Feedback & Reports

Lovely peace of water. A little fast flowing for most, but crystal clear compared with the Monnow the day before. Quite a cold and brisk downstream breeze when we started around midday, and very overcast but the sun soon broke through around 1pm shortly after which there was an abaundance of fly life on the water. Olives, LBD, a couple of Mayfly, Hawthorn and we even saw a few Alder fly.
Tactic was to sit back and watch for rises on selective slower runs and pools, which paid dividends with 3 fish hooked (and sadly lost at my feet!) and at least half a dozen or so missed takes. Wasn't to be in terms of fish to hand but a good day all round, despite the losses.
My partner had a nil return too.

Water very cold, chilly breeze. River conditions exellent for salmon, but sadly no sign of them. Later tried for trout at lower end of beat. Hooked and lost a pound class fish, then landed another slightly bigger on an elk hair sedge size 16. Fish returned. This beat would probably fish wonderfully for trout with 18 ins. less water.

Fantastic day on this beat we are getting to know quite well. A fair few fish showing, most of them silver slabs. One salmon on a hitched tube - came half out of the water to engulf it! Deep sided, fresh fish with lice marks on, estimated 14lbs (from length). What a fish! What a day!

15 lb salmon caught and released in Kitty pool, caught on fly. Yesterday saw a fish of approx 30lbs jump clear of the water in the same pool!

Another great afternoon on this beat with hatches of sedges, olives, mayflies, yellow may duns, hawthorns and gnats leading to some terrific dry fly fishing. Ended up with around 25 hard-fighting trout and a few grayling, the best two trout again were in the 1.75lb region. All fish were released.

Had three hours at Glanusk on the final leg of a 5-day trip to WUF country. Started fishing about 11am, nymphed the riffley water below the bridge unsuccessfully for an hour.
Then the sun shone through (first time in 5 days) and immediately fish started showing in the pool below the bridge. Prolific LDO hatch for about 20 minutes followed by some Yellow Mayfly.

It seemed that the trout were taking the emergers just beneath the surface film, the rises being boils rather than splashes. Tied on a trusty French Partridge, let it absorb some water and fished it just below the surface. 4wbt landed, all around the 12" mark. Felt the fishing was going to be good all afternoon but alas all good things have to come to an end and the M4 beckoned.

On the way home I refelected on 5 days of such varied and enjoyable fishing. I spent around £100 on the beats which took me to small mountain streams, pristine freestone water and the volumous Wye. I caught half a dozen fish a day, nothing under 7" and many over 10", every fish on a dry fly, nothing that had ever seen the inside of a hatchery. I walked, scrambled and waded in some breathtaking countryside, met some friendly and generous people and enjoyed every minute. That £100 would buy me half a day on the River Test or Itchen. Very simply, there's no comparison. Thank you WUF.

Warmer weather and a glorious stretch of water to explore set us up for a fine day. While my companions could only fish for a short morning session due to travel plans I fished for most of the day entranced by pockets of rising fish. 4 good-sized grayling to 1lb 10oz came to hand, 2 on peeping caddis nymphs and 2 on a small dry Deerhair Adams, but no sign of trout. The biggest fish came off at the crucial moment but was estimated to be a 2lb+ grayling. A decapitated sea lamprey was evident on the bank under the railway bridge and adjacent paw prints suggested the work of an otter.

A second successive day on the Arrow. The river level had dropped an inch or two overnight and continued to drop during the day, and the river looked perfect!
Early takes on nymphs were followed by some fish taking dry flies after a noticeable warming of air temperature (around 1pm) combined with hatches of medium olives and sedges.

10 brown trout up to 10 ins, all caught on a tan klinkhammer and also missed several rises. Good hatch of flies.

Nothing caught & nothing even seen...