The Inside Line Autumn/Winter 2025

Welcome to our Autumn/Winter 2025 edition of The Inside Line! We bring you expert resources, practical tips, and informed advice—all specifically designed to help you navigate and master the colder months. We’re guiding you through late autumn, winter, and even the often-challenging conditions of early spring.

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Fishing Reports

Fishing during October has been a joy to behold. Good conditions have produced consistent action for us. Dry fly, nymph and streamer techniques all produced. Looking forward to November and December, we anticipate exciting action with fry feeding trout, after the roach had an epic spawning season during spring. Terrestrials will remain very useful while it remains mild and trees continue to shed their leaves. If you are waterside when conditions are right, you can enjoy the thrill of seeing a trout eat your fly of the top any month of the year. Read the full report and more tips here.

You can access historical reports right here for further reading.

5 Winter Fly Fishing Tips

Whether you are grayling fishing on rivers, trout fishing on lakes or pike fishing on either this winter, these 5 tips will help you.

Winter Projects

Back in 2019 I wrote a feature laying out my plans to transform fly casting with my left (non dominant) arm. You can read it here. I feel it is about time I reviewed the outcome of that project, so here we go. By following my own advice, as I would coach others, I was able during a 3 month period, practicing 15 minutes, twice per week, to largely achieve my objective. What does this mean? My core, basic, overhead and roll casts are as good with my left as my right arm (probably slightly better, that’s another story for another day). Similarly a whole range of “presentation” and “spey” casts are of equal standard. The one area where I did not pursue further development on the left side was distance casting and hauling. I can make it work to a degree, but it it needs more work. The thing is, I don’t really do that much fishing at big distances these days, so it’s not a high priority. I’m more than happy with what I’ve achieved, it’s added so much dexterity to my own fishing. I can easily drop a fly into situations many others cannot. That means fish in those areas seeing less angling activity, hence being less wary and more susceptible to my presentations.

So what is this winter’s project? For me, it is practice with the double handed rod, in preparation of renewing my pursuit of big spring salmon. For Andrea, she is enjoying fishing and fly tying again, having been restricted during the last 2 years by elbow and back injuries. It’s great to be fishing together, regularly again. The question is, what will you do?

Essential Accessories

Fish location or more precisely, location of “active” fish, should be the number 1 priority of ALL anglers. Nothing else matters, if where you are casting holds no fish! So these 2 accessories are more important to your fly fishing, than rods or flies. Bonus point, this holds true even when water is coloured.😉

More “Winter” Fly Fishing Tips

• Winter fly fishing podcast with Steve.
• A typical day! Join Steve in this video for a day fishing lakes during Winter.
• Use our online coaching tool (it’s free) to help identify your winter project!

Want to Join Us Waterside?

Steve coaches 1-2-1 and groups throughout the year. Find out more here.

Best Fishes!

Steve & Andrea