Fishing Information
The rivers and pools of Devon and Cornwall provide a massive variety of fishing and I hope the waters in this scheme offer an excellent representative selection. Included are rushing moorland spate streams that clear quickly after rain, the languid peaceful lowland streams with their exceptional dry fly fishing for trout, short streams of Cornwall with their heavy runs of peal and the secluded farm lakes with their trout, carp and tench.
Trout
The trout fishing is generally good on all the beats although the lowland rivers have a larger stamp of fish. The fishing can be hard work early in the season with a heavy nymph the best bet, although some good catches are made. Late April sees a transformation as the trout start to look up for their food and the arrival of the hawthorn fly sees the fishing really pick up. It then builds to a crescendo with the mayfly in mid June before slowing down during the rest of the summer. Except when the mayfly or large sedges are out, don’t fish bigger than a size 14 fly and a size 16 or 18 will catch you more fish.
Two tips for catching more trout from Mike Weaver
1. Deep wading with body waders is essential for success on virtually all of the A2000 beats, but careless wading can spook every trout in the stream. A wading staff means that you always have two points of contact with the river bed and avoids those costly stumbles.
2. Trout are not evenly spread through the river and you have to go in search of them. There are no prizes for persevering in one spot when nothing is coming your way. Keep on the move, watching out for rising trout or likely-looking lies, and you will catch far more fish than those who wait for the trout to come to them.
Tips for small stream fly fishing by Pete Tygas
We are blessed in the West Country with a wealth of small streams to fly fish and on my days off these are the places I head for. I enjoy nothing more than the wild look of our streams as I find them challenging and enjoyable. I try to make the outing a one fly affair trying to make sure that nothing gets caught up in the canopies that cover our rivers. It is easier said than done but by keeping an eye on where my back cast is going, using a side cast instead of an overhead cast and keeping false casting to a minimum helps put the odds a little more in my favour.
A perfect setup would be a rod in the 7 ½ to 8 ½ ft range rated for a 3 to 5 weight line with a 9ft leader and a 1ft tippet of 2½ to 3½ lb. I try and keep my fly selections simple but functional with the mainstays of my fly box being the ever faithful Klinkhammer in black and grey, parachute versions of the Adams, Tups and Blue Winged Olive, standard Black Gnat, Elk Haired Caddis and a new favourite fly called Greased Lightening. This is a Klinkhammer style fly with a crystal flash body. You might notice that a majority of the flies are parachute versions and this is mainly because I prefer smaller sizes ranging from 16 down to 20. Being a guide I notice a lot of people struggle seeing a small fly but a parachute with bright post makes life a lot easier. A couple of Hare’s Ears and Pheasant Tail Nymphs fill the line up. I tend to fish these New Zealand style if I see no signs of rising fish but the moment I start to get takes to the dry then it’s off with the nymph.
Always keep watching the water for tell tale clues of rising fish and hatching flies and work likely looking holding areas and then move on. Early season fish tend to hold towards the back of runs and pools in slacker water moving up into the faster more oxygenated areas as the temperatures start to rise. Remember to respect your quarry and always use wet hands when handling fish and barbless hooks but most of all enjoy!
Salmon
All the salmon fishing in the scheme is water dependent. On a falling spate at the right time of year it can be very good but during a drought you may doubt the streams even have a run of fish. The Torridge, Okement and Lynher have a spring run with beats 4, 5, 19, 25 and 26 offering a chance of a fish from March to June. The Okement, Inny, Lyd, Lynher and Camel can be very good in August, September and October but do need good water levels which was poor in 2002/3 but good last year.
Fly Fishing tips for Salmon - from Bob Wellard
A few anglers cut their teeth with salmon but for most of us it’s a natural progression following on from fishing for smaller trout and sea trout and then on to the ‘King of Fish’. Salmon fishing in the Westcountry is very much dependant on rainfall, unlike trout, adult salmon only enter our rivers to spawn and their migration upstream largely coincides with our rivers being in ‘spate’.
A rising, falling and clearing river offers the best chance of a salmon as this is when the fish are most active, it’s therefore imperative to get on the river before the fish settle. That said it is possible to catch resident salmon even when rivers are at their lowest but it does require more skill, more patience and just a little more luck.
Adult salmon do not feed in freshwater, it’s a wonder they take our flies at all. Having the knowledge of what fly to use and what depth and speed to fish is something we can generally only glean from years of experience of fishing the same river at various heights and during the various seasons. The most practical way to learn to catch a salmon is to accompany an accomplished salmon angler and study his/her methods. You’ll learn more when you fish with a professional guide than you can possibly take in with just one visit but more importantly you know you will be safe. Safe in the knowledge that what you’re doing is effective and safe whilst you fish in what can be a potentially dangerous environment.
As a general guide Westcountry salmon rivers can be fished with rods 12ft #6/7 to14ft #9/10 during spate conditions and with single handed 9ft #6/7 to 10ft #7/8 rods during low water. My preferred flies include Willie Gunn, Yellow Torrish, Ally Shrimp, Stoats Tail, General Practitioner and of course my own ‘Bobby Dazzler’.
Seatrout
In the Westcountry there are two main runs with the larger fish in May and June and the school peal from July onwards. The best of the night fishing is on beats 3, 5, 17 (short tamar section), 18 and 26. You can pick up seatrout on the dryfly by day or on a spinner on a falling spate on the above beats and also beats 4, 14, 21, 22, 23, 26, 30 and 32 whilst beats 28, 29 and 31 are really spinner and bait fishing waters where stalking fish with an unweighted single worm is often the best method.
Night fishing advice from Nick Hart
Fly Fishing for Sea Trout by night requires organisation! Carry minimal equipment and always ensure you have a spare torch and batteries about your person. Go for strong leader material that allows fish to be played hard and don’t be afraid to use large flies in many circumstances. Tandem style patterns provide a strong silhouette that is more likely to provoke a response than the traditional doubles fished by many anglers. If possible, visit your chosen beat by daylight , walk the bank looking for access points and have a cast or two, counting carefully how long it takes your line to swing across the river with the current, during nightfall this will ensure you are fishing the pools effectively. Finally, carry a mobile phone or similar method of communication, just in case you have an emergency on the river bank.
Grayling
Although the beats (Tamar catchment) that have grayling have them all year they only really appear in the catches from late June onwards. September and October are the best months for the lady of the stream. Although bugs and nymphs do work, some of the best sport comes to the dry fly, especially emerger pattern. Try the slightly slower pools and smooth runs to find the shoals of larger adults.
Tips for autumn sport - from David Pilkington
Grayling will rise freely in the autumn to stoneflies, small olives and tiny midges. F-flies and CDC patterns do well, along with black gnats, down to size 20. If nothing is rising try nymphing with an indicator - you will seldom sight-fish on the Tamar. I use about 2 cm of polypropylene yarn, looped into the leader, at a position that will fish the nymph close to the river bed.
Use weighted pheasant tails and hare’s ear, with gold or copper bead heads. Strike at any movement of the indicator, grayling take and eject nymphs very fast. Use barbless hooks to release unseasonal salmonids.
Please be aware that this is farming country and as such:
- Follow the Country Code and be considerate.
- If dogs are taken please ensure they are under control and only taken to the beats on which they are allowed. If there are cattle in the field they will harass the dog.
- Never get between a cow and her calf
- Some beats are electric fenced. We have fitted tubing to allow access points but it can still be crossed elsewhere by using your rod handle to push it down.
An Environment Agency Rod Licence is required to fish these waters (buy on-line here)
