Feedback & Reports

Lovely fly caught fish today on beat 2 to a syndicate member 14lb. Landed by Tom. Worked hard this morning to entice the fish which were showing but sadly no salmon and then the effort was rewarded. Same too [apparently] at Letton Court. Lets hope we get more water.

Another good day despite the rain. Lots of fish rising in the afternoon. Exciting fishing to dry fly Olives and Yellow May Duns. All fish returned.

Thanks and hope to be back soon.

4 Trout

Early start due to forecast rain for later. Great beat. At least 7 fish rising just in top pool by lodge. Tricky wading in parts. One 5 inch wbt caught & safely released, One 11 inch wbt kept. Both on nymphs. (If only I could reliably fish the dry...) Torrential rain by 2pm saw us rained off not long after.

2 Trout

16lb silver cock fish, caught @ 7.30pm. Size 10 double, floater with fast tip. High condition factor. Swam away strongly.

1 Salmon

Very early start to beat the canoes - fished hard till lunch sadly for nothing. 1 fish seen in Maddox and 5 in Vanstone right at the end of the beat. Canoes became unbearable around 12.30, but up to that point very enjoyable.

1 Chub

A very frustrating day - really really windy quite cold and the threat of heavy rain. Only one fish seen breaking the water - had absolutely no bites on the float or ledgering - went for a walk around the lake and saw some bubbles close in to the bank - dropped a bit of bread flake into the water and boom - float gone and hooked into a large fish. After a great fight managed to land it - pristine 13 pound common carp. Almost made the day worth it but overall a very disappointing session due to the combination of poor weather and little action. I love the location though and will definitely be coming back for a third attempt!

1 Other

River low and clear. Best fish was between 1.5 and 2lb most fish taken upstream nymphing, more surface activity after it started raining and did it rain, absolutely soaked by the time I packed in. All fish in lovely condition and were returned. Best of the three days fishing.

6 Trout

Another bank holiday? A pre-dawn start then. Hooked a 8-10 lb fish at 5.20am on a Willie Gunn pattern tubefly but with the running line looped around the rod butt I was doomed; even scampering down the bank-side path, studs clattering upon the concrete, did nothing to save the situation. Lesson learnt..... Run faster!
The wind picked up just 20 minutes before the first canoes arrived at 9.40. However, by then I had managed to see my first ever Shad, x3, [once I'd worked out just where they were in the run I was able to avoid catching any more], and a good sized chub, 4lb + and a small pike but no more sign of salmon.
Good news for the Coarse Anglers though: some kind soul has marked the best Barbel pegs, with half-round fence posts so you can find them in the herbage, towards the top of the beat.

1 Chub, 1 Pike, 3 Other

The day started dry but quickly deteriorated. Started at the middle of the beat working to the top, no fish seen rising or caught despite a vast number of olives hatching. Boulders overturned revealed masses of various nymphs which we concluded was the reason for the lack of surface activity. Moving to the bottom of the beat a few Mays were hatching, 1 large trout lost. A few trout started to rise in the afternoon, 8 caught. On Adams and Elk Hairs. 1 large fish lost above 2nd dam. Beautiful show of wild flowers and the blue bells are the best I've seen. Thanks for a great day.

8 Trout

First time on this stretch of small river and was an enjoyable way to spend a few late afternoon hours. It was breezy day but once down at river level the density of plants and trees meant I hardly noticed the weather and it felt quite warm. Great fun wading up stream, casting a fly up into the pools above. Some of the beat is hard to access, mainly at top and bottom ends and a certain amount of scrambling about is required. This all adds to the enjoyment for me. Two small trout on nymph, one on a klink, best around 11 inches.

3 Trout