Wye & Usk Foundation News June 2007

June 16th mandatory catch and release for salmon ends on both rivers. However, we urge all anglers to return as many fish as possible, particularly on the Wye. This year’s Wye fish are the progeny the 2002 run, the worst year ever. All the indications from Scotland and Ireland are that sea survival has been generally poor. Therefore, we ask that you to put every Wye salmon back and, of course, to handle them with care. On the Usk, at the very least, we must ask for all coloured fish to be returned. Both rivers need extra fish to populate the newly opened spawning streams.

The more unsettled weather over the past week has made predicting river conditions a perilous job. In the short-term, this could make salmon fishing tricky, as picking the right time to fish will be crucial. The upper Wye has risen to 1ft 10inches on our Erwood gauge today, with some colour to the water. The middle Usk, on the other hand, had hardly moved by 11am, despite some quite heavy showers.

Trout catches have continued to be excellent on both rivers. Fishing guide Kim Tribe caught a magnificent 26” (7lb+) trout on an upper Wye Roving Voucher beat to add to last week’s impressive fish from the Erwood area. Usk trout fishing is also excellent - Fenni Fach, Glanusk Estate and Penpont all producing the goods. Somewhat surprisingly, however, there are quite a few vacancies on both rivers in the coming couple of weeks. The recent rain will freshen the rivers and prolong the daytime fishing. Trout anglers are urged to make the most of these conditions before the impending hot summer months.

Finally, two new beats have joined our Booking Office in the past few days – Meadow Bridge on the Usk is an attractive salmon and trout fishery in between Abergavenny and Usk town. On the Wye, Upper Winforton offers some quality salmon and coarse fishing.