The Midlands Evidence

Three Reservoirs. Three Seasons. Hard Evidence.

Draycote, Eyebrook, and Thornton — three Midlands reservoirs operated by the Fly Fish group — ran stocking trials over three seasons (2020-2022). The results show what's possible when you have proper catch data to work with.

The Problem

Large 2lb fish stocked in summer (June-August, water temps 19-23°C) had poor catchability — rod averages of just 0.5-1.0, with only 20-30% of stock being caught. Fish were being paid for but not caught. Money was going into the water and not coming back.

The Solution

By analysing catch data against conditions, they switched to smaller fish (1lb 12oz-1lb 14oz) during warm months. Catchability jumped to rod averages of 3.4-4.0+, with 80-90% of stock being caught.

£2,925 Annual Saving (75 acres)

3.7 Rod Average (was 2.5)

80-90% Stock Caught (was 20-30%)

£14,625+ 5-Year Savings

The Lesson: You Can Only Act on Data You Have

The Fly Fish group could only make this decision because they had detailed catch records — species, size, method, conditions — across three waters over three years. That data revealed a pattern that intuition alone would never have found.

Most fisheries don't have that data. Catch returns are patchy, inconsistent, and arrive too late to act on. That's exactly the problem the It's Catching! diary solves. Structured, real-time, weather-matched catch data — flowing from your anglers' phones to your dashboard, automatically, from day one.

Rod Average: The KPI That Drives Your Business

Every fishery manager knows rod average is the number that matters. It's what anglers talk about, what they compare, and what brings them back. The diary improves rod average from both sides.

Smarter Anglers Catch More

Personalised fly and method advice means your visitors arrive better prepared. They're fishing the right fly, in the right spot, at the right time. Fewer blanks, higher rod average — without stocking a single extra fish.
Same Rod Average, Lower Stocking Cost

If your anglers are catching more efficiently, you can maintain your rod average while reducing stocking — or improve it while holding costs flat. Either way, the economics shift in your favour. The Midlands trials proved it: better-informed fishing extracted 80-90% of stock vs 20-30% before.
The Economics Are Simple

A 75-acre water saved nearly £3,000 a year by adjusting stocking based on data. Scale that to your water, your stocking budget, your seasons. The diary pays for itself — and then some.

Get the Data Your Fishery Needs

Free to start. The diary does the work. You make the decisions.

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Three Reservoirs. Three Seasons. Hard Evidence.

The Problem

The Solution

The Lesson: You Can Only Act on Data You Have

Rod Average: The KPI That Drives Your Business

Smarter Anglers Catch More

Same Rod Average, Lower Stocking Cost

The Economics Are Simple

Get the Data Your Fishery Needs