Teifi is the one with the pedigree — the actual source lake of the river that carries its name all the way down through Tregaron, Lampeter and Cardigan to the sea, which gives an otherwise unassuming upland pool a certain quiet significance. The trout are wild browns, much like the rest of the pools group, unremarkable in size but entirely of the place. There's something worth pausing over in standing at the literal beginning of a river you might fish forty miles downstream the following week — few lakes let you close that particular loop. Fish it as part of the Teifi Pools circuit, and take a moment before you start casting.

• Lake
• Silurian mudstone shale