Stillwater · Mixed · East Midlands

Carsington Water

Carsington Water venue image
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Carsington is a big Severn Trent reservoir set in the Derbyshire hills, and it fishes like proper reservoir water — open, wind-shaped, demanding that you read the day rather than just turn up and cast.

Fair · Rainbow
Pheasant Tail Nymph · 14-16
Fairlive now
Reasonable summer fishing likely at Carsington Water
Good wave on — drift country. A useful wave. Work the productive shore.
59% confidence
What moved it
  • WindW 9 km/hLight breeze
Today’s fly
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Pheasant Tail Nymph14-16
Upstream, sub-surface
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Wind
Light breeze
W 9 km/h
N
W
from the west
WaveRipple
Water temp—
Air temp14°C
CloudClear
Pressure1021 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm

Some readings unavailable — check directly before fishing.

How to fish it · for rainbow
When
The buzzer is on at Carsington Water. The ripple should help fish move and feed more confidently.
Where
Start with Damsel Nymph (10-12) on a figure-of-eight with occasional strip. Rainbows respond to more active retrieves — try short strips between pauses. If that does not produce, switch depth or speed before changing the pattern entirely. In the ripple, a bushy searching dry (Hopper, Shipman's, Elk Hair Caddis) outperforms flush emergers — it stays visible and holds the surface tension.
The plan
Plan A

Start with Damsel Nymph (10-12) on a figure-of-eight with occasional strip. Rainbows respond to more active retrieves — try short strips between pauses. If that does not produce, switch depth or speed before changing the pattern entirely. In the ripple, a bushy searching dry (Hopper, Shipman's, Elk Hair Caddis) outperforms flush emergers — it stays visible and holds the surface tension.

Plan B

If the main plan stalls, drop to a size 14–16 midge — switch to a washing-line or suspender rig and change drift line before you change food group.

Watch for

Evening tends to be the best period in summer — stay late if you can for a sedge or spinner fall.

Either bank or boat

Good ripple suits both bank and boat. Bank: work inflows, dam walls, and points. Boat: broadside drift covering wind lanes.

Through the year
0–3 scale · July highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Daphnia SwarmHatch
2
3
3
3
2
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
2
Lake OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
2
Silverhorns & LonghornsHatch
1
2
2
2
1

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

Ranked for today
Rainbow fly box
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
66%
Cloud25%
Wind100%
Temp60%

A reasonable day here, though cloud isn't quite in the sweet spot.

Other water nearby · 5
River Dove
10 km
Brown trout · Grayling
Derbyshire Wye
15 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout · Grayling
Ogston Reservoir (Fisherman's Carpark)
15 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Yeaveley Trout Fishery (Yeaveley Estate)
16 km
Rainbow trout
Press Manor Fishing Lakes
17 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout · Blue trout
Gallery · 1
  1. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Carsington is a big Severn Trent reservoir set in the Derbyshire hills, and it fishes like proper reservoir water — open, wind-shaped, demanding that you read the day rather than just turn up and cast. The rainbows cruise in pods, following the food and the wind lanes, and the browns keep their own counsel near the deeper features. Wind, which beginners curse, is the friend here: it stacks the buzzers along the windward shore and puts a ripple on the surface that gives a fish the confidence to come up. On a flat-calm bright afternoon the place can feel empty. Wait for cloud and a chop and it transforms. Best read by wind, light and water temperature.

  • Reservoir
  • Mixed
Why this score
  • Wind conditions (ripple) closely match what this water fishes best in.
  • Buzzer is in its seasonal window, boosting the chance of targeted feeding.
Related guides
Big Stillwater Playbookreservoir tacticsReservoir Entomologymatching the hatchThermal Layers & Troutreading depth and temperature
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