Fly Fishing Devon: Catch Reports for the Upper Yealm Fishery   Email an enquiry

The Upper Yealm Fishery is available through the Westcountry Angling Passport scheme. To enquire about annual membership of the Upper Yealm Fishing Association (£150) please contact the Snowbee office: Tel: 01752-334933 from 9am to 4pm, or visit the Snowbee retail outlet at Drakes Court Langage Business Park, Plymouth PL7 5JY.

Paul guiding ITV News West Country reporter Bob Cruwys, July 2019

"The sheer joy of catching a wild trout… a must-watch and a lovely snippet into how much the West Country Passport Scheme offers. Fair play to all involved. It brightened up my day big time." Garrett Fallon founder of the print magazine   Fallon's Angler


We hope the monthly Video Diary, numerous written catch reports, comments and pointers to successful tactics on this page help you enjoy your trip.

Check out the   Fly Library

Tight lines, enjoy your fishing. Paul Kenyon & Russell Weston

The Upper Yealm Fishery is part of the Westcountry Angling Passport scheme.


8th August 2023

zzz Conditions river very clear, fast flowing, normal height. Catch 1 @ 8" 3 @ 6" Fly used Small gold head nymph. Small elk caddis. Remarks Four fish to hand, four missed. Three sea trout above wier. Not interested in any fly, but encouraging to see them. Another enjoyable afternoon

20th June 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Pleasant day on the river but very quiet, very few fish rising and not much fly life. Five fish to hand, four small and one beautiful wild brown trout of 11 inches from the upper beat. Hooked and lost a lot of fish first thing. All small though.

12th June 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Very good day on the river with 17 fish to hand and many more unhooked themselves. A few small fish but a few of 8 inches, one of 10 and best 11 inches, all on the lower beat and mostly in slower waters above the weir and along the wall. All but one on GBHE nymph. The one that took the Klinkhammer had company as another fish took the nymph at the same time!!! Never had two fish on at the same time before. Quite a bit of fly life and all the fish in excellent condition.

5th June 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Another enjoyable couple of hours on the Yealm . Met up with a very chatty farmer repairing the fence at the very bottom, apparently his cattle went down stream a it took several days to get them back again, I don't think they'll do it now seeing the fence he has put up!!! All the action was in the bottom half of the river, from where he repaired the fence to the shared left hand bend. Knowing Geoff and Simon had seen a few Olive hatches on Saturday that's what I fished with, several takes, 3 fish lost, 3 to hand. Nothing of any size. Water level starting to drop a bit now, but not to a working stage.

1st June 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Conditions Warm Very Sunny, River Ht. Dropping. Light Breeze. Water Clear. Catch 1 @ 5" 1 @ 8". Fly Used Small Brown Nymph Klinkhammer. Remarks Insect Life Below The Weir, Not So Much Above It. Several Fish Rising. Couple Of Light Takes. Fish Caught On Nymph.

24th May 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Just two fish yesterday, six and 8 inches, on the lower beat below the weir, both on GRHE nymph. Quite a few small flies but only a couple of fish seen rising.

22nd May 2023

Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported: Two in the hand today on the Upper Yealm. Both took a self-tied Zebra midge- feeling delighted.

19th May 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Pleasant day on Friday with the river looking good. Some fly life particularly a few swarms of midges. Just the odd trout rising. Seven fish, two of them very small, the others six to eight inches. Best fish of eight inches took the Klinkhammer, the others all to a GRHE. Several missed/lost. Two were taken on the upper beat the others on the lower.

19th May 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Conditions warm with sunny periods, river ht. Average. Light breeze. Water clear. Catch 1 @ 5" Fly used Small brown nymph Klinkhammer Remarks Insect life below the weir, not so much above it, not many fish rising. Couple of light takes. Fish caught on nymph. Lots of dippers and wagtails. Fishing not easy changed flies several times.

3rd May 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Conditions Cold Stiff Breeze, Average Water Level. Water Discolouration Coming Down From The Pill Probably Due To Cattle Further Upstream.
Catch 1 @ 5" 1 @ 4"
Fly Used Small Black Nymph Small Adams
Remarks A Lot Of Insect Life, The Most I Have Seen For A Long Time, Strangely No Fish Rising At All. Both Fish Caught On Black Nymph.

1st May 2023

Cmissed take on a GBHE. 4 or 5 rises at midday."

28th April 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: I had a pleasant day on the river , never seen so many fish rising above the weir. Serious rises from fish feeding on something but what I have no idea? Very very small and not able to see them. Tried several nymphs and and dry flies but to no avail. The smallest fly in my box was a size 18 Griffiths Gnat but no interest. Unusual in my experience for wild brownies to be so selective being for the most part opportunistic feeders. Thinking outside the box I did try a size 14 Stimulator which either the fish missed or I was not quick enough, or perhaps it was taking something close to my fly. Also tried a small McMurray black ant that sometimes works with difficult fish. On the positive side it was good to see so many fish feeding but it would have been nice to have netted a few.

21st April 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Pleasant if a little chilly on the river today. One small fish to hand from the pool below the weir and another hooked and lost both on GRHE nymph. Also a rise in the same pool to my Klink. A few rises seen above the weir later in the afternoon. A few flies hatching. Seems like the river is slowly coming to life."

17th April 2023

Westcountry Angling Passport visitor caught two brown trout (26cm)


8th April 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Last minute decision to fish today. Challenging with brisk easterly wind and air and water quite cold. Water level has dropped a little allowing more of the river to be fished. Two nice brownies to hand 8" and 10", both in good health. Saw one rise but hardly any fly life."


18th March 2023

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Great to be back out on the river today. Water quite high and current very strong below the weir making wading quite hazardous! Sadly no fish seen or caught but water still very cold."


2nd October 2022

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Just to let you know that I netted 134 fish this season, 30 over 8 inches, best fish a few of 11 inches. Unfortunately I was unable to fish the last couple of weeks in September due to back pain which has finally improved. I really hope that a season permit will be available next year."

29th September

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Conditions light rain, cooler than recent, water still clear and low. Recent rains have not made much difference. Catch: 1 @ 5". FLy used Small green buzzer. Top white indicator fly. Remarks Nothing rising and no insect life. Fish hooked on buzzer. Three sea trout spotted, two together at 5 trees the other on the first left hand bend in river with pool at the bottom of the beat. End of a really enjoyable season. Thank you all very much. "

22nd September 2022

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Conditions warm with sunny periods, very still. Water very clear and still quite low. Catch 1 @ 5" 1 @ 6' 1 @ 7'"

18th September 2022

Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "You will know well enough some days aren't about the fishing it's about the day, this was one of those days.
  • A Stoat, for 2 minutes only 2 meters away.
  • Roe Deer 30 metres away, 2 minutes.
  • Kingfisher flying over my left shoulder.
  • Conditions warm with sunny periods, light breeze. Water very clear and still quite low. One 5 inch trout caught.

    15th September 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor commented: "no fish caught but absolutly the most beautiful river i have ever fished"


    22nd August 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Water still very low and clear. Drizzle all day which I thought might bring out the larger fish but not to be. Eight small fish to hand, largest 7 1\2 inches and a few unhooked themselves. One to my floating Possum fly and the others GRHE nymph, Very little rising and virtually no flies. No sea trout seen."

    18th August 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "A strange day on the river. Although very low there is a good flow of water and plenty of deep pools. The water felt quite cool and there was quite a breeze. Very few fish rising and virtually no fly life. Quite a few fish jumping though, mostly small but a couple of some size. Did not spot any sea trout. Six fish, one of 11 inches, two of 9 and one of 8 inches. For reasons that I don't understand all the fish were caught in the slow water above the weir. Three on the GBHE nymph and the others on a Possum emerger. I had a couple of missed fish to the possum below the weir but very little happening in the faster waters?"

    16th August 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught two brown trout.

    8th August 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitorcommented: "This is a lovely stretch of river to fish, but water levels being very low, and gin-clear made a challenging morning. I did however manage to land a very nice trout of about 12”."

    27th July 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Yes a bit different from last week when I had 22 fish! Unfortunately the water is so low now that fishing is probably not a very good idea until we have some rain. The Avon FA have restricted visitors and the Arundell Arms have stopped fishing. "

    20th July 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"A strange day, first hour or so absolutely nothing rising and no offers to my possum emerger. Above the weir I noticed that the water level had risen a tad, was quite coloured and a lot of debris. Presumably a heavy shower up stream. Put on GRHE nymph below a possum and bingo! 22 fish mostly in slower water above the weir. Apart from a couple, all took the nymph, best 11 inches, one 9 inches and a couple of 8 inches."

    15th July 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:" Excellent day, eight fish, one of 11 inches, another slipped from my hands back into the water before I could measure, a touch bigger I think and certainly fought hard. Two of 8 inches and four smaller ones. All taken on the lower beat with a possum emerger. I also tried a red McMurray ant which quickly rose four fish, three of them hooked but all came off. The hooks were small and debarbed. I have started using Fulling Mill barbless hooks which have the point turned in slightly and am losing less fish."

    13th July 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Five fish , two of ten inches on a Possum emerger. As always hooked and lost numerous fish. An enormous fish launched itself into the air a few feet in one of the flats above a pool I was fishing. Presumably a sea trout? Too early for salmon? May have a go tomorrow, Friday if no one else is fishing. Think that will be it for awhile as the weather looks as if it will be very hot and windy next week. "

    11th July 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught one brown trout, and one 17 inch sea trout.

    8th July 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Ten small fish on Friday, best 7 1/2 inches, two on the upper beat in the pool by the upper bridge, the rest on the lower beat. River low and clear again now. Very little obvious fly life but a few fish rising which refused my best efforts with duo. Changed to dry fly, Possum emerger which brought up the fish. As usual quite a number lost/missed including two very good fish, one by the wall and the other in the weir pool. "

    1st July 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught 6 brown trout, best 8 inches.

    30th June 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Good day with twelve small fish to hand, best 8 1/2 inches, lost count of the fish I missed/lost. The recent rain has improved the river enormously so slightly coloured. Mostly caught in the slower waters, tails of the pools below the weir on a GBHE nymph fished below sparkle dun. Several along the wall and a few in the weir pool which is unusual. Not much in the way of hatching flies but a few rises. Only fished the lower beat. "

    21st June 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Just five small fish yesterday, best 7 inches. Two on lower beat and three on upper. All on Sparkle Dun. Quite a few very small fish rising in the flat water. Conditions still challenging with low clear water but enjoyable as always."

    14th June 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Lovely day yesterday, five small fish to hand, best 8 inches all on the lower beat. I started with Klinkhammer and GRHE duo without an offer. There were a few trout rising so switched to Sparkle Dun on its own and immediately had two fish and a couple of missed ones. Water very low and clear so with bright sunshine challenging conditions."

    6th June 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Eight fish to hand and some which got off, including the only one to take the Klinkhammer. The rest taken on gold bead hares ear nymph. Best fish 10 inches on the lower beat. Having had some success on the upper beat earlier on in the season, the last two visits have yielded very little, yesterday just one small fish."

    1st June 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Four fish to hand, three on lower beat and one on upper. I fished the lower beat first and landed one fish of ten inches and one of six inches. I then tried the upper beat which was very quiet and managed one brownie of eight inches. It was only 3pm so back to a few pools on the lower beat where there were quiet a few fish rising. One more fish of eight inches but two very nice fish, probably 10-12 inches lost when they were almost in the net. The largest taken along the wall below the weir where I have never taken fish before. All taken on a size 16 gold bead hares ear fished below a Sparkle Dun Antron Caddis. I don’t think I had a single offer to the dry fly. Last week I had some fish to a Klinkhammer but find it more difficult to see in the faster water. Think I will tie some with pink or orange posts.

    Spotted one large sea trout above the weir. No interest in my offering’s!

    28th May 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Five fish to hand today, four 8 inch on the lower beat and one of 9 inch on the upper beat. Lost count of the number of self released fish, particularly on the lower beat. Klinkhammer and gold bead hares ear. Very few fish rising and water still very low."

    23rd May 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "I think that with the water being as low as it is the pocket waters on the upper beat seem to be holding up better. On the last two outings I have taken good fish at the very top of the pool opposite the wooden decking. I had some success last year on the two pools below the wooden decking but are now very low. Also the bottom pool of those three is very overgrown and almost unfishable. Last year I always caught fish on the flats above the weir on the lower beat but none at all this year, again because the water is so low. The Upper Yealm is such a gem. Hope that helps."

    22nd May 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:" Conditions Cloudy, Cool, Water Level Low , Not Running To Fast, Clear.Catch 1. 8" 2. 6" 3. 5" Fly Used Adams/ Pheasant Tail Remarks Had To Change Flies Several Times To Get Takes Fish Taken On Adams. A Lot Of Fish Especially On Lower Stretch On Corner A Lot Insect Life Several Fish Rising Fish Caught On Bottom Strech In Faster Moving Water, Could'nt Get Any Takes From Rising Fish

    21st May 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Todays highlight has to be this pair of Canada Geese with chicks. Six fish to hand, two on lower beat and four on upper, two of which were 10 inches. Unfortunately one was foul hooked but returned unharmed. I think two took the PTN and the others a small Klinkhammer. Quite a few fish rising and more fly life than I have seen so far this year. Water still on the low side but quite clear."

    20th May 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught 2 brown trout; best 10 inches.

    14th May 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:"Conditions Sunny, Cool, Water Level Low , Not Running To Fast, Clear. Catch 1. 6" 2. 4" Fly Used Small Dry White Indicator/ Small Black Midget. Remarks Fish Taken On Black Midget. A Few Small Fish Around Five Trees A Little Insect Life Several Fish Rising Nothing Seen Or Caught Below Weir Fish Caught Above 5 Trees "

    14th May 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Pleasant day as always on this lovely little stream. Three fish, 6,7 and 8 inches, two on upper beat and one on lower. Gold bead hares ear and gold bead PTN"

    9th May 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Water still very low so hopefully the rain forecast for Wednesday will freshen up the river. Four fish on the upper beat, best nice brownie ten inches. As usual a few self released. Lovely bluebells still.”

    7th May 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught one 20 cm trout.

    30th April 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:" Fished on Saturday, three small brownies to hand, two on lower beat and one on upper. About ten further fish hooked and self released. Gold bead hares ear nymph. Water very low now. Quiet a lot of fly life and a very few rises. Bluebells absolutely stunning."

    24th April 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Conditions : sunny, cool, water level average, not running too fast, clear. Caught three trout: 8, 6 and 4 inches. Fly used: small dry white indicator. Remarks: Fish taken on dry, very quick takes nothing missed. Lots of small fish around five trees. No insect life. Several fish rising . Nothing seen or caught below weir.

    13th April 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Conditions: cloudy, cool, water level average, not running too fast.Caught one 7 inch trout. Remarks: fish taken on small nymph; very few fish seen; no insect life; nothing rising ; bit early in the season!

    13th April 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Just one small brownie today, another unhooked itself and a few missed. Gold bead hares ear and one missed rise to the March Brown. Just fished the lower beat. Water level quite low now. "

    12th April 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught 3 brown trout, biggest 22 cm.

    9th April 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor commented: "hard at first no rising fish worked out they would take nymphs fished deep." Caught 10 brown trout, biggest 8 in

    9th April 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor commented:"lovely day fishing with my 7yr old son"



    27th March 2022

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: Nil

    24th March 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Lovely afternoon on the lower beat with daffodils still in bloom. Less water than last week and a few fish rising above the weir. Six small fish, 6-7 inches to hand and a few lost. All taken on Gold bead hares ear nymph. All in good condition but noticed all but one very pale silver, not as colourful as I remember.

    Comment: Sea trout smolts

    Some young trout of 1 to 3 years old and 5 to7 inches long change to a silver colour before migrating to the sea.

    These small silver trout are called smolts. Smolts shoal together before migrating to sea, usually in late March / April. They are often caught by anglers and should be handled carefully and released. After all they may be parent of many of the brown trout you catch in the future

    15th March 2022

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Beautiful afternoon on the lower beat, daffodils absolutely stunning. There was plenty of water, bit coloured above the weir but clear below. Couple of March Browns but not a fish to be seen. Pretty much as I expected but just great to be on the river.


    Summary of 2021 brown trout catch

    number caught

    number returned

    number of days fished for brown trout

    Catch Per Unit Effort
    = [total number of fish caught] / [total number of days fished]

    220

    220

    68

    3.24


    Monthly catches

    This diagram shows the monthly Catch Per Unit Effort in 2021 on the Upper Yealm.   Catch Per Unit Effort   (CPUE) measurements are widely used in fisheries management and are generally seen as a better indicator of true abundance than catches alone. CPUE is calculated as follows CPUE = [total number of trout caught] / [total number of days fished for trout]

    Notes:
  • The fishery is restricted to two rods per day
  • There were 12 Nil returns in 2021
  • 29th September 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught 3 brown trout, best fish 10 in.

    24th September 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Bit dull today and very little activity. In fact I didn't see any fish rising at all. Just three small fish, one on the lower beat and two on the upper. Two on Antron Caddis and one Gold Bead Hares Ear Nymph."

    For the record I caught 123 brown trout in 21 outings.

    24th September 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: caught 2 brown trout.

    22nd September 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: Nil

    20th September 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Good day, lovely weather. Eight fish, seven on lower beat, and one, best fish 11 inches upper beat. Fifty fifty on Antrum Caddis/Gold Bead Hares Ear with a bit of partridge feather. Quite a few fish rising to the dry fly for a change."

    19th September 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: Nil

    14th September 2021

    It's always a pleasure to be present when a beginner has their first brown trout to hand.

    This Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught two brown trout under challenging low slow moving water conditions; one on a size 20 Black Midge, and the other on a Klinkhamer.


    14th September 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Lovely afternoon. Five fish on the upper beat, two good fish 10 and 11 inches. The latter took the Antron Cadis as did one of the small fish. The others the Gold Bead Hares Ear nymph. Also had one very strong fish on for a while but alas the one that got away."

    11th September 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Pleasant day as always. Five fish, best ten inches on the upper beat. Quite a few rises to a Antron Caddis but only one handed, the others Gold Bead Hares Ear. Water still low and clear so quite challenging. As usual many fish missed or hooked and lost. "

    11th September 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: One brown trout

    8th September 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Conditions: cloudy, water coloured due to heavy rain, water level average, not running too fast
    Catch: 6 between 8" and 5" Many takes No insect life No fish rising
    Fly used Beaded hares ear/small elk caddis then changed to a pheasant tail
    Remarks Fish were taking both dry and nymph Lots of takes, but you had to be very quick and alert. No insect life Nothing rising Water started to clear after an hour.

    Fly fishing roll cast - Peter Hayes


    As you can see I had a very good afternoon, fish were taking both wet and dry flies, but you had to be very quick and alert, several splashy rises and many half hearted takes. Geoff, I put the Peter Hayes roll cast video into practice, I think I have got it now. Much better presentation, lower trajectory and more power. Perhaps that is were some of my success from!!!! Still have'nt mastered the single haul yet, work for the winter months!!! Look after yourselves. Best wishes and tight lines,

    8th September 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: Nil

    7th September 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught 2 brown trout

    6th September 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor : Nil

    3rd September 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association day permit visitor reported: "Just to let you know that my roll casting has improved with accuracy from your last instruction. Practice, practice,practice. I was at Upper Yealm today and netted 6 with 2 lovely brownies roughly 9-10” close to the opposite bank by 5 trees pool , the largest I’ve netted on this stretch. They took my Griffith’s gnat after a short drift."


    31st August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Challenging today, water very low, nothing happening above the weir. A couple of small fish below the weir and a few missed/lost. One nice ten inch fish on the upper beat to Antron caddis."

    30th August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association day permit visitor caught these 2 brown trout, largest 30 cm. and reported: "water level very low and clear, difficult fishing. saw a few sea trout in a pool"

    27th August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Just two small fish to hand on Friday. Hooked and lost quite a few that took the Balloon Cadis. Eventually I checked the fly and found the leader wrapped around the fly!!"

    Note added by Paul Kenyon: There are several ways that may help avoid this problem when using the Dry-Dropper duo technique , described here

    23rd August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported on the Upper Beat: "A few tangles but five fish and as many missed/lost. More rises and activity for quite a while. Having netted best fish I was trying to measure it on my wading staff and it slipped back into the water. Certainly the best fish to date and around twelve inches plus. Gold bead hares ear nymph and taken in a tiny run under the bank. A couple taken on balloon caddis."

    22nd August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association day permit visitor reported: One 6 inch brown trout to hand. Ten other small fish hooked and lost. Fly used: Tup's Indispensable. Hooks sizes 14's down to 20's; still lost fish on 2.5 lb mono.

    22nd August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association day permit visitor reported one brown trout caught on a brown Klinkhamer.

    19th August 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught 2 brown trout, best fish 10 inches.

    17th August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Conditions: light breeze, cloudy but warm. Generally good conditions, water level low, few fish rising.
    Catch: Three 5" Many takes
    Fly used: Small black midget buzzer/ small Adams
    Remarks: Few fish rising, Takes were instant when casting into fast moving water, no interest at all on slow running stretches. All fish taken on buzzer, again fish caught below the weir, little interest above.

    17th August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association day permit visitor: Nil

    14th August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:Three fish today, best nine inches which took a Balloon Caddis, the others to a Guides Choice Hares Ear Nymph. Looks like some rain at the end of the week which will freshen up the stream.

    13th August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported:
    Conditions Light Breeze, Cloudy But Warm. Generally Good Conditions, Water Level Low, No Fish Rising.
    Catch One 5" One Take
    Fly Used Small Beaded Hares Ear/ Small Elk Caddis
    Remarks Very Few Fish Rising, The Ones That Did Were Very Small. Takes Were Instant When Casting Into Fast Moving Water, No Interest At All On Slow Running Stretches. No Interest At All Above Weir.

    12th August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Three fish 7", 5", 4". Caught on small hares ear nymph. Few fish rising, all fish caught below weir, a few takes above weir but nothing to hand Water level quite low and very clear. A very enjoyable day in lovely surroundings.

    11th August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Enjoyable day on the river as always on Tuesday. Very little activity, no trout rising and nothing hatching. Just one nice nine inch fish on the lower beat. Hooked and lost a couple on the upper beat. Hares ear nymph as usual. Water is very clear and quite low now."

    9th August 2021

    Geoff and Paul's annual 'Guides' Day Out' is characterized by lots of good-natured banter about our experiences encountered as fly-fishing guides and instructors. This year we covered several topics including: reliance on received wisdom about drag and fishing dry flies downstream; tackle choice - the decision to upgrade to the latest innovation, or stick with an old favorite; the apparent size of trout in published photographs, and finally the role of 'tension' both mental and physical in bringing a fish to hand.

    3rd August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Really enjoyed the fishing today. Four fish on the lower beat, best 10 inches and five on the upper beat, best lovely fish of 11 inches. A couple on Antron Caddis the rest on Gold Bead Hares Ear Nymph. Water was noticeably colder today but very clear"

    3rd August 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught one brown trout of 15 cm

    3rd August 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: One fish 5", caught on small beaded hares ear. Lots of very small fish seen, few fish rising, not much insect life. Hard work today, not sure why.

    29th July 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Five fish 2 x 8", 3 x 5" all caught on small beaded hares ear. A few fish gently rising, but no splashy rises. Fish upper seection for an hour, nothing seen, no takes. Water low and a bit cloudy.

    28th July 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor commented: "Novice fly Fisher but lovely day."

    27th July 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Good fishing today in between the showers, water very coloured after the rain but it did bring the fish out. Hardly any fish rising. Eighteen fish, mostly small but a couple 8-9 inches. Nearly all took the Gold bead Hares Ear nymph but two or three on an Antrim Caddis. As usual quite a few self released and I missed quite a number which rose to the dry fly."

    27th July 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor commented:"A lovely smallish beat. Casting is challenging due to lots of tree cover."

    20th July 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: "Lovely day on the river, beautifully cool. Six fish, best 9 inches. Five on gold bead hares ear, and one on stimulator. Not much surface activity and virtually no hatching flies."

    16th July 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor submitted this image and commented:

    Caught 6 brown trout, best 15cm on his Antron klinkhammer and PDQ caddis fly.

    "Excellent day with good number of lovely wild browns."


    15th July 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Six small fish, five on the lower beat and one on the upper beat. One on a Antron Caddis and the others Gold Bead Hares Ear. All in excellent condition. There is plenty of water in the river at the moment.

    14th July 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor commented: "Scenic beat with easy access to banks. Lots of rises.". He caught 2 brown trout, largest 15 cm.


    10th July 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor. Nil return.

    7th July 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: Three Fish 8", 7", 5". Small green hare's ear/Small Elk caddis, caught on Hare's ear. All fish caught in fast moving water on lower stretch below the weir. Another enjoyable day.

    5th July 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor (report from Paul Kenyon). Fished from c 11am to 2pm. River height 0.45m. Overcast, v.light wind. Many rising fish, a few small upwing, stonefly, caddis and midges seen. Two fish to hand; two 'long-range-releases'. Successful flies: unweighted Hare's Ear nymph with Krystal Flash tail, and Comparadun (black thorax, grey abdomen).

    30th June 2021

    Paul Kenyon fished 11am-3pm. River level 0.30m. Temp c 19C. Overcast with sunny intervals. Occasional slight breeze. Water slightly coloured due to recent rain. 5 small Brown trout to hand, 3 long-range releases. Many rising small fish. No obvious duns, rises appear to be sub-surface, all fish caught on an unweighted Hare's Ear nymph with Krystal Flash tail, suspended below an Antron Caddis. Some fish slashed at the dry fly. The Dry-Dropper technique was effective fished up- or downstream. I rigged the flies on a 9-foot tapered leader, using a simple knot described by Stephen Cheetham. It aligns the flies 'in-line' to eliminate droppers tangling around the leader, and avoids the dropper obstructing the hook of the indicator fly - a recognised problem with the New Zealand attachment method.

    I think I made a mistake in having too long a distance (20 inches) between the dry fly and nymph. This introduces the possibility that movement of the dry fly in response to strikes on the nymph is delayed, due to the slack line between the dry-fly indicator and the nymph. It is reported that salmonids can rapidly spit out non-food objects that have been accidentally ingested.

    19th June 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: 3 brown trout, best fish 12 inches.

    15th June 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member: Seven small fish on lower beat and one on upper beat. Two on Antron caddis the rest on gold bead hares ear nymph. I tried the upper beat and it is quite challenging! The river is quite low now so the rain over the next week will be welcome.

    11th June 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member: Pleasant day on the lower beat today, nine fish mostly small except for one nice ten inch fish. All but one took the gold bead hares ear nymph. As usual hooked and lost more than I brought to hand.

    11th June 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: 3 brown trout, best 6 inches.

    11th June 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: one brown trout of 15 cm

    11th June 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: One Fish 10" caught just above weir. Taken on small Black Nymph. No fish rising, water level dropping but still fast moving. Great mornings fishing with best fish I've caught on the Yealm.

    5th June 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: one brown trout of 10 inches

    5th June 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member reported: 7 fish all around 6" Caught on Dawl Bach, Sparkling Dun floating fly. Cloudy with light drizzle, few fish rising.

    1st June 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: 2 brown trout

    31st May 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: Nothing Caught

    29th May 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member:Not so successful on Saturday, just two small fish caught but about a dozen self released before I could get them to hand including one very good brownie, probably ten inches or more. “The one that got away”!!! There was quite a stiff easterly breeze which always seems to keep the fish down. Gold bead hares ear nymph and sparkle dun.

    27th May 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association member: Nine fish caught and returned , best six and half inches.[In the afternoon] As the rise had subsided I changed to a duo of Black magic nymph and sparkle dun. Two of the fish took the nymph. I walked back down to just above the pool with overhanging branches where there was a fish steadily rising but showed no interest in my duo. It was time to go home otherwise I might have tried an ant or Griffiths Gnat.

    19th May

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: river in spate fishing not really possible had a go but river was fast and rising Comment : Latest Yealm river levels available here

    18th May

    Challenging conditions ... with the lower beat running very fast. Four fish above the weir, three about six inches and one lovely ten inch brownie. Black magic nymph and sparkle elk hair caddis. Quite a few fish rising in the slower water in the afternoon. Paul, you mentioned that the riparian owner had someone who could tidy up where necessary. The pool fifty yards up from the fence at the bottom of the beat now has a tree/branch collapsed over it.

    10th May 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association visitor: 2 brown trout 6" long, both returned. Caught on Klinkhamer & F Fly. Both returned. Loved the lower section in the field. The upper woodland section needs some seious gardening to make it enjoyable. Also recommend using a VERY short rod for that section. Had a great day thanks.

    7th May 2021

    Paul Kenyon reported: Not so successful today, just a couple of small fish and a couple more self released. Bit of a cold wind but some surface activity.

    7th May 2021

    Upper Yealm Fishing Association reported: "2 fish 1 x 8" one x 5" All caught on Black midget buzzer, dropper used was a Adams. River quite high and very fast moving. No fish rising. Highlight was seeing a Stoat on the bank less than two metres from me."

    3rd May 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor "Nothing Caught"

    2nd May 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor "saw a beautiful 8” brownie leap clean out the water. nothing on the hook though. "

    28th April 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor caught one 10 inch trout, and commented: "lovely beat - well maintained fences and gates. cold stiff wind and low level and flow after dry april didnt deter sporadic olive hatch but fish not looking up much yet."

    27th April 2021

    Pleasant few hours on the lower beat. Twelve fish and as many unhooked themselves. 5-7 inches with one 8 1/2 inches. Nearly all caught on hares ear nymph with gold bead and a couple took the elk hair sparkle dun on the dropper.

    20th April 2021

    Early season fly-fishing on the Upper Yealm, starring the duckling! Bright sunlight, gentle breeze, river low (0.28m), but not at summer low level (0.2m) One trout to hand, one 'close-range-release', another at long range. Splashy rises to Black Sparle Dun. Plenty of rising fish - to midge ? Grannom and a few small upwing flies seen.

    14th April 2021

    Pleasant few hours on lower beat. One small brown trout hooked but unhooked itself after a few jumps. Either Partridge and Orange or Beaded Hares Ear nymph.

    17th March 2021

    Westcountry Angling Fish Pass visitor: Nil return


    Summary of 2020 brown trout catch

    number caught

    number returned

    number of days fished for brown trout

    Catch Per Unit Effort
    = [total number of fish caught] / [total number of days fished]

    173

    173

    42

    4.1


    Monthly catches

    This diagram shows the monthly Catch Per Unit Effort in 2020 on the Upper Yealm.   Catch Per Unit Effort   (CPUE) measurements are widely used in fisheries management and are generally seen as a better indicator of true abundance than catches alone. CPUE is calculated as follows CPUE = [total number of trout caught] / [total number of days fished for trout]

    Notes:
  • Due to COVID-19 lockdown the fishery was closed in March and April
  • The fishery is restricted to two rods per day
  • There were 7 Nil returns in September
  • 13th November

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported: Nil


    9th October

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported: 5 fish, one was approx. 9 inches


    29th September

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported: Nil caught, a couple of takes on nymph gold head and small dry.

    26th September

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported:1 fish of 5 inches in great condition. Great day.

    Paul Kenyon fished 2-6pm. Sunny with occassional light breeze, temp. c 16 degrees. River level: 0.28m. No fish to hand, 3 brief encounters, and a few splashy rises to X-Caddis. No offers to flymph fished below dry fly. V. few rises or insect activity before 5pm, last hour more above surface insect activity - midge and caddis and fish rising.

    25th September

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported: No catch. Small number of small brownies seen in shallower wide ares. No takes on eithe dry or nymphs.

    22nd September

    Upper beat access point

    James Christoforou (Westcountry Angling Trust, Angling Development Officer) reported "By the time I arrived at the Upper Yealm, the evening was drawing in quickly, the air has a cold bite and leaves were falling relentlessly. Coupled with low waters from a long dry spell, the Upper Beat felt as if it's going to be tricky. Tree cover masked the evening light and the deeper pockets and runs became indistinguishable in the broken reflections. Surface feeding fish were non-existent, however, on my walk to the river I observed a few Sedge fly fluttering about.

    I was intent on fishing the dry, I felt that (due to the low water) the fish were held between 1-2.5 ft deep, meaning most of them would (by their position in the water) at least see my dry fly, fingers were crossed for a feeding response. I kept a low profile and moved slowly upstream along the pebbly river margins, casting up and across I managed to keep the fly line off the feeding lanes, whilst allowing my small Cdc sedge/stone fly imitation to glide freely over the fishes heads.

    Each pocket and run I cast into provoked at least one response from a fish, the takes were very quick and gentle, the surface was barley broken as the fly was sipped under. Many of these fish were missed, perhaps my fly was subject to drag which elicited a sudden change of heart from the fish? Maybe I was just too slow to react? Who knows, either way it was great to get a response on the dry.

    Working my way upstream I picked up a couple of small trout in the 4-6" bracket, and landed a very appealing Salmon Parr. The Salmon 5" and revealed some beautiful markings, clusters of small red spots were dotted along its flank, similar to a small brown trout. Soon after this, the light faded, and I called it a day. Top notch fishing in difficult conditions. "

    20th September

    Paul Kenyon fished 2-5:30pm. River level 0.27m and clear. Bright susnshine, warm, light easterly breeze. No fish rising or to hand, several splashy rises from probably small fish to an Antron Caddis.

    Three sea trout spotted in front of the "Minack Theatre" seating area. One sea trout entered 'stage right' crossed the centre stage, and took up a resting position in the wings at 'stage left' about 4 feet in front of the stalls. Luckily I was sitting in the cheap seats - 'the gods' and managed to capture some video.

    At least a further 5 sea trout spotted in Five Trees pool, but they were mostly close to the far bank.

    Today was a good example of what Tony Andrews (CEO 2008 to 2016 at Atlantic Salmon Trust) describes as how the "community of living things slip back into their normality after the rude intrusion of our arrival." This does happen in daylight and is an example of the benefits of stealth. It can help fish and angler to simply sit still for a few moments and "let nature come back to you". It will, and you'll see little and larger fish within a few feet and maybe a fish rising a short distance away.

    15th September

    Two Westcountry Angling Passport visitors reported: Nil, Nil.

    11th September

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported:3 to hand, 3 takes, 2 splashy rises. All caught on Elk Caddis. No sea trout seen.

    11th September

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported: Nil

    10th September

    Paul Kenyon fished the upper beat from 3-5:30pm. River height 0.31m. Sunshine & cloud, temp c 18 degrees. Three fish to hand, 2 of which were v. small. A few additional splashy rises. All on Antron Caddis. No sea trout seen or rising fish.


    9th September

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor had 5 splashy rises to an Antron caddis. Several sea trout seen above the weir.

    8th September

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported: One trout of 6 inches. Caught on Copper bead head nymph black. 3 Hours fishing. Missed a lot (8). First time this year and rusty.

    5th September

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported: Four to hand on a Black midge buzzer (left in Flybrary). 8 takes. No sea trout seen. Not many fish rising.

    4th September

    Paul Kenyon fished 3:15-5:30pm. River height 0.41m, clear. Weather: overcast, c. 18 C, light wind. Four trout to hand, one lost all on Antron Caddis, fly left in Fly Library ammunition box in parking area. No interest shown to Glister Bug. Occasional fish rising. Immediate response to Antron Caddis by small fish who responded with splashy rises.

    Tying instructions for the Antron Caddis  on this page ...

    30th August

    Paul Kenyon fished 3-5:30pm. Seven fish of various sizes to hand, one lost, all caught on Glister Bug nymph left in the Fly Library (Flybrary) ammunition box. River height 0.41m clearing after recent high water. Weather sunny about 19C. A few sedges seen. No sea trout in the usual lies. This short video opens and closes with shots of a new gate on the public path that gives easy access to the river below the weir.

    Tying instructions for the Glister Bug  on this page ...

    23rd August

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported: "Fished for ST first around 5 trees and the stretch you caught yours, not a thing, fished down and across with a dawl Bach and large Adams, 2 fish sighted, but not interested. Walked downstream and fished up, 3 browns to hand all in lower section, before small gate on bank. Several takes and a few splashy pulls. Nothing rising. All caught on a grey duster. Went on then to the upper section, which I had never fished before, interesting how two sections a few hundred yards apart can be so different. Nothing at all, no risings, takes or splashes, it was raining quite hard, not sure if that makes any difference. Nevertheless, another really enjoyable day on the river, I can't understand why more people don't use it."


    Catching sea trout during the day

    Note added by Paul Kenyon. Local angler  Jeff Pearce (Snowbee, UK) posted this video on Facebook. It nicely illustrates the tactics for catching sea trout during the day that are discussed on   this page.


  • During daylight sea trout favour lying in  slower water beneath overhanging trees
  • Jeff uses a  roll cast  to cope with vegetation on his bank
  • He casts upstream and allows several seconds for the fly to sink.  Roy Buckingham  advocates this tactic.
  • Jeff attaches a Snowbee polycore fast sink trout leader to assist sinking the fly.
  • Then he retrieves line to move the fly faster than the current.  Robert Mountjoy's  Two Zone theory explains why this works especially well in coloured water.
  • Note that at 30 seconds into the video, Jeff increases the speed of his retrieve and shortly afterwards, at 40 seconds, a sea trout takes the fly. In the early part of the video the fly line is clearly upstream of the rod tip. Then there is a subtle change in the position of the fly line. Just before the fish takes the fly, Jeffs fly line is slightly downstream of the tip of his rod. This may cause the fly to change direction - initially moving towards and then moving away - as it approached the sea trout. This is a technique - swinging a fly or spinner in an arc in front of a salmon or sea trout - that can elicit a fish to strike. The technique (developed by Reg Righyni in 'Advanced Salmon Fishing' is discussed in more detail   on this page.

  • The Dry-Dropper duo method

    Note added by Paul Kenyon. On relatively shallow South Devon rivers, when trout are feeding on or just below the surface, I fish with two flies on my leader - one dry the other wet - and use the dry fly to indicate when the wet fly has been taken.

    There's a temptation to think that fishing a nymph beneath a dry fly is a recent development. This is not so. An effective Dry-Dropper method was described in a book published in 1847 by Plymouth-based angler G. W. Soltau (1801-1884). Soltau fished on the River Yealm.

    The significance of Soltau's book is described in detail in this online essay:  Early Roots of Fly Fishing in South Devon  .

    Nearly a century later, the Dry-Dropper duo method was mentioned by William Lawrie in 1939, but described in greater detail in his book published in 1947. Keith Rollo was an early advocate :“If trout are nymphing, a nymph or wet fly could be mounted on the point, whilst a dry fly could be mounted on the dropper.”  (cited by Rob Smith)  Rollo recommended this technique for fast-running streams in Devonshire (Rollo, 1944)

    Both authors were probably influenced by Dr William Baigent's  Two Dry Fly Technique. In his book In Search of Wild Trout (Ward Lock 1992) Nicholas Fitton gives a detailed description of the history, and his experience using, this almost-forgotten technique.  And of course going back even further, North Country spiders were - and continue to be - fished as a team of three flies or more, with close attention paid to the position of the top fly (Rob Smith personal communication, 2020).

    There are several popular ways of attaching the dropper to the dry fly: e.g. tying the dropper to the hook bend on the indicator fly - the New Zealand Style, or hooks with a tippet ring on the bend. In this video Stephen Cheetham describes a simple knot used by anglers fishing with a team of North Country spiders. It aligns the flies 'in-line' to eliminate droppers tangling around the leader, and avoids the dropper obstructing the hook of the indicator fly - a recognised problem with the New Zealand attachment method.



    23rd August

    Paul Kenyon fished 3:30-6pm. One fish to hand, splashy rises in faster water at head of pools. Three sea trout seen, lying in shallow water. River height 0.31m running clear. V. little insect or fish activity. Overcast with sunny intervals, breezy.


    22nd August.

    Two Westcountry Angling Passport visitors reported: (1) 20 brown trout on dry fly. Small to 1/4lb. (2) 6 brown trout, small,4 on dry fly, 2 on wet.

    18th August

    Paul Kenyon fished 2:30-5:30. Two fish to hand, one lost. One caught on beadhead Glister Bug, the other on Antron Caddis (indicator fly) . Both fished Down and Across. Water height 0.29m, water stained above weir, colour of weak tea with milk. Weather: overcast with sunny interval, temp c.20C. Very few rising fish.


    15th August

    Paul Kenyon fished 2-6pm. River height 0.31m. Clearing after recent rise, colour of weak tea. Overcast with gentle breeze, about 20 degrees C. Caught and returned 4 trout of various sizes and one sea trout. All fish taken on a goldhead Glister Bug fished downstream beneath an Antron Caddis - successful fly left in the Fly Library housed in the old ammunition box by the Westcountry Angling Passport Token box.

    11th August

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported one brown trout of 6 inces caught on a Greenwell's Spider. Two sea trout seen. Not many rises but lots of fish.

    9th August

    Each year on Paul's birthday, Geoff and Paul fish together. This year we shared a rod on the Upper Yealm under "Ghillie's Rules" - a compex arrangement governing when an angler hands over the rod to his fishing companion. Rules so complex that they can be added to, or discarded, without a moment's thought. As usual an unsuccussful attempt was made to remember the number of fish brought to hand, long-range-releases, failures by the fish to progress closer than a splashy inspection of our flies, and sheer incompetence - called operator error in more polite circles. This year was unusual in that Geoff was allowed to use Paul's Orvis Superfine 7'9" Far & Fine unsanded graphite rod and Battenkill 5/6 reel (stamped made in England). To borrow from Charlton Heston: "I'll give you my rod and reel when you pry them from my cold, dead hands" Geoff's younger eyes counted 9 sea trout lying in the usual places above the weir. A kingfisher made an appearance; Paul only saw its backside !

    27th July

    2020 Wild Trout Trust auction winners fishing on the Upper Yealm (Devon UK) guided by Geoff Stephens and Paul Kenyon of Fly Fishing Devon. Eight brown trout to hand under difficult conditions. Weather forecast: 40 mph winds, 80% chance of rain. V. few fish rising. 2 sea trout seen. Successful flies included Antron Caddis and pheasant tail 'flymph' fished duo-style.

    Here is a  description of the day  from one of the auction winners.

    26th July

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported ".. went down to the Yealm again yesterday, 8 fish caught with about 6 missed takes all on black midget buzzer, one sea trout spotted under tree in far bank opposite 5 trees, several roe deer in field other side of the river at the left hand bend where I left you the other day. A very pleasant afternoon.

    21st July

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported 2 trout to hand on gold beadhead. 8 splasy rises to Elk Hair Caddis . Paul Kenyon reported 1 trout to hand on dry midge pattern, 1 long range release, 7 splashy rises to Antron Caddis. Water height 0.24m. Warm sunshine + occasional cloud. Caddis, stoneflies, midge and a few upwings. Fish rising.

    17th July

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported 4 brown trout to 7 inches

    15th July

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported 2 good fish, a great day.

    14th July

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported "Had a great afternoon on the Yealm fishery today, not many fish rising, but had 14 fish to hand with only 4 missed. Fished with a Black midget buzzer (12 fish), floating fly was a pink indicator (2 fish) Size ranged from 5” to 8 “."

    11th July

    Paul Kenyon fished 3:30-6pm. Water 0.28m. Sunshine and clouds. V. little surface activity. Midges swarms at head of pools. 2 fish caught- 1 to hand 1 lost.About 4 splashy rises to Antron Caddis, none to flymph.


    10th July

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported catching 2 brown trout, best 8 inches.

    8th July

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported catching 10 very small brown trout on a nymph

    8th July

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported catching approximately 10 small brown trout and loosing a 1/2 lb fish.

    1st July 2020

    Paul Kenyon fished 3-6pm. River falling back after rain, height 0.28 m still retaining a little colour. Overcast, temp about 18 C. Two true Mayflies seen, a few smaller upwings, some caddis and midge. Relatively few rising fish. Three to hand on Antron caddis and 'flymph'.

    26th June 2020

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor Graeme Webster fished 10am to 4pm. Three trout to hand 5-9 inches. Graeme reported seeing two sea trout - the first sightings this season. Weather overcast. Occasional fish rising.


    20th June 2020

    Paul Kenyon fished 2:45-5:30pm. River falling back after rain, height 0.3m still retaining a fair bit of colour due to suspended solids, noticeably grey colour on right hand side - due to input from R. Piall - middle and left side colour of milky tea. Sunshine & clouds, temp about 18 C. Four true Mayflies seen, a few smaller upwings, some caddis and midge. Relatively few rising fish. Five to hand on Antron caddis and 'flymph'. About 4 long range releases. Fish were eager - splashy rises to Antron caddis by small fish.


    14th June 2020

    Paul Kenyon fished 3-6pm. River falling back after rain, still retaining a slight bit of colour. Weather: sunshine & clouds, about 19 degrees C. Three true mayflies seen, small upwings, a few stonefly, several small brown caddis. An increasing number of rising fish - the most this season to date. Eight fish to hand on an Antron caddis as an indicator and pheasant tail nymph / flymph fished as a duo. About the same number of fish hooked but lost after various intervals. Several splashy rises to dry fly.


    There's a temptation to think that fishing a nymph beneath a dry fly is a recent development. In fact the Dry-Dropper duo method was first described in 1939 in a book by William Lawrie (Border River Angling, Oliver and Boyd). And of course going back even further, North Country spiders were fished as a team of three flies or more. There are several ways of attaching the dropper to the dry fly: e.g. New Zealand Style or hooks with a tippet ring on the bend. Today's video illustrates my method of rigging the Dry-Dropper duo, but it is very fiddly if you have to replace the dropper. In this video Stephen Cheetham describes a knot that avoids this problem.


    8th June 2020

    Paul Kenyon fished 2-5:30pm. River low c 0.21m and clear. Overcast. 18 degrees C. Four true Mayflies seen. Midge clouds in places. Upwinged spinners seen from 4:30 pm. More rising fish seen than on previous visits this year. Seven fish to hand, caught on Antron Caddis and pheasant tail 'flymph'. Several splashy rises to dry fly.


    2nd June 2020

    Water height c. 0.21m, bright sunlight.

    A guest reported "4 brown trout ranging from 5 - 9 inches.

    2 others got off the hooks and tons of missed strikes.

    The fish were going for Klinkhammers, Wickhams Fancy and big Mayfly. Dry flies all session. "

    26st May 2020

    Paul Kenyon fished 2:30 to 5:30 pm. River low (0.22m) and clear. Bright sunshine v. little breeze. Two true mayflies seen, and v. few other insects about. Midge clouds in places at head of pools. Some small glossosoma caddis cases on stones on bed of river. About 6 fish of various sizes to hand, 2 lost to extreme operator error !. I used a wet fly suspended about 1 foot below a dry deer hair and antron winged dry fly. V. difficult to rise fish in slow sections, best chance in faster popply water at head of pools.

    21st May 2020

    Paul Kenyon fished 3 to 4:30pm. River level 0.22m running with slight discolouration. A few sedges and stoneflies seen. Occassional fish rose. 3 trout in good condition to hand caught on Grey & Black Comparadun cast downstream in very slow flow. Several splashy rises from small fish.



    Summary of 2019 brown trout catch

    number caught

    number returned

    number of days fished for brown trout

    Catch Per Unit Effort
    = [total number of fish caught] / [total number of days fished])

    180

    180

    67

    2.69

    Catch per unit effort   (CPUE) measurements are widely used in fisheries management and are generally seen as a better indicator of true abundance than catches alone. CPUE worked out as for trout = [total number of trout caught] / [total number of days fished for trout]”


    October 2019

    Video Diary for October 2019

      The Video Diary consists of a Playlist of YouTube videos taken whilst fishing on the Upper Yealm this month

       Click the Playlist icon on the top right of the video to reveal a list of all this month's videos

    Mike Weaver reported in November's Trout & Salmon magazine that:

    "An angler who fished the Yealm at the Upper Yealm Fishery, one of the beats in the Westcountry Angling Passport, enjoyed a good day with the brown trout. He caught over 10 fish up to 12in and lost many more. He was fishing New Zealand-style with a sedge on the top and a variety of beadhead nymphs on the point and found trout moving throughout the beat. He saw one large fish of over 3lb, rather dark and almost certainly a sea-trout."

    29th October

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: Nil return

    24th October

    Paul Kenyon fished for salmon from 3-5pm. River height 0.47m clearing after recent rain. No fish caught.But the very short video in the October Video Diary has a tale with a message about 4 old boots

    20th October

    A Westcountry Angling Passport officer reported:" I managed to cast a fly about on the Upper Yealm this past weekend. I tempted an enormous salmon in the pool bellow “5 trees”, panicked by the sheer size of this fish I believe I struck early and missed the take. I will be back another day for that one! "

    Paul Kenyon fished for salmon in the afternoon. River height 0.64. One small trout released.

    15th October

    Paul Kenyon fished for salmon 2:30-to 5:30pm. No salmon seen, 2 trout released. Water height 0.63m Weather: Overclouded with sunny intervals. Temp 16 degrees C. Leaf fall starting. Video diary entry shows river falling back after recent rain.

    11th October

    Westcountry Rivers Trust staff. Nil return

    10th October

    A short video in the October Video Diary playlist shows how overhanging tree branches on the Upper Yealm have been trimmed back to improve the fishability of the upper section. The work was carried out by James Christoforou (Westcountry Rivers Trust Fishing Development Officer) and Paul Kenyon (Fly Fishing Devon instructor and guide) on the 10th October 2019.

    6th October

    Paul Kenyon fished 2:30-4:30 pm. One fine brown trout and one sea trout (school peal) to hand.

    Short video added to October's Upper Yealm Video Diary. Water height; 0.45m. Sunny with light breeze.

    Tackle: rod 9 foot with AFTM #7 floating line. To get the fly down I attached a 1 foot long Orvis Mini Lead Head and 3 feet of Maxima leader. Both fish caught on a red and black salmon fly tied on a double debarbed hook.

    Tactic: The S-Mend technique was used to deal with the overhanging vegation above the pool where the sea trout was caught. A video describing this technique has been added to October's Upper Yealm Video Diary.

    September 2019

    Video Diary for September 2019

      The Video Diary consists of a Playlist of YouTube videos taken whilst fishing on the Upper Yealm this month

       Click the Playlist icon on the top right of the video to reveal a list of all this month's videos

    13th September

    Geoff Stephens and Paul Kenyon fished 3-5pm. Geoff had 4 trout to hand, rose many others, and long-range-released several more. Several of Geoff's fish were caught on an ex-X Caddis (i.e. an X-Caddis minus its deer hair wing as a result of Paul's sloppy fly-tying). The less said about Paul's performance the better! Water height 0.25m. Bright, warm, no wind. Several sea trout seen - mostly school peal.

    10th September

    Westcountry Rivers Trust staff member commented:
    The fishing was great, I landed at least 10 Brown Trout and lost countless more. They ranged from 10-30cm in length. There was fish activity in nearly every swim. I also witnessed a large fish, located in the 1st or 2nd pool bellow "5 trees", the fish was easily over 3lb, dark in colour, I couldn't make out any distinguishing features, but I believe it to be a Sea Trout.
    The most appealing aspect of the Upper Yealm Beat is that the two separate stretches have a large habitat variation between them, this allows a variety of fly techniques to be applied. I used a 7ft 2wt Greys grxi with a Rio Gold floating wt foward line. I used the Dry Dropper technique, 7ft leader, with a dry Deer Hair Sedge pattern and a mix of different beaded nymphs size 14-18.
    Beat Rating 5

    Photo by James Christoforou

    Photo by James Christoforou

    Photo by James Christoforou

    Photo by James Christoforou

    Photo by James Christoforou

    River level on 10th September

    10th September

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor rose 3 trout to an Antron Caddis

    7th September

    Paul Kenyon fished 3-5pm. No fish caught. Two splashy rises to Antron Caddis. No interest shown to Krystal Flash midge or Pheasant Tail Nymph fished as dropper. Sunny, water height 0.23m and clear. V. Few rising fish or obvious insect activity. Spent more time observing sea trout. At first I thought they were absent from the usual lies. But then - after I remained in one spot for a few minutes - I spotted two or three sea trout lying virtually motionless. Their movements (flashing and repositioning) confirmed their presence. Two fish were lying side-by-side, and moved together along an elliptical route. Is this a courship / pairing behaviour prior to spawning? I don't know. Video added to September 2019 video diary

    7th September

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor caught 3 brown trout. Best fish: 7 inches

    Ist September

    Paul Kenyon fished upper beat from 3-5:30pm. Two trout to hand, one lost, several splashy rises. Trout in this section tend to be dark. All to Antron Caddis.Water height 0.22m. River very clear. Temp about 19 C. A few midge and caddis seen. V. few rising fish.



    Tying instructions for the Antron Caddis  here ...

    Ist September

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: Nil return. He commented "Sea Trout everywhere. Ignoring everything I sent their way. Wet, dry, buzzers. Everything. Jumping for real flies and at one point has a couple of bumps but nothing meaningful."

    August 2019

    Video Diary for August 2019

      The Video Diary consists of a Playlist of YouTube videos taken whilst fishing on the Upper Yealm this month

       Click the Playlist icon on the top right of the video to reveal a list of all this month's videos

    27th August

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: reported "Nothing caught"

    Paul Kenyon fished 3:30-5:45pm. One small fish to hand, 2 others risen but not hooked on a soft hackled Pheaseant Tail Nymph cast upstream into faster water. No response to Glister Nymph suspended below Antron Caddis. No rising trout seen. Overcast with very light rain. River height 0.24m. Two sea trout seen. One larger (coloured) salmonid, possibly a salmon filmed: video added to August video diary

    26th August

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: Nil return

    21st August

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor returned one trout and wrote "Hooked a good size sea trout too but slipped the hook before I could net it. :(

    Thanks for submitting this photo Graeme.

    I'm delighted that you have shown that sea trout can be caught during daylight on the Upper Yealm - well done.

    Kenneth Dawson in his book "Successful Fishing for Salmon and Sea Trout (1951)" remarked that "... in the Yealm good sea trout up to 4-5 lbs. can be taken by day on very small flies ..."

    20th August

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor checked in shortly after 10am. Awaiting confirmation and Catch Report from Westcountry Angling Passport.

    18th August

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor fished in the morning and caught this beautiful 5in trout. Thanks for submitting this photo Graeme.

    18th August

    Paul Kenyon fished 3-5 pm. Five small trout to hand, caught on soft hackled Pheasant Tail Nymph. Cold blustery wind, water level 0.33m clearing after recent rain. Very few rises or flying insects

    15th August

    Two visitors fished from 7-11pm. Two trout to hand. Both caught after dark on Pilk's Bumble sea trout fly. One sea trout jumped at dusk.

    12th August

    Westcountry Angling Passport angler: Nil return

    11th August

    Westcountry Angling Passport angler fished in the morning and reported 2 trout of 6 inches caught on an F Fly - thanks for adding it to the Flybrary Collection in the ammunition box beside the Token Box.He added "I got a big knock on the buzzer [ Glister nymph] you gave me too but I took too long to get my act together so missed it.

    Paul Kenyon fished in the afternoon. Two small brown trout on a Gister Nymph. Water height: 0.24m. Water clearing after rain - colour of weak tea. V. little fly life or rising fish. Gusty wind, sunny intervals. Saw a kingfisher for first time this year.

    7th August

    Geoff Stephens & Paul Kenyon fished on annual 'Guides Day Off' two trout to hand. Usual leg-pulling. Video available on request

    3rd August

    Two Westcountry Angling Passport anglers: Nil return

    2nd August

    Today Paul Kenyon was helping a friend who has recently taken up fly fishing sort out some casting problems. We polished Graeme's roll and overhead casts before turning upstream to put his new skills into practice. There is a good stock of sea trout in the Upper Yealm this summer. This provided an opportunity for him to focus on fishing rather than the mechanics of casting - which can become overwhelming - and instead think about moving with extreme stealth to avoid spooking sea trout which are notoriously difficult to approach in daylight, let alone cast a fly line anywhere near them.

    The technique adopted is based on Nick Hart's advice Lifting nymphs in an induced take style, just as if fishing for brown trout, is highly successful, especially when several fish are grouped together
    read more ...
    Nick's advice is shared by Pete Tyjas "Sea trout seem to like an induced fly so try this and lift your rod to raise the nymph, or even try a slightly more aggressive twitch of your fly line - this will make the nymph kick up a little which is usually irresistible to sea trout."
    Read more ...

    Graeme wrote: Yesterday was absolutely amazing. Thanks so much! I've downloaded the app and added some credits so I'll be fishing Upper Yealm. Beautiful spot! Really feeling a lot more confident. Thanks for the flies too!

    1st August

    Paul Kenyon fished 2:30-4:30 pm. Five brown trout of various sizes brought to hand, caught on Elk Hair Caddis and Glister Nymph. One fish lost and several splashy rises to Elk Hair Caddis. Water level 0.23m but still carrying suspended solids after recent rain. Weather warm (21 degrees C ) cloudy with sunny intervals. Very little fly life or rising trout. One sea trout jumped but imposible to count sea trout due to cloudy water.

    July 2019

    Video Diary for July 2019

      The Video Diary consists of a Playlist of YouTube videos taken whilst fishing on the Upper Yealm this month

       Click the Playlist icon on the top right of the video to reveal a list of all this month's videos

    25th July

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: Nil return

    24th July

    An accomplished coarse angler on his first experience of fly fishing (from 2-5pm) landed one brown trout on a Tups Sparkle Dun and had a brief encounter with a sea trout hooked on a Glister Nymph that also elicited numerous follows by trout of various sizes. Wading upstream with extreme care enabled him to see a number of sea trout of various sizes. Water level: 0.20 m. Weather warm with sunny intervals. Several sea trout jumped clear of the water during the afternoon. Relatively sparse numbers of upwings, some sedges and terrestrials.

    20th July

    Paul Kenyon fished 4-6pm. One sea trout hooked and lost on a goldheaded Glister Nymph (fly in Flybrary box) cast upstream then fished fast downstream. Several trout briefly hooked using this method. River height 0.23 after overnight rain, water retained some colour. Sporadic rising trout. 4 sea trout jumped. V. few insects seen. Warm, overcast with sunny intervals.

    Picture and tying instructions for the Glister Nymph included in the sea trout section of Fly Tying for Westcountry Brown Trout and Sea trout

    17th July


    Westcountry Angling Passport (WAP) visitor reported 13 (?) brown trout and lots lost. All caught on an Elk Hair Caddis (donated to Flybrary). He wrote "I think I hooked a sea trout which snapped me. 6 or 7 nice sea trout spotted. A wonderful day."

    Brian, if I've misread the number of trout (13 ?) caught,  please contact Paul   I'll correct your report

    Flybrary in metal box beside WAP Token Box

    Successful fly left in Flybrary

    16th July

    Paul Kenyon hosted experienced angler Zoe Latham as part of her field studies for a PhD at the University of Plymouth. Conditions were challenging: low water (0.19m), bright sunshine, very few rising fish and hardly any upwinged flies. Nevertheless many fish rose to an Olive Comparadun tied by Zoe and she spotted several sea trout in the tree-lined tunnel above Five Trees Pool.

    15th July

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor commented: "Great afternoon spent in the river. Several rises and two eight inch brown trout brought to hand on a Comparadun Tup.

    River low: 019m

    9th July

    Upper Yealm Fishery owners Josh and Julie Dalton, Russell Weston (MD Snowbee UK Ltd) and Fly Fishing Devon Guides Geoff Stephens and Paul Kenyon hosted ITV Westcountry reporter Bob Cruwys who made a short film about fly fishing as part of an ITV News West Country series promoting the health benefits of outdoor activities in the region. Bob's film item may be included in the 6pm edition of ITV News West Country on Friday 12th July. This YouTube video consists of material shot by Paul after the professionals had completed filming.

    7th July

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported catching 7 brown trout up to 6 inches. "Saw some good sea trout but none caught"

    5th July

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported 5 brownies caught. Flies: small nymph and Adams. Water low, hot and sunny."I must say it is a beautiful stretch of river"."I did see the Sea Trout, two in the exact place you (Paul Kenyon) filmed them (5 trees) and two others a bit further up steam tight under the bank."

    3rd July

    Paul Kenyon pootled around from 4-6pm. River low 0.21m. Bright sunshire, warm about 21 degrees C. Filmed two groups of sea trout, 8 fish clearly identified. No sign of disease. Fished briefly; four splashy offers to X-Caddis, no fish to hand. Canada geese absent today. Adults and 4 goslings seen on 26th June but many feathers from an adult on the bank - due to fox attack perhaps ?

    1st July

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor commented "Good beat" and reported catching one 10 inch brown trout

    June 2019

    Video Diary for June 2019

      The Video Diary consists of a Playlist of YouTube videos taken whilst fishing on the Upper Yealm this month

       Click the Playlist icon on the top right of the video to reveal a list of all this month's videos

    26th June

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported "None landed. 3 takes on dry fly. Lots of small trout seen. Takes on Klinkhamer: black with white wing."

    Here are the instructions for tying Cruncher and X-Caddis   flies

    22nd June

    Paul Kenyon fished 4-6pm. Three splasy rises to X-Caddis, one long-range-release to Cruncher,no fish to hand.

    Water: clear, dropping 0.23m, v.sluggish flow above weir.

    Weather: brisk easterly wind, sunny to start followed by cloud, temperature c. 17 degrees C.

    Fly life: very sparse : small swarm of midges, 2 Mayfly, one stonefly seen. Very few rising fish.

    Despite good viewing condions no sea trout seen above weir in 5 Trees Pool. Trout observed motionless in negligable current.

    15th June

    Paul Kenyon fished 2-6pm.

    6 brown trout to hand, mostly small fish, several 'long-range-releases', one missed fish due to 'operator error'.

    All caught on Cruncher (tied with pale watery dun coloured hackle) fished down-and-across.

    Some 'smutting' fish impossible to rise - taking something very small in or just under surface, perhaps?, see below

    Water height 0.35m colour of weak coffee.

    Weather: mostly sunny, temperature c. 15 degrees C, blustery westerly wind at times.

    Fly life: fewer Mayfly compared to recent days, more midge in swarms, some caddis and upwinged duns

    Dealing with 'smutting','sipping' or small 'dimple' rises to small insects on the surface.
    A small rise may not indicate a small trout!

    There is a useful discussion by Mottram in this book 'Mottram on Fly-Fishing Mysteries: Innovations of a Scientist-Angler'by Paul Schullery

    Mottram suggests five flies for smutting trout

    Ed Engle's books 'Tying Small Flies' and 'Fishing Small Flies' are useful modern resources.

    Here is a recent podcast on YouTube with Ed Engle Tying and Fishing Small Flies with Ed Engle - Midges,...

    Philip Bailey's article on Reed Smuts(Simuliidae)

    14th June

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor Nil return.

    12th June. Westcountry Angling Passport visitor caught 2 brown trout on an Endrick Spider

    The angler's Catch Report commented "What a wonderful afternoon".

    Fly life: an unusual number of Mayfly for a South Devon river that were succesfully intercepted by trout.

    Rising fish were observed throughout the afternoon.

    11th June

    A Westcountry Angling Passport visitor was accompanied by Fly Fishing Devon guide Paul Kenyon.

    This experienced angler caught 9 brown trout with sizes ranging up to 10 inches on an Endrick Spider and beadhead nymph.

    Water level: 0.35 m after overnight rain and several days of drizzle. Temperature c 15 degrees C.

    10th June

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor caught 5 brown trout on black klinkhammer and hares ear nymph. Biggest fish length: 13 inches.

    9th June

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor caught 5 brown trout. Biggest fish length: 20. They commented good day due to the excellent swim which is clisest to car parkig area. the whole of the upper yealm stretch is barely fishable due to trees

    9th June

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor:Nil return

    8th June

    Paul Kenyon fished 2:30-5:00 pm. A very productive day: I lost count of fish to hand and 'long-range-releases ! Water 0.32 m; retaining colour and level falling after overnight rain Weather: 15 degees C, slight breeze, drizzle with occasional heavy showers. Fly life: I have never seen so many Mayflies in over 40 years of fishing South Devon rivers. Occasional smaller upwing duns, v.few midges and caddis. Fish activity: frequent rises, Mayfly seen taken several times. Successful flies: Endrick Spider and a nondescript Green & Black beadhead, both fished 'down and across'.Their bedraggled appearance in this video tells a tale.

    5th June

    Paul Kenyon mainly mooched around and fished occasionally from 2:45-5pm. One small trout to hand, 2 lost on X-Caddis and Krystal Flash midge dry-dropper combination. 3 sea trout clearly seen in 5 Trees Pool, clean fish - no sign of disease / fungus. Weather: c 15 Degrees C, at times brisk westerly breeze, sunshine with occasional cloud cover Fly life: several Mayflies - some sucessfully taken by trout, v. few caddis, some midge swarms. Some fish rising, but several better trout seen almost motionless on bottom of river. A healthy number of trout in groups. Heavy rain forecast this Friday - 7th June

    May 2019

    Video Diary for May 2019

      The Video Diary consists of a Playlist of YouTube videos taken whilst fishing on the Upper Yealm this month

       Click the Playlist icon on the top right of the video to reveal a list of all this month's videos

    31st May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor caught one 12 inch brown trout

    31st May 2019

    Paul Kenyon fished 2:45-5pm. Three trout of various sizes to hand, plus three 'long-range-releases'. All these fish took a Krystal Flash midge that was fished beneath an X-Caddis A couple of fish splashed at the dry fly. Fly life: midge swarms above faster water, v. Few small upwings, v. Few sedge and Mayfly. Fish activity: v. Occasional rises, a lot of fish visible through polaroids. Many small trout almost stationary lying close to the bed of the river. They were not moving from side to side to intercept food. Better fish caught tight up to bankside vegetation. Weather conditions: sunny, about 17 degrees C, gentle breeze from the south west. Very pleasant conditions River height: 0.23m

    27th May

    Paul Kenyon fished 2-5pm. Six brown trout to hand; an embarrassing number of fish lost after hooking ! All fish took a Krystal Flash Midge pattern fished on an 18 inch fluorocarbon dropper tied to the eye of a Tups Sparkle Dun dry fly. No fish rose to the dry fly. Weather: 17 degrees C, felt chilly in the fresh westerly breeze. River height: 0.23m. Swarms The light rain is having no impact on river level. No sea trout seen. Fly life: several true Mayfly seen. Some smaller duns (Olives?), occasional fish taking something off the surface, small fish jumping clear of the water, no chironomid swarms.

    22nd May

    Paul Kenyon fished 3:30-6pm. One trout to hand, one lost. One large diseased sea trout filmed. A possible second large diseased sea trout seen in 5 Trees pool. There may be several smaller sea trout (school peal) in this pool. No rising trout seen. But subsurface trout activity was observed; the smaller fish were very active - dashing around like children in a school yard at break time. Larger fish (brown trout?) were glued to the bottom. Caught glimpses of what appeared to be small sea trout - silvery belly and dark edge to caudal fin. Insects: small groups of midge, a few upwings - duns and spinners. Water height: 0.25m, slime on bottom of slower stretches, warm about 17 degrees C, very gentle southerly wind, bright sunshine.

    A Krystal Flash Midge Emerger tempted fish on a day marked by very few rising fish.

    For tying details etc. see: Tying flies for West Country Rivers

    21st May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor left no Catch Return in Token Box

    20th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor caught one (6 inch) fish. He later wrote "very few fish rising, fished unsuccessfully with Nymphs for an hour or so, seen a rise near the 5 trees, changed to a sparkling dun, first cast fish on, returned safely, another couple of takes, but nothing hooked. A very enjoyable afternoon.

    19th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor reported no fish caught

    15th May

    Paul Kenyon fished 2:30 to 5pm. Four fish to hand: 3 small and one fine brown trout (had to use my net). I find that the larger fish make determined efforts to dive beneath underwater roots. The largest fish was in the fast water at the head of Finn's Pool suggesting that it was in good condition in late Spring. All caught on Partridge & Orange flymph fished behind a Grey / black Sparkle Dun. Plus 4 long range-releases and several splashy rises to Sparkle Dun. Bright sun but strong easterly wind a nuisance at times. Water height 0.26 m. V. Few rising fish or above surface insect activity - sedge seen. A lot of plant debris floating downstream and piled up particularly along the west bank.

    11th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor caught and released one sea trout (2.5lb) on Diawl Bach nymph. Spotted 4 large sea trout.No brown trout.

    11th May

    "A day with a message"

    Paul Kenyon fished 2-5pm. Two small and one larger trout to hand. All caught on Partridge and Orange (tied as a 'flymph' with Hare's Ear thorax) fished as a dropper beneath a Grey / black Sparkle Dun. Several splashy rises to the Sparkle Dun. Very few rising fish some tucked under overhanging bankside vegetation. Some groups of chironomid midges, occasional sedge and v. Few small upwinged duns. Water height: 0.26m. Temp: 15 degrees C. Wind gentle breeze, sunny.

    9th May

    Paul Kenyon fished 2-4pm. Two small trout to hand. Several lost fish and splashy rises to Grey / black Sparkle Dun. Tried Dry with Partridge and Orange dropper - one fish to hand. Noticed large swarm of chironomid midges for the first time this year. Quite a lot of rising fish - some very close to overhanging bankside vegetation. Water height: 0.28m. Temp: 13 degrees C. Wind 15mph from the west.

    6th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor caught two brown trout to 7 inches

    5th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor caught 7 brown trout to 8 inches commented "beautiful beat fish rising readily to a dry fly" and submitted this photo

    4th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor #1 One brown trout, length 4 inches, fly Black Gnat size 18

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor #2 Nil

    April 2019


    Video Diary for March & April 2019

      The Video Diary consists of a Playlist of YouTube videos taken whilst fishing on the Upper Yealm this month

       Click the Playlist icon on the top right of the video to reveal a list of all this month's videos

    29th April

    Fly Fishing Devon guides (Geoff Stevens and Paul Kenyon) and Snowbee MD Russell Weston hosted winners of their Wild Trout Trust 2019 auction lot on the Upper Yealm Fishery on the 29th April. The two anglers caught about 20 brown trout of various sizes and rose many more fish between 10am and 5pm. Comparadun and Sparkle Dun dry flies proved to be successful. Weather conditions were overcast in the morning with periods of sunshine after lunch. Water height 0.31m. A variety of insects seen including upwinged duns, stonefly, occasional caddis and for the first time this year several Hawthorns.

    Fly tying instructions for the Sparkle Dun ( a variation of the Comparadun ) are available here

    25th April

    Paul Kenyon fished from 12:45 to 3:45pm. Three trout to hand on Grey Sparkle Dun (tied with Snowshoe hair wing) and Partridge & Orange (tied flymph soft hackle style with dark thorax). Five splashy rises.River height 0.34m. Temp 13C - chilly.Overcast with brief sunny intervals, brightened up later. V. few rising fish. Some midge at head of pool

    20th April

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. Four brown trout of around 9 inches

    20th April

    WRT staff.One 11 inch Salmon smolt ready to go

    "With just an hour to kill on upper yealm and bright sunshine lighting up crystal pools the fishing was going to be hard. A large salmon smolt took the dry but was released in the water with no picture"

    19th April

    Paul Kenyon fished 3-5pm. Brght sunlight. Water height 0.33m. V. little fly life and few rising fish. 4 splasy rises, 3 brief conects, no fish to hand.

    9th April

    Paul Kenyon fished from 2:00 to 4pm. Gentle breeze from the east. Mainly overcast. River height 0.36m, some colour (grey) from R. Piall.

    Fish were rising. But difficult to identify what naturals were being taken (just subsurface perhaps ?). Swung wet fly (Cruncher) ignored. Some interest in an emerging nymph pattern. Dry Grey Sparkle Dun proved to be effective.

    3 fine trout to hand on Sparkle Dun, many splashy offers (small fish failing to ingest bushy fly perhaps?).

    ? 8th April ?

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: fished the morning caught 5 trout, 3 of them on dries

    6th April

    Paul Kenyon fished from 1:30 to 4pm. Gusty awkward east wind until 3pm. River height 0.46m, clearing after overnight rain.

    Only a few fish seen rising.

    7 trout to hand, plus 2 missed offers. One fish to dry fly, rest to wet fly: Cruncher

    No smolts caught

    March 2019

    29th March

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: Nil return

    28th March

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: rose 5 fish to Sparkle Dun

    25th March

    Paul Kenyon fished from midday to about 1:30pm on a very short stretch just above the weir. There were plenty of fish rising and willing to take a dry fly (Olive Sparkle Dun). River height 0.4m, temp around 12 C. Sunny intervals. Not much visible fly life so hard to say what they were rising to. Several smolts - very strong for their size.



    Video Diary for the year 2018

      The Video Diary consists of a Playlist of YouTube videos taken whilst fishing on the Upper Yealm during 2018

       Click the Playlist icon on the top right of the video to reveal a list of all this years's videos


    November 2018

    30th November

    Paul Kenyon fished Lower beat 2:30-4pm. One offer trout?/salmon? Fly: Black and Orange marabou wing. River level: 0.64m. No leaves

    River levels for the last 5 days


    15th November

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: Nil

    14th November

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: Nil

    12th November

    Paul Kenyon fished (2-4pm) for salmon (using Black and Orange marabou winged fly) above the weir. One offer a few feet above the lip of the weir. Water level 0.60m, heavy brief shower, blustery wind, increased number of leaves in water.

    October 2018

    25th October

    Paul Kenyon fished (2-4pm) for salmon (using Stoats Tail double) on Lower Stretch in pools below the weir. No salmon seen. Shoal of sea trout seen above weir in usual place; difficult to count number due to variation in sunny intervals. Water level 0.26m, sunny intervals, increased number of leaves in water.

    20th October

    Paul Kenyon walked Upper Beat checking angler access and fishability.V. brief glimpse of ? otter ? above suspected 'hover' Then observed shoal of 9 fish on Lower Beat with polaroids.Saw two larger fish, possibly salmon or large sea trout. Water height 0.31m. Did not fish. Sunny, no wind.

    The owners of the Upper Yealm Fishery carry out regular bankside improvements throughout the year to benefit anglers and fish stocks. Here is a short collection of video clips of the Upper Beat. The owners strive to provide good access for anglers whilst preserving sufficient bankside vegetation to provide overhead protection for brown and sea trout, and a potential source of terrestrial food for brown trout. Suggestions for winter work from anglers who have visited the river in 2018 welcome.

    17th October

    Paul Kenyon walked Lower Beat checking angler access and fishability. Saw one larger fish, possibly salmon or large sea trout. Water height 0.31m. Did not fish, saw kingfisher.

    The owners of the Upper Yealm Fishery carry out regular bankside improvements throughout the year to benefit anglers and fish stocks. Here is a short collection of video clips of the Lower Beat. The owners strive to provide good access for anglers whilst preserving sufficient bankside vegetation to provide overhead protection for brown and sea trout, and a potential source of terrestrial food for brown trout. Suggestions for winter work from anglers who have visited the river in 2018 welcome.

    15th October

    Paul Kenyon fished four pools on Upper Stretch 2.30-4pm for salmon. No salmon seen. Water height 0.33; falling from peak of 1.2m on Saturday. No salmon seen. Used 9' rod, AFTM#7F line with 12 inch Orvis Mini Lead Head and 5 foot tippet to fish fly (Cascade & Stoats Tail) subsurface. V. light wind, overcast, v.few leaves. One fine trout returned.

    3rd October

    Paul Kenyon walked Upper and Lower beats. One sea trout seen in area previously occupied by a shoal of fish. Salmon fishing extends to 15th December.


    September 2018

    30th September

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. One 12 inch brown trout

    29th September

    Paul Kenyon fished 7:30-9pm. Chilly. 2 brown tout to X-caddis (tied on size 10 Fulling Mill 31550). One brief connection with sea trout at dusk. River went v. quiet after dark; no sea trout heard. Water level 0.26m.

    25th September

    Paul Kenyon fished 7-9pm. 5 brown trout caught on X-Caddis before and after dark. One sea trout lost after promising start, another shed the hook on first airborne leap. C'est la viefor a sea trout angler.No sea trout heard jumping. Chilly. Water height 0.26m.

    25th September

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. 4 brown trout landed between palm and hand span size. Brown nymph fly. Lots of fish rising.

    23rd September

    Paul Kenyon fished 2:30 to 5:30 pm. 5 brown trout, best 8 inches. Plus 3 splashy rises to Grey Sparkle Dun.'Cruncher' fished down and across was effective in coloured water at 0.39 meters after rain. No sea trout seen or heard.

    16th September

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: Nil return

    9th September

    Two Westcountry Angling Passport visitors caught 17 brown trout on the Lower Beat and 7 brown trout on the Upper Beat. Flies: CDC emerger and Parachute Adams.

    They emailed this report:

    "Just to report Dad and I spent a great day yesterday on the upper Yealm. Level was low at around 4” below when we fished with you, but we still managed to tempt the fish.

    I notice some pruning has taken place to open up some of the sections which has helped to reveal some more likely areas.

    Wildlife out in force with a kingfisher giving us a great display.

    Managed to fish the upper beat too with dad taking a 12” fish out of the last pool before the upper limit. We also took a few double digit trout out of the upper bit also.

    Best thing was that we saw a sea trout holding under those trees up from the weir. Didn’t seemed bothered by us at all, but great to see.

    I saw some otter footprints in the mud/shale bank on the corner where I tried my best to hook and miss a number of fish, so they must be around not too far away.

    The upper section is really quite incredible - Like stepping into a different world. I don’t know how much it has been fished this season, by it felt quite untouched and the perfect habitat for happy trout!"

    5th September

    Note added by Paul Kenyon: Some years ago a survey of invertebrates in the River Yealm in September found:

    1st September

    Paul Kenyon: no brown trout to hand. Very few rises. Little insect activity. River height 0.23m. Filmed shoal of sea trout.


    August 2018

    25th August 2018

    Rain expected tomorrow. Made video of sea trout lying above weir.

    23rd August 2018.

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. Saw 3 sea trout jump out of river above weir.

    22nd August 2018.

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. One 6 inch brown.

    18th August 2018.

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. One 11 inch brown trout. Lots of sea trout in evidence.

    17th August 2018.

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor: 8 brown trout on nymph and dry. Paul Kenyon fished 8pm-10:15pm. 4 fine brown trout on Pilk's Bumble + several plucks. 3 sea trout jumped at dimpsey. Water height 0.28m. Few fish rising around 8:30pm but not much insect activity. Saw group of Fallow deer whilst tackling up.

    14th August.

    Paul Kenyon & Geoff Stephens guided experienced anglers Bill and Richie Blake winners of Wild Trout Trust 2018 auction. Fished 10:30 to 5pm. Water height 0,28-0.30. Lots of rising fish.The Blakes rose about 40 fish and had 20 to hand. Water flowing nicely after several weeks of low flow. Weather overcast with occasional showers.

    13th August.

    Paul Kenyon fished 3:30-5:30. Four trout to hand on Tups Sparkle Dun. Many splashy rises. Saw ?sea trout? take surface fly. Water height 0.34 after very welcome rain. Water stained from R. Piall.

    9th August.

    Paul Kenyon and Geoff Stephens on a 'Guides Day Off'. Three trout missed, and much leg-pulling ! See YouTube video

    8th August

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. One 8 inch brown trout on Sawyer Killer Bug

    5th August

    Paul Kenyon guided guests John & Joe Furlong. They had five brief encounters of the heart stopping kind with sea tout between 9:30 pm and 11pm on the Weir pool of the Upper Yealm Fishery. There are several daytime sea trout lies in the Tunnel section above the weir with shallower water nearby that are occupied by sea trout as darkness falls. John and Joe fished with Pilk's Bumble, WMD Gurgler (without the flying treble) and Lloyd Morgan's Cannon. They cast upstream and varied the retrieval speed of the fly to cope with the low water conditions and reduced speed of the current.


    July 2018

    30th July

    Paul Kenyon arrived at the Yealm around 8pm and fished through 'til 10:30pm (sunset was at 9pm). Started at the very top of the Lower beat (Finn’s pool). Water height 0.27m after rain that had peaked at 0.40m on Sunday mid-day. River still slightly coloured - v. Weak tea. One brown trout to hand, many splashy rises / swirls to Tups comparadun / Sparkle dun. Flow much better than we have had for several weeks. Noticeable that the high water had scoured the slime from the river bed. Trout activity noticeably declined as darkness approached. Switched to fishing down-and-across, first with a Red Medicine when there was some colour in the bankside vegetation - few tweaky pulls. Changed to larger/bulkier fly (Pilk's / Black Bumble) as light faded. Caught one brown trout. I only saw 2 small sea trout jump clear of the water; I hadn't seen sea trout in usual lies earlier. Fished all the way down to the weir - "dead as a doornail". Prospects: It depends on how long the river maintains the current flow. The EA graph shows it has not plunged back to below 0.2m, but it's difficult to say how long this will last.

    24th July

    Paul Kenyon took an instruction session from 6pm-10pm. Client hooked 2 fish on a 'Lloyd Morgan's Canon' in the late dusk (no colour in vegetation), 'long-range-released', therefore not sure if brown or sea trout, fish dimpling at that time. Noticed that fish (brown trout?) in the faster moving water (head of Finn's Pool) stopped rising once the last rays of the setting sun were off the water. Saw several small sea trout jump clear of the water during mid-dusk (colour of vegetation remains discernible) in shallow water above & below normal holding areas. Conclusion: Under low water conditions the windows of opportunity are very restricted.

    19th July

    Paul Kenyon fished the Upper Beat from 2:30-5:30pm. One brown trout to hand on Tups comparadun. Many splashy rises. Egg-laying caddis naturals elicited abortive rises from small fish. Upper stretch low water (0.2m) but shading from bankside trees gave relief from heat and bright sun. It was worthwhile fishing the slower moving water towards the middle & tails of pools

    15th July

    Paul Kenyon fished 8:30pm-10pm. One brown trout to hand. Many splashy rises especially at dusk. Sea trout less active. A few caddis and upwings seen.

    13th July

    Paul Kenyon fished 8pm-11pm. 5 brown trout to hand, 3 before, 2 after sunset (c 9:30pm) Flies: Tups comparadun, Lloyd Morgan's Canon (after sunset). Caddis & occasional upwing, v.few rising trout. Sea trout crashing about before sunset, chilly after dark, slight mist over water. Water height 0.19m.

    11th July

    Westcounty Angling Passport visitor fished 6:30pm-10:30pm. Nil. Sea trout seen. Insects: Caddis, upwings, Yellow Sally. Overcast, river at 0.20m

    4th July

    Paul Kenyon fished 3:35-6pm. Very few rising fish or fly life. Offers from feeding fish in faster water. Overcast, warm, water still low (0.22m). Difficult to see sea trout in poor light, but 'flashes' observed as they turned in their usual locations. Kingfisher seen.


    June 2018

    30th June

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. "Nil. Seen both salmon and sea trout".

    29th June

    Paul Kenyon fished 8-10:30pm. 3 trout. One sea trout jumped clear of water in Finn's Pool. Confirmed that there is much more fish and insect activity in the evening: Yellow Sally stonefly? & sedge?. Water still low at c. 0.22m

    28th June

    Paul Kenyon and Geoff Stephens guided Tim Rolston. From 3:30-4:15pm: 2 trout to hand, and several offers. 8:00-10:15pm: 2 trout to hand many offers as darkness approached. Sea trout clearly visible in afternoon sunlight. River low (0.21m), much more insect and fish activity in evening.

    24th June

    Paul Kenyon fished 2-5pm. Water low. 2 brown trout to hand.

    20th June

    Paul Kenyon fished 2-4:30pm. Five splashy rises and 1 lost small sea trout (schoolie). Flies: Tups comparadun and small black midge (size 19 Tiemco 103BL) fished as 'dry duo'. Very few rising trout and little fly life. Water height 0.24m. Overcast, light rain. Sea trout (ST) took the Tups comparadun. ST in thin water close to bank.

    13th June

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. Nil. Four sea trout seen. Water height 0.23m.

    6th June

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. Six brown trout to 9 inches caught on New Zealand dropper.

    5th June

    Paul Kenyon. Fished 2-4pm. One long=range-release to nymph (pheasant tail, hare thorax, foam thorax cover). Dry fly ignored. Chilly, overcast, water height 0.26m. V. few rising fish and then only in short bursts. Occasional dun, spinner & sedge seen.


    May 2018

    29th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. One 7 inch brown trout.

    28th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. Frustration. Nil fish. Plenty of rising fish.

    26th May

    Paul Kenyon. Fished 2:30-5pm. 2 splashy rises. Few rising fish. Few stonefly, caddis and upwings seen, several midge and ?black gnats?. Gusty wind, overcast. water height 0.28m

    25th May

    Westcounty Angling Passport visitor. 2 trout to hand, 7 missed / splashy rises. Successful fly: Grey Sparkle Dun Weather overcast, water height 0.28m. Many rising fish to unidentified insects.

    Note posted by Paul Kenyon on 23rd May

    Historical kick-sample surveys indicate that the following insects are likely to be available to trout at this time of year. Olive Upright ( Rhithrogena semicolorata) - present at all sites and recorded at quite high abundances in certain locations. Blue Winged Olive (Ephemeralla / Serratella ignita) recorded at high abundances at all sites. Small Yellow Sally ( Siphonoperla torrentium) - present at all sites and recorded at quite high abundances in certain locations. For more information there is a link on: http://www.flyfishingdevon.co.uk/

    22nd May

    4:30-6:15 pm Paul Kenyon 1 trout to hand, 2 fish lost, about 6 splashy rises Flies: nymph(pheasant tail body, hares ear thorax, yellow foam thorax cover), Comparadun (grey body, black fur thorax, mixed deer hair + synthetic wing). Naturals: midge, Yellow Sally, occasional sedge. Sunny, v.light breeze. Water height 0.28m

    18th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor No catch return in Token Box

    13th May

    Paul Kenyon fished 2pm -4:30. One trout to hand, 3 hooked, further 6 splashy rises all to Olive Compradun. Water height 0.32m. Sunny with occ. chilly breeze from NW. Some rising fish, midge + possible black gnats.

    14th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. 5 brown trout, all small

    10th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. 1 brown trout on dry fly.

    4th May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. About 14 brown trout. Mainly on dry Black Gnat. Biggest about 8 inches.

    1st May

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor. 1 brown trout


    April 2018

    26/04/18

    Paul Kenyon fished Lower Beat 12-2pm. 4 fish to hand. 2 x 8+" on olive Sparkle Dun. Many 'splashy' offers - small fish? . Fish seen taking something in surface film. V. few naturals seen: midge, and possible olives. Better fish close to overhanging bankside vegetation - taking terrestrials?. Cold wind, occasional sunny intervals. Water height 0.35m, water still carrying slight colour. Pictures on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/YealmFlyFishing/

    20th April

    Paul and Aidin Kenyon. Fished Lower beat 2-4pm. Water height 0.38m, still coloured with China Clay AK caught 2 trout on wet Greenwell's Glory PK caught 3 on Sparkle Dun. Fish taking naturals in the surface film. It felt like the season has started at last

    18th April

    no catch return from Westcountry Angling Passport visitor in box

    15th April

    no catch return from Westcountry Angling Passport visitor in box

    10th April

    Westcountry Angling Passport visitor.2 x brown trout, 6in & 8in

    12th April

    Paul Kenyon:no fish caught. Lower beat stained grey/beige with input from River Piall. Upper beat running clear. No rising fish, few midge & sedge seen. Water height 0.4m

    6th April

    Paul Kenyon: 1 small trout on beadhead, v.little aerial fly life on Lower beat, few midge & sedge on Upper beat. Water level 0.52m

    Video Diary for years 2015-2017

      The Video Diary consists of a Playlist of YouTube videos taken whilst fishing on the Upper Yealm in the years 2015-2017

       Click the Playlist icon on the top right of the video to reveal a list of all the videos in this period

    Westcountry Angling Passport anglers' comments 2015-2017

    Date Fished: 30/07/2017

    “Fished the lower section of the beat in the morning. Caught 6 or 7 smaller 4-6″ browns and landed a much larger, more silvery brown of 8-10″, perhaps even 12″. Not sure if this was a Sea Trout? All returned safely, of course. A very good morning’s fishing. Thanks.

    Date Fished: 21-Jul-17

    “ Two BT of about 6-8 inches. Many fish rose to fly but missed 90% of the takes. Also got a pull from a Sea Trout.

    Date Fished 18/04/2017

    “ 12 x BT on a hares’ ear emerger “

    Date Fished 11/4/17

    “ 12 brown trout from ca. 3-8 inches “

    Date Fished: 12/08/16

    “ 20’ish brown trout (lost count in the teens), 6-11 inches. A few 10 inchers and an 11’incher being the highlight. Mostly on PTN. A great day’s fishing. "

    Date Fished: 5/06/15

    “ 3 brown trout to 10″ – mayfly “


    The Flybrary (Fly Library) Project

    Rusty box contains 'Flybrary' ...

    Flies on foam patch
    If you need a fly - take one
    If you have a successful fly - please leave one

    Fly patch, paper & pencil in plastic bag

    The Flybrary project inspired me to create a Flybrary Fly Box for anglers visiting The Upper Yealm Fishery - Westcountry Angling Passport Beat 39.

    The project started in America in 2018. One of its founders, Larry Littrell, described the aims of the project as follows:
    "The Flybrary Project idea is simple, create a small repository in your local neighborhood where everyone is encouraged to share fly patterns by simply leaving one if you have one to spare, or to take one if you need it or want to use something that was left by another angler. "

    The Flybrary Project philosophy is very simple:

    If you need a fly - take one
    If you have a successful fly - leave one

    I have started the Flybrary Fly Box collection with flies that have been successful for me in the last few weeks. They are a bit scruffy (my tying style) and well-chewed (the trout seemed to like them)

    Don't worry if you loose one of my flies. They are 'guide flies' - easy and quick to tie. Here is a reassuring article on   'guide flies' from our friend South African fly fishing guide Tim Rolston.

    The Flybrary Fly Box is in a plastic bag inside the old rusty ammunition box beside the Westcountry Angling Passport token box on Beat 39 The Upper Yealm Fishery

    Paper and pencil are supplied for your comments or suggestions.