Cannop Brook

The Cannop Brook is a small Forest of Dean stream perfect for a few hours brown trout fishing. This is a stretch of approximately 1 mile, located between Parkend and Whitecroft, a few miles upstream of Lydney. Although following a fairly straight channel, there are several meanders which provide good depth and cover for the resident brown trout. Wading through the channel is not possible in all places, and care should be taken when navigating around fallen trees.

The beat is ideally fished with a 6 to 7ft, 1 to 3wt rod.

The Forest of Dean holds a population of native White-clawed crayfish which are a European Protected Species under the Habitats Directive. It is under threat from the non-native Signal crayfish which transmit crayfish plague that is lethal to the native species when introduced to catchments where White-clawed crayfish are found. Signal crayfish have recently been recorded in Cannop Ponds and are suspected to be present throughout the brook. We have an internationally important native white-clawed crayfish population present in parts of the Blackpool catchment and are therefore very concerned about the potential for cross contamination.

There was an outbreak of crayfish plague in the Forest of Dean during 2021 resulting in the deaths of the many of the native white-clawed crayfish in one brook. It is vital that we all do everything we can to prevent this disease from being spread. There is a very real possibility that the Forest of Dean population of native crayfish will be lost completely if we do not take measures to prevent cross contamination.

The following measures must be undertaken to protect the existing White-clawed crayfish population:

The Cannop and Blackpool are completely separate catchments, if anglers plan to fish both in the same visit to the forest they should fish Blackpool first followed by Cannop and not the other way round to minimise risk of cross contamination.

As a condition of fishing Forest of Dean streams, visiting anglers must ensure against cross contamination by approved check/dry/disinfection procedures, and importantly waders, nets and tackle should be sprayed with Virkon disinfectant before and after fishing, commonly available from tackle shops. Forest rangers may check to see that anglers have Virkon sprayers ready for use in their vehicles.

No crayfish species (or any other species unless under a Suppliers Permit) are to be introduced to the catchment.

Please report any sightings of crayfish to the Forestry England at westengland@forestryengland.uk

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