Cleveley Mere

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Graham Tait took the Sonik road show to the picturesque fishery of Cleveley Mere, just off the M6, 3 miles north of Garstang in Lancashire.
Heavy overnight frost and temperatures as low as -4°C, together with bright sunshine would prove to make conditions difficult for the anglers. With the biting wind picking up later in the day forcing the fish deeper, a ‘good bag’ was going to be difficult.

The 24 acre fishery can only be described as stunning! In the scenic Wyre valley with magnificent views of the fells and surrounding countryside, the area was originally gravel pits used in the construction of the nearby M6. Since then, mature woodland has now surrounded the area, adding a further dimension of beauty.

Since the present owner, Roger Burnside, took over the fishery in 2008, he has upgraded the facilities around the lake, including the superb holiday lodges with views over the lake. The fabulous ‘Grand design Huf house’ is any angler’s delight, overlooking the lake with its own private boat and facilities. A new fishing lodge and shop will be completed in the coming months.

The Sonik display stands were set up on a small peninsular of manicured grass adjacent to the ‘Huf house’ - this allowed the assembled anglers the opportunity to handle and cast with the demonstration rods.  Even the inexperienced anglers were amazed at the quality and balance of the SK3 and SK4 range, and the ease with which they could cast a line with the balanced combinations of Sonik SK3 and SK4 rods, SK4 reels and the super smooth SK3 and SK4 fly lines.

After a while the anglers set off to wet their own lines, with the knowledge that several prizes were open to them throughout the day. These included a Mercedes car available for a weekend, fully insured and fuelled, Member’s trophies, and a Sonik rod for the ‘catch a fish in three casts’ competition.

 The anglers were allowed time to settle in to the conditions, which were proving difficult, as the fish were rather illusive, due to the cold.

A number of boats anchored off the west bank, casting near to the bank, trying to intercept the cruising fish near a narrow reed bed. Perseverance paid off and it was not long before fish were being netted.

As the cold wind increased, the fish went deeper and were proving difficult to find. By now it was 1.00pm and I decided it was time to head out into the lake to give the angler’s the opportunity to try their luck in the Sonik ‘three cast’ competition.

Alec Dimmock, the fishery and estate Game keeper was to be my boatman, a colourful local character who made me laugh all day. We climbed into the immaculate boat and motored off to meet the first boat. Alec had already found out that the early fish were being caught on the old favourite ‘Cat’s Whisker’, with lots of takes being missed. I had already decided to try something different on our Sonik test outfit, making the assumption that now the fish had gone quiet and that a new colour would wake them up.
As we were using floating lines I used a 20’ leader with a size 12 short shank orange lure with twin bead eyes and a short marabou tail to entice those now illusive rainbows. I don’t like using lures with long tails as this can encourage fish to “nip” without committing themselves fully to the take. It is important to have enough tail to gain movement in the lure to create interest.

After visiting the first few boats without luck, we motored up to the wide bottomed canoe of local angler Neil McGowen, who at that time was giving instruction to his guest in the canoe. Alec held onto the canoe to stop it drifting too quickly in the now strong wind, and I advised Neil to cast out across the wind, allow time for the floating line to swing with the wind on the surface and count the fly down to a minimum of 10 feet. After a couple of practice casts Neil cast a long line out across the wind, and whilst we chatted, the wind and fly went to work. After a few slow retrieves, “fish on” and the battle began. A hard fighting rainbow brought a few expletives from Neil, and was not keen to come to the net. After three or four good runs the SK3 took charge of the situation and brought the 2lb plus rainbow to the net, much to Neil’s pleasure. Neil commented he could ‘feel every twist and turn’ of the fish, such was the refinement in the tip section of the rod.
The fish was returned and the line cast again, Neil was still excited and turned to talk to Alec and I when he missed a strong take, he could not stop laughing. Fortunately for Neil, this fish was the one that would win him the SONIK SK3 rod at the end of the day.

We motored on to the other boats without any further luck and decided to call it a day as the wind was getting too strong.


At 5.00pm all the boats came back to the covered boathouse and everyone proceeded to enjoy drinks and an excellent buffet back in Huf house lodge, where the prizes were awarded.

This had been a great day for all concerned, and Roger and his team at Cleveley Mere are to be congratulated on a fantastic fishing venue. One thing is for certain, I will be back!


Graham Tait.