Chalk · Picardy / Pas-de-Calais, FR

Canche

A tree-lined stretch of the Canche river near Beaurainville, with flowering red shrubs along the bank
Marginal · Brown Trout
Spent Spinner · 16-20
Marginallive now
Slow going — pick your moments
River temperature is the limiting factor today, not the flow. Fish dawn or dusk if you go at all, and handle everything with extra care.
80% confidence
What moved it
  • LevelProxyvia Scie
  • Water temp18.4°C
  • ClaritySlightly colouredClearing
Today's fly
Spent Spinner
Spent Spinner16-20
Upstream dry
Conditions on the water
Proxy gauge
Level
Falling
Proxy
via Scie
Water temp18.4°C
ClaritySlightly coloured
Weather19°C
WindW 28 km/h
Pressure1009 hPa
Rain · recent7.9 mm
Rain · ahead27.4 mm

No gauge on this water — conditions are inferred from Scie. The trend transfers, the absolute level does not.

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Warm — slow
18°C est.ideal 1016°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown Trout
When
Through the open trout season. Iron Blue and CDC grannom in April; olives through May; sedges through summer evenings.
Where
Pool tails and weeded glides through the Pas-de-Calais chalk-stream stretches around Étaples. Intimate water; read each lie.
Method
Upstream dry to spotted rising fish; long fine leader. The water reads clear — careful approach matters more than fly choice. Move slowly upstream, cast accurately, accept the result.
Kit
9 ft #4 — French karst-stream default. Floating line, 14 ft leader to 4 lb fluoro. Polarising glasses non-negotiable.
Why this works
Water at 18.4°C — above the brown trout caution line (18°C). Fish dawn or dusk only. Land it fast, wet hands, no air shots.
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 5 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

Start free trial

14-day free trial. Cancel anytime.

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 2 guilds with Pro.

Start free trial

14-day free trial. Cancel anytime.

Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 4 with Pro.

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 · August highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
Grayling seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Freshwater ShrimpHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Brown SedgeHatch
2
3
3
3
2
Small SpurwingHatch
2
3
3
3
2
Small Dark OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
2

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

Ranked for today
Brown Trout fly box
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • AAPPMA du Canche controls most of the middle and lower beats; private estate water through parts of the upper river
  • Fly-only and no-kill parcours on several beats.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Water here around 18°C. Nothing cooler within range — carry a thermometer.
Gallery · 2
  1. A tree-lined stretch of the Canche river near Beaurainville, with flowering red shrubs along the bank
    The Canche river at Beaurainville, Pas-de-Calais
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
Water quality (WFD)
  • EcologyGood
  • ChemicalUnknown

WFD classification · FRAR13

The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 80%
How the 38 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature34 × 28%9.5
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity85 × 18%15.3
Feeding Time60 × 13%7.8
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity63 × 12%7.6
Conditions total= 63
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowproxy via Scieproxy
Prey activitysurvey-backed invertebrate datasurvey
What would change the calculation
Cooler water — back toward the 10–16 °C ideal band — would lift the score and ease welfare.
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 2nd Saturday of March3rd Sunday of September
  • Grayling 3rd Saturday of May31 December

    France national rule: grayling opens 3rd Saturday of May in all waters. In 2nd category waters, grayling remains open until 31 December. Departmental regulations may impose earlier closing dates. Always check the relevant département's 2026 arrêté préfectoral.

Sea trout: Variable seasonal (2026) — Canche — Pas-de-Calais river (Étaples area). Sea trout present but more marginal than the Bresle or Touques; condition-dependent and permit-required. AAPPMA local management.

Related guides
Booking & contacts