WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING OCTOBER 5TH, 2018

86 year old Gordon Russel and friend Robert Byng from Bromsgrove enjoyed their day at Bigwell fishery.

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouthshire
The past week has seen some very good fishing with lots full bags on catch and release (10 fish) and plenty taken for the table too. The weather has been not bad on the whole and there has been plenty of insect activity. Trout have been feeding at or near the surface or within the couple of feet of water. Dry flies have provided some excellent sport for those who like to target fish. Successful flies continue to be a mixed bag of wets, lures and dries, including nymphs, Buzzers, Egg flies, Chamois’, Spiders and Klinkhamers. Surprisingly not much show of daddies as yet. The pools are in very good form in terms of water clarity. While the flow of well water has been pretty slight at times, nevertheless the pools have remained clear, cool and eminently fishable. The Gin pool and lower Lodge pool have had much weed removed this past week and it is hoped that growth will be restricted with cooler conditions and more rain with autumn arriving. Footfall has seen 60 anglers this week taking 257 trout including tigers, giving a rod average of 4+ fish (all ticket types). Sunday saw a distinct lack of clients with the intrepid Dan Mosely having the entire 4 pools to himself! On Tuesday Paul Barnfield arrived with Brian Sissons for their weekly sport. First cast into lower Lodge pool for Paul brought him his first trout and a very nice fish of 4-5lb. Even better was the trout was a ‘tag’ fish which won Paul £200. Paul went on to take 5 fish in total while fishing buddy Brian had to make do with a very small perch!

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING SEPTEMBER 28TH, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouthshire
Some great fishing kick-started the week with Jack Forrer and James Harding catching 6 trout between them including 2 blues and a beautiful 12lb 6oz rainbow from the lodge pool which was taken on a fritz fly. Adam Price-Hunt caught one of our elusive tiger trout on a dry fly from the mid-dle lodge pool. It’s been an interesting week, with a drop in temperature and the evenings drawing in, the fish decided they were not going to oblige, so everyone fishing this week has had a challenge on their hands to outwit the fish. Trying a variety of flies and fishing methods, dry flies were more successful early mornings then onto lures during the after-noon. Good fun was had by husband and wife team Sue and Charlie Mor-ley who brought along Bob Rollings, Joan Rollings and Sylvia Rollings for their first experience at Bigwell. They caught 7 fish between them. Fishery open at 7.30am every day.

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING SEPTEMBER 14TH, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouthshire
With the onset of autumn hopefully the well water will replenish and we will get a good flow through of cool clear water. This will now enable us to thoroughly de-weed the pools. Dry flies have been very effective this week as the small bugs and beetles make their way down to the pools carried on the now falling leaves and anglers have had great success with Klinkhamers, Hoppers, Deer Hair Sedge and Parachute Buzzers. Traditionally, Daddy Longlegs would also be fished this month, but have not made an appearance yet. This week on catch and kill tickets were, Harry Webb with 2 fish, Basil Freeman 3, Gary Tucker 4, Lyndon Harris 5, Hugh Johns 6, Alan Brunt 2, Tony Brinkworth 3, George Parfitt 4, Glyn Morgan 3, and Terry Horrocks 2. On catch and release and catching their bag limit of 10 were Adam Price-Hunt, Peter Baylis, Colin Gooch, Carl Williams, and Mick Smith. The Hook, Line and Sinker fishing club for disabled anglers visited and Gary Cooper landed 3 fish and Roderick Kirton caught 2. Other popular flies this week have been Cat’s Whiskers, Yellow Buzzers, Yellow Egg flies and Blue-flash Damsels. Bigwell is open every day from 7.30am.

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING SEPTEMBER 7TH, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouthshire
All pools have been fishing really well this week. Paul Barnfield caught his bag limit of 10 on catch and release, 2 from the gin pool on a Black Gnat, 1 from middle lodge pool on Bloodworm and 3 from lower lodge pool on a Green Spider. Paul Evans landed 5 from across all pools. Hughie Wilson caught his bag limit including 1 tiger trout which he caught on a Black Buzzer. Keith Fenton took 9 on his catch and kill ticket from across all pools mostly on Egg flies. Louise Scott Fuller landed 5 fish on catch and kill. Neil Evans from Bristol decided stalking was the order of the day on the gin pool. Using a floating line with a black nymph on the point and a Green Diawl Bach on the dropper and with a slow figure-of-eight retrieve he caught a 6lb rainbow. Phil Roe caught 5 from the lower lodge pool on Cat’s Whiskers and Bloodworm and one off the top with a dry fly. Richard Stephenson took 4 fish, Mick Pain caught 4 fish including a blue, David Williams landed 9 fish on his catch and release ticket including a beautiful brown trout on a Deer Hair Sedge. Bigwell is open every day from 7.30am.
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING AUGUST 31ST, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouthshire
Better weather on Bank Holiday Monday saw a good turnout of anglers after Sunday’s total washout when it rained all day. Only Chris Laidlaw and son Stuart stuck it out in the rain and caught 7 fish between them. Their most successful fly was a Yellow Spider. Garry Wharton caught his 10 fish on catch and release including a lovely 5lb 2oz specimen taken on an Okey Dokey Buzzer, floating line and 5lb leader, left static. Richard Metters, with his family on holiday from Marlborough, caught his first fish on a Hare’s Ear dry fly. Young Joseph Vaughan came fly-fishing for the first time and after a few basics on casting caught a love-ly 2lb 6oz rainbow trout on a Yellow Dancer. Phil Roe was pleased to catch his first bag limit of 10 fish at Bigwell. John Burton also caught his bag limit this week catching on a variety of flies including Buzzers and dries. Paul Griffiths landed 8 fish including 1 brown trout which he landed using his size 12 Parachute Adams dry fly. Popular flies this week have been, Okey Dokeys, Deer Hair Sedge, Klinkhamer, Buzz-ers, Yellow Dancers, Olive and Yellow Spiders and Hoppers. Open every day from 7.30am.
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING AUGUST 17TH, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
Dave Schewitz had a satisfying day’s fishing with his catch of 5 rainbow trout from the lower lodge pool, mostly caught on a Sedge Daddy on the surface where the fish were attacking the fly, then turning away and coming back very aggressively to strike. Dave was fishing with a float-ing line and 3lb leader. Trevor Jones from Usk spent a few days at Bigwell, catching a total of 7 rainbows and 2 blues on Black Buzzers and Daddies from across all pools. Rob Britten took home 3 fish, Gra-ham Jeremiah 3, Phil Rees 4, Mick Fahy 3, John Burton 10, Keith Fen-ton 6, Nigel Davies 5 rainbows and 1 tiger trout, Carl Williams 10, Mick Smith 7, Andrew Thomas 4 rainbows plus a 7lb 2oz blue which he caught on a Green Egg Fly from the gin pool. Mike Wilkins and son James aged 9 had a great day with James catching his first trout and landing it on his own then going on to catch 2 more all on Egg Flies. His heaviest fish at 3lb 4oz has been entered for junior Troutmasters. Popular flies this week have been Buzzers, Daddies, small Black Gnats, Egg Flies, Blobs and Sedge. Dry flies have worked well for our anglers this week. Open every day from 7.30am.
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING AUGUST 10TH, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
Surprisingly, the fishing has been good during this hot weather. The pools have remained cool and clear thanks to fresh spring water that runs through. Lloyd Isgrove started his day well when he caught a 7lb rainbow on a Sedge dry fly. The fish put up a great fight and was released suc-cessfully. Lloyd also caught a wild brown trout on the same fly both from the lower lodge pool. Father and son team Paul and Andy Dursley landed 4 fish each from across all pools. Paul caught all of his using a FAB. John Burton caught his bag limit of 10 fish using small Black Buzzers from across all pools. Mike Higgs, who arrived at 7.30am, was bagged up and gone by 8.30am with his 4 fish. David Wright, on holiday from Chester, caught 15 fish over 2 days, including a 5lb blue, a wild brown and a 6lb 8oz rainbow. David’s most successful fly was a Tango Okey Dokey. The tiger trout are being very elusive this week, we can only assume the abundance of rudd and roach fry are keeping these aggressive fish occu-pied. Popular flies this week have been small Black Buzzers, Orange Blobs, Chamois Fly, Damsels and Sedge.

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING JULY 20TH, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
The Ray Manley Angling Memorial competition took place on Saturday, the 12th year this has been held in memory of and with respect to Ray Manley. A great day was had by all. Kieron Morgan won first place, Mike Boughtwood was second and Dave Harley third. Llwyd Johnson landed the biggest blue of the week at 6lb from the gin pool and Paul Barnfield landed the biggest rainbow at 15lb 3oz taken on a Green Spider, intermediate line and 4lb leader. His fish was released successfully. Peter Morgan took 5 fish and his father Richard Morgan took 4, Emrys Jones 5, Rod Neep 3, Basil Freeman 3, David Moran 3, Joseph Price 2, Graham Jeremiah 4, Philip Rees 4, Jeff Bunyan 4, Malcom Priestly 6 including a brown trout, Wilbur Leoviriyakit 3. Our waters remain cool and clear and are fishing extremely well. Popular flies this week have been Chamois Fly, Grenadier, Yellow Egg flies, Green Spider, Black Damsel, dry Wickham’s Dancy, Adams Gnat and Greenwell’s Glory. The fishery is open from 7.30am every day.
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING JULY 13TH, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
Trout Fisherman contributor Peter Cockwill and photographer Peter Gathercole paid Bigwell a visit. Peter Cockwill caught a 14lb rainbow and a 9lb blue, both from the gin pool as well as several rainbows from across all pools. Peter had success on his small Buzzers including his stalking bug, as well as dry flies and thoroughly enjoyed his day. Ryan Davies caught his bag limit of 10 fish mostly on a Yellow Egg fly. Paul Barnfield also caught his bag limit including a 7lb rainbow from the lower lodge pool taken on a Green Spider. Carl Williams landed 10 fish, Mick Smith 10, John Burton 10, Keith Fenton 10, Robin Vale 10, Hughie Wilson 5, Emrys Povey 5, Scot Roberts 4, Jack Wilson 3, Brent Johnson 4, and Jamie Pol-lard 3. Malcom Jones, on holiday from Edinburgh with his family, caught 16 fish over the course of 2 days, including 2 blue trout and a tiger trout using a variety of flies including Yellow Buzzers and a favourite Scottish fly a Yellow Dancer. Despite the warm weather the fish are still very interest-ed when presented with the right fly and several larger fish have been caught this week. They are fighting hard thanks to the cool water. Bigwell is open every day from7.30am.
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING JULY 6TH, 2018

Wilbur Leoviriyakit's fish were all caught on a Coral Blob.

Tom Sandall caught the biggest blue of the week at 7lb 4oz on a small Black Buzzer.

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
Despite this long spell of unusually hot weather the pools remain cool thanks to the spring water that runs through. There is some weed, as is to be expected at this time of year, but all pools remain fishable. Wilbur Leoviriyakit fished at the weekend with his dad Kas and landed 4 rainbow trout using his Coral Blob pulled fast through the water to get the fish chasing, then stopping completely at which point the fish took the fly. Tom Sandall caught a 7lb 4oz blue trout on a small Black Buzzer using a floating line and sight indicator from the lower lodge pool. John Burton had success catching several fish on a Chamois fly. Anthony Clark took home 5 rainbow trout from across all pools using an Egg fly.
Keith Fenton caught his bag limit of 10, Paul Ellesworthy also had his bag limit from across all pools and had great success with an Adams dry fly on the gin pool and Yellow Egg fly on the lodge pools. David Glover took 3 fish using an intermediate line and White Minkie, Fred Wood landed 5 mainly on nymphs, Colin Gooch 10, Paul Barnfield 10, George Dickman 6, John Lyall 15 fish over the course of 2 days including 3 blue trout and 1 tiger trout, on a variety of flies including GRHE, small Yellow Buzzer and Black Gnat. Bigwell is open every day from 7.30am.
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING JUNE 29TH, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
Tony Brinkworth had a great start to his fishing day when he caught his first rainbow in the gin pool on a small Yellow Buzzer. Husband and wife team Sue and Charlie Morley caught 2 fish each on GRHE and Egg flies. Bag limits were hard to reach this week with most catch and release anglers averaging 5 or 6 fish from across all pools. They included Tom Bungs, John Rigg, John Butterworth, John Parry, Paul Barnfield, Brian Sisson, Tim Mills, Bryan Olive, Glyn Thomas, Keith Fenton, Ron Harris, Phil Roe and Andy Melton. Gary Wharton caught his 10 fish limit mostly on a Yellow Quill Buzzer from across all pools. On catch and kill tickets were John Sherman with 6, Allan Gray 3, Daniel Gray 2, Ron Mason 5, Colin Bridges 2, Peter Morgan 4, Rob Britten 2, David Schultz 5, Steve Moss 1, Dave Reaney 2, M. Dobbs 2, Anthony Clark 3, Jonathan Goldsmith 2, Brian Goldsmith 2, James Evans 5 including a 5lb blue trout which was released successfully, Martin James 6 including a blue and a tiger trout. Heaviest fish this week was caught by Alan Greenaway from Bristol who caught an 8lb 10oz rainbow on a skinny Yellow Buzzer from the lower lodge pool. Popular flies this week have been Yellow Buzzers, GRHE, Grey Duster, Hoppers, Egg flies, Blue-flash Damsel and Olive Spiders. We are open every day from 7.30am.

Ynysfro Reservoirs, Monmouth
The mini heat wave has seen the water temperature in the Association's ponds increase to 23C, but the anglers who decided to don the factor 50 and brave the heat, found the fish more than responsive. On the bottom pond regular boat partners Keith Higgins and Shaun Cotterell caught 8 and 4 respectively with Bob Bradley also taking 4. The top pond continues to fish well, with Stephen Snape landing his limit fishing a team of Buzzers. Dave Woods and Gwyn Davies both netted 6 with Dave also recording 8 fish from two further visits. Stephen Maslam and Gareth West recorded 5 apiece, while Adrian Moyse used a Damsel and a Black Tadpole to catch his 9 fish from two visits and it was 3 each for Mark Roberts, Dave Arlotte and David Bull. Ivor Thomas landed 9 fish from three visits while Wynne Jones, John Belcher, Howell Woods and Keith Higgins recorded 2 apiece. The bottom pond has been more challenging but Dave Arlotte added 4 to his top pond total with Adrian Moyse also taking fish. With the high water temperatures expected to continue for some time imitative patterns such as Buzzers, Damsel Nymphs, Diawl Bachs and Corixa will continue to do well. A fall of ants is also possible so having a suitable pattern in your fly box would be advantageous.

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING JUNE 22ND, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
This week has seen a mixed bag of weather. One day the water is like a mill pond with every fish behaving spookily and hard to get, the next it’s gusty winds from all directions and a wonderful ripple on the pools. Youngster Wilbur Leoviriyakit took casting lessons from Gary Gray then landed 2 rainbow trout on his own. Paul Barnfield, who fishes mainly with Green Spiders, pulled in a 15lb rainbow from the newly de-weeded gin pool for a personal best. One of our best catches of the week was Ethan Clark, aged 13, who caught and released a beautiful 2lb 8oz brown trout in the middle lodge pool on a GRHE. George Watkins caught 2 rainbows to take home on a Mayfly. Robin Vale caught 7, Jonathon Mayer fishing with his dad David landed 4 fish each from across all pools on Black Gnats and Egg flies. Chris Danver from Bromsgrove caught his bag limit of 10 fish including 2 blues and a tiger trout from the gin pool and lower lodge pool. Open every day from 7.30am.

Ynys y fro Reservoirs, Gwent
Although the water temperatures are rising in both ponds due to the settled weather, it certainly hasn't had any impact on the fishing at Ynysyfro. On the boats Keith Higgins recorded 2 limits while regular partners Craig Bowles and Dave Smith also had a limit each. Also doing well were Shaun Cotterell with 6 and with Ken Pascoe 3. The bottom pond continues to provide excellent sport, especially for Ken Bowring who landed a very impressive limit of 8 on three separate days and 7 on another. Chris Daniels also landed 8 in his total of 12 from two visits while Hugh Davies and Dave Arlotte each landed 7, with Ian Hewitt and Getting Bowes both landing 6 and 3 on two visits. Martyn Williams landed 5, Luke Thomas 4 and it was 3 apiece for Wynne Jones, Keri Jones, John Burton and Martyn Rees. The top pond was more challenging but Luke Thomas added a limit to his bottom pond catch and Dave Howells also found the right method and landed 12 from two visits while Dave Arlotte added 5 and Hugh Davies 3 to their bottom pond totals, with Ivor Thomas and Peter Dent both netting 3 each.
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING JUNE 15TH, 2018

Trevor Jones with this 7lb 6oz Bigwell rainbow.

Bigwell Fly Fishery, Monmouth
Great weather went hand in hand with some great fishing. Trevor Jones from Abergavenny caught a beautiful 6lb 7oz rainbow on an Egg fly from the lower lodge pool, a proud moment for Trevor as he has fought his way back from a severe stroke. Rob Britten had a good morning taking 4 fish on his catch and kill ticket, mostly on small nymphs. Dry flies have done very well this week, particularly early morning. John Davies caught his bag limit of 10 from across all pools using small Black Gnats on a floating line early morning, then John changed tactics for the afternoon, using an intermediate line with a Cat’s Whisker on point and a Pond Olive Nymph on the dropper, which landed him 2 big blue trout from the gin pool. Glyn Morgan took 5 fish, Tim May 6, Paul James 4, Alan Brunt 2, Dale Williams 6, Ian Shaw 5 including a 5lb 10oz blue, Ben Shaw 4 including a tiger trout which was released successfully. On catch and release were Carl Williams with 10, Mick Smith 8, N. Johnston 3, Mark McGimpsey 4, Dai Pullen 8, T. Compton 10, Daniel Holmes 10, Hughie Wilson 10, Phil Connor 9, Julie Evans 6, and Gavin Bailey 10. Bigwell is open every day from7.30am.
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING JUNE 8TH, 2018

Andy Rawlings with his Bigwell blue trout.

Bigwell Fly Fishery, Monmouth
Great start to the fishing week when Mick Paine from Hereford landed a tagged fish, a beautiful 4lb 8oz rainbow taken on a Blue-flash Damsel. Mike won the £200 pot to take home. Andy Rawlings caught 4 rainbows plus a lovely blue trout on a Dragonfly Larvae. The school half-term holiday brought out lots of juniors fishing with parents and grandparents, Ben Price, from Newport, aged 12 was one of them and he caught 3 rainbows on a Green Damsel. His largest fish has been entered into Junior Troutmasters. Kas Leoviriyakit caught 8 trout, and his son Wilbur, aged 7, caught a 2lb 8oz rainbow on a Yellow Buzzer under an indicator. Bigwell regular Eric Mason brought along his son James who was on a visit from Scotland. On this occasion son outfished father by 5 to 2 on the day. Basil Simpson, here with his grandson Jack Simpson, caught 6 on a variety of Green Damsels, Egg flies and Buzzers. Glenn Thomson took 3 fish for the BBQ, all on Black Hoppers from the gin pool. Hoppers have been going really well this week, Alex Morgan caught a 4lb 10oz rainbow also on a Hopper with a floating line and 6lb leader from the middle lodge pool. Hughie Wilson caught a 7lb 10oz rainbow from the lower lodge pool on a Squirmy Wormy. Robin Vale caught and returned a 7lb 7oz rainbow on a Black Gnat dry fly from the lodge pool. Shaun Bailey’s first visit saw him land 5 trout mainly on a Yellow Blob. David Jones and brother Richard Jones from Cwmbran landed 12 fish between them from across all pools on a variety of flies including Black F-Fly, small Black Buzzers, Yellow Egg flies and White Cat’s Whiskers. Eric Davey took home 4 fish, Nigel Misselbrook 3, Pat Hollies 3, Mark Hollies 2, John Roberts 3, Jason Hollsworthy from Bristol caught 6 including 1 tiger trout and a brown trout which were released successfully. 

Ynysyfro Reservoirs, Gwent
Following both ponds being restocked, some very good returns have been recorded. On the top pond most fish were caught from the Railings Bank and the Wood Bank. Steve Snape registered a limit, Gaham Ingram Evans landed 7 fish, while Terry O'Connor netted 11 fish over 3 visits and a similar set of sessions produced 8 fish for Dave Woods. A 5- fish catch was recorded from 1 visit by Steve Maslem, while Kevin Pinkney also netted 5 fish from 2 visits. Dave Price caught 4 trout from his 1 session, with Alan Vaisey, Stuart Thomas, John Belcher and Peter Dent all recording a 3-trout return. Gareth West, Brian Wareham, Dave Arlotte and Richie Young each caught a brace of rainbows. On the bottom pond, Ken Bowring included his usual limit from his week's visits, while Shaun Cotterell, Mark Roberts and Roy Jones all included a 6-fish return amongst their week's catches. Amongst those permit holders and day ticket members/visitors netting a brace of trout were Keith Higgins, Mark Grunt, Graham Ingram Evans, Dave Arlotte and Peter Bryant. A good rainbow was also caught by Bernard Hartland with Fisheries Treasurer Colin Jones also finding time to land some good trout. Out on the Association's boats Howard Davies netted 6 rainbows, as did Keith Higgins, while Bob Bradley recorded a 4-fish boat return. Ken Pascoe landed 3 trout when he fished a grey nymph. Fish are being caught along the banks on a variety of dry flies, nymphs and lures, including Damsel patterns, Egg Flies, Blood worms, Blobs and Diawl Bach nymphs.
At the weekend, both ponds saw some more good catches following an extra stocking. On the bottom pond, boat anglers Martin Rees and John Eynon returned with 8 and 5 fish respectively, while around the banks, Ken Bowring registered another limit with Dean Connelly netting 5 fish and Phil Morgan recording a 3-fish catch. On the top pond, Dave Woods took a limit, while Clive Norville continued his good season, with a further 4 trout. Cardiff club members Ivor Thomas and Fred Davies both netted 3 trout alongside Steve Snape with Kevin Pinkney taking a good brace. Fish were again landed on a variety of flies and lures.   
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING JUNE 1ST, 2018

Bigwell Fly Fishery, Monmouth
Chris Laidlaw landed a 9lb blue on a Blue-flash Damsel, these are beautiful fish, bright blue when the sun hits the gin pool. Twice Chris had this particular fish on, the first time he hooked it on a Green Spider but the fish shook the hook out and got away. On Friday it rained steadily all morning, maybe not so good for our anglers but the fish were loving it. Dave Charles, from Cardiff, was on his first visit to Bigwell and had great success catching from across all pools. Keith Fenton caught 3 blues from the gin pool which he released successfully and landed 3 to take home. Rain and thunder on Sunday made for interesting fishing, at one stage the pools were empty of anglers but the lodge was full as they waited for the rain to slow. After the deluge the fish were midwater and were tempted by GRHE, PTNs and Squirmy Wormies. Monday saw the water clearing as the strong flow from the spring pushed the coloured waters through. John Burton caught a 7lb blue trout which he released successfully, father and son Brent and Lloyd Johnson took 2 each, Kasidit Leoviriyakit and son Wilbur took 3 fish and released 10, mostly on small nymphs, Gary Turner landed 5, Paul and Christopher Hatfield took 1 each, brothers Ed and Geoff Dulson took 2 each, John Richards 5, George Dickman landed 7 on catch and release, mostly on black lures, Tony Talbot successfully released 9, Paul Ellesworthy released 10, Shane Palmer killed 5 and released 3. Steve Mogg released 10, Richard Waldron 7, Keith Fenton landed 3 blues from the gin pool and killed 3 rainbows from across all pools, George Parfitt took 5. Popular flies have been Blue-flash Damsels, orange and yellow Egg flies, Chamois Worm, GRHE, PTNs, Green Spiders, Black Buzzers and Yellow Buzzers, and from the top F-Fly, Klinkhamer and small Hoppers. Open every day from 7.30am.

Ynys y fro Reservoirs, Gwent
Both ponds are fishing well with a good number of limits being recorded on a variety of flies and lures. On the bottom pond 3 regular boat users, Ken Pascoe, Craig Bowles and Colin Poole all took limits, with a grey nymph responsible for Ken Pascoe's limit. Around the banks of the bottom pond, Ken Bowring reached another catch and release limit, while good catches were made by Paul Jennings with 7 fish, Brian Green landing 6 trout, Wynne Jones adding a brace to an earlier 5-fish catch, Alan Rees netting 4 trout with Shaun Cotterell, Bernard Stephens, Terry O'Connor, Gethin Bowes and Bob Cook all recording a 3-fish return. Amongst those anglers catching a brace of trout, were Steve Curtis, Alun Paul, Dean Connelly and Geoff Evans (including a fish weighing 3lb 10oz). Bernard Hartland also netted a specimen trout of 3lb 9oz. On the top pond anglers recording limits included Colin Jones, Chris Norville, Andrew Brann and Ken Bowring, while a 6-fish return was achieved by Gwyn Davies and Kevin Pinkney. Stewart Gordon marked his return to Ynys y fro with a 4-fish catch, as did visitor M. Tilly. Terry O'Connor, and Bob Cook each netted 3-trout, while a brace of rainbows were landed by Gareth West, Martin Rees, and Brian Wareham. Among the successful flies and lures being used on both ponds were Damsel Nymphs, Egg Flies, Apps’ patterns, Bloodworms and Diawl Bachs. NRFFA wish to thank all those members and visitors who have added the identity of flies/lures to the return sheets as this practice certainly helps new visitors to the reservoirs.
At the weekend, one of NRFFA's newer members, Clive Norville certainly found some good fishing with a further 6-fish catch from the top pond, to add to earlier success in the week past. The same pond saw Ian Oxley net 3 good fish, with Adrian Moyse recording a brace of trout. The latter member had already caught a brace of trout from the bottom pond, as did John James and Keith Higgins. Two regular weekend boat users, John Eynon and Martin Rees returned with catches of 4 and 3 fish respectively. Most fish were reported as being caught on Damsel patterns and Black Hoppers.   
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING MAY 25TH, 2018

Carl Williams, 8lb blue trout, Bigwell Fishery.

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
Nice rises most mornings this week enabling anglers to do some dry fly fishing, but as the sun progresses throughout the day the fish are slowly going deeper and only interested in taking nymphs, particularly anything with green or orange in the fly. Our waters are cool and clear apart from the willow seeds which float down from the trees and become a bit of a nuisance when casting, but these do clear over the course of the day and hopefully we will see an end to them very soon. Father and son Gareth and Rhydian Thomas fished together on the gin pool taking 2 on their catch and kill day ticket on an orange nymph. Also on catch and kill were Winston Evans who caught 4, Peter Morgan 4, Brian Naylor 3, Richard Cleese 2, Bob Calder 1, Phil Smith 4, Ben Smith 4, Dave Leonard 1, husband and wife team Mick and Jean Fahy 3, Paul Baynton 4, Philip Rees 2, Graham Jeremiah 3. And on catch and release this week and landing their bag limit of 10 fish were Will Brooks, Paul Ellesworthy, Denis Millward, Chris Laidlaw, Paul Barnfield, Keith Fenton, J. Burton, Clive Sedgebere, Peter Bayliss and Mick Smith. Carl Williams caught and released a lovely 8lb blue in the gin pool on a black and green fritz, floating line and 4lb leader. Open every day from 7.30am.

Ynysfro Reservoirs, Gwent
Fishing has continued to be good from both ponds with the bottom pond seeing far more rising fish than in previous seasons. Dave Arlotte led the way from the bank with a catch return of 5 fish while day ticket visitor Gethin Bowes maintained his recent run of  regular catches with a further 4 trout. Gwyn Davies moved from the top pond to the bottom pond to find rising fish on the golf club side of Farmhouse Bay. A size 16 Shipman’s Buzzer accounted for 4 good fish, 3 of which were strong enough to take line as far as the backing. Another day ticket visitor, Ben Jailler netted 3 fish whilst long time committee member Brian Wareham caught a good brace of rainbows. On the top pond, Roy Jones landed 7 trout, mainly from the Railings Bank, with Ken Bowring recording 7 trout from 3 sessions. Dave Woods netted a 3-fish catch, Terry O'Connor landed 5 trout from 2 visits, with Kevin Pinkney and Ivor Thomas both catching 2 fish. Ivor's catch came via a Viva Booby lure. Gwyn Davies fished the top pond for 1 rainbow, before moving to the bottom pond. Both ponds have again been restocked and with far more rising fish being seen on the bottom pond sport should be good.    
On Saturday, following the recent restocking of both ponds, the bottom pond proved the more productive, with good returns for both bank and boat fishermen. Bank anglers were led by Alan Rees who netted 7 rainbows, followed by James Williams with a 5-fish catch. Dave Howells landed 4 trout while Ken Bowring and Roy Jones both caught 3 fish. A brace of good rainbows were caught by Martin Lewis. All of Saturday's boat anglers registered catch and release limits. Adrian Moyse took his limit, with regular boat partner, Martin Rees and John Eynon also reaching the catch and release limit. A number of anglers reported seeing jack pike around the 4-6lb mark feeding on small perch. This can only be a useful contribution to the efforts of NRFFA to reduce the problem of large shoals of small perch having an effect on natural fly life on the bottom pond and could well be one of the reasons why more fish are being caught on or just below the surface of the bottom pond. The top pond has been more challenging of late but is still producing some good returns of brown trout. All anglers are asked to enter the flies/lures etc used for successful fishing, on the return sheets as this adds to the information that can be made available, particularly to day ticket visitors, via the fishing reports on the website.

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING MAY 18TH, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
Stocked again this week with some lovely healthy-looking fish from Exmoor Fisheries including some more 3-6lb blue trout. Roger Howells caught his 4 fish on catch and kill on a Blue Miller and a Blob. Carl Williams once again hooked the big blue trout in the gin pool but again it spat out the hook! Nigel Farraday and his long-time fishing buddy David Garner from Ledbury had a good day’s fishing taking 4 fish each on their catch and kill ticket from across all pools. This included a tiger trout for Nigel and a 6lb blue trout for David taken on a CDC F-Fly, a floating line and 4lb leader. Louise Grainger landed 10 fish on catch and release, successfully releasing an 8lb 2oz rainbow trout which she caught on a Blue-flash Damsel. Bigwell is open every day from 7.30am.

Ynys y fro Reservoirs, Gwent
The recent week has seen some excellent returns from both ponds with the majority of members and visitors recording catches. On the top pond Steve Snape, Steve Curtis and Gwyn Davies all recorded limits with the majority of fish being caught from the Railings Bank. Fish have been caught on Diawl Bach nymphs, Shipman's Buzzers and Damsel patterns. Other good returns from the same pond have included totals of 10 fish for Ken Bowring, 9 for Dave Woods, a further 6 fish for Steve Snape, 4 landed by Bernard Stephens, 3 trout each caught by Kevin Pinkney and Howell Woods, plus a brace for Ian Wootton and Ivor Thomas. Day ticket visitor J. Davies also found fish. On the bottom pond some very good returns have continued through the week. Steve Snape added another limit to his week's record with Gethin Bowes also netting a catch and release limit. Two day ticket visitors, Chris Norville and C.Watkin caught 6 trout, while a 5-fish return was achieved by Phil Morgan, Mike Marsh and Wynne Jones. Gareth Neale, Dave Howells, Brian Green, Roy Jones and Ochert Buys all netted 4 rainbows, with Bryn Burgess and P. Vaughan landing 3 trout. Two fish catches were made by Alun Paul, Phil Morgan, Paul Jennings, Alan Rees and Colin Jones, plus day ticket visitors R. Harris, Gareth Hawkins and B. Jackson. Boat anglers on the bottom pond have also enjoyed a good week, Keith Higgins totalled 11 fish from two outings, Colin Poole landed 7 trout with Howard Davies's outing resulting in a 6 fish return. Ken Bowring used a boat morning to add a further 5 trout to his season's total alongside Shaun Cotterell with a 4-fish return. John Eynon and Ken Pascoe recorded 3 fish via their boat outings. Successful flies for the bottom pond have been similar to those for the top pond with the addition of Black Hoppers.
At the weekend, returns from the bottom pond bank anglers included Steve Curtis with a 6-fish catch, alongside regular permit holder Keith Higgins and day ticket visitor B. Jackson, both of whom recorded two fish. John  Eynon and Martin Rees shared a morning boat session to land 4 and 2 fish respectively. On the top pond, Steve Curtis added a further 4 trout to his bottom pond catch, while his father, Norman was amongst a number of fishermen landing a brace of rainbows. These included members Dave Woods and Mark Roberts alongside day ticket visitors Rob Davies and Rob Stott.
April's returns showed that a total of 1250 fish were caught with 600 being landed from the top pond and 650 from the bottom pond. With 430 visits being recorded, the rod average for the month was just below two fish per rod. Some 16 brown trout were caught and released from the top pond. Three Troutmaster's badges were awarded to Ynys y fro fishermen, with Roger Bateman receiving his award for a 4lb 2oz fish landed on a Buzzer pattern, with the same pattern netting a 3lb 8oz fish for Bryn Burgess. Dave Woods rounded off a successful month with a badge awarded for his 3lb trout.  

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING MAY 11TH, 2018

Ynysyfro Reservoirs, Gwent
With the bottom pond fishing well, most of the notable returns have been recorded from the areas around the Car Park/Bush and Pipe Bay, with boat anglers also doing well. Around the banks, limits were recorded by Mark Roberts, Ken Bowring and Craig Bowles. Wynne Jones landed 8 fish from two visits, Roy Mealing netting 11 fish from his two sessions. Martin Williams and Paul Jennings both landed 6 fish, while 4-fish catches were made by Steve Curtis, Phil Morgan and Roy Porteous. Ian Wooton, Shaun Cotterell, Andrew Bann, Lee Ashcroft, Graham Ingram Evans, Bernard Stephens, Bryn Burgess and Dave Smith all netted 3 rainbows, while a brace of trout were caught by Alun Paul, Roy Jones, Howell Woods, Dean Walker, Phil Morgan, and Mike Porteous. Amongst boat catches, Ken Bowring moved from the bank to the boat to net a limit plus 7 trout from 2 sessions, Shaun Cotterell and Ken Pascoe both took limits with Howard Davies and John Eynon landing a brace of trout from their boat outings. NRFFA are pleased to note the much-improved fishing for the bottom pond. with a number of methods being successful. Cat’s Whisker and Damsel patterns plus Shipman’s Buzzers and goldhead nymphs have all caught fish, while late afternoon/evening anglers have reported some good rises around the Car Park Bank and fish responding well to dry flies. The top pond continues to provide good returns, with Kevin Pinkney and Gwyn Davies both netting a catch and release limit. Kevin took his fish on a goldhead nymph while Gwyn varied his flies between a Hoglouse imitation, Baby Sun fly and following a rise of olives some good fish on an Olive nymph. Gwyn's catch included a rainbow trout in the region of 4lb plus a good brown trout. Luke Thomas landed 7 rainbows. Other good top pond catches were made by Roy Jones and day ticket visitor Huw Davies with 4 trout each, while a 3-fish return went to Bernard Stephens, Peter Dent and Paul Jennings. Colin Jones and John James each took a brace of fish, with Colin using a combination of Shipman’s Buzzers and Damsel patterns for his return. Both ponds have been restocked and returns indicate that fishing is definitely improving. With a very attractive day ticket price of £12 for a 16-fish catch and release limit split between both ponds Ynysyfro is well worth a visit.
The weekend so far has seen a continuation of the excellent fishing on the bottom pond, with most, if not all, anglers recording good returns. Bank anglers taking good catches included Mark Roberts with 7 fish, Colin Poole, Paul Ellsworthy and Paul Jennings all netting 4 rainbows while three-fish catches were recorded by Alan Rees, Wynne Jones and Steve Curtis. A brace of good trout were netted by Dave Woods and by the president and chairman of the Cardiff Flyfishing Club Fred Davies and Keith Higgins respectively. Regular boat angler Ken Pascoe, John Eynon and Martin Rees all enjoyed good sport, with Ken taking a limit, John Eynon netting 6 trout and Martin Rees catching a brace. On the top pond, Kevin Pinkney continued his good week with another 7 fish, Keith Higgins and Colin Poole added 3 and 2 fish respectively to their bottom pond returns, while Howell Woods netted 2 rainbows. Most successful flies again included Shipman's Buzzers, Damsel patterns and Diawl Bach nymphs. Evidence of more fish feeding just below the surface continues to be the case on the bottom pond, especially around the Car Park Bank as far as the Bush, and also in front of Pipe Bay.
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING MAY 4TH, 2018

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
An interesting week with the input of some large rainbow trout of 10lb-plus proving a huge success. A drizzly morning on Friday saw Keith Fenton hooked into one of the larger rainbows in the gin pool but he lost it when it snapped the line. Keith reckons he was well over 10lb, more like 12lb, and with adrenaline pumping, Keith spent the next few hours stalking his fish which eventually obliged and came to the net. John Burton caught a 13lb 9oz rainbow on a Blue-flash Damsel with a 6lb leader on the lower lodge pool. Paul Barnfield caught a 3lb 8oz tiger trout from the lower lodge pool on a Green Spider. Hughie Wilson landed a beautiful 6lb 7oz rainbow on a White Fritz in the lower lodge pool. Terry Hill landed 4 rainbows while Brian Beck took 7 on his catch and kill ticket. G Moore took 4 and released 6 on his catch kill and release ticket. On catch and release and catching their bag limit of 10 fish were Mark Chapman, Charles Pilkington, Bryan Gibson, Steve Mogg, Carl Williams, Dave Glover, Derek Parker, Michael Brunt, Paul Barnfield, Hughie Wilson, Jason Fields and Mandy Fields. Popular flies this week have been Klinkhamers, Grey Dusters, Sedge, Blue-flash Damsels, White Fritz, small Black Buzzers and Green Spiders. Open every day from 7.30am.

Ynysyfro Reservoirs, Gwent
On the top pond Gwyn Davies was able to enjoy a good week with 7 and 8 fish from two visits including an excellent brown trout in the region of 2lb 4oz. Terry O'Connor also landed 7 rainbows, while Peter Dent returned a 3-fish catch. A brace of trout were caught by Dave Howells, Colin Jones and Mark Roberts. The bottom pond saw a number of limits recorded, including those by Adrian Moyse, Ken Bowring and Colin Poole. Roy Jones and Terry O'Connor each netted 6 trout with Phil Morgan and Alan Rees catching 5 rainbows. Colin Jones, Dave Woods and Martin Williams each netted 4 good trout. Boat anglers on the bottom pond were able to reach catch and release limits with Colin Poole, Ken Pascoe and Keith Higgins finding fish. Keith also landed 5 fish from a second boat session with Shaun Cotterell netting 4 trout on his boat ticket. Various fly patterns have been prominent during the week, including a Black Pennell, Duck Fly patterns, Baby Sun Fly, Damsel lures and Shipman's Buzzers. Top pond returns indicate that olives were beginning to show, which will be an encouragement for dry fly fishermen.
The weekend saw some good returns from the bottom pond from both the bank and the boats. Boat anglers Martin Rees and John Eynon netted 7 and 2 fish respectively from a morning session, while around the banks Ken Bowring landed 5 rainbows, 4 fish were recorded by Paul Ellsworthy, 3 by Cardiff member, Alan Rees and 2 good trout for Alun Paul. Reports from bottom pond anglers have suggested that more fish are taking flies either on or just below the surface, particularly in the area from Pipe Bay to the bush. On the top pond most anglers recorded a brace of trout, inlcuding Kevin Pinkney, Bernard Stephens, Dave Woods and brother Howell Woods, with Paul Ellsworthy adding 2 fish to an earlier return from the bottom pond.
 

WALES TROUTMASTERS REPORTS FOR WEEK-ENDING APRIL 27TH, 2018

Wilbur Leoviriyakit (7) and Will Brooks (11) with their Bigwell fish.

Bigwell Trout Fishery, Monmouth
Great start to our fishing week when newcomer to fly-fishing Gary Tucker caught his first-ever fish on the fly, using a floating line and Red Squirmy Worm fly, from the gin pool. On Friday, there was a hatch of alder fly which really stirred the fish up and also gave anglers the opportunity to ‘match the hatch’. Alan Davis was successful with this method and landed 3 beautiful rainbow trout all while the hatch was going on. On Saturday, the Troutmasters fish-off competition was won by Kasidit Leoviriyakit with his bag of 4 fish weighing 10lb 8oz. His son Wilbur Leoviriyakit, aged 7, won the junior section with 2 fish for 4lb 8oz, closely followed by Will Brooks who weighed in 4lb 7oz, a very close contest. Others fishing this week on catch and kill were Brent Johnson 3 fish, Alan Brunt 2, Martin Davies 4, Adam Grinch 2, Bill Rees 3, Graham Jeremiah 3, Loyciett Nosten 2, Paul Barnfield 4, Mike Ducket 3, Robert Boutflower 3, Ian Lengor 2, Patrick Plumber 4, Maddy Gail 2. On catch and release were brothers Steve and Andrew Palmer, John Howell, John Felligan, Dennis Millard, John Willsend, and Lloyd Johnson.
Popular flies this week have been Yellow Egg flies, Black Buzzers, Blue-flash Damsels, Daddy Longlegs and on top of the water Klinkhamer, Deer Hair Sedge and small Grey Dusters. Bigwell is open from 7.30am every day.

Ynysyfro Reservoirs, Gwent
While regular anglers are very familiar with the quality of sport on offer, NRFFA are still endeavouring to encourage visitors to Ynysyfro with some of the best-value day tickets available in the local area. A number of day ticket visitors have certainly had good value for their £12 investment, with Oliver Hydes taking a bottom pond limit followed by Mark Gunter with 5 fish, and Gareth West, Gino Alonzi and Richard Shaw each netting 4 trout. Tony Hull caught 3 rainbows and J. Caton and Alan Judd landed a brace each. Amongst permit holders, the top pond results included a regular limit for Ken Bowring, 5 fish for Dave Woods alongside brother Howell with 4 trout, and a good fish for Dave Howells to add to a later bottom pond total of 10 fish from two visits. Steve Snape also had a good session on the top pond with 4 fish. Back on the bottom pond, Ken Bowring totalled 21 fish from 3 sessions and Roy Jones continued his good season with a further 13 rainbows from 2 outings, Other notable bank returns from the bottom pond included a 7-fish return for Alan Rees and 6 trout landed by Sally Ann Iles. Phil Morgan and Colin Jones each recorded a 7-fish catch from 2 visits. Steve Curtis caught 5 rainbows, as did Granville Thomas. Ivor Thomas and Phil Harper both added 4 trout to their season's account. Long serving committeeman Brian Wareham and regular permit visitor Mark Roberts each netted 3 rainbows. A good brace of bottom pond trout went to Dan Morton and Terry O'Connor. The bottom pond has also supplied some excellent boat fishing demonstrated by 2 limits for Keith Higgins, a 6-fish return for Mark Southwood, with Ken Pascoe netting a limit plus 3 fish from his 2 boat outings. Bridgend members Craig Bowles and Dave Smith used their joint boat session to land 7 and 2 trout respectively. The return to lower temperatures has seen more fish being caught on Damsel patterns, Cat’s Whiskers etc, although good fish are still being landed on Buzzers and various nymphs such as Diawl Bachs.
At the weekend both boat and bank anglers enjoyed some good sport on the bottom pond, with Dave Howells heading the boat return list with a catch and release limit. Fellow Cardiff member Keith Higgins and boat partner Shaun Cotterell both netted 7 fish, as did the boat pairing of Martin Rees and John Eynon. Around the banks day ticket holder Luke Thomas and Paul Ellsworthy both took limits, while Alan Rees recorded a 4-trout return. Three trout were caught by Gethin Bowes and Mark Roberts, while Brian Tantum and Phil Morgan each took a brace of rainbows. On the top pond, Luke Thomas added a second limit to match his earlier success on the bottom pond, while Ken Bowring, Mark Cox and Colin Jones all recorded 4 rainbows on the return sheets. John Mcindo, Steve Snape and Graham Ingram Evans landed 3 trout, while a brace of rainbows were netted by Phil Harper, Phil Morgan, Terry O'Connor and Paul Ellsworthy. Successful flies on the top pond included Shipman's Buzzers and Damsel Nymphs.