Parley

The lowdown

• This is a decent chunk of Stour, stretching for roughly 1¼ miles near Church Lane and the River Stour Valley Way.
• The water is coarse fishing only from 16 June to 14 March, so plan around the close season. Trout and salmon are permitted in season.
• Named fish include chub, barbel, roach, dace, pike, eels and perch. A nice mixed bag, then, with plenty to keep a roving angler interested.
• For access, you’ll need a club key. Get in past the church or through the farm — there’s no entrance from New Road bridge, so don’t get caught out there.
• Church Farm is the main parking option, but it’s only available until 10pm. Staying later? Church Lane parking is recommended instead.
• Keep everything quiet and steady. The club asks anglers to arrive and leave slowly, and all gates must be shut behind you.
• Vehicles aren’t allowed down the access path. Bit of a faff, perhaps, but it keeps the approach tidy and avoids upsetting the farm.
• Watch the overhead powerlines carefully. The club recommends keeping at least 20 metres away from the cables — definitely not a place for careless rod waving.
• Fishing runs from sunrise until two hours after sunset unless you’ve got a night permit. Match bookings can also affect availability, so check before making a special trip.
• The surrounding stretch sits among the holder’s Dorset Stour venues, with West Parley and the nearby Dudsbury Weirs helping put this bit of river on the map.
• We're not sure on ticket prices for this one — check with the club or local regulations before you leave.

Methods: A mixed approach should suit it: trotting or a light feeder for the roach, dace, chub and barbel, with a bit of patience around the deeper-looking swims. Keep the tackle sensible around the powerlines, and switch to pike or perch tactics where the venue rules and conditions allow.

Access & tickets

Arrange membership or ask about guest tickets through Ringwood & District Anglers Association, and make sure you have the required club key. Public day tickets aren’t advertised here; the club’s ordinary day-ticket offering is restricted to Throop and Lower Stour.

Fish the club names

chub, barbel, roach, pike, perch, eel

Key rules

• Coarse fishing is from 16 June to 14 March.
• Trout and salmon fishing is permitted in season.
• Fishing is from sunrise until two hours after sunset unless covered by a night permit.
• A club key is required for access.
• Guest tickets are available.
• Shut all gates.
• Vehicles are not permitted down the access path.
• Arrive and leave slowly and quietly.
• Keep no closer than 20 metres from overhead powerlines.
• Match bookings may affect availability.

River level

Where it is