Regular Urbantrout readers will probably recognise the city of Winchester as one of our favourite beats: this stretch of the Itchen was already a post-industrial river when Frederic Halford and his fellow grandees of the Flyfishers’ Club held their annual Mayfly Mess at the Royal Hotel in the Victorian era, and we always like to think a little historical vertigo puts everything in the proper perspective…

Fully immersed in both ancient and modern urban fly-fishing traditions, Rich Baker fished Winchester again at the end of last week and sent us this typically intrepid report from the Old Barge and Alfred’s Brooks:

When I got to the Itchen Navigation on Thursday night it was still carrying a touch of colour (presumably because of the June weed cut) but otherwise in fantastic shape. Good water levels, and still the odd mayfly about. 

Fishing the 10’ Marryat with a French leader and #18 PTN I accounted for 4 trout and 1 grayling, and also lost a bigger fish. After that I moved further down a little carrier and landed another 2 trout before the best part of the trip happened: a deer came bounding across the fields, and crossed through the river not 10 metres away from me. We couldn’t have been more than half a mile from the city walls! It stood stock still as it sized me up. I didn’t move, then it bolted. Lovely to be so close to one (oh for a rifle and an elevated position!) 

After this highlight I moved to Durngate and walked down the river alongside the Willow Tree pub. At the bottom of their beer garden, two carriers converge and flow under the road and into that little council estate. Peering over the wall I could see 2 good trout clearly nymphing: one 2.5-3lbs and one about 1.5lbs. I scaled the wall, and made a cast at the smaller fish. 

He took straight away and surged upstream, I crashed forward through the undergrowth and sat down on the side of the bank, net in hand to land him. It was then I noticed the first sting! Within seconds I was attacked by a horde of wasps. I’d clearly sat on their nest. Such was the quantity of them I had to throw the rod in, drop the net and hurl myself into the river. Wallowing downstream and under the bridge I finally got away from them, and it was then that the rod floated past me. In agony I picked it up and duly landed the trout! Lovely fish (sorry no pic!) 

Retrieving my net I called it a night, got back to the car and headed home. By Four Marks, though, all was not well – throat swelling up, rash all over, arms like Popeye etc. Bad times. Eventually I pulled over at a petrol station and called an ambulance which came and sorted me out. I’m still scratching as I write this! 

For a full and authoritative account of Winchester’s rich fly-fishing history, we highly recommend Tony Hayter’s FM Halford and the Dry Fly Revolution.

Meanwhile, if you’re using Trout in Dirty Places as your guide to exploring our wealth of urban rivers this season, contact us afterwards and let us know how you got on!

(All photos: Rich Baker)

Tags: Fly-fishing, Grayling, Itchen, Trout, Trout in Dirty Places, Urban fishing, Urban fly-fishing reports, Winchester