Fishing at the Lodge
The Lodge sits on a small lake
The small lake is stocked with predominantly small carp, bream, roach, perch and tench. There are also four large
grass carp which you will see on the surface which have been introduced to try and keep the blanket weed under
control. These are very friendly and easy to hook fish but not so easy to land! We would ask that you do not try
and catch them but concentrate on the other smaller fish.
The lake can either be fished from the verandah of the Lodge or on the bank and is ideal for the less experienced
angler float fishing with maggots.
The River
Included with the Lodge tariff is one excellent swim on 35 yards of the Hampshire Avon which is about 25 yards
directly downhill from the Lodge. This is an excellent swim which includes a deep hole under a tree and a
submerged tree about 25 yards downstream close to the bank. Both these features hold the fish well but require a
high level of skill to land the larger fish, particularly the barbell and the carp.
Other fish include sea trout, salmon, dace, pike, grayling, bream and perch, although barbel and chub are the
predominate species. This stretch of the Avon comprises a number of deep holes and eddies, with over hanging
trees, with a principally gravel bottom of varying depth. The characteristics of the river vary widely over the
seasons. The picture below was taken in September when the river was low and the flow quite slow. The opposite
bank is an open water meadow, normally with a herd of Old English Whites, which is privately owned and very
rarely fished
The Lodge Swim
This is very much a stretch of river suited to the experienced specimen coarse fisherman available from the
beginning of the season (16th June) until the end of the season (14th March). The water is generally very clear in
the summer and autumn months and very good for fish watching. Whilst there can be shoals of smaller fish,
principally dace, roach and chub, the main target has to be the large barbel, roach and chub. There are many
double figure barbel that move up and down this stretch and are particularly active from June- November. As the
temperatures drop, the chub and roach fishing takes over, particularly when there is a little more colour and flow
and much of the weed has died off. December, January and February are the best months for specimen roach,
particularly following a period of flood. Late February, early March, as temperatures start to rise again, can see the
return of some early barbel. Throughout the season, the occasional shoal of large river carp move through the
swims and often hang around in some of the deeper holes, where large pike can also be found. When the water is
clear, the best time to fish is definitely early morning or late evening and even when there is some colour, the
evenings still seem to offer the best fishing.
There are four additional swims available in the adjoining woodland that are available for an additional cost, please
contact us for rates and availability.
