The wife has convinced me to go fishing for a birthday pressie So i decided to go down hampshire way ive got a few to choose from , but i have never fish any of them.So which would you choose
Dever springs
Avington
Avon springs
chalk springs
Chiphall lake
or the other direction Hazelcopse

I have also just built my fish fly rod a #5 9ft on a Harrison blank "pressie too"and want to give it a good thrashing, i had a couple of practice throws and the line goes like grease **** off a blanket and in a straight line

You have a PM,nothing secret,just a bit drawn out

Click on the Slovenia link at the top of the page. Flyfishing in Slovenia is wonderful. I tried it while on a holiday at Lake Bled a few years ago. Slovenia is a fantastic Alpine country, very similar to Austria but a lot cheaper. The package being advertised, at £139 plus budget airline flights from 99p (+tax) make it a really attractive proposition. imho.

Are you trying to burgle my house by sending me to slovenia HAMPSHIRE, i aint got a passport anyway, thats why i want to fish in HAMPSHIRE, i like HAMPSHIRE its the nearest thing im going to get to a holiday But it seems nobody on here ever fishes HAMPSHIRE even though they keep commenting on Dever ,Avington,Chalk springs and alike in HAMPSHIRE.
Whats the point of asking for advice if people wont give it.
Its my birthday and ill go where i want and it aint bloody slovenia, which is nowhere near HAMPSHIRE.
I just want to christen my new hand built rod in HAMPSHIRE is it too much to ask
GARRY in WESTDRAYTON MIDDLESEX


Sorry not including you Chris "Chub1"

if you must fish in hampshire, then fish a chalk stream - not a tail-less stockie puddle; as a native of the county, now far away, i have to say that none of the ponds i have fished in that fine county are much cop. imo. The nearest to a reasonable day out is probably Frensham, but thats in surrey.

incoming

We have 1300 odd members in this forum, and the only ones to reply are one from scotland, one from the oakneys and of cause Chub1 One has suggested Slovenia,one a chalk stream or surrey But not HAMPSHIRE Even Chris "Chub1" wanted to send me to a lake thats not open to day tickets yet
Give us a break Guys ill be 90 before you get it right

Snaggit,

It very much depends on what floats your boat. If you want to catch big fish in clear water go to Dever, you would be unlucky to get one under 4lbs and you have a very good chance of a double. Last time I went I got four fish for about 30lbs and was pulling the fly away from 8lbers at the close.

If you want value for money in a nice fishery with a few big fish and a good average weight go to Avon Springs, it also has a nice stretch of the River Avon which for me is better than the pools.

Avington sort of splits the difference between the two but has mixed reports and with all these fisheries it very much depends on what has been stocked recently and how heavily the water is fished. On some every fish is within casting range and by the end of the day a lot of them will be highly stressed and will not look at a fly.

Chalk Springs you either love or hate. On the good side it has a high proportion of browns and on the down side it can be crowded and the pools are more like river stretches than lakes, not all that wide.

I've never been to Chiphall so can't comment.

Personally if I was spending £40/£50 on a day I'd go to Barton Court on the Kennet, not Hampshire but close and nice river fishing for a fair price.

All the small still waters fish well first thing but as the fish get lined and thrashed they get a lot more difficult and the middle of the day is often a tough spell with the fish coming back on as the light fades and the line/fly visibility moves back in your favour.

Thank you Sewinbasher, now thats a reply and helpfull , i will have alook a Barton court if they have a website Have you fished Hazelcopse??? Not in HAMPSHIRE

Here's the link to Barton Court

http://www.riverkennet.co.uk/

Never fished Hazelcopse but Meon Springs and Nythe (if it's still open) are both worth a look as well being well managed and have less angler pressure than some others.

Stay well clear of Sutton Springs which was opened by the guy who started Dever. He gives each angler a wheelbarrow to take the fish back to the lodge in. There are relatively small pools with obscenely large fish cruising around - not my sort of thing but if very large fish turn you on these are even bigger than Dever's fish.

Just to make things harder the wife wants me to go some where were she can go shopping within 5 mins travel from the lake in HAMPSHIRE other wise she will get lost
So i told her theres plenty of shopping around Avon Springs, well its 5mins to Salisbury as the missile flies