Edw Hundred House

Steeped in history, it is easy to lose yourself in the magical Edw valley. Folklore has it that Prince Llewelyn, the last Welsh Prince of Wales, hid in the caves at Aberedw in 1282 before escaping the forces of Edward I by turning the shoes on his horse the wrong way round, eventually being slain near the river Irfon. Whatever the legend, the valley’s history is evident through the numerous castles and earthwork fortifications, many of which are still visible today.

This upper Wye tributary has been one of the most popular trout streams in the Passport scheme. With 4 beats and around 5 miles of water to fish, the Edw offers a good variety of water and could almost be described as a river in reverse. The lower 2 beats are high gradient and flow quickly over bedrock making them a fairly difficult wade but providing some fantastic pools and glides. The upper 2 beats, however, run through farmland and are more leisurely and meandering.

The furthest upstream of the Edw fishing, the river at Hundred House is slower, more meandering than the rocky sections of river further downstream. Although the river is small, there are some very deep pools that hold surprisingly large trout. The silt and gravel riverbed means the beat benefits from some good mayfly hatches. In addition, the wading is relatively easy although because of the size of the stream here, a surreptitious approach is essential.

Ideally fished with a 6½-8ft, 2 to 4wt rod.

There was an outbreak of crayfish plague in the lower Irfon on the Wye catchment in July 2024 resulting in the deaths of the many of the native white-clawed crayfish. This beat contains a healthy population of native crayfish therefore, visiting anglers MUST ensure against cross contamination by approved check/dry/disinfection procedures, and importantly waders, nets and tackle should be sprayed with Virkon disinfectant before and after fishing.

Availability & Booking

View this beat's catch returns

View this beat's gallery