Chalk Stream · Chalk · Hampshire, GB-ENG

River Itchen

The River Itchen at Itchen Abbas running full through several braided chalkstream channels.
Prime · Brown Trout
Sawyer's Pheasant Tail Nymph · 16-18
Primelive now
About as good as it gets
River high but settled. Coloured water — fish bigger and deeper, confident takes down the seams.
90% confidence
What moved it
  • Level1.29 mLast reading 18h ago
  • Water temp14.5°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Sawyer's Pheasant Tail Nymph
Sawyer's Pheasant Tail Nymph16-18
Upstream, sub-surface
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
1.29 m
Last reading 18h ago
Water temp14.5°C
ClarityClear
Weather18°C
WindE 8 km/h
Pressure1020 hPa
Rain · recent0.8 mm
Rain · ahead2.7 mm

Live readings only. Trends shown where the gauge supports them.

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Ideal
14.5°Cideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown Trout
When
Trout from mid-April on most beats — earlier than the Test estate water. The BWO evening rise from June onwards is the Itchen's signature. Caenis at dusk in summer is fiendish; accept defeat gracefully.
Where
Narrower, shallower, even clearer than the Test. Fish hold tight to the banks where the cover is. Carriers respond particularly well to nymph fishing.
Method
Dry fly first when fish are rising — match the size precisely, the Itchen trout reject anything off. Skues's water; nymph is equal partner. Sight-nymph to a visible fish and watch for the white wink of the take.
Kit
9 ft #3 or #4 — lighter than the Test for the narrower water. Floating line, 12 ft tapered leader to 5x or 6x tippet. Polarised glasses essential.
Why this works
Excellent — conditions well-balanced, with water temperature particularly in your favour.
Likely species
Stoneflies
Caddisflies
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 12 active hatches hour by hour as a supporter.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Supporters see the full sub-surface read.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 5 as a supporter.

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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
Mayfly (Green Drake)Hatch
2
2
Freshwater ShrimpHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
CapererHatch
2
3
3
2
Brown SedgeHatch
2
3
3
3
2

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

Ranked for today
Fly box · Brown Trout
Local classics: Pheasant Tail Nymph·Iron Blue Dun·CDC Olive
Beats · 11 · 4 reaches

The Itchen is not one fishery — it is a short, heavily protected chalk-stream system split into private estates, syndicates, agent-booked day rods, club water, accommodation-linked wild-trout beats, the Itchen Navigation, and a lower river with sea-trout and winter-coarse identity (salmon rarely run — conservation-critical; fewer than 200 fish across the Test/Itchen system in 2024). Between the source and Winchester much of the best water is club- or syndicate-controlled and famous reaches like Abbots Barton are effectively members-only. There is no single Itchen permit and the donation beat at Twyford Meads is the rare exception — always confirm season, method rules, wading dates and price with the individual beat or agent before travelling.

Upper Itchen, Alre & Candover (Upstream Dry Fly)Guide / lodge
A group of traditionally managed wild-trout beats high in the system — two upper main-river Itchen beats (The Shallows and Main River), Drove Lane on the Alre, upper and lower Candover Brook, and Elm Stream, an Itchen carrier.
Abbots Worthy to Winchester · 4 beatsMixed
Abbots Worthy, Breach Farm, Kanara, Abbots Barton (Skues water)
The 4 beats
Abbots WorthyAgent booking
Fishing Breaks (Orvis route also reported)
Classic upper-middle Itchen day-rod water about three miles north of Winchester — main river plus a mill stream, mostly right-bank fishing looking upstream, with a well-equipped hut and parking. Fishable without wading though wading is possible; suits one to three rods. Once wild-only, the beat is now lightly stocked with Itchen-reared fish marked by a blue spot near the eye.
Visit official site ↗
Breach FarmAgent booking
Fishing Breaks
A wide, gliding, open section of the Itchen south of Winchester through cattle-grazed water meadows, with few casting obstructions, a good mayfly hatch, olives and sedges. Both banks available, a 200-yard walk from the car park to the shelter, one to three rods, with optional wading sections.
Visit official site ↗
KanaraAgent booking
Fishing Breaks
A long-standing day-rod fishery dating to the late 1960s and a true wading beat — deep slow sections, fast riffles, overhangs, undercuts, weirs and a huge hatch pool, holding both wild and stocked fish. Salmon and sea trout are often seen. For one or two rods only; expect to wade.
Technical wading water. Salmon and sea trout occasionally seen but the beat is a trout-and-grayling fishery, not a salmon destination.
Visit official site ↗
Abbots Barton (Skues water)Members-only
Private clubs and syndicates
The legendary water through Winchester where G.E.M. Skues fished for 56 years and developed his nymph theories. Above Winchester the river is largely run non-commercially by clubs and syndicates, with only occasional day rods — listed here as the historic heart of the Itchen, not as a beat you can simply book.
Twyford & Shawford · 3 beatsDay rods
Twyford Meads — donation day ticket, Qing Ya Xi & Lock Keeper's Cottage, Shawford Park
The 3 beats
Twyford Meads — donation day ticketDay tickets
Itchen Navigation Preservation Trust (with Twyford Parish Council)
A short east-bank stretch of the Itchen Navigation between Compton Lock and the pub bridge — the rare chalk-stream water you can fish without an introduction or a syndicate seat. A £10–£20 suggested donation via JustGiving books the day; brown trout and grayling, fished on fine tippet with the same etiquette that governs the rest of the Itchen.
Suggested donation £10–£20 via the annual JustGiving campaign — keep proof of payment. Catch & release only; landing net and unhooking mat required. Barbless or micro-barbed hooks only. No spinning, lure, worm or maggot. No wading 31 October – 15 May. No salmon or sea-trout fishing. Under-17 rules apply. Donation rules refresh each season.
Visit official site ↗
Qing Ya Xi & Lock Keeper's CottageAgent booking
Fishing Breaks
Effectively three beats in one — a leat holding wild fish, the navigation with bigger, fussier fish, and the main Itchen ideal for sight fishing. Suits one rod or parties of two or three, with a fishing room; Lock Keeper's Cottage can be rented with the fishing.
Visit official site ↗
Shawford ParkAgent booking
Fishing Breaks / Shawford Park Estate
A private estate fishery with two beats — one main river and one fast carrier — totalling close to a mile. Available for single rods or parties up to four, with optional carrier wading, a simple hut and easy parking.
Visit official site ↗
Bishopstoke & Lower Itchen · 3 beatsMixed
Itchen Fisheries — Bishopstoke, Lower Itchen Fishery (Gaters Mill), Lower Itchen Navigation — Eastleigh & District AC
The 3 beats
Itchen Fisheries — BishopstokeEnquiry
Itchen Fisheries
About half a mile of main River Itchen south of Bishopstoke plus a short section of old Itchen Navigation, within an SSSI. Mostly double-bank ownership but fished from the right bank only, the left bank left as habitat. Brown and sea trout focus, exclusive use during the day, with private parking, a basic hut and benches but no toilet; no need to wade.
Within an SSSI. Brown trout 3 April – 31 October; sea trout 1 May – 31 October. Right-bank fishing only.
Lower Itchen Fishery (Gaters Mill)Agent booking
Lower Itchen Fishery Ltd (also via FishPal)
Around 5,300 yards — the longest continuous stretch of the Itchen in private ownership — running through several beats for trout, sea trout, salmon and winter grayling. Founded in 1954, with a Fisherman's Lodge at Gaters Mill, huts, parking near the beats and a resident keeper. Trout fishing is divided into five beats and salmon into three; the lower river fishes more heavily than the upper chalk stream.
Trout day rods roughly 18 April – 7 October on five beats: upstream dry fly, max hook size 12, nymph at bailiff discretion, no grayling to be killed. Salmon (three beats) is catch-and-release only and may be suspended in hot weather around 19–20°C. Winter grayling/coarse 10 October – 14 March, no wading, catch & release. Salmon is conservation-sensitive, not a destination lane.
Visit official site ↗
Lower Itchen Navigation — Eastleigh & District ACMembers
Eastleigh & District Angling Club
Club water on the Lower Itchen Navigation from Bishopstoke Road to Fish House Bay, mostly single-bank from the public footpath. This is general/coarse club angling rather than premium chalk-stream fly water — listed so anglers don't assume all Itchen fishing is private estate dry-fly fishing.
Club-membership water, primarily coarse. Not a fly-game lead for Rise Daisy.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Church Paddock Fishery
1.0 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Avington Trout Fishery
4.0 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout
Franklyns Fish Farm
9.0 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Dever Springs
10 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout
Sutton Springs Fishing at Testwood
13 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Gallery · 6
  1. The River Itchen at Itchen Abbas running full through several braided chalkstream channels.
    River Itchen at Itchen Abbas
  2. The River Itchen flowing toward Lord Grey's Bridge at Itchen Abbas, clear chalkstream water in summer.
    River Itchen in Itchen Abbas
  3. The River Itchen flowing through Winchester, Hampshire, in summer.
    River Itchen, Winchester
  4. An upstream view of the River Itchen near Ovington with a small mid-channel island.
    River Itchen, Ovington
  5. The River Itchen at Martyr Worthy in the Itchen Valley in summer.
    River Itchen at Martyr Worthy
  6. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Good
  • Chemical: Unknown
Water quality details
  • Dissolved oxygen: Moderate
  • Ammonia (Phys-Chem): High
  • pH: High
  • Phosphate: Moderate
  • Temperature: High
  • Physico-chemical quality elements: Moderate
  • Chemical: Does not require assessment

EA (England) · UKGB107042022580

The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 90%
How the 86 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature100 × 28%28.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time65 × 13%8.5
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity79 × 12%9.5
Conditions total= 86
Can you trust it?
Water temperaturelive gauge readinggauge
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitysurvey-backed invertebrate datasurvey
What would change the calculation
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 3 April → 31 October
  • Grayling 16 June → 14 March

    Statutory window is 16 June – 14 March. Most Itchen fisheries sell grayling from October. Lower Itchen runs 12 October – 31 January (fly only, max hook size 12). Some Itchen beats close as early as 30 November. Check the specific beat.

    Run as a winter fishery — most beats sell grayling 1 October → 31 January; the wider legal window is rarely offered.

    Prime sport 1 October → 31 January

Salmon: Negligible (2026) — Shares the Test/Itchen chalk stream stock — fewer than 200 fish across the combined system in 2024. Conservation-critical. Not a salmon fishing destination.

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Booking & contacts
Clubs & associations