14 Apr 2023

South West Lakes Trout Fisheries Report

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March 2023

The new season is now firmly underway at the South West Lakes trout fisheries, with the rainbow waters opening on 11 March, and brown trout on 15 March. Where available, boats are now on the water, and should be pre-booked (online or via the telephone). Generally the weather for the opening weeks has been challenging to anglers, with strong winds, rain, and cold temperatures, and the fish mainly feeding in the deeper waters, although fish have been looking up to feed at a few of the waters.

Fishing:

Kennick – Rods averaged 3.7 fish per angler on opening day, with a variety of methods and depths all producing good results. Paul Osborne (from Exeter) caught the best opening day fish – a rainbow of 3lb 8oz, as part of a bag of five fish, while Duncan Kier (from Belstone) caught the best bag – twelve rainbows, using a blob fished from the bank. The week continued well, with the best results coming from using a variety of nymphs (Damsels and Buzzers) and lure patterns (Cats Whiskers, Black and Olive Snakes, Orange Fritz, and Boobies) fished on an intermediate line, with fish well spread out around the lake. Notable bags included ten rainbows to 3lb, caught by Johnny Mac (from Plympton) using a sinking line and stripped snakes, as well as ten rainbows to 3lb, caught by both J.Stainforth (from Brixham) and Mick White (from Bovey Tracey) – the latter caught using a flashy blue damsel on an intermediate line with a slow but constant retrieve. The level at Kennick is now up to 87% and filling.

Siblyback – The lake is full now, and opened the season on excellent form, with anglers averaging 5.3 fish per rod on the opening weekend. Tony Chipman (from Truro) caught nine rainbows (including two nice overwintered fish of around 2lb) using a slowly retrieved floating line with a team of buzzers. Generally intermediate or floating lines with a sink tip have been the most productive, with plenty of fish around Crylla and Stocky Bays, as well as the dam area, with a wide selection of nymph and lure patterns all catching fish. John Henderson (from Falmouth) caught the best bag, with eighteen rainbows to 2lb, all caught on a floating line with a sinking leader.

The Snowbee ‘Teams of Four’ bank competition was held on 2 April, with ten teams competing, and anglers averaging 3.05 fish. Roche Angling Club (Tony Chipman, Dave Perks, Pete Williams, and John Hutchings) were the winners, catching 21 fish weighing in at 32lb 7oz. Runners up were Fishiotherapy Time, and Kennick ‘C’ team came third.

Burrator – Levels are now full, with the best fishing to be had at Longstone Bank, Pigs Trough, and The Point. Al Lawson caught the best fish on opening day, catching four rainbows to 2lb from a boat shared with his brother Andy, who caught five rainbows on a floating line and jerky retrieve. Generally, dark lure and nymph patterns  fished on floating or intermediate lines with a variety of retrieves has proved to be the most successful tactic. Phil Adlam (from Plymouth) caught the best fish – a rainbow of 2lb11oz, using a sink-tip line and roly-poly retrieve, while Rob Slaney (from Yelverton) caught a bag of thirteen fish (including some browns and a blue), using a Black Damsel.

Stithians – The lake is now over 90% full. Opening day fished extremely well with anglers averaging seven fish per rod. Stephen Glanville (from St Agnes) caught the best fish of the day – a 2lb 11oz rainbow, as part of a seven fish bag, while John Henderson (from Falmouth) caught 16 rainbows and a brown, with many fish being taken on a dry Black Gnat (these were hatching on the day). Averages fell to a still respectable 3.64 fish per rod as the month progressed, with fish well spread out around the lake; intermediate and floating lines with a sink tip and various retrieves all caught well, with nymphs, lures and some dries all accounting for fish. Simon Peters (from Cusgarne) caught a bag of 20 fish on a floating line and fast ‘figure-of-eight’ retrieve, and John Henderson caught another bag of ten fish to 2lb 8oz.

Fernworthy – Surprisingly, this high Dartmoor lake (which is usually slow to start), opened the season with some excellent sport in spite of the adverse weather conditions, with anglers averaging eight fish per rod in the opening week. Rodney Wevill fished a Welshman Minnow on a floating line, and with Jack Welshman, the pair enjoyed a superb day’s sport, catching 22 browns, with 17 weighing in at between a pound and 2lb 8oz. With midges on the surface later in the month, anglers using the dry fly (Black Gnat, Black Klinkhammer, and Claret Hopper) were rewarded with some excellent sport, while other fish were taken using Soldier Palmers and black nymphs and tadpoles. Fish were well spread out around the lake, but the south bank, Thornworthy Bay, and area around the old permit hut proved to be particularly productive. Nicholas Freeman (from Andover) caught six browns to 2lb 6oz below the old hut, where fish were eagerly feeding throughout the day.

Roadford – Now at 68% full, and slowly filling, Roadford started the season well, with the dam area and Grinnacombe producing the best sport. Rodney Wevill (from Launceston) caught five browns using a Welshman Minnow and a mini Scruffy Tiger on a floating line. Plenty of fish have been in the shallows, and floating lines with Daddy Longlegs, Humungous, and Blue Zulu patterns have all caught fish, with anglers averaging 2.5 fish per rod.

For anglers’ information, this May and September, carp fishing will be introduced at Roadford Lake as a trial venture. Carp fishing will be limited to 12 swims and fly fishing will not be permitted in this area only. The long term aim is to improve Roadford Lake as a brown trout fishery.

Colliford – This water is still only just over 50% full, and so far has been slow to start, with only a few fish caught.

Wistlandpound – This lake North of Barnstaple offers some superb fishing for wild browns with good numbers of fish in the 8oz to 12oz size range and the occasional fish over 1lb. The rudd that have thrived in the lake can offer fun sport on dry fly tactics and its is likley that the bigger browns feast on these fish. Browns to over 3lb have been caught in recent seasons. Small black lures and tradiional wets flies work well.

Please see South West Lakes’ website (www.swlakestrust.org.uk/trout-fishing) for more information on buying tickets, boat availability and booking, and forthcoming events.

 

Chris Hall (April 2023)

14 Apr 2023

THOSE LESS PRODUCTIVE DAYS

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Compiling reports for NDANs I see lots of images of good fish and stories of success and these can inspire but can also raise expectations leading to disappointing days. I feel sure I am not the only one who sometimes sets out full of expectation and ends the day feeling slightly deflated.
In my case this disillusionment doesn’t last long for I know that if I keep at it long enough something good will come my way. Basically, effort equals reward and if you can afford to invest time and a little thought good things will eventually happen.
I have enjoyed a few non-productive days recently, fish caught wise anyway. There is generally a positive to be drawn from less productive days in the nature that surrounds or the company that is kept.
I have already swung a fly across the River on numerous occasions in search of salmon and have learnt to accept blank outings as the normal. The salmon just are not present in any numbers so all you can do is believe in the fly and present it to the best of your ability in the places that salmon are known to rest on their migration upriver.

A trip to Chew Valley Lake with my good friend Bruce Elston in early April proved a frustrating day. We set out on a mirror calm lake after a Full English in the Lodge. With bright sunshine and only a light- breeze we knew it was going to be hard going. Plus; we didn’t know what mode the pike would be in pre or post spawning? Local guide John Horsey told us he had seen some big fish but that they were proving fickle following the fly and then turning away.
The mighty Chew holds a certain fascination as the next cast can always bring the fish of dreams.

We drifted the water extensively that day. Twenty pound plus pike followed our flies; glimpses in the clear water that failed to connect.
We took a short break from the piking to have rest and tempt a trout on a buzzer.

But with huge pike to target I find it difficult to stop casting big flies after bigger targets.
We fished until the light faded as the sun sank below the hills. A day full of memories, we exchanged many fish tales and laid plans for future trips.


Chew is a magnet for twitchers and whilst I am no ornithologist I always enjoy hearing the birdsong and watching the many birds that haunt the lake. Grebes, swans, moorhens and coots. We caught sight of a hawk gliding over the reeds and I wasn’t sure what type it was.
We will be back later in the Spring once again.

Upper Tamar lake has been hailed as a mecca for big perch anglers. I headed there full of expectation. A couple of pots of juicy lobworms from Quay Sports a bag of raw prawns and a bucket full of ground bait mixed with mole hill soil. I had been given a tip on a productive swim and arrived at the lake shortly after 8:00am.

It was the day after Storm Noa and the wind had dropped but it was still a tad breezy and cool. Bright sunshine and a cool North West Wind. I was well wrapped up and relished the early signs of spring. It was good to see swallows and martins swooping low over the water.
The bobbins remained stubbornly static throughout the first couple of hours. Eventually I started to get a few twitchy bites on the lobworm baits. As the day drifted past I eventually caught a few tiny perch on lobworm and one on the prawn. A brown trout of around 8oz and a single roach. The fish would have thrilled me fifty years ago as a young angler but with age comes expectation.


As the light faded from another day I headed for home pondering my lack of success and looking forward to the next trip.

 

14 Apr 2023

SUPERB SPRING FISHING ON South West Lakes Waters

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A 3lb 8oz Perch John Deprieelle caught from Roadford this weekend. Perch fishing (by boat only) is offered alongside game fishing at Roadford. Purchase your permits and check the rules here: https://www.swlakestrust.org.uk/roadford-lake #ItsYourOutdoors

(Below) Steve Dawe caught three specimen bream at 11lb 10oz, 12lb 8oz and 13lb 6oz from Lower Tamar on a recent session.

( Below) Some fantastic catches by Joe Dietrich from Lower Tamar!
He had PBs all-round with a PB common of 31lb 6oz, PB tench of 7lb 10oz and a bream of 13lb
(Below) Ashley Bunning had 3 fish to 28lb 12oz at Lower Tamar last week, all on Nashbait Scopex Squid wafters over a bed of 20mm Scopex Squid freebies.
New carp fishing spot alert!
This May and September, we will be introducing carp fishing at Roadford Lake. This is an ideal, naturally beautiful location, just off the A30, perfect for anglers living in both Devon and Cornwall.
This will be a trial venture in a designated area at the lake, including 12 swims.
12 Apr 2023

SOUTH MOLTON and DISTRICT ANGLING CLUB – WELCOMES NEW MEMBERS

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The South Molton and District Angling Club was established in 1970 and has 5 miles of fishing on the picturesque River Bray for wild Brown trout.  The River Bray is a tributary of the River Mole, which in turn is a tributary of the River Taw.  It rises in Exmoor National Park, and our fishing beats are near Brayford on the southern edge of the moor.

We have two main fishing sections:

The first beat is called the Stucley Water, which is approximately three miles long and, for the most part, there is fishing on both banks.

The second beat is the Hunter Water, where again there is fishing on both banks for approximately one mile.

Both beats are very well maintained by way of regular bank clearing sessions, annual redds  count, Riverfly inspection, along with Westcountry CSI water quality monitoring.  This regular programme of maintenance is conducted by club members, and all members are welcome to join in.

The river is a spate river to a degree but does not stay coloured for very long due to the high water quality coming off Exmoor and not too intensive farming in the catchment. Fishing access for the most part, is easy.

Although some restrictions apply to salmon and sea trout fishing, the sport is usually fishing for wild brown trout, on fly only.

We have a series of six, still water, competition events throughout the year, and our chairman organises sea fishing trips off the coast of North Devon.

As a club, we hold monthly meetings, in the relaxed atmosphere of a local hostelry.  Fishing business is discussed and fishing tales exchanged!  We also have our yearly, more formal AGM which usually includes a speaker and is followed by a meal.

In the autumn we have our annual dinner to which partners are invited.

If you are interested and would like to find out more, then please email:

The Secretary [email protected] or The Chairman [email protected]

11 Apr 2023

Bideford Angling Club – Coarse Match Results

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April monthly Coarse section competition.
Results
1st Paul Elworthy 40lb 7oz
2nd Nathan Underwood  28lb 11oz
3rd Keith Copland 27lb 4oz
4th State N Dazza Polden  25lb 3oz
5th Craig Crash Lamey  23lb 15oz
6th Colin Cherrington  23lb 9oz
7th Roger Ackroyd  21lb 3oz
24 club members fished.
The club lake has fished well, despite the Easter weather. Brisk Southerly winds ensured that the pegs on the left hand side of Georges produced the main frame results.
Paul’s trip up the link road from Tiverton proved profitable, he topped the field with a cracking mixed net off peg 6 ,fishing red maggot on the waggler and pole Nathan, once again, put a great net together on peg 11 fishing maggot on a short pole.
Keith made up the top 3 with mainly carp on 12 , he used bread then maggot over micros
We must thank Bideford ambulance for their rapid response to the incident at the end of the match .
11 Apr 2023

Gigantica Adventure

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Quay Sports Shop manager Chris Connaughton – Mono has recently returned from the almighty Gigantica. Fishing in very tough conditions with the lake not producing many bites Chris decided that Instead of using the usual spomb tactic to get a bed of bait out at around 100yards he opted to utilise our very own Hunter Pro FantaStik (throwing stick) to spread the feed to keep the fish moving as well as baiting up from the bank. This saw Chris land 3 carp to 34lb using his own Remix Baits Cellnapple pop ups alongside Mainline Baits freezer boilies.
11 Apr 2023

Quay Sports AC – Easter Match Results

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EASTER SUNDAY MATCH RESULTS

Hard fishing for some took some time to realise we were on the lake I think  then some action from mid day till end for many which made a close match at the end for all framing places. One or two extra fish could of have changed everything on the leader board.
1st Steve Hayman  72lb 5oz
2nd  Stuart Russell 65lb13oz
3rd Stephen Barrell  47lb 12oz
4th Christopher Morris 36lb 11oz.
Cracking day with plenty of bankside banter.
11 Apr 2023

Appledore Shipbuilders EASTER Competition Result

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Appledore Shipbuilders  Easter cup was run this year for the first time as a multi day event .David Atkinson won the trophy with a 2lb 4oz Dogfish. Just pipping a 5lb 14oz Cod which was a nice surprise for Andrew Atkinson at this time of year. “Spring codling are frequently caught at this time of year, but this is the best one I’ve had in a long time”.

11 Apr 2023

New carp fishing spot alert!

by | posted in: Carp Fishing, Sidebar | 0
New carp fishing spot alert! 🎣
This May and September, we will be introducing carp fishing at Roadford Lake. This is an ideal, naturally beautiful location, just off the A30, perfect for anglers living in both Devon and Cornwall.
This will be a trial venture in a designated area at the lake, including 12 swims.

Set in the rolling Devon hills on the edge of Dartmoor, just off the A30, Roadford is primarily a brown trout fishery. Carp fishing is now being introduced as a trial across two months of the year – May and September 2023.

There is a large stock of carp in Roadford, and this period of carp angling will be used to monitor the carp and move them to other lakes for restocking purposes.

Carp fishing is permitted in 12 swims: on the west side of the lake, left of the old road of ‘Big Oaks’ and the Grinnacombe bank.

Fly fishing is not permitted in this area in May and September.

Fishery Information:

Address: Roadford Lake, Near Okehampton, Devon. PL16 0JL

Fishery Size: 738 acres

Number of Swims: 10 available for 24 hours and two day swims

Species: Carp

Fishing Times: Two months of the year – May and September 2023, 7am-7pm for day swims

Permits: Available online or from South West Lakes on 01566 771930

Contact: 01566 771930

Car park what3words: slicer.cookie.supposing

11 Apr 2023

FROM THE RIVER BANK

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            After one of the wettest Springs for many years the salmon season has got off to a slow start with the rivers unfishable for several of the early weeks. There have been a few salmon caught during brief windows of opportunity when river conditions have come right.

I have heard of at least two springers from the Taw system one from the Weir Marsh area and another on the Mole. With the rivers so high salmon will potentially have run far up the rivers and could be caught from areas where they have not been tempted for several years so early in the season

            I headed to the middle Torridge and found the river running high but with a perfect tinge of colour. The dying daffodils told of how the early  season had already passed as new spring flowers bloomed and lush green growth started to burst out on the bankside trees.

I glimpsed martins flying across the rural landscapes of spring as I drove to the water, another great marvel of  migration.

            It felt good to swing the fly across familiar lies and I initially felt a tingle of expectation. A momentary connection with a trout raised the pulse rate but as I fished on the reality of the salmon fishing these days descended. After close to three hours covering the water in near perfect conditions I couldn’t help thinking that ten years ago there would have been salmon here.

            Perhaps the recent talks I have attended and television programmes documenting the demise of the salmon are taking their toll? Salmon anglers like salmon are resilient creatures and I know that I will back full of hope next time. Heavy rain is forecast again as I write this and the rivers will be back bank high soon. The longer term prospects for this season are good as the rivers should hold up well with May likely to  be a great month to be at the river. Even if the salmon and sea trout prove elusive the brown trout fishing will be excellent. Brown trout to over 1lb 8oz have already been tempted by salmon anglers swinging large flies.

It’s well worth watching the Channel 5 documentary. A fascinating documentary about efforts to restore salmon rivers in Scotland.

https://www.channel5.com/show/riverwoods-a-salmon-s-journey