Anybody fished Ulswater in the Lake District?

[maxaldo]

How do all? I'm going on a camping/fishing trip to Ulswater in the Lakes next tuesday for a few days. It holds Perch and Trout, most probably wild. I will be mostly fly fishing but i thought i may have a go at spinning, the thing is, i'm not too up on my spinning skills and have never used this method and actually caught before. The question i'd like to ask is firstly, if you know this water at all or waters like this (i.e, large lakes), where shall i fish in terms of depth, and general area in the lake, such as corners or features? and also, what spinners would be best to take and generally what gear would i need? note; i haven't got any spinning tackle as of yet and so may need to invest in some at a generally modest price

[Anderoo]

I have never coarse fished there, but I've fly fished for the trout a few times. The trout are all wild and are accordingly small and tricky. I've always hired a boat (either from Pooley Bridge or Glenridding).

 

I've always fished with a floating line and either trational wet flies or, if fish are rising, dries. Fly anglers who are much better than me seem to do well with heavily weighted nymphs. Overcast with a nice breeze seems to be best, and evenings best time of day.

 

The trout can be infuriating - no sign of a fish all day, then suddenly there are trout everywhere, rising, splashing, swirling at a hatch of something, a couple of sharp pulls later (which you may well miss!) and as quickly as it started, the lake goes silent again and you'd swear there wasn't a fish in it!

 

However, legering maggots or worms would be a good way to catch steadily.

 

All you need to fish it is a rod licence, you don't need day tickets, etc.

[Sportsman]

I would approach it on the A592.

 

I've never fished it but I would imagine that it is not too different to a Scottish loch.

Bear in mind that in large deep waters the light can't penetrate too far into the water so weed doesn't grow in the deeps.

Stick to the shallower water around the edges unless there are fish rising. If fishing from a boat, drift down a little way out and cast back toward the edges.

Remember that brown trout are territorial in nature and are unlikely to move around in shoals so there is no point in anchoring up and flogging the same bit of water for hours. That's why most boat fishing for wild brownies is done from a drifting boat.

Se this http://www.fishandfly.co.uk/hl1101.html

 

Have fun

[Emma two]

Good areas to spin around are where becks run into the lake. The water is going to offer a whole different dimension to you if you are able to get afloat, if you are try 'traditional big lake/loch style, and although wild brownies dont shoal up in the same way as rainbows do, you will find areas where there are lots of fish, simply because that area suits them rather than for any social reasons.

 

I use bladed 'Mepp' type spinners on the lakes, quite larege ones too so you can get a decent cast. Small to medium copper spoons and the smaller soft body shad type lures, favourites are Storm minnow, brown anchovy and perch/roach/trout in the 2-3" sizes. there are some good perch in the water and they readily take that type of lure. I'm not keen on the shallows except for the last hour of so of light. Perch feed in low light conditions, that doesnt mean you have to wait until dusk (although it is the very best of times), but you need to be working your lure in deeper water where the light is weak and the perch might be feeding, thats why the soft bodies are so effective. Cast and wait until it hits the bottom and work back 'bouncing' it off the lake floor. Witht the metal spinners you should 'search the water', vary the depth by you retrieve at and vary your retrieve speed, it's also woth casting to a rising fish the same way as you would with a fly. Ledgered lobworm (you might want to 'pop them up with a shot of air) is very effective, I have never bothered using a swimfeeder in there and if you do find yourself with perch in front of you, then you will be getting a bit a 'chuck'and you never know when a trout will come along too. A good mark is the ferry pier landing at Howtown on the eastern shore, in the evenings when the ferry has stopped running it's quiet, and an easy place to fish on the level wooden planks. However you might have trouble parking.

 

Livebaiting is forbidden in the national park waters, however lots of us locals continue to use minnows which are easily caught in the shallows and are pure 'mustard' for both big stripeys and good trout, give 'em a try and plead 'ignorant' ( but don't say I told you)

 

I use a 2.7m, 8-25g soft spinning rod which doubles up for legering with too, or a 6ft baitcaster with a low profile multipier, and 15-20 lb braid, if your new to braid buy a good one to mimimise tangles I like 'power-pro'.

 

There is a good nearby tackle shop, 'John Norris' in Penrith, they will offer you advice and while they are friendly they don't seem especially clued up the modern lures, although they do sell 'em, it is very salmon orientated.

 

Of course Ullswater isn't the only lake to try, and you can hire a guide, 13' cuddy boat and tackle on 2 of the western lakes, you could contact me for details of that if your interested.

 

Hope this helps and 'tight lines'

Edited July 21, 2008 by Emma two

[Emma two]

I suppose that this thread re-enforces the point I made about categories, do you consider that you will be coarse or game fishing? Depends one one's perspective as to whether it's course fishing with the chance of a trout, or game (trout) fishing with the chance of a coarse fish.

[maxaldo]

Good areas to spin around are where becks run into the lake. The water is going to offer a whole different dimension to you if you are able to get afloat, if you are try 'traditional big lake/loch style, and although wild brownies dont shoal up in the same way as rainbows do, you will find areas where there are lots of fish, simply because that area suits them rather than for any social reasons.

 

I use bladed 'Mepp' type spinners on the lakes, quite larege ones too so you can get a decent cast. Small to medium copper spoons and the smaller soft body shad type lures, favourites are Storm minnow, brown anchovy and perch/roach/trout in the 2-3" sizes. there are some good perch in the water and they readily take that type of lure. I'm not keen on the shallows except for the last hour of so of light. Perch feed in low light conditions, that doesnt mean you have to wait until dusk (although it is the very best of times), but you need to be working your lure in deeper water where the light is weak and the perch might be feeding, thats why the soft bodies are so effective. Cast and wait until it hits the bottom and work back 'bouncing' it off the lake floor. Witht the metal spinners you should 'search the water', vary the depth by you retrieve at and vary your retrieve speed, it's also woth casting to a rising fish the same way as you would with a fly. Ledgered lobworm (you might want to 'pop them up with a shot of air) is very effective, I have never bothered using a swimfeeder in there and if you do find yourself with perch in front of you, then you will be getting a bit a 'chuck'and you never know when a trout will come along too. A good mark is the ferry pier landing at Howtown on the eastern shore, in the evenings when the ferry has stopped running it's quiet, and an easy place to fish on the level wooden planks. However you might have trouble parking.

 

Livebaiting is forbidden in the national park waters, however lots of us locals continue to use minnows which are easily caught in the shallows and are pure 'mustard' for both big stripeys and good trout, give 'em a try and plead 'ignorant' ( but don't say I told you)

 

I use a 2.7m, 8-25g soft spinning rod which doubles up for legering with too, or a 6ft baitcaster with a low profile multipier, and 15-20 lb braid, if your new to braid buy a good one to mimimise tangles I like 'power-pro'.

 

There is a good nearby tackle shop, 'John Norris' in Penrith, they will offer you advice and while they are friendly they don't seem especially clued up the modern lures, although they do sell 'em, it is very salmon orientated.

 

Of course Ullswater isn't the only lake to try, and you can hire a guide, 13' cuddy boat and tackle on 2 of the western lakes, you could contact me for details of that if your interested.

 

Hope this helps and 'tight lines'

 

 

Cheers for that Emma Two, thats a lot of helping info there. I'll just have to revise and remember it all now lol. Can't wait to give that place a go, never fished such an expanse of water before and never caught on a lure or spinner yet so it should be pretty exciting. The best thing is that we are going for 3 days and camping almost on the banks by the sounds of it on surrounding camp sites. I can see a lot of fishing hours being put in so i'm sure i will catch something. We are also using flies which should be fun which i have some experience with so that should come up trumps. It's the lure fishing that i'm most looking forward to. You sound like a fishermans dream wife

[phil dean]

just to add, feeder fishing can work well fished into slightly deeper water from the shore.....tight lines