Freestone · Limestone · Nidderdale / Knaresborough, GB-ENG

River Nidd

The River Nidd flowing through a wide wooded valley below Summerbridge in Nidderdale in late winter.
Today · Not the day for it
Partridge and Orange
Forecast · Today
Not the day for it
Not much stacked in your favour today. Worth an hour if you are nearby, not worth the special trip.
45% projected
Today's fly
Partridge and Orange
Partridge and Orange
Conditions on the water · Today
Live gauge
Level
Rising
0.44 m
Lifting fast
Water temp15.1°C
ClarityUnfishable
Weather18°C
WindN 20 km/h
Pressure1008 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.2 mm

The nearest gauge doesn't record temperatures, so we've estimated it — defer to the river keeper's advice.

Water temperature for Grayling
Warm — slow
15°C est.ideal 4–14°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Grayling
When
Autumn into late winter — September through February, prime October into December. Cold midday days bring grayling up to small olives.
Where
Faster runs and gravel reaches below Knaresborough. The lower Nidd holds grayling reliably; cold months mean Euro nymphing the deeper pockets.
Method
Upstream wet with North Country spiders — Snipe and Purple, Greenwell's Spider, Dark Watchet. Switch to Euro-nymphing through the deeper pockets. Dry fly when sedges or olives come off.
Kit
9 ft #4 for the wets and dries; 10 ft #3 nymphing rod for the deep pockets. 4 to 5 lb fluoro tippet, 12 ft leader.
Why this works
Good — water clarity is working for you, but time of day is the limiting factor today.
Likely species
Mayflies
Caddisflies
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 12 Uhr

12 Uhr(now) — Heather Fly

Stage: Terrestrials on topApproach: Dry flyActivity: 55%
Also:Reed Smut36%
Peak emergence windowWeather boost9 food groups active

Peak activity at 12 Uhr — Heather Fly (Heather Fly, Peak emergence window)

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 2 guilds as a supporter.

Start free trial

14-day free trial. Cancel anytime.

Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 as a supporter.

Start free trial

14-day free trial. Cancel anytime.

Evidence
Survey-backed · regionalHigh confidence

Backed by regional invertebrate surveys; no sampling on this exact reach yet.

Through the year
0–3 scale · September highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
Grayling seasonSeason
2
2
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
2
CapererHatch
2
3
3
2
Hawthorn FlyHatch
2
2
GrannomHatch
2
2

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Fly box · Grayling
North Country spider water
Local classics: Waterhen Bloa·Greenwell's Spider·Snipe & Purple
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Fishing better nearby · 5
River Burn
26 km
69
Brown trout · Grayling
Washburn Valley Fisheries
17 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout
Maran Lakes
17 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Tanfield Lodge Lake
23 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Bellflask Fishery
24 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Gallery · 5
  1. The River Nidd flowing through a wide wooded valley below Summerbridge in Nidderdale in late winter.
    River Nidd below Summerbridge
  2. The River Nidd running through green summer meadows between Hampsthwaite and Birstwith with wooded banks.
    River Nidd between Hampsthwaite and Birstwith
  3. A broad summer view of the River Nidd at Pateley Bridge with green riverside vegetation and gentle riffles.
    River Nidd, Pateley Bridge
  4. The River Nidd at Pateley Bridge in summer, clear shallow riffles over gravel with lush bankside vegetation.
    River Nidd, Pateley Bridge
  5. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Moderate
  • Chemical: Fail
Water quality details
  • Dissolved oxygen: High
  • Ammonia (Phys-Chem): High
  • pH: High
  • Phosphate: Moderate
  • Temperature: Good
What this classification means

EA waterbody 'Nidd from Oak Beck to Low Bridge on Briggate' (GB104027068297) — the fished main stem through Knaresborough. Latest EA data (Cycle 3, 2022): Moderate ecological status. Chemical 'Fail' reflects the England-wide ubiquitous-substance failure (mercury and PBDE in biota); the 2022 cycle itself records chemical as 'does not require assessment'. Corrected 2026-06-18 from GB104027063760, which is Oak Beck (a Nidd tributary), not the main stem.

EA (England) · GB104027068297

The full read · show the working · for Grayling · confidence 55%
How the 64 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature58 × 28%16.2
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity85 × 18%15.3
Feeding Time10 × 13%1.3
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity63 × 12%7.6
Conditions total= 64
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitysurvey-backed invertebrate datasurvey
What would change the calculation
Cooler water — back toward the 4–14 °C ideal band — would lift the score and ease welfare.
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 22 March → 30 September
  • Grayling 16 June → 14 March

    Nidderdale AC allows maggots only between 16 June and 14 March. From 1 October some marked lengths (e.g. Glasshouses) can be fished with bait; some lengths remain fly-only throughout. Check Nidderdale AC rules carefully before choosing tackle.

    Prime sport 1 September → 31 December

    • 16 Jun → 30 Sep · Fly only
    • 1 Oct → 14 Mar · Fly or bait-on-specified lengths
Related guides
Fly Fishing Near Yorkfeatured in this city guideGrayling Playbookgrayling tacticsYorkshire & SpidersNorth Country methods
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts