Ullswater

Ullswater has long been renowned for the quality of its trout fishing. The lake features excellent hatches of early spring olives and boasts a strong mayfly hatch. It was once said that Ullswater trout, these beautiful wild fish, averaged about three to the pound, but that was in an era when such fish were nearly always regarded as table fare. Once exceeding the legal size limit of eight inches, they were typically dispatched, taken home, and consumed. Nowadays, a more considerate approach is evident, with sustainability and conservation at the forefront of many anglers’ minds, leading to most wild trout being returned or at least selectively harvested. Consequently, there is an increase in the overall size of our wild trout, and Ullswater is no exception. Fish now often reach a more notable size, and while truly large specimens remain a rare catch, there are good numbers of half- and three-quarter-pound fish available to anglers.

The best of the trout fishing tends to be early or late season. Trout will be found feeding in the shallow water early in the season and move out into the deeper water during the summer months.