In our opinion, Ullswater is the jewel in the crown that we call ‘The English Lake District.’ Surrounded by stunning scenery, this beautiful lake is one of England’s best wild brown trout fisheries.
Lake Ullswater
The average size of the fish is 10 - 12 inches and the lake will produce sport throughout the season. Given the right conditions, mid-March to mid-June is the peak period with a light ripple and cloudy skies being the perfect combination for a good day’s fishing.
Early in the season the trout are predominately bottom feeders concentrating on food forms such as cased caddis and hoglouse but they are free rising and you will pull them to the surface with a team of flies fished either traditional loch style or pulled through the wave with floating or intermediate lines.
Getting Ready
Setting Off
There are very good hatches of buzzer from April onwards and small buzzer patterns or spiders on fine leaders can be very effective.
Ullswater gets sporadic hatches of Mayfly (ephemera danica) from mid May and although this is nothing like the fantastic hatches of the Irish loughs, the trout turn on to them as numbers increase towards the end of the month and into June, offering great sport to mayfly imitations fished either wet or dry.
Fishing the lake is free to Environment Agency licence holders, you can fish from the shore but this is slightly restrictive as much of the foreshore is private although there are a number of good areas off the A592 between Glenridding and Pooley Bridge (If wading please beware as there are steep drop offs quite close to the shoreline in many places), the best way to access the lake is from a boat, Jared Smith at St Patrick’s Boat Landing, Glenridding, Tel. 01768 482393 has two fishing boats with engines for hire or guided fishing is available from ‘The Eden Angler’.
What I Caught
Note: There is no bag limit on this lake – at John Norris we care about the fish and their future so therefore we would urge you to either practice catch and release or set yourself a sensible bag limit.
Thanks to Geoff Johnstone ‘The Eden Angler’ for this article.
If you’d like to share your own fishing tackle hints and tips, we’d love to hear from you. Why not email us at: flyfishingtips@johnnorris.co.uk.
[...] Aira Force car park due to freezing fog patches on the motorway, possible ice patches over Shap…Lake Ullswater for Fishing | Fly Fishing and Shooting …In our opinion, Ullswater is the jewel in the crown that we call ‘The English Lake District.’ [...]
great post as usual!
High,
Great to read your article,i am going to Pooley Bridge at the end of july for 2 weeks holiday and have decided to try my hand at fly fishing on Ullswater,i have booked a few lessons before i leave as i am new to this type of fishing,but i thought i would give it a go as i am there for a fortnight camping.
I am into all types of fishing but my love is carp fishing and there is not much of that up there so thats the reason why i am going to try the fly fishing.
Any tips or advice you can give me would be much appreciated,
Regards,
Tom Bowe.
Pleased to hear you are coming to our part of the world.
Fly fishing on Lake Ullswater is free of charge you will only need a Rod Licence.
A 9-9′6″ fly rod rated either 5 or 6 would be the best rod to use and you will only need a floating fly line with 3-4lb leaders.
The best flies for fishing the lake are our Geoff Johnston Ullswater range or Hackled wet flies in black such as a Black Pennel, Bibio, Kate Maclearn and Black spiders.
You will find fishing early mornings or last thing at night the best fishing times and also the best time for rising Trout when you will need some Dry flies. The best dry fly patterns are Klinkhammers in black or tan, black parachutes and Adams.
The river Eamont runs through Pooley Bridge and is controlled by Penrith Angling Association, you can get day tickets from the post office in Pooley Bridge if you want to fish the river.
Our Shop is only 5 miles from Pooley Bridge so please come and visit us we can give you the exact low down on how it is fishing.
Tight lines
James Norris
Hi,
James thank you for the information,will be sure to visit your shop and take away
more help full tips on my visit,got my first lesson next sunday at my local fishery so
i will hopefully know what iam doing when i arrive and catch some decent fish,
Regards,
Tom Bowe.
I will be in the Lakes in early April and plan to fish Ullswater. I understand its free but wanted to double check if there is any closed season on the lake. Also do you have any recomendations for suitable early season flies ?
Thanks for your help.
Hi Peter,
Thanks for getting in touch.
Ullswater opens on the 15th March until the end of September it is free fishing except if you want to hire a boat.
You will get better results fishing from a boat as you can cover more water.
The Trout on Ullswater feed in the shallows so don’t bother with the deep water.
Flies for Ullswater Bibio, Black Pennel, Kate Maclaren, Ullswater Golden olive and orange, Pheasant tail and Hares Ear all in size 14 and 12.
Leaders in 9-12ft and no heavier than 3lb.
A rod of between 9-10ft with a line size 5 or 6 would be best.
If this is anything else we can help with just let us know.
[...] has also written a great article about fishing Lake Ullswater near Pooley Bridge. Geoff is also an AAPGAI (Association of Advanced Professional Game Angling [...]
Hi, I am coming up to ullswater next week to do some fishing. I have fished this lake before but just from the lake side. I would like to hire a boat for a day but don’t know where to hire one from. Could someone please give me some information on where I could hire one and around about how much it will cost? I only want a boat big enough for 3 people with a small engine on the back. Thanks.
Thanks for contacting us.
Unfortunately we are unsure of the exact prices but here are some phone numbers which may be of use to you -
Ullswater Boat Hire
Small motor boats (maximum speed 10 mph) and rowing boats can be hired on hourly, half day and whole day rates from : -
St Patrick’s Boat Landings, Glenridding 017684 82393, or
Nick Grundy at Ullswater Marine, Watermillock (017684 86415, or
Lakeland Boat Hire at Pooley Bridge (077736 71399)
Hi there, hoping you can help.
I am a novice fly fisher and am coming to Ullswater at the end of July, and am keen to try the fishing there.
I have a 9′6 rod with 6 floating line - firstly is that going to be okay?
What are the best flies to be using?
Best method - as I am new to this I generally fish using a single fly, but have tried a couple of times to use the ‘washin line’ technique - what would you suggest.
Thanks in advance,
Jason
Hello Jason,
Pleased to hear you are coming to fish Ullswater in July.
Your 9’ 6” rod with a floating 6 line will be perfect. The best flies for fishing the lake are our Geoff Johnston Ullswater range or Hackled wet flies in black such as a Black Pennel, Bibio, Kate Mclaren and Black spiders.
You will find fishing early mornings or last thing at night the best fishing times and also the best time for rising Trout when you will need some Dry flies. The best dry fly patterns are Klinkhammers in black or tan, black parachutes and Adams.
I would use a floating line, with one or two flies and a slow retrieve for the best chances of a take. The best area to fish is the shallow water, where the fish come in to feed.
If you get a chance, pop into the shop and we can give you the latest fishing info.
Tight lines
Hi All,
I’m a novice fly fisherman,was hoping to fish on Ullswater lake over Christmas and New Year 2011,but im not sure whether its open for fishing..can anybody help..?
Thanks for your email. I am sure you are looking forward to your break at Christmas. On Ullswater you can fish for Eels and Perch only, during this period. However if you want to fish for trout we would suggest either Bessy Beck at Tebay (http://www.bessybecktrout.co.uk), New Mills Fishery at Brampton (http://www.newmillstroutfarm.net) or Farltonview (http://www.farletonviewfisheries.co.uk). I have given the details of their websites so you can look them up.
We are open over Christmas, we only close on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years Day so please come in and say hello and we will give you the latest info.
Tightlines