Chalk Stream · Chalk · Hampshire, GB-ENG

River Anton

Photo of River Anton

The Anton is one of Hampshire's most highly-regarded chalk-stream tributaries of the Test — running 13 miles from Anton Pond near Andover through the famous Fullerton fishery to the Test confluence.

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
  • Level56.55 mLast reading 19h ago
  • Water temp15.3°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
56.55 m
Last reading 19h ago
Water temp15.3°C
ClarityClear
Weather18°C
WindE 9 km/h
Pressure1020 hPa
Rain · recent0.4 mm
Rain · ahead1.0 mm

The nearest gauge is at Andover Town Mill. It doesn't record temperatures, so we've estimated it — defer to the river keeper's advice.

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Ideal
15°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown Trout
When
Nymphing can work through most of the day.
Where
Cover mixed depths.
Method
Start with tight-line nymphs and adjust if fish rise or drift higher.
Kit
9 ft #4 rod, floating line, 12 ft tapered leader to 4–5 lb fluoro tippet.
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
1
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
Brown Trout fly box

The heartland of English dry fly fishing. Upstream dry fly and emerger presentation dominates. Nymphing restricted or discouraged on many beats. Gin-clear alkaline water, prolific weed growth, educated wild brown trout. Precise imitation and delicate presentation are paramount.

Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Predominantly private water
  • Fullerton fishery via syndicate/hotel access
  • Strict barbless / dry-fly-upstream-only protocols on most beats.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Dever Springs
4.0 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout
River Test
5.0 km
Brown trout · Grayling
Sutton Springs Fishing at Testwood
5.0 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
John O Gaunt's Fishery
8.0 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Amport Trout Fishery
9.0 km
Rainbow trout
Gallery · 2
  1. Photo of River Anton
    River Anton — image via Wikipedia (River Anton)
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

The Anton is one of Hampshire's most highly-regarded chalk-stream tributaries of the Test — running 13 miles from Anton Pond near Andover through the famous Fullerton fishery to the Test confluence. Pure chalk water of exceptional clarity with strong olive hatches and prolific weed growth. Wild and stocked brown trout plus grayling. Almost entirely private syndicate water; Fullerton beats sometimes available to guests via the Test Valley fishery hotel structure.

  • Chalk
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Moderate
Water quality details
  • Dissolved oxygen: High
  • Ammonia (Phys-Chem): High
  • pH: High
  • Phosphate: High
  • Temperature: High

EA (England) · GB107042022780

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 activity75 × 12%9.0
Conditions total= 86
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
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 1 April → 30 September
Related guides
Fly Fishing Near Southamptonfeatured in this city guideChalkstream Playbookchalk stream tacticsGrayling Playbookgrayling tactics
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts