Feedback & Reports

Blank. It's getting to seem quite normal to be fishing a pool in falling snow with the air temperature at 2 degrees. There's something to be said for a salmon day at the moment as the use of two hands keeps you that much warmer. No action, though a few hefty trout decided to bang into the tube fly while fishing down the Rock Pool. One was one of those silvery Usk trout which sometimes get mistaken for peal.

3 Trout

J and I fished the top beat for salmon. Gin clear and .7m. No takes and none seen. No trout rising either. Sparse dark Olive hatch at 2-3pm. Wind Easterly and temp 3C. Fished subsurface till 4.25. J landed one at 1lb from the Wood Stream on Partridge/Orange size 14. I had a blank.

2 Trout

A very cold day, no higher than 5C. It started raining about 11:00am and didn't stop. We did see a few olives on the surface, but no sign of any fish at all! We called it a day about 15:00.

Nice bright day, light breeze, .65m, clear, small hatch of dark olive around 1pm, and the odd march brown. Fished 12pm - 4pm with no takes using 14/16 weighted nymph & waterhen bloa/partridge and orange on dropper. John did his usual masterclass and managed 1 trout to 6oz, otherwise nothing.
11th looks horrid, with 24mph wind, and freezing or below, so will feel like -6. May go if wind drops otherwise unlikely.
Nice to catch up with you Barry, see you soon.

1 Trout

Opening day finally arrived after an interminably long winter. Wonderful to be out especially in such entertaining company.Thermal longjohns de rigeur. Owner Barry (generous as ever) provided a delicious picnic lunch. Two of us likeminded individuals brought a bottle of Penderyn welsh single malt to wet the rivers head. We were were once again treated by Tom Hannon to the speycasting to which we all aspire(in our dreams)! A sporadic hatch of Arctic Olives occurred at 1.30 but no risers. Oliver Burch was the only successful angler with two kelts safely returned. What a thoroughly enjoyable day.

Arrived at 8, river 0.86m on the gauge (rose 6cms in next six hours). Well it finally happened after only twenty visits this year! A 12lb cock fish [colouring] was caught on an orange/gold flying C. My first salmon was safely returned. I am so thrilled.
A big thankyou to the two Toms, both great company on the river and freely giving of their wealth of knowledge.
Tom Hannon showed me the high water lie from which the fish was extracted and Tom Richards gave me great advice on modifying my spinning style and choice of lure. A big thank you to owner Barry for his endless encouragement.
Lastly, I am so grateful to the WUF for helping this Gwent boy back to his angling roots [first cast a fly for trout on the usk approx. 50 years ago]. Keep up the great work.

Nil Caught. Last time I believe to the weather forcast! They said rain morning sun by 3pm therefore aimed to get there for 11.30am. Unavoidable delays meant arriving in reasonably good weather at 1pm, thought thats ok fish till 7pm. Heavy Rain from 3.30pm gave up 4.30 Dark, Rain stair rods, Drenched! Still enjoyed the bit of fishing I got, maybe next year.

River just under 1 meter and clear. 3 running fish head and tailed in pool above The Rock. Fished mainly the top 2 pools. No luck this time with the fish but great to be fishing.

Started above Rock Pool and had a hen fish of about 13lb on back /gold Flying C. Single hook for easy release. Fished through Rock Pool with no result so went below bridge [Bridge Stream Fishery) and had a 10lb cock fish again releasd. Fished Scottish Dee last week for 1 fish. Grass is not always greener!

Nil return.
Some observations from a newby - As a rod who is new to river fishing I was attracted to Chainbridge for many reasons - not least was the WUF comments about the site that "Wading in this part of the Usk is relatively easy over the gravel riverbed." Er, no! To my mind that's a bit misleading. It isn't gravel, if it is then it's bl**dy big bits of gravel and I wouldn't have said it was relatively easy! If this is easy compared to the other sites then I'll have to get my scuba stuff out.
Didn't like Barn too much as I spent too much time having arguments with trees and bushes, well, at least my flies did! Couldn't work out how to fish Oak!
A Wiltshire rod suggested a swim upstream from the bridge, many thanks!! I guess it was Rock and spent a lively hour trying to prevent myself from drowning. However I enjoyed every minute of attempting to master the environment and the fishing! The river was in great nick and my nil return is due to my inexperience of river fishing.
On way back to the car I stopped off and managed to catch a roach so that was nice! A two man canoe then appeared from nowhere and confirmed when challenged that they were allowed on the river as stated in the Miners Federation Web site, at least that's what I think they said. Luckily they managed to canoe about a metre away from where I was trying to land my fly, so that was pleasing. They disappeared very quickly as the river was running fast. I'm not sure of the rules so that was that. I'll just have to try again!
Tight Lines!