Stillwater · Mixed · West Midlands / Warwickshire, GB-ENG

Draycote Water

Draycote Water — Lazy Rider

A 243-hectare Midlands reservoir, run since May 2025 alongside Rutland, Grafham and Pitsford.

Fair · Rainbow
Minkie · 6–10
Fairlive now
Reasonable winter fishing likely at Draycote Water
Good wave on — drift country. A useful wave. Work the productive shore.
52% confidence

Peak season here starts around March — worth planning ahead.

What moved it
  • WindSW 7 km/hLight breeze · Gusts to 9 km/h
Today's fly
Minkie
Minkie6–10
Retrieve, sub-surface
Conditions on the water
Estimate
Wind
Light breeze · Gusts to 9 km/h
SW 7 km/h
N
SW
from the south-west
WaveRipple
Water temp6.7°C
Air temp-1°C
CloudOvercast
Pressure1020 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm

No gauge on this water — readings are regional estimates from weather, not a live gauge.

Head to
Wind shiftWind shift
Flat StonesInletBarn Bank

The wind has been southwesterly for about a day, but a day of a northerly has loaded food into Flat Stones, Inlet and Barn Bank. The fish may not have moved on yet — check there before following the new wind direction.

How to fish it · for Rainbow
When
Buzzers dawn into late morning April through June; daphnia mid-water in summer; sedges into September; back-end lures through October.
Where
Coomb Bay, the dam, and the open water boat marks. Bank access is good — popular Midlands water.
Method
Floater with buzzers under indicator in spring; midge-tip and team of three through summer; sweeping line for the back-end.
Kit
10 ft #7 boat rod; floating, intermediate and fast-intermediate lines; 6 to 8 lb fluoro. Drogue and a long-handled net.
The plan
Plan A

Start with Minkie (6-10) — on the point. 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.

Plan B

Slow down everything. A booby on a fast-sinking line, left static, can pick up deep fish.

Watch for

Keep an eye on changing conditions — wind shifts and cloud breaks can trigger short feeding spells.

Either bank or boat

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

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Supporters see the full sub-surface read.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 4 as a supporter.

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Through the year
0–3 scale · November highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
Reservoir BuzzerHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
2
Daphnia SwarmHatch
2
3
3
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.

Buzzer team todayfor the conditions now
Point
Bloodworm
Not in this water's box
#10
How to fish it
Slow-sink line · slow figure-of-eight, pausing to let the flies hang

Fly recommendations

Point fly shown — supporters see the whole team, sizes and why.

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Ranked for today
Rainbow fly box
Draycote Water Fishing Map
Click to expand

Draycote Water Map

Tap to view full map

Draycote Fly-Fishers Association · design millamap.com · map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
73%
Cloud50%
Wind100%
Temp60%

A good match for Draycote Water — most conditions are close to what it fishes best in.

Other water nearby · 5
Ravensthorpe Reservoir
23 km
Pike · Perch · Carp
Packington Somers Fishery
24 km
Rainbow trout
Hollowell Reservoir
24 km
Pike · Carp · Perch
Pitsford Water
32 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout · Pike
Thornton Reservoir
38 km
Rainbow trout
Gallery · 7
  1. Draycote Water — Lazy Rider
    Lazy Rider
  2. Panoramic view of Draycote Water reservoir from the south-east, the open expanse of water under a blue sky.
    Draycote Water from the south-east
  3. Draycote Water reservoir with Thurlaston village across the water on the far shore.
    Thurlaston from Draycote Water
  4. Sailing dinghies on Draycote Water reservoir on a sunny day with open water behind.
    Sailing boats at Draycote Water
  5. Landscape photograph of Draycote Water reservoir showing open water and surrounding countryside.
    Draycote Water
  6. The large eastern dam embankment of Draycote Water reservoir with water visible.
    Draycote Water dam
  7. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Trout stocking continues as before, and from 2025 predator fishing has been added — pike and perch targeting in the colder months. The dam wall remains one of England's great bank-fishing marks, with deep water close in and reliable buzzer fishing from April. Boat drifts over Toft Bay and Lin Croft are productive in southerly winds. Sedge and daddy bring fish to the surface in late summer.

Surface area
2.4 km² (599 acres)
Mean depth
about 9.5 m (31 ft)
Area © OpenStreetMap contributors. Mean depth: Severn Trent's published capacity ÷ area.
  • Reservoir
  • Mixed
Why this score
  • Wind conditions (ripple) closely match what this water fishes best in.
  • Reservoirs of this kind fish hard at this time of year.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 7 March → 31 January
Related guides
Winter Pike on the Flyfeatured in this guideBig Stillwater Playbookreservoir tacticsReservoir Entomologymatching the hatch
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts
At a glance

Draycote Water is a reservoir in West Midlands / Warwickshire, England. It sits at about 113 m above sea level. Our data lists 4 species here, including brown trout, rainbow trout and pike. The trout season is recorded as running from 7 March to 31 January. Best window recorded for anglers: April–June, September–October. Core methods listed: Dam wall buzzer and lure; boat drifting; washing line. Nearby waters in our listings include Ravensthorpe Reservoir at 23 km, Packington Somers Fishery at 24 km and Hollowell Reservoir at 24 km.