Wessex
Chew Valley Lake, just south of Bristol, is currently the most famous stretch of water in English fishing — in February 2024, Lloyd Watson landed a 47lb 5oz pike here that was confirmed by the British Record Fish Committee as the new British record, beating a mark that had stood since 1992. That single catch capped what Bristol Water, who manage the reservoir, called a "fantastic couple of years" for the lake, with several 30lb and 40lb pike also landed in the preceding months.
Chew is also one of the country's best put-and-take rainbow trout fisheries in its own right (lake records: 22lb 7oz brown trout, 14lb 9oz rainbow), with nearby Blagdon Lake offering more of the same. Away from the reservoirs, the Bristol Avon and the Somerset drains give this region a genuinely different, slower-paced coarse fishing character.
Reservoirs
Chew Valley Lake
1,200 acres, the sixth-largest artificial lake in the UK, opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1956. Home to the current British record pike (47lb 5oz, February 2024) — pike fishing is limited to 41 days a year and by boat only in February and October. Also excellent rainbow and brown trout, fished fly-only, season mid-March to end November.
Pike · TroutBlagdon Lake
A sister Bristol Water reservoir nearby, used alongside Chew for major fly fishing competitions including the Cortland Team Championships — strong rainbow and brown trout fishing.
TroutRivers
Bristol Avon
A genuine mixed coarse fishery, also rated among the better pike waters in the wider Bristol area, alongside the Bristol docks (free fishing) and Cheddar Reservoir.
Pike · CoarseRiver Chew
Rises at Chewton Mendip and joins the Bristol Avon at Keynsham, feeding and draining Chew Valley Lake along the way. Mainly a coarse fishery — roach, tench, rudd, perch and pike.
CoarseSomerset Levels & drains
The flat drainage channels south of the Mendips hold plenty of pike and a good general mix of coarse species, in a distinctly different, slower-paced setting to the reservoirs.
Pike · CoarseElvers
Severn Estuary elver fishing
The Severn Estuary, on Wessex's northern edge, has one of Britain's oldest surviving eel-fishing traditions — glass eels ("elvers") are still caught at night on spring tides between Tewkesbury and Rodley using fine-mesh hand nets, a practice families describe as passed down through generations. It's tightly regulated today: anglers need Environment Agency authorisation and a tagged net, and a portion of the catch must be relocated upstream to support conservation.
ElversGeneral guide only — Chew Valley Lake and Blagdon are managed by Bristol Water with their own permit system, pike fishing restricted to specific dates, and public access limited to permit holders on most of the shoreline. Always confirm current permits, season dates and rules directly before fishing.
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