As a follow up to Seth Tuson’s fascinating talk at the River Torridge Fishery Associations AGM I asked him to send me a few words. Young anglers are essential if future generations are to enjoy the waterside as we have done and they need all the support and encouragement we can give.
Seth Tuson
I Qualified for the England youth team in September 2016, at Grafham water. This meant I became part of a team that would fish at International competition at llyn Brenig in Wales the following summer. In the final competition England came second to Scotland with Wales in third and Ireland in 4th. In September last year I re-qualified at Draycote water where this years international will be held in August. It has been an amazing experience and I have developed my skills far past where I ever expected I would, to help fund my fishing I also sell my flies that I tie at £1.20 each these include a wide range of modern lures nymphs and dries as well as some classics. I can be contacted on [email protected]
Seth Tuson – Right with Senior Team Member Matt Kingdom
Another cold snap, ‘The Beast From The East’, bringing thick snow across the region in the middle of the month, meant that water and air temperatures have stayed low (water temperatures not much higher than 4ºc) and there has been little insect activity, meaning that the fish have been staying and feeding in the middle and deeper levels in the water column.
All the reservoirs are at 100% capacity and topping over the spillways. As temperatures start to rise in April, fish will be starting to look to the surface to feed, enabling anglers to target fish with dry patterns and floating lines, with maybe the odd Hawthorn and Olive starting to appear toward the end of the month.
Fishing:
Kennick – The fishing was fairly consistent throughout the month, with anglers averaging 3.6 fish per rod, with the Top End, Clampitts Bay and Bank and the Narrows producing the most fish. With little insect activity on the water yet, very few fish have been showing, and all fish have been taken on sub-surface patterns (either Damsels and Diawl Bachs, or lures such as Tadpoles, Cats Whiskers and Boobies) at a range of depths – floating, intermediate and sinking line methods have all caught fish. With many anglers catching their bag limits, the best fish caught during the month was a 4lb Rainbow, which, along with another Rainbow of 3lb 4oz, was part of a full bag caught by Mr J.Howard.
Siblyback – Two Meadows, Crylla Bay and the North Bank provided the best sport, with a variety of lure patterns (Cats Whisker, Orange Blob, Baby Doll, Cormorant, Orange Fritz) fished on sinking lines producing the best results. As conditions warmed, Buzzers, Damsel Nymphs and Shrimp patterns started to catch fish, with the afternoons and evenings the best time of day. The best fish caught in the month was a 4lb 11oz Rainbow, caught by Mr P.England from Liskeard.
Burrator – Longstone Bank and Point have produced the best fishing, with a few fish also caught from the north bank, with intermediate and sunk-line tactics the most successful, as fish have generally been lying fairly deep. In addition to Booby patterns, various nymphs (especially Damsels and Montanas) have fished well, and bags have included good numbers of hard-fighting Blues providing excellent sport.
Stithians – The fishing improved as the month progressed and temperatures started to rise, with weekly catch averages improving from under one fish per rod to over two fish per angler. All fish have been caught on sub-surface lure patterns (Orange Blob, Viva, Tadpole and Fritz patterns), with the best locations including Chapel Bay, Pub Bay, Yellowort and the deeper water by the dam. The best fish of the month was a fine Brown Trout of 3lbs, caught by Mr D. Parker from Camborne while fishing from a boat at the end of the month.
Roadford – Catches have been averaging around seven fish per angler, with boat anglers achieving the best results over deeper water. Very few fish have been showing, with Bibios, Squinkies and Tadpoles proving to be the most successful patterns.
Fernworthy – The fish have been showing along the south shore, with anglers averaging between four and six fish per visit. The most successful patterns included Silver Invictas and Snipe and Purple.
Colliford – In spite of the bitterly cold conditions, there have been small back buzzers hatching and fish moving on the surface, with a few already being caught on dry patterns. Catches have been averaging at just over four fish per visit, with the majority of fish caught on pulled wet patterns (Bibios, Soldier Palmers and Zonkas) as well as nymphs and spiders. The fish have overwintered well and are in good condition – the best fish so far, a 22” resident Brown, was caught on Good Friday by a local angler Dean Boucher. The fish are generally in small clusters, and for best results anglers need to be mobile, with Lordwaste, West Stuffle, and North Bank the most productive areas.
Philip Smith enjoyed a successful trip to Wimbleball Fishery where he found the fish cooperating despite the challenging conditions.
“Tidy bag of fish to 3lb 11oz today, caught in driving snow, a cold northerly wind and 0 degrees! Lots of fish in Ruggs, taking small black nymphs and buzzers on a floater. Things are looking good for Wimbleball, wishing Mark and the team every success. Will be back soon..”
Peter Duckett also braved the weather conditions; caught and kept his 2 on a catch and release ticket and then went on to catch another 16 Rainbows between 2lb 8oz – 4lb 12oz and also lost 10.
He also banked 2 fine browns of which the largest was estimated at 4lb 12oz.
The bad weather endured throughout March has not been good news for fishery owners as Nick Hart Reports in his latest news brief from Exe Valley Fishery. It is to be hoped that springs warmth soon descends to encourage anglers out to the waters edge.
(Below )John Slaven with an Exe Valley Trout – one of just 44 anglers who fished at Exe Valley during March!
The weather during the last few weeks has resulted in our quietest March on record with just 44 anglers visiting (yes, that’s correct …just 44!) … 11 of them for the Troutmasters match which had to be rescheduled due to snow. Despite the lack of customers, we continue to maintain and stock the fishery as always, shown in the catch figures of 153 fish caught by the 44 anglers up to 29th March resulting in a rod average of 3.5.With the continued changeable conditions and lack of footfall we have regrettably taken the decision to delay the reopening of Lobbs Lake until such time that we feel the venue will have the support required to operate the lake on a day to day basis.
Nick Hart was pleased to post the latest news from the Troutmasters event at Exe Valley where Nick was super impressed by “these young lads competing as juniors and all helping one another out. Sam in the yellow had his first 2 fish within 7 minutes!!! We just need more of them …..”
It is imperative that we encourage as many young anglers as possible into angling to enjoy a lifelong pastime that is proven to be for good mental health, social interaction and awareness of the natural world.
BIG congratulations to junior winner James Mockridge with 5 fish for 13lb including a 1 hour time bonus and senior winner Phil Duckett in his first comp with 5 fish and a 2 hour bonus for 16lb. And finally 9 year old Max Mockridge & 10 year old Sam Shepherd both got 4 fish each and weighed in at 9lb 12oz to tie second place!
(Above) Exe Valley troutmasters fish off junior winner James Mockridge & senior Phil Duckett
Exe Valley is fishing well as spring arrives as this latest report from the fishery illustrates.
Reading from the returns archives Mr Tomkins recently tried a sporting ticket and worked nymphs for 4 fish over a few hours before switching to a stripped Blob which gave him another 5 fish in just half an hour.
Other returns mention the depth of the fish with the word “deep” used consistently along with “cold” including Mr Hobdens comment which made us chuckle “Bloody Freezing!! But good sport!” There is no doubt that wrapping up warm is required to enjoy a day at Exe Valley but if you put in the effort the chances are you will be rewarded with some action.
Mr Hobden banked 4 fish during his chilly session, but John Slaven had an even more fruitful day with 5 taken and 4 released, noting that it had been a “Cold day but worth it. Fantastic!” Johns bag tipped the scales to 15lb 2oz with a best fish of 3lb 2oz
John will hope for an equally impressive bag in just over a weeks’ time when on Sunday 18th March Exe Valley will host its annual Troutmasters Fish Off to determine who will head to the final later in the year. This event is already well signed up with around 15 anglers attending but if you have an invite and have yet to contact us, there is still time, if you are quick! Please note that the fishery will be closed to regular day tickets on 18/03/18 until after the match which is due to end around 2pm.
If you are going to practice beforehand or if you are just heading to the fishery for a pleasure day it would be well worth packing Blobs, Snakes, Blue Flash Damsels, Apps Worms and a few buzzers. Floating lines with long leaders (fished slow) will work well but in recent weeks intermediates and medium sinkers such as the Di-3 have been well worth trying.
And to round up this catch report please note that Lobbs Lake will be open by the end of the month (in time for Easter) with further details regarding the fishing that will be available on this venue posted next time.
Many thanks for reading and look our for more news soon.
South Molton & District Angling Clubs AGM was held on February 20th at the Coaching Inn, South Molton. A good number of members were present to listen to reports from the clubs officers. Eddie Rand’s delivered a humorous account of the clubs year focusing on the rivers health and plans for sympathetic work to be undertaken at a suitable time to both improve fishability and fish habitat.
Roger Bray stepped into the role of secretary following the resignation of Ian Binding following many years of loyal service to the club.
Ian Binding was one of the clubs founding members and has fifty years of fond memories of his years with the club. Ian told me that the club was initially formed as a sea angling club with members enjoying excursions to local venues. They often fished from local ports aboard local charter boats including the Combe Martin boats whose skippers included Mickey Irwin and George Eastman. When fishing became available on the River Bray courtesy of the Poltimore Arms they took on the fishing and have remained tenants on the water via the Stucley Estate. The rivers are primarily wild brown trout fisheries that offer fine sport for the dry fly fisher using light tackle.
The club has room for a few new members with game fishing membership allowing access to 5 miles of fishing for just £50 per year. Social membership stands at £10. The club holds monthly meetings at the Coach and Horses, regular outings to local still-water trout fisheries including Blakewell, Bratton Water and Exe Valley. There are also boat trips throughout the years from local ports. Anyone interested in joining this friendly and active club should contact Roger Bray on 01271 371506 or via email – [email protected]
Matt Kingdon gave an enlightening talk to the membership outlying his experiences of fly fishing for Team England at various venues including the renowned Chew Valley Lake. He also gave a fascinating insight into the rules, tactics and effort involved.
Following the formalities and talks Eddie Rand’s presented trophies to Rob Kingdon for his capture of a 30lb + tope on one of the clubs boat trips in 2017.
Mike Latham won the clubs Fly Fishing Trophy with a 4lb 5oz trout.
There were of coarse plenty of fishing tales exchanged throughout the evening covering all disciplines of angling. Eddie had several tales of a recent trip to Spain’s River Ebro where he caught catfish of over 40lb and a fine carp of 37lb.
Andy Birkett’s 5lb 8oz Brown trout from Fernworthy
2017 – A season in summary
As I reflect on last season it was a real story of two halves with a really good first half and very difficult second. The fishing at the majority of waters until the end of June was really good, some cracking fish were caught and good rod averages. From July onwards it was tough, although some waters provided some really good sport at times, particularly for Brown Trout.
We stocked Brown Trout at Kennick and Stithians instead of Rainbows in July as they are much hardier in warm waters and I hoped rod averages would be maintained while the Rainbows didn’t play ball. Plenty of Browns were caught but not as many as I had hoped. With the price of Browns being so much higher than Rainbows and Blues, I decided against this for 2018 and we will be back to stocking quality Rainbows and Blues from Milemead Fish Farm but with an increase in fish
Are times changing? Are the seasons changing? Many fisheries across the UK are struggling in the second half of the season with warm water temperatures making fishing hard. I read an article in Total Fly Fisher Magazine in 2017 which suggested seasons have changed and fishery managers would need to embrace this in the future and perhaps change season opening times and avoid stocking fish in July and August. It was real food for thought and something which has stuck with me in planning for 2018.
2018 – A season in anticipation
The season is now upon us already, it only seems like yesterday we closed for 2017. I am really looking forward to the new season and hopefully the few changes we have made will improve the fishing for all of you.
We are stocking a lot more Rainbows and Blues into Kennick. The season opened two weeks early, on 16 February for season permits and 17 February for day ticket anglers, and the first weekend of the new fishing season went really well. The weather was pretty kind to us and the water temperature of 6 degrees hasn’t put the fish off feeding. More fish arriving this Friday (23 February) from Milemead Fish Farm.
There have been some really good bags of fish caught with Phillip Watts banking 6 Rainbows for 13lbs and Mike Boston managing a full bag of 6 fish which included a 3lb 12oz specimen. Well done also to Chris Bee who caught and released the best Brown so far at 3lb 8oz. Damsels, Montanas and Tadpoles have been the most successful flies and not surprisingly nothing reported to dries just yet. Clampitts Bay and down through the narrows have been the best locations so far.
Warden Mark Baxendale and Senior Warden Kit Hancock will again be on hand to assist you at Kennick.
Stithians will also receive more Rainbows as a result of not stocking any Brownies. The fishery has been really consistent this last couple of seasons and some really good Rainbow Trout sport has given way to some great fun on the stocked and natural Brownies in the summer. Senior warden Beth Cross has been working hard during the winter with the CAST fishing club volunteers to get banks and back casting areas cleared. We have also installed some new signage to encourage dog walkers to abide by the reservoir regulations. There will be in increase in Rainbows stocked this season.
Burrator will also be having more Rainbows and our new warden Sam LeBailly has been busy bank clearing with the great help of Burrator Fly Fishers members. Sam is a qualified angling coach and will be on hand to help with any fishing enquiries at Burrator.
The wakeboard system at Siblyback is in the process of being removed and will be gone before the season starts, enabling access to Crilla Bay by bank or boat for the entire season. Siblyback stocking will be very similar to last season with some cracking Rainbows to around 6lbs and plenty of Blues. The adventures of Ron and John, our bailiffs which featured in the weekly catch reports, were great stories of ‘the one that got away’ as well as some terrific sport and experiences they had while being at the lake. Ron and John will feature again in 2018 with some top tips and information to help everyone enjoy their fishing at Siblyback. We have plans to make improvements to the permit room and introduce a signature fly which won’t fail to catch at Siblyback! Senior Warden Nigel Tomkinson, ably assisted by John Davies, will be around on site to help with any enquiries and will help direct you to the fish!
Fernworthy was our most consistent fishery in 2017 and I expect more great sport there this year. Our team of volunteers are planning some improvements to the permit room and will be out bank clearing to make sure casting areas are ready. Roadford will be very similar and we will be out bank clearing their also before the season gets underway. There will be 4 boats ready to go and the highlight of 2017 was Andy Birkett’s 5lb 8oz Brown. Bailiff Nick Coleman worked tirelessly policing the banks last season to stop poaching and to help anglers make the most of their visit. Nick has a wealth of knowledge in Trout fishing and I am sure you will bump into him around Roadford in 2018.
Colliford fished hard in 2017 but I am optimistic we can return it to the spectacular fishing from 3-4 years ago. We will continue to stock double the number of Browns that we did a few years back and with the Ruffe dying last season this should encourage the Trout to show themselves again.
Unfortunately Wistlandpound will not be stocked in 2018. The fishery will be open for low cost Brown Trout fishing and I anticipate some really good sport will be had. Although this is a great shame, fisheries have to be sustainable and I will look at the options for Wistlandpound’s sustainability during this season.
Drift fishery is no longer under our management as we will be concentrating more on Stithians. I would like to thank bailiff David Williams for his very hard work for the past few seasons.
At all of our Rainbow Trout waters we will not be planning to stock Rainbows or Blues during July and August unless weather conditions and water temperatures are favourable and I am confident the fish will survive. We will be stocking Rainbows again as soon as conditions suit stocking in September. However, we are stocking more fish as a whole.
I wish you an enjoyable and successful trout fishing season
Ben Smeeth, Head of Angling
Around the Clubs
Around our fisheries there are different clubs – why not become a member and get involved. If you are interested in joining a club here are the contact details:
The weekly catch reports at our fisheries are a great source of information to help you catch fish. The reports feature interesting information like hatches of flies observed, best flies of the week, best locations for catching, notable catches of fish and some fantastic pictures. We also do a monthly summary from around the fisheries so, if you would like to receive the weekly or monthly reports for any of our waters or all of them, please email me [email protected]
Find us on Facebook
We have an active Facebook page called ‘Trout Fishing South West Lakes Trust’
We post the catch reports, pictures, events and interesting information on this page so ‘LIKE’ the page for regular updates.
Website
Find all of the information you need about our Trout fisheries, competitions, catch reports, prices and contact details on our website www.swlakesfishing.co.uk
Buy your permit online
Did you know you can buy your fishing permit online through our website www.swlakesfishing.co.uk? When you land on the home page for Trout fishing scroll down and on your right hand side is a box which says ‘BUY YOUR PERMIT ONLINE’.
Online catch returns
You can complete your catch return from the comfort of your own home after your days fishing through our website www.swlakesfishing.co.uk. On the Trout homepage scroll down and you will see a purple box which says ‘CATCH RETURNS’. It is absolutely vital you complete a catch return, even if you don’t catch a fish, as this can help us work out stocking schedules and stock levels. Please also include any Brown Trout on your catch return if you’re fishing a Rainbow water.
Competitions 2018
We have a series of team and individual competitions across our waters this year. The Snowbee sponsored team of four competition kicks the season off at Siblyback, the Cornish Open Float Tube competition at Stithians is in May and there is a pairs competition at Kennick as well as a singles in early summer. The season culminates with the final of the £2000 Best of the Best sponsored by Snowbee in October at Kennick. Here are the dates, if you would like to enter any of them please contact me [email protected]
Snowbee Siblyback Team of Four – 15 April
Kennick Bank Pairs – 6 May
Snowbee Cornish Open at Stithians – 12 May
Kennick Peninsula Classic Singles – 24 June
Best of the Best Final Singles at Kennick – 7 October
Thousands of pounds worth of prizes are available during the season through these competitions and the chance to win yourself a season ticket for 2019 at some of them too!
Anglers’ survey:
During this season I will be sending around a survey to all of our Trout anglers. The aim for the survey is to consult with you, the anglers, to help shape the future of Trout fishing across our waters. I would like to know what you want or would like to see at any of our fisheries. I can’t promise anything but I do promise that all comments and suggestions will be discussed and we can implement positive changes to ensure the fisheries are sustainable for the future. Please take a short time to complete the survey when it arrives and have your say. I would love to hear from you.
Wimbleball
I am delighted to announce that Wimbleball will be open for Rainbow Trout fishing in 2018. Mark Underhill of Rainbow Valley Trout Farm has taken it on and has some really good ideas for the future of the fishery. Mark plans to install 10 boats this season and stock his home grown Trout of high quality with lots of fish in the 3-6lb size range. Mark is contactable on 07814324925 or [email protected]
Videos and photos
During the season we will be posting some videos of fish being stocked and people catching fish as well as loads of photos so keep an eye on our Facebook page and website. If you want to appear please send us in your pictures [email protected]
Fly Fishers are enjoying great sport at Blakewell Fishery with both brown and rainbow trout succumbing to flies in the cool clear water. Greg Arlotte & Neil Butler enjoyed success at the venue with rainbows to 6lb and brown trout to 4lb.
Shaun Antony Ley sent me this account of his trip to Blakewell with his son Danny.
As a keen angler growing up fishing with my dad it’s only natural that I’ve been waiting for my son to show an interest and catch his 1st fish by himself on a fly. New Years Day seemed like the perfect time to try our luck at Blakewell. Danny’s interest was soon established when we saw fish rising and turning as I set up he picked his fly and spot. Not long after he bagged his 1st trout quickly followed by a second which was bigger. A perfect start to the New Year.
