Just returned(yesterday) from a first go at Roadford..

The result well ah hem I blanked stupendously! Didnt even feel I got anywhere near a Trout, never saw one, no pulls, saw absolutely no fish of any kind whatsoever.

I was dropped off so was restricted to where I could walk and after getting cover in flies and stinking mud trying to negotiate the banks I decided I should have got a boat..Tho a boat without a motor and mate to ghillie for me can cause a few problems if the wind get up so the bank it was.

I fished the sailing club side and the conditions were not great, however I walked up the banks and found a bay that was calm and had a massive amount of buzzers hatching, there were shucks all over the surface and many buzzers emerging, yet I saw not one rise despite sitting there for and hour jus watching, maybe the fish fish were feeding sub surface??

I was thwarted by another bog so backtracked and made my way down to the dam, 6 bogs alot of swearing I arrived at the dam, the wind had now changed and was working one into me by blowing right in my face, nice!!..So back traked again jus stopping here and there to watch and put a few cast about and nothing.

the only thing I did see was some moron and his miss's who walked around shouting at each other whilst he tried to impress her by seeing how big a rock's he could throw in the water

I stayed until 7.30 ish and saw no rises despite a massive hatches of buzzers and alot of other insects, I saw no other anglers, does anybody know something I dont??

A return is being planned....

Never mind, just one of those days, it,ll no doubt be totally different next time out and you,ll catch loads hopefully, ck

Quite a gutting day for you. I fished Roadford many years ago from the bank and didn't see much showing then i ended my day with one fish, at least it was a keepie and that was in June. Also when i fished it the Lake was really low.

Good on you for catching one, Yeh it was my only my first visit to be fair I didnt expect to catch on a water that size right from the off, and I only fished a small area as I anit gonna walk 750+ acres in an afternoon.

I was surprise tho at the lack off any other anglers for the whole time I was there.

The water is gin clear at the moment and in the areas I was fishing it was very shallow where I could get room to cast so I rekon the fish may have been holding further out and feeding sub surface on the rising buzzers. Well thats my excuse anyway. Next time I'll try a boat and prepare my excuses should another blank be on the cards :0)

Have you tried this one leisure-activities fishing trout-fishing wistlandpound I fished this again many years ago and i had a really good day. I dont know what it is like now? i remember i had to leave the money in an envolope in the car park.

I once was a member of the Roadford FFC. Back then you could 'Bag Up' with wild brownies to 4.5lbs., enjoy hatches of hawthorn, Buzzer and Sedge. Walk & cast from the bank all day and go home a very happy man.( or Woman ).
That was untill the 'Perch' arrived. One day just trout , the next perch to 8ozs. Some say, they were introduced , others that they came in via the guls. What I do know is that Roadford went downhill from then on. Now the lake is only good for boating and even that was in doubt last season due to the massive amounts of weed in the margins. With willow now growing around all the banks ( watch that backcast ) and catch returns that suggest it is'nt worth stocking any more, I would give Roadford a miss. Unless you are masochistic of course.
Having said all that, I live in hope that one day it will come right. So, untill that day I will try and fish it once or twice each season just in case.
Rod.

I would of been happy with a 10 oz brownie, even a Perch would have been welcome..

I am for a bit of pain, quite happy to fish all day for 1 Brownie, its good reality check from the obliging rainbows of Rutland etc which flatter to deceive me in my what is average at best ability with a fly rod

Well what you have said seems to explain the lack of anglers. Its a real shame as Roadford is stunning venue and its large size, accessible banks etc would make it a fine Trout fishery. I got the impression when I talked staff at SWLT that due to the fact that it is now lightly fished, they have little or no revenue to enable them to maintain good stock levels of Trout ! and so the circle will go on, less anglers, less money, less fish the person thought that 7000 small trout would be stocked but he was vague as to wether they had been stocked or were planned to be stocked or if it was gonna be a few smaller stockings. Better than nothing if they are actually stocked but considering natural death, Cormorants, what Trout left will be a tad hard to locate in 750+ acres.

I also could see that there was a fair bit of money being spent on an Adventure Playground with death slides etc and activity park and I am only assuming that SWLT feel that their money is better spent in these areas. Its a shame a FFC does not still exist at Roadford who could implement their own non profit stocking policy as it is such a waste of a beautiful resource and what would be a fantastic angling venue especially when large, well stocked waters are like rocking horse egg's in the south west.

Well I hope a few Brownies didnt get caught and managed to avoid the Cormorants and have got fat on a diet of Perch, I dont know if the Brown trout spawn in Roadford and if they do what chance the fry will have against the marauding packs of Perch but I am now determined to catch a Trout from there, its a matter of honour, so if I have to struggle with a rowing boat all day then so be it, i'll take a few lure's and sinkers as well as my buzzers and dries and if dont get a Brownie then its will be payback with fried Perch I read old 19th recipe of fried Perch stuffed with Shrimps.

Steveow,

I fished Roadford a fair bit when it first opened and again for a year or two after 2001 which was foot and mouth year when Roadford was the only place open in Devon. I was briefly a member of Roadford FFC and met Rod on several occasions. As he said back then the fishing was really special, average weight over 2lb some days.
Something worth bearing in mind if you do go back is that there were always two types of angler at Roadford. The first type would turn up, wade out and fish from one spot for an hour or two and then move to another spot - they tended to catch either ****** all or only one! The second type would walk and cast all day covering as much water as possible, often taking fish within feet of the banks. These were the anglers that kept going back Don't be frightened of fishing into a big wind, it always used to be worth fishing just a few feet out in the breaking waves.
There used to be a fair bit of natural spawning in the inflowing Wolf so I'm told but it does sound like it isn't enough to keep the place going.


Andy