Test & Itchen: May dawn dry‑fly forecast
River Test dawns: olives size 16–18 and caddis pulses rule early May
Where and when
River Test, River Itchen and the clear Welsh Dee show the sharpest early‑morning windows. Dawn until 09:00 on warm May days is prime. Trout rise in short, hectic bouts before bright sun sends them tight to cover. Fish hold in 2–4ft over riffle edges into pool tails.
Tactics and rigs
Fish a 9–12ft tapered leader with 5lb tippet minimum when throwing bulky CDC dries. A 4–5ft dropper off the top fly is standard: nymph or caddis larva (size 12–10) below a Last Hope or small olive. Present upstream, dead‑drift then twitch for suspicious brownies.
Fly choices and timing
CDC dries: Last Hope 16–18 for Pale Watery olives. Caddis: Hawthorn 14–16 and the Black Hopper (size 14) take fish through May—roughly 60% of early season catches come on Black Hopper, Iron Blue wets and March Brown patterns. Switch to wet flies or iron blue wets in the thin light; use dry‑dropper once fish begin finning during pulses.
Local note
Chalkstreams run clear; early stealth wins. Expect short windows, quick action, and spooky browns that lock on olives and caddis in the cool hours.
Recommended: 9ft tapered leader