Weekly Fisheries report 18th June 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

Thornton Fishery Weekly Report – 01530 230807

Email: thornton@flyfishstore.co.uk

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

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.flyfishthornton.co.uk/about-us-2/day-permits/

Week Ending: 18^th June   Rod Av: 2.4    Water Temperature: 20c – 21c

Monday & Tuesday wind over the last few days has generally been easterly but with the longer daylight hours and an increase in the daytime temperatures into the high 20c its certainly had an impact on the fishing. Anglers followed our advice and fished the morning session 8am – 3pm. We are seeing some fish smutting and others on the pin fry and damsels with the best area, opposite the lodge, Markfield arm, stones & green bay. Best method has been the back drift with various booby patterns with K Cowen & S Faigrieve catching 6 trout for their mornings visit.

Wednesday weather was the same as the last few days. Were seeing some fish move during the first few hours opposite the lodge, pontoon, stones and Markfield arm but as the sun gets higher the rises reduce. Sink 7 lines fished in the back drift with booby patterns worked best with the drift from the Markfield arm along the stones and across the main basin to the public car park best. Barry Deeley caught 1 on a floater using a Barons pin fry and 6 on a sink7 and booby patterns. P Hunt and J Thomson caught 6 for their mornings visit again on fast sinkers and booby.

Thursday a booby fished on a sink5 or sink7 produced the best of the sport with anglers reporting missed takes and follows. The drift up the Markfield arm along the stones, across the main basin and in front of the dam fished best. Richard Maycock too his granddaughter out for a morning, they caught 2 fish but lost a further 5 trout. We spooned his 2 fish, one had a few small buzzer the other had been feeding on bloodworm. Ian Leach caught 4 on a sink5 in front of the dam but reported fish lost and plenty of follows. Tut & Bet Miles caught 4 and also reported missed takes and follows. Dave and Henry Mee fished the last 4 hours again the booby on a sink line worked. Mark Cawley opted to fish a tip line or floater catching 3 on a damsel and orange daddy, he also reported missed takes to the daddy. Mark also saw fish feeding on the pin fry against the weedbeds as you go into the Markfield arm. Best booby, silver humungus, cats whisker, damsel, red booby. Rod average was 2 but would have been a lot higher had fish not been lost or the fish follows turned into takes.

Friday, less wind and bright conditions were suited for the morning with the back drifting with a sinking line expected to work best. Most anglers struggled although good to see beginner angler Kenny Henry managing to catch. Chris Sayer caught 8 for his 5 hour visit fishing a sink7 line with a green damsel booby, finding the fish whilst drifting in the Markfield arm.

Saturday, another day of easterly winds from the east to the south east, some cloud cover. Fishing was the best its been for weeks with an overall rod average of 4.25 with most fishing a booby on the back drift although a few were taken on an intermediate or sink3 on damsel nymph patterns. We hosted 6 members of the British Float Tubing Association who had an excellent day with their groups rod average an excellent 5.8, eventual winner Garry Cragg who caught 10 trout. Booby patterns were, olive damsel booby, small black and green booby, small cats whisker booby. We also had Tony Bokenham with his granddaughter for her first trip helping to catch 3 on a silver humungus booby. Member Keith Cowen fished from an anchored boat fishing a Rio Sink7 and tequila booby to catch 5

Sunday overcast conditions, feeling cooler, another day of easterly winds. Anglers too our advice and fished sinking lines and booby patterns to return a mornings rod average of 4.4 Thornton member A Wilson fished a minkie booby catching 9 trout for his visit. Morning rod T Long caught his first fish on a humungus booby pattern, a fly that was given to him by R Smith who was catching on that pattern. Mr Long also caught some fish on a snake. J Reynolds decided to try an intermediate and booby pattern and was rewarded with 4 trout.

The last 3 days of the week saw improving catches which will hopefully carry on into this coming week.

Our latest YouTube Flyfishstore video is available for viewing and has Lloyd and Tom fishing damsel patterns at Eyebrook https://youtu.be/lna0SBjBeBk

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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/

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:     18^th June  2023      Rod Av: 2.0   Water Temperature:  18°C

A very hot start to the week, with lots of water in the boats after the torrential thunderstorm the night before. However, the thunderstorm did little to cool anything. With such high temperatures and more thunderstorms forecast for later in the day, it was a quiet day at the fishery both with rods and number of fish caught. However, like the previous day fish could still be caught on the top with fishery ranger Kev Jones going out after his shift catching on daddies.

Another bright and blustery start again on Tuesday. The wind speed rose again about midday, making the western end of the reservoir a bit choppy at times through the afternoon. There are fish right throughout the water column in many areas of the reservoir, being caught on dries, as well as sinking lines. Mr Ian Morris and Mr Brian Hall had a brace between them through the bright sunshine. Mr A Campbell caught 9 fish from a drifting boat using a DI5 sweep line and two sparkler boobies, with the odd fish taking a foam daddy out in the middle of the reservoir.

The weather conditions prevailed through Wednesday. There is a good spread of fish throughout the reservoir and at various depths.   Draycote regular Will Hunt used a mixture of minkies and daddies near the aerators to boat 7 fish. Mr D Howard caught 3 fish on boobies, whilst Chris Reeves and Ian McKenagh caught 4 fish between them.

Another warm day Thursday with a Northeast, which did help to keen a slightly cooler feel to the day for the anglers out on the water. Draycote member John Dickens fished from a boat landing 7 fish all on dries, with a black a crippled midge being his best pattern. Lee Patten a fellow member fishing with Dave Franklin ahead of the Civil Service match on Friday. Enjoyed a good days sport using boobies in the morning on a sunk line before using dries on the afternoon to land 9 fish. Great to see dries working even in the bright sunshine. At the other end of the spectrum Jim Dempsey & Rod Wilson landed 20 fish in a morning session using the Rudder. The pair took their fish deep on a Di 7 sinking line drifting near P Buoy and Middle Shaol and heading down in between Y Buoy and the Aerators. Fishery Manager Tom Bird headed out on a 8 hour guide with friends Nigel Tranter & Gary Brewster. With the help of Tom the pair landed a dozen fish and lost a number of others. The best area was over Musborough Shoal using a Di 5 sinking line with a cormorant booby and sparker. However, in the afternoon Nigel did land 2 fish and lost another on a 6ft fast tip with a booby on the point and nymphs on the droppers. The pair also landed some quality rainbows to see the pictures please visit www.facebook.com/flyfishstore

Friday saw Draycote host the Civil Service National Game Angling Final, with anglers from all over the country fishing for their prospective regions. It was another day of challenging conditions with the continuing east winds and bright hot sunshine. However, the anglers did well in the tough conditions producing a 3.65 rod average. Winning the day was the Midlands Region comprising of Peter Elliott & Lee Patten. Who landed 21 fish between them, using snakes on a Di 7 sinking line. The best area being G Buoy to H Buoy and also around the Valve Tower. Lee, was also top individual on the day, landing 2 cracking fish for  his first 2 which tipped the scales at 6lb 4oz. In second place was the Northern Region of J Heppell & M Bramham who also landed 21 fish, but unfortunately lost out on the weight of the fish brought to the scales. They also found success using fast sinking lines and snakes. Outside of the Civil Service Match, Nigel Tranter & Gary Brewster enjoyed a good day landing 10 fish using a Di 7 sinking line teamed with snakes and humungous. They found the fish drifting from just down from the Valve Tower into the Draycote Dam. With nearly all the fish being grown on fish over 3lb with the best a rainbow of around 5lb taken by Nigel.

Saturday was overcast with a very light easterly breeze. There was a very light shower through the middle of the day which was most welcome in the current conditions. Staff member Mark Braun used a heavy sinking line and snakes up near the aerators to net 17 fish during an afternoon session. Alan Campbell had a brace on small culs down in Toft near G buoy. Draycote regulars Trevor Moore and James Maplethorpe used size 14 olive buzzers to net a bakers dozen between them in several places around the reservoir.  Season permit holder John Dickens used Grunters and crippled midge to net 3 fish during an evening session.

Sunday started much the same as the previous days with the threat of a thunder storm and heavy rain to come later. Staff member Michael Hanlon ventured out for a morning session to net half a dozen fish on black and gold humungus on a DI5. Season permit holder Tim Davies had 4 fish to the boat using a mixture of dries, boobies and snakes. Frazer Duffy, senior and junior, caught a dozen fish between them using snakes on a DI7 up near the aerators. Fishery manager Tom Bird hosted one of our ever popular Fly Fishing Tuition Days here at Draycote with 5 students taking part . The day went very well with all the students getting to grips with the casting and Mr Graham Cox landing two cracking rainbows. We also hosted the Steve Parton memorial match here At Draycote on Sunday organised by the Alex Booth Fly Fishers. The match was cut short for some anglers by the weather conditions later in the afternoon but, results were as follows. Third place was taken by Jack Westbury with 5 fish for 6lbs 12oz, in second place was Colin Marriott with 5 fish for 7lbs 4oz, and in top spot was Baz Street with 3 fish for 11lbs 6oz. Baz’s bag was boosted by a cracking fish of 6lbs 12oz which he caught near the inlet on a small black and gold humungus.  Well done to all those who took part.

Our latest YouTube Flyfishstore video is available for viewing and has Lloyd and Tom fishing damsel patterns at Eyebrook https://youtu.be/lna0SBjBeBk

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Eyebrook Fishery Weekly Report – Tel: 01536 770264  Mobile 07834 581424

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/

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.flyfisheyebrook.co.uk/about-us-2/day-permits/

Week Ending: 18 Jun 23       Rod Av: 2.14   Water Temperature:  20+°C

It was a warm start to the week with a bright clear sky & a gentle northerly breeze. By late afternoon the cloud had built & we experienced a typical seasonal storm of thunder, lightning & torrential rain. There were a few fish caught by those that did venture out prior the storm. All-Water Member Ian Jobe took to his Float Tube & was rewarded was 5 fish in a relatively short session. Ian concentrated his efforts fishing lures deep around the Main Basin looking for overwintered fish. Another All-Water Member Rob Middleton was out filming for Cadence TV & landed 10 fish from Stoke Dry. Starting on the Dries, Rob later switched to the washing line with 2 Fabs, one on the point & top dropper & 2 small nymphs on the middle droppers.

The searing weather conditions continued Tuesday, although there was a pleasant, slightly cooling northerly breeze by late morning. The bright conditions made for challenging fishing conditions & those who did venture out found the fish not to be very obliging. Fish were still caught however with Stoke Dry remaining productive as the fish up there fed hard on Damsel nymphs subsurface. All Water Member Arthur Olding fished Foam Daddies up Stoke Dry & was duly rewarded with 9 fish in his morning session, which given the conditions was an excellent return. The reservoir fished notably better in the morning than it did in the afternoon before the sun was at its highest & the air temperature it’s warmest.

Wednesday brought the same bright, clear conditions as previous days but these were accompanied with a stiff north easterly wind which slightly cooled the air temperature. Despite the bright conditions, the fish were still feeding hard on Damsels, pin fry & occasional hatching buzzer, in shallower waters of Stoke Dry & up behind the island in Sam’s Dyke. Eyebrook member Dave Shaer was up in Stoke Dry & he caught well on small Buzzers on a Washing Line. Also up in Stoke Dry were Fishery Managers, Tom Bird & Lloyd Thompson who were out conducting some promotional filming. Drifting across Stoke, they caught numerous fish & missed a few others, on a Washing Lined Floaters with a Damsel Booby on the point & various nymph patterns above it & on Foam Daddies. Elsewhere, regular visitor Max Woolnough had a very productive day sat up behind the island on the Dries. Max landed 16 fish on CDC’s earlier on & then Blue Dry Damsels later in the day when the Damsel hatch was in full swing. Given the conditions, that is a great return.

To check how Tom & Lloyd got on targeting the Damsel feeders up at Stoke Dry use the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lna0SBjBeBk

Thursday saw no respite with the weather as it was another hot, bright, clear day with those venturing out finding the fishing extremely challenging, This was not only down to the conditions but also due to the intensity of which the fish seemed to be preoccupied on feeding on Damsels &/or Pin Fry. The most productive areas again seemed to be Sam’s Dyke & Stoke Dry as fish caught appeared to be few & far between. Moving fish could be caught with a well presented & accurately cast emerging pattern.

Friday was another challenging day, for the exact same reasons as previously mentioned. Stoke Dry & Sam’s Dyke continue to hold a very high number of Damsel & Pin Fry feeding fish that are becoming increasingly challenging to tempt. When the fishing is like this it often pays to play the percentages by covering as much water as possible & present flies that will imitate what the trout are feeding on. Brian Frith did just that & was duly rewarded with what was an excellent bag, under the circumstances, of 4 fish in a morning session. Brian fished from a drifting boat & used a Damsel pattern to tempt his fish.

Saturday brought with it a welcome break with the weather; it was still warm but there was some consistent cloud cover over the course of the day. Consequently, the reservoir was a lot more productive than in previous days with fish caught from the both the bank & the boats. A Washing Lined Floater or Dries were the best methods from the banks with both Steve Barlow & Eyebrook Member Malcolm Thompson landing 6 & 5 fish respectively which is a great return for the middle of June from the bank. From the boats, another Eyebrook Member, Bob Margery had a great morning session landing 14 fish & out on a Last 4-hour permit, boat partners Mr Maylin & Gillies landed 10 between them on a variety of methods: Foam Daddies & pulling olive snakes.

The weather Sunday can only be described as changeable with bouts of sunshine, Showers & even Thunder & Lightning. Sunday saw us host a couple of events; firstly it was the Eyebrook Fly Fishers Blind Pairs boat match & secondly, we hosted an Experience Day for a contingent from Uppingham School. A blind pairs match is where anglers are unaware of their partners until the weigh in. Well done to all those that took part & congratulations to the winning pair on the day of Roy Swinfield & Ian Steele.

The Uppingham School Experience Day saw 12 attend the day where they all learnt how to cast a fly rod & were judged on accuracy & distance. They then went out & fished from a boat with some of those going on to land their first ever trout on a fly rod. Well done all & we hope you enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed hosting you. Elsewhere, Eyebrook Member Neil Shilton took to his Float Tube & was rewarded with 11 fish coming to the net. Neil concentrated his efforts fishing the deeper water of the Basin & his success indicates that fish could well be starting to search out that deeper, cooler water. Given the increase in the water temperature, this is hardly surprising for this time of year.

It is highly likely that over the coming weeks that the fish will appear in the Basin in greater numbers as they seek cooler & deeper water. If you are planning to fish the Basin, it is important to cover as much water as possible when you are searching for fish in deeper water