Reservoir update – autumn 2022

See the latest updates from our fisheries and reservoirs across the region.

Find out about our latest improvements and any upcoming closures, as well as viewing important information about our fishing and recreational activities.

Clatworthy

• We made improvements to our visitor’s car park to increase capacity. Knee rail fencing was also installed to help show customers where to park.
• We carried out maintenance and environmental works around the site, which involved woodland management, hedge cutting, tree safety work and footpath maintenance.
• Because of Clatworthy’s depth and altitude, it remains cooler and clearer than our other trout fisheries. It is our most resilient fishery to warmer, drier weather and has had a relatively strong season.
• We increased our planned stocking by over 2,000 fish to meet demand and kept it well stocked throughout summer. The rod average for the year to date is three and around 5,000 fish have been caught.
• We will review the season dates along with the other sites, but because Clatworthy experiences fewer challenges expect this to be broadly in line with the current dates.

Sutton Bingham / West Pond

• Our picnic area and meadow trail will remain open during winter. However, we will be closing it for a short break over Christmas.
• There will be a number of short-term closures in the coming months, starting from mid-October, to allow for maintenance and environmental works to be completed.
• We successfully carried out a trial to remove coarse fish from West Pond using nets. Further netting is now planned for Sutton Bingham as we are unable to deliver the rod and line coarse event this year due to low water levels.
• The season-to-date rod average is 2.6 and around 3,000 fish have been caught, however, this was almost entirely from the early part of the season.
• Poaching has been an issue at West Pond, so we were forced to end the season early.
• Reservoir levels remain low after a dry summer, so we are unable to stock responsibly and cannot confirm a start date yet.
• We will be reviewing our season dates for Sutton Bingham in light of warmer, drier summers. We will also consider fly fishing for other species which are more resilient to warmer temperatures to allow for angling to continue into the summer.
• Regrettably, our coarse fish removal event has been cancelled this year due to water levels being low and to avoid putting additional pressure on the reservoir.

Hawkridge

• Hawkridge has been affected by the low water levels, but stocking has resumed, and anglers have caught 3,300 fish with a season-to-date rod average of 2.7.
• We have considered extending the season beyond October, but as rain refills the reservoir it tends to be very turbid, so it will not be extended.
• We plan on reviewing our season dates and offering next year to ensure anglers can fish with a good chance of success, while also delivering good value.
• Tree safety works and routine maintenance, such as hedge trimming, are planned for winter. We aim to complete this outside of the fishing season to minimise the impact on anglers.

Tucking Mill

• During the summer months, blanket weed led to significant issues, and we were forced to temporarily close the fishery.
• After removing the bulk of weed from the reservoir by netting and applying an organic treatment, it returned within a few days and the lake was once again unfishable.
• We have carried out further removal work now that the weather has cooled and are hopeful that once cleared, we can reopen without it returning.
• During winter we will consider options for managing the weed at Tucking Mill, along with making improvements to the car park area below the dam.