Eyebrook Fishery Report for Week Ending, Sunday 17th September 2023

Weekly Fishing Report: Draycote, Eyebrook, Thornton

Visit our Fisheries Websites: www.flyfishdraycote.co.uk   www.flyfisheyebrook.co.uk  www.flyfishthornton.co.uk

Online Shop: www.flyfishstore.co.uk      Tuition & Guiding: www.flyfishtuition.co.uk

Fishery YouTube Channel: YouTube Flyfishstore

Eyebrook Fishery Weekly Report 

Lodge – 01536 770264 & Fishery Mobile 07834581424

Email: eyebrook@flyfishstore.co.uk

2023 Stocking Policy Details of our stocking policy for Eyebrook is explained on our website

www.flyfisheyebrook.co.uk/about-us-2/stocking-policy/

2023 Membership options visit our website www.flyfisheyebrook.co.uk/about-us-2/season-permits/

2023 Permits & Pre Payment for Boat Bookings Details of our Day Permits, Package Breaks & our Boat bookings pre-payment policy visit our website.

https://www.flyfisheyebrook.co.uk/about-us-2/day-permits/

Week Ending: 17^th September   Rod Av:  2.9      Water Temperature: 18°c

There was a slightly cooler start to the week with intermittent cloud cover. Fish were caught throughout the Main Basin on a variety of methods, Dries, Nymphs straight lined & washing lined & Lures on Sinking Lines. The water temperature remains over 20°c, so whatever fish are getting caught higher up in the water column, are not spending any length of time at that depth. They are coming up to feed briefly before returning to the deeper more comfortable water & they are the fish getting caught at depth. All Water Member Ged O’Donoghue, on his first visit of the season had a very productive day, landing 7 fish, most of which came to a Midas or a Foam Daddy. Well done, Ged, it was great to see you again. Elsewhere, from the banks, Mr Coles landed 4 fish from the Hawthorns on a Foam Daddy & Diawl Bachs. With cooler weather coming, the outlook for the banks is excellent.

It was a very quiet day Tuesday, which brought with it a persistent rain that remained all day. Initially there was a light, warm southerly breeze that developed into in by a cold northerly wind by early afternoon. This extreme 180° change in wind direction ensured that the Eyebrook trout were at their finicky best & consequently there were very few fish caught, most of which, were mainly in the morning.

Wednesday saw a moderate Northerly prevailing wind drive most of the Algae into the Harbour resulting in large areas of clear water. The boats that headed out, all went upwind to find clear water & consequently these areas fished relatively well. Wednesday saw us host 2 groups, the Higham Ferrers Fly Fishers & the Fishing For Fun club Higham Ferrers had 12 anglers & these went on to catch 37 fish between, returning a rod average of 3.1 which was great given the previous day. Fishing for Fun had 11 anglers out, catching 34 fish for another rod average of 3.1. Elsewhere, all water member Ed Douglas had a great day, landing 17 fish, 16 of which came to Cormorants on a washing line from various locations around the reservoir. The Willows & Robbo’s Cabin fished very well early on as these were located up wind & later in the day, the Northerly areas of the Main Basin fished well later in the day. There were also fish caught over the top of the weedbeds down by the Hawthorn.

There was a light southerly wind on Thursday which brought with it some good, consistent cloud cover. The reservoir fished well consequently, with some good bags coming from both the banks & the boats. It was the banks that really sprung into life with regular visitor Max Woolnough having an excellent morning from the bank landing 20 fish on a Washing Line with a Sparkler Booby on the point & Diawl Bachs on the droppers. Max targeted feeding fish in the weedbeds down at the Hawthorns. Another angler to do this was All Water Member Jim Greasley, Jim fished the Hawthorns later in the day & took his 6 fish on various, coloured Shipman’s Buzzers fished over the weedbeds. On the Boats, Eyebrook Member, Stuart Bilsdon had a productive Day on the Daddies landing 10 fish from various locations around the reservoir.

Friday saw the reservoir fish well from the boats & from the Float Tube with Eyebrook member Dean Shilton landing 7 fish on Foam Daddies from various locations. From the boats, Dries & the Washing Line, be that with a floater or on a Tip Line, seem to be the most productive methods. Once again what has been important with the Washing Line, is to have colour on the point, in the form of either a FAB or a Blob Booby. All Water Member Paul Havard found the fish he caught only interested in the colour, to the point that he fished a FAB on the top dropper & a Blob Booby on the point to maximise his catch rate. As a result, Paul ended the day with 8 fish which was a good return for the day. Another option for a buoyant fly that can be fished on the washing line is the ever versatile, Foam Daddy. Thomas Long, used this method to land his 11 fish for the day, with some of his fish, coming to the Buzzers on the droppers. The Main Basin proved to be the most productive area.

For the Saturday, the wind had swung round to a moderate Northerly which brought with it some extended periods of sunshine, particularly in the morning. Despite the weather, the Reservoir fished well with once again with some steady bags of fish recorded, with again the Main Basin being the most productive area. As for methods, Dries & the washing line were the percentage methods & it paid to fish from a drifting boat, covering more water. All Water Member Mark Hunt fished a washing lined 6ft Tip Line in the morning, during the bright spells & he swapped to a single Orange Foam Daddy for the afternoon & was rewarded with a great return of 14 fish in a morning session. Elsewhere, another All-Water Member, Sue Potts, also had a productive day, landing 7 fish on the Washing Line with a pink FAB taking its fair share. John Balladon & Rimalew Naidu were others to catch well on the washing line, landing well into double figures from the Main Basin.

Sunday started with a strong northerly breeze blowing into the harbour bringing with it a cooling wind & consistent cloud cover. As the day progressed, the wind eased but the cloud cover remained, leaving great conditions. Today we hosted the All-Abilities Friendly Fly-Fishing Club which saw 22 anglers of varying experience levels take to water & between them they caught 56 fish on a variety of methods. Most of the boats headed down to the general area of the Willows with some catching on Dries, Foam Daddies & popper Hoppers featuring well on the catch returns. Other methods that caught well were Washing Lined Floaters, Tip Lines & Intermediates but what was noticeable was that movement of the Flies was important to illicit a response from feeding fish. Elsewhere, All Water Members Fraser Duffy, Senior & Junior & Terry Bayes who accompanied them, took their 2 boats down to Stoke Dry & targeted feeding fish in the shallower water. The 2 boats were duly rewarded with an excellent bag of over 30 fish between them.

There is some extreme weather forecast for later in the week with some very heavy rain & very strong winds. Please contact the Lodge on 01536 770264 for updates & use the Weather Links below. On a positive note, the low pressure that is due will undoubtably lower the water temperature somewhat.

Upcoming Events.

20^th September – AMFC Group 2 – 15 Boats.

21^st September – Police Pairs – 18 Boats

24^th September – Mid Northants Fly Fishers – 16 Boats

01^st October – AMFC Group 3 – 15 Boats.

2023 Eyebrook Closing Date.

The last day of fishing on Eyebrook is Monday 20^th November.

Weather: we use two weather forecast pages.

Both options give a good 48-to-72-hour forecast.

XC Weather – https://www.xcweather.co.uk/forecast/LE16_8RP use this link for Eyebrook.

Windy App – https://www.windy.com/  on their home page, enter the fishery name Eyebrook Reservoir.

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Thornton Fishery Weekly Report – 01530 230807

Email: thornton@flyfishstore.co.uk

2023 Stocking Policy Details of our stocking policy for Thornton are explained on our website www.flyfishthornton.co.uk/about-us-2/stocking-policy/

2023 Permits & Pre Payment for Boat Bookings For details of our Day Permits, Package Breaks & our Boat bookings pre-payment policy visit our website.

https://www.flyfishthornton.co.uk/about-us-2/day-permits/

Week Ending: 17^th September Rod Av:1.0 Water Temperature:19c

Following on from the early September heatwave our water temperature has started to drop and is currently 19c, usually for this time of year we should be 17c – 18c.

The algae condition has started to show sign of improvement clear visibility between 16inch to 18inch.

A sign that the algae condition is starting to improve is that some trout were caught higher in the water on intermediate or sink 3 lines with booby & fry patterns with a few caught on a daddy.

Hopefully clarity will continue to improve. We advise you call the lodge & follow our advice.

Thornton 2023 last day of the fishing season Thursday 30th November

Weather: we use two weather forecast pages.

Both options give a good 48-to-72-hour forecast.

XC Weather – https://www.xcweather.co.uk/forecast/LE67_1AR use this link for Thornton.

Windy App – https://www.windy.com/  on their home page, enter the fishery name Thornton Reservoir

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Draycote Fishery Weekly Report – 01788 812018

Email:  draycote@flyfishstore.co.uk

2023 Stocking Policy Details of our stocking policy for Draycote is explained on our website www.flyfishdraycote.co.uk/about-us-2/stocking-policy/

2023 Membership Options visit our website www.flyfishdraycote.co.uk/about-us-2/season-permits/

2023 Permits & Pre Payment for Boat Bookings Details of our Day Permits, Package Breaks & our Boat bookings pre-payment policy visit our website.

https://www.flyfishdraycote.co.uk/about-us-2/day-permits/

Exclusion Zone  Due to the work being carried out on the Hensborough Bank there is an exclusion zone in place, clearly marked with yellow buoys. Under no circumstances are anglers to enter this area as there are divers in the water.

Week Ending:  Sunday 17^th September 2023  Rod Av: 3.7  Water Temperature: 18 °C

A warm start to the week, with the sun making an appearance in the morning before the cloud rolled in later in the day. However, the afternoon remained humid and muggy thankfully the Southwest winds helped to take the edge of the heat. On the boats Jim Dempsey fished for a morning using the rudder to good effect landing 6 fish. Using a Di 7 sinking line with various snakes with his best area being the top side of Y Buoy down to P Buoy. All water member Ed Douglas landed 10 fish while out on the boat landing 2 of them on dries, with the other 8 falling to a washing line set up. Ed fished at the flat stones drifting out towards B Bouy using a Snowbee buzzer tip with Diawl Bachs on the droppers and a FAB on the point. On their second day of a 4 day break, Steven Bett & Brian Collins enjoyed great sport landing 28 fish. The pair fished all along the Draycote Dam Wall drifting out towards the middle. With Steven using a 5ft midge tip with a weighted fly on the point and cormorants on the droppers. While Brian opted to use a Di 3 sweep sinking line with 2 sparkler boobies ten feet apart. The pair commented on how they lost as many as they caught and could have finished the day with over 50 fish to the boat.

Overcast first thing in the morning with very light winds, with the rain arriving around 9am and it didn’t’ really let up until about 5pm. With the wind picking up and swinging to the North later in the afternoon. On the bank Draycote member Pete Allen fished at Lincroft point using a grey minkie to land a great brace of fish. On the boats all water member Steve Orton & Ged O’Donoghue landed 5 between them but left no comments as to how.

A bright start to Wednesday, with some cloud arriving later in the day with the wind coming from the North. Mick Cronin fished from the bank using minkies to land a brace of fish from Lincroft Point. On the boats Mark Smith fished for a morning using a washing line set up to land 5 fish, from Toft. Draycote member Bob Barfoot also used a washing line with cormorants on the droppers landing 7 fish. With the majority of Bob’s fish coming when he covered moving fish. Mick Cartlidge & Tim Strachan fished in Toft to land 9 fish between them using a mixture of FABs and cormorants. Roy Taylor also fishing in Toft with Barry Butler with the pair landing a dozen fish to the boat on a mix of methods. With claret hoppers, minkie boobies and standard minkies all accounting for their fish. We also had a number of teams on the water practicing ahead of the Airflo Sheild on Saturday. While the specifics were a closely guarded secret, the teams did say there is certainly two layers of fish. With a number of anglers getting good success on dries with a lot of fish coming blind and showing interest. While a number of other anglers found the fish deep using Di 7 sinking lines and sparkler boobies.

A wet day Thursday with drizzle for most of the day and the wind coming from the South. On the bank Tony Broadway fished down in Toft landing 7 fish using a washing line with crunchers. James Kelly also fished in Toft landing 6 fish also on a washing line with all of the fish taking the Diawl Bachs on the middle. Fellow member John Dickens also fished in Toft landing 8 fish 6 on a washing line and 2 taking a Midas. On the boats Draycote hosted the English Fly Fishing Association with the 34 anglers landing 114 fish. With the winner of the day being Pete Skelton who caught his 8 fish limit. The anglers fished to full C/R measuring the fish, so Pete’s winning length was 356cm. There was a mix of methods with a number of anglers opting to fish dries. However washing lining and also boobies on sunk lines proved to more productive. Outside of the EFFA, we had a number of teams once again practicing for the match at the weekend. Speaking to the anglers as they came off there was some very good  number of 16s to the boat, 20s and the occasional 30. Once again lots of comments of a mix of methods from a Di 7 all the way to the surface and dries. With Toft proving to be very productive so to the Draycote Dam wall.

A misty start to Friday, which lifted around 10am leaving a calm bright day but thankfully the wind did pick up a little around lunch blowing from the South. On the bank Steve Proffitt landed 4 fish from Toft, using a washing line with Daiwl Bachs & Shrimps. However, all of Steve’s fish came before 9am before it got bright. Kasidit Leoviriyakit fished the bank landing 6 fish using a cat whisker and a snake. On the boats it was the final practice day before the Airflo Shield Final on Saturday. Given the conditions it was a trickier day for the anglers, but once again specifics were kept close to their chest. Outside of the match practice boats Stephen Peart landed a dozen fish. Using a 6ft midge tip with 2 FABs and 2 black Diawl Bachs catching from B & C Buoy.

Saturday saw the fishery host the Airflo Open Shield Final with 12, 6 man teams competing to be crowned champion. With conditions much improved from the day before and good practice days, everyone hoped for a good days sport. This proved to be the case with the 72 anglers catching 498 fish giving a rod average of 6.92. Winning the match with a fantastic performance was RAF Fish Hawks A. Who landed 66 fish for 136lb 14oz. There best method was to use a cutthroat cat on the point cormorants on the droppers and then a tequila FAB on the top dropper. With the lads catching from Duns Bay, Rainbow Corner and Biggin Bay. In second place was the Alba Cats who landed 50 fish for 99lb 13oz, using either CDC dries or washing lining tactics with cormorants on nymphs. In the same areas as the RAF, however, they did land a number of fish later in the day around Lincroft point drifting from E Buoy out towards P Buoy. In third place, the Welsh Wizards with 44 fish used various tip lines and cormorants on the droppers. The top rod on the day was James Rice from the Welsh Wizards who landed his 12 fish by 1pm. Using the same tactic he used to win the Wychwood Induvial championships. Which was a 12ft slow tip with a cormorant booby on the point and top dropper and cormorants in the middle around D Buoy drifting towards C Buoy. Outside of the match Draycote member Mike Garner fished on the Cornfield and Lincroft Point to land 3 fish, including a cracking 5lb rainbow that took a fry pattern.

The weather on Sunday was overcast to start with, promising a few sunny spells, and perhaps the odd shower later in the day. The fishing has carries on from previous days with good returns coming from several different areas. Once again the fish are sitting pretty high in the water with the preferred lines being midge tips and floaters. Flies such as red diawl bachs, black buzzers and cormorants are all proving very popular, as are dries such as foam daddies, black hoppers and crippled midge patterns. Mr Thomas Long had 10 fish to the boat using diawl bachs and buzzers. David and Jack O’Farrell caught a bakers dozen between them on claret hoppers, crippled midge and big reds. Season permit holder Paul Walley had 8 fish to the boat pulling daddies across the surface near D buoy in Duns Bay. Mr D Keeble had 4 fish around D buoy using a mixture of dries and cormorants. Young Will Hunt caught half a dozen fish on black hoppers in Biggin Bay. Season permit holder Mark Thistleton caught 7 fish in Biggin Bay on a mixture of snakes and buzzers.

Draycote’s closing date

The closing date for Draycote for this season will be Thursday 30^th November 2023.

Weather: we use two weather forecast pages.

Both options give a good 48 to 72 hour forecast.

XC Weather – Forecast for CV23 8AB | XCWeather use this link for Draycote

Windy App – https://www.windy.com/  on their home page, enter the fishery name Draycote Water