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Trout Fishing update

Trout Fishing Update – End May 2025

The cool easterly winds continued through the first half of May with no rain to speak of. The third week brought a change with blustery winds veering round to the west and continuing until month end. It remained cool with a little rain, but of no real significance. Stockings went ahead as planned on the 1st, 15th and 29th including some larger Rainbows as normal, but also a few bonus large Browns. Weed cutting took place in the last week of the month and is due to be cleared in the first week of June. The water level is dropping as expected with a very dry spring and water clarity remains excellent.

Hatches of Mayflies have at times been spectacular and the trout have willingly risen to them. The sight of a cloud Spinners dancing in their mating ritual is always a captivating sight. Consequently, Grey Wulff and other Mayfly patterns have been very successful. Many varieties of Sedge have been present particularly in the evenings from Great Reds to Small Black varieties. Alders have been plentiful along with the seemingly ever present Buzzers. There have been a few Hawthorns by the entrance gate and an 8lb Rainbow fell to an artificial, although I have never seen any actually fall on the water here at Roxton. The smaller yellowish Daddies have also been hatching from the grass around the lake.

Clearly the most successful dry patterns as stated above have been Grey Wulffs and other Mayfly patterns. Yellow Humpies, Bi-visibles, Rat Faced McDougals and Daddies have also taken fish off the surface. In the water column Buzzers have been the most successful followed by Damsel, Hares Ear and Pheasant Tail Nymphs. Crunchers, Pitsford Peas, Montanas and Black Nymphs have also scored. Plenty of large Rainbows and Browns of 6lb+ have been caught, with the largest of each exceeding 8lbs. Two very successful “party” days were held on Tuesdays in May and for a cost of £30 per fishing guest (£210 minimum charge for the day), 2025 dates are still available. The fishery is closed every Tuesday unless a fishing party has been booked in advance. In view of the party days, weed cutting/clearing may take place on days other than a Tuesday.

Housekeeping:

 Long lengths of leader material are still being left in the boats, with on one occasion flies still attached. Also, some litter is being left. This is beyond careless by those responsible and is not acceptable. Please leave the boats as you would wish to find them. Thank you.

Turning to wildlife, Swifts arrived mid-month and Cuckoos remain very active with a pair being seen together flying over the lake. Terns have been seen displaying and there are more Black Headed Gulls around than normal. Oyster Catchers are a great sight and sound around the lake and the decent broods of Grey Lags and Mallards are developing fast. The Swans still have two Cygnets at the time of writing. Jackdaws are nesting in the lodge roof as normal.

We have several patches of Birds Foot Trefoil around the banks alongside the similarly bright yellow flowers of Creeping Cinquefoil. On the track going down to the lake as the Ox-Eye Daisies fade, colourful blooms of Field Scabious, Knapweed, White Campion and Common Mallow replace them.

Despite the chilly weather there were a good number of Orange Tips, Brimstones and Holly Blues about, plus a few Red Admirals. The first Dragon Flies of the year have emerged, including Common Darters, Black Tailed Skimmers and the larger Southern Hawkers.

  

That reminds me. An American Restaurateur pal of mine Harry Zonah told me a couple of jokes when we were fishing together the other day.

Man – “The two things I cook best are Apple Pie and Roast Beef”. Woman – “Which is this?”

Did you hear about the Restaurant on the moon? The food is excellent but there’s no atmosphere.

A thought from the Pike book of homespun Philosophy: “Try and learn from history, to try and change it is futile”.

That’s all folks!

I look forward to seeing you on the bank.  

Tight lines,

Lucius Pike

Trout Fishing Update – End April 2025

Well, what a difference to the opening of the 2024 season, where recent floods had left the lake extremely high and very cloudy. The visibility through the water being only about 18 inches making traditional early season methods very difficult.

This year the weather was bright and dry, but cool on opening day with an ENE wind. This pattern persisted through most of April with only a couple of days of rain and a few very warm days towards the end of the month. On opening day there were 10 fishing efforts with 40 fish caught, mainly on Damsels, Montanas and Buzzers. On day one a 6lb+ Rainbow was caught with two 8lb+ Rainbows being caught in the first week. It is pleasing that all feedback on the fish has been to praise their condition and their tenacious fighting qualities, whatever the size. Overall, 180 fish were caught in the first week of the season. The biggest fish taken so far was a 9lb 8oz Rainbow, taken on a Mayfly.

Browns have been showing well with an average size well in excess of 2lbs. The largest Brownie caught so far exceeding 8lbs. Undoubtedly the most successful flies during April have been Buzzers. The supporting cast sub-surface includes Damsels, Diawl Bachs, Pheasant Tail Nymphs, GRHE Nymphs, Black Spiders and Montanas.

There have been a tremendous number of “naturals” hatching off in April. Not just Buzzers but also Alders, Sedges, the first Damsels and Demoiselles, two types/sizes of Daddies and on 29th April, the first decent hatch of Mayfly. The most successful Dry Flies have been Yellow Humpies, Sedges, Grey Wulffs and CDCs. Both Bank and Boat fishing have taken good fish.

Our new Depth gauge is now in place together with Solar panels on the Lodge and the Lodge light is working on a sensor.

Important points to note:

 The catch limit is 6 fish per day including catch and release, three of which can be killed if you choose to.

 Please do not leave the Lodge door open on breezy days as the Posters tear off the walls.

 Please remember the fishery is closed every Tuesday, unless a fishing party has been booked in advance.

 In view of the large fish that have been stocked (and caught) we recommend an absolute minimum of 6lb leader strength. 7 or 8lbs would be sensible.

 Weed cutting may be necessary on days other than Tuesday.

On the wildlife front, as usual Chiff Chaffs were the first warblers to arrive followed by the tuneful Willow Warblers and Black Caps. A Cuckoo was first present on 21st April, four days earlier than last year and one or more have been about constantly since. Swans are nesting appropriately on Swan Island and the Great Crested Grebes are displaying. There are two pairs of Gadwalls on the lake which hopefully will nest.

By the end of the month there were a couple of decent broods of Grey Lag Goslings and Mallard Ducklings.

 

Although cool, early Butterflies have been plentiful including Brimstones, Orange Tips, Small Tortoise Shells, Peacocks and Holly Blues. Let’s hope it’s a good year for them.

There is a decent show of early wild flowers, particularly on the track down to the lake. There is a profusion of White Dead Nettles, plus some Red, together with Dandelions, the lovely purple flowers of Ground Ivy and a patch of Speedwell just by the gate.

That reminds me. I was fishing the other day with an old school pal of mine Sunil Singh who incidentally has always been very keen on Karaoke. He told me about the following experience he had. He went to a tackle shop and bought a new rod. When he got home and took it out of the tube it gave him an electric shock. The same happened every time he touched something when he was holding it. He thought “I can’t have this,” so he took it back to the shop where he bought it. Fortunately they didn’t quibble, but gave him a replacement Free of Charge. He was ecstatic!

A thought from the Pike book of homespun Philosophy: “It’s not important what people are, it’s who they are that counts!”

That’s all folks!

I look forward to seeing you on the bank.  

Tight lines,

Lucius Pike

Trout Fishing Update – June/July 2025

Following weed cutting, the fish stocked on 29th May unusually took a few days to settle in, before starting to feed. Sport was then brisk up to mid-month when a heat wave set in, with temperatures above 30c for several days, making fishing extremely difficult. Prior to this, catches were good with several large Rainbows being captured up to 7lbs and decent sized Browns continued to show.

By far the most successful flies in June were various Mayfly patterns in particular Grey Wulffs. Mayfly hatches continued strongly until the middle of the month. Other patterns scoring on the surface were Emergers, Klinkhammers, Sedges and Hoppers. Sub surface, Damsels, Crunchers and Buzzers took their fair share of fish. Not surprisingly in view of the temperatures, fishing efforts reduced significantly in the second half of the month and only a few fish were caught.

July was variable in term of temperatures some very hot days and some typical English summer days in the range of 21 – 24c. The breeze was quite strong in the main and the trend of very little rain continued, with the most falling on one day where we just caught the edge of an Atlantic storm. As a result of some cooler days/nights, the water temperature remained relatively stable at approx 21c in the margins and 19c in the “deeps”. Still a bit warm for the Trout to be active, but there have been thousands of Coarse fish fry dimpling on the surface, which I’m sure will result in some “fry bashing” in the autumn. The water level is still dropping, but a decent depth is being maintained.  

As usual in July, the Trout became torpid and very hard to catch. Black patterns fished slow and deep being the best bet. Still, as I saw recorded on one of the return cards, there’s no harm in a spot of casting practice in beautiful surroundings.

Turning to wildlife, the Jackdaws in the lodge fledged on the 9th and 10th June, the first flight of the last one to go, landing on a picnic table initially! The Swans have raised two Cygnets and there are family groups of Green Woodpeckers and Jays about the place. No young Grebes have been seen at the time of writing.

Dragon flies are around in good numbers, notably Southern Hawkers, Black Tailed Skimmers and Common and Ruddy Darters, together with countless Damsel flies. My favourite Small Copper butterflies have been seen and also Speckled Woods, Small Blues, Red Admirals and the other usual suspects. Based on what I have seen, it seems a pretty good year for butterflies generally.

It's a good time for wild flowers with Purple Loosestrife, Common Mallow, Lady’s Bedstraw, Fleabane and Knapweed plentiful around the lake. And for the keen eyed, Red Bartsia and White Campion are also in flower. The river bank is literally covered with Himalayan Balsam. Good luck to those trying to eradicate it!

That reminds me. My Aussie cattle farmer mate Bruce Cellosis was telling me how he failed his exam in Aboriginal Music. I replied “that’s a shame, Didja redo it?”

A thought from the Pike book of homespun Philosophy: If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything is my advice.

That’s all folks! I look forward to seeing you on the bank.  

Tight lines,

Lucius Pike