Bulldog Fisheries New Year Fly Fishing Competition

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The long overdue New Year’s Fly comp! 🐟
Today Bulldog hosted the New Year’s fly fishing competition that had been postponed due to January’s appalling weather conditions.
The lake was stocked with a healthy number of rainbow, tiger, Spartic and brown trout ranging from 2-8lb.
An early start for Nigel & Tom as preparations began for the day. Tea urn on, log burner lit and the bacon starting to crackle 🥓
After the starting peg draw, a bacon roll and a cup of coffee our competitors were eager to get started!
With conditions set perfect for such an occasion the starting horn blasted and we were off! The record for fasted fish hooked stood at 15seconds from our Xmas comp. This was smashed by Alex Murray! A mere 5 seconds into the comp, the moment his fly touched the water it was hammered and he was locked into a hard fighting rainbow! 🐟
Fish came hard and fast leading us to have an action packed morning! A highlight was certainly seeing Nick having line stripped off his reel multiple times as he battled a Tiger trout of 6lb1oz!
Time for some lunch! On the menu today was roast beef, roasties and Yorkshire pudding 😋
Back at it after lunch and the short break was enough time to calm the spooked fish and sure enough lines started pulling tight once again. 🎣 One by one anglers reached their 6 fish limit and the talk soon turned to who was going to bag the top prize 🏆 Tom was keeping the score card hidden and the tension was building as many bags looked promising!
4 o’clock came and the final horn sounded! Finally it was time to reveal the winner and runners up!
Top results as follows:
1st – Steve Hunt. Total bag weight 24lb9oz
Prize: A meat bundle from our farm shop!
2nd – Nick Tamlin. Total bag weight 23lb1oz
Prize: A voucher for 4 anglers to have a legendary Bulldog ‘belly buster’ Breakfast
3rd – Andrew Facey. Total bag weight 21lb3oz
Prize: A 3 fish ticket
Biggest fish of the day:
Steve Hunt – 6lb10oz Tiger
Prize – A brand new filleting knife 🔪 purchased from Barnstaple Bait & tackle.
Last place prize will be awarded to Mr Bill Pink next time we see him 👀 this is because we were reliably informed by his brother Roy that the reason for Bills unexpected absence was due to having one to many ports at his beaters day yesterday 🤣 hope you feel better soon mate! 🍻
A very popular addition to Bulldog fishery is the gutting/filleting service Nigel & Tom provide, the service has a charge that 100% of goes to the Veterans charity!
With all the fish weighed, gutted & cleaned and prizes given out we said goodbye to our anglers. All of which commented on the enjoyment of the day 😊
We feel happy that our second competition was a success! And we look forward to the next one! 🎣

South West Fly Fair 2025

The South West Fly Fair makes a welcome return to Roadford Lake on Sunday 23 February. The fair is sponsored by Turrall amongst others, and is always a highlight in the region’s angling calendar.

The day will include:

  • ‘Have a go’ fly tying room with help from experts
  • 10% season ticket discount for all attendees
  • Tackle trading stands
  • Casting and fly tying demonstrations
  • Expert advice from trout, sea and coarse fly fishers
  • Meet local fly fishing clubs
  • Raffle with great prizes
  • Food and drink available at the onsite café
  • Find out more about coaching and tuition available throughout the South West
  • A chance to catch up with old friends and new

Bring the family along too – plenty of activities for all ages. Bring your bikes and wellies to explore the lake.

Entry is £7 for adults online in advance (£10 on the door) and free for under 18s. Entry includes car parking and a raffle ticket.

Book in advance to avoid disappointment!

https://www.swlakestrust.org.uk/south-west-fly-fair-2025-trout

Exmoor Streams Environmental Issues and how to help

Exmoor Trees for Salmon – help needed please

An invitation to join the Westcountry Rivers Trust, on Sunday 9th February, for a volunteer tree planting day along the river Barle, at Landacre Bridge. This area is an important region for spawning salmon and juvenile habitat within the Exe, however a lack of tree cover leaves the fish vulnerable. To help improve this habitat, WRT are planting pockets of trees alongside the river and need your help to put these trees in the ground!

WRT have 1500 trees to be put in the ground, so the more help the better.

If you are interested please follow this link for more information and to book a place https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/exmoor-trees-for-salmon-tickets-1217821249139?aff=ebdsoporgprofile

Ticks and fleas are significant issues infesting cats and dogs. What is often overlooked is the devastating impact the commonly used treatments have on the environment. Many streams and rivers on Exmoor are impacted upon with areas where dogs splash and play in the rivers are deviod of invertebrate fly life. This impacts on fish populations including trout and salmon parr.
Please see the very interesting article below. A letter to you MP would help get these chemicals banned for use on cats and dogs.

CHASING GRAYLING AN ICONIC FISH

            I embarked on a trip away from North Devon to fish for grayling on the Dorset Frome with my good friend Bruce Elston. The trip proved to be a very enjoyable foray and got me thinking about our motivations to actually go fishing. Grayling are an iconic fish that thrive in clean fast running rivers ensuring that the fishing venue is often set in pleasing countryside surroundings as was the case at the venue we were fishing. The Dorset Frome is a Chalk stream famed for its trout fishing and during the winter months its specimen grayling that have been landed to over 4lb.

Across the fast flowing river on the far bank shots rang out as the shoot operated on the far bank pheasants flying overhead in a typical winter scene.

            It is the potential size of these grayling that is of course part of the attraction but this is just one dimension, for how we fish is also a factor. As a young angler I always enjoyed the fascination of watching a float bobbing optimistically upon the surface followed by the joy in its disappearance and the satisfaction  upon connecting with the fish that lives within a different dimension. Trotting for grayling brings all these components together and close to fifty years later the delights of float-fishing remain undiminished.

Bruce Elston searches the river

            The section of River we were fishing was new to us both so we had to read the water a skill that is a joy in itself. Each stretch of water has characteristics that give clues as to where the fish will be lurking waiting for food to be carried to them by the current. The successful angler needs to place the bait in that spot or in the case of trotting, drift the bait in front of the feeding fish presented as naturally as possible.

We both enjoyed success early in the day. ( Above ) A 1lb plus grayling fell to floatfished maggot.

 

            We fished hard all day dropping our float tackle into promising looking spots guiding the float through the rivers flexing currents the double maggot or sweetcorn hook bait suspended just above the riverbed. From time to time the float would dip beneath the surface and the lifting of the rod would bring connection, sometimes fleeting and occasionally that solid throbbing of life transmitted through a gossamer thin line. Between us we banked a brace of good grayling each with Bruce’s both topping 2lb and mine closer to 1lb 8oz each.

Late afternoon with the light starting to fade I returned to a swim that I had confidence in and persisted trotting the float through a spot I felt drawn to. My conviction proved correct the float dipping to result in a pleasing grayling of 1lb 11oz.

Above and below – Time for one more cast as the fading light makes watching the float an increasing challenge.

            To the none angler the whole episode that involved a 200 plus mile round trip on a short cold winters day would seem difficult to understand. Yet to us it was as memorable and satisfying a day as winning Wimbledon or the Masters.

            Grayling are scarce across Devon with a healthy population inhabiting the waters of the River Exe and some of its tributaries. They are also present in some of the River Tamar’s tributaries that form the border between Devon and Cornwall. The River Exe population is the result of a stocking in 1896 when 500 yearlings were stocked from the hatchery at Dulverton. The full story can be found in the book Trout Fishing for Beginners by the Devonshire Fisherman published in 1928.

 

Anglers Paradise THE TROUT LAKE IS BACK

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Anglers Paradise THE TROUT LAKE IS BACK‼️🎣🥳
Some news that many of you have been waiting for! The Trout Lake is back OPEN and it’s also in a new location! You still go to the same car park, but you follow the path to the left and there it is, all ready and waiting for you to catch the beautiful Trout that reside in there!

Adrian Kruger was the first to christen the new Trout Lake and he had a cracking day! 3 double Rainbows and two stunning Brownies.

Anglers Paradise

 

Wistlandpound Club – Winter Challenge @ Bulldog Round 2

I joined members of Wistlandpound Fly Fishing Club at Bulldog Trout Fishery last Sunday where we were greeted by a bright cloudless blue sky and milder conditions. The trout proved to be generally cooperative with all members catching fish with a mixture of rainbow and brown trout averaging over 3lb. Most fish were tempted using lures fished on long leaders with an erratic retrieve.

Nigel Bird with one of the trout that earned him top spot.

The winning bag was taken by Nigel Bird who had three trout for 10lb. Runner up was Andre Muxworthy with three for 9lb 9oz and myself third with three for 9lb 8oz.

It is intriguing how days unfold during these club competitions on small stillwater’s. Members will all have their favourite flies and lures that give them confidence and it is generally these that are tried first. Typically those first ten to fifteen minutes of fishing produce numerous trout as was the case during Sundays competition. I was fortunate to bank three hard fighting trout within the first twenty minutes and spent the rest of the morning wandering around the fishery with my camera capturing action shots of fellow club members.

I noted that fishing slowed after the initial flurry and for a while trout proved hard to tempt. After a while some tied on different patterns or moved to a fresh swim. This did sometimes bring results but what was noticeable was that if one angler hooked a fish it was not unusual to see several rods bending at the same time around the fishery as if the fish had suddenly switched on.

It is always interesting to compare notes at the end of the days fishing and I often note how an angler will state that a change of fly has triggered a response with perhaps a touch of orange or pink bringing success. A particular fly often seems to be the one to use! Yet it is often the case at the end of fishing as anglers chat that trout have been caught on a wide range of patterns. One angler swearing that white was the killer fly whilst others boast of success with black or orange.

There are many factors involved in the inexact science of fly fishing. Presentation of the fly, its size and colour, depth it is fished all interacting with water clarity, temperature, air pressure, lunar cycles, natural food sources and of course the location of the fish. All these factors make for a fascinating game that takes the mind away from the troubled world. The angler absorbed in natures complex chess board pondering upon tying on a Greenwell’s glory or a Wickham’s fancy.

Tip of the day – Check your flies and hooks. Several trout were lost during the day as hook shanks snapped. Hook shanks hidden beneath dressings can rust resulting in weakness that only show itself when a large powerful trout puts it to the test.

Seconds after this shot was taken Nigel cursed as his hook broke.

 

JACK PERKS at THE ARUNDELL

One of the highlights of the next few months will be our screening of Jack Perks’ wonderful film – Britain’s Hidden Fish on March 5th.  Starting at 7pm in the Tamar Room, the 1 hr long film will be followed by a talk by Jack Perks.  Tickets cost just £8 and are available through our Reception Team.

This beautiful documentary explores the underwater world of the UK, from our chalk streams to the open sea. Narrated by Jeremy Wade (River Monsters) this film was shot over the course of two years to bring stories, behaviours and footage never seen before of British fish.

Prior to the screening, the Arundell fishing team will be hosting a complimentary gathering with tea, coffee and nibbles in the morning from 10am followed by a wander down to our most productive Grayling beats, where our seasoned guides will demonstrate and teach our approach to catch Grayling on the fly.  Afterwards, anglers will have an opportunity to fish the beats for the prestigious lady of the stream before heading back to the Hotel for the screening.  Please let either our Fishing or Reception Teams know if you would like to attend.

Watch the trailer of Britain’s Hidden Fish

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_E6nJT0OfdA&ab_channel=CHASINGSCALES

Bulldog Christmas rainbows

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Jon Patten and Reef Patten have recently returned from representing England in the World Championship Big Game Trolling in Mexico 2024. The dark grey skys of North Devon were undoubtedly a stark contrast to the tropical heat of Mexico. Reef and Indy were all smiles when I met them at Bulldog Trout Fishery on Christmas Eve enjoying a short session tussling with the venues hard fighting rainbow trout.

(Above) – Jon Patten fishing for Bulldogs hard fighting trout.