Hampshire Avon
West Amesbury Fishery
West Amesbury Fishery is a fishing beat on the Hampshire Avon. Club members only. Members can sign a guest in, so an introduction is the usual way on.
How to book
Fishing details
West Amesbury Fishery at a glance
- Rods
- –
- Difficulty
- Adventurer (3/5)
- Length
- 2 miles
- Water type
- chalk stream
Fishing methods
Fly methods
Two miles of the Hampshire Avon below Amesbury, seven miles north of Salisbury and two from Stonehenge, with double bank fishing over much of its length and single bank on the rest. This is the club’s best known game water and the one it has worked hardest on. A 500 metre section below Queensberry Bridge was restored with the Wild Trout Trust, the Environment Agency and the Game Conservancy, followed by further work below South Mill in 2010 and below Ham Hatches to Allenbury Bridge in 2011.
The result is a river that now carries thriving wild trout and grayling and very healthy invertebrate life, and the club has cut stocking right back on the strength of it. Most fish caught here are wild browns and grayling, and most members return them, though a stocked fish may still be taken. The stretch has real variety, from open meadow to wooded sections, deep pools and fast riffles.
The fly life is the reason to come. Mayfly hatches are spectacular, and summer evenings bring blue winged olive spinners in numbers worth sitting out for. The water opens on 1 April and runs to 15 October for trout, then reopens for grayling from 16 October to the end of December. Partial wading is allowed where marked.
Stocking and fish species
Rules and policies
Fishing rules for West Amesbury Fishery
Upstream dry fly only from 1 April to 30 June. Upstream dry fly and nymph from 1 July, to chalk stream etiquette. Grayling from 16 October to 31 December. Partial wading where indicated. No dogs. Adult members may bring one non-fishing companion; junior members may be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Members may buy guest day tickets.
Where West Amesbury Fishery is
The beat's boundary, with parking where we have it.
51.16995, -1.79270
The river
River
Formed by two headwaters rising in the Vale of Pewsey, the Hampshire Avon merges near Upavon and flows south for 60 miles across Salisbury Plain, passing through Durrington, Amesbury and Salisbury before crossing into Hampshire and running through Fordingbridge and Ringwood to empty into Christchurch Harbour. The East…
Flies for this beat
Expected in October on the Hampshire Avon
Typical months from the river’s hatch calendar, which applies along its whole length rather than to this beat. Not a live report.
Caperer
Sedge · #10-12
Kite's Imperial
Dry fly · #14-16
Daddy Long Legs
Terrestrial · #10-12
Sawyer's Killer Bug
Nymph · #12-16
The year ahead
Full calendarEvery hatch on the Hampshire Avon and the months it usually runs.
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Similar beats on the Hampshire Avon
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FAQ
West Amesbury Fishery FAQs
Practical questions anglers ask before fishing West Amesbury Fishery, from tickets to tactics.
