From Penrith and all the way upstream to Kirkby Stephen the Eden finally waves goodbye to the salmon angler and becomes the playground of those in search of brown trout. Much of the river in the upper reaches is in the hands of local angling associations and offers mile after mile of accessible fishing for both residents and visitors.

The character of the river gradually changes too, becoming smaller and with a more clearly defined sequence of runs interspersed with long flat pools.Good fishing can be found even above Kirkby Stephen where the river begins its journey from the moorland of Wild Boar Fell

Some stocking does take place but most of the trout are wild stock. Even in the upper reaches the Eden is still a fertile river and the average size is high with fish of a pound to a pound and half common. Bigger fish to three or four pounds are recorded every year. Grayling are also present in numbers from Kirkby Stephen downstream and again some very good specimens are taken. Salmon do eventually arrive but as coloured fish very late in the season.

Photos by Matt Eastham