Chalk · Normandy / Seine-Maritime (Dieppe area), FR

Arques

Arques terrain map

The Arques is a quiet Normandy chalk stream near Dieppe that holds a genuine sea trout run alongside its resident brown trout and grayling — 28 declared sea trout in 2024, which places it ahead of several more famous French migratory rivers.

Today · About as good as it gets
Czech Nymph
Forecast · Today
About as good as it gets
On the feed top to bottom — start on the rises with a dry, drop a nymph if they stay down.
90% projected
Today's fly
Czech Nymph
Czech Nymph
Conditions on the water · Today
Live gauge
Level
Steady
0.01 m
Water temp9.7°C
ClarityClear
Weather5°C
WindN 14 km/h
Pressure1017 hPa
Rain · recent0.3 mm
Rain · ahead10.9 mm

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

Water temperature for Grayling
Ideal
10°C est.ideal 4–14°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Grayling
When
Autumn through November prime.
Where
Faster runs and gravel reaches in the middle and lower Arques.
Method
Euro-nymphing through the deeper pockets is the daily default; switch to dries on autumn afternoons when sedges and small olives come off. Long fine tippet for the clear water.
Kit
10 ft #3 nymphing rod for the deep pockets; 9 ft #4 for dries. 4 to 5 lb fluoro tippet, 12 ft leader.
Why this works
Good — water temperature is working for you, but time of day is the limiting factor today. Grayling feeds actively in cold water — peak winter sport.
Likely species
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 12pm

12pm(now) — Autumn Olive

Stage: On emergersApproach: Emerger or dryActivity: 47%
Also:Autumn Needle Fly35%Black Midge30%
Peak emergence window5 food groups active

Peak activity at 12pm — Autumn Olive (Autumn Olive, Peak emergence window)

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 4 guilds as a supporter.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 2 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 · November highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Sea trout runRun
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
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
Mayfly (Green Drake)Hatch
2
2
Brown SedgeHatch
2
3
3
3
2
Small SpurwingHatch
2
3
3
3
2

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

Ranked for today
Grayling fly box

Classic French chalkstream fishing. Gin-clear, weed-rich, slow to moderate flow. Dry fly and sight nymphing dominate. Stronger sedge hatches than English equivalents. French tradition favours flush-sitting dries (comparaduns, CDC patterns) and upstream presentation.

Small Perdigón
Small Perdigón
Hook 14–18 · Fly
in season
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • AAPPMA permits
  • Private estate water on sections.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
About this water

The chalk character gives it stable, clear water and prolific invertebrate life. Small olives and evening sedges sustain selective dry-fly fishing for brown trout through the season. Sea trout enter from the estuary and run on spate water, providing a secondary but credible target from summer through autumn.

Hatches & food

In chalk-spring and karst trout systems, generally stable temperatures broaden olive and other mayfly activity from early spring into autumn, with strong evening caddis, steady subsurface scuds and buzzers where clear groundwater and weedbeds develop, and terrestrials from meadow and woodland banks rounding out the food calendar, depending on how fast each river drops and clears after rain.

  • Chalk
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Moderate
  • Chemical: Unknown

WFD classification · FRHR166

The full read · show the working · for Grayling · confidence 55%
How the 76 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature100 × 28%28.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity85 × 18%15.3
Feeding Time10 × 13%1.3
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity65 × 12%7.8
Conditions total= 76
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
Seasons & zones
  • Sea trout 25 April → 25 October
  • Trout 2nd Saturday of March → 3rd Sunday of September
  • Grayling 3rd Saturday of May → 31 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: Open (2026) — Credible secondary sea trout river. 28 declared rod catches in 2024 — better than many historic glamour rivers.

Related guides
Booking & contacts
At a glance

Arques is a chalk stream in Normandy / Seine-Maritime (Dieppe area), France. The catchment geology is recorded as chalk, and the water sits at about 3 m above sea level. The river is described as roughly 32 km long. Species listed for this water: brown trout, grayling and sea trout. The sea trout season is recorded as running from 25 April to 25 October. The trout season is recorded as running from 2nd Saturday of March to 3rd Sunday of September. Best window recorded for anglers: March–October. Core methods listed: Dry fly; nymphing. Level and flow data for this water is linked from 1 gauge. Its Water Framework Directive ecological status is recorded as moderate. Access is recorded as day tickets through the local AAPPMA (angling association). Nearby waters in our listings include Paradis Aquatique at 12 km, Yères at 15 km and Scie at 16 km.