Eyebrook Fishery Report – Week Ending 26 June 2022

Weekly Fishing Report: Draycote, Eyebrook, Thornton

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Week Ending: Sunday 26 Jun 22       Rod Av:            Water Temperature:  20°C

Monday brought with it a stiff northerly breeze which softened as the day wore on. With the varying degrees of cloud cover this made conditions somewhat challenging. Fish were still caught despite the conditions. Stoke Dry was a productive area with fish being caught on small Yellow Owl CDC’s. Whereas, in the deeper water of the basin, fish were caught on buzzers fished deep. When fishing deep Buzzers, you can achieve depth by either fishing a sinking line with a team of buzzers, short casted & fish vertical or by fishing a tip line with a team of heavy buzzers used to drag the line down. With the water temperature stabilising at 20 degrees the fish will start to seek cooler, more comfortable water.

Tuesday saw the bright, warm weather continue but with changeable winds that made consistent drifts difficult. This meant it was hard to accurately repeat a drift where fish were found. The slightly warmer air temperature saw an increase in Damsel activity and the anglers could target the Damsel feeders along the edge of prominent weed beds. Season Ticket holders Bill Law & Ian Steele did exactly that, fishing small imitative Damsel patterns to great effect. They had a very productive morning session landing some cracking fish, the majority of which were over 3lb. Fishing close weed can be fraught with danger though & subsequently they lost a few in the process. The fish continue to feed fry & Damsel nymphs.

Wednesday was another day of searing temperatures, bright sunlight & very little breeze which resulted in conditions that were far from ideal. Despite these challenging conditions, fish were still caught. Those that went to the Main Basin & were willing to fish sinking lines were more productive than others. There were still fish moving on the surface, but these were not fish cruising 18inches down picking off items of food off the surface. They were deeper lying fish that were willing to come up to the surface, but they would not spend any time there as the water temperature made it too uncomfortable for them. They would take an item of food off the top & return to the cooler water. Sat slightly deeper are another band of fish & these deeper laying fish appear to be more willing to take a fly. Lure patterns on fast sinking lines seemed to be the way to go.

Thursdays start of the day saw broken cloud & a very sporadic ripple. The gentle northerly breeze remained inconsistent which led to periods of a flat calm. During these periods fish could be seen moving across the reservoir, however, these fish proved to be somewhat tricky to catch, hopefully the cooler forecast for tomorrow will improve conditions. Weed growth around the shallows has shot up this past week, best area to bank fish is along the chestnut tree, netted bank but especially along the dam wall

Friday, and as the song goes, “What a difference a day makes” Cooler air temperatures, cloud and a fresh breeze was welcomed by all. Damsels continue to hatch in large numbers with a number of anglers catching on a dry blue damsel pattern from late morning onwards. With some of the fish looking upwards Adrian Baggley took full advantage using that little used method on midland reservoir, Dapping. It proved successful with Adrian landing 7 trout but also lost a large trout. John Wild followed the advice at the lodge & fished a dry blue damsel pattern landing 6 for his visit, Max Woolnough also fished dries to catch his 9 trout. Ian McLeod fished a washing line with small cormorant patterns on the dropper catching 9 trout all by 11.30am. Ian Jobe took to his float tube and concentrated his efforts over the deeper water in front of the dam fishing a booby basher he caught 12 trout for his visit.

As the water temperature continued to drop due to the cooler weather, the reservoir fished very well on Saturday. The main basin to Sam’s Dyke proved to be a very productive area with many fish being caught on washing lined floaters & Dries from both the boats & the bank. Those fishing Damsel nymphs on the edge of weed beds from the lodge to Sam’s dyke were rewarded with good numbers of fish early on. This coincided with the increase of damsel nymph activity around the weed beds as they prepared for their late morning metamorphosis. As the morning progressed the Damsel hatch went into full swing & subsequently the number of fish taken on Blue Damsel patterns increased. Other productive patterns included Foam daddies, Daddy Hogs & Yellow Owls. All Water Member Mark Hunt had a great day on the Dries, catching 18 trout on Blue Damsels & Daddies from the Main Basin area, some of which being over 3lb. Others that caught well from the boats were Eyebrook Member Mick Farrell & his boat partner who had a very productive day fishing the upper layers of the water column with Nymphs, Wets & Dries throughout the course of the day. The banks also produced with fish being caught on Damsel Nymph patterns down by the Cowshed & also from the north side of the tower on the Dam. Resident Guide Andy Miller took out Shaun & Aimee on 2-hour experience boat session & they had a great time catching their first ever trout & on the Dries no less; a Blue Foam Damsel & a Daddy Hog being the successful patterns.

Sunday brought with it a strong blustery wind from the South & bright sunshine which made the fishing somewhat challenging. Those that did brave the elements still caught fish though, with the more sheltered Basin area being the most productive. The fish remained relatively high in the water column & were caught small imitative patterns fished high up on floaters & midge tips. The forecast for the coming week suggests that the water temperature will continue to cool. Therefore, the fish will remain high up in the water column & the prospect for fishing Dries looks excellent.