Eyebrook Reservoir
End of season Report 2018
Tel: 01536 770264 email lodge@flyfisheyebrook.co.uk
Season Stats:
Number Rods: 6,216 Trout Taken: 5,914 Number Trout Released: 19,047 Total Catch: 24,990
Seasons Rod Average: 4.02
Another season has once again come and gone, but don’t worry its only 17 weeks until opening day !
I have certainly used the word ‘challenging’ a lot this season. Conditions were often against us and with the hottest summer for many years, water temperatures were consistently over 25 degrees for many weeks. Far from optimum temperature for fly fishing! Let’s not forget the good fishing we have seen this season however, a season average of 4 is very respectable. Once we’d got the beast from the east behind us and the colour had fallen out of the reservoir, April averaged 7.6 fish a rod for the month. As the water temperatures tentatively increased we saw our prolific buzzer hatches increase. Bank anglers enjoyed the best f the sport, Sam’s Dyke, The Island, Pollards Jump and the Northern Shallows all fished spectacularly well. May is always one of my favourite months here at Eyebrook. Temperatures rise and the fish start to disperse into the open water. Drifting boats start to come into their own covering water and casting to rising fish. 1173 anglers visited Eyebrook throughout May and caught 4,304 fish, with many overwintered fish coming to the dries in open water. Water quality has been excellent all year with the water being ‘gin clear’ from May to October, we even had an increased number of Mayflies hatch this year. During May we had the biggest trout of the season caught, Steve Rainbow landed a 12lb specimen, with a full tail and in superb condition the fish had clearly been feeding hard of the fry for many years in the brook. The fish took a tube in 30ft of water.
The summer months of June and July took their toll. With air temperatures regularly over 30 degrees it was uncomfortable for anglers and the fish. Eyebrook is a relatively shallow reservoir, with 400 acres only average 17 feet leaving nowhere for the fish to hide. Eyebrook held the disabled international at the end of June. Two days of fishing in blistering heat was hard for all concerned. England finished second behind Scotland, with wales finishing third followed by Ireland. Eyebrooks next major event was the 6-man team loch style championships, organised by the Angling Trust. A whole new competition format with 11 teams fishing three sessions a day, over two days, with a prize pot of £6500 it brought the very best anglers in the country to the Eyebrook. The competition was also shown on BT sport, showing Eyebrook and fly fishing to a massive audience. Thank you to everyone who helped us with stewards for these events, your support is very much appreciated.
Temperatures started to fall quickly into to August and the fish perhaps became acclimatised to their hot water environment. Averages soon improved and by the middle of the month anglers were seeing and catching good numbers of fish of of the surface, from across the basin. Emerger patterns, daddies and hoppers were all working well. August averaged 4.68 fish a rod, compared to 2.4 for the 2017 season, it almost made up for the poor month previous.
September is when Eyebrook does what is renowned for, world class top of the water sport. This year it didn’t disappoint. The reservoir was extremely busy with club outings, travelling anglers and our regular rods. The rod average was consistently at 5 fish a rod with dries working very well. The boat anglers enjoyed the best of the sport with the fish holding over deep water, bank anglers found it difficult to find fish in to the margins. There were few crane flies on the water this season, most probably due to the dry summer we had seen. The season finished with respectively warm water temperatures. Most fish came to dries, with fish slowly turning to the fry. We didn’t see the fry feeders that we have seen in previous years, but we did see a huge amount of fry around the boat frontage. We put this down to the lack of cold weather we have seen this October. There were some good fry feeders caught however, Ian Jobe caught the best ‘back end’ rainbow at 6lb 10oz on a mini snake. Warden Toff Crowther caught a 7lb 12oz brown and several anglers recorded brown trout of over 6lb.
Pike fishing at Eyebrook has been incredible this season and has certainly put Eyebrook on the map as a specimen pike water. Pike fishing is strictly fly only with the season starting from the 16th June. The previous Eyebrook Pike record was a 28lb fish caught by Mr Andy Miller around 12 years ago. No fish had come to rival that record until this season with several fish breaking the 30lb mark and the new record being set at 39lb, caught by Mr Danny Leet mid-October on a very foggy morning. Pike fly fishing is a great alternative to trout fly fishing and is available to anyone. For advice and rules ask a member of staff at the lodge.
The 2019 season will begin on Friday 8th March with bank restrictions in place, boat bookings are now being taken. Call the lodge 01536770264 or email lodge@flyfisheyebrook.co.uk
We are now taking reservations for memberships for the 2019 season. Eyebrook membership starts from £435.00 Numbers are strictly limited so please get in touch with the Eyebrook staff and make them aware of your interest. Call the lodge 01536770264 or email lodge@flyfisheyebrook.co.uk
New for 2019 will be our New All Water Membership allowing those members to spread their visits across all our waters options start from £480.00. Memberships are sold with visit and fish killed limits. Please give your details to the fishery staff to receive an information pack on memberships or Call the lodge 01536770264 or email lodge@flyfisheyebrook.co.uk
Eyebrook will hold an open day on Sunday 16th December where we will be taking payment for memberships. We will also be holding the Spring fair along side Eyebrook tackle shop, a date for this this during February is yet to be confirmed.
Thank you all for your continued support throughout our second season managing Eyebrook Trout fishery. We look forward to welcoming you back during spring 2019.