River Wear Morning Briefing
River Wear above Durham: Weardale dawn registers 11°C
Weardale's upper beats around Frosterley and Stanhope show clear water and a steady 11°C at first light. Flow is modest after light upland drizzle; riffles that usually clean over gravel are running at the usual shallow 0.8–1.2 m metre band where fish read the seams.
Bank reports put brown trout in prime condition along limestone runs, sea trout pushing from deeper pools into current seams, and occasional spring salmon holding in the tail of deep glides. Low, clear riffles are the pulse today—these are the places to fish tight to the gravel margins, not long across wide flats.
What to tie and present
For nymph-windows on the Wear, match the depth to the riffle: short leaders, tight indicator, light split shot. Three patterns to have ready for low, clear water are: Jig-head Pheasant Tail in #16–18 for precision, Czech Nymph (Hog Scampi) in #14–16 for searching faster seams, and Tungsten Pink Shrimp in #16–18 for low-light micro-pulses near margins.
Wading boots with felt or sticky soles still matter on the limestone beds; keep casts short, drifts natural, and favour the seams where two currents meet. Expect feeding to pick up as temperatures nudge toward mid-teens later in the month; put the nymphs where trout and sea trout will encounter them as they quarter the flow.
Gravel glides and off-weed margins above Durham remain the productive lies; a precise strip through a 1 m glide often produces the morning pulse that makes the day worth remembering.
Recommended: durable wading boots