23 July

The extremely hot weather continued but the occasional overcast sky encouraged the trout to rise both at Little Bognor and on the river.

Lakes – The water temperature on most of the lakes rose to 23 degrees, decreasing the dissolved oxygen level, which caused the fish to become lethargic and to stop feeding. The springs at Little Bognor kept the two lakes cooler and the trout continued to feed on buzzers and damsel flies. The fish were rising well in the shade and close to the weed beds.

Members visited the lakes on 18 occasions and caught a total of 14 fish, all from Little Bognor, 13 of the trout were returned.

River – Members visited the river on 31 occasions and caught a total of 20 fish, 3 of which were over 2lbs. The fish came from Beats C and D, Keepers Bridge and Rotherbridge. A sea trout of about 4lbs was caught and a bigger fish lost. Trout were feeding on olives and damsel flies at the surface and shrimps on the bottom of the sandy pools.

The weather forecast is for the hot, dry weather to continue for another two weeks. Early morning and late evening will be the best times to fish the river. Pools close to the shelter of trees or with large beds of streamer weed will be the most productive.