there..... possible thunderstorms Thursday.... Much needed !!!
I did bump into Steve the farmers wife, very pleasant and she didn't see any probs with sorting more Ithon water carrying on from the top of the Llanddewi beat .... email should you require details etc etc ....
A fun slow four hours, albeit hot and sticky !! Lots of horse flies out !!! The trick is yo let them.land then nail them !!!
Time for a large pint of squash with copious amounts of ice in it !!!! Sorted .......

6 Trout

Lovely little river, but quite a lot of barbed wire to overcome to gain access. Arrived at 11.30 to find 3 rod licence checkers waiting - obviosly scan the website. Nice pools to fish in beautiful surroundings apart from the main road.
All small fish under 1/2 lb, but fun to catch and return.
Grass needs a little cutting back, but lots of gravel areas to fish from if you don't want to wade.
Congratulations for first class website.

1 Trout, 2 Grayling

A muggy sort of morning when I arrived at the lower Llanddewi parking area... Reading 18 on my trucks dash , nice conditions initially, but later around one the wind really picked up !!!
Fun on the dries ....again!!@ River sat at a lovely height....on the NRW gauge reading 0.101m when I set off this morning... Tis only a quick few minutes from Rhayader in fairness ....
Fifteen made it to the net , with a couple of crackers for here too !!! Most around the usual seven to nine inches, but two beauties of perhaps eleven inches ...Cracking takes too during this session..... a few sedge on the go from half twelve and some of the smaller upwings .... A fab session to be honest ... I got out at the galvanised gate on the right, with the huge Landslide escarpment on your left ...That's just enough for a three hour session in fairness ....
Didn't see Mr.Mink, but busy activity with kingfishers, fantastic to see....
Shame about the Edw and other beats not on the go at the mo, with the risk of crayfish plague contamination.... tis a fair call on behalf of NRW ...
Don't rule out beats like the Cilieni and the Bran folks, they're fab ....I'm giving two of those a crack next week !! With Nantymoch sandwiched between them me thinks!!! Lol ....Anyway, onwards and upwards, a fun three hours .....Happy days!!!!

1 Salmon, 15 Trout

0.103m on the gauge but flowing nicely. Managed 7 brownies, one a netter. Pleased to have a few targeted rises. All caught on 20's Griffith gnat. Only fished Steve's bottom field to give J.A a bit more water to work with. ????for him and R.

7 Trout

I was actually guiding Rob Alp today, We initially went to bottom of the beat as a season permit holder, but a local chappy, another Rob has just started, hence no car in the parking area....I did recognise him from seeing him up at Craig Goch reservoir last season .... I wished him well, and asked is he's fishing above the bridge, which he wasn't , perfect..... onwards to the top half !!!
Actually my client Rob applied watercraft and got to grips with these Welsh freestone rivers....Fishing dries I recommended and likely honey holes .... and fishing holding areas. Fishing was superb....A dozen to his net, dries all the way to the top of the beat ....A changed man !! Think a wild streams season permit man for next year !!! Water was sitting at 0.104m on the NRW gauge and perfect for dries.....all fish between six and nine inches I guess ....One lump hammered the dry fly... but didn't make it to my eager net !! A spirited effort to be honest !!! To top off the day ... technical stuff on the Afon Elan, but fair play .... Reading the water , avoiding drag, Rob brought two more stunning fish to the net !!! A fun guided day.... Ready for an Inchs Cider @ The Crown in Rhayader now!!! Happy days .......

12 Trout

Well, i watched the NRW River gauge online intently over 24 hours .... dropping steadily on the Ithon, but I know she stays coloured up for quite some time .... On the gauge this morning, reading a height of 0.112m .... nice height I thought, so headed down... really for just a mooch, see if the mink was out and about !!! Which he wasn't.... I fished from eleven till half two .... Good fun, dry fly as usual, Para Greenwells and f- fly .. The two foot deep glides, being the most productive... Although, with visibility down to probably twelve inches, I wasnt expecting mega furious sport ....
Plenty of upwings and sedge on the go by half one and dare I say it it, the temperature must have been about twenty ish degrees !!!! Fish responded and I had some lovely splashy takes including three of them risers, which is always nice I find !!
I did see a huge eel, to be honest he spooked me, I thought what the hell is that, it was nymphing in the Rocks, splashy around, i can only assume a tasty fat bullhead was under an awkward stone, and he couldn't get at him... thrashing around, must have been three feet, in one foot depth of water .... A fantastic spectacle!!!
I managed nine to my net, another three slipping off, all peas in a pod today, with one of perhaps eleven Inches, the rest of the gang were about eight inch fish .... tubby strong little specimens though !!!
A fun few hours sport, this river will settle down by Friday and clear nicely by then I should imagine ....With Rhayader Carnival on, the Saturday could get very boozy ...... Thankfully clients out the Thurs and Fri ..... big relief !!!!! Lol .....Happy days ....

9 Trout

Up at Sparrows fart, jobs all nailed, two bookings confirmed up in the Elan Valley later this season ... A real fleece kind of day ...13 degrees, on and off drizzle ... where to go ??? Just for a couple of hours , drove to Llanddewi, bottom parking free, carried on to bridge parking further on .... thar was free too, sorted !!!
Fished just that section from above the no fish zone, where ever the signs are, I kind of swag it ya know !!!! Lol !!! Anyway started there right on up to the top of thr beat, coloured water, but good to see it pushing through, fishing dries in the runs of about a foot deep were buzzing this morning !!! Lots missed, but managed seven to my net, and another three coming off ... gggrrrrrrr, one was a decent brownie too .... oh well, cest la vie !!
This rain has come at a perfect time for the rivers in fairness, the Ithon was certainly in need of a flush through. Only a couple of hours from midday to just gone two .. Managed to rain dodge the heavy stuff , looked like heading back some deeper puddles on the A44 that looked recent !!! So I didn't do toooooo bad for this short session. Fun as always here, kingfisher up and down twice.... I wonder how tricky they find coloured up water ????
Anyway a fun session, fish all about seven or eight inches, nothing big today, back to The Ponderosa and a large Baileys Coffee me thinks, before a decent three mile run later ..... Happy days !!!

7 Trout