I am a total newbie to fly fishing. I have a 7/8 rod all set up and ready to roll (once the wife releases it to me on the 25th). I have no fly experience at all, a little puddle dipping experience and a couple of years shore fishing experience. I really want to get into fly fishing as an alternative day out to my sea fishing trips and am interested in river fly fishing. I live between the avon and stour and want to know where I can go fishing for free to learn the craft a little before getting into all the club stuff that will cost a lot of cash.

I know there is a free section on the Frome at Wareham but I do not know what fish will be there or when to fish rivers for what species etc. I have picked up a couple of books but any quick bits of advice such as what fish are about when, what water temps mean no fishing is possible would be greatly appreciated. I am heading out for a bit of schooling in April from my brother in law but would really want a weekend trip fly fishing to be more about the fishing than the teaching me stuff and I am also chomping at the bit to get out and give it a go.

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Welcome SS, don't rush at it, I can understand your excitement, but get a lesson or two booked first, and master the casting.
Just use the search button on here, and type in anything you want to know, casting, knots,lines, rods, there is loads of info on here, that you will find useful.
Good luck.
S.

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"A glint of sun has warmed the air,The flies will soon hatch out, To lure and tempt from their deep lair, The bonnie speckled trout." SKB tackle supporter. I love Furled Leaders.

You need the advice of JohnH, who knows a good deal about river options in your area. If you re-title the thread Dorset river options or something like that, you might attract his attention - or you could send him a PM.

new title done so lets hope

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The free stretch at Wareham is a bit of an oddity. It is tidal but is purely a coarse fishery. Fishing for game fish (trout/sea trout/salmon) and sea fish (mostly mullet and some bass) is not permitted. I have no idea what the purpose of the "no sea fish" part of the rule is, the game fish bit is to keep the lower classes away from the rich man's fish... There are some cracking roach and dace down there and some good tench in the drain beside the river. Not much use to the budding fly fisher!

The tackle you have is a bit heavy for river trout fishing so stillwaters will probably be a better bet, some will still be open in winter.

You really need JohnH to come along with better local knowledge of the stillwaters than I have


Andy

Thanks for that. Not quite sure how they can ban fishing for sea species in a tidal zone as you can even hit the royal fisheries for free if you are specifically targeting the bass. The expansion of my fishing to freshwater is proving to be a lot more complicated than I expected and most of it seems to come down to politics over the fishing so I hope I can navigate that minefield without it getting in the way of the fun and fishing.

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I'd follow Mr Trouts advice, get a lesson especially if you are launching straight into river fishing. That way not only do you get casting tuition but also tactics.

I'd suggest you mix some still water fishing in there to begin with, it is a good way to get your casting skills into play you will want the basics of throwing a line out before the river comes into play. Couldn't think of something more frustrating than seeing a rising fish then ending up with a pile of line on the water three feet from your rod.

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Carl

http://www.wandlepiscators.net/
http://teiseangling.co.uk/index.htm

TOMORROW THE TRENT COULD BE YOUR FISHERY! When are YOU going to JOIN THE ANGLING TRUST?

if you are interested in still water fishing..puddles..there are plenty round here,
locak club christchurch angling has two trout lakes Members only. one at white sheat one at hammer bottom..hammer the harder of the two lakes ..bigger..
white sheat has three lakes all very good ..more info on CAC web. site..rockbourne down the road from you has had better days but we all hoping it's going to come back again. Manningford and avon springs at north of salisbury both very good waters, many others dorchester way and portsmouth.. try web site gethooked .co.uk great for finding where they are..most about £30-£40 a day.. but some good fighting trout to be had..

Well your all kitted out for reservoir fishing! And nothing is for nothing; make sure you have an EA licence!

River and stream fishing will require permission from a land owner - angling club or association, or a syndicate. Then there are lots of rules to fly fishing; so you cannot skirt round the politics of fly angling! Curtain your excitement, slow down and enjoy the learning curve, "ONE STEP AT A TIME"

Lessons if you want, or if you really need them; but self taught can also be good fun and extremely rewarding "self satisfaction" you'll find other anglers you meet on the river, will give you some help and advise as you learn.

Good luck

M

I am a little confused as to why there is a feeling that my kit is set out for reservoir / puddles as opposed to river. Can you not use a 7/8 rod on a river as I bought it for the express purpose of being able to fish rivers and estuary mark.

I do have a rod license and will not fall foul of that law and do not really see the point in trespass. My biggest shock with learning about fly fishing is the politics of larger clubs forcing smaller clubs out of some marks due to massive price hikes in the rental the larger club manage on behalf of the land owners. That, mixed with the high fees for fishing, when you have already spent a couple of hundred quid for the pleasure of being a member seems pretty elitist.

We have to manage our rivers and lakes and help maintain a healthy but the freshwater answer to this seems to be throwing money at the situation and pricing out the normal man that cannot afford the price of a months mortgage every year just for access.

I guess that is a subject for another thread but I am shocked at the attitudes in the area that I live in as well as the prices where my brother in law does not suffer in Wales as the clubs local to him own small sections of the river as opposed to the whole thing. That is before we get into the whole ancient rights of way thing on the Avon which is historically documented as being a route of passage from Salisbury.

Thanks for all the advice and friendly tips and I hope to enjoy fly fishing without breaking any laws or eating into my pension fund too much.

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