Weekly report 21st August 2022

Weekly Fishing Report: Draycote, Eyebrook, Thornton

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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:  21^st August      Rod Av: 3.8      Water Temperature: 20c – 21c

Monday quiet day with rods watching the forecast & waiting for the weather to break. Tuesday few rods out with the forecast for cooler conditions & a chance of rain later in the day.

Wednesday with overnight rain giving us ¾ inch of rain, much welcomed. Breezier day with a cool northerly will help to reduce our water temperature, its already dropped 3c since Sunday afternoon sat at 21c this morning. Despite the rain which fell steady we have little or no runoff as the ground absorbed the rain. Only 1 rod out Dave Pritchard, he found the trout moving off the stones managed to hook 7 trout on a montana but only landing the 1 trout.

Thursday, overcast morning, with the anglers heading for the dam wall, green bay & stones. Anglers reported trout moving in pockets, locate a pocket of these feeding trout, put on a small #14 diawl, #14 #16 olive buzzer, dries & you were into fish. Carl Bond & his brother caught 11 on buzzer, S Windram fished #14 diawl & caught 6 but lost just as many. S Orton fished with N Perkins catching 12 on dries & emergers. L Serrano fished a washing line, small daddy, small nemo & diawl to catch 27 with Paddy Fitch & Bill Stone catching 29 for their afternoons visit.

Friday Chris Sayer fished pheasant tails to catch his 7 trout with John & Tom Davis fishing diawl bach & damsel nymph to catch their 8 with Richard Smith fishing a short morning session catching 3.

Saturday & a couple of rods found the winning combination, B Perrie fished diawl bach & hoppers to catch his 22 trout with L Serrano fishing the afternoon session close along the main dam to catch his 20+ trout on damsel & pheasant tails. Lorenzo returned to Fish Sunday afternoon catching 12 on daddies & diawls, Emad caught 6 for his morning session with K Walker also fishing the morning session to catch 5

A mixed week with the daily rod average seesawing from 1 to 8, with the water temperature down to 20c, lower evening temperatures we can look forward to steadier, consistent fishing during September.

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Draycote Fishery Weekly Report – 01788 812018

Email:  draycote@flyfishstore.co.uk

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

Week Ending:  Sunday 21^st August 2022              Rod Av:3.1      Water Temperature: 19  °C

A cooler start to the week, with the wind coming from the Northwest making it a much more pleasant day to be out on the water. Although the water temperature remained high sitting at 22°C meaning the fish could still be found further down in the water column. Jim Dempsey fished for a half day using the rudder to land 6 fish. Jim found the fish off the Draycote Dam using a black snake, commenting that the fish seemed to be about 10-15 feet down. All water member Lorenzo Serrano landed 8 fish using snakes and boobies around B Buoy, A Buoy, and the Aerators. Fellow all water member Ed Douglas also fished in these areas landing 11 fish on boobies fished on a Di 7 sinking line and a figure of eight retrieve. Fishery Guide Lee Henfrey headed out on the water for  2 hour experience session with young anglers Leo & Seb Sharp. With the help of Lee the lads landed 4 fish to the boat back drifting white snake boobies near the Draycote Dam. Pictures of the session can be find here www.facebook.com/flyfishstore.

A cooler start Tuesday with some drizzle in the afternoon, however it did get very Humid in the afternoon before rain mixed with some thunder around 6pm. As a result of the slightly cooler temperatures, the water temperature dropped a degree to 21°C. As a result the fish moved slightly higher in the water column. Rob Floyd & Nick Loughrey landed 6 fish to the boat using a Di 5 sinking line with a booby on the point and Diawl Bachs on the droppers. With drifts around C Buoy and the Value Tower proving to be the most effective area. Dave Reynolds & Paul Goulding also found the fish sitting higher in the water. As the pair landed 8 fish to the boat washing line on intermediates. Martin Ashby fished for a half day landing 5 fish from the Aerators on snakes using a sinking line.

Heavy overnight rain certainly gave a much fresher feel to the day Wednesday with a brisk Northeast wind. Draycote member Mike Garner fished from the bank landing 4 fish from along the Cornfield on cormorants. A good sign that the fish have moved closer to the bank with the change in weather. On the boats the fishing was a little challenging as, the big swing in weather conditions seemed to put the fish off the feed. Beginner member Simon Enstock landed a brace from E Buoy in Biggin Bay using a black and gold humungus and a booby. All water member Chris Bobby fishing with Mark McCleod landed 6 fish to the boat using “various boobies on various lines in several places”. So I think its clear to see from that report that was no standout method for the day the key was to just keep on the drifting searching the water.

A grey start to Thursday with he water temperature dropping down to 20 degrees, with some drizzle around first thing in the morning. On the boats all water member Paul Havard landed 8 fish using a 3ft midge tip and a washing line. With 6 fish taking the black crunchers on the droppers and 2 on the tequila booby on the point fishing in Rainbow Corner. Frank Sumnall & Lester Booth landed 14 fish to the boat using nymphs fished on a floating line or a Midge tip around Rainbow Corner & B Buoy. Draycote member John Dickens landed 9 fish with 6 of them coming to crippled midge in the last hour as the fish came on the feed. Dave Kennel fished with Alec Urquhart with the pair landing 14 fish using a washing line with a mixture of nymphs FABs and daddies. All water member Ed Douglas also used a washing line to land 10 fish drifting around Y Buoy.

A bright day Friday with quite a gusty Southwest wind at times. We had a number of boats on the water with anglers practicing ahead of the John Horsey angler’s world holiday final on Sunday. Dave Reynolds & Dale Griffiths landed 21 fish to the boat using nymphs fished on a washing line. Ben Dobson & Ian Gaskell also enjoyed a good days sport landing similar numbers. Ben had the lion share of the sport using a Di 5 sweep and a gold arsed Cat Booby. Jon Crowley enjoyed a great 4 hour session on the boats landing 10 fish from B Buoy & Y Buoy. Jon used a Di 7 sweep sinking line with a black and gold snake to land his fish. Draycote Member James Alexander fishing with a work colleague  landed 10 fish to their boat. Fishing with snakes on a Di 3 drifting from C Buoy to Y Buoy.

This weekend here at Draycote we hosted the Anglers World Fly Fishing Championships. The practice day on Saturday went pretty well overall, with lots of anglers being very tight lipped about where they were catching and on which method. From what we can gather, lots of anglers fished over the deeper water across A, B and C buoy, straight lining nymphs on a floater or midge tip line. One angler in particular said he caught at M buoy on the Hensborough Bank, pulling two blobs with a diawl bach in between on a DI3. Fish were showing early on in the day, inside the golden triangle, but no one seemed to catch in that area on Saturday.

And so to the match day on Sunday. Competitors were very excited to get out on the water, and it was noted that there were many different types of set ups between the anglers first thing in the morning, all avenues were going to be explored. At the start, all boats headed west, up to the deeper water near the Draycote Dam, as well as M buoy and the front of the Overflow. Towards the close of the competition, with boats moving ever closer to the pontoon, from the lodge we could see anglers bending into fish near J buoy. The total number of fish caught for the competition was 308, producing an average of 3.1, with the top three rods netting ten fish apiece. Third spot went to Mark Miles, with a bag weight of 20lbs 11oz. Gordon Leavy came second with a bag weight of 20lbs 12oz, and the winner on count back, with a bag weight also of 20lbs 12oz, was Paul Tweddle. Congratulations to all anglers who supported the competition. Full copy of the results on our Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/FlyFishStore

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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/

Week Ending: Sunday 21^st August 22       Rod Av:   3.3        Water Temperature: 19°+

After a stifling hot few days’ last week, Monday started with some welcome cooler weather although the forecast was for thunderstorms storms over the early part of the week. Although the Algae hadn’t totally cleared, there were areas of clear water out in open water of the main basin. Monday lunchtime saw some ominous clouds forming along with some moderate winds, but after an hour they passed to leave a nice summers evening with swallows, and a few trout, responding to the hatching fly life. Ian Jobe was top rod, taking 9 fish whilst float tubing alongside the netted bank. Ian used snakes on a DI7. Snakes were the most consistent fly with the anglers out in the other boats all recording fish to these patterns.

Tuesday brought with it overcast conditions & a warm air temperature. Throughout the day there was showers, some lighter than others. As the reservoir began to readjust from the recent hot spell anglers found the fish to be in a selective & picky mood. All anglers reported plenty of interest from the trout, be that follows or pulls but very few positive hook ups. This is to be expected really, as the fish will require time to adapt to the change in conditions & there is bound to be a small period of adjustment.

There was a strong to moderate Northerly wind on Wednesday which lasted all day. With it, it brought some heavy intervals of rain which petered out as the day wore on. The wind pushed the warmer water from the shallower, northern end of the reservoir down into the basin which did increase the water temperature. It also pushed the remaining algae into the shore & up onto the bank. During this period the water quality did decrease in the basin & the fishing became challenging & subsequently the anglers who went to the basin, struggled. However, the water quality up the north of the reservoir dramatically improved & consequently so did the fishing. Those who ventured up there, went initially in search of softer water, but it soon became apparent that there was plenty of moving fish. All water member Mark Hunt went up to the Willows & had an excellent day, landing 13 fish, all on dries: CDC emergers proving to be successful. Whereas regular angler Chris Martin caught very well, in the same area but this time on a washing lined floater, with Diawl Bachs up the line. The reservoir will continue in this short term, state of flux until we have a period of consistent & settled weather.

Thursday brought with it a 180-degree change in the wind direction, which meant the wind was now coming from the lodge. After an initial slow start, which is only to be expected after such a change in the wind direction, the reservoir fished well & produced a solid rod average of 4.4. Fish were caught all along the Leicester Bank from the lodge to the Hawthorns area on either a washing lined floater or dries. Resident Guide Andy Miller shared a boat with John Butler who was on a Guided boat session, & they had a great day landing plenty of fish all of which came to a Foam Daddy. Elsewhere, Mr Stern & his boat partner also had a very productive day, landing over 20 fish to boat, from the Hawthorns area. Their fish came to either a washing lined floater or dries & most notably, all in the afternoon.

Friday was a relatively quiet day & of those who ventured out, Ian Mcleod had the top bag, landing 9, all on dries from the boat. There were fish still caught in the Main Basin & along from the lodge to the Hawthorns. The fish remain high in the water column & have been caught on Dries & small nymphs, fished on a washing lined floater. As the water temperature continues to drop, the amount of time the fish will remain in the surface layers will increase, especially during periods of cloud cover. In these situations, don’t wait to see moving fish to put the Dries on, give them a try as large proportion of fish will come blind to well-presented Dry Fly. By “blind” we mean that you haven’t cast to rising fish & the fish has simply came up & taken your fly. If larger Dry Flies are receiving a lot of attention but not resulting in positive hook ups, try scaling down hook sizes or even a smaller pattern entirely.

Saturday saw the reservoirs good form continue with plenty of fish being caught from both the boat & the bank, yielding an impressive daily rad average of 6.9.  Season Ticket holder Malcolm Thompson landed 14 fish from the bank fishing a Washing Lined floater with Diawl bachs on the droppers at the Bell. From the boats, dries yet again proved to be a very productive method with Hares Ear, Midas & Foam Daddies being amongst the more successful patterns. Fish were caught from various locations throughout the day, from the Willows to the Hawthorns the fish were sat high up in the water column & willing to take flies just under or off the surface. Another season ticket holder, Bob Margery opted to fish below the surface & landed 16 fish in a morning session using a Geen Pea & a White lure. Also, Andruis Papeika & his boat partner had a very productive day, landing over 20 fish between them on Hare’s Ear’s which is a great return.

Sunday brought a bright start to the day, with a gentle south westerly breeze which stiffened during the day. The clear blue sky gave way to periods of broken cloud cover which varied in length & density. The reservoir fished well again, however due to the changeable conditions it did not quite hit the heights of yesterday. Fish were still caught from both the boats & the banks. Malcolm Thompson & Dave Etty both caught from the bank down by the Bell & the Hawthorns fishing either CDC’s or Nymphs on a floating line. The most productive area from the boats remained the Main Basin with plenty of fish being caught on either Washing Lined Floaters & Midge Tips or on the Dries out across the open water. Mr Radcliffe had a very successful day landing 11 fish. He targeted the fish in the upper layers by using a Midge Tip & Cormorants for most of the fish & Dries for the others. Changing your approach throughout the day to match the conditions can often pay dividends & this can at times, make all the difference.