Fly Fishing Sussex

Now taking bookings for fly fishing lessons in readyness for the spring and summer. My 3 hour sessions are designed to get the absolute beginner/improver started and ready to fish right away. All gear supplied. Go on, treat yourself or a friend. Two learners get a discounted rate. Checkout the Booking page for more info, pricing and what to expect from the first lesson. Improvers can also book to hone their skills, learn new tricks, get more distance, casting techniques for windy days or anything you’d like to work on.

When the heat is on and the summer drought continues then one can turn to the salt. There are always plenty of grey mullet in the estuarys. They like to feed in the shallows and margins which can make for some great sight fishing opportunities. And if you can find a regular feeding ground then you’re in for a good chance of a fish or two. Flies that worked this weekend were the jelly shrimp, flexi and sili worm patterns.

Response to a recent session with a couple preparing for their trip to Ireland.

Thanks Howard, A great session the other day. Sarah and I really enjoyed it, learnt a lot. Would be good to have another session on the water closer to the trip hopefully I’ll have some gear by then.

This should be a great event and a chance to try your hand at casting, fly tying and loads more. Check the link below

Father and son preparing for their Scottish salmon fishing trip. For a complete beginner those are pretty impressive loops being thrown there

Thanks for today Howie – nice relaxed style and pace. Aston and I feel more confident in our adventure!  And attached are a couple of pics from today – I will let you know if we get into any salmon ! 
Thanks 
Neil 

What with the Covid restrictions, it’s not looking like I’ll be escaping to warmer climes this winter. So ( plan B ) I just joined one of my local course fishing clubs.  Mainly to open up my wild fishing opportunities and explore some different waters of Sussex.    On expedition 3 – out walking another stretch of my local river took me to a overgrown and challenging section of the upper Adur.  Firstly, I walked the whole stretch as a reccie then dropped in for a cast wherever I could get in.  After a few hours of no bites,  follows or fish movement,  I scrambled down a steep bank to make a final (hero’s) cast downstream to a likely lie.  I mended the line and on my first strip back of the fly all hell broke loose and an almighty scrap began on a piece of river maybe 2m wide.  After heart stopping jumps, powerful runs (this is the fish by the way not me)  a beautiful 14lb pike slid into my net. Took ages for me to stop shaking after an encounter I’ll never forget.  The fly I used was a Flashtail Whistler tied onto about 2m of 25lb fluorocarbon leader and a clear intermediate fly line on my #8 saltwater rod. I find this setup not only stealthy but easier to turnover large, heavy flies. You can find tying instructions on YouTube. Great looking fly and nice to tie. Make it as big as you are able to throw.

Had a quick session on the Adur last night for Mullet. I fished with 2 flies. A Romeys Shrimp on the point and a Mud Shrimp Pattern as a dropper. With lots of Thick Lip Mullet to cast at I soon had a take. After a long hard scrap I landed a nice 3lb fish then hooked but lost another. Interesting, both fish took the Mud Shrimp

Lucky to get this hard fighting fish on the 2nd cast using a Red Tag Shrimp fly. One of Colin Macleods successful patterns for Grey Mullet.