Chalk · Normandy / Seine-Maritime (Coastal chalk stream), FR

Saâne

Saâne terrain map

Normandy chalk stream with rich character — clear, spring-fed, home to wild brown trout and grayling that have had generations to become sophisticated.

Marginal · Brown Trout
Sedge du Soir · 12-16
Marginallive now
Slow going — pick your moments
River temperature is the limiting factor today, not the flow. Fish dawn or dusk if you go at all, and handle everything with extra care.
80% confidence
What moved it
  • Level0.08 mLast reading 6h ago
  • Water temp18.3°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Sedge du Soir
Sedge du Soir12-16
Upstream dry
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
0.08 m
Last reading 6h ago
Water temp18.3°C
ClarityClear
Weather19°C
WindW 6 km/h
Pressure1015 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

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

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Warm — slow
18°C est.ideal 1016°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown Trout
When
Through the open trout season. Iron Blue and CDC grannom in April; olives through May; sedges through summer evenings.
Where
Pool tails and weeded glides through the small chalk-stream stretches. The Saâne is intimate Normandy chalk water.
Method
Upstream dry to spotted rising fish; long fine leader. The water reads clear — careful approach matters more than fly choice. Move slowly upstream, cast accurately, accept the result.
Kit
9 ft #4 — French karst-stream default. Floating line, 14 ft leader to 4 lb fluoro. Polarising glasses non-negotiable.
Why this works
Water at 18.3°C — above the brown trout caution line (18°C). Fish dawn or dusk only. Land it fast, wet hands, no air shots.
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 6 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 with Pro.

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Evidence
Survey-backed · regionalModerate confidence

Backed by regional invertebrate surveys; no sampling on this exact reach yet.

Through the year
0–3 scale · August highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
Grayling seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Brown SedgeHatch
2
3
2
Freshwater ShrimpHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Blue Winged OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
3
2
Mayfly (Green Drake)Hatch
2
2

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

Ranked for today
Brown Trout 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.

Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • AAPPMA permits.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Water here around 18°C. Nothing cooler within range — carry a thermometer.
About this water

Normandy chalk stream with rich character — clear, spring-fed, home to wild brown trout and grayling that have had generations to become sophisticated. Selective water demanding small, precise presentations. Classic mayfly, olive, and sedge hatches (April–June best). Grayling winter fishing effective. Stable temperature from chalk geology. Some beats private; public access available. Check AAPPMA.

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)
  • EcologyModerate
  • ChemicalUnknown

WFD classification · FRHR169

The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 80%
How the 38 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature51 × 28%14.3
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time40 × 13%5.2
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity63 × 12%7.6
Conditions total= 67
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitysurvey-backed invertebrate datasurvey
What would change the calculation
Cooler water — back toward the 10–16 °C ideal band — would lift the score and ease welfare.
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 2nd Saturday of March3rd Sunday of September
  • Grayling 3rd Saturday of May31 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.

Related guides
Booking & contacts