The River

From its source in the moorlands of the Cambrian Mountains, the Towy - the Welsh name is Tywi pronounced much the same way as the English version - flows in a south easterly direction for a distance of some 70 miles through the towns of Llandovery and Llandeilo before entering the sea at Llanstephan - some ten miles below Carmarthen. The Towy drains a catchment of over 500 square miles. Llyn Brianne Resevoir, ten miles from its source, was completed in 1972 and regulates the flow to compensate for water abstraction at Nantgaredig in its lower reaches.

Above Llandovery the river is characterised by rocky gorges and tree-lined pools. On its middle reaches this powerful river with its broad racing glides and deep pools is ideal for night fishing. There, the wading is mainly on gravel, and in many places fishing from the bank is possible. From its estuary to a few miles above Carmarthen town the river is tidal. Here the angler has to be careful of slippery mud banks and strong tidal flows.

Through its entire length the Towy is well supplied with a number of spawning and nursery streams. The Cothi being its main tributary is an important salmon and sea trout river in its own right. The Bran joins the Towy near Llandovery. Joining the river at Llangadog, the Sawdde flows off the Black Mountain, the wettest area of the catchment. Another major tributary is the Gwili which joins within the tidal reaches.

Good catch statistics for the Towy are available for both salmon and sea trout. The sea trout catches are greater than any other river in England and Wales. The number of declared rod-caught salmon and sea trout for the past twelve years are as follows:

	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006
SALMON	465	147	380	698	523	559	322	408	356	420	342	390	432	795	507	631
SEA TROUT	3106	1379	2821	4946	2300	1638	2462	4593	6742	4134	4269	4554	4175	2587	4698	2037

The Towy, like most west-coast rivers in the British Isles is a "spate river". Experienced anglers know that salmon fishing on small, spate rivers can be good in a wet year and poor in a dry year. However, sea trout, unlike salmon, will run the river from the estuary in the absence of spates and will continue to migrate upstream even on drought conditions. Our anglers can enjoy worthwhile fishing during periods of low water.

The river has a small run of spring salmon in early May, followed by summer salmon on the first flood of July. Grilse will enter the Towy in early August with main runs of autumn salmon starting to appear in September.

The towy is blessed with good runs of sea trout in the spring, with some in the river from its opening day on the first of April. Prolific runs of sea trout will come with the high tides of May and June and will continue through to the autumn months.

Very large sea trout are a Welsh speciality, and the Towy has more than its fair share. Every year sea trout of double figures are caught regularly and the occasional one of nearly 20 lbs. will appear, and it is only a matter of time before the record for the largest British rod-caught sea trout returns to Wales!!