The South West Fly Fair makes a welcome return to Roadford Lake on Sunday 23 February.
The fair is hosted by charity South West Lakes Trust at Roadford Lake, between Launceston and Okehampton. The event is a highlight in the Westcountry’s angling calendar ahead of the new trout fishing season.
The day is made possible thanks to sponsorship from Turrall, Chevron Hackles and Snowbee.
Throughout the day there will be fly tying demonstrations from local and national expert Charles Jardine, with a chance to ‘have a go’, as well as the opportunity to pick up useful tips and valuable advice from other experts.
Other activities include casting demonstrations, fly casting lessons, and a chance to speak to trout, sea and coarse fly fishers.
There will be a live trout cooking demonstration from Gary Champion as well as the opportunity to meet members of fly fishing clubs based at lakes across the South West and find out more about coaching and tuition available in the region – perfect for both newcomers to the sport and experienced anglers feeling a little rusty after the closed season.
Trade stands will be selling new and used tackle and equipment and food and drink will be available at the onsite café.
Book in advance to avoid disappointment. Entry is £7 for adults (£10 on the door) and free for under 18s. Entry includes car parking and a raffle ticket. Tickets are available fromwww.swlakestrust.org.uk/trout-fishing
All attendees to the event will be offered a 10% season ticket discount.
For more information please contact South West Lakes on 01566 771930 or email [email protected].
A cloudless blue sky, bright sunshine a cold east wind and frosty margins; conditions that are generally not good for fishing with one exception perhaps? Winter trout fishing in small still-waters is often at its best during the winter months and when few other fish are prepared to feed the inhabitants of these calm waters can provide exciting sport if you get the tactics right.
I arrived at Bulldog Trout fishery for a leisurely start at around 9:30am and after chatting with fishery owners Nigel and Tom Early I grabbed my already set up gear. My standard set up for Stillwater trout consisting of a 10’ 7-weight , Snowbee Diamond 2 Fly Rod, Spectre Reel, XS- plus Spectre Floating Fly Line an 8lb b.s Fluorocarbon leader and an Olive damsel nymph.
A pure white egret glided close by alighting upon the bare branch of a riverside tree. Buzzards were gliding high above the valley in the vivid blue sky rekindling memories of the osprey I had seen at the fishery last Spring.
I walked the bank peering into the crystal clear water hoping to spot a trout in the margins. I chose a platform that allowed me to put a line out onto water without casting my shadow. I expected a take at any moment but the trout proved elusive as I explored various swims around the lake.
The electric blue flash of a kingfisher caught my eye as it darted across the lake, quickly followed by a second bird that I was able to focus on as it sped past.
I moved to the windward bank and tied on a bright yellow damsel Nymph/lure. Casting out I allowed the gold headed fly to sink before beginning an erratic retrieve. The line zipped delightfully tight, the rod hooped over and a chunky rainbow of around 5lb tested the tackle. It’s always good to get that first fish in the bag avoiding the blank.
It did not take too long to get the second fish another rainbow that was almost a twin of the first. Confidence in the lure now cemented I fished on and soon added a third rainbow of a couple of pounds.
It seemed to go a bit quiet and my luck took a turn for the worse as over the next hour I hooked into three hard fighting trout that all shed the hook after prolonged and spirited tussles. I checked the hook that appeared to be razor sharp and in good order. Feeling that I needed a change I swapped to a green, yellow and black damsel. After five minutes working this lure deep and slow the line once again zipped tight as another good trout attempted to shed the hook. This one was fighting deeper and shaking its head vigorously and I was delighted to eventually slide a fine tiger trout over the rim of the waiting net.
With four trout in the bag I was content with my days sport but as always there is that desire to complete a limit bag. It was now mid-afternoon and as is often the case the trout appeared to have switched off.
It was perhaps a good time to have a walk around the lake trying different areas. There were two other anglers on the lake and they had both caught rainbows in the 3lb to 4lb size range but like me were not finding the fish easy to tempt.
A walk around the lake failed to inspire as I had a feeling that most of the trout were lurking in the windward side of the lake. So I headed back to the area from which I had enjoyed success earlier in the day. Much of my fishing is determined upon a hunch and a feel for where the fish will be. The occasional fish was also rising in this area prompting me to try a short time with a slow sinking daddy longlegs a pattern that often tempts a trout at Bulldog.
After a couple of chances a rainbow of perhaps 2lb 8oz took my PTN fished on a dropper bringing my total to five fish. Deciding that with the sun sinking below the tree line it was a good time to pack up and gut the trout. A welcome facility at Bulldog is a fish preparation area where you can gut and fillet the catch removing the need to do so at home.
As I returned to the car Brian Sedgebeer was playing a good trout that had succumbed in the fading light of the day.
Bulldog Fishery is now a premium trout water that offers superb sport with a very good average size of stocked fish. I have found that the Bulldog trout seem to respond well to larger lures with small imitative tactics less successful. This may of course change during the warmer months when fish become more active feeding closer to the surface. A floating line with a long leader or an intermediate line will generally cover all days at Bulldog as the fish are seldom lurking close to the lake bed.
Today Bulldog hosted the New Year’s fly fishing competition that had been postponed due to January’s appalling weather conditions.
The lake was stocked with a healthy number of rainbow, tiger, Spartic and brown trout ranging from 2-8lb.
An early start for Nigel & Tom as preparations began for the day. Tea urn on, log burner lit and the bacon starting to crackle
After the starting peg draw, a bacon roll and a cup of coffee our competitors were eager to get started!
With conditions set perfect for such an occasion the starting horn blasted and we were off! The record for fasted fish hooked stood at 15seconds from our Xmas comp. This was smashed by Alex Murray! A mere 5 seconds into the comp, the moment his fly touched the water it was hammered and he was locked into a hard fighting rainbow!
Fish came hard and fast leading us to have an action packed morning! A highlight was certainly seeing Nick having line stripped off his reel multiple times as he battled a Tiger trout of 6lb1oz!
Time for some lunch! On the menu today was roast beef, roasties and Yorkshire pudding
Back at it after lunch and the short break was enough time to calm the spooked fish and sure enough lines started pulling tight once again. One by one anglers reached their 6 fish limit and the talk soon turned to who was going to bag the top prize Tom was keeping the score card hidden and the tension was building as many bags looked promising!
4 o’clock came and the final horn sounded! Finally it was time to reveal the winner and runners up!
Top results as follows:
1st – Steve Hunt. Total bag weight 24lb9oz
Prize: A meat bundle from our farm shop!
2nd – Nick Tamlin. Total bag weight 23lb1oz
Prize: A voucher for 4 anglers to have a legendary Bulldog ‘belly buster’ Breakfast
3rd – Andrew Facey. Total bag weight 21lb3oz
Prize: A 3 fish ticket
Biggest fish of the day:
Steve Hunt – 6lb10oz Tiger
Prize – A brand new filleting knife purchased from Barnstaple Bait & tackle.
Last place prize will be awarded to Mr Bill Pink next time we see him this is because we were reliably informed by his brother Roy that the reason for Bills unexpected absence was due to having one to many ports at his beaters day yesterday hope you feel better soon mate!
A very popular addition to Bulldog fishery is the gutting/filleting service Nigel & Tom provide, the service has a charge that 100% of goes to the Veterans charity!
With all the fish weighed, gutted & cleaned and prizes given out we said goodbye to our anglers. All of which commented on the enjoyment of the day
We feel happy that our second competition was a success! And we look forward to the next one!
Adrian Kruger enjoyed an action packed session at Anglers Paradises relocated catch and release trout lake. He banked stunning tiger trout and brown estimated at 7lb each plus another brown trout of 4lb along with six rainbow trout between 7lb and 10lb.
I joined members of Wistlandpound Fly Fishing Club at Bulldog Trout Fishery last Sunday where we were greeted by a bright cloudless blue sky and milder conditions. The trout proved to be generally cooperative with all members catching fish with a mixture of rainbow and brown trout averaging over 3lb. Most fish were tempted using lures fished on long leaders with an erratic retrieve.
Nigel Bird with one of the trout that earned him top spot.
The winning bag was taken by Nigel Bird who had three trout for 10lb. Runner up was Andre Muxworthy with three for 9lb 9oz and myself third with three for 9lb 8oz.
It is intriguing how days unfold during these club competitions on small stillwater’s. Members will all have their favourite flies and lures that give them confidence and it is generally these that are tried first. Typically those first ten to fifteen minutes of fishing produce numerous trout as was the case during Sundays competition. I was fortunate to bank three hard fighting trout within the first twenty minutes and spent the rest of the morning wandering around the fishery with my camera capturing action shots of fellow club members.
I noted that fishing slowed after the initial flurry and for a while trout proved hard to tempt. After a while some tied on different patterns or moved to a fresh swim. This did sometimes bring results but what was noticeable was that if one angler hooked a fish it was not unusual to see several rods bending at the same time around the fishery as if the fish had suddenly switched on.
It is always interesting to compare notes at the end of the days fishing and I often note how an angler will state that a change of fly has triggered a response with perhaps a touch of orange or pink bringing success. A particular fly often seems to be the one to use! Yet it is often the case at the end of fishing as anglers chat that trout have been caught on a wide range of patterns. One angler swearing that white was the killer fly whilst others boast of success with black or orange.
There are many factors involved in the inexact science of fly fishing. Presentation of the fly, its size and colour, depth it is fished all interacting with water clarity, temperature, air pressure, lunar cycles, natural food sources and of course the location of the fish. All these factors make for a fascinating game that takes the mind away from the troubled world. The angler absorbed in natures complex chess board pondering upon tying on a Greenwell’s glory or a Wickham’s fancy.
Tip of the day – Check your flies and hooks. Several trout were lost during the day as hook shanks snapped. Hook shanks hidden beneath dressings can rust resulting in weakness that only show itself when a large powerful trout puts it to the test.
Seconds after this shot was taken Nigel cursed as his hook broke.
Jon Patten and Reef Patten have recently returned from representing England in the World Championship Big Game Trolling in Mexico 2024. The dark grey skys of North Devon were undoubtedly a stark contrast to the tropical heat of Mexico. Reef and Indy were all smiles when I met them at Bulldog Trout Fishery on Christmas Eve enjoying a short session tussling with the venues hard fighting rainbow trout.
(Above) – Jon Patten fishing for Bulldogs hard fighting trout.
Above) Joe Keating, Dave Chapman, Nick Tamlin, David Richards, Colin Combe, Tom Rushby, Tony Buckland, Bill Pink, Roy Pink, Andrew Facey, Steve Burnell, Brian Sedgebeer
Bulldog Trout Fishery held their first Christmas Competition with twelve keen anglers competing for the top prize of a Christmas Turkey and all the trimmings. I arrived shortly after 8:30am to find competitors tackling up in the fishery car park full of optimism for the day ahead.
Nigel and Tom assured all taking part that the lake had been well stocked and talked of a few special fish with a twinkle in their eye and shared their hopes for a grand days sport.
The fishing lodge was well stocked with coffees and teas to last the day with boiling water on tap. The competitors were briefed on the rules as bacon rolls were handed out and eagerly devoured.
The atmosphere was certainly full of Christmas cheer with a few warm spirits to warm the inner soul before heading out onto the lake.
The lake had been pegged out with twelve pegs with the peg number written on the bottom of the coffee cups which was an ingenious way of sorting the draw. The plan for all anglers to rotate around the lake with an air horn sounding every twenty minutes ensuring that all got a chance to fish each peg throughout the day.
Cast off was at 9:30am and the anticipation was tangible as anglers paced towards their pegs. It was a grey overcast morning with light drizzle driven by a light south west breeze. Pretty perfect conditions for fishing I thought as I watched on enjoying the opportunity to observe without taking part.
Most anglers elected to start the day with lure fishing tactics with black and white being the predominant colours along with the popular olive blue flash damsels.
I walked out onto the lakes central spit and stood beside Joe Keating who connected with the first trout of the day on his first cast just 15 seconds after the horn had signalled the start. a hard fighting rainbow of over 3lb.
(Above) Joe Keating with the first fish of the day
I looked around the misty lake and noted that most had well bent rods as the lakes residents seized the anglers offerings. I dashed around keen to capture some of the action and share in the fun.
Andrew Facey with a fine tiger
I noted that the angler fishing in the corner was locked in battle with a larger than average fish and walked around to witness the tussle. Brian Sedgebeer was carefully parrying the lunges of a good fish and I shared in the tension as the fish was slowly coaxed towards the waiting net. I sensed that Brian breathed a big sigh of relief when the trout, with its broad marbled flanks eventually slipped over the rim of the submerged landing net. A large fin perfect spartic trout that was undoubtedly one of those special trout stocked prior to the competition.
(Above) Brian Sedgebeer with an 8lb 4oz spartic the biggest trout of the day
The action was frantic in that first half an hour with good numbers of trout succumbing to the early bombardment of large lures. Cats whiskers and black lures proving most effective.
It was no surprise to those of us who had fished small Stillwater competitions when the catch rate plummeted as the fish appeared to wise up quickly.
Nigel and Tom appeared mid-morning with a tray of hot mince pies and clotted cream.
I did several laps of the lake chatting with anglers some of them long-time friends and others total strangers who all chatted freely about all things piscatorial as anglers do. From time to time a line zipped tight and a rod bent as a hard fighting trout tested the anglers tackle and skill. I did my best to capture the moments of triumph and each anglers success.
Dave Chapman had certainly tuned into the successful tactics for the day being the first to complete his six fish limit bag just before dinner with the help of his young son Freddie wielding the landing net with a degree of skill and dexterity that would put many senior anglers to shame.
(Above) Dave Chapman and young Freddie
The warm fishing lodge and roaring wood-burner proved a welcome respite from the grey cool heavy drizzle of this winter day. Dinner was served; roast pork baps, apple sauce, stuffing, roast potatoes and crackling. The air was full of cheery laughter, tales of fishing, reminisces and those things that fishers and men talk about on such days.
With appetites satisfied the rivalry reconvened as anglers resumed their circuit of the lake. There was general expectation that there would be a flurry of sport after resting the lake over the dinner break. To my surprise this was not the case and for half an hour or so the trout proved difficult to tempt.
As the afternoon drifted by there were flurries of activity and trout began to rise around the lake from time to time. A wide variety of flies lures and tactics were employed with floating lines, intermediate lines and sinking lines all put to good use.
(Above) Andrew Faceys well stocked fly box
The last hour of the day saw Colin Combe complete the second six fish limit of the day, a bag that contained a brace of really chucky rainbows that would undoubtedly give him a good chance of victory.
(Above) Colin Combe with a fine brown trout
( Above) Colin Combe with a 4lb 14oz spartic
(Above) Roy Pink with fine a brown trout
There was a flurry of activity as the light faded towards the close of play and when the horn sounded to signal the competitions end there were at least three anglers in contention.
The weigh in revealed some superb bags of quality trout with the top three taking away some superb prizes consisting of food and fishing.
(Above) Colin Combe with his 24lb winning bag
The winning bag of six trout was caught by Colin Combe and weighed a total of 24lb and included a fine spartic of 4lb 14oz along with rainbow trout of 5lb 7oz and 5lb 6oz. Runner up was Dave Chapman with six trout for 19lb 1.5oz and Joe Keating third with five trout for 18lb 10.25oz. The biggest trout of the day was caught by Brian Sedgebeer a stunning Spartic trout of 8lb 4oz.
Winter is often the best time to visit these smaller Stillwaters with the trout in peak condition in the cold clear well oxygenated water. Nigel and Tom will be hosting regular events over the coming months and are being supported by the Angling Trust as a venue to host Go Fishing and well-being events.
A fun and informative family day out with activities such as fly tying and casting demonstrations, trade stands, expert advice from trout, sea and coarse fly fishers and food and drink available from Roadford Lake Café (don’t forget season permit holders get a 10% discount in the café too)!
Tickets are available now, so book online to benefit from;
£7 advanced ticket price (tickets will be £10 on the door, free entry for under 18s)
Free parking
Exclusive 10% discount on next year’s trout season permits, available to Fly Fair attendees only
Novembers weather so far has been exceptionally benign and settled with high pressure, light winds and mild temperatures.
I Arrived at Bulldog Fishery to join fellow members of Wistlandpound Club for the first heat of their Winter challenge series and was encouraged to see anglers already there enjoying sport with rods bending as good sized rainbow trout were undoubtedly feeding.
It was good to catch up with fishery owner Nigel Early who was as always bubbling with enthusiasm as he chatted about the fishery and future plans.
The enlarged trout lake can comfortably fish up to a dozen anglers and has easy access with several fishing platforms that have had overhanging trees pruned to make casting easier. Nigel is keen to encourage visiting groups to make use of this excellent venue that has a comfortable fishing lodge overlooking the lake. I was fascinated to study the cast of a rainbow trout weighing 25lb 3oz that was supplied by Bulldog and held the Welsh Record.
I caught up with fellow club members as we tackled up before heading out to the calm waters.
I had set up with a floating line in conjunction with a relatively long leader of 8lb b.s fluorocarbon to the end of which I had tied my trusted gold headed damsel nymph. I have great faith in this pattern that sinks slowly its marabou tail adding life as it is retrieved.
I headed to the riverside bank and started to search the water allowing the lure to sink before starting a slow erratic retrieve watching the tip of the fly line intently.
After twenty minutes or so I felt a gentle tug transmitted through the line and watched as a trout followed the lure nipping the tail but failing to nail it. Encouraged I recast and after pulling a yard of line felt that satisfying connection as a good sized rainbow devoured the lure.
A spirited tussle was successfully concluded and the trout despatched. It’s always good to get the first fish and remove the dreaded blank from the agenda.
As I fished on I tried to take in the surroundings. A kingfisher darted across the lake its electric blue a stark contrast to the mellow colours of Autumn. Fallen leaves and bare branches reflected the season as I enjoyed the act of casting and searching the water.
The occasional trout showed breaking the mirror calm surface and slurping down a fly or emerging nymph. I put my offering close to a rise and was rewarded as the feeding fish converged on my fly. The full tailed rainbow gave a good account spending a good part of the battle air-borne.
With just one trout left to complete my three fish limit I changed over to a foam daddy pattern as I had a hunch this would work. After ten minutes without success I reverted back to the tried and trusted damsel.
I put the fly adjacent to a large swirl and began a quick retrieve. A bow wave materialized behind the fly and I saw a white mouth open followed by a delectable tightening of the line. A handsome brown trout of close to 4lb completed my three fish bag.
I took the opportunity to have a walk around the lake and capture action and images of the day.
Andrew Facey had enjoyed a good morning banking three good rainbows to 6lb along with a stunning brown trout of over 4lb.
Whilst we chatted Andrews friend Chris Dunn tempted a fine rainbow of 5lb 8oz. The successful fly a slow sinking daddy long legs pattern.
Close to the lakes inlet Graham Snowdon and Grant Jefferson were enjoying good sport completing their limit bags by midday.
Andre Muxworthy and Grant JeffersonAndre Muxworthy with a 5lb 5oz rainbow
My fellow Wistlandpound Club members were all enjoying good sport with some hard fighting brown and rainbow trout. It seemed as is often the case that a wide variety of fly’s and lures had tempted the lakes trout. Black and green Vivas, cats Whiskers, and damsel nymphs amongst the successful offerings.
The competition weigh in was as follows : –
Dave Mock – 3 trout – 11lb 10oz Best a brown trout of 6lb 3oz
Andre Muxworthy – 3 trout – 11lb 10oz Best trout – Rainbow Trout 5lb 5oz
Wayne Thomas – 3 Trout – 9lb
Colin Combe – 3 Trout – 7lb 15oz
Dave Mock with a 6lb 3oz brown troutColin Combe was delighted with this fine brown trout and dedicated its capture to his much loved dog Winston that died a week before.
A welcome facility at the lake is a sink, running water and cutting board permitting anglers to gut and clean their catch before returning home.
I joined members of Wistlandpound Fly Fishing Club at Bulldog Trout Fishery last Sunday where we were greeted by a bright cloudless blue sky and milder conditions. The trout proved to be generally cooperative with all members catching fish with a mixture of rainbow and brown trout averaging over 3lb. Most fish were tempted using lures fished on long leaders with an erratic retrieve.
