Bowland Game Fishing Association

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Welcome to the web site of Bowland Game-Fishing Association

BGFA is Lancashire`s premier Association offering fly-fishing for brown and rainbow trout, grayling with salmon and sea trout providing excellent sport from mid-summer onwards. Runs of sea trout usually arrive in North Western rivers from the end of June; salmon tend to run later with July, August, September and October the best months.

Spinning for migratory fish is allowed on most beats on a height of water. The club controls extensive river fishing throughout Lancashire, Yorkshire, Cumbria and the Scottish Borders with excellent fly fishing on the Aire ,Liddel and multiple beats on the Ribble, Hodder, Lune, and 'the queen of fly-fishing rivers', the Cumbrian Derwent. We are fortunate in that many of our waters are in areas of outstanding natural beauty – the Forest of Bowland, the Lake District National Park, the Ribble and Lune valleys and the Yorkshire Dales.

There`s more to fishing than catching fish

Snow on Cumbrian Fells Sunset in the Hodder Valley

River Lune at Arkholme acquired 2018

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Ladies`Day

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Still water fishing for rainbows and brown trout is available on the Club`s well-stocked reservoir

We try to encourage youngsters

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For some of our members, particularly in the winter months, the grayling proves a popular quarry with both the Ribble and Hodder holding good numbers of this often neglected fish. With the exception of the Aire, all our waters hold coarse fish which can provide a good excuse for a walk along the banks in winter.

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Membership

The Association has an active fishing membership of approximately 140. Fishing pressure is light with restrictions as to the number of rods applying on some beats. Interested in membership and fly fishing, click onto Membership.

No matter whether you prefer the challenge of small stream fishing for big, wild brownies, still- water fishing for rainbows, the magic of the sea trout, the pursuit of 'the queen of the river', the grayling, or 'the king of fish', the salmon, there is something for you and ...........

you will always find a welcome from the members.

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Extract from a new member` Diary

This extract was submitted by a new member to the Membership Secretary in 2021 at the end of his probationary year. It has to be said that this angler is an extremely dedicated and skilled trout angler.

I would have to begin my review by saying it’s been the worst trout season that I have ever experienced, by some distance! But then, just about every angler in the country would probably say the same thing, due to months of drought, following on from a very cold spring. It was certainly nothing to do with the club’s waters, which, as I write this in late November, I am very much looking forward to fishing again in 2022. I started fishing as a BGFA member towards the end of January and fished the River Hodder exclusively until the start of the trout season .What a beautiful and exciting river it turned out to be. I probably didn’t catch the numbers of grayling that I expected, and no specimens, but I do feel as though it is going to take a lot of work to discover where they like to lie. It must also be said that I found wading the Hodder to be perilous to put it mildly! I left the Hodder alone until August when it received some much needed rainfall and I was fortunate enough to land a 4lb 9oz brown trout. I thought I’d hooked a grilse or sea trout and it put up a hell of a scrap, but it eventually succumbed and turned out to be a well mended stockie, much to my disappointment.

I fished the River Lune regularly throughout the spring and struggled as you usually do on the Lune I endured driven hail and freezing temperatures, as well as bright sun and ‘perfect’ conditions. One of the highlights of my season was catching a 4lb 2oz trout from BGFA`s Upper beat that was feeding on LDO’s. It was a very difficult fish to approach in low water and bright sun, that was only rising sporadically After crawling into position I eventually lost patience and cast in his general direction - he immediately took my fly and after a few scary moments I landed a very memorable fish. I had also had 3lb plus trout from Arkholme but I have yet to break my duck at the Lower beat (I’ve walked it with my rod a few times but I’m yet to have a cast at a fish). The River Lune is a very tough, unforgiving, river, but one that I am very fond of. I have found the 3 BGFA beats to be perfectly varied, offering almost small stream fishing to big river trouting. They provide fishing in a wide variety of conditions and I look forward to ‘sparring’ with the Lune trout again in 2022! I should also report that I witnessed a March Brown hatch at Low Gill on 26/3/21 - this is the first time this species has been recorded from the River Lune.

After much anticipation I fished the River Aire on opening day and was rewarded with a good trout of 1¾lb on a nymph. After that I struggled, even when conditions looked good. I often walked the lower beat without making a cast. I had a couple of better days, landing a few small trout and it finally came good on the penultimate day of the 2021 trout season, when I landed a 2lb 6oz trout.

Other than this last trip of the season I never really hit the Aire when it was at the ‘right’ height. I am looking forward to fishing the River Aire in 2022 when hopefully we will get much better conditions.

I had a single trip to the River Derwent and I must say a very big thank you to David . He met me and my guest and gave us a guided tour of the river, showed us the access points, pointed out the pools and generally made us feel very welcome and was a huge help. It was a very different river to what I expected. It is surprisingly powerful and deep, and not particularly easy to fish for trout. We had some excellent fishing though and caught some very tricky trout that were eating ascending Yellow Sally Stoneflies… they wouldn’t look at a dry fly despite it looking for all the world like they were taking off the top. The only way to catch them was by using the lightest nymph we could find, suspended a few inches down on a greased leader. This was something neither of us has come across before. It’s a long drive to the Derwent for me, but I do intend fishing there at least once a season as it is quite unique fishing in this country.

I haven’t fished the Ribble as much as I would have liked despite it being my closest river and being given an excellent guided tour by my mentor, Chris . I put this down to the drought throughout the summer when I was expecting to fish the Ribble. Hopefully I can get there a few more times in 2022. I must also mention and thank my mentor Chris. For various reasons, including Chris having Covid a couple of times and my work commitments, we haven’t actually fished together. He did show me around the River Ribble and we have spoken on the phone a number of times when I have picked his brains for advice about the BGFA fishing. He has been a great help in my probationary year, always at the other end of the phone when I needed advice. I will hope to be able to continue asking him for advice and hopefully we will fish together in 2022 and beyond.

So to summarise, my first season as a BGFA member has been very pleasurable. Despite the poor conditions throughout most of the season I have enjoyed exploring new waters and I have caught some great fish. I feel that I have only scratched the surface to date and I’ve much to discover and learn. I can also say that BGFA is the friendliest club I have ever been a member of. From my initial Zoom interview to meeting members on the bank, my many phone calls to various club officials to helping out at a working party on the Lune; everyone has been so friendly, helpful and welcoming. I like the vibe and the feeling of inclusion within the club, to the point where it does actually feel that you are a member of a club, not just another number or member of an association. I have really appreciated that club officials, including the chairman, have taken the time and interest to contact me on numerous occasions to check that I was enjoying my membership, that everything was OK and that I didn’t have any problems.

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