Upper Farm Fishery

05/09/2026

⚠️ Please read: an important message about braid, leadcore and fish welfare

This week one of our regular season ticket holders landed a carp with a hook and length of leadcore still embedded in its mouth — almost certainly from someone fishing tackle that isn't allowed here, possibly without realising it.

We're not sharing this to point fingers. In nearly all the cases where Emma rig checks in the tackle shop, the angler genuinely didn't know what they had on their rig or reel was leadcore or braid rather than mono or fluorocarbon. It's an easy mistake for anglers to make — but the outcome for the fish is serious, so we wanted to try to help everyone get it right.

The rule: no braid in any form is allowed at Upper Farm Fishery — that includes braided mainline, braided leaders, coated braid, hooklengths, and leadcore. Only mono or fluorocarbon are permitted.

How to tell what you've actually got, if you're not sure:

🔹 Mono — a single smooth strand, usually tinted green or brown, noticeably stretchy when you pull it between your fingers.

🔹 Fluorocarbon — also a single strand, but stiffer and denser than mono, with very little stretch. A simple test: drop a length in a glass of water — fluorocarbon sinks fast, mono usually floats or sinks slowly.

🔹 Braid — look closely and you'll see it's woven from multiple fine fibres, not one smooth strand. It has almost zero stretch when pulled taut — mono and fluoro both give a little, braid doesn't give at all.

🔹 Leadcore — the one that trips people up most. It's a thick, heavy, fabric-like braided sheath with an actual lead wire core inside — noticeably heavier and stiffer than anything else in your tackle box for its thickness. Usually sold as short pre-made leaders rather than on a spool. If you're at all unsure whether what you're using is leadcore, please ask.

If you're not 100% sure what's on your reel or rig, bring it into the tackle shop before you cast off. Emma's always happy to take a look and help you get set up correctly — no judgement, and it takes two minutes.

This isn't about catching people out. It's about making sure every fish you are lucky enough to catch at Upper Farm Fishery goes back safely. Thank you for helping us look after them. 🐟

03/09/2026

Just a reminder to all our junior anglers here at Upper Farm Fishery, if you are between 14 & 15 years of age and would like to fish here during daylight hours, WITHOUT adult supervision, you must have completed 2 sessions under adult supervision, demonstrated competent angling and fish-handling ability, we have met your parent/guardian and your parent/guardian has filled out one of these forms.
A link to download the form is in the comments below

02/09/2026

It's amazing how quickly dissolved oxygen levels can drop in a pond, putting fish health and wellbeing at risk.

As anyone who regularly follows or visits Upper Farm Fishery will know, Emma and I take great pride in maintaining the fishery, which includes checking dissolved oxygen levels and regular supplementary feeding of the fish (Emma takes full credit for the feeding).

Yesterday the Dissolved Oxygen levels were great. Before Emma even threw in the first scoop of food this morning, she could see and smell a difference in the water.

A quick test with our Handy Polaris Dissolved Oxygen Meter showed that we had indeed had an oxygen crash overnight (even with our diffuser aerators running 24x7 on both ponds). So we immediately switched on the Force 7s, which have been running since first thing this morning, and oxygen levels are now back to the minimum level we'd expect to be operating at. These will stay on until the levels get to 7mg/L.

Water quality and dissolved oxygen was something that Andrew Ellis from AE Fisheries instilled into us when we first took over the lake back in 2014 and a Dissolved Oxygen Meter was one of our first purchases, followed by aeration equipment. The original DO meter failed this year, so we are now on our second meter - that's how important that single piece of equipment is!

It's by regular testing and understanding the water that we were able to take immediate corrective action to prevent what could have led to a major and heartbreaking fish kill incident on the lake.

I'm pleased to report that anglers have said the lake has been fishing well today with the additional aeration in place."

Anglers who know me know that I'm a techie and I'm currently working on a project that will allow us to measure dissolved oxygen, saturation, pH and water temperature every minute of every day and automatically fire up the aerators whenever we need them, rather than relying on manual readings and manual intervention of the aerators.

Expect to see some new probes floating in the pond in the very near future.

Tight lines.

Gary (Owner & Bailiff).

24/08/2026

Just a reminder that Trinity Outdoors the onsite tackle shop at Upper Farm Fishery is a completely seperate business to the lake/fishery.

There is a maggot shortage at the moment and maggots are out of stock until this coming weekend (at the earliest). They have ordered extra worm stocks for anyone looking for live bait.

To check on stocks, please contact Trinity Outdoors directly on 07990 515917 or email them at [email protected]. Opening times on on their website

Trinity Outdoors is a family run business in the heart of the Chilterns. We are a camping and fishing shop retailing in Tents, Camping Accessories, Camping Equipment, Fishing tackle, Fishing Bait and fishing accessories

13/08/2026

Big news for our young anglers! 🎣

We're excited to announce the launch of our Upper Farm Fishery Junior Angling Programme — giving competent, experienced 14 & 15 year olds the opportunity to fish at Upper Farm Fishery unaccompanied, for the first time.

This isn't just a box-ticking exercise. To qualify, junior anglers need to have fished with us at least twice under adult supervision and been assessed by our team on casting, playing/landing, safe unhooking and handling, and general bank safety. Parents then complete a consent and safety process with us in person at the tackle shop.

A few key points for parents and guardians:
✅ Strictly daylight hours only — 8am-8pm (or sunset) in summer, sunrise-sunset in winter
✅ Mandatory check-in/check-out at the tackle shop or with our Bailiff every visit
✅ Full safety equipment checklist (phone, whistle, first aid, suitable clothing & footwear)
✅ CCTV monitoring across key areas of the fishery
✅ Aligned with Angling Trust Safeguarding Policy

We know how much it means to junior anglers to take that next step in their fishing journey with a bit more independence — and we've built this programme to make sure it's done safely and responsibly.

If your 14 or 15 year old is a regular and you'd like to find out more, pop into the tackle shop for a chat. 🎣

Full details are available in the consent form under "What age can my child fish unsupervised?" question in our Fishery FAQs 👇 (link in comments)

07/08/2026

It's fri-yaaaaaaaay!!!!
Graham's Pond is almost fully booked with only Peg 4 free.
Tony's pond still has plenty of space with no one booked in to fish that side at the moment. Fish move freely between Grahams and Tonys Ponds.

Saturday the 8th we have plenty of space across both sides at the moment.

We do advise pre booking as we can get very busy.

05/08/2026

It's been 42 days since our weather stations last detected any measurable rainfall way back on 23rd June. It may only have been 0.4mm, but it was a pleasant surprise to wake up and see wet ground and a few puddles this morning.

01/08/2026

You never quite know when and where the EA are going to turn up, so remember to keep a copy of your UK Rod license in your kit bag.

01/08/2026

Did you know Upper Farm Fishery now has its own catch reporting system? 📊🎣

Anglers have already started to log their catches since launching a couple of weeks ago — sharing everything from personal bests to a great day on the lake! We want to see everything, not just the big fish!

Next time you visit us, why not log your own catch on our new system? It's also a great way to see what's been coming out of the lake and it just might help with your next session too.

Haven't fished with us yet? Now's a great time to come and find out what all the fuss is about! 🎣

link in the comments 👇

31/07/2026

Just an FYI
Saturday we only have pegs 07 & 08 free on Saturday the 1st August.
Peg 08 must be booked by 2 people as it is a double peg.
On Tony's pond we have pegs 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19 free at the moment.
Sunday the 2nd of August we only have pegs 07 available on Graham's Pond.
All pegs on Tony's pond are currently empty of bookings.