Eyebrook Fishery Report – Week Ending 26 June 2022

Weekly Fishing Report: Draycote, Eyebrook, Thornton

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Eyebrook Fishery Weekly Report – 01536 770264

Email: eyebrook@flyfishstore.co.uk

Stocking Policy Details of our stocking policy for Eyebrook is explained on our website: www.flyfisheyebrook.co.uk/about-us-2/stocking-policy/

Can we remind members & day rods of our pre-payment policy. The 2022 details are on our website:  http://www.flyfisheyebrook.co.uk/about-us-2/day-permits/

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.

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Thornton Fishery Weekly Report – 01530 230807

Email: thornton@flyfishstore.co.uk

Stocking Policy Details of our stocking policy for Eyebrook is explained on our website www.flyfishthornton.co.uk/about-us-2/stocking-policy/

Can we remind members & day rods of our pre payment policy for 2022 details are on our website www.flyfishthornton.co.uk/about-us-2/day-permits/

Week Ending:  26^th June       Rod Av: 1.8      Water Temperature: 20c+ – 19c

Warm start to the week with our surface water temperature 19c+ A few fish moving but typically once the water exceeds 19c they tend to rise once before dropping back to the cooler layers. Most of the anglers headed towards the deeper water in front of the dam fishing with Sink 3 & fast sinking fly lines with cats whiskers, booby & snakes. Top rod on the day was Keith Cowen who fished the morning session with a fast sinking line catching 6 trout all on different booby patterns

Tuesday with a hot day forecast most of the rods opted for the morning session 8.00am – 3.00pm, with our pre payment system it allows us to get on the pontoon earlier to prepare the boats, which in turn allowed us to get the boats out early at 7.45am. A few of the early rods caught on a washing line but with the surface water temperature at 19c they quickly changed to a Sink 3 or fast sinking fly line with booby, cats whisker, dawson olive. P Wrigley caught 5 for his mornings visit with P Cox catching 4 on a cats whisker & P Mee fishing a booby to catch his 4 fish. By 8pm our surface water temperature was 20c were not likely to see much of an evening rise with that temperature. Mornings will continue to be best, roll on Friday and the cooler, fresher weather forecast for the next 5 days

Wednesday the majority of the anglers fished the morning session 8.00am to 3pm. Anglers reported a few fish rising but the majority caught by fishing a variety lines from an intermediate down to a fast sinker. D Mee caught his 3 fish limit on a fast sinker with R Morton catching his 4 trout also on a fast sinker. D Pritchard fished a fry pattern catching 2 but in his words “countless lost” probably coming short in the conditions.  Ian Brearley took a different approach fished in the ripple with a wet daddy, diawls & booby catching 6 trout. Considering the conditions more than happy to see a rod average 2.2 for the morning.

Freshening southerly breeze on Friday had most of the anglers fishing in the shelter of the dam with a varied approach from a washing line all the way down to a fast sinker picking up trout. Top rod on the day catching 6 trout on a washing line, fab on the point and diawl on the dropper was All Water member Ian Leach

Saturday and the breeze had picked up further but with it the water temperature had dropped to 19c. Not an easy day with Paul Martindale catching 4 on a diawls and cdc hopper

Sunday most of the rods fished the morning session 8.00am to 3.00pm with another day of the strong southerly winds anglers again fished along the dam wall. Top rods for the morning session were Tony Smith with 3 trout and Ray Jordan with 4 trout.

A mixed week fishing with the change in the weather to a fresh at times strong southerly reducing our surface temperature to 19c and it continues to drop. The morning session 8.00 to 3pm has generally fished best

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Draycote Fishery Weekly Report – 01788 812018

Email:  draycote@flyfishstore.co.uk

Can we remind members & day rods of our pre payment policy for 2022. Details are on our website www.flyfishdraycote.co.uk/about-us-2/day-permits/

Stocking Policy Details of our stocking policy for Draycote is explained on our website www.flyfishdraycote.co.uk/about-us-2/stocking-policy/

2022 Prices & details on our pre-payment visit our website www.flyfishdraycote.co.uk/about-us-2/day-permits/

Week Ending:  Sunday 26^th June 2022              Rod Av:  4.8      Water Temperature: 18 °C

Monday dawned flat calm with bright sunshine and looked like doing that for the rest of the day. Not the best conditions for fishing, but keeping on the move and going through different tactics will always give you a better chance of putting a fish or two in the net. Season pemit holder Peter Elliott used diawl bachs fished on a sinking line to put 5 fish in the boat, “deep and slow”. John Dickens stuck firmly to the dries to net 4 fish from various areas around the reservoir. Young Lester Booth netted 5 “cracking fish “, all on pin fry patterns. Draycote regular Andy Lilley fished for a few hours from the bank and netted a brace from Lincroft Point on sedges and cormorants. Dan Mgelligott managed 4 to the boat in the area around N buoy and the School Slips, using a gold headed black lure fished on an intermediate line. Chris Bobby and Lianne Frost caught 17 fish between them, with Chris using the Bung at 10ft, with the washing line working on a long midge tip.

Possibly some of the worst conditions for fishing greeted the anglers on Tuesday, with no wind high temperatures and full sun. As a result the fishing was a challenge, Draycote season ticket holder Phil Waters opted to fish deep landing a nice brace of fish including a cracking perch. Michael Hanlon fished with fishery guide Lee Henfrey for the morning, with the pair landing 5 fish to the boat, fishing around X Buoy. Michael used a Di 3 sinking line and an olive barred snake to land his fish. While Lee used a Booby Basher and a gold butt cat booby. The best catch of the day went to the single man boat of Paul Angell who landed 7 fish using buzzers, diawl bachs and crunchers fished on a midge tip at A buoy and the Valve Tower.

Another flat, bright, and hot day Wednesday, with the water temperature creeping up towards 19 degrees. As a result the best tactic seemed to be fishing a little deeper in the water column. Jim Dempsey fished on a morning boat to land a dozen fish. Jim fished around A buoy, using a Di 5 40+ line with a white snake with a roly-poly retrieve. Jim commented that he was taking the fish at 15ft down and the hang at the end of the retrieve was key. Jeff Hickson fished with Paul Heavens ahead of the Alex Booth Fly Fishery charity match the next day. With the pair landing 6 fish, with he best tactic being fishing a team of buzzers near the Valve Tower. All water member Paul Havard landed 4 fish, with the first taking a Diawl Bach on a 3ft midge tip and the rest on a DI 3 and a barred olive snake. The best boat of the day was member Chris Bobby and Mark Macleod who landed a dozen fish to the boat but kept the information on how they did it close to their chest as their teams competing in the Angling Trust Loch Style Championship at the weekend.

A busy day Thursday with Draycote hosting the annual Alex Booth Fly Fishers charity match. As always it was a very well attending event for a very worthy cause, with all 33 boats out on the water, however, once again the high water temperatures made the fishing tricky with the rod average for the match working out at 1.7 fish per angler. Winning the day was Paul Mitchell who landed 6 fish with boat partner Gordon Bramwell landing 4. Paul used buzzers to land his fish but didn’t say much more as he was competing in the match at the weekend. There was also a number of cracking fish caught, Colin Marriot landed a rainbow of 4lb 4oz fishing a Di 3 sinking line and a cats whisker using a figure of eight retrieve. Although Richard Gent landed one bigger a cracking fish of 4lb 13oz taken just near Farborough Spit on a fry pattern off the surface. Rob Edmunds also caught very well, while he was in the match, he treated it as a practice day for the weekend and didn’t weight in. Rob landed 7 fish using a fast glass line with a pink and sunburst FAB on the top dropper, 2 cormorants and a sparkler booby on the point.

The break in the weather certainly improved the fishing on Friday with the rod average jumping to just under 5 fish per angler. Season ticket holder Ian Reeve enjoyed a good day’s sport lading 16 fish using a black and green snake fished on a Di 3 sinking line. Fellow season ticket holder Ray Rawlings also enjoyed a good day landing 10 fish using a tequila FAB on the point and black crunchers on the droppers fishing at Rainbow Corner. George Scholes fished for the afternoon on the boats to land 11 fish once again from Rainbow Corner. Using green and black buzzers and also a team of Diawl Bachs fished on a floating line. We also had a number of teams practicing ahead of the Angling Trust Loch Style Team Championship. With a range of methods working , put it was clear that the fish had come up on the water and that washing lining was a ley method on Midge Tips and also slow sinking intermediates.

Saturday, saw a vastly improved water temperature with Southerly winds and a mix of cloud and sun. As a result of these improved conditions the rod average shot up to 9.4 fish per angler. On the Saturday we hosted the first day of the Angling Trust Loch Style Team Championship. The competition is fished over 2 days and broken up into 3 x 3 hour sessions, fishing with your teammate and a boat steward from another team adjudicating. All the fish are measured in a trough and the team with the largest combined length (CM) over the 2 days wins. There were some great scores on the day with the results from each session posted on www.facebook.com/flyfishstore The best tactic for the teams was to fish a washing line with 2 FABs or boobies on the top dropper and point with nymphs in the middle. Outside of the competition All water member Jamie Scott landed 16 fish on a black Pennell, Diawl Bachs and buzzers. Jamie fished in Rainbow Corner which was also the hotspot for the competition along with the outlet and the Hensborough Bank.

Another bright and blustery day here at Draycote on Sunday with once again, good returns from the top few feet of the water column. Richard Walker caught 3 fish on lures out over deeper water, whilst John Crowley used bibios and cormorants on a sinking line in areas such as Y and K buoy. Young Ian Western had a total of 10 fish to the boat using brown buzzers fished on a washing line setup, whilst Mark Johnson Jones caught 1 fish from the bank using a hothead damsel. On the second day of the Angling Trust Loch Style Team Championships the competitors did extremely well up in Rainbow Corner and along the Hensborough Bank,  mostly on the washing line method with muskins and diawl bachs. The two day event was won by Fulling Mill Team Tequila, closely followed by the Renegades and then the RAF Fish Hawks. The rod average for the competition was 14.5.