Certainly a challenging day at Avington, at least as far as stalking was concerned! A superb Autumn day but the light values made it very difficult to spot the heavier fish. Interestingly the second lake was easier to "read" than the others - all to do with sight angles I suppose. I eventually located at least four different big fish but often couldn't keep track of them in the conditions. They were there one second, then gone, or were they - "I'm sure that was a fish but......"

Anyway, there were plenty of fish about for the few of us there and the general size appears to have been 6lb+ with a couple of near 10lbers for good measure. Most were in excellent condition and full of fight. I ended up with three rainbows of 6.08, 7.12 and 8.08 but managed to lose a real heavyweight that was possibly nudging 20lbs! Had it on for quite while and felt I had it under control but then it was gone, unfortunately it still has my #14 green/white stalking bug in its mouth!

An enjoyable day in a great Autumn setting:

Shame about the big one Neil! I managed to lose a very very big brown last time i was down there in Lake 2..

Sadly, that's it for my fishing for a while. My wife is about to produce our first offspring and i'm on a tight leash. a shame given some of the fish he's got to go in over the winter! - I might sneak off to Lechlade later in the year though...

I remember my first '20' which was from Dever. when i got him in, the fly was bent almost straight. Another minute of fight and it'd have been off! I lost 3 other definite 20s from Lechlade right at the net before finally getting one in. (well 19lb 14 but who's counting!) It hurts every time you feel the line go slack!

Did you see the big brown in lake 1? LAst time i was down he was circling the top end of Lake 1 and looked ripe to take, i had him chase me a few times (albeit halfheartedly) but, like you, kept losing the fish in the light... Autumn stalking - a pain in the ****!

Best wishes to you both for your impending parenthood!

Lake 1 was very difficult to stalk but I did see one nice fish for a few minutes towards the top end. Never really got a good shot at it but there were plenty of other "stockies" spread throughout the lake. One guy very quickly had his four fish limit and then bought at least one more ticket! Most of his fish were over 7lb+ and he said it was the most enjoyable time he'd had for a long while! The big brown from many weeks ago is still in there somewhere.

The top lake was tough as well, too much wind ripple made spotting almost impossible but again I found a nice fish, perhaps 13lbish under the trees at the near end but it ignored everything I tried.

I concentrated on the middle lake and found a couple of heavyweights including the one I lost. It was slowly patrolling the middle of the lake and occassionally quite high up in the water. Two other big rainbows were around but very spooked and were often being harrassed by other fish. Several times I found them slowly cruising but then bow waves would appear from nowhere and they would shoot off at quite a pace!

You're right about some of the fish yet to go in the lakes, a few "bruisers" are still in the ponds and one in particular, with huge "shoulders" is well into the 20's!

Opportunites for stalking are getting quite limited now but the quality and size of the "stockies" is still top notch.

That fish in Lake 3's been in there yonks. He's quite a short fish, but wide across the back and deep? I hooked him a month ago or so, and i had a good crack at him last time, but to little avail. He was hiding under some fallen leaves by the bush on the RHS of the top lake last time.

That brown only has to survive the next few days and he's OK till the spring! I could see him clearly last time, but he's a tricky one allright.

You should really try Lechlade in the winter. it's less stalkable than Avington, although there are plenty of opportunities on a nice day. it also has incredible stockies in the winter, where the fish can AVERAGE 9-10lb. I can't wait to have a crack at it, although i feel not for some time. :-(

Cracking photos there Neil it is such a beautiful smallwater venue. Cant wait till my next trip down there, thinking of going the last weekend in November weather permitting. If anyone is going to be there that weekend let me know and i will bring an extra drop of whisky down with me to help fight the chill.

Dan

There's an offer!

I will continue to "feed my addiction" with a few more trips to Avington and planning on visiting Lechlade in the new year but the Dorset Stour chub are an annual "thing" with me. That's assuming we get some rain into the rivers!

Very, very wet, miserable and overcast (mini tornado reported up the road at Ropley!) so not the best of stalking conditions!

But succeeded in losing two good heavy fish from the first lake! Then, just as I was watching the second of those fish drift away after throwing the hook, it's "mate" appeared from the left. I dropped the "bug" on its nose and we were "away again". Remained in contact with this one and it eventually lay on the grass - in superb condition and just a couple of ounces shy of 13lbs:



Plenty of fish about, especially in the first lake, and a few heavyweights as well!

Hi Neil,

Im a beginner living in Surrey but my hometown is South Winchester, ive seen its pretty expensive at Avington and wondered if it would suit someone so new to the sport?

Ive had a look over the website and it looks fantastic, but would hate to pay the money for a blank day

Any advice you could give is appreciated

Jammin,

You have a PM.

Hi Jammin, I see Neil's dropped you a pm, this is for you and any others that are new and interested in big fish waters.

Avington IS expensive, but it's not a difficult fishery to catch fish, and large ones too. You will need to be able to cast reasonably, although some of the fish can be right at your feet. Use heavy weighted flies and keep on the move. If you want to stalk the biggies, you'll need polarised sunglasses but the light's not great at this time of year so it's a bit more difficult to spot. that said, if you cast blind, you'll almost certainly catch some decent fish in the 5-8lb range and you never know what else...

There are a lot of fisheries in the area that offer clear water sport and the chance of a big fish, one thing i would say though is if you're new to the sport and you get a ten pounder, or bigger, there's very little to look forward to in terms of size. maybe it's better to cut your teeth on a cheaper fishery, catch a few fish, and then have a crack at a biggun.

Stalking is by far the most productive way of catching the larger fish, in any clear water fishery, but it involves a LOT of walking around, standing, watching, and very little actual fishing.

In a nutshell, go to Avington, and you'll almost certainly catch fish, but you may find yourself spoiled next time you go to a smaller average sized fishery!

Cheers
Alex