The River at Bywell

The river at Bywell comprises 2.5 miles (4km) of river with a fine mixture of long fast running powerful pools flowing into good tail runs along with one or two longer stretches of slower water which fish well during high water levels.

There are 12 main named pools and others during high water conditions. Fishing on the river will be on a 2-beat system with 4 rods on each beat rotating daily.

Excellent facilities for anglers

The Estate have provided 2 strategically placed and spacious wooden Fishing Huts along with parking areas, access tracks, etc.

Much of the river flows through Bywell Hall Park in total privacy. A full-time Ghillie, Gary Hillary, has joined us from the Dee, along with assistant Ghillie Chris Richardson so that each 4 rod party will have a Ghillie in attendance. Further ghillie assistance can be provided by arrangement.

In addition a substantial bank-side improvement scheme is nearing completion - clearing fallen trees and suppressive vegetation creating better access to the pools, etc.

Background to the River Tyne

For the last 25 years the river (90% double bank) has been fished by the Bywell Syndicate who took the fishing when the Tyne was still polluted at the mouth and migratory runs were minimal.

Since then the river has been cleaned up by the Environment Agency and thanks to sterling efforts by the Tyne Rivers Trust, migratory runs of Salmon, Grilse and Sea Trout have been impressive in both quality (fish of 20lbs+ are regularly caught) and quantity.

The yearly averages are impressive, (see table below) with a bumper Season in 2004 when river conditions were nigh on perfect, mainly due to the rainfall pattern along with let down of water from the Kielder dam.

The prodigious Autumn run was not quite repeated in 2005 and 2006, mainly due to low water levels. Interestingly, April 2006 showed a very welcome suggestion of a return of a Spring run, with 96 accounted for in 2006.

2007 saw extraordinarily dry conditions in April and May following a cold February and March. June and July produced unprecedented torrential rain making the river unfishable for most of the two months. The Autumn run was influenced by the huge let down of water due to a large engineering project on Kielder Dam. There are good runs of Sea Trout from June onwards in most years.

It is understood from reliable sources that the Counter at the top of the beat showed 33,000 fish passed through in 2005, 41,000 in 2006 and 30,000 in 2007.

The Future of the River Tyne

There are various projects in the pipeline inspired by the Tyne Rivers Trust and the Environment Agency for long term improvements to the Fishery. (Indeed 560,000 fry/smoults are released annually from the Kielder Hatchery).

In a normal year, Kielder lets down small amounts of water regularly, which encourages runs in even the driest months. It is a true saying on Tyne-side “if there’s water, there are fish at any time of the year in the Tyne”.

Accommodation

Sod Hall will provide accommodation for anglers.

The Lodge has 4 bedrooms (Twin/Double) with en-suite bathrooms/shower room. It is within a 5 minute walk from the river on the edge of Bywell Park.

If you'd like to book a holiday without any sporting please visit our Holiday Letting website