Regular readers of Urbantrout will probably know that the Wild Trout Trust auction, which takes place at the start of trout fishing season in the UK each year, is the charity’s biggest annual fundraising event.
Of course, the fundraising aspect alone would be reason enough for us to support this legendary event. But it’s a regular annual feature on this blog for another reason, too: if it’s Wild Trout Trust auction time, that means it’s also time for us to get serious about scoping out a whole new season of urban (and other) fishing adventures…
As ever, for your planning pleasure, we’ve downloaded the full auction catalogue and highlighted all the urban fishing options in this feature. If these look good to you, please bid generously to help the Wild Trout Trust keep up their vital work to make rivers and lakes all over the UK and Ireland better places for wild trout and countless other species.
You can also follow the hashtags #WTTauction and #WTTseasonofadventures across social media.
Lots 62 and 63: 2 chances to win a week’s permit for 1 rod on the Town Waters of the River Ness in Inverness, presented by the Inverness Angling Club. This beat runs right through the Scottish Highland capital, and is best fished for salmon with a fly.
Lots 107 and 108: 3 days for 2 rods fishing the waters of Merthyr Tydfil Angling Association, which offers not just the urban upper Taff and the restored Taf Fechan tributary, but also beats on the Tarrell and Usk.
Lots 110 and 111: 2 week-long permits to fish the waters of the Merthyr Tydfil Angling Association, as above. (Could this be your perfect excuse for a fishing holiday in and around the Brecon Beacons?)
Lot 170: Not as urban as some, but still in the heart of Winchester: 1 day’s fishing for 2 rods on the Winchester College water, where Skues, Grey and other flyfishing titans learned their craft.
Lot 208: Wander up the Wandle for the day with pro guide Damon Valentine (aka London Flyfisher). You’ll get all the latest news on the restoration of this inner-city chalkstream – not to mention a chance to meet other Wandle Piscators and hook a trophy dace, chub, barbel or trout somewhere in south London.
Lot 272: 1 day for 1 or 2 rods, fishing for wild trout on the River Tame (or another urban or semi-rural river in Manchester) with Woz Andrew of the Mersey Rivers Trust. The Tame and other rivers in this area are now producing wild urban brown trout in excess of 3lbs and sometimes even 7lbs.
Lot 273: 1 day for 1 or 2 rods, fishing for wild trout on the River Tame near Stalybridge, a stretch of urban river which featured in the launch issue of Fly Culture magazine.
Lot 275: 1 day’s fishing for 1 rod on the River Calder in West Yorkshire with Phillippa Hake, targeting wild urban trout and grayling with simple dry fly and nymph tactics. Phillippa is a rising star for both her fishing and fly-tying abilities, and the Calder is her local river.
Bid early, bid often, and we’ll see you out there for your new season of urban fishing adventures!
How do I get to fish the Tame in Tameside?
Who controls the fishing and how can they be contacted.
Regards David
Hi David – quite a lot of the upper river around Saddleworth is controlled by Saddleworth AS: their website seems to be down at the moment, but there are some contact details here: https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/fishing/fishery-list/462-saddleworth-and-district-angling-society
On the lower river, ‘free fishing’ seems to be allowed by the council, but you might do well to check with Woz Andrew at Mersey Rivers Trust, who’s their officer for that patch and knows it like the back of his hand!