YORKSHIRE DALES FLY FISHING

THE RIVER RIBBLE & OTHER YORKSHIRE DALES RIVERS

YORKSHIRE DALES
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River Ribble

River Swale

River Skirfare

River's Bain & Cover

Littondale with the River Skirfare in the valley bottom

Natural fly (mayfly sp.) from a Yorkshire Dales river

A good wild brown trout from a small Yorkshire Dales river - Stuart Minnikin

Rivers on this page include:- River Ribble - River Swale - River Skirfare - River Bain - River Cover

Fly fishing Yorkshire Dales riversThe Yorkshire Dales has many rivers and smaller streams with good fly fishing for trout and grayling. These smaller streams are known across the North of England as Becks, the Viking word for stream. For me, living at the southern end of the Yorkshire Dales near Skipton, the Rivers Nidd, Ure and Wharfe are my main fly fishing rivers, but there are many more within only a short distance. All share similar characteristics of being fast flowing, oxygen rich, rainfed and unpolluted. They all have brown trout in varying numbers and sizes and some have grayling too. These rich waters attract many kinds of flora and fauna and a day spent fly fishing on a Yorkshire Dales river or beck usually results in the sighting of dippers, kingfishers and grey and pied wagtails in or near the water. Away from the water we see curlews, lapwings, kestrels, buzzards, hares, stoats and weasels, etc. But much as these rivers share some of the same characteristics they are all different and all need to be understood; their moods, their fish and their hidden corners. Away from the main 3 rivers the rest tend to get neglected by the fly fisher. A day spent fly fishing on these waters is usually a solitary affair with just the dales sheep to keep you company. There is no more relaxing way to fish than to set off from your car with only your short 3 weight fly rod, box of flies, sandwiches and flask, and flick your fly into each and every inviting lie as you progress, fishing upstream. Then, when the long summers day draws to an end, you know that you have had a fantastic days sport, not only measured in numbers of fish, but the sights, sounds and smells that is fly fishing in the Yorkshire Dales, off the beaten track.

FLY FISHING ON THE RIVER RIBBLE

Fly fishing on the River Ribble, near SettleThe River Ribble is a typical Yorkshire Dales river with a prolific population of brown trout and grayling, and also invertebrates. A days' fly fishing and guiding on the River Ribble in May 2005 saw a constant hatch of flies throughout the day, of which, various species of upwinged flies predominated. The trout and grayling responded as they would and a 2½lb grayling was the highlight of a very good day. I fish the River Ribble in the Settle area, a typical Yorkshire Dales market town with a backdrop of high limestone cliffs and wooded steep sided hills. The River Ribble here is perfectly suited to fly fishing, with fast runs interspersed with long smooth glides where trout and grayling are often to be seen taking surface flies and just waiting to take your well presented dry fly. Downstream of Settle the River Ribble becomes slow and deep, certainly not suited to fly fishing and beyond this it flows out of the Yorkshire Dales and into Lancashire. Obviously the 'Yorkshiremen' of old knew a thing or two and kept the best for themselves when drawing up the county boundaries! Unlike all the other Yorkshire Dales rivers, the River Ribble flows west to the Irish Sea (the others all flow east to the North Sea, via the Yorkshire Ouse). It is for this reason that the River Ribble enjoys a run of sea trout and salmon (the distance to the sea is much shorter going west), but our quarry is the brown trout and grayling. I leave the migratory fish to those that enjoy a day out fly casting!


FLY FISHING ON THE RIVER SWALE

Fly fishing on the River SwaleThe River Swale is reputedly the fastest flowing river in England. I must say I have not found it to be any different to the other Yorkshire Dales rivers. It is also said that it is one of the fastest rising rivers in England and this I can believe having seen it rise at a frightening speed. It appears more rocky than the other rivers in the Yorkshire Dales, which is usually a characteristic of brown trout habitat, but there are grayling in the River Swale in substantial numbers. The River Swale near Catterick, where I have fished regularly, has a good population of coarse fish and I was once fortunate to catch a 4½lb barbel on a Czech Nymph. Totally by accident I must admit; I actually thought that my flies were snagged on the bottom for some time, before it awoke! The River Swale is about as big as the River Ure or River Wharfe in this area and is suitable for most methods of fly fishing. I have had most success when fishing dry flies and Czech Nymphs depending on the conditions.


FLY FISHING ON THE RIVER SKIRFARE

The River Skirfare is the main tributary of the River Wharfe in Upper Wharfedale. It joins the River Wharfe between Kilnsey and Kettlewell and nearly doubles the size of the main river at this point. The River Skirfare has its source in Three Peaks country and flows through Littondale on its way to meet the River Wharfe. It runs very clear unless there has been recent rain and holds a good head of wild brown trout. The fly fishing on the River Skirfare is not for the angler who wants easy fishing or for those who measure their success by the numbers of fish caught. These are some of the most difficult trout you will find anywhere, extracting them requires a high degree of fly fishing skill and stealth. There are good sized brown trout in the River Skirfare and they have a tendency to hug the banks. Fly fishing here is mainly dry fly, to fish observed rising to naturals; fishing the water generally results in spooked trout that spook the next trout and so on. The scenery here, like so many other places in the Yorkshire Dales, is nothing short of magnificent. Again green fields are interspersed with limestone rocks, dry stone walls and stone barns. The sheep outnumber people quite easily and buzzards ride the updraft above the valley sides.


FLY FISHING ON THE RIVER BAIN

The River Bain is a tributary of the River Ure, which it joins at Bainbridge in Upper Wensleydale. Its main claim to fame is that it is the shortest river in England. It flows only 2 miles from Semerwater down to the River Ure, but it provides delightful fly fishing for wild brown trout that rise feely to your fly. A day's fly fishing on the River Bain is best split in two; between the lower river (from the confluence with the Ure up to the village), and the upper river (from just above the village to Semerwater). The fishing is good fishing both upstream and downstream of Bainbridge, however, the river that leaves Semerwater is very canal like and doesn't offer very good fly fishing for quite some distance downstream, until the gradient increases and the water becomes more broken and faster flowing.

 

 

FLY FISHING ON THE RIVER COVER

The River Cover is another tributary of River Ure in Wensleydale which joins the main river at Cover Bridge, between the villages of Middleham and East Witton. It is another small stream filled with wild brown trout which are generally on the small side, but these fish are truly wild and size does not matter one bit. They are a delight to look at and they generally rise freely to dry flies. The River Cover also contains grayling which grow to quite large sizes. My first ever River Cover grayling was an 18 inch specimen! A day fly fishing on the River Cover is a cure for the stresses of every day life.

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