The Bristol Avon

I had a trip to Premier Angling yesterday to get my Bristol Avon licence and for a wander down the Lacock stretch at Abbey field.

I have nothing but praise for Premier Angling, they are one of the most helpful fishing tackle shops I've ever been in. He gave me a detailed breakdown on all the areas I asked him about including parking, access, how far the walk (important to me) was and the best areas to fish. Sadly he also said that Lacock, one of the areas I was looking forward to fishing this year, was very popular and unless I was prepared to walk long distances (up to a mile or more) I would have great difficulty getting a spot. To be fair Steve Spiller had already mentioned this so I wasn't too surprised.

I also managed to relieve him of a Nash Nomad chair that Barney had recommended and it really is a very light chair, half the weight of my Fox Stalker, well worth ?39, thanks Gary.

The river at Lacock is very narrow, little more than a wide stream, but it has some lovely glides and holes but best of all there are lots of trees and cover and looking at it I can well understand why it has a reputation for chub and barbel. Altogether Bristol Bath & Wiltshire AA have 4.5 miles of fishing here in three sections and anyone who has the ability to walk fair distances can enjoy some wonderful fishing in lovely surroundings. Night fishing is allowed by special permit.

Having bought a guide to the BB&W waters I think anyone who likes their barbel and chub fishing would find plenty of waters on the Bristol Avon to suit their needs and it really is a lovely river. Day tickets are available for those who want to fish it occasionally but you can't night fish unless you are a member.

Premier Angling:- tel. 01249 659210

Hi again Graham,

Lacock, as you will have seen, is a stalkers paradise!
If you travel light it might make the walk easier, rather than setting up camp in one swim you could roam about.
As you said, there are loads of swims with trees, bushes and features, oozing "fish appeal". It is a lovely stretch of the Avon.
I hold many fond memories of being waken by my Dad at 5.30am every sunday (from the age of 6)and taken to Lacock.
One memory that stands out, is when I caught my first proper Chub! 2 1/2 pound, on a lump of bread, moulded so hard around the hook that I can't believe it found a hold. Enough of that!

Good Luck Graham, let us now how you get on.

Steve

G

I shall be giving the Queenfield Farm section a bash Steve, it being the least popular because of the walk. Just my rod, landing net and bait averything else in my pockets. Its the carrying that really Kn....rs me up and providing I take my time I can manage a fair distance, no problem. Might even take the missus and get her to give me a piggyback if the going gets tough.

One thing the guy at the shop also told me is that one of his customers has been walking the Queenfield to Mead Farm stretch regularly and the fish have already spawned and it is full of barbel and chub.

Sounds good Graham, if you go mid-week you'll have the river to yourself because it is a hike, although it is mainly flat.
There are some cracking bream there as well.

Good luck mate, let us know how you get on.

Steve

Took a walk along the Avon at CM tonight. The recent rain has brought the levels up a little and the water is just ever so slightly coloured but running through at a nice leisurely pace. The trees are holding enough rubbish to create a few small rafts and the fly hatches were being picked off the surface by some small stuff. The whole scene was screaming 'fish me' /forum/smilies/smile_smiley.gif

Obviously a few people have been looking in on their favourite swims, the trodden nettles a dead give away.

If only it was the 15th June /forum/smilies/crying_smiley.gif it would be the perfect start in the morning.