Spate · Sandstone · East Devon, GB-ENG

River Sid

River Sid venue image

The Sid is the smallest of the east-Devon red-sandstone rivers — Sid Valley above Sidbury and Sidmouth, a short course of around twelve miles from source to sea.

Poor · Brown Trout
Gold-ribbed Hare's Ear · 10-14
Poorlive now
Not the day for it
River temperature is the limiting factor today, not the flow. This is not the day to push it. Check the thermal advice above before you head out.
80% confidence
What moved it
  • Level0.05 mLast reading 6h ago
  • Water temp21.7°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Gold-ribbed Hare's Ear
Gold-ribbed Hare's Ear10-14
Upstream, sub-surface
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
0.05 m
Last reading 6h ago
Water temp21.7°C
ClarityClear
Weather20°C
WindW 27 km/h
Pressure1007 hPa
Rain · recent26.9 mm
Rain · ahead17.9 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
22°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
Water at 21.7°C — above the brown trout caution line (18°C). Fish dawn or dusk only. Land it fast, wet hands, no air shots.
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 11am

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 8 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

Start free trial

14-day free trial. Cancel anytime.

Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 with Pro.

Start free trial

14-day free trial. Cancel anytime.

Evidence
Survey-backed · regionalHigh 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
March BrownHatch
2
3
2
CapererHatch
2
3
3
2
Heather FlyHatch
2
2
Autumn DunHatch
2
3
2

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

Ranked for today
Brown Trout fly box

A small east-Devon sandstone spate of modest wild browns around Sidbury, with a few peal in the lower river come summer — a useful Otter back-up.

What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Water here around 22°C. Nothing cooler within range — carry a thermometer.
Gallery · 1
  1. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

The Sid is the smallest of the east-Devon red-sandstone rivers — Sid Valley above Sidbury and Sidmouth, a short course of around twelve miles from source to sea. The fishing is modest and sparsely covered: wild brown trout in the middle reaches above Sidbury, small numbers of sea trout (peal) in the lower river from mid-June. The catchment is small enough that the Sidmouth gauge moves visibly through a wet afternoon. Worth knowing about as a fall-back venue when the Otter is unfishable.

  • Sandstone
The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 80%
How the 4 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature2 × 28%0.6
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time65 × 13%8.5
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity66 × 12%7.9
Limiting factor: Water temperature (21.7°C) is outside Brown Trout's preferred range (10–16°C)= 57
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
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 15 March → 30 September

Sea trout: Variable seasonal (2026)

Related guides
Yorkshire & SpidersNorth Country methodsTrout Near Londonaccess guideEuro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts
Clubs & associations