Rutland Waters

[henda11]

hey has anyone been to rutland waters? if so what is the fishing like there? im planning on going in august and does anyone know what its like there in august 2? i heard the trout can be a decent size and average 2lb a catch and up to 15lb fish

[Rutland Emigree]

hey has anyone been to rutland waters? if so what is the fishing like there? im planning on going in august and does anyone know what its like there in august 2? i heard the trout can be a decent size and average 2lb a catch and up to 15lb fish

 

I used to fish Rutland a fair bit. It's by far my favourite water. Nearly 100% of my fishing is from boat, so my comments reflect this. I should think fishing from the bank involves quite different tactics.

 

Like anywhere, Rutland can vary enormously from week-to-week, day-to-day, though in August, especially when it's hot and bright, the fish can, but won't necessarily, hold quite deep. A good set up for any time of the year is to fish an orange booby on the point with a buzzer and diawl bach on droppers. Fish this setup on different lines, from fast-sink to intermediate with different retrieves ranging from a really slow figure of eight to a fast strip (but with the latter retrieve, you're only likely to catch on the booby) until you locate fish, and keep a mental note of the depth and fly. Spoon the first fish you catch, even if it's on the booby, and you'll get a good sense of what to fish with next. Look at where other people are fishing, and if they're catching. The key in Rutland is knowing where fish are likely to be -- it's a *huge* water, and can take a long time to motor from one arm to another, so get as much info as you can before you go about where's been fishing well. Check out the regular fishing reports from the Anglian Water website, these are often very detailed. See here: http://www.anglianwaterleisure.co.uk/index...amp;parentid=47 Here you'll also find an archive of reports from last year, including August.

 

Above all, when you get there, talk to people in the tackle shop. The staff at Rutland are first-rate, knowledgeable and friendly. They'll give you up to the minute advice which will, no doubt, be far more useful than any general advice. There's also a blackboard outside the shop which gives an overview of weather and fishing conditions, best flies, best areas, etc.

 

One other thing, notwithstanding my comments above about fish possibly holding deep in August, in my experience, Rutland doesn't always follow the normal rules of how weather affects fishing. I've fished there in flat calm, in scorching hot weather, and have found fish right on the surface taking tiny buzzers and nymphs, when one might expect them to be deep. I've had days when I've bagged up within a matter of a couple of hours under what might be considered nightmare conditions, and I'm no expert fly fisher. There's an abundance of insect life at Rutland, and I've caught by far the bulk of my fish on small stuff -- buzzers, grhe, diawl bachs, ptns, etc. When I first started fishing there I felt inclined to use the biggest fly in the box, given the size of the water. But that's not usually the best strategy. I've also found that when fishing anything that imitates insect life, fishing *slow* is usually the best way to go. Also, somewhat frustratingly, often the last half hour of fishing is the best. In August, you may see an evening rise, where you'll not be able to catch unless you have exactly the right dry fly with the right presentation.

 

Last of all, Rutland fish fight incredibly hard and fast. I wouldn't fish anything under 8lb leader. The tackle shop recommend a minimum of 10lb. My best ever fish at Rutland was a 6lb brown taken, somewhat appropriately, off Brown's Island on a tube fly retrieved very fast. It went like a rocket, and flat refused to surface for a good five-ten minutes. It was one gorgeous fish -- and was my one and only moment of fame via a mention in the Rutland fishing report! It also got me a Troutmasters badge! I'm pretty sure that Rutland don't stock fish larger that 2lbs, so if you do hook into a large fish, you can be assured that it's one that's grown on, and about as close to a wild monster trout as you'll get in this country...

 

Hope this is all useful, good luck and let us know how you get on.

[Westie]

Hi - I'd echo all of that, although it has been a while since I fished Rutland. I used to mainly fish the banks and I'd rely on advice from the tackle shop on the best areas to try if you are not down there very frequently. Weed growth in the margins can be prolific and because of that I fished 95% of the time with floating lines and small teams of nymphs either in or just under the surface film. I always found that the best method was to allow the wind to draw the flies round and just keep in touch with them with a figure of eight retrieve. Successful more often than not.

 

As I say - it's been a while - one fantastic session I had was fishing almost straight into a headwind off the dam wall, casting at 45 degrees to the wall itself. Casting distance was very limited but I fished a shortish leader on a fast sinker with hares ear boobie on the point and a bloodworm imitation on the dropper, again with a slow figure of 8. I didn't think I was going to catch anything. And bagged up within a couple of hours.

 

More luck than judgment with me, though.....

 

It's a great water but can be very, very frustrating. But hey, that's fishing, right?!