Chew Valley Lake is a well known scenic beauty spot and top quality fly-fishing destination. The size and condition of the trout caught here is second to none and anglers find success using a wide variety of fishing methods and fly patterns, making it a popular competition venue.
Opened in 1956 Chew is a relatively shallow reservoir with an average depth of only 14ft at top level and a maximum depth of just 37ft. The area it covers, once rich farmland, is now fertile ground for the aquatic life necessary for sustaining quality trout fishing.
As the water starts to warm in early season, buzzer hatches can be prolific before giving way to a rich larder of non-hatching aquatic insects later in the season, including corixa, snail, hoglice and shrimp. With such a plethora of natural feed it is easy to understand why fishing imitative dries, emergers and nymphs on floating lines prove so popular among our regulars. Chew has an excellent capacity for producing grown-on fish and the lake records stand at 22lb 7oz for brown trout and 14lb 9oz for rainbow trout.
The deepest part of the lake is by the dam and the outlet tower, where the steeply sloping shores of Walley Bank and the North Shore put depths of up to 20ft within the reach of bank anglers. Southwards, the lake gets progressively shallower towards Herriots End, where the Upper River Chew enters the lake.
Chew is fortunate that it does not only rely on littoral habitat to contribute towards its productivity, as large offshore areas around False Island and the Roman Shallows grow dense weed beds in the warmer months providing further valuable habitat for insect life.