Flyfishing on the Upper Severn, in Wales

The Severn rises on Plynlimon, in mid Wales, and flows for 180 miles through Llanidloes, Llandinam, Caersws, Welshpool and Newtown before being joined by the River Vyrnwy and entering England, winding its way past Shrewsbury, Worcester and Gloucester to its wide estuary in the Bristol Channel.

Sue Parker fishing the Severn near Llandinam

Tributaries
The upper Severn has several tributaries that provide good trout fishing; these include the Rhiw, Mule, Tanat, Camlad, Vyrnwy and Clywedog. Grayling have also colonised several of these tributaries, providing good autumn and winter fishing.

Salmon fishing
Most of the salmon fishing is in England, between Worcester and Shrewsbury, and there are still reasonable numbers of spring salmon on this the largest river in England and Wales, but occasionally salmon are caught as far upstream as Caersws, where a single-handed rod is quite adequate. (Incidentally, our introductory Guide to Salmon and Sea Trout Fishing is available online, and of course we recommend it unreservedly if not altogether impartially!) In Wales, however, the Severn is mainly a trout and grayling river and these are the species that we concentrate on.

Trout and grayling fishing
Although great fun, the trout fishing on the upper Severn is eclipsed nowadays by the outstanding opportunities for catching big grayling. We have caught fish to over 2 lbs there and seen a number of fish much larger. It's a great river system for dry-fly fishing, because if the main stem is too high and coloured you can always move on to one of the smaller tributaries and find water clear enough for fish to be able to seek surface food. Much of the river is open and fairly shalow, making it a good place for beginners to practise the art of river fishing. (See also our Beginners' Guide to Trout and Grayling Fishing, available online...)

Pat O'Reilly with a nice grayling from
the Severn at Caersws

An AFTM #4 or #5 rod is ideal for summer fishing, but on the main river in spring and early autumn it is often very windy and an AFTM #6 outfit can be an advantage. Fly hatches are rarely so dense that fish become preoccupied with one insect species, and so a general representation of the prevalent natural insects is usually quite sufficient. The fast-water olives such as Iron Blue (now rather scarce), Large Dark Olive and Medium Olive are the main spring upwinged flies, with Grannom Sedges and summer sedges such as Large Cinnamons providing good sport later in the year. In autumn and winter the rises are mainly to small stoneflies, and so we have great success with a Grey Duster in sizes 16 and 18. (Pat O'Reilly's bestselling illustrated book Matching the Hatch covers all of these aspects.)

What to expect
The upper Severn is a prolific fishery, and in a typical spring or autumn day a competent flyfisher could catch between 5 and 15 sizeable trout in a day. The grayling usually shoal, and so if you find a good-sized pod in autumn it is often possible to catch half a dozen or more (average weight 3/4 lb with the occasional fish over 2 lbs, although fish in a shoal tend to be more or less of the same size, with the larger fish shoaling in smaller numbers) without moving location. Summer fishing can be slow during the day, but unless the wind sweeps files away from the river it is usually possible to catch a few nice trout (1/2 lb is a good average for the adult fish) as the sun is setting.

Angling clubs control most of the upper Severn, and low-cost permits are available from shops/post offices in towns throughout the valley. The Environment Agency has a 1/2 mile stretch downstream of the sewage treatment works near Llanidloes that is free fishing (but you must have a valid rod licence, of course).

Hosted Flyfishing Trips to great rivers in Patagonia...

More Great Rivers...

Download our Flyfishing Courses Brochure here: