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River Bend

  • Fish Species
    • Predators

      Pike Perch Zander Wels Catfish Eels All predators →

      Coarse Fish

      Roach Bream Tench Barbel Chub Dace Rudd All coarse species →

      Carp

      Common Carp Mirror Carp Crucian Carp Ghost Carp Grass Carp Leather Carp All carp →

      Game Fish

      Brown Trout Rainbow Trout Sea Trout Atlantic Salmon Grayling All game fish →

      Sea Fish

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  • Techniques
    • Coarse Methods

      Float Fishing for Beginners Feeder Fishing Guide Method Feeder Fishing Pole Fishing for Beginners Match Fishing for Beginners All coarse methods →

      Carp Fishing

      Boilies Guide Carp Surface Fishing Margin Fishing for Carp Zig Rig Fishing Winter Carp Fishing All carp methods →

      Predator and Lure

      Lure Fishing for Pike Lure Fishing for Zander Pike Deadbaiting Spinning for Perch Drop Shot Fishing for Perch All predator methods →

      Fly and Game

      Fly Fishing for Trout (Beginners)

      Species Tactics

      Barbel Fishing Tactics Dace Fishing Tactics Stalking Chub Tench Fishing Tactics Mackerel Fishing Guide
  • Bait
    • Natural Baits

      Maggots and Casters Worms Bread Luncheon Meat Sweetcorn

      Particles and Boilies

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      Attractants and Best Baits

      Fish Oils and Attractants Artificial and Imitation Baits Best Bait for Pike Best Bait for Tench Best Bait for Bream All bait guides →
  • Gear
    • Rods

      Choosing a Fishing Rod Buying Your First Rod Rod Test Curves Explained Top 10 Carp Rods Top 10 Coarse Rods Top 10 Trout Rods Top 10 Sea Rods

      Reels and Line

      Fishing Reel Types Explained Top 10 Spinning Reels Top 10 Baitcaster Reels Fishing Line Guide

      Terminal Tackle

      Fishing Hooks Explained Fishing Hook Sizes Fishing Leads and Weights Terminal Tackle Guide Fishing Floats Explained

      Lures, Nets and Kit

      Types of Fishing Lures Landing Nets Guide Top 10 Landing Nets Top 10 Carp Bivvies Best Fishing Baits PowerBait for Trout All gear and tackle →
  • Knots
    • Essential Knots

      Palomar Knot Improved Clinch Knot Grinner Knot (Uni Knot) Blood Knot

      Carp Rigs

      Knotless Knot Hair Rig Carp Rigs Overview
  • Locations
    • Rivers

      River Severn River Trent River Wye River Thames Hampshire Avon All rivers →

      Lakes and Reservoirs

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      Canals

      Grand Union Canal Shropshire Union Canal Canal Fishing for Beginners All canals →

      By Region

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  • Rules and Law
    • Licences

      Do You Need a Fishing Licence? Do Children Need a Fishing Licence?

      Close Seasons

      Coarse Fishing Close Season Freshwater Fishing Regulations

      Catch Rules

      Minimum Size Limits Barbless Hooks Rules Night Fishing Rules

      Other Rules

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  • From the Bank
    • Getting Started

      First Fishing Session Checklist Fishing Etiquette Getting Started with Lure Fishing

      Water Reading

      How to Read a River How to Read a Lake

      Tactics and Tips

      Seasonal Fishing Guide How Weather Affects Fishing Overnight Carp Fishing Unhooking and Handling Fish Safely

      Blog

      Why I Stopped Fishing Boilies Reading Water: 20 Years of Pike Fishing Why I Switched From Bait to Lures All blog posts →
  • Start Here
    • Getting Started

      First Fishing Session Checklist Fishing Etiquette Getting Started with Lure Fishing

      Water Reading

      How to Read a River How to Read a Lake

      Tactics and Tips

      Seasonal Fishing Guide How Weather Affects Fishing Overnight Carp Fishing Unhooking and Handling Fish Safely

      Blog

      Why I Stopped Fishing Boilies Reading Water: 20 Years of Pike Fishing Why I Switched From Bait to Lures All blog posts →

Avatar photoSarah Marsh

Sarah Marsh came to fly fishing through her father, who kept a rod on a small syndicate water in Devon. She spent her teens fishing stocked reservoirs and gradually worked her way toward wild fish on moving water - first on rain-fed freestone rivers in Wales, then on the Hampshire chalk streams she now considers home water. She holds a level 2 APGAI fly casting qualification and guides informally on the River Test and, from June to September, on a private beat on the River Tay for Atlantic salmon. Her personal best brown trout came from the Itchen at 4lb 1oz; she'd sooner not talk about the salmon that came off at the net last August. At The River Bend, Sarah writes the game fish species guides, fly fishing technique articles, and the legal content covering trout and salmon regulations. Covers: Brown trout, rainbow trout, sea trout, Atlantic salmon, fly fishing, chalk streams, Scottish rivers, close season and regulation articles

Why I Started Spinning for Trout Instead of Always Reaching for a Fly Rod

August 21, 2026July 27, 2026 by Sarah Marsh

Fly fishing is my first love, but spinning has genuinely earned its place in my trout fishing on the right water and the right day.

Categories Techniques

The Trout Rods I’d Actually Recommend (Not Just What’s Popular)

August 21, 2026July 21, 2026 by Sarah Marsh

Ten trout rods I’ve genuinely fished with or watched clients use, ranked by what they’re actually good for rather than brand hype.

Categories Gear

Talybont Reservoir Trout Fishing Guide: Wild Brown Trout in a Wooded Valley

August 21, 2026July 20, 2026 by Sarah Marsh

Talybont Reservoir in the Brecon Beacons is a fly-only, bank-fishing-only wild brown trout water set in a steep, heavily wooded valley – one of the most atmospheric trout fisheries in South Wales.

Categories Locations

Usk Reservoir Trout Fishing Guide: Brecon Beacons Upland Water

August 21, 2026July 19, 2026 by Sarah Marsh

Usk Reservoir near Trecastle is a 280-acre upland Brecon Beacons water regarded as one of the best stillwater trout fisheries in Wales, with fly, spinning, and worm fishing permitted on much of the water.

Categories Locations

Llandegfedd Lake Trout Fishing Guide: South Wales’ Most Accessible Reservoir

August 21, 2026July 18, 2026 by Sarah Marsh

Just twenty miles from Cardiff on the Monmouthshire/Torfaen border, Llandegfedd is a Welsh Water reservoir stocked regularly with rainbow trout and holding wild browns too.

Categories Locations

Trout Fishing in South Wales: The Best Lakes and Reservoirs

August 21, 2026July 17, 2026 by Sarah Marsh

A guide to South Wales’ best trout fishing lakes and reservoirs, from the accessible Llandegfedd Lake near Cardiff to the wild Brecon Beacons waters of Usk and Talybont.

Categories Locations

Lake Vyrnwy Trout Fishing Guide: Loch-Style Boat Fishing on the Powys Border

August 21, 2026July 16, 2026 by Sarah Marsh

Lake Vyrnwy on the Powys/Shropshire border is known for its abundant wild brown trout, fished loch-style from a fleet of boats rather than from the bank.

Categories Locations

Elan Valley Trout Fishing Guide: Wild Brown Trout in the Cambrian Mountains

August 21, 2026July 15, 2026 by Sarah Marsh

The Elan Valley reservoirs near Rhayader offer 35km of fly-only shoreline across four dramatic reservoirs, with a full visitor centre and genuinely wild brown trout fishing.

Categories Locations

Llyn Clywedog Trout Fishing Guide: Mid Wales’ Hard-Fighting Reservoir

August 21, 2026July 14, 2026 by Sarah Marsh

Llyn Clywedog near Llanidloes is a 615-acre reservoir stocked with tens of thousands of trout each season, known for hard-fighting fish and a modern angler-focused lodge.

Categories Locations

Trout Fishing in Mid Wales: The Best Lakes and Reservoirs

August 21, 2026July 13, 2026 by Sarah Marsh

A guide to Mid Wales’ best trout fishing waters, from the hard-fighting stocked fish of Llyn Clywedog to the wild brown trout of the Elan Valley and the loch-style boats of Lake Vyrnwy.

Categories Locations
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From the Blog

  • The Best Baits for Chub: The Species That Eats Almost Anything
  • The Best Baits for Perch: Worms Win, But Not Always
  • The Best Baits for Carp: What I’d Actually Put On After Twenty Years
  • Loch Watten Fishing Guide: Caithness Wild Brown Trout
  • Loch Awe Fishing Guide: Ferox, Pike and Brown Trout in Argyll

View all posts →

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The River Bend Fish it properly.

UK fishing knowledge, written properly. Species, techniques, locations, gear, and the rules - all in one place.

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