£599.00
Hollies Trout Farm and Fishery, like many of the trout fisheries in my part of Devon, is accessed down a steep track into a Devon valley.
Hollies is the nearest trout fishery to where I live, but I've only been fishing there for a couple of months or so. Not sure why, I've know about it for some time, but for some reason didn't get round to fishing it until quite recently.
Of all the waters I fish, Hollies is the smallest. It could take, at most, 7 or 8 anglers, but I've been three times in the past couple of months, and never seen more than 5 anglers there at a time, so its relatively small size isn't a problem.
If you've been following this blog since the beginning, you'll know that I'm still a relatively inexperienced fly angler, so although I've become quite competent at casting and distance isn't really a problem for me these days, I can still remember when it was, and I know that Hollies would probably have been a better place for me to start, as distance casting isn't necessary.
Unlike most fly fisheries, at least in my part of the world, Hollies allows catch and release as well as a range of affordable catch and kill tickets. I'm quite used to returning fish as I've been a coarse angler for many years, so having that option is quite attractive, especially as it means you can have a day's fishing for a lot less money. You can fish entirely catch and release for £20 a day, or you can add catch and release to a catch and kill ticket for an extra £4. The ticket I go for is for two fish at £17 plus £5 for catch and release which is really good value if, like me, you don't want to eat trout every day for a week!
The fish in Hollies are good conditioned rainbows, averaging around 2.5 lbs, with bigger fish in the 5lb to 6lb bracket not uncommon and the lake does hold fish to double figures. There are brown too, I'm told, and the odd smaller fish of up to a pound does come out from time to time.
I've generally found that weighted flies work best, fished from just below the surface to quite deep, and the best patterns for me in the last few weeks have been Gold Head Cats Whiskers and small white Wooly buggers. I've also had a couple of fish on dark Klinkhammers when the fish have been taking off the top.
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On my latest visit this weekend I caught my two fish limit and returned a further three fish. I also missed a few takes, and had a couple come off, so although Hollies isn't an easy water and you have to work for your fish, its not too hard either.
Like most trout fisheries, Hollies fishes best early and late, but you can take fish all through the day if you try a variety of flies and retrieves. I've found if it goes quiet and fish aren't showing, a slow pull near the bottom using and intermediate line will get you a few bites. When the fish are more interested, you can take the odd one off the top with a small dry even quite late in the season.
In all, Hollies is a nice fishery and well worth a visit. Tickets are self-service from a table outside the owner's house so you can just turn up, help yourself to a ticket and start fishing. You'll probably be met by the owner when you arrive though as he seems to be working on some part of the fishery or other most of the time and is happy to stop for a chat about conditions and prospects.
You can find out more about Hollies Trout Farm and Fishery and how to get there at holliestroutfarm.co.uk.
Flies on eBay:
Mike and I arrived at Bratton Water at 8am. We were the first there and had a good look round the lake before fishing.
Mike, the owner, has been busy keeping the lake free of weed, and apart from one large patch between the island and the Club House, the lake was weed free. The water was very clear and we could see lots of Rainbows and some of the large Browns swimming around in groups.
There was a lot of fly life on the water, and the fish were taking off the top, so I started with a size 16 Dark Olive that the fish seemed to like. The fish at Bratton pull hard and punish you if you only have a light hook hold, and that was the case today with three of the first four fish hooked getting off.
Thinking that the hook was a little on the small side, I switched to a size 12 black Klinkhammer and managed to land one out of two hooked before things got quieter and the wind got up, gusting quite hard at times. I usually fish with a 9ft 6in 6/7wt Greys GRXI
, but having seen the threat of strong winds on the Met Office website, I'd also taken along my 9ft 6in 7/8 Weight Greys G Series
and switched to that as I find it helps my casting in a side wind.
With two fish in the bag by 11am, the fishing got harder as they day went on. What little cloud there had been cleared away, and we were fishing in bright sun which made the fish less willing to take off the top, so I tied a Bloodworm Buzzer on a short dropper 'new zealand style' to the bend of the Klinkhammer
and managed one on that, losing a couple more, and ended the day with 3 Rainbows for just under 6lbs. I could easily have had my limit twice over if I'd hooked every take, and landed every fish I hooked.
The average size of the trout at Bratton may be less than other waters nearby, but they make up for that by being in fantastic condition, and fighting well above their weight. These are not fat stockies, they're trout in prime condition. If you're in the area on holiday this year, I'd definitely recommend you add Bratton Water as one of the places you should try.
