Feedback & Reports

We tried this beat with some trepidation in view of the recent reports regarding access and talk of long walks etc. They were well wide of the mark and we wondered if those anglers are used to fishing the Wye? The directions to the beat were accurate and easy to follow. The parking area is well marked. The walk along the track to the river is on very easy terrain and only takes ten minutes or so. As soon as you hit the river bank you will see that the swims are all marked by white posts. For the Wye these banks are as good as it gets and no one should have any difficulty finding a comfortable place to fish. The upper stretch has relatively shallow fast flowing water whilst the downstream area is slower and deeper. Between the four of us we covered most of the beat and without trying too hard took 16 barbel and some chub. We will probably return in the autumn when the river is carrying a little more water and which we think will suit the lower stretch in particular.

Thanks to all at the WUF for another excellent addition to your portfolio of beats.

Last day of our 1st 3 day fishing holiday on the Wye for this year. Found directions to Lower Cannon very accurate as ever and after reading some previous comments regarding access we were relieved to find a WUF parking notice in the Farm Yard. We used the first access to the river as identified on our beat map, through both fields with the cows & calfs, only to discover on our return home that this path has now been closed. Apart from the swims from the weir down to the wall end opposite the gardens, we only managed to find a couple of swims lower down where the river slows and widens, where we blanked, probably down to a Mink and Otter which we spotted working the river. Total fish caught was 18 barbel and 4 chub between the four anglers, best single catch being 7 barbel and a single chub from a swim nearing the end of the wall on the opposite bank. Many swims were very snaggy as we all lost plenty of ledger weights, another red hot day on the Wye, looks like we captured the best 3 consecutive fine days of 2012. Be back soon, many thanks to the WUF.

5 barbel and 4 good chub. Almost a different river from conditions 5 days earlier. Level dropped and more swims fishable, and the pace over the fast sections reduced. I made a point of keeping away from these snaggy areas. Two of the barbel had bad tears caused by hooks. Farmer just cut barley, so made the long walk down easier.

21 barbel caught 8lb 8oz, chub 4lb.
We found the map of the beat was very misleading, the walk to the beat was at least 1 mile from the carpark. There should be more work done between the farmer and the Trust so that it would be possible to park at the bottom of his track. This would only make the walk to the river one field. We found the farmer very helpful on which field to walk to to make it easier for us as we are both 68yrs old. We will fish this again when the problems are sorted. we stayed at Mr and Mrs Anscombe Cider Barn at the top the track near to the Trusts carpark.

WUF note - Following a meeting with the landowner and tenant farmer yesterday, July 25th 2012, we can report that the access issues will be resolved in the next few weeks. In the meantime, there is a ½ mile walk from the car park down the track to the river’s edge (measured on Google Earth and GIS). Anyone concerned about this is asked to refrain from booking Lower Canon Bridge for now. We will announce when the improvements have been made on beat’s webpage.

3 barbel and a 5lbs 2oz chub. the latter same fish of 21.7.12.

Bright hot sunny day. River fined down. Blanked due to the angler not the venue which is fantastic. Can't even blame the canoes which kept well clear of my swim in the lower section (barley field?).

4 barbel and a 5lbs 3oz chub, subsequently caught again on 23.7.12. Total confusion on map access paths around fields with the farmer variously concerned with cattle in that one, crops in that one, all to change with the seasons. Renting the farm from the council all he gets from anglers is the grief, not the money. This needs to be effectively sorted as the walk down track is long rough and v muddy in the wet, and then there's the fields to trek through. I know WUF visited to sort this out, lets hope we get access down to the riverbank, as the locals do this anyway, to paddle in the gravels on very pretty stretch.

Began fishing around 10.30am. River a touch high but looking good. Rain moved in midday and hung around to mid-afternoon. Caught 8 barbel all nice sized fish and 2 big chubb on a variety of baits.

We arrived on a wet morning and after parking found the long walk to the river rather tiring as this required passing over and around several gates and through long grass and nettles. In all it took us 20 mins fully loaded with gear to reach the first of the useful swims. There were several nice swims some obviously more used than others with the top end seemingly the most popular.
We caught 14 barbel to about 8lb and numerous chub and most of the fish came during a short spell between 1pm and 3pm with nothing much earlier or later. The river was about 1m high but easily fishable however you should be prepared for tackle losses in the first two swims.
Upon leaving and walking up the lane we did encounter a problem with an aggressive farmer who said we should have walked the long way around the fishery in all approx 2 miles which was ludicrous when a much shorter path was clearly marked on the map. He is obviously most unhappy about people fishing here and after waving a large piece of wood in our direction told us not to come back again. I believe he is a tenant and not at all happy with the arrangement the landowners have with WUF. I am mailing the WUF fishery officers seperately on this as feel this could have turned ugly.
Otherwise, a nice fishery with many easily accessable swims once you reach the waterside.

WUF Note: We are meeting the landowner and the farmer on Wednesday to resolve the access issues.

For some reason we struggled today. Fished mainly in the first field section. As others have said before this is a very snaggy area and more time was spent tieing new rigs than fishing! One rod blanked and I only managed 1 barbel and 1 chub on the usual hair rigged pellet and feeder combo. We stayed at the Greenman at Fownhope which isn't the cheapest but I couldn't fault it. Fantastic food and beer!