Chalk stream Fishing

Wherwell Priory is one on the most idyllic country estates in Hampshire’s famous River Test valley, where the river flows through a tranquil parkland setting.

The resident river keeper, Terry Snellgrove, with close to forty years on the River Test takes great pride to maintain the Park and Priory beats using the time honoured skills for a clear flowing river, over bright gravel beds with blankets of waving ranunculus weed from which trout and fly life thrive.

A great variety of fishing on this very long beat, double bank along its entire length with the right bank prepared for easy bank fishing. Start from the bottom where the river is not deep, but wide and fast. You are overlooked by the village houses on the opposite bank but they have no fishing rights.

At The Mill there is a deep, turbulent hatch pool and beyond that the garden section that is only fished by wading. Above Church Lane you return to your fishing hut, a quaint little wooden hut right beside the river under the shade of a chestnut tree.

The beat itself is the same length as Park, again double bank the whole way but without any houses and fished from a combination of left and right bank, plus a wading section. Start from the downstream end with fast, deep runs that in turn become a shaded glide up to the productive double hatch pool.

Above the hatches is a long straight section that is really good for sight casting to the holding fish. The final section is again shaded by the opposite bank trees and is perfect to fish from the bank or wading.

April 27-May 9

£229 per rod

May 10-June 6

£311 per rod

June 7-July 31

£229 per rod

August 1-October 14

£198 per rod

The Parsonage is a prime beat of the River Test between Stockbridge and Romsey, sometimes referred to as "Middle Test".

The beat, which runs through over a hundred acres of secluded woodland and water meadows, comprises of nearly 3/4 of a mile of main river and over a mile of carrier.

Having the freedom to fish both the carrier and main river gives plenty of variety.

The Parsonage has a very comfortable Fishing Cabin beside the river, with car parking adjacent.

May 1-10

£150 per Rod

May 11-June 8

£275 per Rod

June 9 - July 31

£175 per Rod

The Middleton Estate is in Longparish, one of the loveliest villages in the Test valley and probably the largest section of the River Test still in one family ownership. Running to many thousands of acres and with many miles of river there are two delightful beats on the Estate from which to choose.

The Home Beat as the name suggests was, in days gone by, the beat reserved for the Wills family. Indeed legend had it that the river keeper was instructed to fly a flag from the roof on the Turbine Fishing Hut when the hatch was on to save a wasted trip from the main house to the river!

The banks of the Home Beat are easily navigated, the back cast is open in most places and over half the beat may be fished from the left or right bank. There is a terrific mill race that comes under the Turbine Barn that holds many good fish in the turbulent, deep water.

Home Beat Rods have exclusive use of the Turbine Fishing Hut and good car parking is within a few yards. This beat is ideal for one or two Rods or for a party of 4-5 Rods if combined with the Half Water.

The Half Water is one of our longest single beats on the River Test, coming in at just over a mile in length. It is certainly not as manicured as the Home beat, but therein lies the secret of its success.

Extensively restored over the past two winters this is a beat that has a bit of everything: slow sections, fast sections, deep holding sections, hatch pools. Parts of the beat run through the water meadows, some parts are shaded by trees. There is a good head of wild fish, supplemented by careful stocking

May 1-9

£229 per Rod

May 10-June 6

£254 per Rod

August 1-September 30

£178 per Rod

You will rarely find a more beautiful spot than this beat on the River Dever, an upper tributary of the Test where the four and a half miles of unspoilt chalk stream fishing is always crystal clear.

It holds a special place in my affection because it was one of my first ever pieces of fishing, which we having lovingly cared for over the past twenty years. If sight fishing over bright gravel beds, picking out your fish with a dry fly between the waving tails of weed is your thing, then this is the place to head for.

Like all the beats, Beat 1 is double bank along its entire length, but with only one bank prepared. Starting upstream of the old mill this is the narrowest of the beats. Fish from the left bank until the halfway point where you cross to the opposite bank, so good for left handers.

Two cracking hatch pools and a rarely fished section beyond the disused railway viaduct. Share the Mill Cabin with Beat 2.

There is plenty of variety on this beat, which runs through open water meadows and shaded wooded sections. Left hand bank (looking upstream) for the entire length.

Starting out at Keepers Bridge it is classic chalkstream that then turns into a slower, deeper section along Grayling Alley culminating in the famous Ash Tree pool. Beyond that the Tank Crossing is a banker as is the Mill race just short of the cabin. Share the Mill Cabin with Beat 1.

This is the beat that has the quirky Buckingham Palace fishing cabin and is the beat with the highest proportion of wild fish. Make your way along the back track through the woods to reach the bottom of the beat at Venice Bridge without disturbing a single fish.

Fish from the right bank to get the very best from the Venice Bridge pool at the start, then return to the left for the remainder of the beat. Plenty of wide, fast and shallow sections, interspersed with pools and impoundments that have scoured out pools.

If you want guaranteed protection from the weather, be it bright sun or wind, Beat 4 is perfect running through woodland from top to bottom. This beat has the greatest depth of the four and has a very slightly slower pace that suits the larger fish.

Start from the Dever Castle cabin and work your way up the left bank until you reach the beat end at Venice Bridge. The final section to the bridge has some fantastic undercuts. Not a good beat for a left hander.

April 15-May 9

£168 per Rod

May 10-June 8

£279 per Rod

August 1-Oct 13

£150 per Rod

October 20-November 30

£75 per Rod

The higher one ventures up the River Test system, the better the hatches, the clearer the water and the wilder the fish. There is no better way of summing up the fishing at Whitchurch Fulling Mill.

This is a true stalking paradise where the wild fish seem to peck away on the surface all day long, with a great variety of holding spots, pools and riffles.

The upper section is best fished by wading. The lower section from the bank, with a Mill race that has some monsters lurking in the tail water.

May 1-June 6

£246 per rod

June 7-July 31

£197 per rod

August 1-September 30

£171 per rod

The Mottisfont Abbey Estate has three magnificent beats on the River Test and a delightful stretch of the River Dun which joins the Test at Mottisfont village. All four beats are managed by the National Trust and the Mottisfont Fly Fishing Club with the goal of providing the highest quality chalkstream fishing in a natural setting on the most historic dry fly water.

The River Test sweeps in stately fashion down The Main beat, whilst the Rectory is as pretty a piece of fishing as you will find anywhere in the world. But hold your breath for the Oakley Stream, a part of the living history of dry fly fishing and every bit as magical today as it was when F W Halford held court to his Victorian dry fly disciples.

April 27-30

£179 per Rod

May 1-June 30

£281 per Rod

July 1-31

£230 per Rod

August 1-October 14

£179 per Rod

Wallop Brook is established as the premier wild trout tributary of the River Test.

This is an exceptionally long beat for just one or two Rods.

It is 1.7 miles of double bank fishing, that flows through meadows and woodland and best fished by a combination of stalking and easy wading. This is an all catch and release beat.

Prices include VAT.

Kimbridge Meadows is a tranquil collection of carriers that snake around woodland and water meadows beside the River Test between Stockbridge and Romsey.

Beautifully kept by the river keeper, Steve Brown, there is nearly a mile of water to cover, stocked with some of the largest brown, rainbow and blue trout you are ever likely to encounter in the Test valley.

Ideal for one to four Rods, the Meadows is a relaxing and easy beat with excellent facilities.

Price includes VAT

This is as close to fishing the famous Houghton Club water as most of us will ever come, as The Greyhound abuts the prestigious Bends beat.

The fishing is ideal for one or two Rods, with plenty of sizeable browns on this well known Test carrier.

With The Greyhound bar and restaurant at hand, it has never been so easy to quench your thirst between casts! If you would like to have a hamper delivered to the bank, book a table for lunch or reserve a room call The Greyhound on 01264 810833.

April 27-May 9

£75 per Rod

May 10-June 7

£117 per Rod

June 8- July 31

£95 per Rod

August 1 -October 14

£75 per Rod

SCHOOL FARM River Dun (Test tributary)

The River Dun is one of the most substantial of the River Test tributaries, rising above Lockerley and joining the main river at Mottisfont. The School Farm beat lies at about the mid-point, gently snaking through the lightly wooded valley and holding fish along its entire length.
 
School Farm is one of the most immaculately maintained estates in the river valley, with five star facilities for the fisherman. The beat is very well stocked with both browns and rainbows, the fishing offering a variety of glides, weirs and a hatch pool in a peaceful setting.
 
The fishing is available for two or three Rods a day or small corporate parties.

April 27 - 30

£404 for two Rods

May-June

£637 for two Rods

July-August

£485 for two Rods

September-October 14

£404 for two Rods

The River Dun is one of the most substantial of the River Test tributaries, rising above Lockerley and joining the main river at Mottisfont.

The Dunbridge beat lies just below School Farm and is a beautiful stretch with deep pools, fast runs and lazy back eddies under the trees of the opposite bank.

If you are looking for a beat where you can stumble out of your bed and be on the river, this is the place to be. The Mill Arms is just 300 yards from the river and offers comfortable rooms. Riverside Cottage offers self-catering accommodation.

If you don’t have a car, the train station at Dunbridge village (well, more of a halt really) connects to London in around two hours.

May 1-June 30

£281

June 9-July 31

£230

August 1-October 14

£179

NEW FOR 2010

The Broadlands Estate is one of the most famous names in fishing, renowned the world over for the River Test flowing through the estate that was the home of Earl Mountbatten of Burma and now Lord and Lady Brabourne.

This is one of the finest sections of the River Test; wide, fast, varied and open, renowned for big brown trout, sea trout and the occasional salmon. There are three trout beats on the River Test, two carrier beats and one salmon beat on the main river.

All of the fishing is from the bank. Visiting day rods have the use of the famed ‘Nissen’ cabin at the head of the Longbridge beat, where royalty, diplomats and celebrities stare down from the photographs on the wall.

April 27-May 10

£125 per rod

May 11-June 8

£195 per rod

June 9-July 31

£125 per rod

August 1-October 14

£100 per rod

May 1-June 30

£100 per rod

July 1-October 14

£85 per rod

March 1-June 15

£75 one rod

£115 two rods

June 16-October 1

£95 one rod

£135 two rods