Fabulous Nymphing

Kieron Jenkins highlights the effectiveness of the FAB for stillwater nymph fishing at Eglwys Nunydd

- Kieron Jenkins

When it comes to reservoir trout fishing through the height of the summer months, nymphing can be one of the most exciting and often visual ways of fishing when the fish are up in the water. Water temperatures are usually high and the fish don’t want to exert much energy to feed. On some venues they can be out of condition, sluggish and lethargic when hooked, so fishing a method slowly and in the correct zone will increase your chances of success.

Nymphing, in my eyes, is one of the most productive ways of fishing on almost any water you can fish. When stocked fish go off the lures or there are lots of resident fish around, you can’t beat holding onto a team of nymphs and almost getting the rod ripped out of your hand!

Eglwys Nunydd Reservoir

A good friend of mine, Chris Jones, called me up one afternoon asking if I fancied the evening at Eglwys Nunydd Reservoir, South Wales. As it happens, I was free and we arranged to meet up around 3pm.

If I’m honest, upon arrival, the conditions weren’t favourable, but reports on the TATA Angling Facebook page described some great top-of the-water fishing, so it was certainly worth a shot.

Eglwys is primarily an early spring through mid-summer fishery – the 260-acre lake has an average depth of just 12 feet and the deepest water only 18 feet – and the water can heat up very, very quickly. The TATA Angling Club, which runs the reservoir, has got the stocking policy down to a fine art. Stocking before and throughout the prime fishing times and then stopping before the water warms up too much, hopefully maximising the angling throughout the best part of the season. Over the past few years this system has seemed to work extremely well, with truly outstanding fish quality and angling to be enjoyed.