Open country on the upper river
bankside characters
River Wye, Upper Clochfaen
The weather was grim; sleet and rain and driving wind. The river was high and brown. Obviously we had picked a great time to go fishing. But when you have travelled to the river, it seems defeatist to retreat; even if the thought of a warm snug pub was more attractive than climbing into a pair of waders and trying to tie on a fly with frozen fingers.
Upper Clochfaen is the highest beat on the river in the Wye and Usk Foundation brochure. It skirts around the small town of Llangurig and then meanders across sheep-filled meadows. The river is open here; no worries about hanging up flies in the trees on the backcast. On the other hand, you do have to contend with a wind that perversely always seems to blow downstream.
The river this far up was high but more importantly it was clear. we could see the gravel of the riverbed and the grayling could see our flies. In the few hours that make up a day at this time of year we managed to tempt a couple of grayling and a brace of plump out-of-season trout. All went back in to the chill waters. I hope to make their acquaintance again next season when they should have grown larger on the healthy fly life now to be found here, thanks to the liming programme carried out by the Foundation.
Open country on the upper river
bankside characters