Feedback & Reports

Lovely day fishing, beautiful beat. Tried FCs and Devon minnows but unfortunately no luck. Saw a big salmon surface well below the bridge, but wall to wall sunshine so tough fishing. Excellent roast at Foxhunter too

Good water & nice beat to fish (although the incessant rain didn't bode well) but no salmon. Water too coloured and got worse during the day. Unfortunately, the small stream a few hundred metres upstream of the hut was discharging untreated effluent into the river. Smelt very much like a sewer overflow. I have reported to NRW, as an incident, but may be worth following up.

1 Trout

Arrived with river 0.66m and nice colour. Fished hard for 7 hrs Only two fish seen at tip of Rock and Cables. G.E. had a good pull fishing on the opposite bank but that was the sum of the action, except S.B. Going for a late afternoon swim ! No salmon but enjoyable day ended with four of us talking about fishing pint in hand on the sunny pub decking. River rose to over 1 metre in next 2 hrs. Back soon but time running out.

2 salmon fishing novices trying their luck again on the Usk. Encouraged by the falling water a catch on the beat the previous evening. Bari the owner was generous with his advice and also enthusiastic re prospects. We arrived to find more colour than expected and tried with various FCs, devons and mepps but no connections or surface activity during the day. 2 trout of about 12oz as bicatch in the flats above the bridge. Thank you to Dave, the season rod, for his company. A really enjoyable day on a picturesque beat with a convenient pub for lunch (soon to close for a fortnight as new management take over).

2 Trout

Fishing the beat as a prize in a WUF raffle, my wife and I arrived at Chain Bridge at a delayed 11 am expecting the river to be high but not 1 metre up a and of a colour that would do justice to a mixture of Irfon and Ithon at their worst. We had been well briefed ,however, by Bari, the owner and kind donor, that being the Usk, it would fall during the day and even clear a little.
Fly fishing was out of the question and we spent the morning exploring the beat, even making the occasional cast with a yellow FC more in hope than expectation.
After a prolonged and excellent lunch supplied by Charles at the Chain Bridge Hotel, Bari's prediction was spot on and the river had fallen a few inches and was marginally clearer.
I started fishing again with a yellow tailed FC and connected with a coloured hen of around 12 lbs just upstream of the bridge at about 4.30 pm. It was quickly released and swam off strongly.
I was most impressed with the beat, especially the Rocks pool which must be super to fish in good water conditions. Very many thanks to all concerned for a most enjoyable day. Strangely enough in over 70 years of salmon fishing, this was only my third Usk salmon.

1 Salmon

One fish showing lower Rock Pool. Went through with both fly and spinner but didn't move anything. Clear, low water and bright. Hard work but a great day none the less. Beautiful beat.

Beat was excellent and Barry the owner most helpful. Found it easily accessible from the caravan park side. A few fish showing here and there including one big salmon. Felt we got tactics reasonably well suited to conditions, trying some spinning but mainly stuck to fly for salmon and sea trout.
Other than the two trout not a touch or follow all day though. Would like to try again but perhaps need to review time of year.

2 Trout

Arrived around midday with 5.5 on the gauge and carrying quite a nice colour, was informed that fish had been caught earlier in the week so was quietly optimistic, alas today wasn't to be? fished hard on the fly but that first fly caught salmon is still alluding me! Couple of coloured
fish seen by the submerged tree/log below rock pool with one of them looking well into its teens. Although no fish caught still a nice day.

Fished below the bridge and saw a fish move above the wires. Tried it with red/silver FC without response. Changed to yellow/copper and it took 2nd cast. 10lb safely returned on micro barbed single hook. Lunch on veranda of Chain Bridge pub excellent as usual.

1 Salmon

Novice to salmon fishing so an absorbing afternoon trying spinning tackle and tactics. Not sure the thunder, downpours and colouring of the river helped. 2 salmon seen surfacing but no connections this time.