In between all of the river fishing I often participate in a little 'stockie bashing' on a local stillwater of which I hold a season ticket.Now I'm not the biggest fan of artificial fisheries but if they are done properly then they can generate quite a bit of pleasure and this place is a little gem. Its called Brockhill Farm Trout Pools and is situated between Redditch & Bromsgrove in Worcestershire.
There are two spring fed pools that measure approximately three acres in total, built in 1991 the pools are well established and are surrounded by pretty countryside and attract plenty of wildlife.
The pools are open from the beginning of March to the end of November and can fish well all through, although at the height of the summer they can suffer from a lack of oxygen and fishing becomes very difficult.
They are regularly stocked with good quality, hard fighting fish with a minimum stock size of 1 1/2lbs, going by experience I would say the average size is around the 2 1/2lb - 3lb mark.
They also allow 'catch & release' which for people like me who are fishing for the sport is essential and offers good value for money.
As I work locally I can just pop down for a couple of hours when I've finished, the great thing is that you rarely get more than a couple of people down there in the week and often you can have it all to yourself.
This evening I managed to get there for 5.30pm, there was a stiff breeze whipping across the pools and no signs of any surface activity so on went the intermediate line and a deadly (secret) fly that has worked really well early/late season for the last couple of years. I didn't have to wait long before I saw some action and soon had a 2lb rainbow in the net.
It pays to move around a little here especially if you've had no signs of a fish and by 8.00pm it was time for me to call it a day with 5 fish for my efforts and many takes and lost fish, its certainly no comparison to stalking wild brownies in remote wales, but I must say it fills the gap very adequately!
