Llandegfedd Reservoir (435 acres), United Utilities, Sluvad Treatment Works, Llandegfedd Reservoir, Panteg, Pontypool, NP4 0TA (tel: 01291 673722); owned by Welsh Water plc, and a major boat fishery; stocked with 25,000 rainbow trout av 1lbs-2lbs, small numbers of browns; season 1 Mar-31 Oct...

Hi Kieron, Hoping to make the CSSC At Tal Y Llyn this year having enjoyed Llandeg last year in difficult conditions (well thats my excuse for the blank). My boat partner can't make it though, so if I am able to enter I'll be in touch to see if anyone else is in a similar position that I can team up with.

Regards Stu

Stu - see PM I sent you

Fished yesterday, landed two and lost one. First one on a pink booby on a Hi-D line, the second on a black & green humungus on a DI3 (both on the north shore). Lost another on the Humungus. My boat partner also caught one fishing deep on an oraange booby with yellow eyes (north shore). Did try epoxy buzzers and diawls on the sink tip but they weren't interested. Only sporadic rises at periods through the day but not enough to target anything on a floating line. Tried North Shore, Bill Smiths, Green Pool, Gabions and the Dam.

I think the weather is due to change today so whether the fish were able to sense this I don't know, as other than a lack of breeze at times the weather seemed just right. Is it too early yet for them to really come up or was yesteday a one off in that regard?

Only three boats out. One responded that they had some on black and green but no mention of pattern or depth (clearly didn't want to share any secrets).

Hoping to go back in 3/4 weeks.

Had a great day on Saturday, only fish here occasionally, lots of people catching on a variety of methods from daddies on the top to big heavy lures and boobies....from all over the reservoir.
I managed 5 lovely fishies using a fast intermediate with a dawsons booby on the top dropper, red and black cormorant on the middle and goldhead dawsons on the point....most took the booby on the drop or steady retrieve, the cormorant was taken twice on the drop.

lots of big black cormorants flying around, and shadowing the boats....spooking the fish at times. Right pain in the ****. some fish caught had injuries on their flanks from attacks....but fought like heck...great sport.

Disappointed in myself for not picking up my dry fly rod....but was having loads of fun with the outfit that i was using.

all fishies filleted and bagged up in the freezer. yum yum.

Went to Llandegfedd this opening weekend of 2012. 5 fish as follows.
1lb 1oz overwintered
12 oz stockie
11 oz stockie
11 oz stockie
10 oz stockie
9 oz stockie
Stockie of 10" long returned
Everyone was catching fish of this size range.

Compare that with one of my early March C&R returns from 2006.
2lb 7oz overwintered
2lb 4oz overwintered
3lb 1oz stockie
2lb 12oz stockie
2lb 3oz stockie
1lb 14oz stockie
1lb 11oz stockie
This was an average catch in those days.

I saw several cormorants with the small trout in their beaks. Most of the Newport anglers I spoke to were looking forward to Blagdon opening.

I've fished Llandegfedd 4 times this year already and am yet to catch a fish under 1lb? Actually, under 1.4oz... I don't know what you were fishing or where but I and others i have spoke to recently haven't been catching anything 'that' small.

Admittedly, the overwintered fish are smaller than the stockies, bar from a few lumps we've had, but nothing in the size raneg you've caught. Any pictures?



This being about the average size stocky

That last one looks better - well done.
I don't have any pictures, but my weights are correct. All of them came from Bill Smith's, off the bank. I had many similar sized fish last year.
I have to agree with an earlier post on here - it hasn't been the same since they stopped rearing fish in the cages and that's a shame. I've fished it for over 30 years, but rarely have the appetite to go there these days. It should be the mecca for trout fishing in South Wales, but I meet so many anglers from that region who never fish it and prefer to travel to Blagdon or Farmoor.
I've heard that there is now coarse fishing available on there all season? Is this for increased revenue, or some comprehensive idealistic nonsense to cater for all tastes? I wonder, are Llandegfedd's days as a trout fishery numbered?

I have to agree with Kieron on the size of the fish. Had some good fish there so far this season, and the same has to be said for last season, hopefully that will continue for the remainder of the year. As for the coarse fishing, when fly anglers are paying £29 for a catch and release ticket and coarse anglers paying under £10 (I think), I'm sure that the economics of the situation will dictate the stance towards coarse fishing on the lake. As an angler who does both aspects of our sport, I'm sure that the coarse anglers will filter away as the commercial fisheries really start to get going and offer superb sport.
Regards Lloyd

It was always the case that Llandegfedd could and should produce big trout, it has a pH about the same as Blagdon but I have fished it since it opened apart from recent years and the main difference is the huge number of coarse fish present these days. There were always some coarse fish even in the early days with dace and perch present almost from the off.

There was a deliberate attempt by some coarse anglers to sabotage the trout fishing and force a change to a coarse or at least a mixed fishery by introducing various species including pike and we all know what happened to them.

In the early days there were browns that were seen by divers working on the tower that were said to be approaching 30". The browns then got UDN and rainbows were stocked that were soon growing to over 8lbs from 12 - 14" stock.

About the late 70s the stocking policy changed to dropping in some double figure stockies along with generally larger fish than before which messed up the records and the pike also started to proliferate and soon 40lbers were being netted in Green Pool. These were killed at first, then removed to other WW fisheries before they realised that all this did was increase the number of jacks and they started to promote the pike fishing.

About the same time they started to pump water from the Wye as well as the original flow from the Usk and other species started to appear. Virtually everthing grows to a very good size and that should include the trout.

They possibly are putting some small stockies in but these should quickly put on weight and ultimately reach a good weight too.

Llandegfedd could be quite hard and one feature is that the trout are not evenly spread around, there are definite hotspots and other areas virtually devoid of trout. I managed an average of just over 3 fish per visit when the limit was 6 and over perhaps 20 years of fishing several times a month with very few blanks but sometimes it was a close run thing.

Having said this it has always been the case that many South Wales anglers prefer to drive across the Severn Bridge to Chew and Blagdon and sometimes I wonder why.

How's it fishing at the moment!? Hopefully out on a boat next weekend. Any info would be much appreciated as I haven't fished Llandegfedd for years!

Cheers,

Huw