The River Beckons

The Wild Trout Trust's annual auction provides a lovely way to experience 'once in a lifetime' days on far off, private waters.

I joined Bjorn Annegarn for a day's fishing on a carrier of the Itchen, in the last week of May.

This is a report of my visit to an intimate and very private chalkstream barely outside Greater London, in the county of Hertfordshire.

Contents: - Similarities between fishing and gardening - A secret Hertfordshire chalkstream - The Itchen in a heatwave - Fishing report from Northern Italy - An author faded from view - Carp on a fly (baiting the water with bread, you say?)

Contents: - April fishing - Snakes alive!

A diary of my visits to my club's section of river, somewhere in deepest, darkest Sussex.

What a delight it is to see a river for the first time after a winter.

Contents: - Last minute preparations for the season in Sussex - Friends plan out the Season ahead - Nick Moody's exquisite photos of high altitude lake fishing in New Zealand - Sad news about Robin Armstrong - An 'angling free for all' and case of mistaken

Contents: - weather blues - reflections on the British Fly Fishing International - Graham Stevenson's art - cataloguing a fly fishing book collection - John Waller Hills and "A Summer on the Test" - Dirt Road Wild Trout Festival goes ahead - Fishing aucti…

Contents: - anticipating the new season - a fly angler's perspective of carp fishing - Arthur Ransome - remembering Tony Biggs and his special fly, the RAB - a friend relocates to find a secret stream - the demise of Tom Morgan Rodsmiths - Wild Trout Trust

The Risle seemed every bit the equal of England’s finest chalkstreams, so when our host offered to arrange a day’s fishing on an upstream beat, I leapt at the chance.

Ask any angler about favourite fly fishing books and Charles Ritz’s ‘A Fly Fisher’s Life’ will feature prominently.

The upper Itchen was in fine fettle yesterday.

I recently had the pleasure of fishing the River Wye at West Wycombe Park.

A tall, solitary pine tree grew beside the lake.

Arthur Wellesley, the 1st Duke of Wellington, returned to England a hero after defeating Napolean at Waterloo.

Nooitgedacht Trout Lodge nestled in the valley below It took longer than expected to drive from Swaziland to the trout belt in Mpumalanga, thanks in most part to South Africa's deteriorating roads.

I went to Norfolk this month to fish a chalkstream.

If I won the lottery, it would be a coin toss between upping sticks to a village in Hampshire or Dorset.

Last season was the first since I have fished the chalkstreams that I heard people complain there was too much water.

We arrived today at our holiday cottage beside the upper reaches of the River Piddle, a chalkstream in the rustic Dorset of Thomas Hardy.

To mark the opening of each fishing season I take my family for a picnic lunch beside the same secret and free to fish river.

A diary of my visits to my club's section of river, somewhere in deepest, darkest Sussex.

I had the pleasure of fishing this intimate chalkstream for the first time with Bjorn.

I had last fished with my brother, Bryce, almost nine years ago.