Just spent a week at Ullswater in the lakes. The Eamont flows out of Ullswater towards Penrith and joins the Eden nearby. I fished the river about ten years ago at the end of May and had a great day - a visit at the end of August was quite different. The river was down quite far but not completely on its bones and this meant that the stretch from Pooley Bridge to Dalemain House was pretty much ankle deep throughout. At Dalemain things got more intertesting with deeper pools. No rises visible at all and eventually I winkled out a half pounder on a prince nymph.

Day tickets are £10 and available from Pooley Bridge Post Office. Its a lovely river with quite a reputation but probably better earlier in the season.

Cheers

James

An article by Tom Fort in this month's Trout & Salmon might shed more light on why you didn't do so well recently. Penrith's sewage treatment works and cypermethrin sheepdips would appear to be the two main reasons for the river's decline over the last decade.

May/june time is a good time. Also the wier pool below pooley bridge had a couple of lunkers chasing fry last september when i was there - alas, no fry pattens with me so not much I could do! Best time this upstream section time is on a evening during the warmer months when the tourists thin out.