Fly Fishing in England by County
England's best fly fishing is concentrated in a handful of southern counties, mostly on chalk streams fed by the same aquifer that runs from Berkshire down through Wiltshire and Hampshire to the coast. The beats and fisheries listed here cover rivers from the Kennet to the Test, with day tickets across a wide range of budgets and a season that stretches into winter on grayling water. A couple of counties here (Derbyshire, mainly) sit outside the chalk belt entirely, on limestone and freestone rivers with their own character.
Berkshire
Upper Kennet chalk-stream beats — solid fishing, less competition than Hampshire.
Buckinghamshire
The Chilterns chalk streams - the rare, spring-fed Chess and Misbourne.
Derbyshire
Peak District limestone rivers: wild rainbows on the Wye, and the historic Dove.
Devon
Wild brown trout and sea trout on Devon's moorland rivers, the Dart, Taw and Torridge.
Dorset
The Frome and lower Avon, with good grayling and summer sea trout.
Gloucestershire
Cotswold limestone streams, mostly club water, plus Forest of Dean brooks and a small rainbow trout reservoir.
Hampshire
The Test and Itchen, England's most sought-after chalk stream fishing.
Oxfordshire
Farmoor Reservoir on Oxford’s doorstep, and Cotswold-edge streams on the Windrush and Glyme that are members’ water.
Somerset
Big reservoirs at Chew, Blagdon and Wimbleball, Exmoor’s Barle and Exe, and small wild-trout streams run by clubs.
Wiltshire
Quieter chalk-stream country on the Wylye, Avon and upper Kennet.
Worcestershire
Small spring-fed trout lakes at Bransford and Hanley Castle, and wild trout on the Leigh Brook for club members.
Yorkshire
Yorkshire's chalk stream outlier - the most northerly system in Britain.
Not sure where to start?
Explore every beat on the interactive map, or browse the rivers directly.
