Higham lakes

[rich666]

Fished Higham today on a 5hr ticket.

Wind was blowing from the north east and was gusty at times. Fished both top lakes.

Flies used:
Diawl Bach, Bibio, Olive patterns, DAmsel and Pond olive nymphs, buzzers in all colours, Silver muddler, Mozaic viva, appetizer, leadhead tapoles, Blobs and some peach and black lures.

Sad to say I blanked. Quite a few others there but only saw 3 fish caught in the time I was there.

[fisherman58]

Better luck next time mate

[Axe]

its well known for being hard...i fished there dozens of times and half of them end up blanks, 2 reasons for this.

1 Not many Fish in there...(they are there...just in small amounts for a fishery)

2 Deep bowls, 25 foot deep to 15 foot on the top 2 lakes...i personally think they were built for game fishing...but ended up solely as trout and 25 foot on a fly only is abit too deep i reckon.

[rich666]

tell me about it.

I have fished there 3 times this year and only caught 1 fish so far.

It's a shame because you're right it a little too deep and they simply don't put the right number of fish in for the water.

I won't be fishing there again this year - planning a trip to Derwent or Grassholme instead in 3 or 4 weeks time and then Kielder to fish the rivers and burns in July/August.

[Axe]

A few other canny spots is Chatton Fishery (i go there if i fancy hammering the fish)..Caistron Lake is good but its manly for dry flies altho there is a nice 15ft trench beside the birdhut(u can hire a boat). And my favourite at the moment is Langley Dam... great venue good fighting fish and another place u can hire a boat from.

i havent had the oppertunity to fish the resevoirs as the father in law gets daunted by there size, and he drives the car lol so i go where he goes!

[Defective]

Higham has plenty of fish in, its getting them out thats the problem. ive fished the place over a dozen times and only once have i had 3 or more, but ive seen other anglers pulling them out like they are going out of fashion. You can fish the bottom lake now on a standard ticket so to me a 5 hour ticket c&r for a tenner is good value. I go there with the intention of trying and learning something new about the water. ive blanked a few times but thats fishing and its cheaper than sea fishing. If your anywhere near Aldin Grange give that a go or if your willing to travel Chatton or whinnie loch. We are blessed in the north east with some great fisherys

[Axe]

i don't doubt there is fish there.. me and my fishing buddy fished higham for nearly 18 months and he was there 2-3 times a week...and since he tried other place, he says he wont return unless they stock it properly...or make it a manageable depth for the fly fishing...you could put sinking line on..but your dodging weed most of the time.

it is a good size fishery...just poorly stocked and heavy weeds even where they are deep..sort these out and the lakes will be bulging with anglers.

just a personal opinion..im not trying to damage the place but i just like to voice my opinions (and i have heard many anglers say this too).

[oldessox]

Catch and release trout fisheries like Higham get seriously hard to fish after a while , fish aren't as daft as you think and they soon get to know what a fly is after they have been caught a few times. You need to fish naturals , buzzers or emergers at places like this to catch consistently.
Anglers say the same about Sweethope , not enough fish in , not stocked properly etc. but stand by the lake on a summers evening when there is a hatch on and you will see how many fish there are
I know at least 3 anglers that could go to Higham today and catch a dozen fish no problem at all .
Next time you are at Higham , put a dry fly on and hang a size 16 black buzzer 3 or 4ft under it and cast it out about 10ft and just leave it there , the dry will dissappear when you get a take.......... which you will!

Ray

[rich666]

You are right oldessox,

But... that's how I was fishing I had a nice pond olive dry on point with 2 buzzers on droppers - it didn't work.

Tried different retrieves - fast, slow, jerky, figure 8.

Different drop depths on my sinking line. At one point I was letting it drop to the top of weed in the bowls and then retrieving.

There were a few fish on the rise at lunchtime but they were sipping olives from the reed edges so couldn't get a clean cast into them.

I'm not knocking Higham in any way what so ever - it's on my doorstep, the fish they stock are a good quality - just not in any real abundance.

I know it's called fishing and not catching for a reason but it starts to get a little fraught after 2 or 3 trips of blanking.

It's not as if I'm new to fly fishing either, I've been fishing 31years (on the fly 23yrs) so I know the tactics, and all about the entomology involved. The need to study the water and see what is hatching or dapping about.

Anyways I'm off to kielder at the weekend to fish the burns and rivers round there - true sport fishing for truly wild browns - you just can't beat it!

Just need to tie a load of black gnats in size 16/18 and some grey and red wulf patterns then I'm all set.

[Axe]

Anyways I'm off to kielder at the weekend to fish the burns and rivers round there - true sport fishing for truly wild browns - you just can't beat it!

Just need to tie a load of black gnats in size 16/18 and some grey and red wulf patterns then I'm all set.

its been a good few years since i dipped a line in a river..enjoy! (green with envy lol)

my fly tying gear is sat gathering dust...made a few minkies and other lures but couldnt get the nack of the damn whip finisher..and the one i wanted i could never find in shops (im not a fan of online shopping) and i got fingers like gorilla toes lol...and ontop of that hardly get out fishing due to the lack of funds lol

the finisher i was after is on Davie Mcphails video's on youtube

[rich666]

Axe,

Funds don't come into when you fish the rivers and burns of kielder. A day ticket only costs £7.50 and that's catch and release all day or even keep one or two size fish (if you really want to). Check it out Brown Trout Fishing in Kielder Forest

They give you a map showing where you can fish and the scenery is spectacular to say the least

[Axe]

nice...i didn't know it was that price...now to get the father in law to leave his fisheries and try some river sport lol

thanks for that link too.

[rich666]

Well went back to Higham again for one last session before the fly gear goes away until spring.

Water was crystal clear when I got there. Plenty of fish moving around, loads in the margins, but none of them were interested in feeding tried different patterns again and got nothing. Went onto the bait lake and had a chuck in there and again nothing.

So - sad to say yet again I blanked at Higham.

Last trip of the river fishing year next weekend - off hopefully to Derwent reservoir if the weathers right on Saturday.
Think I'll take the fly rod and a worming/Spinning rod just in case.

[potts123]

my m8 went to higham last week and got ten out its the first time he has past two fish up there but its full of fish got to get to know the water.I blanked 9 times in a row up there but i still fish the place good crack of the lads and it is piecefull