About Us

I’ve been fly fishing UK rivers for over 12 years. I didn’t start as a natural — my first season was a long series of blank days, broken tippet, and fish that rose confidently to everything except what I was throwing at them.

Slowly, it clicked. The water temperature. The hatches. Where the fish actually hold in winter versus spring. Why drag kills more opportunities than wrong flies. Why fine tippet catches more fish than confidence.

I’m based in the north of England and fish the Eden, Ribble, Wharfe, and Ure through the seasons. I’ve also spent time on the chalk streams in Hampshire — the Test and the Itchen — which gave me a completely different education in selective trout and presentation.

I set up NW Fly Fishing Academy because most of the fly fishing content online is either too vague to be useful or written for conditions that don’t exist on UK rivers in November. I wanted to write about what actually works — specific patterns, specific techniques, specific gear — on real UK rivers in real UK weather.

Everything on this site comes from time on the water. If I recommend a fly pattern or a piece of kit, it’s because it’s caught fish for me or for anglers I know and trust. Nothing gets recommended because it pays well to recommend it.

If you fish UK rivers for trout and grayling, this site is for you.

— Rob