Feedback & Reports

Made a last minutes decision to fish as thought there might be small window before the rain coloured the river and brought it up. I was rewarded with a lovely mornings fishing in pleasant weather and a 10lb salmon from the Corner Tree pool. Was going to start at the top of the Vanstone but something told me I should cover the area around and downstream of the old broken croy in the Corner Tree. Fish was taken on a size 5 Monkey double and a heavy sinking (T10) tip on a slow sinking shooting head. No other fish seen or touched. Fished down through the Vanstone thoroughly by which time it was 14.00ish and the weather was really deteriorating. Time to head home.

1 Salmon

Two novice salmon rods (one spinning, one fly) fished both banks - the right bank in the morning in the rain and the left in the afternoon. No salmon caught or seen but a two pound trout taken spinning from the shingle at 'The Windmill' made a pleasant surprise (returned).
Like the beat, good access.

1 Trout

River level low, weather, sunny intervals, temp +5. Spinning various flying C + Mep spoon. Nothing seen, nothing caught. Good access to a well kept beat. Will be back. Thanks.

Blank, except for a 29 inch kelt and a number of trout which wanted to grab a Black and Yellow tube. The water was on 1 foot 3 inches at Fownhope, some greyish colour to the water. And, oh boy, the weather was really something! The wind was a gift from Mother Russia, up to a gale force for much of the time, and mostly blowing straight downstream. So with a heavy tube, it was double Speys or "chuck and duck" if you wanted to chance it. Rod rings iced up continuously through the day, except for one hour after lunch. Wading jacket froze stiff as did wading trousers when out of the water and standing in the wind. Mini-blizzards of snow every half hour or so. I always thought Herefordshire a place with a moderate spring climate?

Weather was freezing and water a bit high (1' 4'' at Fownhope). Persevered with a fly but no response.

A very cold, steel grey skied day with a nasty chill wind made it a tad dour. The water had risen a couple of nights earlier from 11'' to 1' 4'' and it carried some coulour. The fly didn't do much and I tried a spinner for an hour and that did less. The beat notes are quite right about loosing the odd spinner in the Tree Corner pool :-)
All in all a good day,and some of the runs and pools here are tremendous fly water but in the end it was just too raw.

Fished all day with the fly with no luck.

Two kelts caught and a sharp pull felt in the bottom pool. The water was at approx 11'' dropping perhaps a tiny bit during the day. It was slightly coloured.
The kelts were taken on a 1 1/2 brass black and yellow tube on an intermediate line with a fast sink tip.
The beat had some excellent fly water, particulalry at the bottom end. Some of the higher pools were rather difficult to access through overgrown banks over very slipery mud. The upper half would not be recommended for anyone with mobility issues whilst the lower half was much easier with some steps and a reasonable walkway along the pools at this hight. All in a all great day out, lots of wildlife, especially water foul preparing to mate.

2 Other

No salmon caught or seen, water a touch too high for fly, salmon taken by someone else on the beat though so they were there!!

1 x cock salmon 30 inches, Black and Gold Flying C. 1 foot 2 inches on the Fownhope gauge, slightly greyish colour in the water, and should have been good for the fly. However, I worked away most of the day with a fast sink tip and Black and Yellow tube which had accounted for a couple of kelts at Chainbridge the day before, but without a touch. Changed to the spinning rod late afternoon and was rewarded before sunset, not with a 3 sea winter monster, but a nice fresh silver cock fish from Island Stream.
Reading a report from the previous day prompts me to admit that I funked wading the V into Dog Hole. The notes tell you that you can do it at levels below 1 foot 3 inches, but then I do suspect these notes are written by someone who stands around 6 foot 3 inches in his socks and fear does not enter into his thinking. True grit! Am I right Simon?
Otherwise, it looks like some work is going on to prune some of the bushes on the banks and mark the entry points to pools with stakes. I am sure that will be much appreciated by many, especially when the jungle starts to grow again on the upper part of the beat.
Altogether a very nice day, with the sun shining at last!

1 Salmon