Spate · Slate · West Wales / Ceredigion

Teifi

The River Teifi viewed westward from Newcastle Emlyn bridge, the green valley and tree-lined banks stretching away.
Contributor photo

The River Teifi at Newcastle Emlyn

John Lord - CC BY-SA 2.0

Classic West Wales salmon and sewin river with historic coracle fishing tradition.

Good · Sea Trout
Black & Silver Tube · 1-2 inch
Goodlive now
A good day — worth the effort
River dropping into shape after a lift. A taking window. Cover the heads and tails methodically.
75% confidence
What moved it
  • Level0.26 mDropping after lift
  • Water temp15.0°C
  • ClarityVery colouredColouring up
Today’s fly
BS
Black & Silver Tube1-2 inch
In deep pools and dark water, silhouette and contrast do the work colour cannot. A fly that reads as black against depth is enough. Fish it broadside, hold the swing, let it hang at the dangle — that is when the best fish take.
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
0.26 m
Dropping after lift
Water temp15.0°C
ClarityVery coloured
Weather13°C
WindNW 14 km/h
Pressure1023 hPa
Rain · recent0.1 mm
Rain · ahead1.0 mm

Live readings — water temperature is an estimate where the gauge does not record it.

Water temperature for sea trout
Ideal
15°C est.ideal 8–15°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for sea trout
When
June through September; July into August prime. Night fishing from full dark when water rises above 13°C. NRW classifies the sewin stock 'At Risk' across Wales — fish carefully if at all, treat C&R as a default. A good spate in July or August can still produce — runs are condition-led.
Where
Lower and middle Teifi pool tails through to the Cardigan tidal limit.
Method
Across-and-down on a floating line with small wets — Medicine, Teal Blue and Silver, Stoat's Tail. Steady swing through the tail-outs, never hurry.
Kit
10 ft #6/7, floating line, 8 to 10 lb fluoro tippet. Spare leader on a wrist spool. Headlamp sparingly; let your eyes adjust.
Why this works
Good — water temperature is working for you, but insect activity is the limiting factor today. ⏰ Sea trout become most active from an hour before dusk. This stretch closes at 21:30 — your legal window captures the start of the best fishing. Fish the last 90 minutes hard. Overcast evenings extend the effective window.
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 4 active hatches hour by hour 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 · July highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Salmon runRun
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
2
March BrownHatch
2
3
2
GrannomHatch
2
2
Large StoneflyHatch
2
3
2

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

Ranked for today
Sea Trout fly box
BS
Black & Silver TubeTop
1-2 inch · Tube
In deep pools and dark water, silhouette and contrast do the work colour cannot. A fly that reads as black against depth is enough. Fish it broadside, hold the swing, let it hang at the dangle — that is when the best fish take.
SF
Snake Fly (Black)
2-4 inch · Streamer
A mobile eel-like profile that undulates through deep pools — effective when sea trout are lying deep and not responding to conventional wets.
Beats · 3
Middle Teifi — Llandysul Angling AssociationAccess varies
The Teifi is the longest river to rise and meet the sea wholly within Wales and reports more salmon caught than any other Welsh river.
Lower Teifi — Teifi Trout Association (Llechryd to Henllan)Access varies
The Teifi Trout Association, founded in 1925, holds over twenty miles of the lower Teifi between Llechryd Bridge and Henllan.
Pontarddulais AA Teifi — day ticket via Fishing PassportAccess varies
About a mile of middle-Teifi right bank below Lampeter, controlled by Pontarddulais AA.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Cothi
18 km
80
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
Aeron
23 km
0
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
River Taf
31 km
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
Nevern
33 km
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
Towy (Tywi)
35 km
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
Gallery · 6
  1. The River Teifi viewed westward from Newcastle Emlyn bridge, the green valley and tree-lined banks stretching away.
    The River Teifi at Newcastle Emlyn
  2. Cenarth Falls on the River Teifi with the historic water mill on the far bank, the river rushing white over ledges.
    Cenarth Falls, River Teifi
  3. The River Teifi flowing through a wooded gorge below Cilgerran, steep tree-lined banks reflected in dark water.
    River Teifi below Cilgerran
  4. Sweeping meanders of the Teifi near Newcastle Emlyn in winter spate, wide and dark between alder-lined banks.
    Bends in the Teifi, Newcastle Emlyn
  5. The River Teifi at Llandysul showing rocky rapids and bankside vegetation between Llandysul and Pontwelly.
    River Teifi at Llandysul
  6. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Classic West Wales salmon and sewin river with historic coracle fishing tradition. Salmon from spring through autumn; sea trout (sewin) from June onwards with excellent summer runs. The Teifi is a spate river — fish it on fresh water after rain with sinking-tip line and medium tubes for salmon, smaller wet flies for sea trout. Good brown trout in the upper reaches. Newcastle Emlyn and Cenarth Falls are well-known productive beats. Responsive in 6 hours; fish the drop. Slate and schist bedrock underlie this river. Atlantic salmon are under serious conservation pressure — Natural Resources Wales mandates catch-and-release for salmon on all rivers, so all fish must be returned.

  • Slate
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Good
  • Chemical: Unknown
What this classification means

NRW WFD Cycle 3 — Teifi (Afon Clettwr to Afon Ceri): Good ecological status; the Llandysul/Newcastle Emlyn middle beats. Corrected 2026-06-18 from an Arberth-tributary tag (was recorded Moderate). Source: NRW DataMapWales WFD Cycle 3 classification layer.

NRW (Wales) · GB110062043564

The full read · show the working · for sea trout · confidence 75%
How the river scores — hydrology factors
Water heightMedium Ideal0.0
Recent riseNone0.0
Falling after liftNot Applicable0.0
Water temperatureCool To Moderate0.0
Time in seasonOpening Period0.0
ClarityClearing0.0
Hydrology base0.0
Legal gate: Unknown Check Local Rules
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Salmon1 April → 17 October
  • Trout3 March → 30 September

Sea trout: Variable seasonal (2026) — NRW At Risk classification. The Teifi holds sewin but stocks have declined across the wider West Wales catchment. Runs are condition-led — a good spate in June or July can produce excellent night fishing; a dry summer is a write-off. Historic coracle fishing tradition on sewin; the modern fishery demands catch-and-release discipline.

Salmon: Negligible (2026) — NRW / EA 2024 Salmon Stocks Assessment classifies this Welsh principal salmon river 'at risk' — egg deposition below Conservation Limit. All Wales byelaws (in force 2020-2030) make catch & release mandatory. Conservation priority; not a salmon fishing destination. The Teifi remains a famous fly fishing river but salmon are scarce.

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