Upper Wye (Mid-Wales).

[DaveH]

This year I fly-fished the upper Wye 2/3 times a week for trout - not stocked so all the fish are wild. I had a great season, nothing big, but plenty of fish - I missed and lost more than I netted. There are some huge trout here. I connected with one, and had another on briefly, before it rolled and shook free (barbless hooks and me being gormless). Haven't concentrated on my trout fishing for years, so 2024 was a bit off an eye-opener for me. Also learned how to tie a size 18 fly without buggering around, and that was useful in August when the fish wouldn't look at anything much bigger. My best fish was a grayling of nearly 3lb - caught on a little 7' cane rod and JW Young 3" Pridex reel. Sadly that fish doesn't count because it was taken two weeks before the grayling season opened.

 

[Romana Rumu]

I love this thread! I’ve been fishing for years, but I always learn something new from you all. For anyone targeting trout, I’ve had great luck with small spinners and live worms in the early morning. Also, don’t forget to check the weather—overcast days can be a game changer! Keep those tips coming!

 

[Kine262]

Great to read your report Dave and that is an awesome grayling, in or out of season. I haven't fished the upper Wye but it sounds very like the Dove.
Keep the reports coming!

 

[DaveH]

Great to read your report Dave and that is an awesome grayling, in or out of season. I haven't fished the upper Wye but it sounds very like the Dove.
Keep the reports coming!

Smaller and rockier, but similar. I fished the Dove at Ashbourne under a Derbyshire AC ticket for some years.

 

[richtic]

Great report and fishing, well done

 

[richtic]

Great to read your report Dave and that is an awesome grayling, in or out of season. I haven't fished the upper Wye but it sounds very like the Dove.
Keep the reports coming!

I fished the Cottons stretch earlier this year and last year, lovely stetch

 

[Kine262]

I fished the Cottons stretch earlier this year and last year, lovely stetch

Yep, it's a really nice stretch. I've done a lot of barbel fishing much further downstream, on the stretch between Tutbury and the Trent confluence, but started taking a fly rod with me after seeing endless trout jumping around me. I have to admit to catching more chub and grayling than trout on the fly from that stretch, but have had a fair few trout too. I once had a really big (and I mean BIG) brownie clear the water right in front of me but no matter what I tried i couldn't get it to take anything.

 

[Topwater]

Yep, it's a really nice stretch. I've done a lot of barbel fishing much further downstream, on the stretch between Tutbury and the Trent confluence, but started taking a fly rod with me after seeing endless trout jumping around me. I have to admit to catching more chub and grayling than trout on the fly from that stretch, but have had a fair few trout too. I once had a really big (and I mean BIG) brownie clear the water right in front of me but no matter what I tried i couldn't get it to take anything.

Sea trout perhaps?

 

[DaveH]

Sea trout perhaps?

My thoughts too.

 

[Kine262]

Sea trout perhaps?

I don’t really know much about sea trout but would they be that far upstream? The Derbyshire Dove is a long way from the sea.

The fish that jumped in front of me was definitely a brownie though. Iff I had been quick enough I could have caught it in my landing net as it was that close! There are some specimen brownies in the Dove for sure.

 

[Warby72]

I don’t really know much about sea trout but would they be that far upstream? The Derbyshire Dove is a long way from the sea.

The fish that jumped in front of me was definitely a brownie though. Iff I had been quick enough I could have caught it in my landing net as it was that close! There are some specimen brownies in the Dove for sure.

Sea trout are just Brown trout that for reasons only known to the individual fish bugger off on a wee holiday for a year or two before returning to fresh water to spawn. Unlike salmon they do not necessarily return to the same river they were spawned in. They travel many miles upstream to spawn and may or may not return to saltwater, again down to the individual fish.

 

[Valleyboy]

I don’t really know much about sea trout but would they be that far upstream? The Derbyshire Dove is a long way from the sea.

The fish that jumped in front of me was definitely a brownie though. Iff I had been quick enough I could have caught it in my landing net as it was that close! There are some specimen brownies in the Dove for sure.

They'll go all the way up to the headwaters

 

[DaveH]

Sea trout are just Brown trout that for reasons only known to the individual fish bugger off on a wee holiday for a year or two before returning to fresh water to spawn. Unlike salmon they do not necessarily return to the same river they were spawned in. They travel many miles upstream to spawn and may or may not return to saltwater, again down to the individual fish.

Current thinking is that brown trout are landlocked sea trout, and sea trout are the originals. Don't know how true that is though.

 

[DaveH]

They'll go all the way up to the headwaters

Yep, in my experience too, the bigger fish run early and will run as far as they can. When they've been in the river a while they also colour up, so sometimes difficult to tell if a brownie is a sea trout and vice-versa.

 

[Kine262]

Still learning it would seem!

I’ll have another cast or two in that same spot next year, see if he’s still around.

 

[DaveH]

Still learning it would seem!

I’ll have another cast or two in that same spot next year, see if he’s still around.

He may not be, but if the fish was in a "lie" (an area habitually used by fish to rest up - often slack water behind a rock) there is a good chance that another fish may be there.

 

[DaveH]

The salmon (what there are of them) should start moving through the Upper Wye stretch below Rhayader about now. Its easy to spot big fish at night with a head torch - otters too - so I'll be out a few times each week after dark to do a count. If I get any decent photos I'll post them up for anyone who's interested.

 

[Kine262]

The salmon (what there are of them) should start moving through the Upper Wye stretch below Rhayader about now. Its easy to spot big fish at night with a head torch - otters too - so I'll be out a few times each week after dark to do a count. If I get any decent photos I'll post them up for anyone who's interested.

Would love to see any pics you get Dave!

 

[DaveH]

Would love to see any pics you get Dave!

Out last night but no fish this far up as yet, although some will already have run through to the headwaters on the high water we had recently. The otters follow the fish upstream, and are unfazed by the head torch light. I can get within a few feet of them if they are preoccupied with a dead salmon.

 

[Valleyboy]

Out last night but no fish this far up as yet, although some will already have run through to the headwaters on the high water we had recently. The otters follow the fish upstream, and are unfazed by the head torch light. I can get within a few feet of them if they are preoccupied with a dead salmon.

Many mink on your stretch? I used to fish the Usk and it's lower tributaries in the 80's and they were thick on the ground in some places