Watersmeet re-opens on Good FridayWork is nearing completion on a major refurbishment programme at the Watersmeet country pub following damage caused by last July's severe flooding. The venue is expected to re-open on Friday, March 21 - Good Friday. Nestling in a hollow in surrounding fields, the pub suffered damage to the floors, plasterwork, wiring and furnishings during the floods. Once the restoration and refurbishment works are completed, Watersmeet will have a completely new kitchen and bar areas. The accommodation wings at the hotel were unaffected by the flooding.

Watersmeet raises the bar to provide even better facilities Major improvements to the accommodation at Watersmeet means that all rooms now offer en-suite bathrooms with showers and toilets, colour TV and tea and coffee making facilities. The improvements include the addition or refurbishment of 15 new rooms overlooking either the main lake or gardens. Open all-year round with barbecues in the lakeside garden in summer, Watersmeet offers roaring log fires in winter and welcomes families, clubs, groups and pets. All prices quoted include Bed and Breakfast, fishing and VAT - there are no hidden charges. Weekend breaks in the existing accommodation - comprising two nights' Bed and Breakfast and three days' fishing - costs just £69.00 whilst a Midweek Break of four nights' Bed and Breakfast and five days fishing costs £129.00. Prices are per person based on twin-bedded room. Those wishing to stay over for a third night at weekends will be charged only £30 extra for the additional night. Prices for stays in the new accommodation, including the four-poster and de-luxe rooms, range from £75.00 to £89.00 per person for a Friday and Saturday night weekend break whilst mid-week breaks with accommodation from Monday to Thursday nights plus five days' fishing ranges between £144 and £178 per person. Overnight stays are available in the new accommodation at Watersmeet at a price of £45.00 for single rooms; £69.00 for a Standard Double room; £89.00 for a Four Poster and De-luxe room; and £75.00 for a Family Room. Prices include Full English or Continental breakfast or a packed lunch for early leavers. A further new addition is a five bed 'dormitory' room with bathroom aimed at groups of anglers of six. Ideal for use as a base when fishing Watersmeet, the room offers a welcome change from a bivvie and costs just £60.00 per person for a Friday to Sunday weekend break or £120.00 per person for a Monday to Thursday mid-week break based on five or more anglers sharing. For photographs of the new accommodation, please Click Here.

Take a traditional oak-beamed country freehouse pub with real ales and guest beers; a separate restaurant which serves home-cooked food and blend the two on a 10-acre wooded site with some of the best carp and tench fishing for miles around and you have the recipe for the Watersmeet Hotel and Angling Centre at Hartpury in the heart of Gloucestershire.

Whatever you want, Watersmeet is a great haunt for individual or groups of anglers or those who fancy a break which can combine angling with sightseeing, shopping or just a quite few days away from it all.

Situated on the main Gloucester to Ledbury road only 10 minutes from the M50, the Watersmeet looks like another pretty country pub at first sight. It's easy not to see Front Pool set back from the main road and, unless you wanted a drink or a bite to eat you would probably never see the Main Pool (below) at the rear, or Tench Pool set to one side amidst the trees and shrubs.

Inside the 'olde-worlde' charm is infectious. If you are looking for a picture postcard English country inn - this is it. Only the occasional angling print on the walls and the wooden carving of a 30lb Mirror Carp above the fireplace give the game away. This is an angler's hideaway through and through. Even the pools are the real thing - former claypits dug in the 1840s which had to be abandoned when they became flooded through seepage from nearby springs.

Watersmeet has been owned and run by the Ring family for 34 years, the current owners Tom and Gail Ringhaving taken it over from Tom's father 14 years ago. Now it is a retreat used by anglers and their friends and families from the Midlands, the North West and, more recently, from London and the South East. Indeed, some have been returning several times a year for as long as Tom and Gail can remember.

Fishing is reserved for residents and night-fishing is allowed. Most of the pegs are suitable for disabled anglers as the site is on one level.

One of the features in the Lounge Bar is this splendid cased 29lb 8oz Common Carp which died after spawning at the Watersmeet Hotel Lakes on 15 May 1998. Although not the largest of the Watersmeet specimen carp, owners Tom and Gail decided the fish should live on and had it professionally mounted and cased so it could continue to give pleasure to anglers and visitors alike.

It is testimony to the traditional way the pub is run that both residents and locals are equally at home at Watersmeet, indeed some of the residents have visited the Watersmeet so often that they have become what Tom describes as "part-time locals".

The bars offer an extensive range of beers and lagers as well as 'real ales' and guest beers, spirits and wines whilst a selection of food can be ordered in the bar or restaurant from either the menu or the 'Specials Blackboard'. There is also a new pool room set aside from the main bar seating area and large screen TV for those who want to enjoy that special sporting fixture or film.

When it comes to food, the choices vary greatly from traditional English to more exotic Mediterranean, Indian and Far Eastern. In addition to a range of starters there is a selection of fish main courses as well as meat, poultry and vegetarian main courses. For those looking for something lighter than a full meal, Watersmeet offers light meals, snacks and a children's menu. The wine list is constantly being updated and includes traditional French and German wines as well as selection from New World vinyards.

Food is available all day on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and from 12.00 noon until 2.30pm and 7.00pm until 9.30pm Mondays to Thursdays.

Since taking over Watersmeet, Tom and Gail have implemented a steady programme of improvements to the amenities and accommodation and from summer 2007 will provide 21 rooms to include twin-bedded, double and family rooms. All of the new rooms have en-suites with recently refurbished showers and toilets.

The double rooms are ideal either for couples or families looking for a break which combines the best of all worlds - a pleasant country inn, decent food, a friendly atmosphere in which to relax and the opportunity to get stuck into some big fish.

All rooms are contained within two buildings which overlook the pub garden and waters - indeed some are so close to the waterside that you could fish from your window... no long treks to your swim or for a beer!

All the main accommodation is set around a patio and garden area at the rear of the inn (right) which on sunny days is an ideal spot to relax with a drink and unwind. With a short frontage to Main Pool, you can even get a bit of fishing in at the same time!

The Watersmeet offers great value special Weekend and Midweek breaks for anglers. The Weekend Breaks include three days fishing, two nights' accommodation and full English breakfasts whilst the Midweek Breaks cover five days fishing, four nights accommodation and full English breakfasts. Both breaks include free night fishing which is available only to residents. For details of prices please see the article 'Watersmeet raises the bar to provide even better facilities' at the top of the page.

Main Pool, at two acres in size, is the largest of the three and is well-known locally for its large head of double-figure carp - up to 30lbs. It has also been a renowned tench water for many years with the largest verified specimen currently standing at 9lbs 8oz.

At the end of Sugust 2002, a 28lb fully scaled Mirror was taken on a hair-rig fished Scopex boilie at the top end of the lake and was followed within a few days by a 24lbs Mirror taken on squid flavour boilie.

Add to this pike over 20lbs, roach to 1lb 8oz and rudd which provide plenty of sport on the surface when the bigger fish aren't feeding, and you can be reasonably sure of having a decent day.

The water holds about 25 comfortable pegs and work is currently underway increasing the number of staged swims to cater more for disabled anglers and give all visitors more comfort. A nice feature of Main Pool is that the pegs are separated from each other by lush vegetation so, unless you choose one of the double pegs, you rarely see other anglers when fishing.

Deepest at the Hotel bank where it is just over six feet, the lake bed shelves gradually along its length to the far end where it averages three feet. This makes the water ideal for fishing the rod.

Boilies fished on the bottom are the most commonly used bait for the carp whilst early in the season floating crust is also very effective. Stalking the carp can also give good results with many of the larger specimens being taken after anglers have dropped their bait into a mass of bubbles rising to the surface. As with many waters, a lot of fish are taken in the margins, particularly near the overhanging trees.

Just under an acre in size, the pool is irregularly shaped and has a fairly even depth of between three and four feet and provides excellent sport. The water was stocked with about 4,000 roach and rudd in 2001and these are now coming on form, providing ideal sport for the pole, although those going for the bigger tench may prefer to stay with the rod.

Because of its unform depth, anglers are just as likely to catch whichever peg they choose. As the pool is shallow, it reacts quickly to changes in temperatue and is best fished with the float.

Most popular techniques for the large tench and bream are those straight from the text-books, fishing on the bottom with bread, maggots, casters, worm or sweetcorn all being extremely effective. Other baits such as cheese and pastes also work well on their day.

Developed as a general fishery, Front Pool contains carp into double figures, some good tench and bream as well as a good head of roach and rudd.

Regarded by Tom Ring as the easiest of the three pools to fish, he says it is particularly suited to fishing the sliding float on the rod although the favoured technique is to fish the ledge which runs about three feet out from the bank where the depth is about three-and-a-half feet before the banks shelves steeply to the bottom.

His other tip is not to fish too light. "A lot of carp tend to be caught on the shelf whereas the tench and bream stay more in the deep water. However, fish hooked on the ledge tend to bolt for the snags and the banks so it pays to turn them as quickly as you can," he said.

Watersmeet now has its own website where you can keep up to date with latest developments at the venue. To be found at www.watersmeet-hotel-angling.co.uk, the site will shortly include details of latest offers on accommodation and news about the fishing.

Anglers travelling from the North or Midlands will find it easiest to take the M5 and then Junction 2 off the M50. Heading south towards Gloucester, Watersmeet is about 10-15 minutes down this road on the right.

Those approaching from the South or from London along the M4 should take the M5 northwards and come off at Junction 12 or 11a. Take the Ring Road around Gloucester, heading north west on the A417. Watersmeet is on the left five miles out of Gloucester.

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